The Must-See Acts at 35 Conferette

Three years into its existence and, finally, 35 Conferette organizer Chris Flemmons is seeing his dream of a walkable music festival in downtown Denton turn into a reality. We’ve seen shades of the festival shaping up this way for a few years now. The obligatory backstory: After a drunken conversation…

Carrie Rodriguez, Erin McKeown

For the better part of the past decade, the term “angelic” has been oft-applied in discussing the multi-talented Carrie Rodriguez and her music. To be sure, the molasses-coated twang she imparts is very much the stuff of heavenly creatures. So are her skills with almost any instrument bearing strings, especially…

Sebadoh, Quasi, Dove Hunter

Among the many gems to be gleaned from Michael Azerrad’s stellar Our Band Could Be Your Life, the chapter that really made the tome required reading was the section that covered the friction-intensive beginnings and inner workings of Dinosaur Jr. Unlike the hardcore champions of the time, the Massachusetts trio…

Over The Weekend: The Sword at the Granada Theater

The Sword, Garuda, Eagle ClawGranada TheaterFebruary 12, 2011Better than: dealing with the ramifications of a water-pipe burst at my house. Thanks, Snowpocalypse! The Granada Theater in Dallas hasn’t exactly been a haven for metalheads in recent years. No, despite piling up accolades as a top-notch venue for just about any…

The Sword’s Having More Fun Than You Think

Heavy metal can be fun. And in Austin, a metal band shredding its way not only through the city but also around the world is indeed having fun. The Sword, led by vocalist and songwriter John “J.D.” Cronise, have learned to use the fact that Austin’s musical focus often lies…

The Heelers

Often, a band forms only to quickly release an album that may not be the best reflection of who they truly are, musically. For Denton’s The Heelers, the route of exhaustively performing and then hitting the studio down the road was the proverbial road less traveled. And, indeed, their chosen…

Last Night: Cake at the Palladium Ballroom

CakePalladium BallroomDecember 30, 2010 Better than (eventually): The insane traffic that was backed up from the venue, all the way down Lamar, down the ramp and onto freaking I-30. Cake has it figured out. For the uninitiated: The California-based nerdy rock outfit managed to not only blow up into big…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Monday, December 20, 2010

We’ve got quite a backlog of CDs we’ve never gotten around to, so we’re going to try to chip away at the pile with this regular feature. The plan: to take a few at a time and play each CD for as long as I can stand it.Bryan Adams (Ontario,…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Monday, December 13, 2010

We’ve got quite a backlog of CDs we’ve never gotten around to, so we’re going to try to chip away at the pile with this regular feature. The plan: to take a few at a time and play each CD for as long as I can stand it.Various ArtistsImus Ranch…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: December 6, 2010

We’ve got quite a backlog of CDs we’ve never gotten around to, so we’re going to try to chip away at the pile with this regular feature. The plan: to take a few at a time and play each CD for as long as I can stand it. Shawn Mullins…