It the event heard ’round the world. Well, okay, the event heard around Dallas, but it was the buzz of all North Texas music last month, and the lines certainly wrapped around the block. We’re talking, of course, about the grand reopening party of Deep Ellum’s biggest concert venue, The…
Despite all our rage, our inner angsty teenaged selves are pretty damn excited by this announcement. Just imagine all the beautiful people who will come out to see Smashing Pumpkins and Marilyn Manson share the stage at Gexa Energy Pavilion this July for arguably the hottest summer show of 1996…
The worst kept secret of 2015 is finally, officially out in the world, and for Dallas music fans the news is a gas, gas, gas. For the first time in 10 years, the Rolling Stones will be coming back to North Texas, this time for a June 6 stop at…
You can always tell that it’s springtime when the lineups for Record Store Day start rolling out. And now it’s official: Last night on 1310 The Ticket’s Local Ticket with Mark Schectman, the big one, Good Records, announced their lineup, and it’s a doozy. Beyond the typical assortment of live…
Well, that was quite the weekend, Dallas. Thanks in large part to the highly anticipated return of The Bomb Factory with sold-out show from Thursday through Saturday, the local music scene has a whole new glow about it — and it’s a good look. This week looks to be a…
Erykah Badu With Sarah Jaffe The Bomb Factory, Dallas Thursday, March 26, 2015 Last night, the scene in Deep Ellum was unlike any we’ve seen before. Well, unlike any we’ve seen in many years, at any rate, depending on who you ask. It was still daylight and there was a…
We can’t think of many things that make for a bigger no-brainer: Willie Nelson loves weed. Weed is legal in several states. Ergo, Willie Nelson should have his own brand of weed. Hell, Willie Nelson should have his own chain of weed stores. This is America, damn it all. Well,…
It’s been a heck of a week for Leon Bridges. (We’re watching our language this time, in the spirit of Bridges’ vintage sound.) Hot off a much buzzed-about run of shows at South By South West over the weekend, the Fort Worth R&B singer picked up the festival’s prestigious Grulke…
Is it better to burn out or to fade away? If you ask the folks who attend Punk Rock Karaoke, the answer is an obvious one — although the best answer is actually “neither.” This Dallas series is a bit like karaoke on amphetamines, a chance for your average Joe…
The night of February 20, 2003 was a dark one for music fans. A massive fire at a club in Rhode Island claimed the lives of 100 concertgoers who were attending a concert from metal band Great White. The details were the stuff of horror: The club, filled over capacity…
Mavis Staples With James Hall The Kessler Theater, Dallas Sunday, March 8, 2015 Mavis Staples could make you believe in anything. It may be God, or it may be your fellow man. It may be something radical, like the notion that God is really a woman, or even that we…
Did someone say something about striking while the iron is hot? Back in November, the term “classic hip hop” was all the rage here in Dallas when two local radio stations abruptly (and simultaneously) switched to old-school rap formats. Gradually the buzz trickled away, and one of the stations, HOT…
Okay, we’ve kept you waiting long enough here. St. Patrick’s Day is less than two weeks away, which means the Dallas Observer’s annual luck o’ the Irish party is right around the corner as well. But so far we’ve only announced the headliner, which is of course Texas native Josh…
Trash Talk With Ratking and Lee Bannon Club Dada, Dallas Tuesday, February 17, 2015 There are varying levels of crazy in this world. It can range anywhere from the harmless, muttering-nonsense-to-yourself kind to the murderous, going-to-kill-the-next-person-you-see variety and anywhere in between. Bouncing gleefully between those poles is Sacramento hardcore band…
It’s been six long years since Jack White last played Dallas, in a show at House of Blues with the Dead Weather. It’s about time he pay us another visit…
Last Friday night marked a homecoming for one of the Dallas dance music community’s prodigal sons. DJ Brett Johnson was born and raised right here in North Texas, but for several years now he’s made his home on the other side of the Atlantic in dance-crazed Berlin. On Friday, he…
That time of year is already upon us: Time for the suburban music festivals to announce their 2015 lineups. (Pinch us!) Granted, there are fewer for us to choose from this year thanks to the uncertain future of Suburbia Music Fest, which lost the support of LiveNation after its first…
Well, yet another Grammy Awards night has come and gone, and like usual, there are plenty of things for people to complain about. Like Macklemore in 2014 or Adele back in 2012, the big winner on Sunday night was Sam Smith, who took home four awards, although not necessarily because…
After years of persistent and ugly rumors, Uptown bar Kung Fu Saloon was publicly, and loudly, accused last year of racism at its door and in its dress code. The bar’s owners didn’t say much at the time, but now the bar has accepted a plea deal with the city…
Luke Wade made a heck of a go of it on The Voice last fall. He proved a more than likeable addition to the NBC reality show with his “small town” charm (who’s ever heard of Fort Worth, right?) and made it pretty deep into the competition. In fact, he…
There’s a lot to like about the lineup for Homegrown Music Festival in 2015, announced this week. Now in its sixth year, the downtown Dallas fest landed Spoon as headliner, easily the biggest act to play the Texas-only music festival. Homegrown’s no longer the little fest that could; it’s turning…
It’s almost Valentine’s Day, which means one of two things: Either you’re single and you’re dreading the prospect, or you have a significant other and you’re pretty sure you’ll screw the whole holiday up, in which case you’re also dreading it. But there’s an easy way to fix this whole…
