It pays to be on Denton singer-songwriter Robert Gomez's e-mail list (which you can sign up for by hitting his MySpace page and scrollin' down a little). Today, the e-faithful recieved a free MP3 of Gomez covering Baptist Generals song "Under a Cloud."
He sent it out to give folks something to chew on while they wait for his just-finished new album to come out. We're entering a period he calls "release-waiting-limbo."
Speaking of Denton musicians covering Denton music, there's a show on Saturday at Dan's SilverLeaf that's built around that very concept. Starhead, Ryan Thomas Becker, the Heelers, Brent Best and Deep Snapper will try out tunes by their Little D contemporaries. Sounds like good, clean American fun.
Zac Crain has a little IM-style interview at Frontburner with his friend Josh Venable. The reason for the chat? Venable's former KDGE-FM indie-rock show The Adventure Club has apparently made a glorious return to the airwaves in Dallas. Glad to have it back, even if it is based in L.A. now.
Former PPT member Picnic put his superb production skills on display and repped Dallas at a recent Red Bull-sponsored competition in Houston. He took third place at the June 25 event, dubbed Red Bull Big Tune. Judging from his enthusiastic presentation methods (above), we say he deserved the top prize! Down with H-Town!
I'm glad I caught Florene's set at Good Records early Saturday evening, because the guys say that may have been the last live show for a couple of months.
The experimental Denton duo put out a MySpace bulletin this morning announcing that it's taking a short break from performing live to finish a full-length record.
Our plan is to go up to beautiful Ruidoso, New Mexico and submerge ourselves in music and the beautiful nature around us. After that's complete the tracks will be off to be mastered somewhere and then it shall be shopped around to see if anyone cares to release it (let's cross our fingers!).
Members Gavin Guthrie and Aaron Mollet shouldn't have too much trouble finding someone to help with the release. These guys and their friends in Mom are among the most innovative, forward thinking musicians in North Texas. But one would be wrong to assume that Florene's music is just like Mom's because both make ambient, mostly lyric-less soundscapes.
Yeah, the two duos use a slew of keyboards, live instruments, effects pedals and other gadgets to achieve their sounds, but that's where the similarities end. While Mom creates foundations with acoustic guitar lines and found-sound samples, Florene works from menacing electro beats, adding in fuzzed-out electric guitar parts and haunting vocal notes. If Mom is earthy, Florene is from space.
Not that the people who are interested in such music need a lesson from me on Florene's sound. There were plenty of folks standing in Good Records' aisles yesterday who knew just what to expect, and seemed to dig every minute of it.
The biggest challenge for Florene might have been keeping things visually interesting. That would explain why, halfway into a song, Mollet suddenly smeared white paint all over his face. But they needn't try too many things like that (cool as face-paintin' might be), because just watching them make the music is interesting enough. I'd sign up for a tutorial in a heartbeat.
You might have missed the following morsels on the Quick site (and in print) this week, so ...
- Today's cover story was about the DJs of the Party (above), who are going Hollywood for their second-anniversary event tonight.
- There was another cover story earlier in the week on Beauxregard, a new-wave revivalist band that celebrates the release of its new EP at Hailey's this weekend.
- Liner Notes had items on the Theater Fire (about the forthcoming album), Doug Burr (about this weekend's Psalm song show) and the Tah-dahs' decision to call it quits.
- Speaking of the Theater Fire, I talked to member Don Feagin for a "Tale of the Tune" feature on new song "Uncle Wayne." (video above)
- I did a "Road Test" review of rock band Moving Atlas' new EP Elephant Gun.
- Skinny Fresh gave us the lowdown on the Texas Urban Music Summit in the Sure Shot.
- Ayo's got his priorities in check, including the Centro-matic show in Five to See Live.
- And for you movie freaks, I did a little side-by-side comparison piece on Wanted and Wall-E, both of which will sell out theaters today.
Just got a message from Denton country singer Doug Burr recapping his and his band's weekend trip to Tehuacana, where they went to record Burr's album of songs adapted from Psalms. Read more about the project here.
Sayeth Burr:
We recorded all basic band tracks beginning at 11 p.m. and ending shortly after the sun came up on the 21st. We tracked all the basic tracks live. We later realized we had practically made the whole record on the shortest night of the year. The next day as we were adding overdubs, we had an assist by a celebrity choir, including Josh Pearson, Emil Rapstein, Chelsea Callahan, a couple band members, and led by Steve Collins [of Deadman]. All expectations for this project -- by every one of us -- were exceeded.
If you want to hear the songs they recorded, you best show up at All Good Cafe on Saturday, where Burr and band will share a bill with the lovely Kristy Kruger.
Both Burr and Kruger received nominations for this year's Dallas Observer Music Awards, which were announced in today's edition of the alt-weekly paper. I'd point you to the rest of the nods online, but they don't seem to be posted just yet.
Eagle-eye Erin Rice over at TexasG-, er, Pegasus News just spotted a sad message posted by Will Kapinos of veteran Denton rock band Jetscreamer. Seems there'll be no more live shows and possibly no more band at all.
Key line in the bulletin from Kapinos: "If we're done for good, there's not gonna be any big bang blowout, no last show or anything, so don't even bother asking. That's how these things usually end: in ordinary ways, rather than extraordinary."
If it helps, the times I saw Jetscreamer play, the performances were extraordinary.
July 4th may not come until next weekend (can't wait to see you, Will Smith), but Good Records is having its own little holiday weekend starting Friday. Just got the following note from store music dude C.J. Davis, which I will just paste in with no hyperlinks because I am a lazy ass:
RE: new good records' free shows
friday, june 27
shearwater (5pm)
will johnson (7pm)
sat., june 28
clint niosi "cd release party" (3pm)
same day
florene (5pm)
lymbyc systym (6pm)
her space holiday (7pm)
Well, we know that the Tah-dahs will disband after August. But here's some silver-lining goodness, thanks to our contributor Geoff Johnston, who talked to drummer James Porter on the phone a couple of days ago:
Their sophomore album -- the long-gestating, Stuart Sikes engineered follow-up to Le Fun -- will see release on or before their final show in August. Title TBD, but for a time the main contenders were Mein So Called Kampf and That's What She Said.
And, hey, there's a song up from the new album on the Tah-dahs' Myspace. It's called "Dallas" and has sort of a goodbye-letter vibe. Sniff.
When I was interviewing singer J. Quincy Romine (first name Jason but he goes by Quincy) for today's Quick story about Beauxregard, he mentioned a couple of times that he is obsessed with modern noir films. I think he name-dropped L.A. Confidential specifically. I don't know why I'm telling you this -- it's not like that tidbit really explains the title of new single "Queen Noir." But who cares? It's early. Here's the song.
Beauxregard, "Queen Noir":
If you like whatcha heard, see the band Saturday at Hailey's.
Not usually much goin' on Monday nights, but tonight presents a couple of new options. Something is in the air! Can you feel it?
-- Looks like the King Bucks are takin' a break from Barley and trying Adair's on for size. They'll be there tonight. 9 p.m. at 2624 Commerce St. No cover. 214-939-9900.
-- Gay bar JR's has been getting in on the local-music action lately. Tonight's bill features Tommy Hernandez and the Sweet Boys and Dan Paul. I'm a big fan of Tommy's 2007 solo CD Mimespeak, but this Sweet Boys thing sounds like it's more electro-dance than piano pop. There's no cover, but you're welcome to buy them sweet boys a drink! 3923 Cedar Springs Road. 214-559-0650.
Got any other ideas? Lesley's on vacay, so I'll try to get better at the nightclub stuff in the next few days.
UPDATE: Oh yeah, I forgot about Tom Waits at the Palladium. Isn't he that dude who wrote all those songs on that awesome Scarlett Johansson CD? ... I kid.
Music fans in Lubbock and Odessa are in for a rare treat next month: A live bill on which Dallas pop act Smile Smile opens for Billy Bob Thornton and the Boxmasters. Smile Smile singer Ryan Hamilton told the MySpacians about the odd pairing on Friday, but I'd heard about it earlier last week from Kirtland Records' Tami Thomsen. She said the label set up the Billy Bob dates to give Hamilton and his bandmates exposure to a new set of fans. And, of course, they'll probably have some strange road stories to tell when they get home.
Just don't accept any vials of blood or get any tattoos, guys, because relationships with Billy Bob have been known to sour. More show details after the jump, in case you're a roadtripper/Astronaut Farmer enthusiast.
A healthy art- and music-loving crowd gathered at Sons of Hermann last night for Art Conspiracy's annual SEED benefit, a fund raiser with the purpose of helping the local organization obtain 501(3)c nonprofit status.
There wasn't a lull in the event; between music sets, live auctions raised hundreds of dollars for paintings and photography. And there was a silent auction in the back corner of the room for several Moleskine journals decorated and written in for the event by local artists. Some journals were filled with colorful art and drawings. Some had stream-of-consciousness prose. One artist tore pages from the inside and made a sculpture. I wanted all of them.
The diverse musical bill included sets from Spector 45 (actually, frontman Frankie Campagna had to perform solo because the band's bassist had a work conflict), Pet Hospital, Beauxregard and Matthew and the Arrogant Sea. Beauxregard's mix of new-wave moodiness and Bowie sass went over well. I'll have more about the band's new EP in Quick later this week.
And headliner Matthew and the Arrogant Sea brought a surprisingly upbeat folk-rock set, sporting double drummers (!!) and a jammed-out, dance-friendly segment. Seeing this Denton band flourish on stage makes the wait for forthcoming album Family Family Meets the Magic Christian that much more excruciating. But October's not that far away.
Blogstress Cindy Chaffin caught most of the music on video; check her site later for some tasty morsels.
You may have already heard this if you're a fan of Dallas pop trio the Tah-dahs. Seems frontman Roy Ivy and wife (also a beloved local singer) Laura Palmer are packin' up and leaving Dallas, putting an end to their musical careers in these parts.
After the jump, read Roy's MySpace bulletin. We'll have much more on this when the farewell show gets closer.
?uestlove, the drummer for The Roots, has DJed in Dallas several times but I've never seen him. ("Too tired" was always my excuse.) Now I'm kicking myself -- last night's show was probably among the best times I've had all year. He played old-school hip-hop and soul from every coast and every genre. Tribe. Ice Cube. Biggie. Juvenile. Isley Brothers. Outkast. Talib Kweli. Even Usher's under-appreciated Confessions-era hit, "Bad Girl." (I love that song!)
The chill, jeans-wearing crowd danced, hooted their approval, yelled along with the words. I never thought I'd hear a sing-along of Eazy-E's "Boyz N Tha Hood" at Ghostbar, but there it was.
If you're into hip-hop, or you just want to dance all night, you gotta catch ?uest the next time he's in town. The man can control the decks.
By the way, he used to have a pretty well-read blog on his MySpace page, but he's since created a new one here. Check it out -- he's pretty honest and open.
Allow me to direct your attention to a PopMatters interview with Old 97's frontman Rhett Miller, in which he tackles hot-button issues such as Star Wars vs. Star Trek.
Debut album The Southern Unknown, which will be available at Saturday's CD release show at Double Wide, should please the folks who love listening to classic rock stations but get tired of hearing the same ol' ish all the time.
Dove Hunter puts off just enough of that '70s vibe to seem familiar, but there's also something fresh about the songs. Hear for yourself:
Presale tix are $20 for Kim Kardashian's party at Purgatory next Wednesday. If you're planning on going, I'd purchase now. (You can't buy online, but you can apparently purchase by phone.) The door price hasn't been set yet, so it could even double to $40 on the day of. On the decks are DJ Krave, Funk-E and Jesse Jam.
Word is that Kim will be mingling with the crowd and not just holed up in VIP all night.
Unfortch (or, rather, fortch for me) I'll be in Mexico City that week, so I can't give you a full report. But if you go let me know how it is.
I wrote a little bit last week about Godspeed, the new Monday night party at HOB. (It's an import from HOB's Vegas location.) Basically, they open up the members-only Foundation Room for one night only, and they've got DJs and drinks.
Got a preview of the place last night, and it's actually really cool. The entrance -- a red-draped area off to the side of the main building -- feels hidden and secret.
If you watched the video I linked to this morning and dug it as much as I do, you ought to locate the cheapest gas around you and get enough to make it to Denton this evening. The soiled singer turning Dan's back porch upside down in that video is Dentonite Dale Jones, who performs as New Science Projects.
And in case you need some extra audio to help convince you, the Gutterth dudes (profiled recently on Cindy Chaffin's site) were kind enough to let me stream the first single off Crocodile, "Give Up and Die."
Above, you can watch the vid for Tahiti's new song featuring Pikahsso, called "Next 2 Me." The track was made available on iTunes earlier this week, according to Idol Records head honcho Erv Karwelis.
Expect the two to perform the song when they take the stage tonight at Double Wide. More weekend picks to come later.
Once upon a time -- actually, last year -- downtown was where all the nightlife action was in this city. Main Street is still crowded on the weekends, but the Henderson/Capitol neighborhood has quickly become the new place to be. They've already got Barcadia (photo above), Capitol Pub, Glo Lounge and the newly revamped Slip Inn.
Coming soon are Sushi Axiom, a hip, Fort Worth-based restaurant; Veritas, a wine retail shop and bar; and Soley, an upscale Mexican restaurant. And this has only been THIS YEAR, people. How crazy is that?
Similar to downtown, the only downside here is the parking. On weekend evenings, the shopping center's entire parking lot (where Jerry's used to be, to give you a point of reference) closes for valet only. That leaves the only free parking on the residential streets, which I'm sure neighbors aren't going to be very happy about. DART should get a trolley out here. Too bad it would take like five years before anything happens.
For more detailed info on what's opened in the neighborhood, check out Tracy Achor Hayes' recent article in F!D Luxe.
If light beer is not to one's liking then I would like to point out that, surprisingly, Guinness Draught beer only has 125 calories in a 12 oz serving. Only 15 more than a bud light.
Shiner Bock has 142.
So if you like dark beer and want to watch the calories a bit - guinness is a good choice.
And from reader Larry K., who actually did his own calorie analysis:
A few years ago, I sat and listened as one of my friends droned on how she was watching weight by drinking Lite while I was packing on the pounds drinking Guinness. So I did a little research and this was the result. I wonder if the calorie difference is really that much particularly when one considers the bowls of chips or nuts that are consumed while drinking ANY beer. And if I am given a choice of drinking lite or tea, I always choose tea.
Here is a comparison between Guinness and some light beers. Since Guinness is served in a pint and most American light beers are reported in 12 ounce servings, I have converted the American beers to their 16 ounce equivalent.
Miller Light 128 Calories per pint.
Bud Light 146.7 Calories per pint
Aspen Edge 125.3 Calories per pint
Coors Light 136 Calories per pint
Keystone Light 138.7 Calories per pint
Shiner Light 160 Calories per pint
GUINNESS(r) DRAUGHT 196 Calories per pint
I would also like to point out that last night, inspired by my own story, I ordered a club soda at the bar! This was after two glasses of wine at a friend's house, but still, progress.
I don't know if women are the only ones who think about this.
But in light of the fact that my cute little island-print dress is a wee bit more clingy around the tummy area lately (in freaking bathing suit season, which is depressing), I've been wondering: What's the most calorie-friendly thing to drink on a night out? What's the worst?
I consulted a few local dietitians and will have a story about it in the paper tomorrow. In the mean time, here's the calorie info on a host of drinks that couldn't fit in the article.... and a tip from Jennifer Neily, a registered dietitian at the Cooper Clinic.
*Cutting out three to four glasses of wine per week will help you lose six to eight pounds in a year. (This is assuming you already exercise, eat healthy, etc.)
On Monday night, House of Blues is opening up its private Foundation Room for a new weekly party called Godspeed. They've already been doing this with the Vegas location, apparently successfully.
No word yet who the Dallas DJs are going to be, but the party starts at 10 p.m. Flyer says the dress code will be enforced.
And while I'm givin' love to other blogs, check out Cindy Chaffin's post. on tonight's an upcoming Deep Ellum town hall with the mayor. All the important info is there. It also looks as though Cindy has pulled her son into the blogging world; he offers some all-ages weekend picks here.
Here's a li'l bonus: After our coffee talk, I made Eric spill the beans (I hate myself right now) about Midlake's new album, which it's been recording in its studio near the Square in Denton.
Q: What does you guys' daily recording schedule look like?
A: People are there all day. We'll have shifts of a few of us working on something in the morning, and then [lead singer] Tim [Smith] will will do his vocals in the afternoon. And sometimes we're all in there if we're doing live tracking. It varies. But when we track something live, we have to do it at night because there aren't as many car sounds from outside.
Q: How does recording as a band compare to playing on stage for you?
A: The recording process can be a beating for us. Trying to create something better than the last time, and get these sounds we're going for. We're engineering it ourselves, so it's pressure to try and capture the magic sometimes.
Q: And what can we expect, musically, from the new one?
A: I think it's closer to the last album than that one was to the first. We've taken on a more British folk influence, whjch is a bit darker sometimes than maybe the American influences on Trials. Seeing that we're not done, though, it's hard to say how it will turn out. But Tim is still influenced by people like Jimmy Spheeris and Jethro Tull.
Q: What made you guys decide to stop recording in the old Midlake house and build a new studio?
A: We've always done it in one of our homes, and it became more difficult as we got older, because we'd moved to different places and some of us had started families. So we thought we needed a neutral location. The Panhandle House owns a complex in Denton, and they had an open space available there that they weren't using. So we offered up the idea of making the space our studio, and letting them have it as a B room whenever we were done. And they were into it.
Q: Do you feel you guys have settled into the new space?
A: It's a good vibe there. It's so much better than just walking into a living room. That got so old, to make two albums there and then have to live there too. [Laughs.]
Q: Has having the studio so close to the Square helped you become a bigger part of the Denton music community?
A: I think we're all cognizant of what's going on in Denton, and feeling more a part of Denton as we get older. There's definitely a sense of pride and an organic musical family that exists within the community. The people that are part of it have grown their bands together, and play on each other's stuff. You look at it and think, "This is a really cool thing, and I'm glad to be part of it."
Just heard via MySpace that National Sports Lounge will open up soon next door to Kinki, near the Granada. Plan is for 50 TVs, a full patio and bar.
This place has been in the works for years (ever since the Red Jacket closed), so it's great that they're finally making some headway. Look for it in July.
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