It’s a fine line between retro and rehash, but the Black Crowes always manage to tread that precipitous divide with swagger and finesse. In the 17 years since they made their debut, the band, helmed by brothers Chris and Rich Robinson, remains relevant and resilient. With a new effort in…
More so than any genre, the blues embrace aging. Players in their 60s are kids to the stars who’ve made it to their 70s or 80s—the legendary Diamond Teeth Mary McClain played annual shows in Miami well into her 90s. So it’s pretty perfect that blues legend Buddy Guy, who…
The New Pornographers have a leg up on most groups, in that two of their members are accomplished solo artists: Neko Case has her alt-country thing, and Dan Bejar has Destroyer, his retro-weirdo Bowie thing. Together with New Porns’ principal A.C. Newman, they make near-perfect power-pop albums, culminating with 2005’s…
Like Explosions in the Sky before them, Denton instrumental duo Mom will probably have Hollywood beckoning in no time, begging for evocative new electroacoustic tracks to score the latest indie coming-of-age dramedy. But to relegate Little Brite to background status would be a crime, indeed—because Mom’s newest EP may also…
Rock ‘n’ roll history has a long tradition of bizarre incongruities: Sha Na Na at Woodstock—what was that all about? So when I first heard that Black Tie Dynasty was going to play at FireWater, that bastion of mid-cities metal, a place that boasts one of those cold Jägermeister machines,…
As you probably already know, the record industry is, to put it as mildly as possible, struggling. Other things you may already know: In the wake of Universal Music Group’s purchase of V2, which just purchased EMI, only three major labels remain: Universal, Sony and Warner Bros. CD stores are…
Au Revoir Simone’s synth-pop is as gorgeous as the three brunettes that make up the band. The Casio-centric outfit from Brooklyn began in 2003 when Erika Forster met Annie Hart on a train from Vermont to New York. Delivering lustrous harmonies, Au Revoir Simone has expanded the sonic palette on…
Judging by the near-incomprehensible liner notes in the debut release from his new Satellite Party project, Perry Farrell fancies himself an intergalactic prophet. The music on Ultra Payloaded sounds more like the work of a hippie magpie with a penchant for chaos and excess. The good news: It’s not the…
Weezer’s 1996 disc Pinkerton, which came on the heels of their hit debut, was much maligned. Critics held their noses, accusing the concept album (based on Madame Butterfly, of all things) of not just stinking of sophomore slump, but also of being one of the worst albums ever made. In…
In all the hoopla over the influence of ’60s and ’70s art rock on some of today’s most interesting bands, one salient fact is frequently overlooked: A lot of that stuff blew. For every Roxy Music and King Crimson, there was a Yes or an Emerson, Lake & Palmer (plus…
Looking satisfied but weary, local singer-songwriter Dylan Sneed sits in a coffee shop near his home in Lake Highlands and talks about his escape from the corporate world. “Man, I didn’t even know what my job was,” Sneed says about his two years spent writing instructional manuals for AT&T. “Ninety…
One of the last vestiges of the 1980s SST era, the Meat Puppets forged an independent punk-based sound that included elements of alternative country and psychedelic rock. Led by brothers Curt and Cris Kirkwood and Derrick Bostrom, the group hit radio pay dirt in 1994 with “Backwater,” from Too High…
A lot has already been written about hip-hop’s most anticipated disc of the year. But not much of it is complimentary. Sure, the split-personality concept, which basically plays out the much-discussed divide between moving units and keeping it street, is totally obtuse. But give Atlanta rapper T.I. (and his alter…
Fort Worth’s Burning Hotels remind me of something, but I just can’t put a finger on it. Which is a good thing; this crew hides their influences well enough to avoid the derivative tag, but you can still feel enough familiarity to stay in the groove. The band’s best song…
For better or worse, Deep Purple forever changed the path of hard rock music. Deceptively simple and painfully loud, songs such as “Highway Star,” “Woman From Tokyo” and, of course, “Smoke on the Water” were packed full of riffs that ushered in what would become known as heavy metal. Selling…
With Is Is, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have perfected their haphazard delivery. Part of what makes this band so captivating is their ability to sound as though each song might tear apart at the seams. The other part, of course, is the scary-sexual, guttural gymnastics of lead singer Karen O…
It was the hottest evening of the year so far, a real scorcher. We’ve been blessed this summer with cool rains, so nature chose to unveil that certain Texas heat, the kind that makes your head pound and your eyes water, on Saturday, August 11. The date also happened to…
In 1999, Z-Trip, along with DJ P, dropped a now classic mixtape titled Uneasy Listening. Cut into four segments, the sonic collage fearlessly merged numerous genres into a seamless blend. Uneasy Listening was an indie smash, paving the way for the now ubiquitous mashup. Underground flicks such as Scratch and…
Convincing Texans to buy an Icarus Line album may be tough after the band’s infamous 2002 set at the Hard Rock Cafe, wherein guitarist Aaron North broke a display case for a Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar and attempted to plug it in. For anyone still holding a grudge, relax: Jonny…
The “world” section at your local music retailer is just a way to pile together all the stuff that isn’t from America or the U.K. It really isn’t fair that bossanova joints can be found right next to some Riverdance jams, but English-born Sri Lankan M.I.A.’s latest, Kala, truly deserves…
DOMA! DOMA! DOMA!: Little bits of news from the DOMA Nominees Showcase: When PPT agreed to a single-song encore at their closing set at What?Bar, they had already shut down their iMac and were jumping offstage when the crowd insisted “One more!,” which resulted in a rousing version of “Work…
As recently as July 31, the New Sabbath Festival was known only for what it was planned as: a huge, wonderful lineup of local and nationally known folk, freak folk and acoustic acts. The festival lineup includes Jana Hunter, Brothers and Sisters, and Peter and the Wolf, along with well-known…
