Mike Mantin, Matt Grimble and Dylan Williams take to the caverns of Cardiff for the UK’s very own SXSW - SWN Festival.

TALONS Talons’ two violinists and two guitars take to the stage in a line, saying little but making a restless yet impeccably precise racket. From the first few notes it’s clear this Hereford outfit are enthralled by 65daysofstatic and other instrumental bands who eschew the classic quiet-loud-quiet post-rock template in favour of something more urgent; with a couple of twinkly exceptions, it’s pretty much loud loud loud for thirty minutes. Luckily they are all hugely talented musicians and weave some excellent guitarwork into the noise. When they do calm down, they reveal their delicate violin lines (they are barely audible when the band are in full swing), hinting that amongst the chaos there’s some true beauty to be found. Intensely powerful yet only just about to release their first single, we’re left with the exciting thought of what they might achieve next. MM

THEM SQUIRRELS Far too immersed in geekily fiddling with samples to work on their stage banter, Cardiff  locals Them Squirrels nevertheless impress with their ability to invent and confuse. Their 30 minute set is packed with vocal quirks like chopping up samples of themselves whooping and sucking their microphones and opening a song with the drummer repeatedly slapping his mouth. The music’s varied too, with second track ‘Daddy Long Legs’ built around an Odelay-esque riff , and the final song concluding with an awesome freakout. In spite of their lack of overt charisma, it’s truly charming and surprising. They’re worth keeping an eye on, especially since they’re bound to reach their potential to match their creative energy with some truly great tunes soon. MM

YR ODS “Un, Dau, Tri, Padwar!” count in these six youngsters. Dressed in a variety of youth culture disguises, there is an inherent innocence to Yr Ods’ deft songwriting. It is refreshing to hear music this hooky yet completely lacking in contrivance, and the shamelessly catchy vocal melodies (complete with doo wop backings) spread a good time vibe over the crowd, even if two thirds of them can’t understand what they’re singing about. Their set encapsulates a wide range of manoeuvres - at times super danceable and cowbell-laden, yet at others highly sincere, displaying a level of songwriting beyond their years. The inclusion of newer English language songs may rob them of some of their charm, but will surely open them up to a much wider potential audience. With time they may prove to be the most charming Welsh export since Super Furry Animals. MG

EXIT INTERNATIONAL Three lads from Cardiff  (two on bass, one on drums) who deliver a grinding onslaught that would be prudish to describe as anything less than f***ing brutal. The impassioned vocals come with primal energy from either side of the drums, whose skins are assaulted with precision blasts locking the whole outfit into a tightness rarely seen in the genre.  Throughout their set, they mix the fuzzed no-nonsense balls of Shellac (whose frontman Albini is set to produce their debut) with occasional hints of disco pop melodic sensibilities, and the whole
package is put across with such conviction and sincerity that it’s practically impossible not to be dragged in by the sheer gravity of it all. As they finish their set lunging and screaming into their amps, the stunned audience prove that this band is clearly not for the faint of heart. MG
 
DANANANANAYKROYD  It’s a strange sight seeing a band whose music often verges on hardcore initiate a ‘wall of cuddles’ - the crowd dichotomised by two meandering, wailing Glaswegians (singers Calum and John) and then each side told to run at each other until everyone is in the arms of a stranger. This is Dana though, and they’re all tweaking with delirious jubilation. They do what they want until madness ensues, only really slowing to untangle the mess of mic cords before they can dive back into the audience. If you’re lucky, any one of the band members could clear some space and you’ll get a one to one dance. It all borders lunacy, but a kind laced with unbridled festivity and you’ll have a hell of a time watching it all unravel.  DW
 
DAEDELUS Alfred Darlington has produced some of the most stunning avant-garde hiphop and electronica tracks of the past decade. His other hobbies include dancing like a loon, sweating through a waistcoat and tie combo, having impeccable sideburns, and rushing through the annals of recent electronic music at breakneck speed, and all of these interests are given a healthy dollop of airtime in his post-midnight slot. His set maintains the dubstep tempo of his predecessors but, bashing away at a matrix style midi controller, his schizophrenic, multi-layered chop-up approach gives a cluttered energy to his mixes, sending the confused crowd bananas with every new addition, from Beirut’s Elephant Gun to tech house classic Flat Beat. He brings the tempo up slowly through the set, ending on a meteor shower of snares and stutters over his beautifully romantic ‘Denouement’. MG