South by Southwest 2026 has arrived, and this year, there’s no waiting for music. As all three tracks now run concurrently in the hotly debated restructured festival, big-name artists walked more than just the Congress red carpet Thursday night.
Not everything went smoothly. British singer Lola Young stepped out at ACL Live right on time, and the All American Rejects successfully continued their nostalgia tour at Stubb’s, but Griselda rapper Benny the Butcher – hosting his own showcase at Sixth Street locale Venue 6 – offered more informal cypher than proper performance. By the time fans arrived for his scheduled 12:15am set time, he’d already left the building.
Ancient Greece Leans Into Loud
Toronto-based art-punk quintet Ancient Greece hopped on their first SXSW stage with a wide-eyed tremble, but by the set’s finish, they’d transformed those nervous quakes into verifiable rock thunder. Low Down Lounge’s patio stage was properly packed as lead singer Camille Jodoin-Eng warmed up to a thrashing threshold, eventually pounding her duct-taped platform boots with such force the whole construction quivered.
Gentle elasticity speaks to a steady architectural structure, I’ve been told, but the bouncing speakers and tilting monitors also indicated that beloved balance of a scrappy SXSW set: somewhere between an intimate, DIY-feeling venue and an ill-prepared soundstage. Ultimately, equipment was righted and vibes maintained by a prompt and skilled sound tech. As he valiantly secured the stage, Ancient Greece loosened and began to sizzle. With rising force and BPM, they headbanged through a set of gravelly, verbose post-punk, centered by dual vocals from Jodoin-Eng and Richard Forbes that settled into a steady clip. Only a hint of the Eighties-reminiscent synth found on recorded tracks like “Engineers” made its way onstage as the band leaned eagerly into their loudest tendencies. With increasing returns on a ferocious energy, the group’s sound is set to ripple through the festival. – Caroline Drew
Locals Set the Stage, and the Bar, on Opening Night
No better way to kick off SXSW than with a lineup of local artists set to lead the buzz over the next week, and Thursday night’s Made in Austin bill at Zilker Brewing provided just the right distillation. Grace Sorensen’s breathy and unconscionably suave R&B led the way, working from last year’s standout BLUEPRINT LP with touches of jazz, classic Nineties rhythms, and even the cumbia-tinged “ORANGES IN DECEMBER.” Closing banger “COLOGNE” wanted only for Sorensen’s cool vocals to fully unleash their power, but Next of Kin’s following set delivered the dramatic flair. The harmony-locked trio, riding a breakout year that earned them Best New Act in the Austin Music Awards, showcased a stellar batch of new tunes, though “Mean Streak” still proved the mid-set country anthem highlight. Lew Apollo dipped into debut 2025 LP Fool’s Gold with luscious guitar licks to shift into the late-evening mood, his sextet working bluesy grooves behind his high vocal trill, while Tomar and the FCs popped with the powerhouse soul howl and fired-up call and response of “Gotta Give the People.” Closing out the night with three keyboards, dual percussion, and a harp, Grandmaster secured shoo-in for the band SXSW sound engineers most hate to see coming, but the funky space opera octet’s theatrical brand of intergalactic yacht rock provided the perfect capstone for the eclectic opening night. – Doug Freeman
Locals Gran Moreno Rip
Far and away from the world-famous Sixth Street district, Gran Moreno ripped a hole in the rock duo continuum. Way down East Sixth, which today flourishes like its western neighbor of yesteryear, Lefty’s Day & Night’s bar and tented patio sandwiched the local bros between a pair of recent Austin Music Awards acts – Gummy Fang and Big Bill. Mexican expats Ricardo and Christian Rodríguez responded by announcing the gran new morenos in town. Initially Gibson v. Ludwig, respectively, Ricardo’s white Firebird let off mile-high riffs as Christian boomed his kit like Bonham. Stadium rock in a garage guise, the sibs’ interlocking grandiosity pounded and shook “Huracán” off January full-length debut El Sol. While the LP belongs in cantina jukeboxes from here to Baja, live the Rodríguezes inevitably cut loose, Seventies and Nineties mondo rock parenting a 21st century analog where Leslie West’s thunderous Mountain becomes opening El Sol convocation “Las Montañas.” Thirty-seven minutes neat. “¡Viva México, cabrones!” grinned Ricardo. – Raoul Hernandez
London Pub-Riot Rockers His Lordship Suit Up As Anything but Pretenders
Austin’s musical oasis wellsprings such natural wonders that its club culture takes nearly all of its precious live music venues for granted. Chief amongst those on ground zero strip Red River remains Eighties HQ Elysium, a haven for homegrown goth, darkwave, and alt kids. Thursday flashed back the club’s ancient entertainment district footprint to the synergistic era of skinny ties. Wearing black suits and at least two matching strips of neckware, London explosives His Lordship went off like 1977, 1981, and 2000. Led by two current Pretenders, frontman James Walbourne and Danish drummer Kristoffer Sonne, and adding bassist Dave Page for live trio lacerations, the bangers ripped through a half-hour set of pub riot post-punk. Who said all the good band names got taken, anyway? Hailing from Muswell Hill and a former sideman to that area’s enduring British big banger Ray Davies, not to mention a stint in the Pogues, Walbourne looked like Hugh Jackman’s stuntman while whipping up a frenzy like any UK hopeful stepping onstage at Max’s Kansas City decades ago. Choppy riff grenades flew in every direction from His Lordship’s pair of full-lengths, last summer’s Bored Animal and a self-titled. “Buzzkill” induced the opposite reaction from a growing pack of revelers. – Raoul Hernandez
Lola Young Loves a Ballad
“It’s so great to be back,” Lola Young said, headlining the first night of Rolling Stone’s Future of Music showcase. “There’s nothing in the world like this.” That’s all the British singer offered about her tumultuous rise to the music industry top, which paused last year when she collapsed onstage during a performance at the All Things Go festival in New York. South by Southwest marked her second performance since the incident – the first being at this year’s Grammys, where she took home the award for Best Pop Solo Performance for 2024 single “Messy.” Explanations or no, the alt-pop crooner delivered an earnest set at ACL Live, leaning more into mid-tempo ballads than the fizzy pop-rock she does best. Bubbly, self-effacing cuts “d£aler” and “Not Like That Anymore,” from last year’s I’m Only F**king Myself, hinted at the 25-year-old “dumb little addict”’s depth and sense of humor, but most of the tracks in her 14-song set played it too slow, too safe, Young’s fivepiece band somehow eclipsed by her backing track. When that slick mix dropped out, the singer’s truly strong voice shone – ditto when she read from an imperfect-yet-honest poem dubbed “Art Is Rebellion,” lamenting the state of the world. As her viral, award-winning single bemoans, Young can’t seem to decide if she’s a messy indie artist or a clean pop star. She has the potential to do one quite well. – Carys Anderson
Chuck Prophet Takes His Cumbia Shoes for a Stroll
The stage inside Swan Dive turned chaotic after young California rockers Creature Canyon finished their set. Musicians and staff moved in a whirlwind as they carried a multitude of auxiliary instruments such as bongos and cowbells onstage so the sixpiece group Chuck Prophet and His Cumbia Shoes could – mostly – start on time. Cumbia gave desert-rock legend Prophet a new lease on life as he dealt with the effects of his Stage 4 lymphoma (now in remission), inspiring the name of his most recent and first cumbia-infused album, Wake the Dead. As on the record, Prophet’s vitality was on full display during his 45-minute set. Holding his weathered, cream-colored Telecaster like a weapon, he sang with vigor, yelling the occasional “Ow!” into the microphone or pointing to a bandmate for a solo. The band masterfully blended cumbia with Americana sounds, exemplified by simultaneous playing of pedal steel and scraper. Alongside favorites from Wake the Dead, Prophet also dipped into his earlier discography with the earworm-ballad “Wish Me Luck” and the cowbell-driven “Jesus Was a Social Drinker,” the latter serving as a showcase of Prophet’s unmistakable wit. Up close, it seemed like nearly every move he made carried a touch of irony. But the 40-year touring veteran is probably just having a little fun – and at this point, he deserves to. – Joseph Gonzalez
Cameron McCloud Asks: “Where the Files At?”
Nearly 20 minutes after Cure for Paranoia was scheduled to perform on Swan Dive’s patio, a host welcomed the Dallas alt-rap group onstage with a lengthy introduction seemingly drafted for a future Wikipedia entry. That wasn’t necessary, though, as frontman Cameron McCloud wasted little time with a mic check before instantly transitioning into a razor-sharp, rapid-fire flow. Backed by two bandmates operating on Akai MPCs, McCloud quickly demonstrated why his online following has soared in the past year. Smiling by track three while mesmerizing new fans with “verses like abracadabra,” the mental health-prioritizing rapper’s dynamism extended to unique crowd interaction promoting self-love and carefree enjoyment. The 21-minute blitz’s last quarter contained a fiery, unfinished track aimed at “President Carrot” and the ongoing Epstein Files saga. Blasting President Trump isn’t new territory for the frank MC – a chunk of his daily rap series on socials last year featured anti-MAGA lines. Bars such as “they lynched two niggas, but had a moment of silence for the Nazis,” and a simple refrain asking “where the files at?” were gleefully consumed. Triumphant closer “The Artshow,” off 2025 full-length Work of A.R.T., will prove prescient if Cure for Paranoia maintains this furious pace throughout SX week: “This is the year that you ’bout to find out, nigga.” – Derek Udensi
The All-American Rejects Prove Their Staying Power
A founding pillar of 2000s pop-rock, the All-American Rejects kicked off the festival’s first night with a stacked setlist of throwback hits and a glimpse into their upcoming album, Sandbox. The Oklahoma fivepiece tore into their breakout cut “Dirty Little Secret,” followed by “Fallin’ Apart,” before frontman Tyson Ritter paused to ask the sardine-packed crowd, “You wanna jump in my fucking time machine tonight?” Moments later, he was reminded through his in-ears not to curse – a rule he promptly mocked and ignored. Their hourlong set checked off fan favorites like “Move Along,” “Gives You Hell,” and “Swing, Swing” while also spotlighting their recent singles “Search Party!” and “Get This,” which fit comfortably within their anthemic discography.
Amid the pop-punk nostalgia, Ritter recalled playing Austin for the first time at 15 at the now-closed Red Eyed Fly. “We were never cool enough to get the invitation to South by Southwest, but I gotta say, it’s better late than never and I’m really honored to be here.” The outspoken singer also made a point to credit the band’s house party tour with sparking a second wave of success. “It gave us a second bite of the apple and we are fucking putting that whole thing down our throats,” he said. “It tastes really sweet.” – Miranda Garza
