SXSW 2010 – Day 2: Surfer Blood, Band of Horses, Broken Social Scene and more

Delorean‘s captivating and danceable sound combines energetic drumbeats and prominent bass lines with otherworldly synthesizer sounds that sparkle and sing like ghosts.

Impressions of Surfer Blood: 1. Wow, they’re playing like 10 shows today. 2. Wow, they look really young. 3. Wow, they’re great! More than any other surf-related band around right now (and we all know there are a lot of them), Surfer Blood writes super-catchy, feel-good pop songs with memorable melodies, riffs and lyrics. All the attention they’ve been getting is well deserved.

Washington quartet The Lonely Forest plays songs are that easy to fall in love with. Their earnest, urgent anthems beg to be played for packed rooms of kids singing along with abandon.

Fronted by The Good Life and Desaparecidos alum Landon Hedges, Little Brazil carries on the Omaha tradition of writing honest, passionate songs that rock.

The Soft Pack‘s energetic garage rock may not be unique, but it gets heads bobbing, and as they found out backstage during the show, it just took them top of the singles chart in the U.K.

Whether or not you enjoy your rock with a side of twang, it’s easy to enjoy a Drive-By Truckers set, full of laid-back charm and just the right amount of swagger. Their new album, The Big To-Do, was released this week.

Band of Horses is always a pleasure to see live, with their winning blend of raw emotion, relentless waves of guitar and drums, and southern rock flavor. They played favorites including the careening, cathartic “The Funeral” and the lively stomper “The General Specific,” plus a couple of songs from their forthcoming album. They closed with a ferocious cover of Yo La Tengo’s “Sugarcube.”

“We have a new record about forgiveness and we’re going to play our guts out for you,” announced Kevin Drew near the beginning of Broken Social Scene‘s set. And that they did, with a stage-filling lineup including a five-piece horn section. As usual, Drew played the role of half-mad pop genius ringleader, sharing bits of wisdom and non-sequiturs like his instructions to the audience to yell “Fuck this” followed by “Thank you for my life.” Emily Haines and James Shaw of Metric joined the band for a soaring rendition of Haines’ signature song “Anthems for a Seventeen-Year-Old Girl.”