Odis is playing @ RBAR in Denton. They are really great funky-soulful rock guys who sometimes remind me of JET and sometimes of Maroon 5, but they definitely have their own sound. Plus RBAR has a giant patio out back and some very nice looking patrons.
If you know of anything else fun going on, email me and let me know!
Little Pink plays @ All Good Café
Little Pink has an alt-country, folksy, acoustic kinda sound. And, as an interesting FYI, Mary (the singer) used to be a newspaper reporter and then a foreign correspondent before becoming a musician/songwriter. Plus, the food at All Good is amazing! I recommend the chicken fried chicken.
The Slack (who’s new possible-residency at Gezellig is mentioned below by Hunter) has their first show in Fort Worth @ The Aardvark. They go on at 10 p.m.
J.Pepe’s on Greenville (sort of across from Granada) has some nice drink specials, good food and great music. Get delicious tex-mex until midnight, $2.50 house frozen, swirl & rocks margaritas, $3 flavored margaritas (strawberry, raspberry & mango) and $4 wines all night, plus rockin’ tunes from Kyle. (He does some awesome originals mixed up with some fun covers). If you’re brave enough (or you just like hanging out in a bar in your swimsuit) you can also take a dip in the pool out back. We prefer to sit near the pool to enjoy the breeze fully-clothed or on the front patio to people watch.
Feel free to email me if I've left anything good out!
Maybe the Wreck Room will find a savior to bring it back to life, sort of like what happened to Double Wide last year. C.C. Cross Band and Detroit's Whitey Morgan play there tonight.
Chris Holt's band, the Slack, is starting a residency at Gezellig t'night. From a bulletin:
"Dallas' own The Slack will take the stage, beginning a residency that will last through either the evening or the year.
Show up tonight and find out whether we still have a gig tomorrow!
Showtime is at 10pm...Gezellig is on Greenville Ave, between Austin and Denton."
It's always fun when a joint lets a band get comfy with a weekly slot. And the cover possibilities are endless: Holt is like a human jukebox.
Yes, I did pair the question mark and exclamation point up there, because I don't remember the L.L. doing a hip-hop show in.... ever? Or at least not in the past 1 1/2 years since I've been paying close attention.
Anyway: MIMS, he of "This is Why I'm Hot" fame (which is still a jam, as far as I'm concerned) is at the 'Lounge on Friday, Oct. 5. Tix are $20. Looks like they're selling them at the door only. DJ Love and Johnny Funk are opening, with Raydar and Shaolin in the Video Bar.
--It’s Zubar’s 11th anniversary. The theme is “Lock Down,” so celebrate in your prison garb. I wonder if they mean stripes or orange? Also, Nature’s spinning reggae in the back room, w/ guest DJ Queen Majesty of NYC. More on her here. No cover.
--Noche Latina at Wish, with Chamo, B3 and Jon B spinning rock en espanol, Latin dance, reggaeton and hip-hop. This is every Wednesday… I haven’t checked it out yet, but it’s been around for a few months now.
--Wicked Wednesdays at Vue, with Seth Lowery and guest DJ Kelly Reverb. $3 you-call-its all night. Vue is mixing it up right now, have you noticed? Their weekly lineup has been packed. Took them a minute to find to find their groove (especially after they ditched the restaurant), but apparently it’s on. If you’ve been thinking about visiting I would go sooner rather than later…
--The Beat Down at the Monkey Bar with Rob Viktum. Another edition of the weekly Live Beat Battle, this time with a special performance from Ruby Revue, the Dallas burlesque troupe. I hear they do a hot rendition of Rihanna’s Umbrella. Starts at 9 p.m., no cover.
Got another event for ya. Knox Street Pub just started hosting acoustic music on Tuesdays. This is their second week doing it -- last week drew about 100 people, which is not bad for a new weekday night gig.
Ryan Ferguson, the bar’s GM, described the artists (who will change weekly) as “people on the verge, or getting to that point.”
If you saw Record Hop play Saturday at Wall of Sound Festival, you know that their set (along with the Paper Chase performance that followed it) was the hightlight of the day. You probably wanted more, so I have good news: The Hop opens for Sham 69 tonight at the Granada. Doors at 8.
If you don't feel like having your face rocked off (or just enjoy smoking indoors), then you can go to Dada for Marashino, the Felons and Run Run Run.
DJ Dirty Thirty — Maxim’s touring DJ — is at Vue in Addison. No cover, or so they say. (I’m starting to get suspicious after Ghostbar’s last two “free” events were actually $20 for some people…. the club reps say they’re fixing that, so let’s hope so. I know this has nothing to do with Vue, but I just wanted to share.)
Babylon Omni Lounge opens this weekend in the space between Opus Lounge and Purgatory. (Yes, there is an extra club in that tiny little spot… it used to be Wake Energy Lounge, for those that can remember back to last winter.) The flier I saw -- decorated with flames, incidentally -- says it’s “bringing class back to downtown Dallas.” Because you know downtown is so trashy now, with Clear and Mantus and Ivy.
Anyway: Flier says it’s free until midnight, but you may want to bring extra cash, just in case.
Cirque opens this Friday in the old Blue spot, on Pacific Avenue downtown. The “official grand opening party” (surely the first of many, you know how these things are) honors HBCU Alumni. Doors at 5 p.m. w/ a complimentary buffet. DJ Big Daddie comes on later.
If you go, send me a report and let me know how it is. I’ll be in San Francisco this weekend for a friend’s wedding.
The Granada just started showing Sunday Night Football on the big screen, and apparently it's a pretty fun place to watch. Here's a report from my husband, who went last night, while I stayed home and whipped up a gigantic batch of veggie curry....
The Granada is a great place to watch a football game, even if your team is getting slaughtered. I had the misfortune of being a Bears fan attending the theater's weekly Cowboys exhibition, and I got plenty of jeers in the second half as Dallas dismantled Chicago. But a fellow Bears fan and I sat next to some dudes from Oak Cliff who could engage in some banter without making it personal, so we had a good time. The game shows on three enormous screens, and the image quality is really sharp. Seating is arranged in rows, with tables arranged to hold drinks and food. Waitresses circle about to keep the cold beer coming, so you never have to get up if you don't want to. But plenty of people were leaving their seats to give complete strangers high-fives and hugs, just like you'd see at most sports bars. Unlike most sports bars, this place is smoke-free. (There's a smoker's lounge with patio furniture outside). Don't know if they do this every week, but we also got our first beer free for showing up half an hour before kickoff.
Wanna share a tidbit about someplace fun that you went to recently? Email me.
Got this from a bulletin that Denton act Mom sent out:
"We're trying to put together a little something to look at, and we need a bunch of lite brites (something like 20) to do it. So, if anybody would like to contribute, we'd be very grateful. This is mostly directed to the people of the denton/dallas area. Let us know if you want to help out.
Thanks,
mom"
If you've got a Lite-Brite (and you know you do), contact the guys through their MySpace.
And if you have any old Shrinky Dinks, send them my way. I just want them.
It’s Cosmo’s Seventh Anniversary! Sigh… I remember the days when we used to down Blasters there every weekend…. then everyone started approaching 30 and no one went out anymore…
Cool Out at the Cavern, w/ Big J and Schwa. $2 wells and $2 beers.
The Akita Group hosts Monday Night Fashion at Karma. They'll have Titans/Saints game on TV, but dress nice -- the most stylish man or woman wins a gift certificate to Diesel. There’s a performance by Common Folk at half-time, $3 drinks, and it’s hosted by 97.9 The Beat’s Vida Loca. No cover before 8, $5 before 9, $10 after 9.
So I really like this band, the Chemistry Set, but fate has been against me, as I have never managed to see them live. But that all changed last night at City Tavern, yippee!
The final set of picks for tomorrow's Wall of Sound Festival come from the man behind the whole shebang, Lance Yocom of Spune Productions. As usual, he's a man of few words. It's probably because he's so damn busy.
"It's hard for me pick only three acts. I can't wait to see dozens of these bands, but my three picks would be the Books, Ghostland Observatory and Pinback because I've actually never seen any of them live before and think each will add a little something special to the show. Not that Spectrum, Bobby Bare Jr. and Om will not as well, though."
See you there tomorrow, and if not, I'll try my best to blog from the show. Does LaGrave Field have wireless? [Looks around for an answer.]
It’s Ladies Appreciation Night at Wish. Free cocktails and bubbly for the girls until midnight. No cover.
SATURDAY
The huge Wet Grooves Luau is at the Lizard Lounge, w/ Bad Boy Bill, Donald Glaude, and a bunch of others. Party starts at 2 p.m., and tix are $20 presale.
Bollywood Beatz at Claypit. Get your bhangra fix. It’s $5 before 11, $10 after.
Devin Harris, our fave former rookie, is hosting a party at Opus Lounge. Get there early to avoid lines. Cover ranges from $10 to $20.
-- For the continuing Pleasant Grove Preservation Society series, the Grove, Brent Best and Slider Pines take the stage at Double Wide.
-- As far as touring singer-songwriters go, you can't get much better than Brandi Carlile at House of Blues.
-- And for you lucky-ass Fort Worthians, you can enjoy Sarah Jaffe and Deadman at Central Market while you peruse overpriced deli items. It's been far too long since I've seen Deadman. Can ya throw Dallas a bone, guys?
"I want to be the first to let you guys know that Smile Smile has been accepted to CMJ this year. They will be performing at The Alphabet Lounge on Oct. 17th. We will also have an ad in an upcoming CMJ journal so be on the lookout! Thanks again for your time and please let me know if you need anything at all."
They join many, many other bands on the lineup, including locals St. Vincent, Centro-Matic and Fishboy. I didn't see the Hourly Radio on the fest's Web site, but they definitely have it on their touring schedule.
Tomorrow night I’ll be at Darkside Lounge in Deep Ellum for a night of poker, prizes and philanthropy. (Okay, so that isn’t the best use of alliteration but you get the point)
"I'm really glad to see Wall of Sound including more rockin' bands this year. I'm going to try to get Record Hop to form an alliance with Ume and we will destroy the world together. Maybe Lance can hook up a blind date between the two bands behind the outfield bleachers at LaGrave. The Sword is awesome and I can't wait to hear them through a massive PA. Om was setting up to record in Chicago just as we were tearing down after our session, and the sheer quantity of Gigantic Bass Amps was terrifying. You'll see what I mean. Gonna be a good day! Best line-up yet, duh."
Today's Wall of Sound Festival picks come from Glen Farris, who works with Spune Productions and is helping coordinate the festival. In addition to being a terrific singer-songwriter in his own right, Glen has quite the sense of humor. Here you go:
Ghosthustler: "Will they cancel? Do they have more than 4 songs? Is it the Pitchfork blurb or the snazzy videos? They're from Denton? How is this possible? Have you heard of Justice? There are many questions to be answered."
Om: "The darkest/noisiest most evil sounding band on the bill. The contrast of a stoner-doom metal band playing on a beautiful day on a beautiful minor league baseball field should be amusing. I imagine them wearing grim reaper hoods and pulling it off. Also ex-Sleep, which sounds fantastically entertaining."
Lions: "I got their technical rider advance yesterday which states: 'Nothing unusual except a lot of f---ing rock.' Something tells me they don't mean 'Rock Around The Clock' - Bill Hailey and the Comets type of rock."
Find out more about the fest, Saturday at Fort Worth's LaGrave Field, at the Wall of Sound Web Site.
Here's more from my interview with DJ AM, which ran today. This is the stuff I couldn't fit in the paper. He doesn't really say anything earth-shattering, but if you're a fan, you'll find it interesting.
As you've heard, Spune Productions' Wall of Sound Festival is coming up Saturday at Fort Worth's LaGrave Field.
To preview one of the biggest indie music events in Texas, I thought I'd ask some of the folks involved with it to talk about the acts they're looking forward to seeing.
First up, we have local singer-songwriter and festival performer Doug Burr. His picks:
Micah P. Hinson: "I've been a fan of Micah for about two years based on a record Lance [Yocom, of Spune] passed to me. Every song on that record is gripping - I couldn't get it out of my CD player."
Bobby Bare Jr.: "This guy's everywhere lately. I want to see what all the fuss is about.
Calhoun: "Local boy Tim Locke's outfit - I've heard about this band repeatedly over the past couple years and they have an amazing song on the Wall of Sound website, so I want to finally catch them first-hand."
Two girlfriends and I headed out to Lift last Saturday night, the new lounge where Medici used to be. I’m writing about it for Thursday. I’ll get to the details in the column (biggest deal: The place is 95 percent women), but I did want to share this: Some of those women are CRAZY.
We were dancing, and our feet hurt (stupid heels), so we decided to sit down on the couch next to the dance floor. This is the only free couch in the whole entire place -- the rest of the seating is bottle-service-only. No one was sitting there, although there were a couple of purses strung around. I thought: “Who wants to dance with their purse? This is probably the ‘purse resting spot.’ ”
No sooner did we sit than two women swooped over and slammed their bums into the couch, knocking my friend’s drink onto her dress. “We were sitting here,” one of the women said. She was drunk and slurry.
I know it happened last Thursday, but I was so exhausted the entire weekend that I’m barely getting around to posting something now. We didn’t stay for the whole thing, because I didn’t feel too well, and because it was so packed that we couldn’t move... but even despite that, it was an interesting night.
If you love watching Dallas Cowboys get dressed up in their evening finery, head to Suite tonight for Akin Ayodele's 28th birthday party. It's VIP guest-list only -- de rigueur for Suite, no? -- but the red carpet opens at 10 p.m.
A bunch of players have already RSVPed, including TO, Bradie James and Tony Romo.
Might be worth going just to get a glimpse of Romo alone. It's a fine day when you get to see that guy without his helmet.
A report from reader AliciaK, who went to Ivy -- the new downtown bar -- this weekend:
Very pretty people showed up. The rooftop deck was great! Being a new bar they have some things to work on, like the bartenders were unbelievably slow, and the speakers on the roof were so chinsy you couldn't hear music unless you were standing right next to them. The lower floors smelled really funky, supposedly due to flooding they had there recently. You'd think they would've taken care of that BEFORE the grand opening, but they said by next week the smell should be gone.
I heartily agree with her on the smell factor… the elevator even had a scented candle AND a can of vanilla Glade in there (HELLO?! On opening night??), but that didn’t help.
I thought the place was okay. The rooftop patio didn’t look much different from when it was Dallas Rooftop Gardens, although they’ve added a few more palm trees. Luqa -- the restaurant that used to occupy the third floor -- is now one big lounge, and Petrus (the former 4th floor VIP lounge) is pretty much the same, although with less furniture.
I personally thought the whole place needed to be vacuumed, and the rooftop power-washed. The patio's concrete floor was covered in stains, and the lack of furniture on the third/fourth floors really made you notice how dirty the carpet was.
The whole place just seemed kind of half-finished. But it did just open a few days ago, so hopefully they get their act together in the next few weeks.
Missed this. Kid Sis -- who performed at Suite in Knox/Henderson a few weeks ago -- told Gorilla vs. Bear to personally convey how disgusted she was with the fact that people were turned away at the show....
Diplo (a DJ in the same underground vein) is performing there tonight, and I have no doubt that a lot of people will be turned away in a similar fashion. The place is just too small to hold everyone that wants to see him. Plus it's Suite's year anniversary party, so I'm guessing that more of the upscale chi-chi regulars will be trying to get in, too.
I really would hate to be Suite's door guy tonight.
Gotta get there early so I can catch ACL from the very beginning. Keep checkin' Blah Blah Blah and here for updates from the fest. Or .. see you there?
DJ Nature is on the decks at Zubar for a brand-new Wednesday night weekly. It's all reggae, the whole night. I'm going to go just so I can ask what "Rub-a-Dub" means.
Rob Viktum continues his Wednesday night hip-hop party at Monkey Bar.
And City Tavern has a show dubbed "Glen Farris' Traveling Wookies." One, I know who Glen Farris is, and love his stuff. Two, I know not who these "traveling wookies" are and have sent Glen the appropriate WTF? MySpace query. Three, any self-respecting nyerd would know that it's spelled WOOKIEE.
Didn't see much else goin' on. Guess everybody's in hibernation mode before the ACL madness this weekend.
The Beagle — the Lower Greenville haunt confusingly affiliated with the Regal Beagle — is officially dead. It is now Lucky’s Roadhouse. Adjust your list of places that sell cheap pitchers. (They’re $6 at Lucky’s.)
A pitcher-loving friend in the know told me the place has some crazy drink specials lined up: FREE wells and drafts tomorrow night from 9 to 11 p.m.; then 25 cent drinks on Friday at the same time.
If you check it out, let me know what you think. I already confused the name with this place.
Have you plotted out your Wall of Sound experience yet? No excuses -- I told you about the schedule being posted last night. You'll notice that local acts are spread throughout the day without much conflict. Get there early, though, because you don't want to miss the 11 a.m. Sarah Jaffe set or Mom at 11:25. What's that? You haven't even bought tickets? Shame, shame.
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