[EDITOR'S NOTE: HN is teaming up with The Reader to cover SXSW this year. You can find reports by our editor-in-chief Andrew Norman at TheReader.com.]
by Chris Aponick | The Reader
When it came to seeing Thee Oh Sees at this year's SXSW Festival, I was beginning to feel like I had a curse set upon me. I tried to catch them at Red Eyed Fly, but a growing line deterred me. Later that day, I waited for them at Red 7, one of their two scheduled Wednesday night official showcases, only to be affronted by a set of rote, workmanlike punk-pop by Roll the Tanks, a Massachusetts band that lives between Bad Religion and the Dropkick Murphys. The venue reported that they were running at least 30 minutes behind, so I left for my own date with David Gedge's cult alternative rock band, The Wedding Present.