let me start out by saying festivals give live music a bad name. they tend to be overbooked with mediocure talent, everything cost way too much and unless you are willing to get smashed in line the only chance you get to see some of your favorite artist is about 1/4 mile away in a field that normally houses cattle. the whole experience can be maddening and leave you spent. the organizers of sxsw realize this and have gone way out of their way to extend opportunites for you to see your favorite artist on bills with unknown talent that actually rock and sometimes even roll for little or no cost(that's right) and many times you can be so close that you might end up on stage(true story). such was sxsw version 2011 for me. i went this year with the entent of covering los angeles based artist, since this publication is based in los angeles. and wasn't disappointed. we started out by getting invited to another secret show from the mighty foo fighters, who are la based but worldwide known at the iconic venue stubbs. home to many famous and infamous artist and performances and this was no exception. from the moment the boys walked on stage in a supporting role for fitz and the tantrums(la based) the mouths in the crowd were left gapping throughout the entire 2 hour set. the boys rocked out the entire new album song for song in sequence, then went on to play another hour of hits that left the crowd sweaty, exhausted and yet still screaming for more.