The first and second waves of the 37th annual Texan showcase of new music SXSW lineup have been released, and once again, it looks to be the sound of tomorrow. The festival runs a full six days from March 10-19th, 2023 and registration for tickets is open now. You can see the ticket and lineup information in full at https://www.sxsw.com/.
Texas and March may be far away, but the music is always close. Americana UK journos trawled through the 400+ artists to bring you a list of what hot new Americana artists you could be playing next year. You heard them here first. This is day eight of a Twelve-part series that explores this showcase; enjoy all of these artists “seven slides a slidin’, six gators layin, five rhinestone suits, four open roads, three fresh hats, two bald eagles, and a pardner in a pantry”.
Nathan Graham is a musician of colour born and raised in Chicago. His music sits between “south side soul” and “Nashville Americana”. Although Graham has had a string of singles, he has yet to schedule an album for release. Of his music, Graham says, “My goal is to show a different kind of singer-songwriter. I don’t look or sound like you’d expect, but I’m writing about universal experiences of love, loss, uncertainty and anxiety. I’m writing music to connect my story to yours, show you all that we have in common, and maybe help both of us feel less alone“.
Transgender artist Mya Byrne has been creating a blend of country, glam-pop, blues and poetic folk songwriting for nearly two decades. Coming out as trans in 2014, she is a leader for the presence of queer trans women in the country and Americana. Originally from New Jersey, she moved her base to San Francisco from New York, and her sound reflects the wideness of her travels. This year she signed with Nashville label Kill Rock Stars and has been making waves with new singles ‘Where the Lavender Grows‘ and ‘Autumn Sun‘.
Whiskin describes himself as an “Angsty guy with a guitar. Obsessed with Tom Petty.“. The debut self-titled album from the Leeds artist came out this year but seemed to be flying under the radar on this side of the pond. His music, like lots of Americana, is about growing up working class and his lyrics sing of life in Wortley council houses, discovering 70’s songwriters in Armley charity shops. Of his songs, he says they are “an essential document of adolescence in Yorkshire in the late ’90s and ’00s.“.
Rod Gator is so-called for the name his old-school Cajun dad wanted to christen him, and this is a vignette of the Louisiana music you should expect to hear. Gator’s music is a swampy, crawfish-laden blend of Louisiana soul, greasy country rock, Texas blues, and electrified funk. Rod Gator says his music “created its own sonic geography“. Four albums in and finally working with Grammy-award-winning producers, it is probably about time for him to be “discovered”.
Kalu was born in Nigeria but now lives in Austin, Texas, where he creates music that blends psychedelic soul music with rock and roll infused with the rhythms of Africa. After an independent album release in 2014, Kalu has released a steady stream of singles with guitarist Jonathan Holt, causing a stir on the festival scene stateside.
You can read the previous article here.
