What an exhausting and amazing experience SXSW was this year. I met Dave Grohl. I watched an inspiring and yet heartbreaking documentary on Fishbone. I met many new people, the good, the bad and the douchebag. If you’ve never been to SXSW, there is nothing like it. With music blasting out of every venue, new technology being introduced, and the number of human facets being displayed simultaneously in one city at once is astounding. One hour at SXSW is like 8 hours in real life. It just flies. Anyhow….I had to list some of my observations and experiences here otherwise I’ll never stop buzzing from it. Until next year…

Love it or hate it, here’s my list

1. Lone Star beer, if consumed gradually over several days, changes your body chemistry, most likely permanently.
2. Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters crew are some of the nicest guys on the planet. They also put on one of the best rock shows I’ve ever seen.
3. Hoards of drunk women trying to look sexy walking through mass crowds on cracked streets and brick roads with spiked 6-inch heels is one of the funniest damn things I have ever seen.
4. Tight V-neck shirts, tight black jeans, white belts and white patent leather boots with a haircut resembling Greg Brady in the late ’70′s is something I will never ever wear. I urge you to do the same. Mick Jagger and others made it look good …..back in ’72 where it belonged.
5. Not all music industry vets are self-serving thieves and ass clowns. I met some real people and my bleak outlook on the music biz has been lifted slightly.
6. Fishbone are the biggest, greatest and most uniquely influential band to never make it huge. Their documentary “Every Day Sunshine” is hard to swallow, yet a testament to how many hearts they’ve touched with their unrelenting individuality and talent. There will never be another Fishbone. Ever. They deserve a spot in the Rock’n'Roll Hall of Fame, hands down.
7. Homeless people would rather have an iPad 2 than food.
8. Rafael Saadiq’s backup band are some of the funkiest dudes I have ever met. Everything about their playing smells like some of the greatest peak moments in James Brown’s prime funk era.
9. I’ve always hated hard cider but Strongbow Dry Cider from England was pretty damn good.
10. Walking around wearing Chuck Taylors on pavement for 6 days straight when you are made out of 268 lbs of  pure pancakes and hot wings does not bode well on the feet, knees, hips, lower back, sanity, or the soul.
11. Angelo from Fishbone is the snazziest dresser from Jupiter that I’ve ever had the pleasure to photograph or be in the presence of.
12. There is such thing as shitty BBQ in Texas…. (street vendors)
13. ATM fees ranging from $4-5 don’t hurt so bad when you are exhausted, parched, and hurting…..until you realize Austin’s desire to make your life ‘convenient’ at SXSW was really just legalized rape.
14. No one can possibly see everything there is to see at SXSW and still live to tell the tale.
15. Booth babes never get old.
16. When an inebriated man dressed as Gumby wandering the streets has something to say, people listen.
17. If you look like a conservative software engineer at SXSWi, it’s still ok to check out mobile app booths wearing green tights, a cape, and knee high Doc Martens.
18. I’m glad it only happens once a year.
19. Always pack 2 extra livers and a spare aorta.
20. Being around that many people is still electrifying to me. Bands blasting out of every venue, great food and good friends remind me of the importance of being alive, sharing with others, and why I dig it so much.

Until next year.

Onward…..