Reviving the Rhythm: Inside the Return of the San Antonio Music Showcase

Jun 25

Written By Alejandra Sol Casas & Oscar Moreno

Aaron Salinas of Volcan at the St. Paul Square Courtyard. Photo by Alejandra Sol Casas

The San Antonio Music Showcase returned to San Antonio after a five-year hiatus. Local music fans showed up this Saturday to check out 100 diverse local acts at 17 venues spread between St. Paul Square and the St. Mary's Strip. It was the biggest lineup in the festival's history.

After the success of Winter Vibes earlier this year, San Antonio Current Publisher and CEO Michael Wagner enlisted the expertise of organizers Noah Slavin and Robert Mochen to orchestrate the event. Initially, the trio had a goal of 50 bands but didn’t want to settle for less than what they thought they could accomplish. “It has always been a dream of mine to book 100 bands, and when I relayed that to Michael Wagner, he was already on the same page,” Slavin said.

For Slavin, local music is his passion. He plays in several bands, including some that performed at the showcase, such as Any Color You Like, Daniel Miller & The Red Roses, and Deer Vibes. “Local music is my heartbeat,” he said. “It warms my heart to be in a position to give San Antonio bands a platform to perform. There’s nothing I love more than to be able to bring our community together through music.”

Likewise, Mochen also has his fair share of history in the music scene, playing in bands like Bright Like the Sun and working as a booking agent, touring with local bands abroad as well as bringing international bands to San Antonio. Together, he and Slavin spent numerous nights up until 5 a.m. diligently planning the details of the event. Their efforts were bolstered by the support of many, including venue owners, managers, and production-savvy friends. “It was so beautiful to see everyone come together to make this happen,” he said.

Mochen recalls the “spectacle” it was to see the work that Richard Evans, Jonathan Pfortmiller, and members of Moon Tokki put into the visuals at the Side Room of The Station located underneath Francis Bogside. Their setup included six TV screens displayed behind the bands and walls adorned with posters displaying the scheduled artist’s names. “It just gave me so much hope for what else we can do, production-wise, for future events,” he continued.

Thanks to the efforts of both the staff and organizers, thousands of people moved to and from both nightlife districts via shuttle provided by the festival. While organizers meticulously curated artists at each venue to align with their respective genres, several lineups brilliantly mixed and matched genres. Emerging alt-country artist Daniel Miller was booked at the same venue as Chicano soul artist Joaquin and the Glowliners, followed by local punk legends Piñata Protest. Noise rock band The Grasshopper Lies Heavy was booked at the same venue as dream wave artist Elnuh. “When we put these bands together,” Mochen said, “we thought about the venues. We thought about which bands are gonna provide value for the venues, and which venues are gonna provide value for the bands.” New artists such as Mypilotis, Temachi, and Street Lamp gathered significant crowds, while artists previously on hiatus made comebacks, such as Dolphin Dilemma, 16 the Olympus, The Oblios, and Deer Vibes.

There’s no official word of a 2025 edition of the showcase, but Mochen dropped a hint, saying, “We don’t plan on stopping. You’re going to see a lot from Noah and me in the future. This was kind of just a kickoff.”

Hopefully, this means that we might see an even bigger lineup next year as the music scene in San Antonio continues to flourish. Mochen concludes by reminding us that “for these venues to remain open and to stay alive and vibrant, we have to continue to support live music… for us to continue to build this scene, we need to support these venues every day, every weekend, every time there’s a show.”

See photos from St. Paul Square and The Saint Mary’s Strip below: