The Problem With… Coldplay’s “Christmas Lights”

During the holidays, artists tend to release disposable singles to cash in on the season. To my mind, no one ever buys these singles for themselves, they always get them as a gifts. We’re too busy buying albums on Best of the Year lists for ourselves. Anyway, this year, we’re…

Wiccans Offer Up A New Brew.

Denton’s Wiccans are a group of musicians from varying backgrounds and with varying tastes. Simply put, the band plays hard, fast music. But Wiccans—which feature Adam Cahoon on vocals, Payton Green and Daniel Zeigler on guitar, Harpal Assi on bass and Gregory Rutherford on drums, and have an aesthetic more…

The Best National Album Releases of 2010

The thing that makes writing about music at once an exciting and frustrating endeavor is the fact that enjoyment of the art is subjective. One critic’s trash could be another critic’s treasure (see: easily the most debated album of the year, Sleigh Bells’ Treats), just as one critic’s treasure can…

Band of Heathens, The Trishas, Charlie Shafter

Band of Heathens is technically from Austin, but the band comes off like it might have spent a great deal of time in New Orleans learning the rich mixture of sounds that mark that city’s eclectic scene. In moments, this outfit is reminiscent of The Band circa the early ’70s:…

Devin The Dude, Dem Southernfolkz

There’s something refreshingly unassuming about Devin Copeland’s chosen stage name, Devin the Dude. The same thing can be said for his music: Devin’s songs aren’t filled with tales of hardcore violence and obscene wealth—he’s more likely to rap (or sing) about running out of weed or chasing women. This reputation…

The Biggest Local Music Stories of 2010

As a whole, 2010 sure felt like a good year for music, at least as it was happening. There was no shortage of events to attend, new bands to hear or trends to keep watch over. As it happened, though, it felt more like a blur than anything else. So,…

Hagfish, Riverboat Gamblers, The American Fuse

More than a decade has passed since Hagfish released what would turn out to be their final record (1999’s self-titled affair). Tack on another five years to that total and you’ll arrive at 1995, the year the band released its opus, …Rocks Your Lame Ass. But the band’s legacy shouldn’t…

The Top 20 Local Music Videos of 2010

Back in the day, there was a place for music videos — on television, and, namely, on the few glorious stations that played them. For the most part, though, those stations are no more — or they’ve changed formats so much that the remnants of their storied pasts have become…