Aerosmith, Blue October

Reality television has been the catalyst for the so-called resurgence of many over-the-hill, past-their-prime acts in recent years. Over the last year or so, legendary Massachusetts band Aerosmith decided to channel the spirit of the Sunday night VH1 lineup and make a little noise for themselves—Vanilla Ice and Flava Flav…

Ola Podrida, Golden Bear & Leatherbag

Austin’s David Wingo, who performs under the moniker Ola Podrida, grooves on where he comes from. Literally. The name under which he records his beautiful and spaced-out folk is a direct nod to the first time he ever performed in public—as a mouse at the Olla Podrida Mexican Market in…

Matthew Glenn Thompson

North Texas-based pop-rocker and former Quickserv Johnny frontman Matthew Glenn Thompson isn’t looking to reinvent the radio with his album, The Garden and The Arcade. In fact, there is very little that one would deem hip, let alone cutting-edge, about this enjoyable collection of soul and folk-inflected pop. But, really,…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Tuesday, July 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.We Are Scientists…

Silversun Pickups, Against Me!, The Henry Clay People

Rabid fans and nit-picky journalists can be a prickly lot—especially when it comes to what is perceived as selling out or simply echoing a rehashed sound from a previous period. With that, it’s rather fitting that Silversun Pickups and Against Me! are touring together. Against Me! leader Tom Gabel could…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Monday, July 12, 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.Giving Tree Band…

Last Night: Joe Pug, Doug Burr at Sons of Hermann Hall

Joe Pug, Doug BurrSons of Hermann HallJuly 8, 2010 Better Than: Waiting to see on TV where LeBron chose to play basketball. KXT-91.7 FM’s Barefoot at the Belmont show turned into a Hardwoods at the Hermann one on Thursday night. Since the open air of the Belmont Hotel isn’t, you…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Thursday, July 8, 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.Indigo GirlsStaring Down…

Joe Pug Tells Us How To Get Heard

In recent years, more than a few adroit artists would likely point directly to the blogosphere as the source for much of their fan base and growing success. Joe Pug, a folk troubadour from Chicago, is one such blog proponent. A couple of years ago, Pug was barely known outside…

Lost Immigrants

Pasaporte, the third release from Dallas’ Lost Immigrants, is a pleasant, completely listenable album that fans of well-written country rock will quickly hoist their beers to. But that isn’t to say that this disc is much of a statement, or that it will propel the band into the vanguard of…

Stockyards Stampede With Randy Rogers Band, Ryan Bingham, Everclear & MC Hammer

Blazing summer heat? Check. A barren, dusty field for drunken revelry? Check. Hotter-than-the-astronomical-July-heat-index act Ryan Bingham? Sure. The Randy Rogers Band as the established, crowd-pleasing headliner? Absolutely. Alt-rock heroes Everclear? Uh, yeah, OK. MC Hammer? Wait, what? This should be more than a little interesting. In recent years, the festival…

Rodney Parker & Fifty Peso Reward

If the goal of a two-part series is to have the initial installment create enough intrigue and interest for the consumer to eagerly await the subsequent part, then Rodney Parker & Fifty Peso Reward can go ahead and hang their Mission Accomplished sign up right behind their drum kit. Instead…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Tuesday, June 22, 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.Sugar and Gold…

Over The Weekend: Concrete Blonde at the Granada Theater

Concrete Blonde, Jim BiancoGranada TheaterJune 18, 2010Better than: listening to Bloodletting on CD, sad to say. The recent trend of bands performing shows and planning them around an entire album has become quite the rage these days. It’s gotten almost absurd: The fan-friendly phenomenon has grown to the point where…

Last Night: Josh Ritter at the Granada Theater

Josh Ritter, The MynabirdsThe Granada TheaterJune 15, 2010Better than: watching both hours of Hell’s Kitchen on TV. Six years and three additional, well-received studio albums can do wonders for a performer’s attendance figures, it seems. Josh Ritter, who rolled through town last night with a stop at the Granada Theater…

Clearing Out The Mailroom: Tuesday, June 15, 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.Widespread Panic (Athens,…