The Pelican’s Perch

2^nd Annual SXSW Showcase is Randy Bacon’s Best (link)
3/9/07

The South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Festival in Austin, Texas is considered by many to be the biggest event in indie music each year. Occurring every year in mid-March, this five day festival is the Sundance of indie music, with over 1,500 bands from around the world playing in every venue Austin has to offer.

The trip from Springfield to Austin is one many people simply can not make and this results in the majority of us being left to find other ways to entertain ourselves knowing that over 1,500 bands are in Austin and we’re missing it. Luckily, local photographer Randy Bacon and his Gallery Sounds Concert Series have come up with a solution; bring some of the bands en route to Austin for the festival to Springfield.

The 2^nd Annual SXSW Music Showcase is the largest single music event the Gallery Sounds Concert Series has hosted in the two years since it started bringing in national acts. It will feature 11 bands from around the world on four nights. The bands range from a group of teenagers taking the indie world by storm in The Annuals, led by 19 year old Adam Baker and which none are older than 22, to the current “best live band in the world” as proclaimed by Rolling Stone magazine in the band Under Byen. The diversity among the 11 bands is reason enough to attend all four nights of the showcase.

The Gallery Sounds SXSW Showcase began last year almost by accident as Randy Bacon explained. “We had one band that said they were on the way to the festival and asked if they could play so we said why don’t we just have a weekend of bands that are going to be in SXSW?” The first showcase was a great success featuring four SXSW bands over three nights coupled with various local bands. Word eventually spread not only about the Gallery’s SXSW Showcase, but of the quality of the people and friendly atmosphere the Gallery Sounds Concert Series has become known for.

“I have played at many venues in the Springfield area and all of them pale in comparison to the Gallery,” Jayme Layne, lead singer of local Springfield band The Social, explained in jubilation upon being asked her thoughts on the series. “There is such a sense of warmth and family. From the moment a musician steps into the studio they are greeted by Randy and his wife Shannon…and at Gallery Sounds it feels as though each person is engaged in the music and captivated by the musicians that make it.”

This sense of warmth and family is the main reasons bands have left in awe after playing in Randy’s studio and most say it is unlike anything they have experienced before as musicians. So as preparation for this year’s SXSW Showcase began, it came as no surprise that the Gallery’s already established reputation and addition of nearly 3,500 square feet of space in the new Monarch Art Factory brought attention from SXSW bands from around the world. “This year word got around and agents started calling and we just ran out of room,” Randy explained. “We could’ve had more bands if we wanted, but we stopped at 11. It just kept clicking and this year there’s not a single band I’m not excited to see.”

The Gallery’s efforts are not going unnoticed by the Springfield community. Most shows in the Gallery Sounds Concert Series throughout its two years of existence have been well attended. Many from the student population have finally found a comfortable venue in Randy Bacon’s Gallery to watch some of the country’s best indie music without having to worry about traveling to and from Kansas City, St. Louis, or Columbia in order to get it. “Gallery Sounds is the best medicine for Springfield’s music scene,” local Missouri State student and frequent indie concertgoer Krystal Headley stated. “The people, the music, the ambience, and the sound all add up to create an inspiring experience. Indie music lovers now have a local place to go to escape the disappointments of main stream music.”

Krystal is one of many people excited about the Gallery Sounds Concert Series and its upcoming SXSW Showcase. Tickets for the showcase have been selling fast, with many choosing to buy the four day pass for $30. “We expect a good crowd,” Randy explained. “We’re getting calls, which is encouraging, and we’ve sold tickets to people from Kansas City and St. Louis. We’ve been going to their backyard for years and now they’re finally coming here.”

The Gallery Sounds 2^nd Annual SXSW Music Showcase begins today with The Spinto Band, Dios Malos, and The Changes. Advanced tickets are available at Randy Bacon Gallery, CD Warehouse or via phone at 417-868-8179. There are a limited number of 4-night SXSW all-show passes for $30, and individual nights range from $8-10.

Whether you are an indie music fan or not, a music event like this rarely comes along to Springfield and should not be missed. Chances are you’ll walk away with a new favorite band among these 11 amazing indie bands playing at this year’s showcase. Hopefully you can make the SXSW festival this year in Austin, but thankfully we’ve got Randy Bacon and his Gallery Sounds Concert Series in case you’re one of the countless many in Springfield that can’t make the long trek to Austin this year.

Friday, March 9^th $8

The Spinto Band (Wilmington, DE)

Dios Malos (Hawthorne, CA)

The Changes (Chicago, IL)

Saturday, March 10^th $8

Aqueduct (Seattle, WA)

Annuals (Raleigh, NC)

Monday, March 12^th $10

Margot & the Nuclear So & So’s (Indianapolis, IN)

Headlights (Champaign, IL)

Page France (Baltimore, MD)

Canada (Detroit, MI)

Tuesday, March 13^th $8

Under Byen (Denmark)

Frida Hyvonen (Sweden)

Doors open at 7pm for each show and each show is all ages.