Sounds by South Bend

SXSB Staff Picks

Next Thursday through Sunday (May 7-9), the Sounds by South Bend music festival will be taking place at over 20 various local venues. Featuring over 45 acts, the festival boasts something for everyone. The Scene staff picked the bands they will be listening to.

Miko- Santiago x The Natural

So I admittedly didn’t know anything about this year’s SXSB lineup, but I gave it a quick look-over and I was very pleasantly surprised — Santiago x The Natural, coming out of Chicago, are going to be performing Saturday night at River Race Townhomes. “Miko,” you begin, “Who are Santiago x The Natural? Have I heard of any of their work at all?” Yes, yes you have. Garnering attention from ESPN for their hit song “Warriors,” which was the theme for the 2012-2013 season (i.e. our latest national championship run season). The very catchy song is just a small sample indicative of how great their work is. They even worked with Talib Kweli, and their other hit song “Got a Hold of Me” was featured on ESPN Unite and ESPN First Take. And, if you needed any more reason to show them some love, they’re a couple of Notre Dame grads. Make sure to see them May 9 at 10:15 p.m. on the Main Stage at River Race Townhomes. “Warriors, ay ay ay, we’re the warriors … ”

Recommended track: “Warriors”

Erin - Frances Luke Accord 

I first saw Frances Luke Accord when they opened for Darlingside at The Pool back in November, and I was more than impressed. Since that intimate, exciting performance they have played at The Pool again, headlined Carroll and Badin’s Lakeside music festival and have been touring the midwest.

The Notre Dame alums have released two self-produced records so far: “Kandote,” their debut album recorded with the Barefoot Truth’s Children’s Choir of Kkindu, Uganda, (it raised $6,500 to pay for the choir members’ primary schooling) and the “Queen for Me” EP. They just reached their Kickstarter goal and are getting ready to release their first full-length album, with a special vinyl edition. Catch them May 9 at 3:15 p.m. at the Commerce Center Building Showcase.

Recommended tracks: “Over Your Roof,” “Nowhere to be Found”

Maddie - The Dads Next Door

As fellow Notre Dame undergrads, the members of this band are enthusiastic and have a great stage presence. I have seen them perform a few times — once at a house party and also at Finni's and Club Fever. The crowd is always singing and dancing along. Their shows are made up of mostly rock covers, but they have also been working on adding more original songs, so I’m sure they will have a few original tracks to play for their show at South Bend Brew Werks on May 7 at 7 p.m. Come out to support them, drink some craft beer and sing along to your favorite rock hits.

Recommended tracks: “The Acid Song,” “I’m on Fire”

Jimmy - Ratboys

Coming straight out of lead singer Julia Steiner’s wild, once-in-a-lifetime four minute performance at #NDday, Ratboys are one of the hottest folk/country/indie/alt-rock bands in the Chicago area right now. Their latest release, “Have a Heart,” is straight fire, combining all of those genres with great instrumentation, beautiful vocals and supreme lyrics. All of their music is available for streaming on bandcamp and definitely deserves a listen. Steiner and guitarist David Sagan are also Notre Dame students — as if you didn’t already have enough reason to go check them out. Ratboys will be playing at the main stage at Hammes Garage on May 8 at 9:30 p.m.

Recommended tracks: “Tixis,” “Have a Heart”

John - Scuttlebuggs  

This duo makes real pretty music with lovely vocal harmonies and pretty little guitar-driven ditties. The songwriting is highly melodic and easy-going, evoking easy days in the sun. It’s safe to say that Scuttlebuggs is one of those bands that would blow up if they hit a lucky spark to set them off; their music is pretty, catchy and very well-produced on their debut record “After Brilliance.”

On the other hand, Scuttlebuggs also seem comfortable straying from the summer-daze feeling. “Hot Little Minute” rushes along with a relentless guitar groove reminiscent of Modest Mouse, and “Tom Everett Scott” employs atmospheric wavering pedal guitar to evoke the alt-country of Beck’s “Sea Change.” If their record is any indication, Scuttlebuggs boast the musicianship and tight songwriting to make for one hell of a concert. It’s definitely enough of a reason to catch their set May 8 at the Birdsell Mansion at 5:45 p.m.

Recommended: “Combover”, “The Slaughter”

Caelin - Eric Lee Carpenter

I’ll admit that before we decided to do this feature, I knew little to nothing about the Sounds by South Bend Festival, despite being invited to the event on Facebook. But, I sat down and looked through the list — and realized I knew none of the artists on there. As such, I tried listening to a couple, and while they were all very respectable, Eric Lee Carpenter was by far my favorite. He reminds me of a mix between Noah Gunderson and Joel Crouse, which makes me just a little bit happy. On his 2014 EP “A Good Place to Start,” he starts it off quickly with two songs that just kind of make you want to dance. “We’re On Fire” is particularly catchy. Then it slows down with “Life is Beautiful.” Personally, I prefer him on his more up-tempo tunes, but I can see the appeal of slowing it down a bit. See his set on May 7 at The Exchange Whiskey Bar from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m.

Recommended Track: “We’re on Fire”