SXSW News & Rumor Updates: Wristbands, Dropouts, and Dayshows

Uh, the website says that wristbands will be sold at $180 after the original 4000 for Austin residents are sold. I would venture to guess that means they will be selling more after the original 4000...it is just a guess though, even though it says they will.

I understand the price break for locals, I wasn't commenting about the pricing. The issue is availability of wristbands for people who travel to Austin from out of town to attend the festival and want to purchase a wristband, not a badge. There is no definite word on whether or not additional wristbands will be sold following the initial release of 4000 to locals.

Last year, the second wave of wristbands were sold on Thursday, a day after the music festival started, so people missed out on the first day of music.

I don't understand why your out of town friends are entitled to the prices designated for locals.

The $139 are advance, discounted, intended for locals. "Regular" wristbands are still for sale at $180. Nothing up in the air about that.

Seriously, people, do a little research before you start posting comments.

LM--I have been living apartments managed by Rainier management (they have a bundle of properties in town)for 3 years. Each time my lease is up, I am given the opportunity to renew my lease for 6, 9, or 12 months. Each time my lease has been up, I have researched other properties to see if I can find a better deal. Again, I have encountered maybe one or two properties that only offer one year leases.

I am a student at UT. Before you make any assumptions about daddy paying for everything, don't. I'm near 30 and am taking care of all the bills myself. A lot of undergraduate students return home for the summers and breaks, returning when the semester resumes, hence the comment about a significant number of students moving frequently and going back and forth between Austin and their hometown.

I really don't understand your comment about 'whining.' You didn't seem to understand the point, so I'll break it down: SXSW is a unique event and my friends have come every year for the past four years to enjoy a week of non-stop music. It's just a bummer that they already made their travel arrangements and it's up in the air on whether or not they will be able to get a wristband.

Seriously Loud Mouth...get over yourself.

I don't know how much crying is going on. The students issue is probably one that SXSW simply overlooked.

Anyway, if students want to get the wristbands, I'm sure they'll figure out a way. In the meantime, I'll enjoy my SX badge access and no worry about it ;-)

Where'd you get your facts, Tron? Did you just make them up? Cuz... that's what it's sounding like to me.

Personally I've never heard of an apartment complex that allows you to rent per semester. Usually they want you to sign a year's lease. I find the whole situation comical. The crying about out of town friends not getting to go is really very funny when you step back and look at it. Hell, travel anywhere outside of central Austin and you'll find that most people in Austin love music and have never been to SXSW. Watch out though because that's a "fact" I just made up so it might not be true.

Lay off the students already--most of them move every semester or so, so keeping the billing address at their parents for four years (or six) is a lot easier than updating contact info for a slew of companies twice a year.

As for the wristband debacle...I'm all for squeezing out the scalpers, but my best friend has already booked her flight from California, and now there is no guarantee I will be able to score her a wristband. I have no qualms with SXSW in general, but it seems overall like they are making life much easier for those with badges. Those of us who can't cough up $600+ for a badge aren't exactly being squeezed out of the festival, but it takes way more patience and logistical organization to fully enjoy it.

UCBTowne

FYI students:

Since you are off for Spring break, why not volunteer for SXSW? 50 hours gets you a SXSW Music Pass, which is a wristband plus big bag and BBQ. It is EXTREMELY economical.

Plus, if you work a 6 hour shift during the day, you get a free lunch.

few is fewer. See how college eats your brain?

What would austin be like today if colleges weren't based here?

There would be a lot few overeducated frycooks in Texas.

Couldn't you just update your billing address for one month, buy your wristband, and change it back? The odds of them losing that ONE bill are pretty slim, right?

Or have it sent to another Austin address like your friends' place that might be nicer? Or your campus job?

To Students:

What's a better solution though? Waterloo was horrible. (Sure, if you don't have a full time job and can just skip class and camp out it is great.) What's a better and realistic way for them to do an online wristband sale?

To Students:

What's a better solution though? Waterloo was horrible. (Sure, if you don't have a full time job and can just skip class and camp out it is great.) What's a better and realistic way for them to do an online wristband sale?

Oh come on. So how do you pay for it? Do your parents send it to you? Your credit card doesn't offer online bill pay?

What's with the attack on students? all you guys are being complete douche bags. If you gave it some thought, you'd maybe realize that STUDENTS usually aren't living in the best places (with their cheap housing) to have mail delivered. I go to UT and i pay for the cheapest rent i could find in austin. I live in an apartment complex where they've lost my packages and the mail service is extremely unreliable. I have my own credit card, and i pay for it myself. I still get my billing address sent to my home, but i still pay for it. i don't want to risk important documents being sent through my crappy apartment office. And just in case it slipped your mind, Austin would not even be the same town at all if it wasn't for all these 'children' who attend school here. i'd even go as far as to say that there wouldn't be a sxsw in austin if there was never a university of texas at austin. just think to yourself, what would austin be like today if colleges weren't based here? exactly.

It must be Valentine's Day, because i agree with LM word for word.

It's probably just the chocolate talking.

I don't see the children not being able to charge their wristbands on mommy's and daddy's cards as a problem. I see it as a solution.

"You must provide a name and email for each wristband desired, and any other required fields. If your entry is drawn, each named person must personally pick up his or her wristband (which will be put on his or her wrist at that time) March 9th through March 15th."

Your out-of-towner buddy will be IN town for the festival at the time allowed for pickup. Therefore it shouldn't be a problem.

"You must provide a name and email for each wristband desired, and any other required fields. If your entry is drawn, each named person must personally pick up his or her wristband (which will be put on his or her wrist at that time) March 9th through March 15th."

Your out-of-towner buddy will be IN town for the festival at the time allowed for pickup. Therefore it shouldn't be a problem.

fuck those students then. If they want to go, they can pay their own damn way with their own credit card based in Austin. People will complain and cry no matter how they do it.

rarrr-

the pickup is probably sometime during sxsw since they said something somewhere about picking them up

"at the event". so unless your friend doesn't come into town until Friday, you're probably ok.

One huge problem still exists though: students who live in Austin, but who keep their billing addresses at their parents' homes elsewhere, are totally screwed by this system. As usual, SXSW finds a way to exclude a major proportion of the fan base.

BCLM,

I have the same understanding - that the +1 can be an out-of-towner who must be named and must be with me when I pick up the wristbands (another inconvenience). The uncertainty lies in whether we'll be lucky enough to win this lottery system...

bclm, the way i understood it was that both people needed to be present in order to pick up the wristbands, and the wristbands would be put on you at the time of pick-up. so if you have an out of towner they cant be there to pick up the wristband. do i have this wrong?

Staggerlee, I think only the person physically obtaining the wristbands (aka you) has to have an Austin address, so the out-of town friend shouldn't be an issue-the other person can be from anywhere, you just have to provide their name.

I dunno. Obviously it's great that scalpers are finally being squeezed out, but now I'm not sure whether (or how if I miss the lottery draw) I'll be able to secure wristbands for myself and my regular out-of-town friend who has attended each year with me for 7 or 8 years now.

I'll reserve judgment until it's all said and done this year, but my fear is SXSW has gone overboard with this new complicated series of hoops through which I must now jump.

I know one thing - if I can't get a wristband this year and then Roland Swenson calls the Fire Department on whatever party I'm lucky enough to beg my way into there's gonna be hell to pay.

It'll be interesting to see if the demand stays as high when they're non-transferable. I'm hoping the lack out out-of-towners and college students hawking them on ebay will help make those 4000 more obtainable.