Now in its 24th year, the SXSW Music and Media Conference has established itself as THE must-attend networking event for the 21st century music industry giving nearly 2,000 musical acts from around the globe unprecedented exposure on over 80 stages in downtown Austin, Texas. http://sxsw.com/
And, now there’s a new venue getting prepping to rock the indie scene right across the border on the grounds of a drive-in movie theater beginning March 20 in Monterrey, Mexico. MtyMx is the brainchild of Todd Patrick who has helped develop the indie rock scene in New York City. While its 78 acts pale in comparison to SXSW’s 2,000, Patrick’s intent to stir a true indie flavor and not buy into the ever-growing corporate backdrop of SXSW is evident. According to Patrick, “I’ve never enjoyed going to big multivenue festivals. Everyone knows that those bands are going to be playing the worst set of their lives. Everyone’s drunk, you never get any sleep the whole time, and it’s all networking and schmoozing. It’s a necessary evil, but afterwards you kind of want to wash it out of your hair” (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/10/arts/music/10fest.html, A New Frontier for Indie Rock, Down in Mexico by Ben Sisario).
It remains to be seen whether the Mexican drug war, visa restrictions and and a recent travel alert sparking concerns about safety put a damper on MtyMx making 6th Street in downtown Austin a safer if not sober bet.
Tags: 6th Street, Austin, MtyMx, SXSW, Todd Patrick