Craft beer is supposed to be intertwined with its communities. In theory, it’s created, brewed and distributed locally, so it makes sense to form an intimate relationship with the musicians that drink and perform at the local bars where the brews are sold. Local breweries and musicians are forming these…
Last week was good for Dallas rapper David Morgan. On the spur of the moment, he decided to record a response to superstar Chicago rapper Chance the Rapper’s #SoGoneChallenge, a viral meme that involves freestyling over Monica’s 2003 hit song, “So Gone.” Within a week, Morgan’s rendition had garnered almost…
The bar and music venue formerly known as The Underpass, tucked under I-30 in Expo Park, is getting a remake. Now under new ownership, it’s set to reopen this fall as The Dirty 30, for the namesake highway above it. It’s the brain-child of long-time bassist for the rock band…
The rock walls of the Old Dirty Basement under J&J’s Pizza in Denton shuddered on Saturday night as the Dallas-based band Triangulum warmed up with some spacey tunes. “I’ve always wanted to play here,” says band member Cody McPhail. “It’s legendary.” This would be the first and last time he’d have…
Chris Robinson finally had the lineup of his band Caterpillars he always wanted. After years of lineup changes, the Dallas vocalist and guitarist had recorded an album called The Other Side with drummer Stephen O’Sicky, guitarist Drew Black and bassist Ben Love. They had some great opportunities in front of…
It started as a meme, and then the meme became reality. Kristian Nairn — the actor who played Hodor on HBO’s Game of Thrones until earlier this year — performed at The Bomb Factory over the weekend, and the fans sure showed up. The show gave them a whole new reason…
The last time Disturbed were in Dallas, things got a little testy. Well, singer David Draiman did anyway, when he called out a fan for being on her cel phone during the show. (She was calling home to check on a child.) So it’s probably a good thing that one…
In the annals of punk history, most cities have a batch of punk bands the define the city’s legacy. New York, Austin, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Washington all had bands that put their scenes on the map. In Dallas, you have to dig a little deeper, but there are at…
For students, this week likely marks the end of another summer and the beginning of overpriced text books and early-morning alarms. It’s a farewell to late nights and lazy mornings, maybe, but not to great shows. Lose the blues and indulge in one last hurrah or three with the likes…
Gwen Stefani With Eve Gexa Energy Pavilion, Dallas Saturday, August 13, 2016 If only everyone could be as lucky as Gwen Stefani. For most, dealing with heartbreak might just lead to drunken Facebook rants or passive-aggressive tweets. But not for Stefani. Instead, she responded with This is What the Truth…
The Monkees The Bomb Factory, Dallas Thursday, August 11, 2016 Thursday night at The Bomb Factory, Dallas got its first glimpse into Mark Cuban’s new TV concert series with a free performance from ’60s legend the Monkees. With the band celebrating its 50th anniversary, it was a night predictably heavy…
The owner of the restaurant and live music venues Love and War in Texas closed his Grapevine location this week as he prepares to open a new venue in East Texas. The original Plano location remains open. Owner Tye Phelps told the Observer that the decision came down to lease…
Some businesses don’t need to advertise. The Kitchen Studios over in Lakewood has a well-earned reputation as a full-service recording studio, earned since opening in the 1990s. The low-key creative suite is almost always solidly booked from open to close, based solely on word-of-mouth and good old-fashioned networking. Their client list…
Leon Bridges and Barack Obama — you know, the President of the freaking United States of America — go way back. Well, maybe not way back, but they’ve sure met before, and the president’s admiration for the Fort Worth singer’s music is well documented. Now Obama has given Bridges an…
Two years ago I approached the Dallas Observer about reviving a mixtape series for the paper. I saw this as an opportunity to create a historical document of what the Dallas DJ scene looks like from the street level. Not the wedding DJs or the Top 40 club DJs, but…
Allen Falkner is as Deep Ellum as they come, but his name is known around the world. He’s known as the father of body suspension, in which people suspend themselves in the air with the aid of hooks inserted in their flesh. Faulkner already owns the Fade Fast tattoo removal…
Many of Dallas’ most popular bars are known for being grimy and grungy. Stained carpets, peeling paint and cracked upholstery on banquets that are falling apart; all are hallmarks of true watering holes. But there may be no more harrowing experience than when it comes time to brave the bathroom…
Kristian Nairn found success as a musician long before his acting career took off. He toured Europe and, for 11 years, held down a DJ residency at one of Belfast’s most popular gay clubs, Kremlin. But if it wasn’t for Game of Thrones, Nairn may never have been able to bring…
Officials with the East Texas town of Lindale approached the family of country superstar Miranda Lambert to ask if they could help save their downtown. When they asked if the country music superstar was willing to use her headquarters there to anchor a rehabilitation, the Lamberts’ answer was simple: “Only if…
San Antonio attorney Patricia Diaz Dennis flew to Dallas last weekend to meet her daughter and catch a concert more than a decade in the making. She flew to Dallas, rendezvousing with Alicia Diaz Dennis, a graduate student at Louisiana State University. The younger woman wouldn’t have heard the Dixie…
It’s a good thing Jason Burt has a knack for making music, because he’s not sure what else he would do. “Honestly, I was fired from every job I ever had,” he says, and he’s only half joking. There wasn’t anything else Burt cared about as much as he cares…
Where do you go after touring with Justin Bieber? That’s the question that Post Malone has known he’d eventually have to answer. And now he has an answer: Headlining this year’s Outbreak Tour, presented by Monster Energy drinks. Whether or not you have a problem with the corporate branding slapped…
