By Cool Kel
As a local Austinite, I’ve been attending SXSW for 25 years. This year, I’m embarking on a weeklong journey of reviewing only musical acts I know nothing about.
amri (Bristol, UK) @ Zilker Brewing (Utopia Sessions)
Amri, featuring sitar player.
“Come in closer and see my sitar player,” amri requested, after her eponymous six-piece band finished their set’s first song. I’m glad she did, because it was difficult to hear throughout their short set at Zilker Brewing. When amri came up as “fusion” in the SXSW search, I thought of jazz fusion–not amri’s blend of South Asian, West African and Caribbean music traditions along with U.S. pop and rock influences. The result was an adventurous and palatable mix.
The sitar player was fighting feedback and the keyboard player was at odds with the sound-mixer throughout the set. The rhythm section was acceptable and amri herself was warm, although nerve-wracked. Her voice demonstrated range both in jazzier registers and all over the meter. amri reminded me of Nai Palm of Australia’s Hiatus Kaiyote in the way the band must follow her wherever she goes. The guitar player was a standout musician with nimble, equatorial upstrokes who would definitely be able to shred a good solo when given the chance. The sophistication amri is aiming for will appeal to those who enjoy easy listening music. I’ll be looking for non-Spotify ways to support them, and if I end up throwing a dinner party, they’ll definitely be on my playlist.
PIAO (Los Angeles) @ Elysium (BMG Label & Publishing)
PIAO is a hyperpop act who hits the stage with intense presence and polish that would have filled a basketball arena seating thousands. Her choreography is precise and athletic.
I believe flip phones preceded her generation, but PIAO has a song called “Flip Phone”, a sample of key-tones during which she would mimic the pressing of giant keys on a giant invisible phone. “Anticipatory Grief” was an Eilish-esque torch ballad about watching loved ones age and the inevitability of time. I interpreted “If I Am Me, Then Who Are You?” as the youthful grasp for identity, a hat tip to trippy 1960s post-acid pseudo-intellectualism a la 13th Floor Elevator.
PIAO’s 25-minute set included an announcement that she just got signed to BMI, a shoutout to her single mom who no longer wears heels, and other unrehearsed, intimate banter. PIAO’s music and stagecraft will translate to the biggest stages, but it will be great if she can retain the personable quality of her act as well.
