Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

SXSW 2014 day 3 recap

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Day 3 of SXSW started a bit later than the previous 2 days. I decided to bring my girlfriend along for the fun this time! We arrived in Austin around 9pm ready to chase the sound of music that was streaming in the air from just about every bar on 6th street. The first watering hole we ventured into had a trio on its stage that could barely move from side to side without bumping into one another. This minor obstacle did not stop them from rocking out and bringing my excitement about the night to a climax that I would pursue in each respective bar that entire night. After listening for a few songs I decided it was time to move on to another spot called Maggie Mae’s. This venue had lots of potential since it was one of the few bars on 6th street that had a rooftop stage for bands to play to their fans under the beautiful Texas night sky. The Moon seemed brighter as if to respond to all the commotion that was taking place below. The band at hand was another trio of musicians that was lead by a peculiar female vocalist that seemed almost in a trance that was broken the moment she strummed the first notes of her guitar. I immediately took out my camera to capture what I was about to see. I snapped a few photos of the band then put my camera away so that I could enjoy what was streaming through my ears and out onto the street below. A few songs and few drinks later we decided to move out into the street to catch some performances from some non-traditional acts. Street drummers banged away on drums made from plastic buckets lined with duct tape, rap battles between total strangers erupted among the crowd of street poets and of course the inebriated masses continued to march back and forth up and down 6th street. The night was starting to favor the insomniac at this point so Carolina and I headed towards the parking garage that held our ride home. Just before reaching the car I spotted a fellow visual artist exchanging his skills for currency. We decided to record this night with a double portrait drawn by a very shy and timid man who sketched us while we stayed still for 10 minutes. After the allotted time we exchange our money for the portrait. This childlike yet complicated image of our faces immediately brought a smile to our faces and we thanked him and proceeded towards the parking garage to head back home to good ole San Antonio Texas. Day 3 of my SXSW adventure was filled with great music and even greater company. Once we arrived home I placed the drawn portrait on our refrigerator held in place by a magnet so that we could start out Day 4 of SXSW with a shared smile.

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