Industrial Park Records

John Biz / Higgins SxSW Sandwiches

3.23.3009:
Getting ready to fly home tomorrow. This was such a great trip. Touring with Higgins should happen way more often - it was definitely one of the coolest things that I've ever done in my life. Saturday's SxSW experience was hazy at best. Friday got crazy. I remember... the Alamo..

Seriously though, I got to go see my buddy Chris Marsh at his amazing establishment (with plenty of parking in the back) called the Mean Eyed Cat. I went to buy a Shiner Bock, and it turns out the beer was free. Sweet. I wasn't even planning on drinking anytime soon, but wanted to go with the flow. Keeping with that, I got to chow down on some free BBQ. God bless the Mean Eyed Cat. Bonus: Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys was playing. I think it was solo stuff - he had a different band, and the show was really, really cool. Got to meet him after the show for a sec, which was cool.

Off to Ivy Lounge. The streets weren't quite so packed on Saturday, but we played some great sets and gathered a really great crowd of people in from the street. That was actually pretty gratifying, and is one of the coolest things about playing 6th street during SxSW. After our sets at Ivy Lounge we booked on out to the Back To The Future 4 house party run by my frient Geoff Yetter and his brother Chris. Coincidentally, Chris' last name is also Yetter. Who would'a thunk? That was really chill, which was perfect. Higgins played a few really gentle tunes - not quite acoustic, but they really did a great job accommodating the situation. In a chill setting, they can be some of the most soothing sounds you can imagine. I followed with a few solo songs. Mostly new stuff I've been working on. Fun stuff.

Last but certainly not least, I went out to Hank Sinatra's house on East Riverside Farms Rd. That place was just magical. I can't think of any other way to describe it. What an amazing place. I got there and saw the Christmas lights from the street and heard a local musician playing. Mader my way down past a few trailers, a half built old car of some kind (real cool), a fenced off area on the left with goats and chickens, and an adjacent farm patch. Just past that, behind the farm patch was a "central command" trailer where Hank runs his ship. Ahead of that is a bunch of chairs spread ut and really nice people, mostly Hank's neighbors just chiulling out watching the show. It's a very cool and inviting environment. The stage was super cool. It was composed of super cool tXXXs garbage not the smelly plastic kind, but the kind of stuff that has been forged in American factories of a past era, aged and weathered by the hot tXXXs sun. The place had so much character. By far one of the coolest places I've ever been. Hank is a great guy. I'd call him an ex hippie, but he's as real and active as it gets. Dude's the real deal. He has a bunch of camera people that film the musician's sets from several angles, and Hank splices it together and records it and feeds it live onto the internet. It's a live broadcast and I believe he archives the shows. I still have to get the link. The set was great. It was such a welcome and comforting end to a grueling week of rock madness. This place just made me feel so at home, and I really got to appreciate the natural gravity of Austin. Yeah I'm weird, I know. I'm also tired. Tomorrow I fly back to Brooklyn. The madness continues - stay tuned. Thanks again to all my amazing frients and family and to all of the kind people of tXXXs who have treated me like family and made all of this possible. I love you all.

3.21.2009:
This shit is just unreal. The Triple Crown Tattoos Day Party was just killer. Homosexuals and Black Hollies were amazing. Higgins, in my humble opinion, is just the greatest band in the world. After many hours of concentrated tXXXs sunshine, free beer, sailor tattoos and manly man rock, we booked on down to Congress in rush hour and played some beautiful acoustic sets at Zen. BTW, Zen is such a killer spot. Great food and I love that S. Congress strip. Kevin's voice and acoustic guitar playing is unreal. It's a goddamn enigma actually. Brian's drumming is just perfect. In case I hadn't mentioned it, Billy Filo (man rocker from Jersey City) is filling in on bass for the Higgins, and he is just tearing it up. Kid's definitely establishing the vibe. This is some of the greatest Higgins music ever. After their set, I played some solo country songs for the good people of Austin tXXXs, and was joined by Kevin and Brian for some more. It was one of the best times ever. So chill and easy, and the people from Zen couldn't possibly have been much cooler. Thanks to all the good people who have helped put this together. Now... after all this acoustic stuff, we booked straight to the Long Branch Inn. It's one of the coolest bars ever. The actual wooden bar is over 100 years old, and is a sight to see. Of course, after an unmentionable amount of rock beverages, I couldn't see much of anything. What I did notice, was one of the greatest Higgins sets I've ever witnessed. People were just dazzled by how incredible it was. Crowd kept building. It was packed past capacity. When I played my set, I think it was one of the coolest sets I've played in a while too. We covered Exactly Where I'm At by Ween as a little nod to the Moistboyz crowd. It was just incredible. I really couldn't believe how well that show went. A little hairy on my end, but we brought the brown, and that's just what you gotta do in these types of situations. I'm off to the Mean Eyed Cat to hang with my boy Chris Marsh for a bit, then I disappear, never to be seen again... until 4pm when I'm scheduled to play. Glad that all worked out.

3.20.2009:
Yesterday was one of the most amazing days ever. We kicked off at a cool little low key spot right on 6th and Trinity called Agave. Brian was situated next to an open window, and immediately began drawing a crowd of people amazed by his drumming. Kevin was just on fire with his incredible guitar playing. I got on after the Higgins set and the crowd kept pouring in. It was incredible. We ran across the street to Ivy Lounge, and although we dealt with some technical difficulties (the sun was trying to melt the P.A.) we really kicked some serious ass, and played some bitchin' rock. Off to Green Mesquite. Also one of my favorite places in Austin, and seriously one of the absolute best BBQ joints I know of, hands down. I can not thank them enough for their kindness and generosity. We played some really great music for some great people. I just can't say enough good things. We're all just floored by how great of an experience this has been and we've never sounded better. It's amazing how free you become as a musician when you play all the time like this. I hope the opportunity to do this all the time and make money presents itself very soon. This is what we were born to do and these bands have some serious chemistry. We're not fueled by style and tight jeans, we're just making good music that makes people feel good. Isn't that what it's all about? It sure is for me. Can't thank the Higgins guys enough. This is one of the greatest experiences of my life.

3.19.2009:
The Mean Eyed Cat is such an amazing place. I just can't thank the owner Chris Marsh enough for having us as his guests. What an amazing establishment. Being back there made me remember why it's my favorite bar out there, and playing on that stage was just surreal. The show last night was great, and we're excited about today. We have 2 day shows on 6th and Trinity, which is SxSW ground zero pretty much, and a show at Green Mesquite BBQ at dinner time (we start a little after 7pm). Thanks so much to everyone who has gone so far out of their way for us.

3.18.2009:
Played a solo acoustic show in West tXXXs Saturday night, joined by my buddy Chris Evans at a place called KD's Smokehouse. Awesome spot, great people, great show! So much love from the amazing people in tXXXs. Couldn't thank you all enough for treating me like family. That's one of the things that makes tXXXs and the wonderful people who live here so great. I really appreciate all the kindness, and love you all. The band just arrived, and we rehearsed last night, and we're gearing up for one of the most important shows of the year for me. It feels great. SxSW starts today, and I get to play one of my favorite establishments ever - The Mean Eyed Cat. So amped to play at this awesome spot and I couldn't be happier to play with the incredible Higgins. Lots of blessings, and I hope we get to share this rare live experience with you. Gotta run!