Niggahlaws
Money Waters (Noir Sound) CD Review(14.November.2006)
Miller Time
Bosque Brown's uncertain future is clarified in an exclusive interview.
(10.November.2006)
Apply Yourselves
Independent music's Spring Break is fast approaching. Which Dallas bands will best represent at the (metaphorical) kegger?
(6.November.2006)
Mercy
Burden Brothers (Kirtland) CD Review...as a one-act play(2.November.2006)
Come and
See
Colin
Meloy wants you to put the dictionary down and get busy sweeping his
chimney. By Pepper Martin
(25.October.2006)
For
New Starts
Dd
pulls recent CDs and worthwhile bands back through the cracks. This
week: South San Gabriel.
(19.October.2006)
Intelligent
Design
The
evolution of Baboon into Dallas' best and loudest rock band took only
16 years, two tastes of major label stardom and a few horse heads.
(13.October.2006)
Attitude Solution
After nearly two decades of
frustration, local MCs Pikahsso and Tahiti finally exhale on PPT's Tres Monos In Love.
(4.October.2006)
A Memorial To The Tunnel
The roadblocks in front of Deep Ellum's entrance probably look familiar to local musicians. (28.Sept.2006)
Many months ago, Scott Porter was updating the MySpace events list for the DIY venue he co-founded, Secret Headquarters. On the online calendar, he jotted down a show for the first anniversary weekend, and he titled it "One Year of Losing Our Asses." But the silly title wasn't entirely a joke--the venue had its fair share of growing pains, including public cries for financial help and a prolonged battle with a roof leak.
But as the concert approached for this weekend, Porter had a change of heart. "You know, that's not the right title," he says. "As I started looking at it, as we started taking more pride in our venture, seeing that it was starting to succeed, if you will...I don't feel like we're losing our asses at all."
As Porter is among my favorite local musicians to interview, I've included an unedited MP3 of our SHQ birthday conversation. Click the link below for Porter's take on the venue's surprising success and streak of national bands, its plans for relative expansion, its evolution into a rehearsal space and even some news about Porter's own bands, Record Hop and Spitfire Tumbleweeds...not to mention some Halo smack-talk.
SHQ is where you want to be this weekend, either for Friday's Halo 2 gaming tournament or Saturday's lengthy concert/party, which is pretty talent-packed the whole way through. If you're a local music outsider who's wondering just what Denton's independent music scene is like, this is the ultimate crash course in the best and most intriguing material the city has to offer (along with some Austin guests mixed in). Here's the complete Saturday schedule:
Wait, is Brent Best really playing for an hour and a half? Or is that just space for if/when the show goes over schedule? Either way, Denton, lend me a couch. I will be sleeping over on Saturday. -SM
Sucks when the yuppie rag beats us on local music gossip. A few days ago, my sometimes-boss Adam McGill found some news about Ben Curtis saying farewell to his once-Dallas, now-Brooklyn pals in The Secret Machines--though the split actually goes back to March of this year. Reportedly, the remaining members are putting their third full-length album together as we speak, but without a lead guitarist, how exactly is that going?
I can't help but wonder if the remaining members--Brandon Curtis and Josh Garza--have picked up the phone and called their former Captain Audio bandmate Regina Chellew...last I spoke to Chellew, the CA split was the kind of stunning shocker that still stuck heavily to her sleeve, so I'm sure all three parties at least had the thought flash in their mind. The concert review that McGill linked to has no hints of such a Dallas art-rock mega-reunion--less guitar, more keyboards--but Dd can dream... -SM
Unless Jasun has an essay to post, Dd will be silent today. Apologies. Check back for more goods/services tomorrow, including a possible second volume of a certain Dd-exclusive series... -SM
Internet music leaks might be weird for bands, but they must be even weirder for those leaks' guest stars. Just ask Midlake lead singer Tim Smith.
"I haven't heard it," Smith says about his appearance on The Chemical Brothers' "The Pills Won't Help You Now." It's the final track on We Are The Night, set for release on June 19, and that's still as much as Smith knows. "I don't know what they did with it. I haven't heard the final yet."
Don't eat Midlake, Jason Lee!
With that in mind, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Smith and the rest of the Denton quintet haven't partied with the techno duo recently...or ever. The groups indirectly spoke through Midlake's label, Bella Union records, and Smith was mailed two basic harmony tracks to choose from, which he then wrote lyrics and sung over. "The second one was a little more rowdy, which probably didn't fit my voice as well, so I went with the softer one," he says. "It reminded me of a Bjork type beat when I first heard it...It was more my style." And though Smith hasn't heard the final version of the song yet, he's on the right track, as the sedated, airy synth background allows Smith to take ownership of a song that might otherwise go nowhere.
Perhaps the band will finally meet the British duo soon: Bella Union head Simon Raymonde proposed that the band work up its own version of "Pills" to play during a BU anniversary showcase this summer at the Royal Festival Hall, and Smith says the band will meet today for rehearsal to work that song out. Maybe in July, the Brothers will haul their keyboards out and join in? "Simon has the contact...he could make it happen."
In the meantime, the guys are on a two-month break between tours to be in Denton. Smith says that the next album should've already been started by now, but thanks to delays in getting new recording gear shipped to their house and the fact that Smith's getting kicked out of his current place so that a bank can be built, he believes the group won't really dig for at least another month. "I thought we would already be recording, so it's kind of a bummer. We have songs ready for recording, and I have ideas for the next record."
And for those of you wondering, Midlake's critically acclaimed last album, Van Occupanther, is doing relatively well, selling over 100,000 copies worldwide. If that's not quite the gold or platinum status you were hoping for, Smith puts it into perspective: "Our first album, worldwide, sold 5,000." -SM
I've got a few other video clips from my day at the Sasquatch Music Festival, but with limited net access, I'm only able to upload one right now. So here's a dandy of a song by The Hold Steady. They'll be in town in a coupl'a weeks, so get set for that show by watching this. Enjoy! -SM
Sam made his weekend pick in the post below, and here are a few shows I suggest going to. If none of these tickle your fancy, check out the DdCal above for more options.
FRIDAY
Billy Bobs: Eleven Hundred Springs I have said plenty about 1100 on this blog, so I won't beat a dead horse. It's always a blast when they play Billy Bob's. Go see them.
Ridglea Theater: Faith No More No, not that Faith No More, but a band that apparently has no idea the name has been taken. Go throw stuff at them.
SATURDAY
SHQ: Hogpig / Tendril Yes.
SUNDAY
Hailey's: Pretty Girls Make Graves The North Texas stop of PGMG's farewell tour. Go convince Derek that his newly found free time needs to = a Murder City Devils reunion.
A few good shows are listed on the DdCal already, but unless Jasun steps up and whips up a good Three Days To Rise list, please visit our friends at We Shot JR this week. Here's one show I'm sure they won't preview:
The Golden Falcons are breaking up. Not news to you, probably, as the sextet hasn't played around town for months; one member's in New York, another's in Austin, and others have found themselves busy with other projects. But they were a breath of hard rock fresh air in Dallas; even if you're not much for straightforward hard rock, you had to appreciate this group's take on the genre without alienating the core audience. Say goodbye to them on Saturday at the Double Wide. -SM
Charles Attal Presents just opened its contest up to one more Animal Collective pair of tickets. Aren't they super? Same question as before, email to bigdlittled@gmail.com and they're yours. NOTE: You can't win BOTH contests, so pick one. -SM
Thanks for the help, Jasun. The pair of Animal Collective tickets has been given away, and the winner has been e-mailed.
So thanks to limited wi-fi access--which, by the way, has screwed my weekend listings efforts--I'll go ahead and open the floodgates for the one pair of Morrissey tickets I have to give away as well. The only time I've ever seen Morrissey on a stage was in Austin last year, and the biggest detail I recall from that set was his need to throw shirts in the crowd and then go backstage to get new shirts, which he would proceed to throw into the crowd as well. Lord help me if I ever pull a stunt like that at his age. I've never been a Smiths guy, but Morrissey definitely doesn't phone it in, so fans should be in for a dandy of a gig.
Contest, thanks to our pals at the Palladium, for this one is easy...Dd has only one video posted from last weekend's Rubber Gloves 10th Anniversary concert. The band in that video has an album that just saw release. E-mail the title of that album to bigdlittled@gmail.com ... first person to answer correctly gets put on the guest list +1 for the Friday night show. Winner will be e-mailed with victory deets by tomorrow at noon, if not much sooner. -SM
Apparently, "no later than 7pm CST" means "whenever Sam gets to the pacific northwest and realizes he can not connect to the internet, so he calls Jasun in a panic and begs him to do his bidding".
Don't fret though... As much as I hate both Sam and the state of Washington, I am here to give away the Animal Collective tickets you were promised yesterday.
I will make this easy.
In his farewell to the Gypsy Tea Room (Tea Totaled, March 30th), Sam said there were two things that he thought defined the venue.
Email those two things to bigdlittled@gmail.com to enter to win. It's that easy.
The folks at CAP were only able to provide us with one pair of tickets to Saturday night's show, so get your responses in quick, as I am sure they will be gone soon.
Thanks again to Charles Attal Presents and The Granada.
P.S. Morrissey tickets will or will not be given away later today or early tomorrow.
Wait, does that subject say giveaways PLURAL? Sure does. I'm on vacation right now, so to make up for my inability to properly update things on a timely basis--though DdCal will be updated by tonight for the next 7 days--I'm happy to present two spiffy contests to make up for it.
First up is Saturday's highly anticipated Animal Collective show at the Granada Theater. Though I will be attending a pretty cool show this weekend, I'm bummed that I'm missing these guys to make up for it, as Feels was--and still is--my favorite record of 2005. Its striking melange of folk and amplification is my dream mix of pop and experimentation, and I know the group puts on the epitome of surreal in concert. Sad for me, but good for you, because thanks to my friends at Charles Attal Presents, I will have tickets to give away--I'm working on getting as many pairs as possible. Once I have a firm giveaway number, I will post a ridiculously easy contest some time later today...no sooner than an hour from right now, no later than by 7 p.m. CST today. Keep yer eyes on the site.
Tomorrow will see a Morrissey ticket giveaway. Two pairs. More on that tomorrow. Someone alert Josh Venable, stat. -SM
I had an interview lined up for today, but it's been delayed...in the meantime, I suppose we should talk about Austin's very own Spoon.
The good news? Their new, ridiculously titled record, which sees release July 10 on Merge Records, somehow continues the quartet's streak of well-crafted pop and unexpected twists. Some day, they'll churn out a lousy record and it will finally be hip to hate them; until that day, haters can only rail on Britt Daniel's supposed reputation of being an asshole.
The bad news? Their gig in Dallas tonight at the Granada Theater is an invite-only shindig sponsored by Jack Daniels. To be fair, the band had a 50 ticket giveaway at their official site yesterday so that fans could get in--for free, no less--though those spots were snatched up within hours...but this is the second time in a year that the Austin band has played North Texas, and both times, it has been done under the guise of a drug-sponsored concert. The issue gets people riled up on both sides--last time I covered this, I was hounded by the Ridglea staff for the use of "drug-sponsored," but why dance around the truth? In August, they were Joe Camel. Tonight, they're your old pal Jack. If this is what it takes to make money as a band in the MP3 era, so be it, but I'd love to talk to the group and hear their take on this streak of private, drug-sponsored concerts, as they aren't isolated.
Until then, all I can offer those of you who missed the boat is a link to the album's best single on MP3. Click here for another blog that is foolish enough to host "You Got Yr Cherry Bomb."
FYI, the opener is (according to this band's site) Sally Crewe and the Sudden Moves, a semi-Scottish pop-rock group quite affiliated with the Spoon. UPDATE: THEY'RE GIVING AWAY TICKETS...go to their site and click the e-mail link. You might not be too late. They go on around 9, and Spoon's on around 10. -SM
After wailing and moaning about House of Snooze ticket prices for so long, why would I turn about-face and plug a $40 local gig on a Monday night? No, it's not at Bend Studio; this is a dinner-concert at Urbano, an uptown Dallas restaurant at the corner of McKinney and Routh (somewhere near that Dickey's gas station, I believe?), combining a wine-loaded three-course meal (read: lobbbbster) with new CD debuts from national acts and live sets by Mom and Tree Wave. Dinner starts at 7 p.m., or if you want to save your cash, CORRECTION: You can see both acts for free if you wanna just sit at the bar, it turns out. Thanks for the update, CJ. All details are here.
I just got off the horn with GR maven C.J. Davis, who says that Mom will perform "the entirety of their new album, plus a song at the start and at the end." Turns out Davis' Pancakes for Mattie label, which recently released a vinyl single by Voot Cha Index, will have Mom's debut release released "hopefully by August; the guys are supposed to come by with the finished recording today so we can ship it off to mastering." Expect Good Records to carry a few copies. He went on to say that he expects a few new songs from Tree Wave as well; this is another solo show, he said, which puts the group's previous "duo" status in question.
Elsewhere, The Willowz and Denton's Sarah Reddington perform at the Pastime Tavern (close to Lee Harvey's) for $5. I wish I had a review for this bar, but every time I drove up and looked, I thought the place was closed. Hell, maybe it was. At any rate, for $5, whaddya expect? LOBSTER? Show starts at 10. -SM
History At Our Disposal performs at the Rubber Gloves 10th Anniversary Concert. Theirs in particular was a highlight...man. I should really get around to reviewing that record, huh? -SM
Right now on MTV and MTV2, my favorite current sketch comedy show, Human Giant, has taken over for 24 hours of episodes and live footage with the cast. Local connection? Corn Mo guests tomorrow at 7 a.m. EST (6 a.m here). Set your TiVos. -SM
DdCal makes this easier, don't it? Check that out for a full list. My choices are as follows:
FRIDAY
Rubber Gloves & Hailey's: It may behoove you to visit both clubs tonight; the Gloves' free set (see post below) is a whoppin' celebration, while Hailey's hosts a quality bill that may, unfortunately, drive you to suicide. The Clientele's latest record, God Save The Clientele, just leaked, and the result is a sleepy, post-mod pop record that'll get emo guys laid for the next few months. Openers Beach House and Doug Burr are spiritual partners in quiet, gorgeous sedation as well, so...yeah, it's not a Baboon show or anything, but bring a foldable chair and you'll be fine.
Palm Beach Club & Black Forest Theater: Not sure why the two best local hip-hop bills in the past coupl'a weeks happen to be on the same frickin' night, but the PBC has the edge with Steve Austin's first local gig in some time. Expect at least some sort of response to his recent press.
Double Wide: Sparklepussy Barbie / Record Hop / Telethon
SATURDAY
Rubber Gloves: Again, the Gloves take the lead with a big, free showcase.
Sons of Hermann Hall: Lolliprom 2007...hey, Shibboleth's opening.
Double Wide: Lions...I like Queens of the Stone Age and I don't like these guys. Hypocritical? Probably.
Thankfully, Rubber Gloves' 10th anniversary celebration has gotten some pub this week--nothin' like the House of Snooze's debut, certainly (assuming local radio hosts like Pugs & Kelly didn't just expand their repertoire beyond divorces, boob jobs and whatever they're paid to plug on a given week). Give Jesse Hughey's interview with Gloves owner Josh Baish and We Shot JR's artist-provided retrospective a look-see.
I didn't wind up at the club until near the end of 1999, when I was one of a dozen people there to see Birmingham, AL's Verbena. Methinks it was finals week at UNT, and the heater was busted--not a good combo for a struggling rock club. So while I wasn't among the original old-timers to attend the house's old, "illegal" outdoor shows (such as the very first show, NSFW) (really, the video is full of peener), I was there when the indoor space was only half its current size. Who cares? The more important fact is this: For a independent rock club to hold out between 1997-2007 in North Texas is a damn miracle. Modern rock's hold on local radio and press has dwindled in the past decade, but the club's still kicking, so I'd rather avoid the teary-eyed reminiscence of great shows I've seen...that list is still being added to.
Celebrate on Friday and Saturday with two long, free concerts full of Dd favorites: Friday includes The Baptist Generals, Stumptone and History at Our Disposal, while Saturday sees Shiny Around The Edges, Current Leaves and Jetscreamer (full list of performers is up at DdCal). When asked about the "surprise guest" on Saturday night, Baish offers this: "It's a Denton band that relocated. Tight with the club, one of the members worked here back in the day. Been getting a lot o' national press lately..." Boy, Josh. You make it hard to guess... -SM
I'm finishing work for another publication right now, so I'll use this downtime to remind you folks that Observer Music Awards nominations are still up for grabs, and lesser bands are certainly spamming the ballot box on a daily basis. If you have favorite local acts (or, ahem, Web sites), you'd be wise to stuff a few ballots of your own while you still have a chance: clicky here. And in case I don't get my work finished up in time, trust the DdCal to hip you to shows this evening...and the next...and the next. -SM
You might notice a very small change to the top menu--wuzzat? "Calendar"?
Friends, today I give you the DdCal, Dd's official concert calendar. Whether you're checking for concerts six hours from right now or curious about a show on a future weekend, chances are you don't want to dig through lists of recurring "DJ Dance Nights" and loads of Addison piano bar listings. You want a to-the-point list.
This means we're picking and choosing. Sad that I didn't list some bumpkin songwriter, cover band or swing dance lesson? There are other resources you can pore through to your heart's content. But for those who want their music listings to be as simple and enjoyable as a concert itself, the DdCal is for you.
The system isn't perfect--in particular, I can't add clickable band or venue links with the Google Calendar system that I'm using, in spite of repeated gripes to the G-Men (though if you click on certain shows on the DdCal, you'll find notes and/or links from me on occasion). Rest assured, notable nights will get the usual main-page preview treatment, complete with clickies. And hey--on the bright side, DdCal is CELL PHONE COMPATIBLE. Put that wireless plan to use: load the site, choose the calendar, and then pick the "cell phone users, click HERE" link near the top of the page. If this doesn't work on your phone, gripe at me and I'll see what I can do.
And if your show isn't on the site, it doesn't mean I don't like your band...necessarily. E-mail listings to me if you have 'em. -SM
Local MC Steve Austin had been touting his eventual major label album release for so long, I began to wonder if he could be trusted. It was back in September 2004 when Austin told the Dallas Observer that he was putting the "finishing touches" on 800 Lb. Gorilla, and when he won the paper's best rap/hip-hop award in 2006, he claimed it'd be out by the end of that summer.
Finally, on April 24, 2007, the disc came out on Dallas' YMC Records--not quite the "major label" deal he'd touted in the past, even though YMC has a distribution deal through Universal Records, but at least the disc was out.
Unfortunately, the very next day proved bigger for the artist. April 25 saw publication of a report from The Marine Corps Times, casting doubt on Austin's press release and interview claims of service in the Marines--a story that I'd never heard from Austin in any of our previous conversations. The story was picked up by local outlet Pegasus News a week later, and at that point, I sent a request to Austin to get his side of the story. I didn't get a response, and neither did The Dallas Morning News, though Austin's publicist went so far as to confirm a "discrepancy" between Austin's statements and the facts.
Yesterday, Austin finally responded to a lengthy, fiery discussion about the issue at the DFWHipHop.com forums, though sadly, his response dodges the central question. Still, it's the closest we may get to an official response for a good, long while:
You know...This whole experience has been a blessing. It's proven many of my theories to be true about people's feelings towards me, and at the same time opened my eyes to some things that I had no idea of. It has definitely reinforced my will, my faith in God, and provided proof positive that in this business as in life in general not to trust anyone but the very few who will unconditionally trust and love you back.
In my eyes, the posting of and continuation of negativity dominating this discussion thread was done with malice, and I will take it as such from those I perceive to be directing it that way.
For me, I have always wanted to, in some way, touch people with music. Seems nothing in any of this has had anything to do with neither my music nor me as an artist. I've had the opportunity in the past week's time to talk to and touch the minds of kids and have them excited by what I do. It has always been my focus to maintain my personal integrity and that of this project. My actions towards all of you have always mirrored that, and in my eyes, should have prevented my character from coming into question in those realms. I've gotten compliments from many who have heard the album and really felt what was put down on it. I have stood on stage, at the legendary Kodak Theatre in front of a fully sold-out audience, and gotten lighters/cell phones/etc up in the air at the end of my set for Never Say Die! That's what it's always been about with me, and what it will continue to be about.
The negative story is sad mostly because of how utterly unnecessary it seems; Austin's the master of the grind, the kind of motivated promoter and hard-worker who has enough hurdles in his independent hip-hop career as it is. News of his climb on April's Billboard charts (up to #9 in Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Sales) seemed like his first real shot at the mainstream, and honestly, this story may have no effect on his ultimate bottom line. Austin isn't dropping rhymes about being in the military or putting on a heinous, Vanilla Ice-style "YO I'M FROM MIAMI" persona. He's at least avoided the more severe end of the embarrassment scale.
But, well, I just got used to actually believing what Austin says. Here's to hoping his grind isn't derailed before it can build traction. My review of 800 Lb. Gorilla will be up at Dd soon. -SM
Just as I hinted in the Sunday night preview (see post below), Fishboy's new album just completed the mastering stage, so the band has loosed three new songs onto the populace. Get a load of tracks 1, 2 and 5 here. -SM
Wreck Room: Baboon / The Beautiful Disaster The news webroke months ago finally comes to sad fruition, as the Wreck Room begins saying farewell to Fort Worth tonight with Baboon's final Wreck show. (The venue won't officially close for a few more weeks, but as far as Jasun's concerned, this is it.) Hopefully, the 'Boon will resurrect some olllld gems for tonight's door-closer. The opening band is a 00's-metal band with members of Slow Roosevelt and Ugly Mustard...number of kittens they're standing on? Seven--and they're all wearing Stabbing Westward T-shirts.
Get a Bonar on Friday night.
Cavern: Dove Hunter / Haley Bonar / Sarah Jaffe A tip for the sultry St. Louis singer/songwriter who plays tonight between two of Dallas' better up-and-comers: If your site's opening quote is a clarification about a last name that looks like "boner," it's time to cave and create a stage name. May we suggest "Delores"? "Mulva"? Seriously, her songs are gorgeous in that "really similar to Aimee Mann" way, and anyone smart enough to avoid blowing over $20 on Bright Eyes can enjoy tunes on the cheap for $6 at this gig.
Palladium: Bright Eyes / Oakley Hall See our giveaway post below for why Oakley Hall's worth arriving early.
Granada: Jimmy LaFave This is not a recommendation by any means; rather, it's a clarification of a whopping error in some newspaper that listed a Centro-matic gig at the Granada tonight. That show has been canceled for over a month. Sorry, Centro fans...they'll be through town on Friday the 13th in July.
House of Snooze: Old 97's Sold out. I spoke with a friend of the band who confirmed that 1,600 tickets moved for this one, drawing even out-of-towners. I like the Old 97's as much as the next guy, but...what in blazes is going on? He and the band are as stunned as I am by this out-of-the-blue demand. Forget it--I'm just gonna wait for that Chili's commercial to come on TV and get my fix that way. That'll, um, show 'em.
SATURDAY
Cavern: Peter & The Wolf / White Denim / Bosque Brown White Denim has been on fire ever since getting the pub I predicted they'd fetch at SXSW, so attend this one at least for their JSBX-revival insanity. You can search through this blog for repeated babble about how much we dig the other two acts.
Double Wide: The Frenz / Ghosthustler / Laptop Deathmatch Forgot about this, sorry. Just copy + paste what We Shot JR says about this gig--I'm completely on board in that regard. And I quite dig that new G-Hus song that was posted at WSJR a coupl'a days ago, as well, even if it's already cool to not like them (ha!).
Lee Harvey's: Johnny Lloyd Rollins If you're cheap, this'll be free, and JLR has a ratio of two good songs to his every cheesy one...if the weather doesn't crap out, this might be a good night to enjoy the Harv's patio.
SUNDAY
Hailey's: Peter & The Wolf / Cartright / Tame...Tame & Quiet Again, three acts we've raved about plenty on this blog. If I were a college student at UNT, I'd put off doing my homework and attend this instead. Then I'd thank Dd for the tip, as it would be the best time I've had since that noodle incident at the cafeteria last semester--the perfect kind of show that mixes diverse sounds with common artistic ground.
Secret HQ: Fishboy Albatross, Fishboy's new album, is now complete. Mastered, ready to roll. The band sent a few sample tracks to me today, though they won't let me leak 'em--SHUCKS! Shame, cuz they're the best material Fishboy has ever recorded. Eric Michener's nerd-pop sensibilities are finally matched with shameless, rockin' hooks that should give his discs priority next-to position on any They Might Be Giants fan's CD shelves. Beg Michener for an advance copy when he headlines for two so-so St. Louis bands. As soon as the band unleashes any of the songs, I'll alert you fine folks.
To mark their opening gig with Vancouver's pained avant-blasters Frog Eyes, local boys The Tah Dahs have posted a pretty damn good new song, "Lord Please Don't You Let Me Down," on their MySpace site. You can see both bands at Rubber Gloves tonight. Should be good.
Elsewhere, Dd's fourth favorite act outta Philly, Man Man, opens for Johnny Marr at Nokia Theatre. (If you were wondering...1, 2, and 3.) George Clinton charges people too much money at the House of Snooze. More important than all of those combined, however, is tonight's Dallas Mayoral Forum...which should end early enough if you are fiending for a concert. Lessee if Sam Coats comes up with any goofy, Southern, old-coot malapropisms tonight. -SM
Morning readers will have probably seen this elsewhere by the time they load Dd, but for you night owls, the ACL Fest lineup was announced just minutes ago. It's right here.
Lord knows Austin City Limits, the TV series, has been chasing after Bob Dylan for ages; in an interview in last month's Harp, show creator Terry Lickona called Dylan one of the two "White Whales" that he's chased for over 30 years (the other being Springsteen). Who knows? Maybe the Boss'll fly in with a parachute. Tons of other quality bands are on board, including Denton's very own Midlake, but the sleeper count is pretty low--which you might expect from a festival that doesn't have enough room to tout Yo La Tengo as a second-tier headliner. So far, the only personal fave buried in the mix is LA's power-poppin' The Broken West. Lemme know what other sleepers I've certainly missed. That is, aside from Boob October. -SM
Dan's: Nouns Group / Mom $5 benefit for the Denton Humane Society.
Club Dada: The Postmarks / Sarah Jaffe ($10) Sucks to be an out-of-town band on a Wednesday night, but what they don't net in door money, they'll hopefully recoup by becoming fans of Dallas' own Jaffe.
Barley House: Sorta's Trey Johnson plays a free solo show.
Fortune smiles upon thee, fair readers. The folks at the Palladium Ballroom have hooked Dd up with two pairs of tickets to Friday's Bright Eyes/Oakley Hall concert, a national show I'm stoked about. Though opinions seem to vary wildly about Bright Eyes (I still think Conor's songwriting chops far outpace his mopey fanbase), opener Oakley Hall has been winning fans over as one of the best roots/classic-rock fusions in the nation; here's to hoping the emo kids in the crowd get into it.
Oh, right, the tickets. They can be yours if you're quick to send an e-mail with the answer to this stupidly simple question:
What's the band name and song title for REDRadio, Volume One's third track?
The first two people to send an e-mail to bigdlittled@gmail.com with the correct answer will win a pair of guestlist spots each. Winners will be contacted by e-mail by the end of today. G'luck! -SM
[UPDATE, 12:53 p.m. -- The tickets have been claimed. Congratulations, Ward R. & Brandi R.!]
The Observer's Music Awards nominations poll is up. Since I don't pick the paper up anymore--and no articles in the Web's music section even refer to this thing--I can only assume that all nominees will be pulled from this poll, rather than a mix of "expert" and public picks. And since tons of people ignore this ballot, choosing instead to wait for the real one, your write-in picks actually matter a boatload more than you assume.
With that in mind, we'd appreciate a nomination or 50 for bigdlittled.com in the "Best Music Website/Blog" category. You don't have to fill out every blank in the ballot, though wehaveafewsuggestionsforsomeoftheothercategories if you can spare a few extra minutes. Go make a difference--since North Texas honestly doesn't have any other music awards like this, the DOMAs still matter, like it or not. Thanks. -SM
Tomorrow night, Dallas' House of Blues venue is set to open with an Erykah Badu concert priced at $65 and up. Or you could impress somebody--dunno who--with $100 box seat tix. Though Badu has certainly used her limited fame as best as possible--building the Black Forest Theater and starting her own foundation, for starters--it's time for Dallas to stop kissing this woman's ass. She had a few hits. She made babies with well-known hip-hop artists. She's thrown support behind some of Dallas' better, lesser-known MCs. But at the end of the day, she's been sitting idly for years in the national R&B landscape, her career and influence falling by the wayside, and nobody is benefiting from it. And there's no need to blame the "current state of music" for her wavering career--this is American Idol country, for Chrissakes. Big, strong singers full of personality? Badu's got the lead on that one.
Perhaps a huge crowd will turn up and each shell out two gas tanks' worth of cash tomorrow night, proving me wrong and reaffirming that Badu's neo-soul streak still burns strong in Dallas' hearts, but I personally think she's burning off a bit of her local goodwill by agreeing to be part of tomorrow's PR cash-grab orgy. She's giving legitimacy to the notion of a more expensive, more sterilized take on the mid-range Gypsy Tea Room-style concert, and Dallas concertgoers will be all the worse for it. Nigh, I tells ye. -SM
Double Wide: The Clutters / Tah-Dahs / Tober Omi / The States A pair of reasonably catchy Memphis pop-rock acts book-end the opening and headline slots at this one; check their MySpace pages and you may very well be convinced to attend this, at least for what The Clutters deliver. Meaty! But the real star of this show is Dallas' Tober Omi--you know how so many bands like to copy Gang of Four these days? Tober Omi's the first I've heard to really capture that band's fuck-all spirit without sounding a thing like them, choosing instead a post-punk attack that has the carnie mentality of outfits like Man Man. Be part of something big by attending this fucking show.
Secret HQ: Cartright / Will E. Lee / Tartufi Missed Tartufi last night while I was crying over the Mavs loss (some b-day gift, guys) but word has been positive about their Dada set. And if you've kept up with Will E. Lee's amp theft story at the dRc Message Bored, then you've been amused by many a Photoshopped emo photo this week.
Wreck Room: PPT / Black Tie Dynasty Last time these Idol Records labelmates shared a stage was at the Picnic benefit concert, and the opposite crowds really dug what they saw. Dallas hip-hop dudes are apparently crazy about '80s pop-rock.
Trinity Park (Fort Worth): Mayfest Jasun has asked that I mention Eleven Hundred Springs' set, but he's also asked me to ignore Deep Blue Something's. What an ass, right? He adds, "1100 are playing tonight's show (and those for the next week or so) with a rent-a-drummer, as their regular skinsman is getting married this weekend. Congrats from Dd, Rez."
Dan's Silverleaf: John Vanderslice / St. Vincent The next two issues of Harp Magazine will include write-ups by me about St. Vincent's Annie Clark, and for good reason. I heard something about a leak of one of her new album's songs just yesterday, but I can't recall where the hell that podcast was hosted...
Smirnoff Music Centre: Gwen Stefani / Akon / Lady Sovereign Hey, I like Sov. I'm sure I'll be tired of her in a few months, but that pipsqueak is a fresh change of rapping pace from the mainstream boys who phone in their studio sessions like they just woke up. She sucked on Letterman a few months ago, though.
Reno's Chop Shop Saloon: Mitra Probably Dallas' best pure metal band, Mitra redeems the face of southern metal that Pantera soiled for so many years. If you ever had a Headbanger's Ball phase in the '90s, you owe it to yourself to recharge your metal hard-on by clicking that MySpace link.
Hailey's: The Album Leaf / The Lymbyc System / Mom If you're attending this, show up early for Mom, an incredible duo of local sound-layering savants. And if you're missing this one, they'll also perform at Chris Flemmons' dog's birthday party at Dan's on Wednesday, May 9. You read that correctly.
SUNDAY
Barley House: Brent Best solo (FREE) Sometimes members of The Drams join Brent for a few songs. Bootleg this set and become a European superhero--those Euros can't get enough Brent.
I'm very proud to present the first-ever Dd Podcast. This wound up being a lot easier to create and upload than I'd originally feared, which means this might be a regular addition to Dd. For the first iteration, clocking in at nearly 72 minutes, I focused on unreleased and rare local material from bands both old and new. In fact, at least four songs on this mix are world premieres. One of them is such a big premiere, I'm not even allowed to give the artist's name away (though it's tucked into the ID3v2 tag, which you can pull up in music players like WinAMP and iTunes). If anybody who provided me with one of these songs is suddenly offended by seeing said song on here--and I have a sneaking suspicion this might be the case--just e-mail me and I'll get rid of the offending track. But I think everything here checks out and makes for good promotional material, so I'm hoping for the best.
The timing of this podcast doesn't just coincide with my birthday; it's also coming at a time when Internet radio and streaming music face a huge, ridiculous hurdle from a joint effort by the RIAA and the American government. If you haven't heard, new legislation will force broadcasters to pay a new royalty rate:
"At the request of the Recording Industry Association of America, the CRB ignored the fact that Internet radio royalties were already double what satellite radio pays, and multiplied the royalties even further. The 2005 royalty rate was 7/100 of a penny per song streamed; the 2010 rate will be 19/100 of a penny per song streamed. And for small webcasters that were able to calculate royalties as a percentage of revenue in 2005--that option was quashed by the CRB, so small webcasters' royalties will grow exponentially!"
To top it off, such legislation will force webcasters to pay retroactive fees from as far back as 2006. You read that correctly: Retroactive chargeback was actually approved by American lawmakers. Could you imagine if insurance agencies were allowed to retroactively hike your car and home insurance rates from over a year ago and get away with collecting that money from you? So while you wait for this 86 MB file to download, I urge you to visit savenetradio.org and find out what's going on and how you can urge local and state representatives to do something before the ruling goes into effect on July 15.
Tracklist:
1) Doug Burr - Whipporwill From his forthcoming LP On Promenade 2) Baptist Generals - Damn the Bloom Bonus track from Europe-only version of Dog EP 3) Eat Avery's Bones - Nice Ice From the band's latest CD-R 4) Bosque Brown - That Door From a 2006 bootleg I recorded at The Cavern 5) Pegasus Now - Spider Unreleased demo 6) Zapruder Sequence - Makin' Eyes From their forthcoming LP Pretty Girl Charm Lies 7) History at our Disposal - Nature of Orientation From their latest LP Symbols in the Architecture 8) Slowride - It's Good to Be Back From last year's impressive C/S 9) tomorrowpeople - Unreleased Song From the band's unreleased final studio album 10) Day of the Double Agent - Formidable Enemy Unreleased demo 11) Lauren Fine - Sleeping Well Unreleased home demo 12) Pleasant Grove - Why Did You Butcher Your Father? Pre-mastered version from their forthcoming LP 13) Astronautalis - The Dogs Are Always Faster From his tour-only freestyle EP Dang! -- yes, every word of this comes from the top of his head 14) Peter Schmidt - Lessons I Have Learned Unreleased demo 15) Midlake - Grant's Hotel Unreleased song from a 2002 Liquid Lounge bootleg 16) Versatile - Pass the Bottle From the First Verse mixtape 17) The Theater Fire - Coyote Unreleased song from the band's 2007 SXSW sampler CD 18) Sarah Jaffe - ...can't find the song title From her latest demo CD-R 19) [super secret performer] - Landmines From the forthcoming LP Marry Me 20) Deathray Davies - Barely Ticking Unreleased demo
Download or stream: http://www.zshare.net/audio/redradio-01-mp3.html (it'll automatically start playing if you don't click the "download" link, which'll give you an MP3 that's ready for your iPod/MP3 player) Enjoy! -SM
Though May 3rd is my birthday, you folks are getting the gift today. Well, later today, anyway. It's 3 a.m. and I'm feelin kinda sick, so I'm gonna continue working on your gift after sleeping and have it ready for download HOPEFULLY by 3 p.m.
Over at my ACL Fest rumors blog, some of the die-hards did some noodling around and found the crossword that the fest planned to put up on their site tomorrow. The crossword promised confirmations on 15 artists, with the most interesting being The White Stripes and Bjork.
Some good stuff at other sites that deserves your attention:
ITEM: Dallas Observer music editor Robert Wilonsky linked to the new Polyphonic Spree video, which, as he explains, is made up entirely of photos snapped by Dallas' Hal Samples. The effect is actually quite striking even if the song isn't anywhere near my pick for best single from The Fragile Army. Put that Tripping Daisy-esque song out instead, guys.
ITEM: We Shot JR had a double-exclusive late last night, posting both a new Undoing of David Wright video and a new Shiny Around the Edges song produced by Castanets' Ray Raposa. I've been vocal about liking the latter group, while the former......well, the visuals are the garage-noise equivalent of a Nelson video, but if I listen to the song without watching, I'm hearing a relatively compelling take on the anarchic, industrial likes of Big Black.
ITEM: The Denton Rock City forums are generally thick with inside jokes and insular chatter, but last week Rubber Gloves owner Josh Baish chimed in with some interesting details about his choice to not move the club to Dallas after all. Investigative reporters would be wise to pay close attention to this bit from Baish, buried amongst the many posts:
He didn't come out and say "No Urban music", but kept asking what kind of bands we host, music we play. I tried to tell him that we're not real genre specific, to which he asked "Do you play any Urban music?". I kinda saw what he was trying to get at, so I said "Well, sometimes, I guess", to which he went on to tell me that the main problems Deep Ellum has with live music venues has been those which play "urban" music, and to a lesser extenet, all-ages clubs.
So if you're black and underage, stay out of Deep Ellum.
I ran into Josh this weekend and asked if he wanted to clarify any of his story, such as who the "he" was. He politely declined. So this is only a guess on my part, but anyone who has read Dd's coverage of the Trees/Fat Daddy's debacle from a few months ago shouldn't have trouble connecting the dots as far as where an anti-urban/teen agenda in Deep Ellum is coming from. Quite frankly, the story pisses me off--where was the official Ellum fear and rage when the negative attention was thanks to white adults such as skinheads? Quite frankly, if Deep Ellum wants to sell itself as a hip destination while simultaneously neutering itself, that's its fucking problem. Cut off your balls and bleed to death, already. -SM
I just got an e-mail from the fine folks at Idol Records: Glen Reynolds' solo album, In Between Days, is now for sale at iTunes, a full month ahead of its June 5th store release. To the uninitiated, Reynolds counts quite a few renowned local acts in his resume, from official bands Chomsky and Liquid 3 to cover bands Blow Aces and Weener. This album sounds very little like any of those. I'll have a review up sometime between now and the "street date."
Glen Reynolds (right) rocks with James Driscoll and his killer Filthy Reds tee.
I'd post the iTunes link, but I don't use iTunes--I'm the kind of mega-nerd who hates the bloatware that QuickTime/iTunes dumps onto my computer, so I can't search for the link and save you a few keystrokes. Sue me. Thankfully, my favorite song from the record is up at that MySpace link, so give "Setting Sun" a playthrough in the meantime. -SM
The Baptist Generals' Chris Flemmons sent a pretty informative "state of the union" e-mail the other day, and he gave me permission to repost it. I'd openly asked what was going on with his latest record, the still-unfinished follow-up to No Silver No Gold, and this was his answer:
i just don't want folks thinking this effort has been run into the ditch. and i sure don't want folks thinking we would kill songs because we didn't get them to market in time. we should have hung it up 3 years ago if we were going to have to adhere ourselves to all that 'release every september' nonsense. at least for us, songs and development have a life that is very long between the local performance and release nationally and abroad. in our own case i've seen that there is even life for a song or album well after release.
long periods in between recordings is nothing new for this band. look at this
is it all cooked yet? no. we aren't tracking seperately, we are recording live with several mics. doing takes until we get each good take we want to keep.
i thought we'd be done in march, the current state of the record is it's in the middle of production. between the NX35 stuff, another ongoing family illness, and some technical issues it's running behind some, but nowhere near veering into a culvert.
as far as what it's sounding like, i've kind of circled back to feeling the essence of this band is that it is best heard acoustic, with a bunch of limitations in performance and the recording process. with all that in mind, this album still doesn't sound like the other BG recordings--it's bigger and closer--but it sounds like what the next BG album should sound like, something different but imaginable for a baptist generals record.
i guess after saying all this, maybe in the future i should refrain from answering anything about recording schedules or turning something in at a certain time. sorry if all this waiting has been a frustration. promise you the moment it's sequenced and mastered i'll invite you up for a listen.
Then at the very bottom of the e-mail, in a tiny font, Chris promised that the record would be ready on July 15, 2007. YES!
...kidding, sheez. What he says here certainly runs parallel with the group's recent downscaled live shows (no microphones, miniature amplifiers), but then again, it's not like the guys were running a Phil Spector operation in the first place. As soon as I get more information, I'll send it your way, good reader. -SM
