Cotton Mather reunite Saturday for SXSW 2012

So what's all the fuss about Cotton Mather reuniting for a SXSW showcase at Austin's Soho Lounge (217 East 6th St) Saturday (March 17) at 10 pm? Well, they're probably the greatest pure pop band ever to come out of Texas and their just-reissued Kontiki album – originally released in 1997 – stands as one of the very best recordings of the 90s.

Although Robert Harrison (no relation to George despite the profound Beatles influence) founded Cotton Mather in Austin back in 1991 and put out their Cotton is King debut album in 1994, by the time of Kontiki's appearance in 1997, Cotton Mather was still very much an unknown quantity in Austin – even to the folks who are paid to keep tabs on what's happening locally. They may have been getting glowing reviews in the British music press and Noel Gallagher of Oasis would sing Kontiki's praises in every single interview yet for some reason Cotton Mather just didn't register a blip in their own hometown. No cover story in the Austin Chronicle, no "local boys do good" feature in the Austin American-Statesman documenting the unusual UK buzz surrounding an Austin group – nada.  

In fact, I can remember the look of furrowed-brow puzzlement on the faces of hipster clerks at Austin record stores in March of 1998 when I asked if they stocked the Kontiki album by Austin's Cotton Mather which had been issued the previous November. "Cotton who?" one replied, "Nope, never heard of them," shrugged another "Are you sure they're from Austin? I'm pretty sure I would've heard of them if they were." Hilarious.

When I informed Harrison of my failed quest to find a copy of their then new CD for sale in Austin he didn't appear the least bit surprised. Instead he simply nodded and said with a pained chuckle, "Yep, sounds about right."

Clearly something has changed over the past 14 years, since Cotton Mather's one-off reunion to coincide with the deluxe re-release of the long out-of-print Kontiki has been deemed worthy of an NPR special (listen below). But I'm guessing it won't be Austinites packing the Soho Lounge on Saturday night and the staff at Waterloo Records and End Of An Ear will still look perplexed if you ask for anything by Austin's Cotton Mather.