SXSW 2013: Natalie Maines' New Sound, Iron & Wine Go Big Band at Spinner Showcase

Natalie Maines has kept a relatively low profile since the Dixie Chicks went on hiatus in 2007, but her Mother solo debut comes out on May 7 and she covered the Pink Floyd track of the same name as part of the Spinner showcase on Wednesday night at ACL Live at the Moody Theater.

Maines was outspoken against former United States president George W. Bush and his right wing policies back in 2003, which got the Dixie Chicks banned from a lot of country radio stations, so the anti-war sentiment of "Mother" was in keeping with her worldview.

Maines kept the socio-political theme going with "Free Life," a song written by Semisonic main man, Dixie Chicks writer and Grammy Award-winning producer Dan Wilson about the West Memphis Three (three men who were tried and convicted as teenagers of the 1993 murders of three boys in West Memphis, Ark.). She followed that with a song by another Grammy winner, Patty Griffin, which rocked harder than any tune that I've heard by Robert Plant's wife (whose new American Kid album comes out the same day as Mother).

Ben Harper produced Mother and wrote "Vein in Vain" for it, and he also played lap steel and guitar as part of Maines' six-piece (which later grew to eight) backing band, though you couldn't recognize him early on since he was wearing a hat and kept a low profile with his head down while playing lap steel.

Maines' hair is now relatively close-cropped so you might have to do a double-take to recognize her, but there's no mistaking her powerful voice. She used it to full effect on the rocking "Trained," which was also written by Harper. The set also included "Come Cryin' to Me," which Maines co-wrote with the Jayhawks' Gary Louris and fellow Dixie Chicks Martie Maguire and Emily Robison. She also covered the Jayhawks' "I'd Run Away" from the Minneapolis, Minn. roots rock group's 1995 album, Tomorrow the Green Grass.

"Take it on Faith" closes Mother and an extended jam of it also ended Maines' set on a high note, with Harper being singled out for a raucous crowd cheer for his solo.

This newer, rockier Maines is something we could definitely get used to.
Family of the Year opened the Spinner showcase at 7:45 p.m. to begin a night of music that offered more variety than you might have expected from acts generally categorized under the roots and Americana banners.

The Los Angeles-based quintet, which has released two albums since 2009, has been described by Aerosmith's Steven Tyler as "The Mamas & the Papas on acid." While barefooted singer/keyboardist Christina Schroeter might look a bit like Michelle Phillips and the group nicely mixes male and female vocals, the comparisons should end there. Family of the Year is definitely more rambunctious, has more of a rock edge and doesn't focus on pop-folk harmonies like The Mamas & the Papas.

The 45-minute set's highlights included the single "Hero," which the band has performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live and Conan, and "St. Croix," before which Schroeter asked the audience members to imagine that they were on a Caribbean cruise wearing their tackiest tourist outfits while listening. While the crowd was still filling in and the general admission floor section and top balcony were still sparsely occupied, those who made it out warmly showed their appreciation for a set that surely made new fans.

Another L.A. band, Lord Huron, followed with a set of material from last year's Lonesome Dreams debut album. The indie folk quintet opened with "Ends of the Earth."

Lead singer/guitarist Ben Schneider played harmonica on the shimmering "The Ghost on the Shore" but he ignored the snare drum that sat beside him throughout the set. The group's three guitars provided an interesting mix of tones and the vocal harmonies shone on "The Man Who Lives Forever" and several other songs, including "Lonesome Dreams" and set-closer "The Stranger."

Sam Beam, singular, is Iron & Wine, but tonight the singer/songwriter/acoustic guitarist was accompanied by a string section, a horn section, a female vocal trio, a pianist, a drummer and a bassist. There were 13 people on stage, with Beam having the biggest beard of all of them.

Iron & Wine's fifth album, the 12-song Ghost on Ghost, will be released by Nonesuch on April 16. Much of his set featured material from that record, and his opening number had a definite soul vibe owing to everyone on stage. That remained as the set went on, and the performance seemed to also have a chamber-folk thing going for it that I appreciated more than Beam's sparser solo work. There was a lot of welcomed depth in the songs, and the arrangements allowed the music to breathe.

The increased tempo and dynamism of the new Brian Deck-produced songs opened an entirely new chapter of a musical book that Beam began with his 2002 Sub Pop debut, The Creek Drank the Cradle. The set wasn't strictly limited to new material, however, as "Belated Promise Ring" from 2009's Around the Well compilation of previously unreleased material provided a highlight.

Beam lives in Dripping Springs, a town of less than 2,000 people about 35 kilometres outside of Austin. There were about the same amount of people at the theatre to see his show and, while an Iron & Wine crowd isn't prone to exuberance, it was certainly appreciative of a man who was born in South Carolina and has lived in Virginia and Florida before choosing to settle down in this area as he closed the set with "Grace for Saints and Ramblers."

Dawes, another L.A. band and which will open for Bob Dylan across the U.S. through April and early May, began its night-ending set with "Most People." This was another act promoting a new album, as its third LP, Stories Don't End, will come out on April 9. Its set, accordingly, also focused on new material and included "The Way You Laugh," complete with a coda guitar solo from lead singer Taylor Goldsmith, the gentler "Something in Common" and the hooky "From a Window Seat."

The quartet also reached into its catalogue for "If I Wanted Someone," "Time Spent in Los Angeles" and the night-ending "A Little Bit of Everything" from 2011's Nothing is Wrong, as well as a drawn-out "Peace in the Valley" and the excellent "When My Time Comes" from 2009's North Hills debut album. Most people will probably recognize that last song from its use in a Chevrolet Silverado commercial, but there were lots of folks in the audience belting out the chorus when Goldsmith turned his microphone toward them.

Spinner's 2013 SXSW Showcase at ACL Live
AOL Music's Complete Coverage of SXSW

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