Although SXSW happened nearly a month ago in Austin, it’s taken that long to go through the over 1,000 performers featured at the festival. Known for showcasing breakthrough artists alongside established acts, SXSW is becoming harder each year for new talent to get noticed. A hundred may seem like a large number, but it’s enough to provide a solid sample of those producing culturally relevant work across all genres.
It is worth noting that bands who overly used poppy “hooks” or similar songwriting tactics were cut. Similarly, strict “Americana” sounding performers weren’t included. This isn’t to say artists in either of these categories aren’t talented; there’s just more than enough acts pushing creative limits, which take precedence.
In an effort to present a non hierarchal list, it’s organized alphabetically. The goal is to create unobstructed music discovery (void of external influence).
