Music Press
"Whether it's for the Texas barbecue or exposure to the influential American music industry, bands and music executives from across the globe say the South by Southwest Music Conference has become a can't-miss event." - Associated Press, March 15, 2004
"Now in its 18th year, the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, is a veritable fantasyland for music fans. There's a nearly 24-hour-a-day onslaught of live music showcases, parties and panels, as well as a whiplash-inducing propensity to run into other journalists, publicists, long-lost friends...." - Billboard.com, March 19, 2004
"The city bills itself as the "Live Music Capital of the World," and never is this more true than in March, when the entire entertainment industry floods into town for the annual South by Southwest film and music festival, a 10-day party that keeps every bar, coffee shop, theater and street corner downtown jumping past midnight." - Men's Journal, June, 2004
"For four days every spring, Austin, Texas, is the center of the musical universe, as thousands of singers, songwriters, musicians, agents, record executives, talent scouts and reporters head to South by Southwest to hear and be heard." - The Times-Picayune, March 28, 2004
"Most importantly, SXSW is a vast trade show and social mixer for the worker bees who buzz about the music world." - The Times-Picayune, March 28, 2004
"The annual South by Southwest conference is a good gauge for what trends to expect musically and business-wise in the coming year." - Illinois Entertainer, April 2004
"For writers, fans, and prospecting bizzers alike, one thing South by Southwest is indisputably about is trendsetting. The festival not only offers a glimpse at scenes on the rise but at how scenes hold up after the hype has receded." - The Memphis Flyer, March 25-31, 2004
"The 18th annual festival descended upon the Texas capital for four frantic days and four loud nights starting Wednesday. While most of the discussion during working hours centered on continuing uncertainties about the industry and debate about the role of the artist in politically turbulent times, the power and promise of great new music was the overwhelming focus come sundown." - Chicago Sun-Times, March 22, 2004
"Now in its 18th year, the South by Southwest music festival and conference in Austin exhibits all the exuberance, swagger and drunken stagger you'd expect any 18-year-old music junkie to have. And it's always a great look into the industry's future. Hit the convention center and you may get mixed vibes from panelists about where we're headed, but slam a free beer from sponsor Miller Lite and walk up to Sixth Street for the bands, and the future's a bright place indeed." - Radio & Records, April, 2, 2004
"In short, SXSW is the best place in music in the world.... If you have been there, you know what I mean, and if you've never been, what are you waiting for?" - Jim McGuinn, PD, WPLY/Philadelphia in Radio and Records, April 2, 2004
"But there's no denying that the conference offers bands in shocking quantity, with quality to match, or that it consistently showcases artists before they become the Next Big Things. Just ask Norah Jones or the Strokes." - St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 28, 2004
""This is the purest conference, where it's really all about the music," (Doug) Tull (director of A&R for Force MP) says. "If you don't come, you're out of the loop." " - St. Louis Post-Dispatch, March 28, 2004
"For all bands, the difference between hope and dismay can depend on who's in the crowd when you play, and the odds that someone influential will watch increase if you play Austin in the spring." - Creative Loafing, April 1 -7, 2004
"South by Southwest is an annual conference and festival for Web, Music and Film Industries, and has grown among the ranks as a premiere industry event." - The Mac Observer, March 22, 2004
"This year's conference proved there's still a hell of a lot of music to be heard, a lot of it independent, and plenty of people (an estimated 20,000 attended SXSW 2004) who want to pay to see it and hear it. As always, SXSW consistently books a wide array of music, from big buzzes to not-yet anybodys. It gives both the common man and the industry heads the chance to weed through the hype, and occasionally be turned on to something unexpected." - Illinois Entertainer, April 2004
"Austin prides itself in its support for home-grown, grass-roots, people-first culture, evident not only on every level of SXSW programming - in film, music and interactive culture - it also provides the event with a kind of built-in glam-filter." - The Toronto Star, March 15, 2004
"Austin is amiable as it brushes and preps for a week in the musical trenches with South by Southwest, America's largest and splashiest music conference." - Music Dish, March 17, 2004
"This isn't your homogenous hometown scene, this is SXSW - the combination of activities on any given night lets you live out your musical schizophrenia, stroking all your personality-splitting tastes." - neumu.com, Arpil 14, 2004
"But interest in music is as high as ever - as could be seen in the record SXSW attendance, both at the conference and festival - and the multigenerational appeal of both young and old acts." - Lincoln Journal Star, March 26, 2004
"...South by Southwest really is a gift from above for music obsessives everywhere." - Billboard.com, March 21, 2004
"...Austin is a faith-restoring town. And SXSW is a faith-restoring event." - The Age, March 26, 2004
"To music lovers fishing for fresh new sounds, the South by Southwest Music Conference is nothing short of heaven on earth, an ear-ringing party that consumes downtown Austin," - Daily Camera, March 14, 2004
"The whole of Austin feels like the grown-ups have fled town, leaving the indie-rockers to run things." - NME, April 3, 2004
Marketwire is the official wire service of the 2005 Music Festival.
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