Hot Sauce and Aspirin

Quick recap in case you missed Unofficially SXSX, Entirely Austin: Part 1. Last weekend was the closing weekend of South By South West, and my husband and I made our annual donations to the gods of music and indulgence, as a way to maintain street cred and continue living here. (Its a real thing, Austin is mysterious and you must pay homage, so it’s easier just not to move here.) This year we decided to learn what fun could be had with no RSVPs and no badges.

Now that you are caught up, it is Friday evening and we venture into the madness. First we checked out an event at Still, where Balanced Breakfast was hosting several bands and local artists. The owners at Still Austin are incredibly welcoming, one of them gave me a little demonstration of their mini still and told me about the giant scale one as well. They specialize in whiskey and gin, and even though neither of those is my favorite, the drinks were delicious and I will visit them again! After Still we decided to head home and dump the car so we could Uber downtown. (Responsibility is cool!) I also drank a bottle of Morning Recovery, in case the night got away from me! Since we had no clear plans, and were totally embracing the winging it angle, we had the Uber drop us off on South Congress. We figured pizza was a good start, so we went to the window at Homeslice, scarfed down some amazing pizza, and headed down Congress toward the city. Our first stop was at SXSJ, it’s an outdoor venue between Jo’s Coffee and Hotel San Jose. It’s always free, no badge required, and produces some awesome shows. We happened to wander in just in time for Broken Social Scene, and they were so fun that we stayed for their entire set. #SXSJ also had shopping, art, and beer, so we had a drink while we danced, then headed back into the night! While walking toward downtown, I realized I had to pee, so voted that our next stop be indoors. We walked over the gorgeous South Congress Bridge, and the Four Season’s beckoned to us promising clean bathrooms, great service and a full bar. Once I was situated at the bar, I took stock of my surroundings a little bit, and realized that David Komie of the Dharma Kings was at the other end of the bar with his band. Never a dull moment during SXSW! We ended up having 2 drinks there, then heading back into the crowd. The Four Season’s is a quick walk to Rainey Street, which is a street full of old houses that have been remade into bars. It’s pretty much the worst place in the world if you are over 30, but during SXSW, it’s the place to go. On Rainey a lot of the events were badge or rsvp only, but there was still a lot to do for those of us who were less prepared. We ended up going to Craft Pride, where Beth Lee and the Breakups were starting a set. They were the perfect continuation of our mellow night. Of course, it wouldn’t be Rainey Street if we didn’t witness a bouncer take down a patron, followed by a dramatic arrest. Once all of that subsided, it was around 12:30, and we felt like we accomplished Friday, and were ready for the rest of the weekend.

I also feel like this post is long enough again, so there will be a part 3 tomorrow covering Saturday and Sunday!