Perception vs Reality: Before & After SXSW with Judge

You always remember your first time. It’s awkward, it’s probably a little messy, and weird parts of your body are going to be sore afterwards. There’s a lot of strange stuff going on, a lot of unfamiliar sweat and niggling worries lurking beneath the ostensible “fun” of it. It’s not something you know how to discuss with your mom, and part of you still thinks, “That was it?!” Maybe it was worth it and beautiful magical things will follow, or maybe it was just a decent way to waste some time, but no matter how it all goes down, you’ll never forget your first SXSW.

We caught up with a handful of SXSW bands before and after the madness to see how their expectations of Austin’s yearly media orgy stacked up to the cruel reality of navigating a drunk-choked Red River at 2am. Did they “make it”? Did a shiny-suited A&R guy from some major label dinosaur ooze by their showcases and make all their dreams come true? Did they start drawing up blueprints for a Doritos temple of their very own? Maybe. From bar crawls to swimming basses, our willing subjects came, they saw, and best of all, they got the fuck out in one piece.

NYC straight edge hardcore crew Judge is so legendary that I was nervous about doing even an email interview with Sammy Siegler, current Judge drummer and veritable don of American hardcore known for his seminal work in Youth of Today, Project X, Side By Side, CIV, Rival Schools, and tons more. Turns out he's a super nice guy, though, even if he seemed a bit puzzled by my question about "raging." Though Siegler has danced with the devil on Red River previously, this year marked Judge's first SXSW appearance and people were STOKED to catch them at the Converse/Thrasher Death Match. We caught up with Siegler before and after the chips fell, and talked a lot about tacos.

The expectation…

NOISEY: This is Judge's' first time playing SXSW, and you've got a killer gig lined up. Are you excited for the festival?
Sam Siegler: Totally excited, fired up and all that. Should be a great show, looking forward to it indeed.

What made you decide to accept the invitation to play this year?
Austin’s a great city, and SX is a great way to get in front of people from all over the world. I think the opportunity to be involved with Converse and Thrasher is great, not to mention sharing the stage with legends such as Bl'ast… Hard to turn this one down.

You're from NYC too, so I'm sure you're stoked about the prospect of Texas heat—this winter has been horrible. You're going to be playing outside at the Converse/Thrasher Death Match show, too. Are you going to break out some shorts and sandals, or what?
I grew up in NYC, but recently have been living in LA. Total solar vortex for me, but my bandmates have been having a rough one for sure. Mike (our singer) asked me the other day, “Is it warm where we’re going?”… So yes, those dudes are stoked. We’ll be wearing Jams, no shorts and bandanas.

Have you been to SXSW before with other bands?
I’ve played it with Rival Schools a few times; we played Juan in a Million on my birthday a few years ago, it was pretty epic. Some of us have experienced SXSW, but I’m really looking forward to seeing the reaction of those who didn’t, it’s pretty fucking nuts, hard to explain to someone for sure.

What are the best stories you’ve heard about the SXSW experience so far?
Last year LL Cool J, Foo Fighters and Ice Cube where all at the airport and on my flight. It’s really crazy how many artists still decide to make this a priority. I’ve always heard Fader Fort stories, but never really checked it out, maybe this year.

What can fans expect to hear from you during your performance down there? Do you have a SXSW-specific setlist picked out?
We’re going to switch things around a little. We played FFF in Austin in November, so I think we need to keep it spicy. Working on that banjo country Judge vibe, we’ll see…

How much are you dreading the parking situation? Are you sharing gear?
Totally sharing gear, using the force, hopefully everything will be up to snuff. One year my band Rival Schools had 5 shows in 4 days and we had the number of a beat up limo called “Dirty”, we would call him up and go to our shows in this fucked up limousine… Maybe the number still works and we’ll try that.

Are you touring down, or just coming through for the festival? It looks like your performance is a one-off, but I could be wrong here.
Just a one off, staying at some hotel, not totally sure exactly. I’m arriving a few days early and staying with some friends for two nights. It’ll be an every man for himself type of event, scrambled eggs, see you on stage.

What bands are you hoping to see while you’re down there?
I heard Outkast is playing, and it would be nice to catch Damon Albarn… Bl'ast will be awesome.

…and the aftermath.

Overall, how was your SXSW experience?
Lovely, kind of kicked my ass, took me a few days to recover, but it was positive thank you.

How was the Converse/Thrasher Death Match show? Do you feel good about your set there?
The event was nice and the people were great. Pretty much every time I’ve played SX though, it’s hectic in regard to equipment, sound and certain logistics. I think our set was strong, people seemed into it. Kind of hard to get a vibe outside when the sun is out, but we ripped it… And got some free shoes!

I didn’t make it to that show, but tell me, how was Bl’ast?
They never showed, not sure what happened, but they didn’t make it.

What a bummer. What was the best thing that you saw, did, or witnessed (or all three) during this year’s SXSW?
Mobb Deep at midnight was a nice surprise at the Pandora thing, I also caught Damon Albarn on the roof somewhere which was nice. I ended up singing Karaoke (“Say You, Say Me”) at someone’s house and the cops rolled up because of an impromptu firework show.

Did your limo connection come through this year?
No sign of my limo, where’s the freakin respect?!! A lot of walking, we actually all did a band stroll to a burrito spot called Mr. Natural.

Between parking, playing, and sweating, did you get a chance to catch any bands while you were down there?
Lee Fields, Mobb Deep, Damon Albarn, and a few others. There was a women playing piano on a mobile venue truck thingy. Oh yea, there was a “Brooklyn Country" thing happening at Papi Tino’s on Saturday that was cool.

What was the worst band you saw (or walked by) all week?
There was one, oh yes, there was one, but I’ll be nice and keep it to myself.

What was your absolute worst ‘tear my hair out fuck this place' moment of SXSW?
There’s always a point where I’m all of a sudden freezing and tired, that happened and it was a familiar feeling that I don’t enjoy. The airport at 7:45AM was a complete amateur move on my behalf.

Do you think the organizers were right to carry on with the festival after the car accident?
I do. It was totally unfortunate and random, but was on the street, I think if something happened in the venue that’s a different story. The people that run the Mohawk are really considerate good people, at least the few that I know, I’m sure they thought it through.

Now that Judge has survived its first official SXSW, do you think you’ll go back next year?
I’m good every few years, so next year I might take off. Austin is great, so hopefully we can head back when it’s not such a shit show.

We talked to Perfect Pussy, Eagulls, Yautja, and Nothing, too.

Kim Kelly is not your friend, but she is on Twitter. - @GrimKim