Email Author Zac Crain

2002 Stories by Zac Crain

• Bah Humbug

  published December 12, 2002

  I began hating Christmas albums around the same time I figured out there was no Santa Claus: a long time ago and well before my parents knew any... More >>

• Chomsky Marches On

  published December 12, 2002

  When Chomsky played The Door on November 23, singer-guitarist Sean Halleck announced that it was officially the group's final show... More >>

• The Roots

  published December 12, 2002

  Near the end of The Roots' sixth album is a song (the 10-minute-plus "Water") that underlines, italicizes and bold faces the problem that has... More >>

• Master of Disguise

  published December 5, 2002

  Consider this a palate cleanser. It was almost three years ago. George W. Bush was teaching the world how to laugh. People were investing in... More >>

• OK Karaoke

  published November 28, 2002

  Mark Ridlen hates karaoke. He begrudgingly bought a karaoke machine two years ago because he was tired of having "some anonymous drunk"... More >>

• New Music, Good Music

  published November 21, 2002

  Had a good time at last weekend's North Texas New Music Festival, though we noticed attendance was slightly down. Not so much that you'd... More >>

• Bar Exam

  published November 14, 2002

  When Brent Best laughs, it sounds like the slide racking on a shotgun. Sounds that way when he coughs, too. Sometimes when he sings. Depends. It's... More >>

• Inside Look

  published November 14, 2002

  Week in, week out, we talk about what we think is right and wrong with local music, what needs to happen, what's happening too often. That kind of... More >>

• Beck, the Flaming Lips

  published November 14, 2002

  If it's a surprise that Beck follows his least necessary album (1999's Midnite Vultures, where he tried so hard to be Prince he seemed on... More >>

• The Thin Line

  published November 7, 2002

  The heart of hip-hop is in Billings, Montana. Really. Right now, at this moment, that's exactly where it is. At a rest stop, to be precise, if you... More >>

• Don't Look Back

  published November 7, 2002

  Dan Bejar needed a change or, at the very least, a break. Needed to get away from what he was doing, needed to get away from where he was doing... More >>

• Deep Down

  published November 7, 2002

  Business is down in Deep Ellum. Heard around 30 percent from some, a little higher from others. Some clubs are doing better than others, of... More >>

• Ash, Goldenboy

  published November 7, 2002

  Overseas, Ash would be touring in support of its recent best-of, Intergalactic Sonic 7"s, released in the U.K. in September. They'd be... More >>

• Number One With a Bullet

  published October 31, 2002

  On Tuesday, Interscope Records at long last released Nirvana, a 14-song best-of that features not only tracks from Bleach,... More >>

• Getting Louder

  published October 31, 2002

  Christy Darlington wishes he'd never gotten so many tattoos. Well, not really, but he knows they give people the wrong idea, especially women. The... More >>

• Baboon

  published October 31, 2002

  The title of Baboon's new album, Something Good is Going to Happen to You, is truth in advertising, so long as you crack the shrinkwrap and... More >>

• Mechanic Needed

  published October 24, 2002

  Pardon us if we're speaking out of turn, but this is something we've been thinking about for a while: Why isn't there a local label with any sort... More >>

• Badly Drawn Boy

  published October 24, 2002

  Until 2000's The Hour of the Bewilderbeast, Damon Gough could seep into the scenery, make his music without anyone making a fuss. Which is... More >>

• Home Free

  published October 17, 2002

  Of course, we should only talk about the music. Of course, we should. Home is, by far, the best album the Dixie Chicks have recorded, more... More >>

• Generals Knowledge

  published October 17, 2002

  A few months ago, we got an e-mail from a publicist at Sub Pop Records, a guy we've known for three or four years. He was reminding us that... More >>

• Around the Block

  published October 10, 2002

  Matt Riggle only recently started taking his band, 41 Gorgeous Blocks, seriously. The fact that he's been in the group for almost three years--and... More >>

• The Drifter

  published October 10, 2002

  The first thing that's different about the guy we're talking to is that he says "a boat" instead of "about." He's from Canada--Hamilton, Ontario,... More >>

• On the Town

  published October 3, 2002

  Even if it is part of your job description, we wouldn't recommend going out nine nights in a row, and certainly wouldn't suggest that liquor and... More >>

• Joe Tillotson, Richard Winfield and Scott Cecil

  published September 26, 2002

  It wasn't much of a party to begin with, but it looked as if the Barley House had gotten there when the last guests were putting on their... More >>

• Shot in the Arm

  published September 26, 2002

  The last time Wilco played in Dallas, the band was awful. That's what singer-guitarist Jeff Tweedy is saying on the phone right now, groaning as... More >>