Music Press

SXSW Music 2007 Quotes

"...it seems, everyone is here because everyone else is here." New York Times, March 19, 2007

"South by Southwest Music is four hyperactive days of making connections for musicians, recording companies and every other business touching on music, from concert bookers to copyright lawyers, publishers to Web geeks." New York Times, March 19, 2007

"Rappers, indie-rockers, bluesmen metalheads, DJs, sensitive acoustic troubadours and heartsick honky-tonkers - all came to South by Southwest in 2007 to play together, to hang together and generally party like idiots together in perhaps the most musically inclusive era of the festival's 21-year existence. The most age-blind, too. Not only is SXSW the sort of event where it's not unusual to find 60-somethings quaffing cocktails with 20-somethings at sunup, it has also in recent years become a festival where representatives of different generations of popular music mingle respectfully with, and draw vital energies from, one another." Toronto Star, March 19, 2007

"SXSW... still remains the one key event that draws key people and obviously a great number of bands. It's definitely still the best on the calendar for music, and for atmosphere, nothing else we've been to beats it." Record of The Day, March 22, 2007

"... the festival, which started as a small regional music showcase, and where conventiongoers still gorge on barbecue and beer, has become a passage to the global marketplace." NYTimes.com March 21, 2007

"Part industry trade show, part fan feast, SXSW provides one-stop shopping for those looking for music discovery." NPR.org March 20, 2007

"Rock 'n' Roll is stuck in a jungle in the real world that gets tougher to navigate by the day. SXSW turns the jungle into a manageable zoo, but the fest is becoming increasingly global - about one quarter of the acts come from outside the U.S." Variety, March 19, 2007

"For the most part the industry types who come to Austin each March today are looking to take a break from their Blackberries and to reconnect with why it is they are in this music business in the first place." Texas Music Matters on NPR, March 4, 2007

"Of course, that's always been one of the true calling cards of SXSW. Whether you're an artist, a producer or otherwise involved in the biz, if you pay attention, you can hear the buzz before the rest of the world." CMT.com March 20, 2007

"SXSW gives a band a chance to be heard by most of the movers and shakers in the business...." Jon Pareles of the New York Times on billboard.com, March 15, 2007

"The music industry - currently fueled by uncertainty and dogged by sagging record sales - should take lessons from SXSW, which took over Austin March 9 through March 18. Rather than hang on to outdated models of what worked in the past and become irrelevant, the conference retooled and played to its strengths. Daytime parties featuring buzz bands and free beer still abounded, but SXSW used its clout to provide official programming that gave those events a run for their money for the first time in years. Day panels took on new relevance, with subjects like "Greening the Music Industry," "China's Emerging Market" and "Reinventing Payment Models for Digital Music." Portland Tribune, March 27, 2007

"It's a serious investment with a serious return, and the main beneficiary is Scotland and its music...." Ian Smith, Scottish Arts Council in The Sunday Herald, March 18, 2007

"If you're ever going to make something of yourself in this business, you need to man up and make your voice heard in Texas." Metro Philadelphia, March 14, 2007

"But the heart and soul of SXSW has always been the rush of discovery, and this year's event was no exception." Boston Globe March 19, 2007

"Some come to Austin seeking a record deal. Others come to represent labels they're already signed with. Some come to test their mettle on the national stage, some to sow the seeds of hype. But everyone hopes to catch the ear - or eye - of someone new." Pittsburgh City Paper, April 4, 2007

"Although the industry is being increasingly decentralized by technology, person-to-person contact is still king, and one of the best places to get it is at SXSW." Pittsburgh City Paper, April 4, 2007

"Suddenly I realize that this is it: the moment that SXSW is here to create and mythologize, where tastemakers buzz, crowds and the talent fuse. The type of moment that can be a tipping point in a band's career. The moment fans will recall as "I was there when...." ... On some level, everyone at SXSW is here to either create, embody or witness moments like these." Pittsburgh City Paper, April 4, 2007

"One of the joys of SXSW lies in its ability to provide a different experience and different epiphanies for each music fan. NPR.org, March 18, 2007

"...the promotional aspects of SXSW are invaluable, citing the amount of press, retail buyers and international partners in attendance." Glenn Dicker, label manager for Yep Roc and Redeye Distribution in Hollywood Reporter, March 7, 2007

"SXSW is all about building momentum, making connections, climbing the next rung on the ladder of music industry success." New Orleans Times-Picayune, March 27, 2007

"The SXSW organisers are presented with a dilemma; on the one hand the ever-increasing numbers are testimony to one of the greatest success stories in the history of music trade events, whilst on the other hand they are totally aware of the problems that numbers of this magnitude bring for delegates in terms of accessibility and comfort. What can they do - tell people not to come? Build more venues? Move to a bigger City? None of these really apply, there is a huge appetite for SXSW and it's now almost mythical position as the true gateway to the fabled riches of the US market, they will continue to come, there are already many more venues in Austin than many bigger Cities, and it's a genuine Music City for God's sake, there's an inherent atmosphere that you couldn't create anywhere else - people like Austin, as inhabitants are keen on saying, 'Keep Austin weird!'" VIP-News, April 2007

"SXSW is great for these moments, and there are many of them, mainly it's great for the people you meet, both in and out of the conference rooms, you can learn a lot here. It's an affirmation that no matter how much new communication technologies make it easy for us to sit in one place, and no matter how many downloads compress our methods of accessing music, live music shared with people with a passion is irreplaceable ..., the fact is SXSW is there to be enjoyed, people love it and even if some decide to take a year off, there will be no shortage of intrigued newcomers to take their place." VIP-News, April 2007