After an exhausting night and not nearly enough sleep, the morning came too quickly as I began to conquer Day 3. Surprisingly as much as I walked around, I only saw one act: Surfer Blood.

They are the buzz band this year, as panelist and music journalist Chris Weinengarten joked, "Everyone is racing to get the picture of Surfer Blood online!" Well, not only do I have the pictures, I have the video! Honestly, this music doesn't grab me like the others I have seen (Local Natives, Estelle, Sharon Jones, Broken Bells) but Moe's was jam packed for these kids who approach punk rock with a Buddy Holly interpretation.

From West Palm Beach, Florida, Surfer Blood is right out of college with their first album, Astro Coast, released just last year. The sunny and bright melodies recorded with a lo-fi ragged edge caused a stir on the radar when Pitchfork and NPR gave them favorable reviews.

I'm not jumping on the bandwagon, but to their credit, they are delivering garage-pop-punk well. They are  fully prepared for each of their 10 SXSW performance, which makes them the busiest band in Austin with one more performance than Local Natives.

Though they initially seem reserved, once the first note is struck, the keyboard player, with his consuming curly hair, and lead guitarist have moments of utter inhibition. The guitarist, Tom Fekete, used a drum stick to swirl the distortion through the amps and proceed to play the next song with his teeth. Rock n' Roll.

I can only make predictions, but  given this band is so new with so much attention on their one record, they are perched on a cliff of high expectations. However, they are at least pleasing the crowd in the moment, they can worry about the Sophomore slump later. Ride the wave, Surfer Blood, as long as the tide allows.