Why South by Southwest Music Festival Just Isn’t Worth It

The 2013 edition of the South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival is officially in the books. The craziness that descended on Austin for the week brought the music industry and all its glory. There were thousands of bands playing in hundreds of venues in this drunken orgy of music.

This was our first year covering the event in Austin. We came into the festival not really knowing what to expect from the enigma that is South by Southwest. We studiously read the countless SXSW guides, researched the bands like we were prepping a term paper and followed the Twitter updates religiously to ensure we were on top of the week’s cutting news. The thing is nothing can really prepare you for SXSW.

At its heart, this is a big music industry convention. Its not really for the fans. You could even argue that the music elite feel like the fans are just trying to crash their party. That is partially true. The industry folk are ponying up $500 for badges for the week that gets them access to the music panels, allows them to cut in line at the venues, reserves them special space within the club and they are the only people who have a shot at seeing the big boys. This year that illustrious list included Green Day, Depeche Mode and Sound City Players. The festival holds a lottery to dole out tickets to these select few and everyone else is left with their nose pressed up against the tinted glass. Who am I kidding? Security would run you off long before you got to the window.

The bands flock to South by Southwest in hopes of being discovered or launching their fledgling careers into stardom. On paper, the idea certainly makes sense. The entire music industry is in same city for one week only, but the painful truth is, what is the likelihood some music exec will stumble across that back alley bar to see your set the twenty minutes you happen to be playing. Lord help you if you are playing a house party in the middle of the afternoon. There are thousands of bands duking it out for attention, and 95% will get lost in the shuffle. That figure is probably optimistic. True, there are plenty of SXSW success stories like Alabama Shakes and the Lumineers who sparked during last year’s event, but the argument could be made that they were ready to catch fire even before they booked their hotel in Austin.

So we reach the question of the day. Is the South by Southwest music festival worth attending? You are destined to drop a healthy sum navigating your way to Austin so it would be nice to have a positive answer to that simple question. I think it largely depends on who you are and what you are looking to get out of the event.

Industry people will no doubt find value in the conference. They attend the panels, take advantage of networking with other music folks, catch a handful of shows and generally revel in how great they are. For most bands, South by Southwest is a waste of money. Unless you already sit on the cusp of greatness, SXSW isn’t a magical carpet ride to stardom. Industry folks will check out artists who have buzz mounting before the festival opens its doors. They’ll be catching Justin Timberlake do his best Frank Sinatra imitation at a hole-in-the-wall. Bands will largely go home much poorer from plane fare, inflated hotel costs and a lost week you could have been playing paying gigs elsewhere. The only way I could see it making sense is if a band was already touring and could slot a night or two in Austin along the way.

For the fans, unless you come to SWSX to achieve indie nirvana, you’ll likely leave disappointed. The lines to see named bands are long, and there is no guarantee you’ll get in before the fire marshal kills the fun. Buying a badge gives you the best shot and purchasing a wristband should be considered the absolute minimum. Ultimately, you’re better off staying at home, catching that mid-range band when it comes through your town or better yet hitting one of summer’s outdoor festivals that seem to blanket the countryside these days. You’ll experience much shorter lines, less headaches and more music. Isn’t that the goal anyway?

This isn’t meant to throw a bucket of cold water on the SXSW music festival. Austin is a lovely place this time of year just before the sweltering heat crushes the town. My point is that you can do better. If you want to consume indie talent from the fire hose, SXSW lets you turn it on so brace yourself. If you are outside the music industry or aren’t an indie music savant, save your money and put your music dollar to work supporting local music at home.