SXSWorld
Issue link: https://sxsw.uberflip.com/i/456163
2 4 S X S W o r l d | F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5 | S X S W. C O M atershed moments: In 1963 about 40 percent of all Americans, 73 million people, watched the Beatles play The Ed Sullivan Show and helped make the band an interna- tional sensation; a few years earlier, Elvis Presley turned in a now-legendary, outrageous, hip-shaking performance on The Milton Berle Show that helped launch his career. Both of these moments have transcended pop music to become a part of pop culture, but nothing much like them really happens anymore. In a diffuse entertainment landscape with hundreds of TV channels and millions of websites and blogs, it is rare that, short of maybe Super Bowl halftime shows, a single performance becomes something that the culture at large seems to share. Nonetheless, if a single television performance does not draw nearly the number of viewers that it used to, it can still, on occa- sion, catapult an artist's career from obscurity to relative stardom. Witness the Baltimore synth-pop band (and 2014 Grulke Prize winner) Future Islands' attention-grabbing television debut on The Late Show With David Letterman in March 2014. The band had been steadily recording and touring for eight years with modest success by the time it went on televi- sion, but this one appearance brought instant recognition from new fans and the music press. While the performance didn't have the 73 million viewers of old, it reached the modern equivalent: second life as a viral Internet clip. "It was very gratifying to see that there was an audi- ence out there of people who reacted the way I reacted and Dave [host David Letterman] reacted," said Sheryl Zelikson, music pro- ducer for The Late Show who is responsible for booking musical guests. There is a lot of method to Zelikson's booking decisions, but at bottom, she figures that anything she reacts strongly to is something the audience will feel strongly about also. In this case, she was right. Future Islands' singer Samuel T. Herring, whose joyful stage pres- ence and unbridled dance moves were integral to the band's Late Show success, told NME last November that the Letterman appearance "really did change our year." A tour to sellout audiences followed. The Internet has been a blessing and a curse for musicians. It lets their voices be heard, to be sure, but takes place in a metaphorical room already ringing with so many other voices. A late night talk show appearance is something that helps a band cut through that clutter. Playing on one of the venerable late night programs carries cachet and a performance often generates headlines, even if the attendant story is just a quick write-up and a link to a video. It also provides a promotional clip that bands can link to and marketing departments can hype. Even if, during its late night turn, a band does not match the win- ning enthusiasm of Future Islands on The Late Show, or the unhinged audacity of Odd Future on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, it will still be on television in front of between one and three mil- lion people, depending on the program. "I think it just completely raises the profile of a band, no matter what city you're from," said Lisa Nupoff, manager of the L.A. neo-soul band Fitz and the Tantrums. "You may be doing really well in your city or your region, but a TV booking takes you out of that city and gives you a national moment." With so much at stake, a late night performance can be stressful, even for sea- soned musicians who can walk onto a festival stage with aplomb. "Often, you have to be there early in the morning, and you're waiting For Fledgling Bands, Late Night Television Still Matters by rob PreliasCo W Fu tu re I s la n d s o n The Late Show With Dav i d Let te rma n, Ma rch 3 , 2014 J E F F R E Y R . S TA A B / C B S