Katie Bordner | Intern

I was a doe in headlights most of the time, but SXSW was more inspiring than getting dunked in a lake at church camp.

SCENE STEALERS/AMAZING SHOWS

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah | Confetti and smiles were all dripping sweat and dancing at 2 a.m.

The New Pornographers | They have mastered the craft of building a song to explode to ecstasy, and they delivered the tightest performance of the festival.

Metric | Enigmatic Emily energized the eons out of everyone.

BREAKOUT/BUZZ BANDS

Sound Team | Young ’uns from the south that played every day of the festival. You could see the thirst for the big time in their eyes.

Chin Up Chin Up | They kept me listening when I thought I could hear no more.

Laura Veirs | I will sing her praises all the livelong day. So gentle and sweet.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT/WASTE OF TIME

Animal Collective | Comparable to a tribal séance gone electronic, not to their amazing CD.

The Go! Team | An odd opener (the Plimsouls) led to a mixed crowd of yuppies and giddies.

Spoon | Not that their set was weak, but the free show had a Dave-Matthews-Band-crowd feel to it—that, and it was not within walking distance of all other shows.

BEST CROWD RECEPTION

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah | Aside from the people drunkenly passed out along the wall, everyone in the club was having a great time.

Editors | Seeing as most people had to wait at least 30 minutes to get in, the crowd was pretty happy to see them get their asses on stage.

Be Your Own Pet | Nothing epitomizes crowd reception better than an underage blonde bitch inspiring a grown man to get up on the stage and jump off into the crowd. Not my cup of tea, though I suppose I’m the wiser for witnessing it.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

All the free CDs a girl can fit into her tote.

The sweet elixir of life that is Lone Star Beer (JK, it tasted like cactus piss).

All the free candy and Red Bull I could consume at the trade show.