So when 50,000 additional musicians, record-label owners, groupies, producers and press types are added to the mix, Austin provides a fleeting glimpse of what might happen should the slacker set ever decide to colonize its own planet. The festival also draws a fair amount of criticism from longtime observers, who argue that it has strayed from its original purpose as a showcase for unknown talent and instead morphed into a hype mechanism for artists already well on their way. Or if nGoMa , the only non-affiliated group in the Loud Records showcase, managed to perk up the ears of whatever label people were in the house. So are Kristin Hersh , Kelly Willis , Matt Johnson and hundreds of other established artists. Events like SXSW are unlikely to do much for your band unless you're already working all angles of your career.
Judgments become almost arbitrary.
And then there are the odd opportunities to see stuff that just doesn't come to places like Denver. Of the million ways you can experience SXSW, the marathon approach is favored by those who have an abundance of both stamina and cab fare. No matter what strategy you employ, though, you're almost certain not to be bored or disappointed. And if you are, you can simply try some other stage on for size. But we do have a couple of minor approximations of it, and both of them are coming up quickly.