SXSW 2018 Day 3: Weed Edibles & Saint Sister

On my travels from gig to gig, I’d noticed a certain distinctive van downtown that stood out. The vehicle was covered in a glorious green Rastafarian inspired artwork. Apart from appreciating its look, I hadn’t thought much else of it. There are hundreds of promo teams running around handing out sunglasses, goodies and energy drinks. I figured they were involved in one of the above, and the constant presence of APD, Austin Police Department, led me to believe there wasn’t anything worth investigating.

Still, I couldn’t turn a corner without spotting it. It began to feel like the Knudsens private investigator was constantly lingering in my rear view mirror, just out of reach, in the shadows.

Walking in the balmy evening darkness from East Caesar Chavez to Downtown, lo and behold, who do I see parked 200 meters from Hotel Vegas, but my ‘brother shamus’.

I’d passed the van when someone nonchalantly said something to me. I stopped, trying to decipher the mumbled words from passerby’s conversations.

I approached a 6’2 man, with long, dark dreadlocks, standing beside the Rasta van. In his arms, he cradled a bloated, baby sized, see-through, zip lock bag, overflowing with multicoloured lollipops. “One for six, or two for ten,” he recited, as his eyes darted back and forth scanning the dusty street.
“Give me two,” I replied, gawking at the rainbow treats. He handed me the rectangle lollipops. One green and one yellow.

It was a split second deal, no greetings, no pleasantries, no weather comments.

As I walked off, placing my purchases in my shirt pocket, my brain began to function again. I knew what I had bought, but what had I bought? How many milligrams are they? How does he sell without getting arrested? Weed isn’t legal. Are edibles legal in Texas? After all, Willie Nelson is adored as Austin’s Jeffrey Lebowski.

The most obvious question was, did I fall for the classic swindle? The three-card monte con, the gold bracelet that turns your wrist green, the lad selling sealed boxes of brand new televisions filled with bricks. Did I spend ten dollars on two fucking lollipops?

A valuable lesson was learned, an edibles high, lasts longer than almost every other high.

Saint Sister #sxsw pic.twitter.com/QezEwrmy35

— Ed Murphy (@rockinfoed) March 16, 2018

You could be forgiven for wondering if Gemma Doherty and Morgan MacIntyre are involved in a cult. A shadowy, saintly, underground religion that travels the continents, popping up at night to preach the word of atmos-folk at your local place of worship to crowds of eager listeners.

If there's a church in your town, chances are Saint Sister have played it.

It's fitting then, that their second pilgrimage to SXSW was christened with a gorgeously glorious opening show at the Pyrsbaterian Church in the heart of downtown Austin.

Saint Sister's music has evolved naturally from the Madrid EP. The new tracks that Morgan & Gemma previewed at their debut SX showcase are a testament to the growing scope of their deepening sound.

It's densely layered with a concofieny of complex sounds and loops.

It's all encompassing and engrossing.

Their time spent writing and recording in the hills of Kerry have evidently been fruitful.
What remains as their underlying biggest strength is their ability to illicit an emotional response to hearing their music, even for the first time.

Case in point, a new track, 'The Mater', from their upcoming debut album. From the opening notes there was an instant magnetism. The performance was dripping with raw pain, heightened by tremendous vocal depth and vulnerability.

This was elevated by their amazing ability to harmonise with each other. As a very infrequent church goer - those rare visits being death related - I found it hard to sit there and ignore the feelings of attending a funeral. Listening to Morgan singing 'The Mater', I was flooded with sadness and heartache. I can think of no greater gift than an artist's ability to translate shared experiences of trauma with their listener.

From what I've heard of the new material, their debut LP should easily be one of the albums of the year.