Email Author Darryl Smyers

2008 Stories by Darryl Smyers

• Todd Snider

  published December 25, 2008

  Peace Queer, Todd Snider's eight-song EP released in October, basically encapsulates everything good and bad about the alt-country... More >>

• Nicholas Altobelli

  published December 18, 2008

  A relatively recent entry onto the local scene, Nicholas Altobelli is a solid, alt-country/folk songwriter with a penchant for mid-tempo... More >>

• Shibboleth, The Cut Off, Slider Pines and Airline

  published December 18, 2008

  This event is actually a benefit for The Orphanage, a Saturday morning radio show hosted by Danny Balis and Dave Lane on KTCK-1310 AM The... More >>

• Spector 45's Frankie Campagna Isn't Shy About Speaking His Piece

  published December 18, 2008

  Sitting in a bar on Lower Greenville, Frankie Campagna, leader of local retro-punkers Spector 45, is charming, dogmatic, exceedingly forthright... More >>

• Eastwood

  published December 11, 2008

  What's impressive about Eastwood's sophomore release is the band's total lack of interest in following any alt-country trend whatsoever. Not... More >>

• Duran Duran

  published November 27, 2008

  Hard to believe that it has been nearly 30 years since Duran Duran created such a stylish, erotic buzz with the single "Hungry Like the Wolf"... More >>

• Shine On: My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden Brings It Back Home

  published November 27, 2008

  Speaking from a tour stop in the remote town of Poema, Colorado, Shara Worden, leader of the neoclassical pop ensemble My Brightest Diamond,... More >>

• Matthew and the Arrogant Sea Is Anything But

  published October 30, 2008

  At a table in a Borders in Lewisville, Matthew Gray looks like the kind of guy who would be leading a Dungeons and Dragons workshop instead of... More >>

• The Valentine Failures

  published October 23, 2008

  Lights Out in Suicide City, the full-length debut by this spunky local quartet, has been garnering kudos ever since it came out late... More >>

• Cold War Kids Get by on Bravado

  published October 23, 2008

  Cold War Kids bass guitarist Matt Maust seems like just another mild-mannered bass guitarist in a long line of mild-mannered bass guitarists.... More >>

• Mad Mexicans

  published October 16, 2008

  The half-studio/half-live format of this vigorous EP serves as the perfect jumping-off point for a discussion concerning the dichotomy of the... More >>

• Snarky Puppy

  published October 9, 2008

  Being named Best Jazz Act at this year's Dallas Observer Music Awards was just another addition to Snarky Puppy's already impressive... More >>

• Roy Orbison

  published October 9, 2008

  Of all of the major figures in rock 'n' roll (with the still unexplained exclusion of Van Morrison), Roy Orbison is one of the last to finally... More >>

• The Walkmen aren't as Dark as You Think They Are

  published October 9, 2008

  Somber, dark, sinister and gloomy are just a few of the adjectives most commonly used to describe the music of The Walkmen, one of New York... More >>

• Terri Hendrix, Lloyd Maines

  published October 2, 2008

  One would be extremely hard-pressed to find a better grouping of authentic roots and Americana than what will be on display in Deep Ellum this... More >>

• Somebody's Darling

  published September 25, 2008

  Ever since the regrettable breakup of Slobberbone, the area alt-country scene has consisted of a lot of bands (however talented) that spend a... More >>

• Jackopierce

  published September 18, 2008

  Promise of Summer is the first studio effort from Jackopierce in a dozen years, and it would appear little has changed in the collective muse... More >>

• Amos Lee

  published September 18, 2008

  Fans of Amos Lee's mix of folk, pop, soul and jazz are quite pleased that the singer-songwriter decided to quit his job as an elementary school... More >>

• Pushing Buttons

  published September 11, 2008

  Benjamin Power, half of the U.K. experimental duo Fuck Buttons, doesn't really seem concerned by the fact that his band's name could cause... More >>

• Exit 380

  published September 11, 2008

  Mr. & Mrs. Alexander Stone is Exit 380's fourth full-length effort, and it's by far the Denton band's most intricate and innovative piece of... More >>

• Janiva Magness

  published September 4, 2008

  The old adage is that folks who excel at playing the blues are the ones who have lived the blues. Coming from Los Angeles (by way of Detroit),... More >>

• Dirty Talk

  published September 4, 2008

  You'd think that, after 20 years of hearing his band described as the quintessential grunge group, Mudhoney frontman Mark Arm might have... More >>

• Ryan Cabrera

  published August 28, 2008

  Local young hunk Ryan Cabrera's third effort, The Moon Under Water, is supposedly his entry into serious music. Check out Cabrera's brunette... More >>

• Surfless in Seattle

  published August 28, 2008

  Evan Foster sure makes the life of an interviewer an easy one. The hyper-kinetic frontman for Boss Martians is friendly and accommodating,... More >>

• Ludo, The Feds, Likely Story

  published August 28, 2008

  Smartass geek rock will never go out of fashion. That's good news to St. Louis' Ludo, whose quirky pop spills all over its major-label debut,... More >>