Awesome New Spin on SXSW Photo Coverage

It seems like just about every national music outlet was at SXSW this year. With so much coverage out there, many journalists struggled to find a new angle to present the festival to their readers. My friend Ben Sklar, a photojournalist from Austin, managed to put a really unique spin on a pretty straight forward street fashion assignment for the NY Times, using only two huge pieces of white paper.

Click here to check out the interactive feature: http://nyti.ms/fZS3oC

Check out Ben’s blog here to find out how he did it: http://bit.ly/hR0aaX

By BEN SKLAR and JOSH VERDUZCO for The New York Times

Sheik In The City, pt. 2

Geoff Muldaur beat me to WQXR where I found him tuning a gorgeous, signature model Martin and chatting with NY Times Popcast host Ben Sisario about the death of radio, and the rising popularity of live performances online. He taped “Cairo” in one take (“I messed it up real good for ya” – Geoff) and spoke with Ben about the custom Ed Ruscha cover art on his latest record ‘Texas Sheiks,’ and recording with the various Sheiks, including late Texas songwriter Stephen Bruton, to whom the album is a tribute.

We stopped briefly at Geoff’s daughter’s polished West Village studio, where Jenni Muldaur solicited her father’s advice on artwork she might invest in and answers to a crossword puzzle (a passion they share). An accomplished musician in her own right, Jenni has backed Lou Reed and David Byrne, and has a record out titled, ‘Dearest Darlin‘.’

SIRIUS Radio was my last stop with Geoff. We joked about Michael Moore’s crazed personal assistant (he was undoubtedly there in support of Capitalism: A Love Story), then quieted as Geoff warmed up for the interview. As he strummed through a couple chords he muttered, “What was that?” – and turning to me said, “That was a pretty new chord.” Imagine that, Geoff Muldaur discovering a new chord.

Here’s a photo of me and Geoff with the hosts of FreeWheelin’ (Sirius Road Dog Trucking Channel), Meredith Ochs and Chris T:

Left to right: Miya Hannan, Chris T., Geoff Muldaur, Meredith Ochs