Larkin Poe performs at Rolling Stone’s Future of Music Showcase at ACL Live during South by Southwest, March 12, 2025.
Sara Diggins/American-Statesman
Organizers say condensing the South by Southwest Conference and Festival to one weekend for 2026 will increase discovery of new music as attendees from the tech leg of the conference can now partake in the concerts. And I hope that’s true because I always enjoy partying with the nerds during SXSW.
One time I took a group of Interactive (now Innovation) badge-holders from Norway to a J Balvin show at Native. Turns out those vatos can straight-up hang.
The conference, known for career-making live performances, continues to produce breakout moments from all over. You get beach bum surf rock from Spain, then R&B boy band crooning by New Zealanders who sound like Usher, then John Legend at Cheer Up Charlies during a day party. And it’s a bigger deal that a reclusive Houston artist like Jandek makes a rare appearance than it is that Slash, Perry Farrell from Jane’s Addiction, and Tom Morello are jamming at The Parish while “Clueless” actor Breckin Meyer plays the drums. Amy Winehouse played that now-defunct Sixth Street club the same week in 2007.
I once saw some German rappers who are puppets called the Puppetmastaz at a house on Whitis Street near campus. Mumford & Sons played at B.D. Riley’s. I watched as Donald Glover debuted Childish Gambino and brought out Kendrick Lamar. And just last year, an Irish punk band started mosh pits in an upscale restaurant while a McDonald’s breakfast campaign sponsored chart-topping Norteño.
What does 2026 have in store? Here are some artists we can’t wait to scout.
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Adult DVD will be playing at Valhalla on March 14 at 4:50 p.m.
Devon Chambers/SXSW
Adult DVD
Global culture is experiencing a dance rock resurgence, and Adult DVD — a six-piece band from Leeds, U.K. — is in the grips of it. Formed by vocalist Harry Hanson and synth player Greg Lonsdale in 2021, the band is setting itself apart from any typical rock snorefest with snarky lyricism, compelling production and fresh electronic loops.
They don’t fall into tonal tropes, instead taking a leap for the least-obvious rhythmic choices and nailing it in songs like “Do Something” and “Real Tree Lee,” the latter of which came out Jan. 20, right as they signed to Mississippi’s Fat Possum Records.
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While other bands are experimenting with a similar sound right now, Adult DVD stands out. They are one of the better groups taking over this nuevo Beck sort of style. — Mars Salazar
Balaclava will be playing at Swan Dive on March 15 at 1 a.m.
Claire Eve/SXSW
Balaclava
I love a band with a gimmick — sue me. You can probably guess what Balaclava’s schtick is by their name. “Birthed from NYC wastewater and soaked in formaldehyde, Balaclava answers the lifelong question of what animated trash would sound like,” they say.
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Their latest single, “Dramatic Exit,” begins with violent retching and “Simon Steals a Lot” from their 2024 EP, “The 1/4 Inch AlmanacF” sounds like the engineer accidentally ran the mix through a wash cycle after forgetting it in the pocket of his jeans.
Catch me in the mosh pit at 1 a.m. on Sunday at Swan Dive. — M.S.
BigXthaPlug will be playing Rolling Stone’s Future of Music showcase at ACL Live on March 14 at 7:45 p.m.
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BigXthaPlug
The Dallas rapper has a voice so low and Velveeta-rich you’ll think he’s the rap game Barry White. Everything it touches turns to gold.
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The 27-year-old rhymes on one of those pop-country hits with a hip-hop beat, the Ella Langley collab “Hell At Night,” and it’s kinda fire. But his golden goose is that “I’m from Texas” song, a low-rider anthem that thumps so hard it makes Slim Thug blush.
If you don’t like Big X, I hope you turn your heater on and it blows cold. — Ramon Ramirez
Bloodsports will be playing at Hotel Vegas on March 16 at 8:50 p.m.
Meghan Hancock/SXSW
Bloodsports
This New York City band sings grandiose gutter rock that reminds you the human experience is suffering at every turn. It twists and turns like a drunk stumbling home, loud, then crashing, then still.
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“I liked the colors in your apartment,” the singer observes on the chaotic gem “Rot.”
They’ll be gigging all over during SXSW, too: Shangri-La, Chess Club, Vegas. — R.R.
CDSM is playing at Elysium on March 16 at 9 p.m.
Sebastian Aguilar/SXSW
CDSM
It stands for “Celebrity Death Slot Machine,” by the way, and while their music may not be palatable for everyone, CDSM is anything but boring.
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The Atlanta-based six-piece fully embraces its random-core, electroclash essence on the 2025 album “Convertible Hearse.” For example, “Nashville TV” already feels like a fever dream long before a saxophone starts smoothly beckoning to you from beneath layers of pulsar echo midway through the song.
If you think you can hang, check out “Cuck Jail” and “Slug (Expletive).” — M.S.
Congratulations will be playing at Hotel Vegas on March 17 at 9 p.m.
Bridie Cummings/SXSW
Congratulations
Give yourself a pat on the back if you already know about the four-piece band Congratulations from Brighton, U.K.
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They really chopped things up on their album, “Join Hands,” which came out Feb. 13. The songs “Hollywood Swingers” and “Dr. Doctor” are propelled by homey LCD Soundsystem-esque synth runs paired gloriously with singer Leah Stanhope’s unblemished soprano.
With Congratulations, we’re running things back to 2011 when The Naked And Famous released “Passive Me, Aggressive You.” — M.S.
Fuerza Regida will play Rolling Stone’s Future of Music showcase at ACL Live on March 13 at 7:45 p.m.
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Fuerza Regida
This Spanish-language band from California is the 82nd-most-streamed artist on Spotify. Like, what?
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They make regional, almost traditional Mexican corridos. With tubas!
I mean, Bruno Mars just code-switched again and dropped what’s tantamount to a Bobby Pulido single. Everyone wants to be Latin right now. Qué rico. — R.R.
Meg Elsier will play at Las Perlas on March 13 at 8:40 p.m.
Jacq Justice/SXSW
Meg Elsier
Talk about Big Thief energy.
“I never thought I was special, but I thought I would do more,” Elsier sings on 2024’s arresting album “Spittake.” No kidding, the thing’s a masterpiece. Pure flow state. She’s the most slept-on garage rock genius at SXSW.
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Her ear for melody is an A+ and the hooks soar. Her lyrics are transfixing. Buy the dip. — R.R.
Sun Room
Sun Room may look like just another trio of young white dudes from SoCal trying their hand at rock ‘n’ roll but, to put it plainly, they do what they do really well. Like almost everyone else, I first heard them when their song “Crashed My Bike” went viral on social media around 2021.
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They have beautifully revamped surf rock for a new generation, honing Dick Dale-rooted riffs in their early hits “Just Yesterday” and “Sunset Garage.” However, on the 2025 EP “Ritual of Chaos,” the band flawlessly executes a blues rock pivot with immaculate tempo fluctuations that would make Dan Auerbach shed a tear.
Not sold yet? Listen to “Jackknife” and try to convince me that I’m wrong. — M.S.
The Family Battenberg will play at Valhalla on March 13 at 12:20 p.m.
The Family Battenberg/SXSW
The Family Battenberg
It’s going to feel really cool when you get to tell your friends that you knew about The Family Battenberg before everyone else.
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The Cardiff, U.K. band mates are passengers boarding the garage rock revival train that Fontaines D.C. and Turnstile already ride. Their 2025 EP “Spider Rock Forever” is an appropriate successor to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, especially the songs “Foggy” and “Gwyllgi.”
I already want The Family Battenberg to come back to play Austin Psych Fest in the next couple of years, so everyone better be on their best behavior while they’re in town. — M.S.
The Violet Mindfield will play at Hotel Vegas on March 13.
Luis Bautista/SXSW
The Violet Mindfield
Harnessing the sound of any bygone era is tough, especially for something as beloved as ’60s rock, but The Violet Mindfield makes it happen. This SoCal band is a descendant of the Zombies, the Easybeats, the Byrds and every other psych-rock outfit your dad had on vinyl.
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“He Ain’t The One” and “Somebody Else,” both from their 2025 album “Distorted Portrait,” nail the rudimentary lyricism that feels at home on a malt shop jukebox. There’s a noticeable veneer on each song that points to the use of analog recording equipment, and even the album covers are a nod to the mod subculture.
The retro thing isn’t for everyone, but The Violet Mindfield certainly didn’t pull its punches. — M.S.
TTSSFU will play at Mohawk on March 15 at 5:10 p.m.
Henry Collier/SXSW
TTSSFU
Her name is Tasmin Nicole Stephens, and she’s from Wigan, England. She creates wispy-voiced, ethereally arranged, industrial rock with a ‘90s edge. Crack Magazine notes it captures the malaise of what it’s like to live in Wigan, partying in dives.
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I wouldn’t know. But Wigan’s textile industry did collapse after World War II — and it never recovered — so that tracks. — R.R.
Babatunde Akinboboye will play at Flamingo Cantina on March 16 at 8 p.m.
J. Demetrie Photography/SXSW
Bonus: Babatunde Hip Hopera
Ever wonder what a mash-up of classical opera and hip-hop would sound like? Enter Babatunde Akinboboye and his “Hip Hopera.” He first gained attention after his blend of Rossini’s “Largo al factotum” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Humble” went viral in 2018.
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Curious? Babatunde is releasing his debut album and embarking on a national tour in 2026. In the meantime, he’s playing Flamingo Cantina on March 16 at 8 p.m. — M.S.