SxSW 2009 Preview: David Thomas Broughton

Take a peak at the comments section of any David Thomas Broughton video on YouTube and you'll notice that he splits opinion somewhere between "this is so incredible and unique" to "this is the worst thing I've ever seen in my life.....please kill yourself."

Yet the Leeds / London based artist has certainly wooed us and he is the subject of our first (of many, and i mean many) pre-South By South West Interviews we'll be running as the greatest festival on earth approaches later this month.

Here's what the man had to say:

1) How many times have you been to SxSW?

I’ve never been before.

2) What's the best thing about being in Austin? or if you've not been before.... What are your tourism related plans?

I’ve heard there’s the best steakhouse ever...so I won’t be going there, this is one for a vegetarian to avoid! Otherwise, I’ve heard about some nice lakes and maybe we’ll get the change to travel to them, I’m not necessarily a city person so we’ll see what goes.

3) Why are you playing SxSW? (Cos we hear the money isn't too good)

I’m hoping that it’ll be a great experience and it will be a chance to catch up with some people I don’t get the chance to see as we’re always playing in different parts of the world. Also to perhaps do my thing for people who haven’t seen it before.

4) Who are you showcasing for, and where and when can we expect to see you?

The Local, they have a showcase at the Hilton Garden Hotel on the 20th, they have put on most of my London shows and arranged the tour for me and Doveman and Sam Amidon in the UK – these guys care about the quality of the music they promote.

5) Which other bands/artists are you most looking forward to seeing over music week?

As I say I can maybe get the chance to see friends I haven’t seen in a while like Viking Moses, but maybe discover that I like some of the bands my friends are raving about, but I honestly haven’t had time to go through such an exhaustive list of acts. I think it's more of a see what you stumble upon, and I could discover something amazing.

6) Will you visit the Film or Interactive sections of SxSW this year? Or is time tight?

Time is tight, but I’d love to check out what else is on offer other than music – to be honest it’s pretty draining having to take in music when you have your own to think about too, so it would be nice to break things up.

7) What does the rest of 2009 hold for you?

I am working on my first proper studio album, which The Local will release as their first album proper too, this is a strange new way of working but interesting – so we should see the fruits of this endeavour at some point – I’m sure that there’ll be plenty more live shows.  

David Thomas Broughton: Myspace / Official Site

Playing: 20 Mar 2009 - SXSW - Hilton Garden Hotel Austin, Texas