Heroes of the south west

Having branched out to encompass film and interactive events, the music festival is a week of complete sensorial overload. You can see anything from an unsigned band from Glenrothes (Tango In The Attic) to a secret gig by US megastar Jay-Z. This year, Bruce Springsteen delivered the keynote speech to great acclaim. All in all, it is a veritable Mecca for music obsessives, and this is my tenth visit in a row.

Originally set up as a reaction against the inward-looking, US music business strongholds of Los Angeles and New York, SXSW had an independent aesthetic and outlook, setting out its stall as the real alternative. Today, it is a behemoth that has eclipsed all other music conferences to become the largest event of its kind anywhere. There are still huge numbers of fanzine writers, college radio jocks, bloggers and indie labels who attend, but now it also accommodates myriad corporate sponsors, their logos emblazoned across banners and billboards.

As a bohemian outpost in the middle of this Christian-conservative, right-wing state, Austin's ramshackle, corrugated-iron huts and outsider "yard art" sit next to skyscrapers and high-tech multi-media businesses. At the centre of the action is 6th Street, which has more venues than any stretch of road I've ever encountered. It is, quite frankly, overwhelming, like some freakish cowboy carnival high on bands, beer and barbecue. For five nights, the city centre mutates into a leather-clad, tattoo-covered Mardi Gras of rock'n'roll.

Onlookers may assume that the festival is solely overrun by desperate groups, chin-stroking media types and record industry wannabes, attempting to sign the next Strokes. But in reality the whole community comes alive with pedicabs, food trailers and street theatre and everyone gets involved. Because the temperature averages between 25C and 30C, and music pounds from every doorway, the locals and fun-lovers from across the US and the rest of the world accumulate to soak up an atmosphere like no other.

But without getting utterly lost in the maelstrom, how does a tiny country like Scotland catch the ever-fickle attention of the music business and global media? You'd be surprised. The Scottish profile is growing year on year, thanks in no little part to the funding of SMIA (the Scottish Music Industry Association), Creative Scotland and, previously, the Scottish Arts Council. Since 2004, they have prioritised the event as the key international showcase for artists who are at the right level in their career to make inroads into the US and other territories.

Last year I pounded the dusty streets to make a BBC2 documentary for the Artworks series on the "Scottish Invasion" of SXSW, and previously I've broadcast live from the event on BBC Radio 1 and Radio Scotland. In my experience, Scotland's hit rate has been nothing short of astonishing, and growing respect is garnered from all corners. Franz Ferdinand were the buzz act of the festival in 2004, while label-mates Sons And Daughters inked their deal here with Domino Records the same year. The Scottish showcase gigs and afternoon parties are often the hottest tickets in town, with a particular high point being Primal Scream, Glasvegas, The Proclaimers, Camera Obscura and Dananananaykroyd sharing the bill at a huge (sold-out) venue, La Zona Rosa, in 2009.

Our most recent breakthrough, Frightened Rabbit, are now enormously popular stateside having initially carved out a name for themselves by wooing the Austin crowds. Last year's major success story was Admiral Fallow, who signed with Nettwerk Records and the hugely respected Paradigm booking agency and licensed tracks for use in the Superbowl as a direct result of playing the festival.

This year, I hosted two stellar Showcasing Scotland line-ups . On Wednesday night, caustic guitar-slingers We Were Promised Jetpacks headlined the jam-packed Easy Tiger venue above other homegrown luminaries, psyche-popsters Django Django and country-rockers Three Blind Wolves. Jetpacks are already SXSW veterans with a sizeable following here; the others became the talk of the town, inspiring A&R people and bloggers to frantically tap away on their smartphones.

Opening the night-time show was a selection from the even newer school, counting French Wives, Woodenbox and the aforementioned Tango In The Attic in their ranks.

Travelling across the Pond for the first time, these genuinely wide-eyed and enthusiastic songwriters comfortably take to the American stage armed with great songs and a well-deserved sense of confidence. Against a hot, humid, hectic backdrop of quick change-overs and transient audiences, the bands performed amazingly. With an electric atmosphere and a real sense of expectation in the air, this first gig was an undeniable triumph.

As the late nights and the diet of tacos, brisket and margaritas took their toll on bands and punters alike, the afternoon show on Friday started as a more subdued affair in the "UK Music Embassy" of Latitude 30. NMBRS head honcho and DJ, Jackmaster, began proceedings with a medicinal, electronic throb of house, dubstep and tripped-out ambience.

There followed sets from Three Blind Wolves, impressing audiences a second time, and impassioned emo rockers The Xcerts. Headliners The Twilight Sad are promoting new album No One Can Ever Know – a propulsive, dystopian dream-world of synths, distorted guitars and krautrock rhythms. Finishing their tour at SXSW after weeks on the road, the band were on top of their game and unleashed an extraordinary, visceral performance.

Other homegrown heroes making an impact were rock titans Twin Atlantic, globally renowned hip-hop and electronica producer Hudson Mohawke, and East Kilbride comeback kings The Jesus and Mary Chain, all of whom generated buzz and hyperbole on an unrivalled scale across the town.

It is unquestionable that the Scottish contingent – past, present and future – shows more than enough world-class talent to forge forward and impress the New World. I'm just glad I was there to be a small part of it.

Vic Galloway presents on BBC Radio Scotland at 8.05pm-10pm Mondays (repeated Fridays 10pm–midnight). Check www.bbc.co.uk/vicgalloway and www.vicgalloway.com for more information.

An American festival with a pioneering independent spirit has become the largest event of its kind in the world. Vic Galloway visits Austin, Texas to watch the Scottish bands trying to grab its attention

Names to watch

Yellow Ostrich

An inventive, lop-sided, NYC-based indie-rock trio centred on singer-songwriter Alex Schaaf, they use vocals and instrumental loops, horns and synths as well as the traditional bass, drums and gnarled guitar set-up. For fans of Grizzly Bear and even Crazy Horse, their dynamic live sets were buzzing across Austin.

Daughter

Minimalist, heart-breaking, folk-tinged singer-songwriter Elena Tonra has now expanded her set-up into a trio using chiming guitars, percussion and atmospheric ambient textures. She has just signed with Glassnote Records, ensuring bloggers and journalists queuing in the streets to see one of her multiple sets over the last few days.

White Mystery

A curly, red-headed brother/sister garage-punk duo delivering unbridled, sweaty, breakneck rock'n'roll, they're primal, thrashy and make The White Stripes sound middle-aged and dull in comparison. Hardly reinventing the wheel, but they make simple and raucous rock music vital and fun again.

Grimes

Claire Boucher is a 4AD-signed singer, songwriter and producer from Vancouver. With an icy, eccentric take on electronica and a 1980s obsession, this is playful, reverb-drenched electro-pop for fans of Julee Cruise and other wispy, ethereal vocalists. She managed to play almost every cool party going over the five-day festival.

Django Django

Formed at Edinburgh College of Art and now based in London, their modern take on psychedelic pop comes across like a more focused Beta Band with elements of Canned Heat, Link Wray and swooping electronica all swimming in their heady brew. This odd but intoxicating mix of influences wooed the Austin crowds and saw the band sell out shows wherever they went at SXSW. One of the most talked-about bands of the festival.