Rise in Three Days || Sept. 29-Oct. 1

Man, what better weekend to start doling out recommendations than this one? Hope you hibernated and built up some fat up during the week, because you may find yourself trucking all over the place with so many quality free/cheap shows around town.

Friday, September 29
early: Oklahoma's Evangelicals perform at Good Records at 6 p.m. for free. They've been taken under the Flaming Lips' wings for some time, and you can definitely hear Oklahoma-friendly, acid-tinged influences in their cheerfully erratic tunes. But the band's slight alt-country undertones are certainly in line with their labelmates on Misra (Centro-matic, Shearwater), so don't be turned off too much if you're all Lips'ed out. Plus it's, uh, free, and right before dinner, no less.

Thesis
evening: I'll level with ya; Final Friday at the Gypsy Tea Room is never a sure thing. But tonight's installment comes pretty close, from the surprising inclusion of white-hot dance party man DJ Nature to a performance by the best new soul singer in town, Thesis. She alone is worth entry, and you'll have to trust me on this one; her singing ability, knack for songwriting, incredible live band and sense of humor just don't translate on her MySpace page. It's frefreshing to hear a strong singer--soul or otherwise--come out these days without annoying Beyonce/A.Idol vocal trickery, so lap up Thesis while you can before she blows up.

I know as many people who detest HOGPIG as those who love 'em. "Educated southern cock rock" is a dream for some and an oxymoron for others. Either way, you won't find another band that will tackle a song titled "Fuck You, Mike Love" as seriously as these guys, and I think that's admirable no matter how you feel about the group. Unfortunately, that seriousness hasn't yet translated into the band's first full-length album, STILL in production...bitch at them to get back to work when they make a drive from d to D to play the Amsterdam Bar tonight with fellow Denton spirits Paul Slavens and John Freeman (performing as one-man wrecking crew The Dutch Treats).

Stuck in Fort Worth? Eaton Lake Tonics play at the Moon Bar, and for country-inflicted pop-rock, they're pretty promising, though you'll have to endure Sunday Drive's sorority crowd while you're there.

Saturday, September 30
early: Since I'm a proud East Dallasite, you can frequently find me buying snacks and beverages at the Lakewood Texaco at the corner of Skillman and Live Oak. Really, any place with Odwalla Bars on tap can expect my purchasing dollar. I also look forward to the gas station's annual end-of-summer parties, complete with dunking tanks, free food, dancing Indian hotties and live music. This year's no exception, as my pals in The Zapruder Sequence, fresh off the completion of their first full-length album (Pretty Girl Charm Lies, produced by Stuart Sikes), take the outdoor stage at roughly 7 p.m. (If you're a huge ZS fan, see them at Club Dada on Friday night, where they'll hand out free CD-R copies of their album before its proper release.)

Hell, the whole afternoon's loaded with quality free stuff. Good Records hosts a DJ Shadow in-store concert at 2:30 p.m. (which, even if it's packed, should still be roomy thanks to what looks like access on the 2nd floor, finally). And Hailey's hosts a free, all-day Spune Productions Back to School Bash starting at 2 p.m. with first acts Glen Farris, Electric Mountain Rotten Apple Gang and Warren Jackson Hearne putting on a solid back-to-back-to-back reason to show up on time.

evening: Dd.com is an unabashed fan of Erie'an Jason Molina, so my rec for his Magnolia Electric Co. gig should be taken with a grain of bias. But his Rubber Gloves appearance has an extra ace in its opening act's sleeves: Tre Orsi, a Denton mega-trio that, for whatever reason, hasn't been touted anywhere around town yet. Criminal! Echo Lab super-producer Matt Barnhart, South San Gabriel hand Bryan VanDivier and multi-instrumental lord-n-savior Howard Draper are scary dudes by their lonesomes...you can hear a pretty good taste of their fusion with the gorgeous Silkworm cover on their MySpace page.

I saw Scandinavian songwriter Jose Gonzalez at SXSW and fell in love, though the friend I went with called the guy "boring" and stormed off. Yes, he's just a dude with an acoustic guitar, but dudes with guitars come and go by the thousands, yet Gonzalez really sticks in my head. If you like Nick Drake in any way, load that link up and give Ho-Gonz (hip new nickname, you like it?!) a sample. You may find yourself involuntarily wandering toward the Gypsy Tea Room on Saturday evening to see him as a result.

Golden Falcons
I had to turn down an invite to host the Dallas Observer Music Awards Losers showcase at Club Dada, and not because I really don't understand the appeal of Shanghai 5. Just too many things to do this Saturday. But if you're short on cash and unable to drive to the all-day-n-night Spune deal, PPT and The Golden Falcons will entertain the dickens out of you for free.

Sunday, October 1
Going to Austin for any reason? Centro-matic's Will Johnson teams up with Richard Buckner at Emo's for what looks to be a killer songwriter showcase. Otherwise, boot up the TV and catch up with all of your fictional friends on Sunday. You know, like Terrell Owens.

...to review! (cue Mr. Rogers theme)
Friday
Evangelicals @ Good Records, 6 p.m., free
Final Friday (with Thesis) @ Gypsy, 10 p.m.ish, $10
HOGPIG 'n' pals @ Amsterdam, "9 p.m." (probably 10 p.m.), $5
Saturday
Spune All-Day Showcase @ Hailey's, 2 p.m., free 21+, $5 under
DJ Shadow @ Good Records, 2:30 p.m., free
Zapruder Sequence @ Lakewood Texaco, 7 p.m.ish, free
Magnolia Electric Co., Tre Orsi @ Rubber Gloves, 10 p.m., $12
Jose Gonzalez @ Gypsy, doors either at 8 or 9 p.m., $12
PPT, Golden Falcons @ Dada, 9 p.m., free
Sunday
go to Austin or watch Desperate Housewives