The Hold Steady + Rachael Ray = BFFs? (SXSW Update)

Last time we checked in, Boston bands weren't exactly dominating the SXSW music festival. Fortunately, the final list now includes Apollo Sunshine, Arms and Sleepers, Sarah Borges, The Downbeat 5, Melissa Ferrick, Muck and the Mires, Passion Pit, Eli Reed, Eileen Rose, Mean Creek, Tulsa, Westbound Train, Wheat, and Who Shot Hollywood from Massachusetts; Deer Tick, B. Dolan, Howl, The Low Anthem, Jared Paul, and Prolyphic from Rhode Island; plus Pictures and Sound from VT and the Queers from NH. It's a much more robust New England lineup than before.

But wait, there's more! So, last year, Rachael Ray had a party at SXSW, and she invited Holy Fuck to play. A scandalous choice for such a sweet lady. This year, Rachael has made a more palatable choice (if ears have palates?), asking The Hold Steady, fronted by BC grad Craig Finn, to play her party. Invariably labeled a "bar band" in reviews, and deemed "the single best band in these United States" by Pitchfork in that news item, The Hold Steady will sidle up to the bar with Rachael for some EVOO and PBR come March. Is this a case of guys going for status or what? About a month after rockin' with Rachael, The Hold Steady will play Coachella, along with (a slimmed-down?) Amanda Palmer. There are a lot of fine festivals going on this spring, none of them here.