The Mae Shi May Set a Record at SxSW

AUSTIN, TX, March 19, 2009 – The Mae Shi – repped by music company Mophonics for original compositions and sync – is certainly making its presence felt at SxSW. 

Through its relationship with Mophonics, the band secured a prominent placement for fan fave track "Run To Your Grave," featured in the Berlin FIlm Fest’s "Crystal Bear-winning" self-inflicted comedy "My Suicide" ; the SxSW FIlm Festival marks the film’s North American debut.

Another Mae Shi track, "Party Steady," reworked by Yea Big+Kid Static, can be heard in Rockstar Games’ "Midnight Club LA."

What’s more, The Mae Shi is poised to set a new standard for "The Record Number of Legit Performances at SxSW (by a band with no tour support)"… The band has 17 – count em, 17 – genuine gigs lined up for the festival. 

The full list of appearances is included here (for those of you who are actually at the fest), and at press time the band had completed the first three of its scheduled performances. The run concludes March 22 at Beerland, at which time, we presume, the band will need a pint or two.

The Mae Shi have 15 showcases/shows, plus 1 MTV session performance, and 1 Black Cab performance totaling 17 performances in 4 days:

Mar 18 2009 SXSW Maggie Mae’s – Spaceland Party Austin, Texas

Mar 18 2009 SXSW Mohawk – Austinist/Ghotamist Party Austin, Texas

Mar 18 2009 SXSW Club 1808 – Moshi Moshi Party w/ Casiokids, Slow Club Austin, Texas

Mar 19 2009 SXSW TBA – Cory Plump Party Austin, Texas

Mar 19 2009 SXSW OK Mountain – KVRX Party w/ Mika Miko Austin, Texas

Mar 19 2009 SXSW Malverde – IAMSOUND Party w/ Telepathe Austin, Texas

Mar 19 2009 SXSW The Red House Pizzeria – Moshi Moshi Party Austin, Texas

Mar 19 2009 SXSW TBA – Lost In, Texas Party w/ Mika Miko, Anavan, HEARTSREVOLUTION Austin, Texas

Mar 20 2009 SXSW Emo’s (Outside) – Pitchfork Party Austin, Texas

Mar 20 2009 SXSW Habana Calle 6 – AAM Party w/ HEALTH Austin, Texas

Mar 20 2009 SXSW TBA – Myopenbar.com Party w/ Mika Miko, The Death Set Austin, Texas

Mar 21 2009 SXSW Mrs. Bea’s – Todd P Party Austin, Texas

Mar 21 2009 SXSW Domy Books – The Smell Party Austin, Texas

Mar 21 2009 SXSW Mohawk – Panache/Lovepump Showcase w/ Monotonix, HEALTH, Pre Austin, Texas

Mar 22 2009 SXSW Beerland w/ PRE, Mika Miko Austin, Texas

About The Mae Shi

Currently, there are six members of the Mae Shi: Brad Breeck, Jeff Byron, Tim Byron, Bill Gray, Jon Gray and Jacob Cooper. You are likely to only see four of us on stage at any given time, but the rest of us are lurking in the shadows. We’ve been told that "mae shi" means "business card" in Japanese. This is fitting, because the band is our business card. The band is our self-help vehicle, and as our personal goals change, our roles within the band change.

Amidst all of this change, some things are constants. What’s been done has been done, and it’s of little interest to us unless we can repackage it in a new and exciting way. The only option is to forge ahead, to try new things, to test out bad ideas, to all try to sing and work together and hope the road we’re on leads somewhere. It’s about the journey and the destination. This all sounds immensely airy but we believe it — at its core the rock and roll band is a surrogate family for our culturally extended childhood, it’s our self-help group, it’s our soap box, it’s a way to see what we’re really capable of. Growing up is tough. This is our attempt to grow up.

About Mophonics

Forward-thinking and firmly situated at the intersection of the music and advertising industries, Mophonics counts Wieden & Kennedy, BBH, TBWA/Chiat/Day, BBDO, McCann Worldgroup, and Goodby Silverstein & Partners among its agency clients and has created music-driven cobranding intiatives for Apple, Visa, Verizon, Scion, Wrigley’s, Axe, Nissan, TRESemmé, and more. Mophonics is the only company to create an original single, "Gimme That," for an Apple iPod campaign. Artist Zeroleen’s "All Good," has been featured in CSI: Miami, Weeds, Damages, multiple film trailers and ad campaigns for Verizon and 24Hr Fitness; the single also received airplay on specialty radio, retail outlets, and in-flight radio. Mophonics-produced band Four Fifty One was tapped to appear in The CW’s Veronica Mars and subsequently played a 40-gig sponsored tour for energy drink Upshot. Mophonics artist Joey Ryan has had tracks featured in Visa, Wrigley’s and Wendy’s ads, the Toronto Film Fest’s People’s Choice Winner "Bella," UNICEF’s Tap Project, and TV’s "One Tree Hill" and "Veronica Mars."