Making pilgrimages in the name of Elvis Presley is nothing new. Of course, for most superfans of the King that means making the trek to Graceland in Memphis, Presley’s home and the place where he died back in 1977. But for talk show host Jerry Springer, it means something a…
It’s hard to think of much else today besides the news that legendary singer, actor and all-around badass David Bowie has passed away. But is there some positive news out there, especially for fans of classic rock, both young and old: Former Led Zeppelin front man Robert Plant is going…
With shocking suddenness, we’re left to live in a post-David Bowie world. The man who brought us Ziggy Stardust, the Thin White Duke and Jareth the Goblin King had secretly battled cancer for the past 18 months. On Sunday, just two days after celebrating his 69th birthday with the release…
What’s in a band name? Well, when your band doesn’t have any recorded music and has never played a show, it had better be a lot, because that’s all there is to work with. But that’s not enough to stop someone like Bucks Burnett from starting up the hype machine:…
Hip-hop has always been about struggle. The struggle of the streets, the struggle of the hustle, the struggle of being young and black in America. In 2015, after years of turmoil, those struggles reached a tipping point, exploding into the national consciousness because of an ever-increasing body count. A cop…
Paul Quigg never saw himself working at a concert venue. He’d spent 40 years in the music business, playing in bands and doing sound engineering for recording studios, theaters and television productions. So when his old friend and bandmate Jeffrey Liles approached him about joining him at The Kessler Theater,…
When it comes to the best albums made by North Texas artists, it was a year of extremes. Some, like Slobberbone front man Brent Best’s Your Dog, Champ, took years and seemingly endless series of ordeals, to see the light of day. Others, like Leon Bridges’ Coming Home, was the…
There were some real heavy hitters that stepped up the plate in Dallas music in 2015, some of them familiar faces and some of them (most of them, in fact) coming seemingly out of nowhere. Seeing the Queen herself, Erykah Badu, return with new music was one of the clear…
It’s been an interesting year for music festivals in North Texas. “Interesting” as in a year of transition, although to the most part essentially a year of growth. While Spune put its Index Fest on hiatus until 2016, it rolled out the first-ever Reunion Fest and moved its marquee Untapped…
2015 was a year of transition for concerts in Dallas, and we mean that in the best way possible. For all the cyber ink that’s been spilled vaunting the return of Deep Ellum and Dallas music in general (this year, and last year, and the year before last…), it’s a…
If Adele saved your Thanksgiving this year, then take heart: you can expect her to do the same thing right around the same time next year. This time, though, we’re not talking about another record. No, in November 2016 the current best-selling artist in the world is going to be…
Is it better to burn out or fade away? It might seem like we were dwelling on that question a little too much as the Dallas music community gathered last night for our 27 Club-themed party for the Dallas Observer Music Awards at The Bomb Factory, where we had nominated…
This is it, folks. Tomorrow is the big day for the Dallas Observer Music Awards, our 27th annual celebration of the Dallas music scene. Having rolled out the band showcase in Deep Ellum last Saturday, we’ll be setting up at The Bomb Factory on Wednesday night for the awards ceremony,…
Now it’s official. Speculation has been rife for weeks about the possibility of Leon Bridges being up for Grammy nominations, to the degree that it’s almost felt like more a question of where he’ll be nominated rather than if. With a busy (and impressive) year that saw him make his…
Scott Tucker was on the verge of having a dream come true. On Saturday, December 12, he and his band the Orange were scheduled to play a show at Gas Monkey Live!, opening for one his heroes, Scott Weiland. The Orange have spent a decade playing together, and after a…
This was supposed to be a special weekend for Dallas metal fans. King Diamond, the Danish legend and one-time front man for Merciful Fate, was scheduled to be playing a “hometown” gig Saturday night at House of Blues, performing his breakout solo album Abigail in its entirety. But those plans…
What a difference a year makes. Twelve months ago, we were getting ready to host the first-ever December version of our Dallas Observer Music Awards. Perennial DOMA nominees Sarah Jaffe and Old 97’s were squaring off for best album honors, with an upstart rapper, Blue, the Misfit, looking to score…
Willie Nelson Billy Bob’s Texas, Fort Worth Saturday, November 28, 2015 After all these years, Willie Nelson is still going strong. At the ripe old age of 82, the country legend may have slowed down a bit — added a shuffle to his step, sure — but he’s still doing…
We know what you’re thinking: “A 27 Club-themed party? Damn, that’s dark.” And well, okay, maybe it is, but just a little bit. After all, rock ‘n’ roll has always had a fascination with death and, well, who wants to go to another boring-ass Spring Break or Ugly Sweater party?…
Thursday was a big day for KXT 91.7 FM. It was part of a big month, in fact. About 30 people gathered in a small TV studio inside the KERA building as the small Dallas radio station entered new territory. Indiana band Houndmouth was inside to play an in-studio performance, which for the…
Now’s when the real fun begins. Voting has been open for the 2015 Dallas Observer Music Awards for just about six weeks, and we’re in the home stretch. (If you haven’t already voted, you’d better make your way over to 2015musicawardspoll.dallasobserver.com and make sure your voice is heard!) The awards…
Last weekend was a pretty good weekend for Jim Heath. For the fourth year running, he got to enjoy the spoils of performing at his own music festival (well, combination music and tattoo festival) as his alter ego, the Reverend Horton Heat, with not one but two performances during the…
