Mohawk
An Austin Perennial
RECEIVED Sat., March 14, 2015
Dear Editor,
Man, I miss the old days. My favorite SXSW was 1986, when I somehow wound up on a local band's tour bus in front of the Continental Club, watching a couple of fat, middle-aged record executives snort coke off the dashboard and chase teeny-bimbos around the cabin. It was a classic Spinal Tap moment made painfully real by the fact that nobody ever made it into the club to check out the band's set.
For me, personally, that marked the beginning of the end; mostly of the innocence that gets lost with a growing community and clash of corporate interests. Having lived here since 1978 and witnessed that change, I wonder if there's another place in the world where that small spark could be re-ignited.
Probably not. One could point to the demise of the Armadillo World Headquarters and City Council's refusal to save it – only to later declare Austin the live music capital of etc. as an initial example of ignorance, greed, and bad planning. They really sucked for not declaring AWH a historic landmark, but I think a bank really needed the parking space.
Obviously, I'm slightly bitter, not to mention old and cranky. I don't go out there anymore. My fun's been had, and I've got plenty of memories and gratitude for being in the right place at the right time. That would be Austin.
I'll grouse at you again next year, but right now, I've gotta get to the airport and pick up the Germans who think I'm friends with Snoop Dogg; they pay big for backyard space with a tent.
Man, I miss the old days. My favorite SXSW was 1986, when I somehow wound up on a local band's tour bus in front of the Continental Club, watching a couple of fat, middle-aged record executives snort coke off the dashboard and chase teeny-bimbos around the cabin. It was a classic Spinal Tap moment made painfully real by the fact that nobody ever made it into the club to check out the band's set.
For me, personally, that marked the beginning of the end; mostly of the innocence that gets lost with a growing community and clash of corporate interests. Having lived here since 1978 and witnessed that change, I wonder if there's another place in the world where that small spark could be re-ignited.
Probably not. One could point to the demise of the Armadillo World Headquarters and City Council's refusal to save it – only to later declare Austin the live music capital of etc. as an initial example of ignorance, greed, and bad planning. They really sucked for not declaring AWH a historic landmark, but I think a bank really needed the parking space.
Obviously, I'm slightly bitter, not to mention old and cranky. I don't go out there anymore. My fun's been had, and I've got plenty of memories and gratitude for being in the right place at the right time. That would be Austin.
I'll grouse at you again next year, but right now, I've gotta get to the airport and pick up the Germans who think I'm friends with Snoop Dogg; they pay big for backyard space with a tent.
Tom Bowman