Tales from South By Southwest
Local musician blogs about life on mini-tour in Texas
March 9, 2007
Hello, goodbye
Let's get straight to the introductions here: My name is Glenn Yoder. I sing and play guitar and piano in the local group Cassavettes. In another shameless plug, I also manage the band independently, and write about the successes and failures on
my own blog. I have worked at the Globe in various capacities for the past three years as I made my way through college. So, when Cassavettes decided to head back to our native Texas to lurk around in the shadows of South By Southwest and do a mini-tour, it was natural for me to start blogging about the "musician's experience." This was grand news to me, because now I don't have to walk that fine line between being an unethical journalist and an overzealous musician. I can apparently talk about Cassavettes as much as I wish! But before I realized that I foolishly asked Joan Anderman and Sarah Rodman if they wanted any original reporting from me at SXSW. Then, I put it together -- "Oh wait, they're the pros here." My bad. So, that's that. Hello, nice to meet you.
Anyhow, tonight is the eve of our departure for Texas. It's a sort of homecoming. Three of the four members of the band, myself included, grew up in northeastern Texas, about 40 minutes from Dallas. When I was in high school, I once ventured south to Austin for SXSW but I've never played the festival. Actually, I haven't played anything close to it. But what I learned on that trip is crucial to what I hope makes this trip a success: There are A&R reps literally everywhere. We saw bands play in every nook and cranny of the city, from clubs and street corners to record stores and Urban Outfitters. And the swag, ahh, the swag. So, obviously, my top priority while packing tonight was to cram as many free CDs as I could fit into my bag. You never know who you'll run into, so the plan is to canvas the town. Wish us luck.
The whole thing promises to be an eye-opening affair, if nothing else. It's valuable "tour experience," something we haven't yet had the opportunity to fully test out as I finish school (we've just made short jaunts around the northeast primarily). But here, we're playing several shows -- Denton on Sunday, San Antonio on Tuesday, Austin for the remainder of the work-week, and Waco on Saturday. I'll be writing as we go, and hopefully I'll get some video and maybe audio working, too.
So, for now, I'm getting everything squared away and making sure we have everything we need when we reach home base. But we'll miss Boston while we're gone, that's for sure. This city's been really good to us. Just today, in fact, we landed a big headlining slot at the Middle East Downstairs on July 7 with some of our favorite bands, Three Day Threshold, Girls Guns & Glory, and Jason Anderson.
You gotta love Boston. This is a city that properly kisses you goodbye on your way out the door.
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March 10, 2007
If we're gonna do it, we're gonna do it crazy
We have arrived! I forgot how big Texas' sky is, and how much I love just driving with no particular location in mind. My boyhood town has sadly developed most of the rural parts I remember, but that's the way it goes, I guess. On the plus side, it was 87 degrees when we got in, so we spent a fair bit of the day shirtless, playing a game our bassist invented years ago, and I'm fairly certain we found a cult in the countryside. Pretty nutty. Anyhow, today, most of the day was spent at the airport, arriving first then returning to pick up various band members and stragglers as they made their way to Dallas/Ft. Worth. From here, we'll get a van and equipment and head south Tuesday. But first, Cassavettes has a big show tomorrow, which has been rumored to have a fair-sized crowd.
Our bass player Scott and I were seated next to each other on the plane ride here. This gave us plenty of time to talk through the important issues: growing "tour beards," coming up with a motto for this trip (see this blog's subject line), and reminiscing about old Saturday Night Live skits, much to the chagrin of those seated around us, I'm sure. Either way, we also had a chance to talk about the state of the band, an imperative before you play a string of a few shows. Once our drummer Matt arrived, we were able to talk about potential songs we'd like to get to on this mini-tour. Matt revealed he's extremely excited about the new songs we're playing this go-round, which is always uplifting. It shows we're all hitting on the same page at the right time. An important job in organizing the group's thoughts is to make sure we're collectively focusing on the same goals, both short-term and long-term. For instance, the goal of this trip is to make an impression and have a good time. Relatively simple, yet harder to execute than you may think. We have to be hitting on all cylinders and to all have our hearts into what we're putting forth. I know it's simple in theory, but getting four heads to meld into a common goal is the most common and frequent struggle a band faces. Therefore, I think it's promising that we're all not putting too much pressure on making this trip into more than we should; we're just riding it and seeing what happens.
Today I got a call from old pal, the affable Jake Brennan, who has taken a different route to get to SXSW -- he's driving down a couple other bands' equipment, like Buffalo Tom. He asked if we needed anything brought down, which would have been perfect, if only we'd known sooner. Either way, we decided to meet up in Austin for a beer and some tunes. I'm actually planning to seek out a number of locals down there, in between doing our best to hit the streets. In sadder news, I found out that local legend, and producer of our last album, Jabe Beyer is officially moving to Nashville in May. While I'm sad to see Boston lose yet another great musician, I wish him all the luck in the world.
But we've got some pressing issues to sort through. For now, I've just got to track down some equipment we're without (a keyboard and some drums), find another means of transport from Dallas down south, and find a place for everyone to sleep tonight. In fact, I'm lucky enough I found a place to blog! But, hey, you make time for what's important.
Posted by gyoder at 11:47 PM
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March 12, 2007
One for the memory bank
I feel kind of strange and exposed being the only one blogging so far. But then again, SXSW doesn't start for another couple days, so it makes sense that I should entertain in the interim with wild stories of the road. So, here goes...
Tonight, Cassavettes played a headlining set at Rubber Gloves in Denton, a legendary club in this town that's as cozy as it is familiar. I've been seeing shows there since I started going to shows, but I've only played there once -- a solo show two years ago. Tonight easily topped that. In fact, tonight I'd say was in my top three Cassavettes shows of all time (my short list: 1) Cassavettes' anniversary show at the Middle East, July 11, 2006; 2) TT the Bear's Place, April 2006 or Rodfest, Paradise Rock Club, Jan. 19. 2007; 3) Rubber Gloves, March 11, 2007). The crowd was lively, the place was comfortable, and the drinks were flowing. We played with Boston's own, The Sterns, a fine band of fine gentlemen who have a fine taste for fine drinks. In fact, it was Emeen's 23rd birthday, and considering he was celebrating it with us in our hometown, I made sure he was properly taken care of. But seriously, these guys are a hard-touring machine. I really have a lot of respect for what they're doing. So, after getting them properly fed at Steak & Shake, we found some places for them to sleep tonight to ensure they make it to Austin.
One of the things I was really looking forward to about these Texas shows are the lax set times. In Boston, everything is on a proper schedule (which is awesome because it keeps things running smoothly, ensuring most folks get their money's worth before the last T departs), but here, there are no trains to catch (also cool). There are no limits about how late you can play. So, we took some liberties with the set, and went for a robust 12-song lineup. It even included an impromptu surprise: Before the show, a young woman came up to me and told me she went to the New England Conservatory and that we had a mutual friend (and a mutual love of Pete & Pete DVDs). After some talking, I found out she's a viola player, now attending the nearby University of North Texas. I told her we have a song with a violin part, and if she was willing to learn its two simple parts, it'd be a real treat to get her onstage. Much to her credit, she learned it in less than 30 minutes and jumped into the mix, joining Scott and I on a rare live version of "Set Free." We'd never tried it before, and it was pretty cool to give it a shot. But the whole night was awesome, beginning to end. It's one of those times when you're onstage and don't want the night to end. Luckily, when you're playing a dozen songs (one of which is nearly 10 minutes long), it doesn't really feel like it's ending any time soon. I'll try to get some videos and pictures up ASAP. Until then, it's time to sleep.
SET LIST: Carolyn, Don't Leave Like This / Shotgun Wedding / Debts / Trouble From The Start / Like Secrets Beneath / Set Free / The Nadir / Loose Lips / On The Lam / We Could Be Solo Acts / Lightning In A Bottle / It's Gonna Be Alright
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March 13, 2007
Not yet resting on our laurels
This night comes to an end with us watching a video of last night's performance, courtesy of Gene and John McCullagh. Man, looking back, I was not exaggerating how fun last night was. It was just one of those special moments for the band. I hope to get some videos up soon, but for now, we can gawk at this nice write-up and photo gallery on Mass Culture.
Today, we spent much of the day with The Sterns, coming to realize we'd actually met Emeen and Andrew before when we played with Age Rings last summer in New York City, and they were filling in. We went for burgers, and to this little local mom-and-pop shop called Guitar Center, before sending them on their way. Fear not, we'll meet again in Austin.
We ended up doing an impromptu house party in Denton tonight, which was pretty cool. There's something about doing a Monday night show in a college town during exams week that's just unsettling. It seemed like a recipe for disaster (i.e. angry neighbors and police), but alas, we pulled out a quick set of fan favorites for the local loyals, in this order: Shotgun Wedding / Loose Lips / On The Lam / Whitewashed / Shine A Light / You Better, You Better (cover)
We depart in a matter of hours for San Antonio with my main man Mike driving most of the equipment and a few friends helping get the bodies down there. We still don't have a drumset for the trip. However, we'll make it work -- we've got one coming in time for the Waco show, it appears, and the rest of the week we'll be backlining. I'm working very hard to confirm another Austin show, since our SXSW party has a limit to the amount of guests allowed and we want to make sure we can play to our fans' hearts' content.
If any Boston bands are looking for a show in Austin this week, we're trying to set something up down there. Contact us at cassavettesband@hotmail.com.
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March 13, 2007
Tuesday morning, in what seems like an eternity ago, we left Dallas for San Antonio. Normally, it'd be about a four-and-a-half hour drive, but Texas' crazy weather hit, and we were caught in some serious downpour. As a result, it stretched into over a seven hour drive, and we arrived shortly before our set at SA Indie Fest, scheduled for 8 p.m.
The Revolution Room was nice, a club akin to the Paradise Lounge in vibe, but a larger capacity. And due to the bad weather and our early slot, the festival organizers apologized for the lack of a crowd. But we had a couple faithful folks out, plus a young lady named Michelle who had found us online and had come just for us. I dedicated the show to her. I also asked a true San Antonian how to properly wear cowboy boots -- inside the pants or out. He said it's a personal preference, which is a relief because I couldn't wear them inside and be totally comfortable with myself. Anyhow, we played pretty well, and actually, for having some technical difficulties and having a tiny crowd in a big room, I was proud at our ability to overcome the tough times.
There was a time in this band where being dealt a bad hand would bring us down and we'd perform poorly as a result, but after a lot of discussion of pushing through and just giving our all to whomever is there, we are now at the point when we play like pros (not to give ourselves too much credit on the playing end, but rather on the professional outlook). It's all about giving the most to those that are there, because otherwise it truly is a wasted trip. But if you play well in the face of adversity, you may win some respect, as well as a couple new fans. After the show, we packed up and headed to Austin, where we would spend the rest of the week.
In the midst of this trip, I re-evaluated this band's mission. On the drive up to Austin, I rode with Mike's brother Dan, and we talked about the future of the band, and the goals we set. I explained that there are long-term and short-term goals. While simply going to SXSW is a major goal accomplished, it's only minor in the grand scheme of things, a mere stepping stone to a larger mission. By this time next year, we want to be a showcasing band at SXSW, which seems both logical and possible. This year is just a researching trip more than anything, learning to promote and do things for ourselves. So, we're simply testing the water right now and getting our name out there.
Wednesday would be the day to do exactly that.
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March 14, 2007
I'll be honest with you, it's hard not to get a little jealous. There we are on the streets of Austin, playing acoustic guitar in the rain and passing out CDs to people who mostly couldn't seem less interested if they tried, while other bands step into packed-house showcases at SXSW. Don't get me wrong, I'm proud of our friends who are doing it, I just feel like Cassavettes deserves a crack at it, too.
For the most part, we're operating on the outskirts of the festival. We're merely leeching off the thousands of A&R reps and music fans that huddle onto 6th Street for SXSW this week. Hey, we're not the only ones. This suggestion came last fall from our good buddy Jabe Beyer, who said even if you don't have the representation to get your band a legitimate slot at SXSW right now, you can at least rub elbows with some important folks while you're here and get your name out there. So, we paid our own way, booked a couple shows through Texas, another festival, and somehow landed an official SXSW party (on Friday), and had at it. Sometimes I wonder if self-managing the band is the right path for us, and need to remind myself that I'm actually pretty pleased with our progress thus far. But being here can be discouraging. There are only so many things you can do by yourself, that much is obvious. But regardless, I don't mind. I know good things lie ahead, if you have the right work ethic.
So after busking and doing promotion, we dropped in to see our old buddies The Sterns before their set at Latitude 30. They were getting ready to go, grabbing their festival passes and heading into the city. We made a weak attempt at seeing our old Dallas friends Black Tie Dynasty at The Tap Room, but we showed up too late. Regardless, I ran into one of my best friends from high school, who went to see The Sterns with us and then gave Matt, Fritz, WFNX host Dave Duncan, and I a ride to The Continental to see Eli "Paperboy" Reed play. That guy tore it up, too -- the crowd was grooving on those soulful tunes. We're talking about doing a show together Friday; we'll see what happens there.
Either way, the night turned out to be really fun. I think the earlier part of the day was just a bit disappointing because I expected people in the music industry to give more of a care about hard-working musicians (I'm not sure where I got that idea - HA!). It's just a strange feeling to be surrounded by a sea of people wearing festival passes and thinking, "If I put this CD in the right hands, someone who's probably here, it can change the course of this band forever. All of our previous hard work would have amounted to something." But that didn't happen. Instead, I ran out of CDs early and watched helplessly as that life-changing person passed by me on all sides (though I did happen to run into a couple of British folks who were thrilled because they used to play in a band called Cassavetes, like the director). Nothing major happened.
But this is the way it gets done, I figure. If you devote yourself 100 percent to something, really throw yourself into the ring, good things will come. We just have to keep working it. That's why we're here, anyway.
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March 15, 2007
Leaving the comfort zone
The trouble with being an independent band promoting yourself is that everyone works at different comfort levels. Some people, like Matt for instance, are very good at approaching strangers and talking up their band. Mike is pretty good at it, too, but none of us have anywhere close to Matt's level of exuberance at all times. I fancy myself pretty good at talking to bands and label reps. Matt and I have gone out to a number of shows in the past couple days together, some just to see and support Boston bands (Frank Smith, Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves, Protokoll, The Sterns) as well as a couple of industry shows (last night we saw Limbeck) to pass out CDs and preach Cassavettes.
In this band, like many bands, we all operate differently. I'm not extraordinarily comfortable talking to strangers about myself, but I do what I feel must be done. So, last night, Matt and I worked a Doghouse Records showcase, where we thought we might meet some mutual acquaintances of our friend Rob Suchan from the band Koufax. The other guys couldn't get in -- for various reasons -- and we were denied from a Secretly Canadian showcase and a Yep Roc showcase, both because they were wristband only (another bummer of working on the perimeter of this festival). All of which is fine, because none of us can control those circumstances, but something we've discussed a lot over the course of this band is doing things you aren't comfortable with.
Yes, you may feel strange approaching someone and droning on about yourself, but it has to be done. Everyone here at SXSW shouldn't expect any less anyway -- this is the time to do it. As we walked 6th Street last night, it was the closest to Mardi Gras I've ever been -- or maybe like a more interactive St. Patrick's Day Parade in Southie. There were a lot of drunken people, the streets were sanctioned off, and everyone was just meandering. This is the celebration of the year for the music industry. Many, many, many of the people here are from labels or management companies -- and all ripe for picking. It's hard not to run into one of them, but even harder to run into the right one. Last night, I took a crack at it, and the man with the VIP pass turned out to be a Berklee professor who already knows our drummer. I'm glad to meet him and it makes for a funny story, but it goes to show you how hard it is to decipher who's who.
Still, it's strange that people act surprised that you're out there pitching yourself. I know it's a natural music industry response to act distracted or uninterested, but if the roles were switched, I would have some respect for a band working it. But alas, they are in power, and both sides know it.
At least the band has had plenty of practice leaving our comfort zones and talking to people now, because when we do make the right connection, we'll know what to do.
On another quick note, we now have organized a show for tonight at Quack's Maplewood in Austin, featuring Cassavettes, Age Rings, The Sterns, and one other group. I love the feeling of brotherhood this far from home.
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March 16, 2007
The schmooze factor
There's nothing like playing music for the right reasons. As fun as this week has been, schmoozing isn't really all that fun. It's necessary, but holy moly, not fun.
So, when our buddies Age Rings and Hooray For Earth joined us for a rather impromptu show at Quack's Maplewood -- over 20 blocks from the main action in Austin -- it was a joyous reunion of Boston bands playing music to people who were there to dance and have a good time. The other bands took note of this, as Hooray For Earth put it: The crowd was there to have fun. In short: it was awesome. I'm particularly proud of the way this day turned out, as we organized this show and, as the hosts, were hoping to provide a decent gig for the other two groups. Mission accomplished, I'd say. The place wasn't fancy. Actually, it was far from it. It was a most set up of a small rented PA system, two taped together microphones and a backline that all the bands contributed to. But nonetheless, it was probably the most fun we had in Austin. After all, it was planned for all the right reasons.
Earlier in the day, we played our only SXSW-sponsored show: a tribute party to The Who, since Pete Townshend was the festival's keynote speaker. While unfortunately Pete didn't make an appearance, we still did what I consider a faithful version of "You Better, You Bet," fighting technical difficulties the entire time. Nonetheless, three people I'd never met told me I do a fairly accurate Roger Daltrey impression, which makes it all worthwhile in my book. Plus, at this showcase of Berklee groups (our drummer Matt is an alum), I saw our friends Kid:Nap:Kin do a set, and I experienced an incredible set for the first time from local songbird Madi Diaz. She's excellent -- like a female Ryan Adams, or a more enjoyable Gillian Welch (in my humble opinion). Needless to say, I was digging it. I hope we do some shows together up here real soon.
Between shows, Matt and I scoured 6th Street for the last time, passing out the remainder of our promo CDs and getting our schmooze on (which is, as stated, not fun for the most part). We ate lunch with a woman from SESAC who obviously tried to get us to switch from our current royalty handlers, ASCAP. In fairness, she made a fairly convincing pitch -- I'm still mulling it over. Also, we saw Matt Pinfield and the actor from Murder By Numbers, plus we talked to one label rep who seemed more interested than most people this week, but that was about it for the excitement. Hopefully we planted some seeds.
And besides, the real fun came when we got our groove on with some of our favorite locals later in the evening.
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March 17, 2007
In like a lion, out like a kitten
Time moved at a very bizarre speed this week. We'll call it the perfect speed. The trip was neither a blur, nor a bore. It was just right -- the Goldilocks of trips.
Saturday we were supposed to play one final show in Waco at a little club called Waco City Limits. The idea was two-pronged: a) We would get one final show and the touring experience and b) We would get a couple hundred bucks guaranteed to help with gas. However, the club canceled at the last minute, because apparently they had been shut down after springing a rather serious roof leak. When I talked to the club's manager -- a nice guy named Robert with a thick Texas drawl -- he sounded legitimately upset, and of course I felt bad when I told him that we still had a contract and I felt he should honor it (what can I say, I'm the son of a lawyer and this is just the way I've been trained to think). We finally agreed on a smaller sum that would cover travel costs, but after I sat on it for awhile, I called him back and told him to keep it. The more I thought about it, the less I wanted to pick him up by his ankles and shake the change from his pockets. Yes, this stirred up some guilt in me, because I definitely don't envy his position. So, we just took Saturday to ourselves to enjoy our last day in Austin with our friends: grabbing some lunch, climbing Mount Bonnell and looking down upon the city in immaculate weather, getting St. Patrick's Day drinks at Spider House (not me, but a few of them), and finally going to see our old friends from our Dallas days Black Tie Dynasty play a free outdoors show in the very same beautiful weather.
I felt vaguely strange in the ladder portion of the day, probably from a mix of lack of sleep over the past few nights and feeling estranged communication-wise from the important people back in Boston. It made me wonder how life on the road really is, since I've never truly experienced it. How do you keep up with loved ones with any regularity when you're constantly busy doing something? I figure this isn't the best example anyhow, because this wasn't real touring. We weren't stuck in the middle of Minnesota with nothing to do but play a show and then take care of whatever we needed to; instead, we were seeing old friends, making new ones, and doing the ever-important schmooze. It just got me thinking.
Either way, I'm eager to get on the road and find these things out for myself. The band talked at length on Friday about when we'll launch our first tour in earnest (rather than these quick jaunts we continually take) and while we would have liked to do it in September the moment I'm out of school, I'd rather wait. Without the resources yet, I feel like we'd do a tour that amounts to very little. Empty gigs, declining morale, etc. I'd prefer to dedicate a lot of time to booking this summer and try to get something going for the winter (if any bands out there are interested in doing this together, email me at cassavettesband@hotmail.com). We plan to relaunch a radio campaign around the tour to make sure we have some hefty promotion of the gigs. Plus, if we wait, I can work a little bit and put some money away to ensure I can pay rent while I'm out of town. It just makes the most sense.
South By Southwest stirred up all these feelings, questions, and plans. The festival was like a taste, and now we definitely want more of it. But it was one wild week, and definitely worth every second of it. Count us in for next year already. 