Around Town: Music on the Streets
Bethesda/Jorge Sanhueza-Lyon/KUTThe month of March 2012 came in like a lion and went out like a lion for us here at Storyboard and thank goodness that somewhere in the mix we had a chance to get out and about Around Town to take in some of the wonderfulness with our brand spankin’ new multimedia producer, Jorge Sanhueza-Lyon. We hope you enjoy the magical moments he captured on the streets of Austin during the SXSW Music Festival along with a little bit about the production process.
Be sure to email us at storyboard@kut.org with suggestions of things you think we should keep an eye out for!
Brandon Kinder
Occasionally I hear of bands through their publicists or record labels. They usually send out a very standard promotional package and do a thorough job of making sure something is scheduled with the band’s manager. The manager then schedules something with the musicians. Considering that the goal of these videos is to focus on the actual music rather than music business trappings that come with it, these are often the most difficult to pull off successfully. That’s how I met Brandon Kinder and I was a little concerned. Luckily for me, the publicist, his manager and Brandon were all completely on board and understood exactly what we were going for. We escaped the downtown sounds of SXSW in an alleyway behind the Driscoll Hotel but did have to deal with sounds of grease fans and air conditioner blowers. As Brandon’s manager helped make sure the boom mic captured Brandon’s soulful voice, we shot two videos in about ten minutes. I think we nailed it.
Bethesda
Anyone that’s been on 6th Street during SXSW understands that feeling of listening to ten different radio stations at the same time, all of them turned all the way up. Ohio band Bethesda was in the middle of this, competing with a goth metal band on 6th and Red River, a SRV wanna be on the opposite corner, and a raging rock show from the tiny club right behind them. When I spotted them they were packing up their gear in hopes of finding a spot more suited to their folk inspired sound. They were instantly interested when I creepily invited them into an alleyway to shoot some video. We found a quiet spot between dumpsters, recruited a passerby to hold a shotgun mic and shot a couple of videos. They’re a five piece band so it’s tough to get them all on camera, but if you look closely you can see drummer Justin Rife in the background banging on a drum kit made of cardboard boxes and my bike frame as a cymbal.
The Union Suits
Sometimes your camera gear helps you find people. I was strolling down East 6th when the microphone attached to my DSLR camera caught the attention of a tall dreadlocked Rastafarian named Grady Appleton. “Is that a microphone on a still camera?” he asked. Without getting too nerdy I explained what I was up to and went on to pitch shooting something with him and his band. When the be-speckled Rasta mentioned that The Union Suits was actually a high plains country band from Minneapolis I wasn’t sure what to expect but was instantly interested. We caught up with the rest of the gang, tucked into a quiet alleyway, and shot this video. Grady watched from the sidelines and took photos of my face exploding during the shoot.
