From Festival Gigs to SXSW: Survival Tips for Musicians and Attendees

You get dropped into a two-show day where you’re juggling festival chaos, a paramedic emergency during set change, and a mysteriously mudded-out bass that turns out to be a rogue low‑pass filter at 90 Hz, all while keeping the gig on the rails because you Always Be Performing.

Then you pivot into first‑timer survival tactics for attending SXSW: locking in reservations weeks out, over‑planning so you can gleefully abandon those plans, and treating the whole thing as a marathon and a sprint while your calendar app becomes your best friend…and your worst enemy.

Throughout it all, you’re thinking like a pro: dialing in efficient monitor setups for festival stages, dealing with sketchy solder joints on a microphone (or is that a mic cable issue?), staying sane amid SXSW security, and never underestimating the power of great brisket, BBQ, and a solid spot to reset your brain. You’ll also get the practical stuff no one tells you: what to wear, why you always keep your badge on you, and how finding a seasoned SXSW Sherpa can save your week (and your feet) before you ever hit your first line.

​From Festival Gigs to SXSW: Essential Survival Tips for Musicians and Attendees

• 00:00:00 Gig Gab 523 – Monday, March 2nd, 2026
  • March 2nd: International Rescue Cat Day
  • Guest co-host: Lisa Hamilton
• 00:01:41 Two Show Day for Dave
  • First gig, Bitter Pill – Festival
    • And there was a paramedic
  • Bitter Pill: It’s Rock and Roll… It’s Rockabilly… It’s Blues… I don’t know!
• 00:10:43 Second gig – somehow the bass got a low-pass filter set at 90hZ!
  • Problem solved, gig a success!
• 00:18:23 SPONSOR: Gusto. Get three months free when you run your first payroll when you start at https://gusto.com/giggab
• 00:20:00 Attending SXSW for the first time
• 00:25:45 Learning how to manage SXSW
• 00:27:30 SXXpress passes become Reservations
  • And now they’re 3-weeks out instead of 2 days!
• 00:33:21 Reserving things in advance
• 00:37:25 It’s all about planning in advance
  • And then throwing away your plans and making a series of Sophie’s Choices
• 00:39:24 It’s a marathon…and a sprint
• 00:39:42 Managing the Calendar
• 00:43:39 With the App
• 00:48:43 Managing your monitor needs with efficiency at festival gigs
• 00:52:51 Security at SXSW
• 00:58:15 Luke Warm Solder Joint on the Microphone
  • Heil PR-40
• 00:58:57 Eat good food!
  • Brisket and BBQ
  • Eastside Cafe in Austin
• 01:01:11 What should I wear?
• 01:06:36 Find a SXSW Sherpa!
• 01:07:58 Finding your badge?
• 01:08:59 Always have your badge with you
• 01:11:38 Gig Gab 523 Outtro
  • Contact Gig Gab!
    • @GigGabPodcast on Instagram
    • feedback@giggabpodcast.com
    • Sign Up for the Gig Gab Mailing List

The post From Festival Gigs to SXSW: Survival Tips for Musicians and Attendees — Gig Gab 523 with Lisa Hamilton appeared first on Gig Gab.