London-based and world renowned, Rough Trade Records has been promoting first-class talent for decades and SXSW is excited to have The Morning Benders headline the Rough Trade showcase. Their charismatic nonchalance will provide the perfect remedy to your beer-enduced exhaustion. They'll set the mood and lull us in with their crowd-pleasing, lofty, Californian-pop vibes. Their highly anticipated album Big Echo is currently buzzing all over the internet, making them a must-see act.

Austin's own The Strange Boys will open the show with their rowdy brand of lo-fi garage-folk laden with standard blues chords bound together with their energetic, ramshackle production. The Strange Boys are messy and fun, but undeniably tight. Ryan Sambol's strained vocals are edgy, raw and enthusiastic. Paired against his bandmate's traditional rock n' roll roadhouse instrumentation, which ranges from doo-wop to power-punk, these guys deliver. The Strange Boys promise to bring down the house with one hell of a party.

Rough Trade's Official SXSW Showcase will be held at Emo's Jr. on Wednesday, March 17th. They will also be showcasing aspiring newcomers Warpaint and Dylan LeBlanc at this year's festival as well as folk-darlings Basia Bulat and The Unthanks. Be one of the first 200 to attend and receive a swag bag with a fanzine and cassette tape courtesy of Rough Trade Records!

Photos of showcasing acts from top to bottom: The Morning Benders, The Strange Boys, Warpaint