SXSW 2013 & Opinions on Justin Timberlake
Jim and Greg share their favorite musical finds from the 2013 SXSW Music Conference in Austin, TX. Plus, Justin Timberlake is back with a "20/20 Experience."
Music News
Seven years later, the saga of file-sharer Jammie Thomas-Rassett has reached an end. Caught in the net of file-sharing suits brought by the RIAA in the 2000s, Thomas-Rassett was the first of the Kazaa generation to fight back in court. In a series of four trials she claimed she had not been aware that she was sharing 24 illegal tracks. Now that the Supreme Court has declined to review her petition, Thomas-Rassett is on the hook for $220,000 - money she says she doesn't have.
Jason Molina, leader of americana acts Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co. is dead this week at age 39 after a prolonged fight with alcoholism. The singer-songwriter's death prompted a moving tribute from his label, Secretly Canadian. Molina's was the first single released by Secretly Canadian when the indie label was a fragile upstart in the nineties.
SXSW 2013
For years Jim and Greg have made their annual voyage down to Austin, TX for the SXSW Music Conference. The goal was always clear: discover great new musical acts. And, while they are at it, take the music industry's temperature. But in recent years, SXSW has gotten a little too big for its britches with over 2,500 bands and 10,000 registrants. And, as Jim and Greg explain, it's now become a platform for big name stars to advertise products. (Just check out this gross stage display.) But, if you can side-step the corporate elements (and St. Patty's partiers), there's still a lot to gain in Austin (including pounds from beer and queso). Jim and Greg were impressed with Dave Grohl's passionate keynote. And they have another list of up-and-coming bands to watch in the year to come.
The 2013 SXSW discoveries:
Jim
- Laura Stevenson
- Shout Out Out Out Out
- Holydrug Couple
- Savages
Greg
- No Ceremony
- Guards
- Metz
- MO
The 20/20 Experience Justin Timberlake
Over the past few years we wondered if Justin Timberlake had forsaken music for his first profession, acting. But, now he is back with a grand, almost operatic album called The 20/20 Experience. And while it is an experience full of lengthy, ambitious tracks, Greg wonders, "where is the soul?" He credits Justin with being smart and stylish, but misses the emotional investment. The 20/20 Experience is a "snooze," so Greg says Trash It. Jim is less harsh, and recommends you Burn It, but only out of pure pop curiosity. He believes JT to be a charming entertainer, but doubts he has the darkness to back up this neo-soul experiment.
Featured Songs
- Vanessa Williams, "Save the Best for Last," The Comfort Zone, Polygram, 1991
- Songs Ohia, "Hold On Magnolia," Magnolia Electric Co., Secretly Canadian, 2003
- Laura Stevenson, "Runner," Wheel, Don Giovanni, 2013
- No Ceremony///, "FEELSOLOW," FEELSOLOW, Self-Released, 2012
- Indians, "Reality Sublime," Somewhere Else, 4AD, 2013
- Shout Out Out Out Out, "Now That I've Given Up Hope I Feel Much Better," Spanish Moss and Total Loss, Normals Welcome, 2012
- Guards, "Not Supposed To," In Guards We Trust, Black Bell Records, 2013
- The Holydrug Couple, "Slow Motion Cat," En vivo Radio Horizonte EP, self-released, 2011
- Metz, "Headache," Metz, Sub Pop, 2012
- Indians, "New," Somewhere Else, 4AD, 2013
- Kesha, "Die Young," Warrior, RCA, 2012
- Savages, "Husbands (Live in Bristol)," I Am Here, Pop Noire, 2012
- MO, "Maiden," 2012
- Justin Timberlake, "Strawberry Bubblegum," The 20/20 Experience, RCA, 2013
- Justin Timberlake, "Pusher Love Girl," The 20/20 Experience, RCA, 2013
- The Beatles, "Any Time at All," A Hard Day's Night, Capitol, 1964
- David Bowie, "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)," The Next Day, Columbia, 2013
- Lucinda Williams, "Something Wicked This Way Comes," Live on Sound Opinions, Unreleased, 2013
- David Hasselhoff, "Hooked on a Feeling," Hooked on a Feeling, Polydor, 1999
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