SXSW, So Far

The South by Southwest Festival is in full swing in Texas, and with over a thousand bands playing on 80 stages throughout Austin, there’s a whole lot of rock going on in the Lone Star state. The highlights thus far: Jack White Plays a Parking Lot: White parked his mobile Third Man Records pop up truck in an Austin parking lot and treated fans to a rendition of the White Stripes classic “Dead Leaves and Dirty Ground” in addition to Texas staple “Not Fade Away.” No word as to why able-bodied White chose to play in the handicapped spot. Queens of the Stone Age Return: After a three year hiatus, Josh Homme took to the stage, (with a completely different lineup than the original QOtSA), and tore through the band’s eponymous 1998 debut album. In the process, Homme reminded the audience just how much influence his band has had on music’s new crop of psych rockers like Black Mountain and Black Angels, who opened the show. Foo Fighters After Party: VSQ favorites the Foo Fighters took over the venerable Stubb’s BBQ for an after party celebrating the their documentary Back and Forth, which premiered at SXSW’s film festival earlier in the evening. The Foos played their new album Wasting Light in its entirety before tearing through an encore of hits that included “Everlong,” “Learn to Fly,” and “Best of You.” PeeWee Herman Sweetens up Austin: Those walking down Austin’s Congress Street on the first day of the festival got a sweet treat, as Paul Reubens, aka Pee Wee Herman, was on site handing out popsicles and ice cream sandwiches from a Pee Wee emblazoned truck parked outside one of the theatre’s being used for the SXSW’s Film Festival. We don’t know why. Hottest Event this Weekend: Within an hour of  being announced, over 10,000 RSVP's were sent in via text to seal a spot at Kanye West's free performance this Saturday night at SWSX's Vevo Powerstation. Rumor has it that John Legend will make an appearance alongside West to entertain the venues 2,500 max. capacity audience. Be sure to check out: String Quartet Tribute to Foo Fighters Available at iTunes and Amazon String Quartet Tribute to White Stripes Available now at iTunes and Amazon Vitamin String Quartet Tribute to Queens of the Stone Age Available now at iTunes and Amazon Vitamin String Quartet Tribute to Kanye West Available now at iTunes and Amazon