For acts that haven’t seen mainstream success, the lasting outcome of having performed at SXSW can be ambiguous or downright dissapointing. Even artists who have some modicum of a widespread following can walk away from the experience deep in the red financially, and only ephemeral wisps of a boost to their reputation to show for their efforts.

For many, the festival’s main appeal is the chance for to expose more listeners to music. Others are mindful of the concept that these shows might prove especially important, should the audience be made up of disproportionately influential individuals. That means there's a lot riding on their ability to kick out the best possible shows in the short time each group spends on stage.

RATKING was one act that charged into Austin with hopes of ratcheting up their burgeoning visibility. The hip-hop trio has been managed to garner attention from their home base in New York with only one single currently under their belt, and they'll continue pushing their name from there.

According to Ben Teplitsky, their professional representative from XL Recordings and MOOD Media, the trio sunk a substantial amount of cash into making the trek to Texas.

“No, they’re not making any money.” But, he said, “They’re playing for thousands of people at 5:00 in the afternoon at the Fader Fort one day.”

Their final show was less of a grand spectacle. RATKING’s last SXSW audience was composed of fewer than 20 dedicated attendees. Nevertheless, the young men behind the mics dutifully threw lyrics out from the stage for the full duration their set was alloted. Hak, the crew’s tallest member, had enough professional polish to continue rapping even as a bad RCA cord had his beat dropping in and out with glitchy crackles.

Another group that turned up at South By with the intention of wooing new fans was led by Mac DeMarco, a 22-year-old who hails from Montreal. His band played some dozen shows over the week, and left a lasting impact on at least one new viewer: a top thread on Reddit's SXSW section (Reddit) invited commenters to name the show they found most enjoyably surprising, and DeMarco’s name quickly came to occupy the top spot.

The group’s appeal stems from their stage show in a big way. At a gig thrown by a Québécois promotion group, DeMarco monkeyed his way up to the rafters towards the end of a multi-movement medley that included Rammstein’s “Du Hast.”

To hear DeMarco’s wild show-closing medley, as performed at the “M For Montreal” showcase, click the play button below. To find out what these street-fighting hopeful artists actually got out of the Austin experience, their careers will have to be observed for years to come.

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Click here to read all of Neon Tommy's coverage of SXSW 2013.

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Reach Staff Cartoonist Graham Clark here. Follow him on Twitter here.