A Recap of SXSW 2011
I just got home today from a great but tiring trip to Austin for the SXSW Festival. This is the first time I have attended the event, and it was both more and less than what I expected.
The conference was much larger than I anticipated. The rumors put the number of Interactive attendees at close to 40,000 people. There were 11 venues, spread out across downtown Austin. What I know is that every time I wanted to go somewhere, there were lots of other people going the same way. At times this was frustrating because I could not make some of the connections I wanted to with other attendees due to the crowds. I made it a point to stay out of the big sessions for the most part and spent a lot of time just hanging around and talking to people. There were people there from just about any kind of tech company you can imagine, making for a very diverse group. I spent a lot of time getting to know people working around the ideas of getting devices onto the network. Most of the sessions I went to were off the beaten path, and as a result I got a lot of one on one time with the presenters. I will say that if I go again ( which I am planning to ), I will make it a point to ( a ) go for fewer days and ( b ) have a lot more direct meetings set up with people I want to talk to. I came away with meaningful contacts for moving my ideas forward every day I was there, and am looking forward to following up over the next few weeks.
The city of Austin is a tremendous host city. The food and music were off the chain. The logistics of the conference were also really well-handled. I stayed about ten minutes north of downtown and had shuttle service to and from my hotel for the four days I was there. The shuttles ran on time ( for the most part ), the drivers were great, and often knew ways to get around the traffic ( which was harsh at times ).
I ate southwestern fare for most of the meals. The Iron Cactus was probably the best meal I had all week. Simply delicious, and great margaritas ( with a choice of over 80 tequilas ). The big surprise food-wise was Monday night when we wandered across a temporary truck for Torchy’s Damn Good Tacos. They made a fried avocado soft taco that was unique and tasty.
I went out to see live music every night but the last. The first night I went to Mohawks and saw a band there called The Limousines. I would describe them as modern / alternative, but they had a ton of energy. Kind of a modern-day Depeche Mode sound. The keyboard player even had John Taylor-esque frosted hair in the front. Sunday night we went to Maggie Mae’s for the Google Party Like It’s 1986 Jam. The band playing was called the Spazmatics. They played just about everything from the 80’s and nailed them all. Def Leppard, Corey Hart, The Cure, Devo, Violent Femmes, and on and on. Monday night was the coup-de-grace. I went to the Saxon Pub and heard Matt the Electrician and The Trishas. Both were amazingly good. Last night we had tickets to see the Foo Fighters, but I just didn’t care enough to go. I gave my tickets away to someone who cared much more deeply than I did. The scene on 6th street was unlike anywhere I have been. Live music in every club, people everywhere having a great time, and most all of it was free. I only paid one cover charge the whole weekend.
It was a great few days, but I am looking forward to jumping back in with both feet to the stuff I have going.