And they're off

The scene: Republiq, Saturday night.

The stars: Taken by Cars, the buzzy, shoegaze-influenced dance-punk band first profiled in Supreme in 2008. Since then the fivesome has gone through a line-up change, released two phenomenal albums (2008’s “Endings of a New Kind” and 2011’s “Dualist”) and grabbed the attention of Time magazine, who deemed them one of five Asian bands to watch last year, the only Filipino group to make it to the shortlist.

Now, Taken by Cars is heading to Austin, Texas for SXSW, the annual music, film, and interactive festival where attendees generally make schedules they don’t get to keep, drink a lot of free booze, and usually stumble upon at least one new favorite act. In true trailblazing fashion, they’re the first from the Philippines to be invited to the big-deal event, which this year translates to an expanded six nights of music by just over 2,000 acts representing 57 different countries, performing at over 90 venues in downtown Austin. While out West, Taken by Cars will also be stopping by California for gigs in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Supreme caught up with vocalist Sarah Marco moments before Abduction, their send-off concert directed by Juno Oebanda, with video and graphic design by Blue Rain Media. If you weren’t there, the soon-to-be-released Taken by Cars SXSW 2012 Special Edition DVD should pull you up to speed.

Supreme: What have you done to prepare for the trip? What are you planning to bring?

Sarah Marco: I think we’re just packing a whole lot of heart. We’ve rehearsed a lot to prepare for the shows. But we’re really coming to SXSW with this outlook: We’re just out to have fun doing what we love and be in this together. It’s really an experience that contributes to our growth not only as musicians, but also as people. Should more opportunities for the band arise out of SXSW, then that’s great! But that’s just gravy for us.

I think the best that we could do is show the international crowd that Filipino bands can be great; the goal is to just represent ourselves to the best of our abilities. We’ve done a lot of research about SXSW and checked out the bands we’re lined up with to see what we were up against. We’ve also packed our albums and band profiles, of course, since it’s also a music conference and important people will be there.

What time is your slot?

We will be playing at The Loft, which is a bar in Austin that will also serve as one of the venues for the festival. We checked it online and it looks good! We’re set to play at 9 p.m. which is a great time slot. Hopefully, people would have had a good buzz going already! 

Which acts are you dying to see?

The fivesome has gone through a line-up change, released two phenomenal albums and grabbed the attention of Time magazine, who deemed them one of five Asian bands to watch last year, the only Filipino group to make it to the shortlist. Now, Taken by Cars is heading to Austin, Texas for SXSW, the annual music, film, and interactive festival.

We are all hoping to catch The Jesus and Mary Chain, whose schedule is still unannounced! We’re hoping they don’t play on closing day, which is March 18, because we’ll be off to LA by then. I would want to see Neon Indian, The Drums, The Wedding Present, Fiona Apple, Bruce Springsteen — there’s a lot really but I don’t have my list on hand here. We need to work out the proximity of the venues and figure out how to get on and off the SXSW shuttles on time!

But I’m absolutely looking forward to just seeing another collection of bands with my mates and our friends. Every time we go and watch bands together, the memories are just for the books.

How is the fundraising going?

Yes, we needed to come up with at least P500,000 to pay for the trip and all our expenses. I think we’re truly blessed because we have the help of friends who share our vision: JB Music, Smart, Brat Pack, and Republiq. Aside from our media sponsors, we also want to thank Artiste Connect, where fans have pledged their support.

Anything else? One more message before you take off for Austin? 

This is it! The band is going international! We would like to thank each and every one of you for giving us a chance and for listening to the music. We’re deeply moved by your support and we can only hope for the music to win them over at SXSW, Los Angeles and San Francisco. We take your love and blessings and a heart full of gratitude with us as we leave. Thank you!

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Follow the band: www.twitter.com/takenbycars and www.facebook.com/takenbycars.

Special thanks to Isa Garcia-Sicam and Mike Shih.

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