24 Hours at SXSW 2010 – March 19th 2010 with Mairin Heard from KTSW’s The Party Line with BC and Merch

Unless you’re surgically fused to someone, chances are you aren’t going to have the same experience at SXSW as anyone else. With that in mind, we invited some of our friends from around Austin and the country to document 24 hours of their experience at SXSW. Geeks, filmmakers and musicians will all be sharing their SXSW 2010 experience with us.

Today’s guest, Mairin from The Party Line with BC and Merch on KTSW Radio, is one of my favorite people in this city. If you haven’t checked out her radio show, you need to. A selection of dance, hip hop and electro, it’s a def must listen–esp if you want to have a dance party in your car. Peer into her world as she drops her version of SXSW

As I attempt to re-cap the past 24 hours of my Friday during SXSW, I cannot believe there is only one more main day left. I began my trek on Sunday and took a break Monday, and have continued to party until 3 a.m. and beyond each night. How did I prepare for SXSW? I shot any and all RSVP’s for free events through the RSVPeople group that I created and proceeded to get lost in the insane amount of freebies. Therefore, my week has consisted of wandering around town and being able to bump into any party I felt like waiting in line for. Wish I had brought my bike.

Waking up in a daze and haze from Thursday night’s menageries and celebrity run-in’s, I started my Friday writing down various RSVP’s from Facebook and other free-party recommendation sites. I ran into Vern Troyer on Congress and got to hug Bill Murray at Shangri La. My Mr. Murray wish came true. Alright, back to my Friday. I started the day off by tracking down free lunch, which I found at the Carerra Artist Lounge at Cedar Door. There were free fajitas, drinks and swag bags among all of the VIP loungers. Taryn Manning threw an awesome DJ set and mixed everything from Brittany Spears to Aretha Franklin.

After taming my hunger and free fix, I wandered over to Emo’s to try and catch Surfer Blood. The line was too long, so I ran after the meandering members of GWAR and took a quick snapshot, but didn’t stick around. (Their characters fit in the same horrifying category as clowns in my book).

To continue reading about Mairin’s day at SXSW, click here:

I checked my RSVP list and ran over to Mohawk for the A.V. Club free show. I was thrilled to hear some dancey music and stuck around for the two-person duo BRAHMS, who combined snythy, electro-pop beats composed by a keyboard, laptop, guitar and mic.

Outside I caught a brief moment of Frightened Rabbit’s performance, just enough to catch their hit “Modern Leper.” I was in need for some more free music and drinks and heard that the Fader Fort line wasn’t too long (huge surprise) so decided to head to the East side for some free beer and SoCo. Caught a short set from XYX and another band I didn’t catch the name of. Just used the time to chill out before the long night ahead.

After texting, tweeting and more texting, I decided to meet up with more friends at Auditorium Shores to catch CHEAP TRICK! Yes, Cheap Trick made it to SXSW. Never thought I would hear “Surrender” or “I Want You To Want Me” live. The show was really amazing and the band had a ton of energy and put on a great set. Despite the long walk from East 5^th to Riverside, the extremely long Cheap Trick set was worth it.

Cheap Trick video “I Want You To Want Me”

Cheap Trick video “Surrender”

As my friends and I walked all the way back down town, my dry-mud covered thrift store boots had seen better days and were causing my feet to completely fail. I had to stop and get some food since I was running off of free lunch and the cookies that I stashed in my bag. Grabbed a slice from Hoboken and stood outside of Stubb’s just in time to catch a few songs from one of my favorite bands…Muse.

My good friend was working on the film production staff and kept me updated on my Muse boys backstage. I nearly drew a tear as I heard “Starlight” amidst the slightly rude security people who were shoving me and the other outsiders and telling us to scoot back. Enough of that. I made my way back to my go-to bar, Shangri La, and met up with more people to game plan. Caught a cool band from Chihuahua, Mexico that put on a lively punk-rock set.

As my iPhone battery hit the 20% low battery level, I decided to head back across 35 for a dance party at my other favorite bar, Side Bar. The owner recently bought the garage space next door and was hosting an awesome DJ set which kept me dancing until it was closing time. The space was awesome and I am so excited to see what is in store for that spot. My event planning and brainstorming was working…

Basically, my SXSW Friday was running back and forth between downtown and the East side to party hop between all things free. I wish I had no responsibilities and could always and forever roam the streets of downtown Austin while listening to live music and fist pumping to beats.