The music portion of South by Southwest is kicking into high gear and by now you’ve probably seen more than enough Twitter hashtags and Instagram shots of Austin to realize the festival is happening. Though SXSW’s industry influence has waned its name is inescapable, and if you keep tabs on new music there’s a good chance you notice the fest’s name worming its way into conversations as early as January, if not before. By February the fest is an essential part of small talk: “How are you? How about that weather? Are you going to SXSW?”
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