Silversun Pickups

Where Will LeBron James Go? Silversun Pickups Drummer Has The Answer

08 Jul 2010 13:21:16 EDT

'It looks like he's on his way to Miami, and who can blame him?' Christopher Guanlao tells MTV News.
By James Montgomery

Christopher Guanlao was "born and raised as a Lakers fan," which means that when he's not playing drums for rock-radio mainstays Silversun Pickups, he's also following the NBA pretty heavily.

"A few weeks ago, we were playing a show in Orlando, and it was during Game 6 of the [NBA] Finals, and, as a Lakers fan, it was really frustrating, because I was only able to watch the first quarter," Guanlao told MTV News on Thursday (July 8). "So I had my drum tech give me updates on the score in between songs. It was pretty intense, but luckily, the Lakers ended up winning."

And so, with the entire NBA seemingly focused on the future of superstar free-agent LeBron James — who will announce his choice of team Thursday night during an hour-long special on ESPN — we figured Guanlao was a pretty good guy to converse with about just where King James will end up.

"It looks like he's on his way to Miami, and who can blame him? If Miami's willing to pay him, and [Chris] Bosh and [Dwyane] Wade are already there, it seems like a no-brainer," Guanlao said. "For a while, I was thinking he might team up with [newly signed forward Carlos] Boozer in Chicago, but now I don't know. And I think Cleveland might be out, because it seems like all the major free agents are gone. They haven't made any big moves."

So, like much of the media, Guanlao predicts that James will break the hearts of Cleveland Cavaliers fans and bolt for the sunny climes of Miami. And even though he's currently in London with the Pickups, he's already making plans to watch James' announcement — time zones be damned.

"I've already discussed with some people that I have to watch it. And, it's sort of amazing, because people are talking about it here. It's basically just World Cup and 'Where will LeBron sign?' " he laughed. "So, yeah, he's making headlines all over the world. And I have to watch what happens."

And though, deep down, Guanlao wishes James would have re-signed with the Cavs (or even helped revive the fortunes of once-proud franchises like the Bulls or New York Knicks), he's resigned himself to the fact that, next season, LBJ will more than likely be calling Miami home. And, as a Lakers fan, he's already readying himself for the inevitable showdown between the two teams in the NBA Finals. Sort of.

"I mean, with LeBron, Bosh and Wade, they're probably the de facto Eastern Conference champs, but you've gotta play the games. There's been plenty of these so-called 'dream teams' before, but they don't always get over the hump," he said. "So I'm sort of thinking [the Lakers] will play Miami in the Finals, but who knows? And even if they do, there's no way it tops Lakers/Celtics. I mean, during Game 7 [of the Finals], I nearly had a heart attack."

Where do you want LeBron to end up? Let us know in the comments!

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Silversun Pickups Revive The '90s With 'Royal We' Video

03 May 2010 06:52:00 EDT

Directed by famed photographer Matt Mahurin, clip features angsty, out-of-focus close-ups of the band and scenes of outstretched hands and skylines.
By James Montgomery

You may have to take my word for it, but the 1990s were a totally insane decade. Especially when it came to music videos.

It was a time when basically every artist got to do whatever they wanted when it came to making videos, no matter the cost, which meant that, sure, we got lots of super-epic "November Rain" types of clips and the occasional iconic "Smells Like Teen Spirit" kind of thing, but mostly, we got lots and lots of introspective, not-entirely-in-focus mood-pieces.

Which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. I have fond memories of watching hours and hours of angsty, obtuse videos featuring shadowy dudes peering ominously off into space, or brightly lit (yet totally blurry) actors doing things that were supposed to be "deep." White flashes were frequently used between cuts. There was usually water involved. Or spooky trees. Billowing fabrics with images projected onto them. Grainy, purposely scratched film. Symbolism. Animals running in slow motion. It was all pretty amazing, in retrospect.

The reason I'm bringing all of this up isn't to kick-start your week with a dose of nostalgia, but rather because the Silversun Pickups — a band who are frequently compared to '90s mainstays the Smashing Pumpkins — have just unveiled their brand-new video for the song "The Royal We," and, wow, is this thing airlifted right out of the Clinton era.

Directed by famed photographer Matt Mahurin (who made a whole lot of these types of videos in the 1990s for acts like Metallica, Bush, Soundgarden and Blind Melon), "Royal We" is like a four-minute walk down memory lane. Angsty, out-of-focus close-ups of the band (or, alternately, angsty, in-focus-yet-shiftily-lit close-ups.) Blurry, brightly colored scenes of outstretched hands and skylines and dudes sprinting towards something. Bizarre, presumably symbolic shots of stuff like a torso with a crumbling tower for a head. Oh, and as an added bonus, Mahurin makes most of the footage skip and stretch, sort of like you're watching the whole thing on a VCR (adjust the tracking, stat!). Seriously, this thing made me feel 13 again.

And that's what I like best about it. I'm guessing that the guys — and gal — in SSPU are about the same age as I am, which means they undoubtedly grew up watching the exact same videos I did ... which means that this is sort of a dream come true for them. It's exactly the same kind of video I'd make, had I the budget or wherewithal. Perhaps it will inspire a '90s revival, and I'll get to enjoy even more really weird videos. My inner 13-year-old can still dream, can't he?

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Silversun Pickups Talk Beatles, Playing Their Own Song On 'Rock Band'

03 Sep 2009 15:16:00 EDT

'The game said, 'You suck, get a real job.' ' frontman Brian Aubert says.
By Kyle Anderson

SAN FRANCISCO — The Beatles didn't invent rock music, but they've certainly influenced just about every band that came after them. Next week's release of "The Beatles: Rock Band" will give fans old and new the opportunity to trace the line between their favorite bands and their Beatles influence. Silversun Pickups are no different, although frontman Brian Aubert goes back and forth about which era he prefers.

"One of my favorite Beatles songs is 'Glass Onion' from The White Album, but I still harken back to their [early] days when they were just a great rock band playing in Hamburg," Aubert told MTV News at last weekend's Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco. "I love all the studio trickery and all that beauty they put in later on, but there's something about the guttural experience of their early songs. Like 'Help' — I don't think there's been a better punk song than 'Help.' "

Drummer Christopher Guanlao has different reasons for loving the Fab Four. "What's cool about them also is that they all had their specific moments to shine," he said. "Toward the end, Harrison was writing [many of] the hits. And 'A Hard Day's Night' wouldn't be nearly as funny if Ringo wasn't there. He stole that show."

The band is excited about "The Beatles: Rock Band," and though they haven't played it extensively, they appreciate the complexity. "We like the video-game world. It's pretty amazing, and 'Rock Band' is pretty incredible," Aubert said.

"It's really hard. I played 'Lazy Eye' once, and I sucked at it," he continued, talking about his own band's song, which he co-wrote and sings. "I couldn't even get to the singing. The game said, 'You suck, get a real job.' "

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Pearl Jam, Incubus, Silversun Pickups Dominate First Day Of Outside Lands Festival

29 Aug 2009 11:41:00 EDT

And the next best set came from ... Tom Jones?
By Marc Hawthorne

SAN FRANCISCO — Though the opening day of the second annual Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park was full of young bands trying to make their mark, the day's music was dominated by a handful of wily veterans lead by headliners and soon-to-be-considered-classic rockers Pearl Jam.




	Inside The Outside Lands Music Festval

The seminal grunge outfit — about to release their ninth studio album, Backspacer — turned in a two-hour set full of hits, passion and none of the power outages that marred Radiohead's set at the same time and place last year. Eddie Vedder mentioned early on that the band's current tour, which wrapped with this show, had taken a toll on him and his voice, but his fans were more than happy to help out on favorites like "Black" and "Better Man." Mike McCready's no-look, over-the-head solo during "Even Flow" proved that these guys could play these songs in their sleep, but the band seemed genuinely excited to be out there (especially the pogoing McCready), and they reserved a special energy for new tracks like "The Fixer." Pearl Jam began to close their set with "Alive" before coming back with a Neil Young double-shot of "Throw Your Hatred Down" and "Rockin' in the Free World."

Just in case anyone needed proof of Pearl Jam's influence on alternative rock, Incubus played right before them and showed off why it just put out a hits disc, getting the crowd riled up with songs like "Megalomaniac" and "Stellar." Like Vedder, Incubus singer Brandon Boyd attributed his vocal weakness to a combination of fatigue (they were also ending their tour at Outside Lands) and a cold, but his decision to take his friends' advice to drink wine seemed like a good one.

Still, even Pearl Jam didn't get as many onstage shout-outs as Built to Spill. Vedder himself thanked the band by name and Silversun Pickups frontman Brian Aubert twice referred to them as "one of the best f---ing bands ever." Unfortunately, neither of those compliments made up for the fact that Doug Martsch and Company's set just wasn't loud enough. With three guitarists in tow — and Martsch being one of the noisier guitar heroes on the scene — one would have hoped that a festival setting would help make Built to Spill's songs larger than life. Instead, "Car," "You Were Right," and "Big Dipper" remained little more than nice pop songs.

The volume didn't stay low for long, though. Perhaps the only indie-rock group with enough volume to open for Metallica (which it did at this year's South By Southwest festival), Silversun Pickups brought bucketfuls of sweet distortion to its mid-afternoon set. Singer Brian Aubert tends to know exactly when to let loose for added effect, while bassist Nikki Monninger — whose purple dress matched Christopher Guanlao's drums — does a good job of shooting the crowd coy smiles to remind everyone that even as they're laying out "Future Foe Scenarios," they're here to have a good time. Not surprisingly, the band ended its set with their big hit "Lazy Eye," but it was "There's No Secrets This Year" from this year's Swoon that perfectly displayed their delicate balancing act between anthemic pop and scuzzy shoegaze grooves.

But the grooviest — and perhaps most surprising — tunes on Friday came from old-school sex-bomb Tom Jones, who turned in a unique hour of hits and shoulder shakes. The 69-year-old silver fox with matching goatee was assisted by a solid band that included a horn section and backup singers who helped Sir Tom make the most of hits like "What's New Pussycat," "She's A Lady," and of course "It's Not Unusual." But he saved the best for last: a show-closing cover of Prince's "Kiss," aided by Jones' decision to take the "think I better dance now" line quite literally.

Jones' performance — as well as those of Pearl Jam, Incubus, Silversun Pickups and Built to Spill — captured the free-spiritedness of San Francisco that Ouside Lands tries so harness. So far, so good.

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'Twilight' Author Stephenie Meyer Reveals Her New Favorite Music

19 Aug 2009 12:00:00 EDT

Animal Collective, Silversun Pickups, Dead Weather, Grizzly Bear among Meyer's recent faves.
By Eric Ditzian

Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and the rest of the "Twilight" franchise cast spent their summers working on other projects and getting their photos snapped by every paparazzo in the universe before heading back to Vancouver to film "Eclipse." Sliding just a bit further under the radar, "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer drifted through the sunny season listening to indie rock and sneaking into a movie theater to catch the trailer for the latest adaptation of her vampire saga.

In an update on her Web site, Meyer wrote, "Admittedly, I went to see the 'New Moon' trailer on the big screen (yes, I'm a total dork. Who cares? It was worth it)."

She ended up staying for the main attraction, the Vanessa Hudgens-starring "Bandslam," loving the soundtrack and how the story "turned upside down some of those lame female-interaction stereotypes."




	Stephenie Meyer's Favorite Bands

Though Meyer didn't say whether she got any writing done over the last couple months, she's been listening to a ton of music. Her fave albums? Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion, Silversun Pickups' Swoon, the White Rabbits' It's Frightening, the Dead Weather's Horehound, Grizzly Bear's Veckatimest, the Weakerthans' Reunion Tour, Elbow's The Seldom Seen Kid and Meese's Broadcast.

"I really should have known about Meese a while ago, but thanks to a mislabeled CD mix, I didn't realize Meese was responsible for one of my favorite songs until I went to their concert," she wrote. "And then I was glad that I already loved them, because the guys in Meese are possibly the nicest people in the world."

She caught Meese live in a concert along with the Fray and Jack's Mannequin. The 35-year-old author also checked out Blue October, whose frontman, Justin Furstenfeld, accompanied Meyer for a song-and-story tour last year to promote the release of "Breaking Dawn," the final book in the franchise.

Meyer wrapped up her Web site post with a shout-out to her "Twilight" fans, and the hope that she'll meet them in the fall.

"I'm looking forward to seeing some of you in November for a little movie release that I'm excited about," she wrote, referring, of course, to "New Moon." "Too many months to go!"

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Silversun Pickups Win Over Metallica Fans, Make Their 'Darkest Video'

29 Jul 2009 17:15:00 EDT

Frontman Brian Aubert calls upcoming 'Substitution' clip 'sort of depressing.'
By James Montgomery

Earlier this year, before Metallica thundered onstage at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, the Silversun Pickups were given the unenviable task of warming up an audience of over-served, overheated, die-hard metal fans.

It seemed like an odd choice for an opener: the swoony, alt-leaning Pickups yanking the curtain for Metallica, one of the hugest, heaviest acts on the planet. Somewhat surprisingly, however, things went off without a hitch.

"That crowd was amazing. ... Everyone was so stoked. We've never had that many people headbanging at our show before, and it was pretty cool," Silversun Pickups frontman Brian Aubert laughed. "It was a sea of black. I saw this guy who looked like he was 50 years old, he was bashing his head against a pole, just having the greatest time ever. It was pretty great, actually."

Afterward, they watched from the side of the stage as Metallica destroyed everything in their path. And, again, this was something the Pickups weren't exactly used to witnessing firsthand.

"We were getting sweat on by them, which was amazing. It put me in a place ... it was nostalgic," Aubert continued. "I saw them when I was really young, and being that close to a band that's been that large for 30 years, it's awe-inspiring. Because how many bands like that are there working today? Five? Plus, Robert Trujillo is like the most amazing bass player ever. We were all watching him. [Silversun bassist] Nikki [Monninger] was taking notes."

"He was in the pocket, and I try to be," Monninger laughed. "I love pockets."

The whole Metallica thing is a pretty good example of how the past three years have gone for the Pickups, who went from the most popular band in Los Angeles' trendy Silver Lake neighborhood to slightly oddball mainstays on modern-rock radio, thanks to the success of singles like "Lazy Eye" and "Well Thought Out Twinkles." They toured like crazy behind their full-length debut, 2006's Carnavas, then jumped right off the road into a studio, where they began work on the follow-up, Swoon.

The first single from that album, the angsty "Panic Switch," has done even better than their previous songs, going to #1 on the modern-rock charts, cracking the Hot 100, and putting them in the same breath as other rock-radio giants like Nickelback, Staind and Shinedown. And again, this seemed a bit odd — to everyone but the Pickups, that is.

"I think it's sort of ridiculous to put limits on your fans, and that mentality. Anyone who wants to listen to us can," Aubert said. "I remember when 'Lazy Eye' was on stations like that, I always felt like we were the really wacked-out kids at the prom, that would, like, spike the punch and stuff like that. Like, all of a sudden, we were at this party and a lot of the people were like, 'Dude, who are these guys?!?' but some of them were like, 'Hey, these guys!' It makes you stand out, for sure."

And from the sound of things, the follow-up single "Substitution" is only going to make them stick out more. Or, at least the video — helmed by sibling team the Malloys, who have done clips for N.E.R.D., the White Stripes and Kid Rock, to name just a few — should. By all accounts, it's shaping up to be a fairly odd project.

"It's cool. It's gonna be weird. We're playing the song in a surreal moose lodge, and then there's musical chairs going on with, like, eight Amazon-type gorgeous girls. Babes, I suppose," Aubert said. "They were actually playing musical chairs for, like, a real prize. ... It got pretty ugly. Everybody in the room watching it was like, 'This is the weirdest thing.' All the girls are color-coded. In one way, it's bright and sort of silly, but the way we're looking at it is sort of depressing. In fact, I have to admit: It's by far the darkest video we've ever done."

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'Hannah Montana' Album Finally Reaches Top Of Billboard Charts

22 Apr 2009 13:51:00 EDT

'Making the Band' stars Day26 come in at #2 with their second album.
By Gil Kaufman

It took a few weeks, but Miley Cyrus will finally reach the top of the Billboard 200 charts with the soundtrack to the "Hannah Montana" movie. The album, which debuted at #2 three weeks ago and dipped down to #5 before bumping back up to the runner-up slot last week, will reach the pinnacle despite a 32 percent dip in sales thanks to 133,000 more units moved, putting Cyrus over the 500,000 mark.

That was more than enough to beat out the second album from Diddy's Day26, Forever in a Day, which, with sales of 113,000, will bow in the #2 spot, just ahead of last week's #1, Rascal Flatts' Unstoppable, which plummeted nearly 70 percent after a strong debut with 107,000 units moved.

The only other debut in the top 10 was the surprisingly strong showing from Smashing Pumpkins-esque rockers Silversun Pickups, whose Swoon landed at #7 on sales of 43,000. The rest of the top 10 included: "Twilight Soundtrack" at #4 (49,000), Now 30 at #5 (45,000) , Jadakiss, Last Kiss at #6 (44,000), Lady Gaga, Fame at #8 (36,000), Jason Aldean, Wide Open at #9 (35,000) and Taylor Swift, Fearless at #10 (32,000).

As their star finally begins to rise in their own United States after years of megastardom in the U.K., Kings of Leon's eight-month-old Only By the Night jumped up 13 spots to #18 on sales of 19,000 as they kick off their first major U.S. arena tour.

Prince's three-disc Target-only Lotus Flow3r took a dive in its third week, dipping 67 percent on sales of 22,000 as it fell out of the top 10 to #15 and Kelly Clarkson's comeback hit, All I Ever Wanted notched its lowest chart position since its release more than a month ago, sliding down to #19 on sales of 19,000 after a 51 percent drop-off from the week before. She wasn't alone, though, with the exception of the Pickups' and Day26 chart debuts and the KOL's uptick, every other album in the top 20 suffered a double-digit decline, with nearly half getting slashed by 50 percent or more.

After charting with digital sales, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs leapt up nearly 20 spots to #27 with the physical release of It's Blitz!, which moved 14,000 copies. Fellow indie darlings Death Cab for Cutie also had a strong week with their Open Door EP, which hit stores last week after debuting online, moving up nearly 50 spots to #30 on sales of 13,000.

Jennifer Hudson definitely got the "American Idol" bump, as her nearly eight-month-old self-titled debut rocketed from #103 to #42 after her return to her old stomping grounds netted her 9,000 in sales, pushing the album over the 700,000 mark.

Way down at #158, My Morning Jacket's live EP, Celebracion De La Ciudad Natal, racked up more than 3,000 in sales and buzzy Beck-esque blues/rap act Cage the Elephant debuted at #171 with their self- titled album on sales of just over 3,000.

After months of talk and beef with 50 Cent, look for Rick Ross' Deeper Than Rap next week, as well as the chart debuts from Asher Roth and Depeche Mode.

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Metallica Shred At 'Secret' Show; Asher Roth Jokes: SXSW '09

21 Mar 2009 10:39:00 EDT

Metal legends rip through not-so-secret South by Southwest gig.
By James Montgomery

AUSTIN, Texas — These Volsung dudes could be huge some day. They sound exactly like Metallica.

Sorry, that was a bit of a South by Southwest in-joke. See, in the weeks leading up to SXSW 2009, the folks behind the fest tried to pull a fast one on fans, listing Volsung, a metal band from "Somewhere, Norway," in the 10 p.m. slot of the "Guitar Hero: Metallica" launch party.

It didn't take long for the speculation to start. It seemed most people believed that Volsung were, in fact, actually Metallica, and as SXSW drew closer, the rumors of a full-blown performance began to swirl. The whispers grew into a roar when the "Guitar Hero" folks released a poster touting an appearance by "members of Metallica."

And it all came to a head Friday night at Stubb's, before a capacity crowd inside and an even bigger throng outside, mostly packed into a nearby parking garage, craning their necks to get a glimpse of the action. Then, just before 10 p.m., after opening sets by the Silversun Pickups and some dudes playing "Rock Band," the lights dimmed, the house speakers began to vibrate with the strains of an epic, Ennio Morricone instrumental, and lo and behold — Metallica appeared, live and in the flesh.

They didn't waste a second either, launching headlong into a scorching version of "Creeping Death" from 1984's Ride the Lightning, then power-shifting into a down and dirty take on "For Whom the Bell Tolls." Of course, pretty much everyone expected all of this to happen (at one point, frontman James Hetfield jokingly welcomed the audience to "the worst-kept secret in rock and roll"), but it didn't matter in the least: Fans inside — and out — went berserk, tossing devil horns, pumping fists and singing along to every word.

Feeding off that energy — and perhaps getting a kick out of playing what, for them, was basically a small club gig — Metallica never took the foot off the accelerator. For the next 90 minutes, they riffed hard and fast through classics like "Harvester of Sorrow," "Sad but True," "One" and (of course) "Master of Puppets." They implored the audience to "give us your best" (truly, no massively successful band pleads with the audience as much as Metallica do) and appeared to have an absolute blast, even when they were battling problems with the house equipment.

It was those rather imperfect moments — the odd dead mic, a detuned guitar or two — that gave the Stubb's gig a sort of underdog charm, no small feat when a band of Metallica's caliber is involved. And seemingly, even the band sensed it. Lars Ulrich traded banter with fans between songs, Robert Trujillo asked for a good place to grab some BBQ, and even the normally serious Kirk Hammett managed to crack a smile or two. But no one got it more than Hetfield, which probably explains why, before launching into "Harvester," he paused, cracked a smile and got into full Volsung character, telling the crowd, "Vee are a young, struggling bandt from Norvay, and vee vant to get signed."

James Hetfield doing impressions. You don't get that at your average Metallica gig.

It wasn't your average Metallica gig up the street at Club de Ville, either, though it certainly was just as packed. Rather, it was a grab-bag assortment of cutting-edge (read: Day-Glo Ray-Bans and DJs with MacBooks) hip-hop, featuring plenty of bleep-boop, and sets from pint-sized British MC Lady Sovereign, sassy Chi-Town rapper Kid Sister and — most notably — dunderheaded party master Asher Roth.

Currently riding high — pun intended — on the strength of his ode to intoxication "I Love College," Roth was the de facto headliner of the night (despite the fact that Kid Sister actually was), though it's entirely possible he was not aware of this. Flanked by a hypeman and backed by a nerdy DJ and a live drummer, he delivered a laconic, stoned-to-the-bone set, heavy on the weed humor ("Blunt Cruising") and crude double entendres ("Lark on My Go-Kart"), but it got the crowd jumping nonetheless.

While he might look like he just stumbled out of bed, Roth is no slacker. His rhymes are deft, funny and tight (even if he does sound an awful lot like Eminem), and he's got a wicked sense of humor too — as evidenced during a mid-set skit in which he flicked through a fictional mix CD and smoked an imaginary joint (which he passed to the audience).

Of course, he closed with "College," a subtly brilliant anthem that could make him a very big star (or at least earn him a lifetime of dorm-room gigs). He and his crew broke into a well-sequenced two-step shuffle, with huge, slightly stupid grins plastered across their faces. And though his jokey style and organic music might have stuck out like a pair of sore thumbs on this electro-heavy night, there's no denying that Roth was the biggest star on the entire bill. By a mile. Whether or not he chooses to seize the opportunities available to him remains to be seen.

But that's better left for another time ... after all, this was Friday night at SXSW. Metallica cracked jokes. Asher Roth was let loose in one of the biggest college towns in the U.S. Welcome to the weekend.

MTV News is Live & Mobile at the South by Southwest festival this week, with blogs, articles plus live and on-demand video of all the bands, gigs and BBQ!

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South By Southwest 2009 Preview: Bands, BBQ And Old Buddies

17 Mar 2009 13:04:00 EDT

We give you a peek at what's due to go down at this year's SXSW in Austin, Texas.
By James Montgomery

South by Southwest is sort of like running a marathon, except you're drunk most of the time, and there's nothing but BBQ and tacos to eat, and have sun stroke, and you basically hear live music from the moment you wake up until the second you pass out. So, actually, it's not really like a marathon at all, except in duration (and probably perspiration).

Yes, it's that time of year again — SXSW is upon us. It's a magical week that comes around each March, when the city of Austin, Texas is overrun with hundreds of bands and thousands of hipsters in really tight pants, all braving the blazing Texas sun to catch can't-miss sets from much-buzzed blog acts, top-secret performances by some of the biggest names in music (there's a couple of doozies this year), and have a really gigantic, really debauched party.

At SXSW 2008, there were performances by mainstays like Paramore, N.E.R.D., R.E.M., and My Morning Jacket, star-making turns by Vampire Weekend, No Age, MGMT and Katy Perry, appearances by Perez Hilton and Rachael Ray, even a Britney Spears rumor (and, as luck would have it, we spoke to almost all of 'em). Rumor has it, there was also plenty of partying — though we don't really remember, to be honest.

This year, things are looking to be just as awesome. There are rumors (repeat: rumors) of performances by Metallica — under the relatively awesome Norse name of Volsung — on Friday and Kanye West on Saturday. We'll see the return of alt-rock greats Jane's Addiction — in all their original-lineup glory — and faerie queen Tori Amos. Big Boi, Rick Ross and Jadakiss are all scheduled to appear. There will be sets by the Silversun Pickups, Explosions in the Sky, Primal Scream, Devo, the Hold Steady, M. Ward and Peter Bjorn and John. Plus, indie heavyweights like the Thermals, the Decemberists (performing their new album, The Hazards Of Love, in its entirety) and Grizzly Bear, who will unveil tracks from their much-anticipated Vecktimest album at what promises to be a revelatory church show.

We know it's a lot to handle.

Of course, it wouldn't be SXSW if there weren't also a ton of up-and-comers grabbing headlines, too. From lo (perhaps even no)-fi noisemakers like San Diego's Wavves and Brooklyn's the Pains of Being Pure at Heart to NME-approved female electro-poppers Little Boots and Ladyhawke, there's no shortage of buzzed-up bands to catch in and around Austin this week. And that's not even mentioning bands like Passion Pit, Crystal Stilts, the Dirty Projectors and Marnie Stern — who's already given us an SXSW preview of her own. Throw in a strong hip-hop contingent — multiple sets by Asher Roth, Kid Cudi, Kid Sister and B.o.B — and you can see why the whole "marathon" comparison is more than apt. There literally is not enough time in the day to see everything, but that doesn't mean you're not gonna try your hardest to do it.

And, of course, MTV News is going to be there too — checking out bands, staying up way too late, making terrible decisions and trying very hard to remain sane. We'll be bringing you up-to-the-minute updates on SXSW on MTVNews.com, the Newsroom blog. We'll have live video of shows, interviews with bands and even a BBQ story or three. In short, we're going to try and bring you everything you're missing at SXSW 2009. It's hard work, for sure. But we do it because we care.

MTV News will be all over the South by Southwest festival this week, with blogs, articles and video on all the gigs, the artists and the scene!

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Exclusive: Silversun Pickups Preview A Pair Of Swoon Songs

05 Mar 2009 07:50:00 EST

'Growing Old Is Getting Old' and 'Panic Switch' will be on the band's next album, due April 14.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias

Last month, when the Silversun Pickups invited MTV News into the studio, they were putting the finishing touches on their new album Swoon and gave us a listen to a pair of completed songs: "Growing Old Is Getting Old" and the first single, "Panic Switch."

The songs show the Pickups hitting their stride, fleshing out the loud/soft dynamics they explored on 2006's breakout debut Carnavas and distancing themselves from all those Smashing Pumpkins comparisons. It's still the Silversun Pickups, only tightened and emboldened from nearly two years of touring behind their first album.

Of course, that's just our take on them. And though Swoon is still pretty far off on the horizon (it's due April 14), we've decided to give you a listen to one of those songs and to let frontman Brian Aubert tell you the stories behind them ... tracks born out of tireless touring, a little bit of studio trickery and one seriously profane robot.

"Growing Old Is Getting Old"
"It was inspired by performing live for so long. It actually started out as an intro to 'Well Thought Out Twinkles' [from Carnavas], and we played around with it, liked the feel of it, and started building on it. There were certain places we wanted to go as a band, but we hadn't quite got there yet, and this song puts us there, sonically. They call it a trumpet track: It begins small and keeps building and building and getting bigger. It's a pretty optimistic song, surprisingly. On the record, it feels pretty sweet ... not like 'Sweet!' but sweet. I like the bass sound. It takes a really long time for the drums to kick in too. There's almost two songs going on in that one."

"Panic Switch"
"For some reason, when we were mixing it, we kept playing around with this visual thesaurus that had a computer voice, and [bassist] Nikki [Monninger] and I kept typing up weird words, trying to find the dirtiest ones we could. So every time I listen to that song now, I just keep hearing this computer voice saying all these dirty words. ... Anyway, it's our dance song. We wrote it later on in the process — really close to the end, because we were seeing how the album was shaping up. I remember coming into the rehearsal space and just told everybody, 'OK, we're locking it down,' because we had a lot of songs to work with. And then the next day, I came back like, 'Hey, hey, wait, there's one more song to fit in.' And it's a very bizarre song. There were no verses in it. ... Hopefully it conveys a theme on the album, which is basically a nervous breakdown. It's pretty chaotic, and of all the songs on the record, that one represents that [theme] the best."

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