SXSW 2008, a five-day music festival in Austin, TX featuring nearly 1,500 artists, begins today! A few of us are in Texas checking out the shows and reporting back with the best of the best, so keep checking back for updates this week. Check out the Amie Street artists appearing at the festival, and read more after the break!

Over eighty stages in downtown Austin have been reserved for the festival, which attracts tens of thousands of fans and is the city's largest public event (even more than the Longhorns home games). In addition to the nightly perfomances, there are numerous panel sessions and conferences -- most notably, perhaps, this year's keynote speech by Lou Reed.

In addition, the festival includes internationally-acclaimed film showcases and discussions on current media technology (Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has already given a much-discussed interview). But, of course, we have to limit ourselves, so look forward to our coverage of the Amie Street musical talent, current and forthcoming!

For a full list of bands appearing at SXSW 2008, visit the official website.