Last night, March 17, three bands stopped by Spanish Moon while making their ways out of Austin’s famous South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival.
Bearcubbin’! from Portland, Oregon took the stage first with an electrifying instrumental set.  Though voted one of the worst band names at SXSW, their music certainly wasn’t lacking.  The three-piece group utilized a plethora of guitar pedals to create hypnotizing loops backed by syncopated drum and bass breaks.  The range of styles coming from this group were confusing to the senses in all of the best ways.  With heavy influences from math rock bands such as Battles, no one song stayed consistent for too long.  Funk-style bass and drums behind spacey guitar and keys often interrupted by metal-style breakdowns kept the crowd on their toes.  Bearcubbin’ has one show left in Oklahoma before heading back to Portland and wrapping up the tour for their new album “Girls With Fun Haircuts.”

The second band to take the stage was Vertical Scratchers, a 90s-influenced rock/pop group fronted by John Schmersal of Caribou.  The high-energy trio did their best to excite the sparse crowd in Spanish Moon with loud distortion, heavy drums, and Schmersal’s sweet, high-register voice ringing atop it all.  At one point, the group threw frizbees out into the crowd.  The group was recently signed to Merge Records, the same label as the night’s headliner.  Vertical Scratchers will continue touring their new album “Daughter of Everything” on the 22nd in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

The night’s headlining group, Saint Rich, a five-piece group hailing from New Jersey started their set strong with their song “Young Vultures,” a light-hearted tune reminiscent of The Strokes.  The group made small talk with the audience between songs asking various, charming questions to people near the stage.  Though Saint Rich played a fairly short set, they covered all the stops:  high-energy rockers, sweet rock ballads, and a couple of songs featuring the leader singer sporting an acoustic guitar.  The guys were happy to stop and talk with audience members after their set, showing clear gratitude that people had taken time out of their days to attend their show.  Saint Rich is continuing their tour up the east coast for their album “Beyond the Drone,” making a stop tonight in Athens, Georgia.