Writer Cassie Davidson and photographer Daniel Bray headed down to Austin to represent Canadian Musician at this year’s edition of the South By Southwest (SXSW) Music, Film + Interactive festival. Here’s the rundown of day 2.

In addition to showcasing scores of musical acts, SXSW also hosts a slew of interesting and informative panels and seminars covering a range of topics, from how to connect with festivals and venues to how to treat performance-related pain.  It’s a great place for anyone curious about the many different facets of the music industry to pick up a lot of insider info. I spent a good chunk of Day 2 at the Austin Convention Centre exploring the conference and checking out some different discussions.

I sat in on “Advertising is the New Radio!”, a great panel moderated by Grey Group’s Director of Music Josh Rabinowitz. The speakers explored the recent phenomenon that’s seen more and more artists seek song placements in TV and film and put less of a focus on achieving radio airplay. They offered many helpful tips for musicians on the ins and outs of licensing, royalties, and back end fees.

I also caught the panel on “Artist Revenue Streams,” presented by the Future of Music Coalition and moderated by Kristin Thomson. The ARS project collected a vast amount of data from US-based musicians in

an effort to examine the many different alternative revenue sources that artists have come to rely on, such as merchandise sales and crowd funding. There were many other panels at the festival this year that seemed to follow a similar theme of self-sufficiency, such as DIY merch solutions and planning and executing successful house shows.

My afternoon and evening were spent criss-crossing town to check out a number of different acts. I caught The Stanfields (Halifax) at the Nova Scotia party. (Check out Craig Harris from The Stanfields’ bass column in the March/April 2012 issue of CM.) They were great as usual and the Trinity Hall crowd was loving their boisterous east coast rock.  I closed out the night at Stubb’s, an incredible outdoor venue that made me forget I was in the middle of a city. Outdoor venues are not

usually described as “intimate”, but Stubb’s was just that. Great sound and ample space, but you weren’t left squinting at the stage if you were near the back.  Dry The River (London, UK) and Girls (San Francisco) put on a fantastic show for  AOL Music’s Spinner/High Road Touring showcase. Bonus: a super fun photobooth (complete with feather boas and fake pistols for props) was set up at the back of the space for free photoshoots and the Food Network’s panini truck was stationed down the street. Win!

Stay tuned for Day 3 and more coverage from SXSW, including Flatstock 33!

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