Lindsey Stirling: South by Southwest and Beyond Series - Part 1 Sixth Street Woes

Hey bloggers and followers, Sorry I have been away for a bit. I will resume my series on Veterans non-profits soon, but first I wanted to break down an article I did. This continues a series I will be doing on Independent musicians like the article I did on Peter Hollens (Look for it in a brand new magazine this April). This time, I cover Violinist Lindsey Stirling - but I want to change my writing style. Today I just want to cover what Sixth Street was like at South by Southwest, and introduce the topic. The full article can be found on my website blog if you just can't wait and like a longer read. Passages of the article are in black Italics.

Sixth Street. It’s more than a line of bars and venues. It’s more than the street musicians and the drunks. It’s more than the record stores and Korean Barbeque stands. This is Texas culture. It’s a crossroads for every type of music, every type of film, and the birthplace of many dreams.
I navigate this street with caution at the height of South by South West. Vehicle traffic on Sixth is blocked for Austin’s acclaimed music festival, and parking in the surrounding areas is scarce. Thousands of pedestrians mill about a stretch of road not more than two miles long.

Does this get your attention? Are you interested? Let me know in the comments.


Only Mardi Gras in New Orleans or perhaps Carnival in Rio De Janeiro can top this grand spectacle of the wonderful, weird, wild, and stupid. I pass by a street musician with a clarinet and toss a dollar into his jar even though he is only playing scales. Next I dodge a bicycle chariot as I cross through a traffic light. The light still changes in its normal rhythm even though it is rendered useless for the weekend. I try not to inhale too deeply, as the sickly sweet smell of lit marijuana assaults my senses. A few blocks later I have some difficulty finding a route through a large crowd surrounding a few break dancers. I squirm between layers of people and somehow make it through by walking close to the club entrances. My destination is a two story bar and venue called “The Blind Pig”, and the email I relieved a few hours before has me terrified that I will be waiting in line for hours just to get into this place.

I like dropping my readers into a scene and establishing a setting. There should be a sense of adventure here. Just for fun I include a picture. Are you not sorry you didn't come to Austin?



The email, sent to me from a website called pledgemusic.com, confirms I have a special spot reserved for a hastily arranged concert. The show is meant to cater to three hundred loyal fans of violinist Lindsey Stirling. She has a new album coming out this May. The title, “Shatter Me” hints at music with a deep emotional connection to the artist. This is an account of Lindsey Stirling at South by Southwest from the perspective of a longtime fan. On a deeper level, this somewhat lengthy article is about achieving dreams—not only on how to achieve them but to do so within the space of reality while avoiding dangerous fantasy.

There is a bit of a funny story behind this invitation. Someone tried to message me about the event on facebook but they were asking if I had "pledged." Since the concert I knew about on Saturday was a charity event for VH1's save the music, I thought I was being asked if I had made a donation. What they meant was the website pledgemusic.com. A "derp" moment for me for sure.

Tommorrow I will cover a few thoughts on fandom and its potential dangers.