Rolling Stone’s recurring Future of Music showcase launched on Tuesday, which meant jumpsuit-loving pop star Benson Boone brought droves of SXSW Music goers to Willie Nelson Boulevard.
ACL Live proved only one stomping ground for the Chronicle team, which also traversed the usual Red River-and-beyond streets to catch exports in folk, dance punk, techno, and Latin R&B.
And if you thought technology was the dominant theme across the festival’s Interactive contingent, we’re disappointed to report the same goes for Lars Ulrich, who chatted at the Convention Center in the afternoon with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe about Metallica’s own ventures into mixed-reality “immersive experiences.”
Benson Boone Flips Out
Rolling Stone’s third annual Future of Music showcase kicked off Tuesday with eight flips. Shimmering head to toe, fresh pop-rock super singer Benson Boone proved that his onstage aerials matched his vocal agility with musically timed, mid-air somersaults off a grand piano. The firecracker pulled heavily from his 2024 debut chart-topper Fireworks & Roller Blades, evoking loyal screams at every intro and nailing high notes that matched the whiny electric guitar counterparts woven throughout the hour. He also snuck in “Momma Song” and “Young American Heart,” a couple of unreleased nuggets from his sophomore album dropping later this year. A natural ringmaster, the vocalist led call-and-response choruses and belted lines to life with Freddie Mercury-style gestures directed at faces in the crowd. But it’s not just his charisma, snazzy fit, or vocal prowess that has catapulted the 22-year-old into the mainstream. It’s his songwriting. Midway through the set, the lyricist lulled with his grandma ode “In the Stars”: “And now you’re in the stars and six feet’s never felt so far/ Here I am alone between the heavens and the embers.” The audience sang along through real sobs. If Boone is Rolling Stone’s future of music, then the future looks sparkly, evocative, and acrobatic as hell. – Amber Williams
Annie-Claude Deschênes’ Whipped Cream-Laced Techno Party
Annie-Claude Deschênes checked everyone’s table manners at Elysium. The 33-minute techno journey was set into motion with “CULINARY SECURITY,” revealing a solo DJing/singing Deschênes performing hand choreography to a then-moderately reserved crowd. “That’s it, the show is over now,” quipped the Montreal artist, as the opening song’s beats faded. “MEDITATIONS” filled the air as Deschênes served amuse-bouche topped with whipped cream to two audience members sitting at a preset table offstage. Canister in hand, the songstress motioned for audience members to come up to the stage and open their mouths. She then uttered, “Do you know your table manners? Doesn’t seem so,” before kicking off “LES MANNIÈRES DE TABLE.” During a rendition of Lizzy Mercier Descloux’s disco-pumped cover of “Fire,” the zestful singer jumped into the crowd and brought everyone down to a squat before erupting into a club-like dance scene. The party continued into the final song, where audience members flooded to the stage to dance while Deschênes hung up her mic for the night and returned to her Pioneer DJ controller. – Catalina Perez
Lars Ulrich and Zane Lowe Sell Tech
I’ll spare you the suspense: The immersive live Metallica concert experience is coming to Apple Vision Pro this Friday, March 14. Lars Ulrich and Zane Lowe are so excited they could hardly keep themselves from alluding to the release, which was publicly announced just before their Breaking the Fourth Wall panel, throughout their hour-long conversation.
Looking startlingly like members of the same polo team, the two storied media figures stumbled over complimenting each other as they traced Metallica’s dogged history of breaking the barrier between artist and fan. From an early punk-as-accessibility mindset to upcoming branded ski wear – Some Kind of Monster (2004) and the “donut stage” on the ongoing M72 tour wedged firmly in the middle – Ulrich is determined to bring fans “close enough to be sweated and spit on,” as he put it. “Human beings are herd animals,” he said. “We just want to connect with each other.”
If you’d prefer to have that experience without the bodily fluids, Apple is all too happy to provide. Lowe, who feels Metallica has been “unfairly accused of wanting to control everything,” was eager to facilitate this “unfiltered” presentation of their live performance, filmed in Mexico City and interspersed with documentarian interviews. Though Lowe made sure to espouse his and Ulrich’s dedication to vinyl, the two are thrilled to tackle “still uncharted territory” in the arts with the help of drone fleets. Lowe remarked with glee that, thanks to the face-to-face experience, viewers can feel like part of the band and “finally see how to actually play ‘Sandman.’” His friends, who have apparently been producing unconvincing covers, better polish up quickly. – Caroline Drew
TVOD Deliver a Glam-Punk Headscratcher
I can’t make out what kind of band TVOD wants to be. On record, the Brooklyn sixpiece, full name Television Overdose, cuts pretty middle-of-the-road post-punk, all thumping bass and scratchy guitar that sometimes jitters with nervous energy and other times stretches into melancholy midtempos. At Swan Dive, the band played with heightened sonic intensity – and plenty of bombastic showmanship – that somehow recalled both the energy (and the circle pits) of punk and the campiness – nay, goofiness – of glam. Gripping the mic like Rollins and kicking off multiple cuts with a guttural “uh,” vocalist Tyler Wright sang, yelled, jumped, and contorted with an aggression that contrasted his bandmates’ bubbly spirits, from Serge Zbritzher’s guitar flexes to pink-haired keyboardist Jenna Mark and dreadlocked second axeman’s Denim Casimir’s enthusiastic backing vocals. As did Wright’s lyrics, which sounded so much like teenage diary entries (“I need a therapist/ I’ll take the drugs instead”), I wrestled with whether the vocalist was posturing or kidding. It was a combination of competing interests I found funny, captivating, eyeroll-inducing, confounding. Wrapping with the not-yet-released “Party Time,” the title track to an upcoming TVOD LP, Wright – at one point rhyming “party” with “naughty” – led the pogoing crowd in a chant of, “What time is it? PARTY TIME,” like “TV Party” for egg punks. Angst or act? – Carys Anderson
Ken Pomeroy Previews Cruel Joke
At 22 years old, Ken Pomeroy has been playing music for “longer than she hasn’t been.” These years of experience shine through in her evocative storytelling and hauntingly beautiful live performance. She breathed new life onto the stage at Continental Club with a classic folksy/Americana sound along the lines of Gillian Welch, as opposed to the more straightaway classic country acts that preceded her. A backing band, complete with a banjo player and slide guitarist, brought her songs to life, captivating and silencing the previously noisy crowd. The group played every track from the upcoming record Cruel Joke, which releases on May 16. Pomeroy entertained the audience between songs by sharing entertaining, endearing, and sometimes emotional stories about the new cuts’ origins. We learned that “Rodeo Clown” is about meeting a blackout drunk rodeo clown who was also a law school student, “Rango” is about her dog Wrangler who she calls “a real shit ass,” and on a more serious note, the song “Days Getting Darker” is about growing up in the Oklahoma Bible Belt and wondering how such terrible things as the opioid epidemic could happen in such a “godly” place. You have more opportunities to see this talent during SXSW, and you will surely have more in the future as her star rises. – Kyra Bruce
Vanessa Zamora Lives Up to the Hype
Night two of Music Fest week began mirroring the first: post-Rapture. By midnight, the streets filled for a more familiar SX sight, and true to festival form, a scattered Flamingo Cantina filled quickly at 10pm for a gander at a name you’ll be hearing a lot more from. Tuesday afternoon at flagship ATX music emporium Waterloo Records, both employees and even one owner fairly gushed about Vanessa Zamora, headlining their Wednesday in-store. Supported by a drummer, backing tracks, and her purple Fender guitar – wearing a Japanese dragon shirt and tri-colored orange hair – the Tijuana native sang in Spanish with a lilt matching the bounce inherent in her hooky pop and indie veneer. Recalling fellow Tijuana artist Julieta Venegas, she equalized warm, strummy, desirous chords against a powerfully feminine lyricism. “Puro Pasado” from second album Tornaluna danced folksy despite describing a doomed relationship. A tattoo heartbeat generally accompanied defiant, vulnerable storytelling. Wistful and longing, yet self-possessed, knowing, and confident, Zamora careened through her 45 minutes. Those elastic hooks bounced off a guest sax slot from Sylvester Uzoma Onyejiaka II of locals Sly5thAve, who packed The Driskill Bar & Grill earlier Tuesday. ATX meets MX. Those contingents generally get on like a singer with a great big voice and even mightier pen. – Raoul Hernandez
La Sécurité Ignite the Dance Floor
Lead vocalist and keyboardist Éliane Veins-Synnott’s bubble-popping synth cut through the sweaty Swan Dive crowd like a siren song. Infusing the propulsive grunge guitars with La Sécurité’s signature danceability, the Montreal quintet’s grittier side was out to play at their second SXSW 2025 show. And dance they did. Laurence-Anne Charest-Gagné’s hair took on acrobatic qualities as she, and fellow guitarist Melissa Di Menna, joined Viens-Synnott on vocals, amplifying the energetic lyricism of some of their stickiest choruses. Veins-Synnott’s saturated vocal range carried the group’s dynamic melodies effortlessly even as she led the dance floor and beat the tambourine. Félix Bélisle’s lock-step bass and a tight performance by drummer Kenny Smith conducted an unreleased song that already feels like it belongs in their discography. The whole band seemed to be having a contagiously good time and the Mothland showcase felt like a group of old friends. La Sécurité pulled CDSM percussionist/vocalist John Restivo Jr. onstage to play bongos for a vigorous performance of “Sleepy Rebellion” and “Serpent” before he helped them send out the night with one of their new singles, “Ketchup.” True to their myriad of influences, the band’s performance felt fresh through songs new and old. Even on a tired Tuesday night, this was arguably my favorite set of SXSW so far. There’s plenty more to come, so catch them if you can. – Caroline Drew
Honeyglaze’s Soft Rock Serenade
London-based indie rockers Honeyglaze brought ringing reverberation and unadulterated candor to their first trip across the pond. The trio’s Mazzy Star-esque soft melodies veiled over ultra-honest tales of growing pains and coming of age. The bulk of their 28-minute set stemmed from the group’s latest effort Real Deal, apart from 2022 fan-favorite “Burglar.” Lead singer and guitarist Anouska Sokolow shattered the fourth wall with opener “Hide” as she sang with shut eyes, “I can hide behind the melody/ And catharsis comes so easily.” The threepiece rarely veered off track from their playing, though they did offer a few quips and insight into what foods they’ve tried since visiting Austin – tacos and hot dogs – before quickly returning to their instrumentation. Meek grooves twirled around Sokolow’s regretful rehashing of a hair dye job gone wrong in “Female Lead” as she admitted, “There’s matters far more pressing than letting hair drive me insane/ But I’m ashamed to say I have always been this vain.” Bassist Tim Curtis divided his attention between his pedals and headbanging, while Yuri Shibuichi’s breakneck drums led spoken-word closer “Don’t” through a crescendo of distorted shreds. – Miranda Garza
Sophie Castillo Keeps ’Em Waiting
Two kinds of SXSW showcases: those that start 15 minutes late and those beginning 47 minutes after whenever they get around to it. Actually, that’s a goddamn lie: The majority of SX sets start dead. on. time. Sophie Castillo – not so much. In communities of ethnicity, including mine growing up, we joked about CPT: We’ll get there … eventually. A Music Fest “Presenter,” Let’s Gig Brazil at Flamingo Cantina on Sixth Street Tuesday night ran 8pm to 2am and exactly 15 minutes behind. Until the witching hour, that is, when the London Latina’s tech guy mistook this one festival slot out of multitudes for the Super Bowl – a common mistake, and this one in service of a laptop that drowned out the singer to the point of near total obliteration. Where DJ Anupi counterbalanced performances Monday in the same room for South Asian House, Future Rootz jockeys cannoned incessantly so that the audience barely acknowledged a live singer. Very little rose above the white noise produced by the computer belonging to her wingman, and while the amphitheater filled, applause eventually dwindled to a single clap for a vocalist onstage in a four-alarm leather go-go outfit. When Castillo “ooo-ooo-ooo”-d, her intonation managed to rise above the digital haze of her accompanist shredding into his laptop, and “When the Sun Goes Down” played to a trad, “soy Latina” voice serving contemporary electro. Sadly, at that hour of Wednesday morning, however, the sounds coming through the club’s P.A. barely registered. – Raoul Hernandez
VENUS GRRRLS Casts a Modern Grunge Spell
Goth-grunge ensemble VENUS GRRRLS proved themselves to be a fiery tour de force at End of the Trail’s Las Perlas showcase. Vocalist and guitarist Grace Kelly’s growly trills and fearless belts entranced showgoers, and lead guitarist Eliza Lee devoured her crimson set of six strings with menacing riffs and seemed to never lose momentum. Synth slinger Grace Stubbings was stationed offstage and somewhat hidden behind giant speakers, but her gleaming sonic accents did not go unnoticed. More often than not, bassist Hannah Barraclough took her resounding shreds to drummer Gabby Cooke, where the two headbanged and rocked the crowd with rhythm. Kelly ditched her Fender for “Glisten,” and introduced the darkwave incantation by sensually twirling her hands in the air and announcing, “I want us to cast a love spell.” Microphone in hand, she prowled off stage and nonchalantly parted the crowd before using the instrumental break to sway back and forth and return to her post. The singer primed closer “Lidocaine” by encouraging the audience to donate blood. “It saved my life,” she remarked, alluding to her previous battle with acute myeloid leukemia. The incendiary arrangement brought an epic finale to their 30-minute set. – Miranda Garza
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to reflect that Benson Boone flipped eight times during his Rolling Stone set, not seven. The Chronicle regrets the error.
This article appears in March 7 • 2025.
