One of my core responsibilities at Tocquigny (and more specifically within Tocquigny Labs) is to immerse myself in emerging technologies, with the key objective of identifying their respective applicabilities within our space. When something is launched, for instance Google+, it is my task to become the resident expert, with the capability of answering a wide gamut of business and technical questions from both internal stakeholders and clients. Like a scientist, I must see beyond the buzz-ridden Mashable articles and “Trending Topics”, and actually submerge myself in the technology. This all leads up to the key function of Labs: adding relevance & context. I get to put on my creative cap and architect innovative applications of the technology specific to our diversified client-base and their short- and long-term needs.

We have a roadmap of technologies in queue, but this week’s was one we had been waiting to test out for quite some time: the Kinect motion-sensing input device (created by Microsoft). Released in conjunction with the XBox 360, it didn’t take long for technologists to see the Kinect’s applicability beyond gaming. The infrared device brings John Underkoffler’s visionary gesture-control interface from Minority Report to life.

This $150 consumer-facing infrared camera has introduced natural user interfaces (through gesture- and voice-control) to the masses. Offered many different names by the tech-crowd (computer vision, NUI, gesture-control, feature-recognition, spatial navigation, et al), the Kinect represents what many feel is the future of physical computing. 

This week, we took the Kinect for a lengthy test-drive. Most notably, we used the device to capture full-body movements and converted them into commands that were fed into a piece of music composition software. Illustrated by the above photo, a person can control a digital symphony simply by moving any joint in their body. Sounds like a toy, right? A pretty practical toy… After all, this experiment was the catalyst for dozens of ideas pertinent to our future-facing clientele.

Exhausted. 10 days at the SXSW Music & Media Conference can do that to ya. Being in the interesting fusion of industries that I’m in, all three festivals (Interactive, Film & Music) were equally as significant for me. [Funny enough: this convergence was a pretty prevalent theme at the conference this year]. Equal amounts of business and pleasure were had – as is illustrated by the following personal metrics:

• 107 waking hours spent at SXSW
• 23 sessions (panels, keynotes, Q&As) attended
• 31 parties attended
• 76 musical artists seen
• 3 films watched
• 4 press interviews given
• 62 Gowalla checkins
• 6 miles walked

A visualization of my Gowalla checkins throughout SXSW 2011

While I could write dozens of blog posts about the Interactive and Film fests (I’ll spare ya), a little music commentary seems obligatory. Companies in the Northern US have snow days; banks have Federal holidays; my company has SXSW music days. Once a year, 2,000+ musical artists arrive in our neighborhood for the famed festival, momentarily rubbing shoulders with the Silicon Valley & Madison Avenue elite evacuating the town following the close of SXSW Interactive. Every bar, restaurant, theater, yard, street, bowling alley and power plant in Downtown Austin is taken over by the world’s most prominent musicians playing alongside the crème de la crème of under-the-radar acts. The latter is what the conference is really about — discovering what’s next.

So without further ado, my personal Top 5 Breakout Musical Artists of SXSW 2011:

1. Givers

I’ve never seen an act as platonically unified as this five-some on stage at The Windish Agency’s Saturday afternoon showcase. Their Dirty Projectors-inspired pop music is sonically complex, yet perfectly constructed for an afternoon of dancing in the sun.

2. Foster the People

Also a part of the Windish day-party, I was tipped off by Thrillist, FILTER, MTV and a handful of other sources about this LA indie rock trio. Spinner referred to them as “the next MGMT”, but I left their show digging them infinitely more than the 2008 breakout artist.

3. Cults

I don’t know what it is about these folks. Recently signed to Columbia Records, I attached to them immediately after they plucked the first notes of “Go Outside” at the [hot, hot, hot] Columbia showcase. Four guys and a gal, Cults not only played an authentic energy-infused show, but were even more fun to hang out with after. Surf-rock? Twee-pop? I’m not sure how to describe them, but count me as a new fan.

4. Oh Land

Beautiful and talented, Oh Land is the electro-pop music project of young Danish (by way of NYC) songstress, Nanna Øland Fabricus. I kicked off my SXSW marathon week with her performance at our client’s FADER Fort by FIAT side-festival — just days after watching her American TV debut on Late Show with David Letterman. Oh Land is about to blow up.

5. Skrillex

I’ve never really gone out of my way to listen to house/electronic music — that is, until October 2010 when I caught Deadmau5’s inspiring sunset performance at Austin City Limits Music Festival. Weeks later, Deadmau5 tweeted about Sonny Moore and his music project, Skrillex. All it took was one tweet to suck me into the dubstep craze. While I saw Skrillex live a month ago, SXSW 2011 seemed to be Sonny’s ‘coming-out’ party. As he opened for Duran Duran at C3 Presents’ famed Late Night Party, the crowd of music industry influencers and celebs (including Kevin Costner & Mischa Barton) caught on. As dubstep slithers its way into pop music vernacular, Skrillex will be the genre’s leader.

Bonus: DeYarmond Edison

Okay, so not a “breakout artist”, per se, but a breakout show. Rumored for over a week, and finally confirmed on the FADER Magazine website on Friday, Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon reunited with his college buddies for a once-in-a-lifetime 3-song performance at the FADER Fort by FIAT. (If you don’t know Bon Iver, stop what you’re doing right now and grab a copy of the 2007 masterpiece, For Emma, Forever Ago.) Tucked in between a set by South African hip hop artist Spoek Mathambo and super secret surprise guest, Diddy, Vernon & team silenced the audience with their powerful indie folk ballads. Wow. This half hour defined SXSW 2011 for me.

Hard choices. Thoughts?