Imagine you’re a tween or a teen in suburban America. The walls shake with the sound of band practice in the family garage. Except that it’s your mother practicing, not you! Rockin’ Moms came to SXSW to show that mothers can kick out the jams, too. Rockin’ Moms founder Tiffany Petrossi, Mydols guitarist Judy Davids and 3 Kisses frontwoman Tish Meeks talk about the joys and challenges of being musicians and moms. Davids is also the author of Rock Star Mommy, published by Citadel, whose parent company is also this humble vidblogger’s employer.—Robin Cook
From indie guitar hero to blogger: Carrie Brownstein has been keeping herself busy since Sleater-Kinney broke up. Monitor Mix is her blog at NPR, and she’s also branched out into comedy. Carrie had a few minutes before a blogger panel to talk about what she’s been up to, as well as her plans for the future. (Check out her March 20 blog post for an illustration of said blogger panel.)—Robin Cook
At Austin’s legendary Waterloo Records, Elf Power treated patrons to a lively in-store performance, with songs from their newest album, In a Cave (Rykodisc). Before their set, band leader Andrew Rieger talked about Elf Power’s history, their place in the great Elephant 6 cosmos, and their new sustainable housing project.—Robin Cook
What happens when a drummer whose resume includes the Screaming Trees, Neko Case, and Nirvana grabs an acoustic guitar and steps up to the mic? Answer: He makes swell solo albums of laconic country rock, “Americana… via David Lynch” according to the Seattle Weekly. His latest album, Cody’s Dream, is now out on Bloodshot.—Robin Cook
Ska beats and politically charged lyrics—two great things that taste great together. Just ask Dave Wakeling, touring once again with the English Beat. Of course, the group also wrote lighthearted pop to go along with their social commentary—note “Save It for Later”, recently covered by Pearl Jam. Here, Wakeling talks about the band’s past and revival.—Robin Cook
When was the last time you saw people crowd-surfing at a dance club? Unless you caught MSTRKRFT’s DJ set at Vice on Saturday night, the answer is probably “never”. Still, it’s not too surprising that the Toronto duo would have that sort of affect on a crowd, especially given the fact that Jesse F. Keeler was once one half of Death From Above 1979. While the duo’s late night DJ set definitely got the crowd moving, it left a bit to be desired in the originality department. Must every electro set nowadays be built around Daft Punk and Justice samples?
