SXSW 2026: Dylan Earl

This artist is playing the Paste party on Saturday. He'salso playing White Horse on Thursday and maybe even Friday. They haven't released times for those yet.

Paste says:

Before the half-Cajun Earl became one of country music’s most vital voices, he was raised in Lake Charles, Louisiana. After his parents’ divorce, he convinced his dad to send him away to a school in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Two weeks later, Hurricane Katrina hit and he was shipped back to Lake Charles. It wasn’t long before Katrina would reach Louisiana and, to prevent Earl from missing the school year, he wound up in Subiaco, Arkansas—a priory with a population of about 600, founded as a monk-missionary settlement in the 1800s and named by Pope Leo XIII after an Italian city where St. Benedict started his first monastery. It’s a place Earl wants to protect in his music, making mention of it for a select group of people. 

Good country music.  

"White Painted Trees" is a throwback.

So is "Outlaw Country". Listen to the lyrics. 

This was my favorite. 

SXSW 2026: Bricknasty

Paste finally came out with their bands (still no times yet) and this band plays Saturday. They are also playing the British Music Embassy and SXSanJose.

This article says:

Spanning experimental jazz, hip hop and neo-soul, it’s the unexpected dichotomies that make Dublin five-piece special.

It also says:

Composed soley of self-taught musicians, Bricknasty’s debut EP Ina Crueler centred on Fatboy’s childhood in Dublin’s deprived Ballymun neighbourhood. It’s in many ways a hip-hop story, recorded in the very same council estate fire escapes and bedrooms that the project deals with thematically, but, sonically, it’s much harder to box in. With organic and layered compositions that stretch from experimental jazz to soul, Ina Crueler isn’t disillusioned kids venting their problems over Soundcloud instrumentals, it’s a collection of genuine musicians seizing the means of production to tell their own story. 

"Vinland" is chill.

"Mouthy" reminds me of Bon Iver mixed with hip-hop.

 "Boyfriend" is live. I wouldn't call that hip-hop.  Jazzy in the Sting style. I like it.

This is their most streamed song. It's good, too.

SXSW 2026: Raynes

This band is playing Waterloo Records Saturday at 7pm and also is playing the BMI Yeti Day Party on Friday at 1pm.  They are also playing Pershing on March 20th. From this bio:

Raynes is a British-American trio formed when North Dakota natives Mat Charley and Joe Berger discovered UK singer Mark Race on Instagram. After connecting online, Mark joined them in the U.S. to start the band. Since their debut, Raynes has signed with Sony Music Publishing, released multiple singles and EPs, performed at BottleRock Festival and venues across the U.S. and UK, and accumulated millions of streams.

It also says:

Known for complex harmonies, unique instrumentation, and poetic lyrics, Raynes blends folk, rock, chamber pop, and world music into a distinctive sound that defies easy categorization.

That covers a lot of ground.

"American Waters" is their latest single.  Not really up my alley.

This is their most streamed song. 

SXSW 2026: Steven Bamidele

 This artist is playing the British Music Embassy as well as the KCRW Day Stage on Friday the 13th.  He also plays ABGB on Saturday as part of a day show called "Sign of the Times". I don't recognize any of the other bands, though.

 Per this bio:

Steven Bamidele is a Nigerian-born, London-based singer, songwriter, musician and producer. His isolated upbringing has shaped the introspective nature of his songwriting, which pairs with his distinctive reverb-drenched falsetto, synth textures, and syncopated beats to create a forward-thinking soulful sound. Citing the influences of contemporary musical storytellers and genreless creators such as Frank Ocean and Tyler the Creator, to Solange, Kendrick Lamar and Childish Gambino, Steven puts social commentary and artistic narratives at the forefront of his music.

"Sitting in the Dark" is his most streamed video. Smooth.

This is his latest release.

 

SXSW 2026: Mac Cornish

This musician is playing the Lone Star day party on Saturday the 14th and Colton House on Sunday the 15th.  Both have good lineups.  

Per this bio:

Born into the confines of Canyon Country, broken through in the Northwest’s emerging enclave, and currently carving out her own niche in Nashville, Mac Cornish embraces all the parts of her journey as she approaches her songwriting. Growing up surrounded by the Santa Cruz mountains, Cornish spent her youth under the canopy of the Redwoods and exploring the expanses of her grandfather’s cattle ranch in the North Bay. Early years found her drawn to the voices that had emanated from the Laurel Canyon legends, cementing a deep love for Linda Rondstadt, Joan Baez, and Gram Parsons. Though she’s boxed her belongings more than a few times in pursuit of country’s muse, her roots in the California.

Here she is playing a set at Dee's Lounge. Good traditional country music.

"Mama Yes I Do" is a two-stepper.

This is nice.