Matt Ward is a fellow most of you know, and even if you think you don't know him, you probably do—in the past decade, his distinct and obscenely talented guitar work, or his gravelly millworker's voice, have tended to turn up in the most unlikely places. The Portland resident can be found alongside Zooey Deschanel in She & Him, or working with My Morning Jacket's Jim James and Bright Eyes' Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis in Monsters of Folk, but to get the best feel for Ward's AM radio dynamism, one has to seek out his exemplary solo work. Prior to Ward's SXSW appearance in support of his new album, A Wasteland Companion, we hopped on the phone to chat with the thoughtful musician about T.S. Eliot, Christmas albums, being defined by collaborations, and why SXSW is not a terrible thing. more ›

A talented singer/songwriter has a knack for soothing the soul, which may be a perfect respite from this everlasting heatwave. Quit the hustle, slow down, and stumble into Club De Ville tonight to catch the humbling, introspective lyrical anecdotes and sweet jams of Seth Sherman. The singer/songwriter/guitarist composes twangy, finger-picking songs that sit on the fence between folk and classic rock in the vein of M. Ward, Dawes, and The Tallest Man on Earth. more ›

Whispers flew around the packed ACL Studio as five men in suits as varied as their personalities filed on stage at 8pm. There were the expected four members of Monsters of Folk: Jim James, frontman for My Morning Jacket, M. Ward of She & Him fame, and Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes. (For more background on Monsters of Folk, check out the ACL/Stubbs preview.) But who was the fifth suited man seating himself behind the elegant drum kit? more ›

While the low-key Matthew Stephen Ward has been up to a lot lately, what with his Zooey Deschanel vehicle She & Him, and Monsters of Folk, his new enterprise with Conor Oberst and My Morning Jacket’s Jim James, Ward’s customary understated and modest showmanship still marks him as an artist. Charming the crowd with a career-spanning set heavy with Post-War and Hold Time tunes, it was the ease with which he tapped into America’s musical heritage that stood most impressive—his daunting creative schedule aside, one gets the feeling that Ward could compose an AM radio hit the moment he rolls out of bed in the morning. Despite this, don’t be deceived by his work’s apparent simplicity—only through refinement has he discovered the divining rod of old-school pop, and how to meld his impressive solo guitar chops into full band songs—this concoction ain’t no accident. more ›

An aching mix of dewy and caustic, Lewis is at her best when confessional, and will certainly never suffer a shortage of idolatrous confessors. more ›

Things are finally starting to come into focus for SX Music '09. A few of the more interesting items we've read in the past week:

• The Arc Angels (3/20) and Explosions In The Sky (3/21) will headline two of the always popular free showcases at Auditorium Shores during the festival.
• Paste cover boy and She and Him co-founder M. Ward will be back at SXSW this year to plug his new album Hold Time. No word yet on dates, but we'd guess he'll play the Merge showcase at the very least.
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While Ward's recent career trajectory culminated in a back seat position behind Zooey Deschanel’s recognizable face for much of the past year, Hold Time sees Ward again taking the front of the stage, and one listen to the album demonstrates that while all the hullabaloo may have changed others’ impression of him, his approach remains comfortably much the same. And in terms of his career, that means Hold Time is a pretty solid listen. more ›

The actual sets didn't matter. They just didn't. more ›

WaMu's seven-band Friday lineup is one to be reckoned with, or, if you prefer, it certainly is one with which to reckon. So it is with the fantastic three-headed monster of headliners the stage offers on Day One of Austin City Limits, as tearing up the evening is the widely-acclaimed M. Ward, the widely-eyed Jenny Lewis, and the widely-awesome Antibalas. Of those three, it's difficult to tell which would be the primo attraction, but Antibalas draws the night-ending time slot, and with good reason. The New York ensemble incorporates African rhythms into their horn-driven attack, and their most recent album, last year's Security, is a solid wonder, with track "Beaten Metal" sure to be a much sought-after sound to hear as dusk turns to night. Without a doubt, the energy they are sure to fuel is the ideal way to close off the stage, and at a thoroughly reasonable time of 8:15, thus leaving plenty of time either to wander over to Friday's big-name headliners, or to get the heck out before the Zilker Park exodus becomes too utterly ridiculous. more ›

1990s Cookies (Rough Trade/World's Fair) The 1990s "play music like a blond gets out of a car." This, we assume based on listening, means something like, "Our sound is snotty, a little fucked up on we-don't-remember-what, and always f-u-n." While John McKeown (Yummy Fur) won't make any news showing his knickers to paparazzi during a limo exit, he will succeed in promoting the display of everyone else's underthings on the dance floor, as Cookies... more ›

FRIDAY [15] juneteenth/parade • Alvin Patterson Battle of the Bands and Drumline Competition at Congress Avenue (2pm) books • Lama Surya Das presents Buddha is as Buddha Does at BookPeople (7:00pm) comedy • Billy D Washington with Doug Mellard at Cap City Comedy Club comedy • Punchline, open mic stand up comedy at ColdTowne Theater (10pm) dance • Constellation, a site-specific dance work from Sally Jacques at Pickle & Thornberry Federal Courthouses (9pm) dance... more ›

Whether you go down to the local record store or shop through the Tubes, today is new release Tuesday. Birdmonster No Midnight (SpinART) Despite the rock n roll media's underwhelmed response, No Midnight is going to be the biggest indie seller this week, quite easily. Considering the fact that they gained their audience primarily through the web, and were unsigned at the start of the year, it's a pleasant surprise to see such a... more ›