SXSW Wristbands On Sale Today For $149

Music nerds, take note. South By Southwest organizers just sent out a release saying that 2,000 music wristbands will go on sale at 10am via wristbands.sxsw.com at an initial price of $149. These wristbands grant the wearer space-available access to all evening SXSW showcases from March 13th to March 18th. Over 2,000 bands will perform at the 2012 edition of the festival at approximately 95 venues.

The $149 wristband price is good for the first 2,000 purchases made through the website - after that, the price increases to $175. Sales are limited to residents of the Austin metro area at this time. A list of eligible zip codes is available at the wristbands.sxsw.com site. There is a 2 wristband limit per order. Worth noting - the second wristband can be for an out-of-town friend, but you need to provide their name when you purchase.

All told, buying a wristband for $37.50 a day (we're not counting the limited showcases on Tuesday and Sunday) is a steal for local music fans, but it comes with a caveat - please remember before purchasing that badgeholders always have priority for the big name and big venue shows. If you'd like to go and see lots of international bands and take a chance on things, the wristband is perfect for you. If you're hoping to slide in to the inevitable big-name drop-in gigs like Metallica, Muse, or Pete Townshend have done in recent years - just know that your odds are slim. That said, of the 95 venues, on any given evening, a wristband will probably get you in to 80-90% of venues - just be prepared to make a B-plan given the limited capacities of most clubs.