Skaters are built from the remnants of the Boston band Dead Trees. But there’s a bit of map-hopping to their story. After leaving Boston for Oregon and then to L.A., losing members along the way, singer Michael Cummings and drummer Noah Rubin finally settled in New York to regroup — sonically, mentally and literally.

Forming a new band with a sound to capture the excitement of their new surroundings, they acquired Josh Hubbard (ex-Paddingtons, Dirty Pretty Things) and Dan Burke (Viva Viva), and began making demos for a free EP that began a whirlwind of good fortune.

“When we got to New York all the stuff I was writing was a totally different style,” says Cummings. “We took that and formed Skaters around a few choice songs. This is the first band where I’ve gone into it knowing exactly what sound I wanted to get out of it. With the Dead Trees there was always a confusion because I liked some many styles of music. I wrote songs because of how I was feeling. There’s more of an identity to Skaters. I think that the name, the vibe, the time, the guys — it all kind of dictates what kind of music we’ll be playing.”

Over the years, Cummings’ songs have evolved from quiet ballads to high-energy, melodic punk, but the songs have never skimped on lyrical content. After listening to their EP and upcoming single, you get glimpses of The Clash’s “Sandinista!” mixed with the feeling you had when you first heard the Strokes’ debut. These are exciting, guitar-driven songs that make you move and make you think. Their bombastic energy segues into brief emotional comedowns before jacking the songs back into danceable, head-bobbing anthems.

“They’re all New York-based songs,” says Cummings. “There’s a vibe that we want to capture. We’re a guitar-based band, but there are definitely a lot of loops and beats and electronic elements to take it out of superfamiliar territory.”

From DIY to WB
Metro learned about Skaters when the band was just a DIY dream with a motivated vision and no expectations. Cummings was gracious enough to give us their first-ever interview after their intimate Boston debut in 2011, as well as allowing this writer into the crowded confines of Electric Lady Studio last month while they were recording.

In between the two interviews, a lot has changed. Their unsuspecting beginnings, satisfied with self-release or possible indie interest, led to a mystique that had major labels intrigued, with several offers on the table before the band signed to Warner Brothers. With nothing more than their free EP and fervor for their future, the band was soon selling out shows in the UK, being played on BBC, and in the studio recording their debut with John Hill at the controls.

While Hill has gained notoriety producing music for Rihanna, Santigold and MIA, Cummings says he was the perfect fit because “deep down he’s a rocker at heart.”

The record, slated for mid-summer, will be preceded by a campaign of 7”s, a promotional endeavor that Warner hasn’t attempted in some time. The first will be released on Tuesday.

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No, this is not a crowd shot of the Vatican, but for many, Sixth Street in Austin, Texas is a religious landmark.
(CREDIT: Andy Sheppard/Redferns/Getty Images)

The freaks and the fashionable parade the streets from noon until morning, making people-watching alone worth the price of the plane ticket. I joined the masses on Tuesday looking for something new, and I quickly found it. Making my way to the Paste Magazine/Newport Folk Festival’s showcase, I arrived just in time to see the start of Hurray for the Riff Raff’s set. The female duo from New Orleans played a riveting stripped down set of country-tinged blues combining cover songs by Billie Holiday and Fred Neil as well as a slew of originals. Alternating between acoustic guitar and banjo, backed by a fiddle and the occasional toy piano, their set seemed perfectly at home on the front patio of the rickety old house now known as the Blackheart Bar. Not only will Hooray for Riff Raff make their debut at the Newport Folk Festival this year, but they found out just hours before their set they will be the opening act for the Alabama Shakes upcoming tour.

From there it was on to Viceland to catch the Skaters’ Austin debut. The buzz around them, combined sharing a bill with Waaves and Japandroids created a line of about 2,000 people snaked around the block — a line that would only be trumped later by Deadmau5. This was the first show I missed out on, and I hope it’s my last.

After watching a few songs from the street, I decided to make better use of my time and headed over to the Mohawk to hear the Danish band, Indians. A three-piece consisting of more keyboards than people, the band layers loops, Moog synthesizers and a brain-rattling drum pad to create dreamy, slightly dancey music. The Copenhagen croon of lead singer Soren Juul works well with Enya-like atmospherics.

Looking to for some more traditional rock ‘n’ roll, I drifted off to The North Door to catch Vietnam. After taking the past five years off, Michael Gerner is back with a new six-piece lineup and a recent record, but their sound remains the same. It is dark, lengthy and often druggy narratives, which are delivered without traditional verse/chorus structure and set against a heavy shimmer of blues guitar riffs.

After seeing the line for Jim James a couple blocks from the entrance. I decided to go home and rest up for Wednesday. It’s going to be a long week.

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Every year, thousands of musicians, record labels, fans and publicists from all ends of the earth make their way to Austin, Texas for the five-day sonic soiree and sensory overload known as South by Southwest, which for the rest of the week, you’ll see referred to as SXSW.
For the uninitiated, SXSW is, in theory, where bands go to make it, labels go to show off their talent and the rest of the industry goes to latch onto untouched potential. As for me, I’m there to take it all in, write it all down and tell you all about it. While there’s no possible way to see every act, here are a few I’m looking forward to.

Chelsea Light Moving
The band’s name may seem esoteric, but their leader is one of rock’s greatest guitarists. With Sonic Youth on indefinite hiatus, Thurston Moore’s latest outfit is far from the delicate stylings of his recent solo records. CLM combine Sonic Youth’s atmospheric guitar sounds with artistic abrasions most similar to Moore’s 1995 “Psychic Hearts” record. On CLM’s self-titled debut, released last week, Moore possesses a newfound angst and seems angrier than ever.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Ten years ago, Nick Cave may have seemed a bit out of place at SXSW. But after scoring three westerns, and providing the musc and a screenplay to the Southern bootlegging movie, “Lawless,” he now seems to embody the ideal of the dusty American outlaw (despite being from Australia and the U.K.). While his recent release seems more like a solo record than a Bad Seeds endeavor, his commanding presence in live shows is as powerful as a fire and brimstone preacher. SXSW is the first of his 20 sold out North American dates and one of the hottest tickets in town.

Generationals
An electro pop duo from New Orleans, Generationals combine guitar and electronics to create blissful textures and melodic hooks that overpower the inherent melancholia that lingers in the backdrop. Playing seven shows in four days at SXSW, the band will preview their third and best full-length, “Heza,” due out in April.

King Tuff
While the name may suggest some Studio One dub producer, only the weed smoke links Tuff with Jamaican styles. The pride of Brattleboro, Vermont and one of Sub Pop’s latest acquisitions, KT’s music is more akin to the haunting acoustic psych sound of Girls, but with a grunge-y energy.

Skaters
NYC by way of Boston and England, Skaters will be one of the newest and busiest bands in Austin. Consisting of members of Dead Trees and Dirty Pretty Things, Skaters are one of Warner Brothers’ hopes for a youthful rock ‘n’ roll revival. They’re headed straight from the studio after wrapping up their debut LP, slated for early summer release. There’s already a buzz around them, based on their free EP, and extensive European and U.S. tours are already booked for spring. Expect infectious guitar ballads that make you move, but also make you think.

Prince
Wait, what? Yes! In the past few years SXSW has become about established superstars staging their comeback into the public consciousness as much as it is about undiscovered talents. Now that Justin Timberlake has been co-opting Prince’s big band setup of the “Diamonds and Pearls” era, it’s time for his Royal Purpleness to show JT how it’s really done. Prince will reportedly stage an as yet not totally confirmed club show with a 22-piece band during the festival.

—Follow Nolan Gawron on Twitter this week at @metrousmusic. Check out this website all week for his updates on the best of SXSW. Check out our playlist below…

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