Although we think of Austin’s South By Southwest festival as a place to discover fresh-faced talent, it’s also a great opportunity for established artists to re-enter the spotlight. This year is proof of that, with legends like Iggy Pop, Nick Cave and Steve Earle all making an appearance at the event. In honor of the coming festival, we’re taking a look at 11 of our favorite veteran acts who will be appearing at SXSW. Take a look at our list below, and let us know your favorites in the comment section.
Billy Bragg
Years in the Music Industry: 36
Starting his music career fronting the English pub/punk band Riff Raff, Billy Bragg soon reinvented himself as an incisive songwriter with an eye towards leftist political causes. Well-regarded in his native album, Bragg came to major prominence with American audiences after collaborating with Wilco for the Mermaid Avenue series, a group of albums which brought to life a large collection of unreleased Woody Guthrie songs. Bragg’s latest album, Tooth & Nail finds him eschewing his incendiary political-minded vigor in favor of more intimate reflections on aging and relationships, with songs like album opener “No One Knows Nothing Any More” showing the singer at his most vulnerable.—Mark Rozeman
Eric Burdon
Years in the Music Industry: 53
It’s been over 50 years since Eric Burdon first stepped up to the mic with The Animals and cemented his spot in musical history as one of the key voices of the British Invasion, but he’s nowhere near finished. Til Your River Runs Dry, his most recent solo effort, was released this year after being recorded in 2010 and 2011 in New Orleans and California, and Burdon says it was a true labor of love, a tribute to Bo Diddley (who died during the recording process), Katrina victims and the Big Easy as a whole.
“Global warming, the potential disaster of the water crisis… too much water, too little water,” Burdon explains. “I chose the title, because there are so many times in one’s life, when one feels he has nothing more to offer. But no, my river has not run dry. I offer this as a bit of hope that we, as the human race, will find new sources of replenishment and inspiration.”—Bonnie Stiernberg
Camper Van Beethoven
Years in the Music Industry: 30
It’s 30 years since Camper Van Beethoven formed in 1983 and they remain just as playful, though with hair that’s shorter, thinner and grayer. They can still capture the sense of dislocation of a kid from the Valley venturing out to the California coast.
For all the fun they have at the expense of Golden State stereotypes, however, the band is still capable of heartfelt affection for their old stomping grounds, especially on the seven-minute, psychedelic-pop, mariachi epic, “Northern California Girls.” When the fiddle-and-choir-swathed voice of an old girlfriend croons, “Throw away your snow boots; throw away your parka—Lord, you know I always kept you warm,… come home from Brooklyn,” you would have to tie yourself to a mast to resist her siren call.—Geoffrey Himes
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Years in the Music Industry: 36
There are rock stars with big personalities and legendary personas. And then there’s Nick Cave. As charismatic and intelligent as he is frightening and feral, Nick Cave at times seems more like a concept than an actual breathing human being. Born in a small country town in Australia, young Cave rebelled from his oppressive surroundings by forming the post-punk band The Birthday Party with his friends.
Several albums and a line-up change later, the group re-named themselves Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Marrying a menacing amalgamation of jazz, blues and punk rock with Cave’s dark, Gothic lyrics, the group quickly amassed a devoted following. In the synth-driven heyday of the 1980s, the Seeds emerged as something altogether different and altogether dangerous. What’s more amazing is that, after almost 30-plus years, Cave’s persona has failed to give way to ridiculous self-parody.
While albums like The Boatman’s Call and the band’s latest Push the Sky Away show Cave’s maturation into a quiet and introspective songwriter, Dig Lazarus Dig!!! and the two-album outfit Grinderman proved that the band can still tear a stage apart with loud, life-affirming cacophony. And if all that weren’t enough, Cave himself is also an accomplished novelist and screenwriter, having penned the script for the critically adored Western The Proposition and last year’s Lawless. If Cave is not the dictionary definition of a modern-day Renaissance Man, I don’t know what is. —Mark Rozeman
Steve Earle
Years in the Music Industry: 27
SXSW Appearances: 2000, 2007
In a time where many country stars have evolved into interchangeable personalities with model-worthy looks and a sound that resembles Top 40 pop music digitally enhanced with a slight twang, it’s only natural to look back at some of the true greats of country and complain about the way things used to be. Years from now, that pantheon will certainly include the likes of Steve Earle.
A major player in the development of the alt-country sound, Earle broke through in a big way with his debut 1984 album Guitar Town. Combining traditional country instrumentation with a rock star swagger and clever lyrics that illustrated his well-read, intelligent mind, Earle was a country outlaw for the modern times. Unfortunately, Earle at times embodied this persona in ways that proved quite destructive. Seven marriages and a heroin addiction would color his career, but—all the while—Earle persevered, documenting his woes and burdens as any good artist of his ilk would do—through the prism of song.
