VENDOR

Our SXSW 2010 recap arrives 11 days after everyone left town. Either we’re slack, or we’re one of the few that did 10 days straight at a pace that requires an 11-day correction (that would be a correction factor of 1.1, which is actually impressive).

The early piece of news was that more badges were sold for interactive than for music or film. That’s a first. The second big piece of news hit everyone while they were still in the badge pick-up line. All the badges had QR codes and there was a concerted effort in place to get them used. There were QR helpers helping those who needed help, QR signage directing you to the helpers who were helping those who needed help, and there were QR instructions in the official SXSW pocket guides for those predisposed to spend the bulk of their time looking down.

The sum of this second big piece of news is that we now have our own official Vendor, Inc. QR code.

Here’s how to use it:

1. Download a QR reader app to your mobile phone (I-Nigma, Bee Tag, or Google Zxing Reader).
2. Open the app and scan the QR code above.
3. Select “Go Online”

Yee-haw, right back where you started in 3 easy steps! Pretty cool when you consider the possibilities. Health, nutrition, or pretty much anything you might ever see that interests you. Get your very own QR code here.

Next up was geo-location. The first lesson learned was that it’s not cool to check in using one of the apps if you happen to be Facebook friends with the developer of a competing app. Allegiance drama aside, absolute craziness is about to hit in this space and it’s going to be a really good thing. Mobile devices, cameras, GPS, video, and mobile advertising are about to collide and become a total freak show. None of the pieces are figured out yet relative to the end game, but you can see it coming together and there is zero doubt the mobile space is about to get super ridiculous good.

Some panels were great, some were hijacked by the questioner and others were saved by the questioner. There were literally hundreds of panels, everything from Nina Hartley to Bob Garfield. The Funny or Die guys were great, it’s fun seeing folks in the early stages of such a great idea.

One thing you could sense by walking the halls was that everyone  knew they were in the middle of something that was already great, yet still in its infancy. In the moments when people would look up from their mobile devices, computers, cameras, etc., there were really cool and genuine analog connections going on everywhere.

Valerie Casey gets a huge nod for being a badass in her keynote message. She basically walked onto the stage and indicted the entire conference, and rightly so. She then proceeded to rally everyone behind her. Her message is about as important as it gets.

The music portion of the week officially began on Wednesday with a second trip to pick up a second badge with a second QR code. On the walk back to my car I stopped by the IFC Crossroads space and caught the Drive By Truckers taping. A nice start and perfect shifting of gears heading into the rest of the week.

The week completely changed Wednesday night with the passing of Alex Chilton. It became a part of nearly every set by every band for the remainder of the conference. From Deer Tick’s drunken beyond pale tribute to “Alex Chipmunk,” to the official Big Star show Saturday night at Antone’s. Much like the Velvet Underground quote, Big Star didn’t sell a ton of records but everyone who bought one started a band.

I was lucky to see Alex do solo shows a couple of times in Atlanta, and with the Posies version of Big Star at Tramp’s in NY (with Tommy Stinson’s band, Perfect, opening). Everyone was really looking forward to the Big Star panel and Saturday night show. So sad.

It’s been a hard year for Memphis, losing Jim Dickinson and now Alex Chilton. Two all-time greats. RIP. “I never travel far, without a little Big Star.”

The week kicked off with the discovery of a portrait of Vendor’s original founder, thank you Kelly.

DBT at IFC Crossroads.

Separated at birth?

Joe working the vacant Creative Circus booth.

Band of Horses at Stubb’s.

Deer Tick likes them some cocktails.

Band of Horses at Central Presbyterian.

Lucero.

Memphis boys.

Tribute show set list.

The empty mic.

Our Veer or Die pocket guide arrived today. It’s a conveniently sized meditation on the key to good fortune, happiness, supreme health and general decency. Read the rest of this entry »

The site unofficially launched this week so a few of us got together Saturday to properly decompress. Where the large mammals actually came from is still being sorted out, but they were the size of small buses and had great momentum. Apart from the goring it was mainly bumps and bruises. As a general rule never trust anything bigger and dumber than you are. Other than that, the flautas and corn chowder were outstanding.