New Religious Movements

After Earth: Smith Family Robinson

The adventure flick pretends it’s not an M. Night Shyamalan film

Christian Columnist: Gay Boy Scouts Disappoint Jesus With Their "Sexual Anarchist Agenda"

Meet Linda Harvey, a talk radio host on a Christian station in Columbus, Ohio. In her free time, she's the founder and main opinion-spewer behind Mission: America, which promotes itself as "Christian commentary on the culture." Harvey is deeply concerned with pressing social issues like "paganism" ( ... More >>

Bunny Wailer Uses the Power Vested in Him by Facebook and Wikipedia to Excommunicate Snoop Lion from Rastafarianism

Neville Livingston, a.k.a. Bunny Wailer, has officially excommunicated Snoop Lion from the "Rastafari Community." I say "officially": He made a Facebook post wherein he said, "SNOOP LION IS OFFICIALLY EXCOMMUNICATED FROM THE RASTAFARI COMMUNITY!" and then posted a definition of excommunication from ... More >>

Of Lance, Scientologists and Other Liars, Or Why the Truth Hurts

The weekend draws mercifully close, and I feel a need to revisit a couple themes touched on here earlier in the week. We started with Lance Armstrong on Monday. I predicted he would fake-confess and then offer a jail-house rationalization to the effect of, "I didn't do nuthin'." I admit this predict ... More >>

The Atlantic Magazine Flunks the Truthfulness Test With Scientology Ad

The Atlantic magazine has stumbled badly on that really hard multiple choice question at the end of the Journalism 101 final exam: "Lying to your readers is: 1) a good thing, or 2) a bad thing." One pictures them hunched over the bubble sheet, eyes squinted closed and pencil tips to their tongues, b ... More >>

Get To Know Your 2012 Denton DOMA Nominees

Leading up to our November 10 showcase, we'll be getting you familiar with some of our Dallas Observer Music Awards nominees, either via past features we've done on them, or new ones. You can vote for your favorite acts, venues and more right here. Warren Jackson Hearne & Le Leek Electrique It see ... More >>

Dueling Sex-Assault Claims Killed a Satanic Church; Now its Pastor Wants to Open in Dallas

The Church of the IV Majesties imploded two years ago in a very public way. The self-described Satanic church had been planning a staged exorcism at the Oklahoma City Civic Center. Then, a month before the event, the church's co-founders had a falling out. One of the founders, James Hale, outed the ... More >>

The Five Best Shows in Dallas This Week

Will Johnson Monday, October 1, at Good Records/Tuesday, October 2, at Texas Theatre We chatted with Centro-matic frontman Will Johnson last month about his new excellent solo album, Scorpion, and how he finds time to record while also being in a bajillion side projects. He'll be celebrating the rel ... More >>

The Master's Master

Paul Thomas Anderson talks 70mm, Joaquin Phoenix and researching Scientology for his sixth and most anticipated film.

Lightning Bolt - Sons of Hermann Hall - 8/28/12

Lightning Bolt, Drug Mountain, Wiccans Sons of Hermann Hall Tuesday, August 28 To the noisenik who wasn't able to peek over the throng parked in front of Lightning Bolt last night, Brian Gibson might have been playing an electric chair through effects pedals. His bass, with a bonus banjo string at ... More >>

Lighting Bolt

Tuesday, August 28, at Sons of Hermann Hall

Wiccans Offer Up A New Brew.

Leaps And Bounds

Metal Gig Alert: Mammoth Grinder, Power Trip, Harms Way and Wiccans Tonight at 1919 Hemphill.

...and an awesome logo, too.​Looking for something sweet and wholesome to do before New Year's Eve rolls around? Well, don't bother with 1919 Hemphill tonight then--because tonight's show at the Fort Worth DIY venue will rock your balls off.Although Austin's Mammoth Grinder (great name) is the he ... More >>

The Sad View from Valley View

Signs like this one decorate dozens of empty storefronts at Valley View Center.​When I was a kid, Valley View was my mall -- bought my first skateboard (a Powell-Peralta purchased at the stand beneath the escalators), my first album (KISS's Double Platinum at the Disc Records) and my first guitar ... More >>

The Gourds Keep On Keeping On

Chelsea Hardly

A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant

Deck the halls with bombs of Xenu

Sci-Fi

Check out an Unauthorized musical

Say It!

It's love in the time of the dark lord

Faith-Based Punk