Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Brian “Torch” Idell’s beat is the streets of Deep Ellum. He’s not a cop or reporter, though. Rather, he promotes local music. And he does it with…
Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Josh Robinson, to a first-timer, might look like he’s about to kill you. He’s a large, somewhat menacing, tattooed and black-bearded man who looks like he might…
Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. She’s helped flood a bar. She’s seen fights between drag queens and other bar employees, and been exposed to (not without reciprocation) more private parts of her…
Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t the musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Right before Pantera’s major label debut, Cowboys from Hell, came out in 1990, John Graham went on the road with them and their opener, Skid Row,…
Welcome to Local Music’Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Cat Hough was a high school kid in Fort Worth when she saw the Toadies perform one of their earliest shows at a place called Maggie’s Beat Farm…
Welcome to Local Music’Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Once upon a time, Cindy Chaffin was the mastermind behind Texas Gigs, a blog and database that was eventually acquired by Pegasus News. Later, she launched FineLineLive, a…
Welcome to Local Music’Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Scott Beggs, once one of the kids in the punk rock crowds back in the day, has been assembling live concerts in DFW since the mid-’90s at various…
Welcome to Local Music’Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. If you’ve ever gone to see a rock band in Deep Ellum, he was likely your maitre’ d, of sorts. He’s one of those guys that often finds…
Welcome to Local Music’Mericans, where we’ll be meeting some people behind the local music scene who aren’t musicians, but more behind-the-scenes folk. Kim Keebler was raised in Deep Ellum as a young pup. Her first concert was there: The Dead Kennedys, back in the mid ’80s.She bought her first car…
Billy BlairFor no apparent reason, not one, but two Dallas-based musicians made contributions to Robert Rodriguez’s latest film, Machete: 17-year-old Tiger Darrow, a burgeoning local pop artist and Rodriguez intern was afforded the opportunity to score three different scenes in the film, and local rocker Billy Blair, who has now…
Musically, Saintkarla are spirited, enterprising, and all over the map—hence, presumably, the hummingbird used as this album’s cover art. Theirs, indeed, is a melting pot brand of rock. And while that doesn’t work for everyone, if you’ve the attention span, there’s a lot to draw from Elephant in the Room…
Marquis of Vaudeville’s self-titled debut, which actually quietly dropped last year, is a shrewd fusing of twinkly pop, gaze-at-the-stars vocals and melancholy melody outlined with edgy, trenchant guitars. On tracks like “An Ordinary Day,” you get an almost theatrical opening, with mischievous, alley-cat piano plunkings as the curtain falls away…
Psychedelic Furs, She Wants RevengeGranada TheaterJuly 1, 2010Better than: staying home to watch a brat pack movie on Insta-Netlfix. The Psychedelic Furs’ Richard Butler had the time of his life last night. He was twirling, bunny-hopping, and unconsciously conducting his band with his grandiose, animated, almost theatrical gestures and finger-snaps…
He sings like it’s been days since he’s slept, even more time since he’s eaten, and weeks since he’s had a break from working in the coal mines. Andrew Delaney is a storyteller, sure, but you sense he’s seen genuine hard times. Still, Delaney doesn’t spin his own personal T.M.I…
King of the Rabbit Trail is a unique band—especially when it comes to style and genre fusion. They’re like post-punks in cowboy boots and fronted by Julian Casablancas. For the most part, it’s simple, rough-hewn, alt-country-tinged hard rock, rife with throaty, bitter vocals and loud, dry, dusty guitars. “I Still…
Bad news, fans of things that are fun: Giggle Party is bailing on Dallas-Fort Worth for the greener pastures of San Francisco. Right after this weekend, in fact. Turns out bassist Jason Reichl is headed that way for real-life, not-at-all-music-related career reasons–and GP keyboardist Kat Michie (aka Mrs. Jason Reichl)…
Once upon a time, Paco Estrada fronted the now-defunct, fairly successful Dallas rock band South FM. These days, though, he’s working on his solo material. And, as always, his writing serves as a confessional for what was obviously a lot of painful experiences. Among them? South FM. In retrospect, it…
The DeftonesTreesMay 4, 2010Better than: ..any abbreviated, afternoon mini-set at a festival concert, for damn sure. The Deftones took to Trees last night for an eleventh-hour-announced, quickly-sold-out concert, and delivered a boastful, deafening, 21-song set to an expanse of shoulder-to-shoulder bodies.They were pressed against every wall, and lined along every…
Band: Giggle PartyVenue: Boiler RoomTime: 1145 p.m.Dallas’ frenetic, mad-genius punk act Giggle Party started setting up onstage at The Boiler Room by not only plugging in, but by blowing up balloons.As such, its show started with cheers–plus drunken catcalls and pre-recorded instructions on how the audience could participate, go figure…
D. Anson Brody beats the living shit out of his guitar. It’s not out of anger, nor is it simply histrionics. It’s just his style, and it’s genuine. Sure, lots of guys play “slap”, but Brody goes much further, and lets percussion come out of his insides with the same…
While The Crazy Ivans seem to have the pieces in place to be an entertaining live rock band—aggressive raw guitar riffs, a capable vocalist, etc.—the challenges presented in a recording studio can be a whole other ugly animal. The problem here? This band has trouble writing good songs. It’s easy…
Whatever happened to the Pontiac Fiero? Remember? Little sporty car, driven mostly by divorcées? And whatever happened to The Valentines? In ’06 and ’07, that band was a Dallas Observer Music Award-winning act in the indie rock category. The car disappeared from garages—much like the band did, actually. After a…
