Music

It wasn’t that long ago that John Mayer was just the funny, guitar-playing cocksman that every college girl loved and a lot of boyfriends pretended to hate.  But if you think his very misguided attempt at humor in a recent Playboy interview—one that included some questionable racial humor—could derail Mayer’s…

When you think of a person who lives without running water in the low rolling hills of Virginia’s Piedmont region, you likely won’t make a quick or easy association between such a Spartan existence and anything remotely resembling “punk.” But, for nearly 20 years, Tim Barry has displayed punk ethos…

Q: When is a country record not merely a country record? A: When the record in question swaggers more than it swoons, or when the album makes your eyes sting with sweat, rather than filling them with tears. While Southern Drive is considered by many to be one of the…

Whatever happened to the Pontiac Fiero? Remember? Little sporty car, driven mostly by divorcées? And whatever happened to The Valentines? In ’06 and ’07, that band was a Dallas Observer Music Award-winning act in the indie rock category. The car disappeared from garages—much like the band did, actually. After a…

If it seems like things are kind of slow around these parts these days it’s because, well, they are. Painfully so, actually. Sure, they’ll pick up shortly enough—Denton’s four-day NX35 Music Conferette kicks off next week, followed perhaps too quickly by SXSW and all the extra spillover goodies that annual…

While The Crazy Ivans seem to have the pieces in place to be an entertaining live rock band—aggressive raw guitar riffs, a capable vocalist, etc.—the challenges presented in a recording studio can be a whole other ugly animal. The problem here? This band has trouble writing good songs. It’s easy…

…and for those of you still stuck on YouTube, here’s your link.Funny story about Somebody’s Darling, the band that stopped on by for weekly DC9 Live at El Sibil taping last Wednesday night: This four-piece is actually the first band I ever saw in Dallas. I’d interviewed for the gig…

Welcome to Staff Trax, the weekly feature here on DC9 where we shed some light on the music we’ve been enjoying of late, regardless of the touring or album release schedules that tend to bear the focus of most of our coverage. It’s a chance for you readers to get…

Just months after releasing the career-spanning four-disc concert set The Live Anthology, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have announced details for a forthcoming new studio album and tour. And, in a bit of shrewd marketing, every concert ticket purchase includes an MP3 download of Mojo, slated for release sometime this…

Although I’ll be attending the Portugal. The Man concert in the same building tonight (in the Cambridge Room), those looking for a more earnest style of indie rock might want to check out State Radio, who will be playing this evening in the big room at the House of Blues.The…

OK, so I watch a lot of reality TV and, clearly, I don’t hide this fact. And while the Metroplex has enjoyed (and I’ve enjoyed slamming or celebrating) a contestant on various shows in modeling, music and fashion fields here and there, North Texas has hit the motherload with a…

This here post is the latest edition in our recurring feature that takes a look at what outside musicians think about the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Each week or so, we’ll present a conversation with a touring act, and conclude it with a quick word-association game focusing on certain aspects of…

Nice to see two of our favorite relatively new-to-the-scene hard rock acts, The Phuss and Maleveller, working together as they do in the above music video, released today, for The Phuss’ oh-so-delectable Toadies-esque rock anthem, “Preacher, Preacher.” What’s Maleveller’s contribution? Ah: The titular character in the song is portrayed in…

Well, the area mash-up artist who goes by the name of Objektiv One has gone and done it again, preying on our mash-up weaknesses and offering up some ear candy with a new track that, like his previous efforts, finds him blending hip-hop with the world of rock. But whereas…

On Sunday, a group of tight-knit area musicians gathered at the as-yet-unopened (but gorgeous–got a tour last night) Kessler Theatre in Oak Cliff to pay tribute to their fallen friend, Tommy Atkins, the bass player for The Great Tyrant, who died late last week. Included among the performances held on…

Seems that the local music bloggers and party-starters of DayBowBow got together with No Words, Zorch, TapeBombs and Covert Curiosity and asked themselves: How can we get a party going in Austin during SXSW? Of course, the answer is simple: Andrew W.K. Andrew W.K.’s 3 a.m. set caps South By…