South by Southwest is nothing if not overwhelming. With roughly 2,000 bands to choose from in four days, even the toughest, savviest, most dedicated music fan can wind up feeling crushed — just ask NPR Music's Stephen Thompson, who came home nursing a sinus infection of biblical proportions. But there's one clear advantage to the avalanche of options: You're bound to stumble on something you've never heard before, and it might just blow your mind.
That's what happened to the All Songs Considered crew, and this week we've got SXSW goodies galore:
∙ At the end of each night, Bob Boilen, Robin Hilton, Stephen and Ann Powers assembled to recap all the new music they saw that day. Hear their late-night dispatches in the sidebar at left.
∙ Bob went to (count 'em) 67 shows this year, and you can see his one-minute videos from each one on the All Songs blog. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday's posts are up — check back for more.
∙ The Tiny Desk tradition lived on in Austin, as bands crowded into the NPR team's hotel room for special acoustic performances. Check out the Tiny SXSW Concert videos.
And listen to this week's show to hear Bob and Stephen's reflections on this year's pleasant surprises, which include riotous Brazilian rock, lilting Kentucky folk and lush Canadian synth-pop. As always, you can head to our SXSW hub for NPR Music's complete coverage.
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