A Week of SXSW 2009: Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves

[SXSW 2009]
Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves
Sounds Like: Soul / Funk
Drinking Buddies: Sly & The Family Stone, James Brown, The Blues Brother Band.
Synopsis: YEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!
Appearances at SXSW:

• Sonny's Vintage Party [2928 Guadalupe St.] (6:30 PM, March 18]
• Continental Club (11:45 PM, March 18)
• Room 710 (2:00 PM, March 19)
• Peckerheads [My Old Kentucky Blog / Aquarium Drunkard Party] (7:00 PM, March 19)
• The Pure Volume House (11:45 PM, March 19)
• The Four Seasons [KGSR 107.1 FM Live] (7:00 AM, March 20)
• The Gingerman (6:00 PM, March 20)
• The Continental Club (10:00 PM, March 20)
• Jovitas (5:00 PM, March 21)
• Clementine Coffee House (11:00 PM, March 21)
  

[Myspace]




All this week, Voilà! is covering South by Southwest.
Time for the second Voilà! featurette.
Today, the featured SXSW artist is Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Love.



Difference is key. Being different definitely sets you apart, and that difference can draw all kinds of attention. Going against the grain is what South by Southwest is all about; featuring the latest and greatest who aren't mainstream; the many and proud participants in independent music culture. Genre, style? Hogwash! It doesn't matter while surrounded by the throngs of people in Austin; all they're concerned about is hearing good music, be it modern or retro.

If you happen to be looking for something eclectic outside of the quote-unquote "indie rock scene," whatever that is exactly, all you have to do is a little listening and looking. Then you'll find some jive turkeys like Eli Reed, and his travelling troupe of troubadours, The True Loves. These guys are a blast from the past straight into the present; if you - for whatever reason - stopped listening to all forms of music since the mid 1970s, and Eli Reed was the first thing you had, you might find it hard pressed to admit 40s years have passed.

Truth be told, Eli Reed & The True Loves play a completely retro style of funk and soul, with a bluesy twinge. Complete with uppity guitar solos, a whole brass section that would make Beirut swoon, and a voice that rivals Sly Stone. And it isn't just the comparisons that are close; Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves are a wonderful, near perfect, modern representation of the funk movement. Filled with energy and attitude, how can you go wrong? The folks have two albums out, which I believe can be purchased right now off of Amazon.com.

Concerning South by Southwest, which helped launch the gang back in 2007, you'll have no shortage of opportunites to catch them live. Excuse the following run-on sentence: you can catch Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves at Sonny's Vintage Party (2928 Guadalupe St.) for free at 6:30 PM, as well at the Continental Club's Official SXSW Showcase at 11:45 PM all on March 18th; at Room 710 for the Pirate Radio Party at 2:00 PM, followed by the My Old Kentucky Blog / Aquarium Dunkard Party at Peckerheads, starting at 7:00 PM, along with the Photo Finish Records Party at The Pure Volume House around 11:45 PM on MArch 19th. Then, there's the live radio session on KGSR 107.1 FM at 7:00 AM, live at the Four Seasons, the Dogfish Head Brewery Party at The Gingerman around 6:00 PM, and the Ponderosa Stomp at The Continental Club at 10:00 PM all on the 20th. And as if this paragraph couldn't get longer, you can see more shows on March 21st at Jovitas around 5:00 PM, followed by their final performacnce of SXSW at the Clementine Coffee House at 11:00 PM.

So don't say you don't have a chance to catch Eli "Paperboy" Reed & The True Loves. Because that would be such a lie! Get goin'!