The weekend is over and we are just as sad about it as you are, especially now that it's raining again. However, there's a slew of great shows worthy of your attention this week. Charlie Wilson, of the Gap Band and G.O.O.D. Music, takes on Grand Prairie. Upstanding American citizens Chris Brown and Tyga hit the American Airlines Center. Aesop Rock plays a show at Gas Monkey Bar N' Grill. Rob Thomas does the casino gig and 35 Denton returns. Plus much, much more.
See also: The Revived 35 Denton Is Showing No Pulse Cory Morrow Leads All-Texas Additions to Dallas Observer's St. Patrick's Day Concert
Biographies With Null, IORI, and Glasir, 7 p.m., Monday, March 9, at 1919 Hemphill, [email protected], $6 This is an anomaly of sorts. 1919 Hemphill in Fort Worth is known for putting on shows with rowdy punk and hardcore bands. Biographies is a bit more plush in sound and sensibility. You most likely won't catch a knee to the throat for the hell of it here, which hardly sounds like a 1919 Hemphill show. Hailing from Denton, Biographies is a six-piece founded on contemplative lyrics and arpeggio-based riffs. Still, we suspect they'll feel right at home for this one. H. Drew Blackburn
Destruction Unit With Mind Spiders, Sin Motivo, 8 p.m., Tuesday, March 10, at Three Links, at 2704 Elm St., http://www.threelinksdeepellum.com, $10 Don't be alarmed. It may seem like the sky is falling and the world is coming to an end. It may also seem like somebody put a microphone up to the chaos and pressed record. But neither of those things is true. No, what you're hearing is the hardcore punk outfit Destruction Unit, who delve heavily into the psychedelic and the heaviest, most uptempo of riffs, strums and drums imaginable. The band formed in the early aughts with R. Rousseau and the late Jay Reatard, but they've not only managed to avoid self-desctruction, they're still amplifying the chaos. HDB
Chris Brown With Trey Songz and Tyga, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, at American Airlines Center, 2500 Victory Ave., 214-222-3687 or americanairlinescenter.com, $55.94-$273.75 There's been plenty of hype surrounding Chris Brown and Trey Songz's Between the Sheets Tour, but not necessarily for the right reasons. Grammy Award-winning Brown and Grammy-nominated Songz, along with special guest Tyga, were set to hit Dallas in February, until the law intervened. Earlier this year a California judge revoked Brown's probation in the 2009 Rihanna assault case for his failure to complete community service, which forced the artist to postpone the tour. However, it appears that on March 11, Dallasites will be graced with the pretty boy's presence (for real this time) - and then some. With all of that garbage behind him, Breezy has been making up for his inability to perform by blowing away the audience with a badass lineup, as well as some pretty impressive and unexpected guests. For example, just about everyone from Ty Dolla $ign to 50 Cent treated fans to surprise appearances during the tour's New York City stop; and in Philly, hometown hero Meek Mill dropped by. Expect to hear tracks from the co-headliners' most recent albums, Brown's X and Songz's, Trigga, as well as new tracks from their recent collaboration, Fan of a Fan. Molly Mollotova
The Trishas With Courtney Patton, 7 p.m. Thursday, March 12, at The Kessler Theater, 1230 W. Davis St., 214-272-8346 or thekessler.org, $18-$25 The Trishas, named after Trisha Yearwood who sang a song written by one of the member's fathers, Kevin Welch, are a band of four women who all play an instrument, but they all sing to boot. They're a country band with has a knack for melody, ballad-ready instrumentation and voices full of slight twang and plenty of gusto. The Austin-based band released their debut High, Wide & Handsome, which bridges the gap between arena country darlings and roots music, in 2012. It has been a while, but a live set can more than tide you over. HDB
Charlie Wilson With KEM and Joe, 8 p.m. Friday, March 13, at Verizon Theatre, 1001 Performance Pl., Grand Prairie, 972-854-5111 or verizontheatre.com, $35-$125 Kanye West's Yeezus was a rock 'em, sock 'em punk opera. But on "Bound 2," Kanye shirked his multiple coats of war paint for a toast to domestic bliss. The behemoth falsetto you hear on this track's outro belongs to "Uncle" Charlie Wilson, an avuncular sixtysomething with the oratorical command and fashion sense of a televangelist. For 40 years, Wilson has been belting out candlelit R&B ballads, first as a member of the Gap Band, then as a solo performer. His new album, Forever Charlie (RCA/Sony), is not materially different than his past work. Wilson issues recurrent appeals to matrimonial harmony, singing with preacherly conviction; it's not hard to imagine him convening a summit on how to arrest our nation's divorce rate. Forever Charlie's tidily arranged backing tracks might be a little anodyne -- Uncle Char has always been faithfully observant of quiet storm doctrine -- but Wilson's voice is powerful enough to send chills through a packed cathedral. M.T. Richards
Aesop Rock With Rob Sonic and DJ Abilities, Friday, 7 p.m. March 13, at Gas Monkey Bar & Grill, 10261 Technology Blvd. E., 214-350-1904 or gasmonkeybarngrill.com, $20-$40 If you've ever taken over the auxiliary cord at a party to put on your go-to Drake banger, only to be accosted by a rando white dude talking insistently about "real hip-hop," there's a good chance you've heard of Aesop Rock. But we can't blame the guy for his obnoxious audience (ditto for A$AP Rocky) and even a cursory listen to 2001's underground-classic Labor Days or 2012's self-produced Skelethon will convince you he's a ridiculous wordsmith and a capable MC, albeit something of an acquired taste. The latter album also gives us a window into an oddball recent pastime to look out for, collaborating with former Moldy Peach Kimya Dawson; they put out a joint full-length as the Uncluded in 2013 (and it's weird). This isn't Big Sean party rap, or even Run the Jewels message rap; it's for digging into and poring over, because he has scrupulously avoided sonics you could conceivably call catchy. If you're going to see Aesop live, you better hope his brand of word collage has already tickled your fancy somewhere along the line, otherwise you might be in for some alienation. But hey, that can be good for you, too. Brian J. Peterson
RJD2 With Option4, 8 p.m. Saturday, March 14, at Gas Monkey Live, 10110 Technology Blvd. E, gasmonkeybarngrill.com, $15-40 Hip hop beats, '70s funk, rap, indie rock and electronic experimentation have all had an intertwining and innovative place in DJ and producer RJD2's repertoire since his first full-length album Dead Ringer appeared in 2002. The Philadelphia native otherwise known as Ramble Jon Krohn hasn't released an album since More Is Than Isn't in 2013, but he steadily continues to share remixes and tour with either a backing band or on his own. In addition to running his own label, Electrical Connections, Krohn is also working on new music. His instrumental version of "A Beautiful Mine," which originally appeared on an album with vocals by rapper Aceyalone, is the theme song for the ever-cool Mad Men. On stage, Krohn sometimes appears as a very uncool robot donning a look situated somewhere between a sloppily dressed Daft Punk and Gort from The Day the Earth Stood Still. But with his genre-defying creativity, RJD2 surpasses the often-monotonous EDM permeating the current mainstream dance and electronic music scene. Kristin Lockhart
Rob Thomas 7 p.m. Saturday, March 14, Choctaw Casino, 4216 S. Hwy 69/75, Durant, Oklahoma, 1-888-652-4628 or choctawcasinos.com/choctaw-durant, $55-$75 Rob Thomas is playing at Choctaw Event Center in Durant, Oklahoma on Saturday, March 14th. But, you already knew that. You screamed, "OH, HELL YES" when you saw the giant billboard on I-75 with his giant Rob Thomas face on it and those intense Rob Thomas eyeballs staring right into your white-blues soul. You went online to buy tickets, and things got even better: this is a Rob Thomas solo tour. No other Matchboxes will be there. Just him, his Rob Thomas guitar, his Rob Thomas piano, and his fuckin' bad-to-the-bone Rob Thomas voice. You immediately see yourself at the concert, saving the day for Rob Thomas because he was like, "Aww dang, the other Matchboxes aren't here and I need someone who can play the tambourine. What will I do? I'm Rob Thomas and I'm in trouble." And you whip out your travel tambourine and start rocking the shit out of it and then Rob Thomas high-fives you and then you share a mic with him back-to-back and you're all, "Gimme your heart! Make it real! OR ELSE FORGETMMBADDIT!" It's the best. The Chocktaw buffalo nods: "Yes. This is, indeed, The Best." Alice Laussade
35 Denton With The Zombies, Slobberbone, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Jamaican Queens, Happyness and more, Friday March 13 - Sunday March 15, Denton, TX, 35Denton.com, $25-$100 The crown jewel of Denton music took a bit of a sabbatical in hopes of returning stronger than ever. Sadly, though, that isn't really the case. To its credit, though, the Zombies have been brought on to headline and some skilled national acts like Cymbals Eat Guitars, Jamaican Queens and Happyness are coming into town as well. But, the collective bill in terms of national acts leaves us wishing for a bit more. The crown jewel of this year's fest is the local bill which hosts plenty of great local bands from around the area. Still, that's nothing new or different than previous years. HDB
Surfer Blood With Turbo Fruits, Sun Club, 7 p.m., Sunday, March 15, at Club Dada, 2720 Elm St., dadadallas.com, $12-$15 Surf rock can get a little hectic and heavy sometimes. That's exactly what Surfer Blood from West Palm Beach, Florida is here for. The band's debut album from 2010 made waves (er) for it's raw take on the genre. In 2012 the lead vocalist, John Paul Pitts got arrested for battery and the charges were dropped. The arrest caused a little bit of a rift in the band, but they're still going at it. This year, the band releases their third studio album, 1000 Palms. HDB
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