SXSW 2023
South by Southwest (SXSW) is best known for its conference and festivals that celebrate tech, film, music, education, and culture. This year, the festivals and conference took place from March 10th to March 19th.
In partnership with business Iceland and Iceland Airwaves, we organised a showcase of some of Iceland’s most prominent talent at the moment. It was an incredible night for sure.
The event was at the Driskill hotel in Austin, Texas a beautiful traditional place famous for its haunted painting.
During the night a thunderstorm was blaring outside and the room filled up before it started and remained full for the whole duration of the show.
Enjoy a little post showcase movie here below :
During the SXSW week, we offered the the opportunity to discover our Ethereal playlist which is a playlist where you are taking a journey through the soundscapes of Iceland, across ambient, indie, alternative – all ethereal, magical and one-of-a-kind.
Eydís Evensen started, with her dreamy and cinematic compositions, performed on a solo piano. It was a very intimate set with the dead quiet crowd gathering around the grand piano that had been placed in the centre of the room.
Árný Margrét came second. She has already made an impact on the US live music scene, performing at Newport Folk Festival. Again, the crowd were hypnotized by her genuine charm and expressive performance Arny gave that night, leaving the room in awe for the next act, LÓN.
Lón have also been active on the US live scene lately, performing at the International Folk alliance. The band members are no newbies in the game and have between them an impressive roster of successful projects and bands. The atmosphere started shifting towards more of a party. The thunderstorm was getting worse and some of the major outdoor stages of the festivals were closed due to the weather. A long line was forming outside the driskill with festival goers hoping to be able to get in.
Now it was time to properly party. Vök closed out the showcase with a powerful set of pop bangers and the crowd took to the floor, and not a single hip was left unshook, just a perfect way to close out the night.