SXSW Day Three & Four

Ed Sheeran
Aside from holding the title of My Favorite Ginger, Ed Sheeran is also one of my favorite indie discoveries of my life (and of this blog). What makes him great isn't just his voice, but his lyricism as well as his flow. That's right. His flow, because believe it or not, the guy can rap something fierce. Don't believe me? Check out his live version of "You Need Me, I Don't Need You" sometime. Live, the song is like 15 minutes long and features freestyle and a mean cover of "In Da Club." Of course, many of his songs are much longer when played live because he adds just so many more elements to them ("Give Me Love," my personal favorite, tends to clock in at around 10 minutes long). And you wanna know what is MOST impressive about Mr. Sheeran? The fact that he does it all on his own. Yeah, that's right. When he performs it's him, his guitar and a loop pedal.

Catch them again: Ed Sheeran performs at 9:15 PM at Austin City Music Hall on March 17.




(Credit to bopit101)


Go Radio
If you're like me, your favorite part about Mayday Parade was the huskier voice of Jason Lancaster. Which means that when he left, you were kind of heartbroken. Don't worry, I understand you. Luckily, Lancaster couldn't stay away from the music business and started his own band, Go Radio. I knew Go Radio before speaking with them and getting to enjoy a little acoustic set from them on their tour bus, but I didn't know enough to know that they were some really cool dudes. Not only that, but Jason's voice is just so raw and powerful and it just has that edge to give you goosebumps. That being said, their full band performances do not disappoint as all the boys just have such a great presence and great chemistry together. If you just wanna have a good time and really get into the music, these guys are the ones for you.

Catch them again: Unfortunately, they only had one SXSW showcase. Catch them on The Lucky Street Tour instead :)




(Check out the original post on Rock Edition)


Breathe Carolina 
I knew the name Breathe Carolina before seeing them at the Fearless Records Showcase, but if we're being honest, I had never listened to them aside from when I played their songs on Tap Tap. So I wasn't sure what to expect out of them when I saw them. But knowing their style, I should have known that things would have turned into the massive dance party that they ended up being. There were lights. There was smoke. They managed to get the crowd moving in a way I haven't seen a band do in quite a long time. Seriously. And they had just stepped off a plane and gotten there a few hours beforehand. Also, surprisingly enough, I knew a lot more songs than I knew I knew. That all being said, if there is any band that I have ever seen that is going to make you dance, and not even care if you look a damn fool, this is that band.

Catch them again: They are one of the headliners for the AP showcase on March 17.




The Used
Now The Used is NOT a new band. Not anywhere close to being an old band. In fact, I remember buying their second album in 8th grade. You read that right. EIGHTH GRADE. And that was their second album. So yeah, they've been around for awhile. Of course, that is in no way to diminish the fact that they are wonderful and deserve any and all attention they get. With that being said, the performance I got to see by them was not an ordinary performance. I was lucky enough to witness their acoustic set during the AP showcase and it was stunning. Never before have I been so sweaty and sore after an acoustic show, but that's exactly what happened. (I had sweated so much in fact that my shirt I was wearing was still wet two days after setting it out to dry.) You see, even while performing their songs acoustic, Bert McCracken and Quinn Allman still commanded the crowd's undivided attention. Now, imagine if had been the full band going full out. All the more reason to see them!

Catch them again: Unfortunately their AP showcase set was their last one at SXSW, but catch them on Warped Tour!