Update, 9:00 a.m. OK, fair enough — seems pretty bad out there. Not that I would know, since my plan for today includes extra pairs of socks and not a whole lot else. At this point, just assume whatever show you were going to tonight is cancelled, except Kanye West…
It was on a Saturday in Deep Ellum, and the night seemed unnaturally dark. Outside, the first breezes of fall chilled the air, but inside Reno’s Chop Shop the air was humid and thick, like a warm locker room. As the bar buzzed with the aimless movement of incoming patrons,…
The last year or so has seen Dallas’ country-folker Ronnie Fauss gather musch-deserved praise from across the country for his 2012 full-length debut I am the Man You Know I’m Not. With 2014 fast approaching, Fauss and the folks at Normaltown Records, an imprint of Americana giant New West Records,…
To many, Connecticut’s Fates Warning is the first progressive metal act. Started in 1983, the band has gone through a dizzying array of member changes including replacing original lead singer John Arch with San Antonio native Ray Alder in 1985. Through it all, however, Fates Warning remained true to its…
Even though he was a star by the time he was five years old, Donny Osmond was always considered too clean and wholesome for many rock critics. Yet along with his brothers and sister Marie, Osmond has managed to stay relevant in pop culture for nearly five decades. Donny and…
In 2005, country music hit singer and songwriter Chris Young was fronting the house band at Cowboy’s Dancehall in Arlington. But by the spring of 2006, it seemed as though the No. 1 smash hits would be just around the corner for the Tennessee-born and raised crooner after he easily…
Just last year, you may not have even known who he was. But in October 2012, the release and subsequent success of The Heist (his album with producer Ryan Lewis) turned Macklemore into a household name. What’s even more astonishing is that he did it all as an independent artist…
It’s really easy to call Dallas-based country singer-songwriter Troy Cartwright a “young-gun” or a “promising up-and-comer.” Partly that’s thanks to the fact he can write and sing the hell out of a song in his early 20s the way most folk vets might once they’ve been around for a couple…
Attending a Cowboy Mouth show requires a couple of 5-Hour Energy shots just before you walk in the door. The audience is the most integral part of their shows. They are loud, raucous gatherings that can make your feet sore for days and your voice feel like you’ve been gargling…
With his handmade “guit-steel” guitar and deep, country drawl, Junior Brown makes a hell of an impression. Over the course of four decades, Brown has taken his blues-inspired honky tonk across the nation and around the world, thrilling fans of honest and well crafted roots music. In truth, Brown is…
Ask Ashley Guynes what she thinks of her husband Jared’s attempts to throw an “Epic Party” for Dallas and she’ll just sigh and smile at the big schlub who may be 29-years-old but is still clearly a giant kid fighting the inevitability of age, maturity and their effect on his…
Austin’s Sons of Fathers is the brainchild of David Beck and Paul Cauthen, two guys who were born and raised all over Texas in musical families. After meeting at a park in San Marcos, the duo christened themselves Beck and Cauthen only to have representatives from Beck Hansen send them…
Earlier this month, local multi-instrumentalist Wanz Dover released Another Five Hours, the second offering under his Silver Saint moniker. Aesthetically, the project’s sound is in the vein of the early ’80s New York art-rock and no-wave scenes, specifically the work of avant garde guitarist/composer Glenn Branca. Having directly worked with…
Since 2003, Montreal’s The Besnard Lakes have produced a catalogue of some of the finest psychedelic rock out there. Led by the husband-wife team of Jace Lasek and Olga Goreas, the group released their stunning Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO earlier this year as the follow-up to 2010’s excellent The…
First hired in 1979 by Frank Zappa as a music transcriptionist, guitarist Steve Vai has just about done it all. Whether as a solo artist or playing with everyone from David Lee Roth to John Lydon, Vai’s sheer musical ability has never been questioned. Undoubtedly a hired gun, Vai’s career…
In 2005, Mitch McBain and Blake Myers, who comprises Houston-based band Rosehill, suffered a tragic loss when they were playing as a part of the group Texas High Life. Keith Binder, the band’s drummer, committed suicide, leaving the rest of group awash in hopelessness. Rosehill was formed in the wake…
Missouri’s Ha Ha Tonka is another one of those quality alt-country bands that always seems to grow away from the genre. Led by the talented Brian Roberts, Ha Ha Tonka have evolved into an indie rock act that loves mining traditionally alt-country subject matter (religion, racism and rural settings), but…
Although it’s been nearly five years since Idaho indie rockers Built to Spill have released an album, the band continues to be a solid concert draw across the United States. Led by the enigmatic Doug Martsch, Built to Spill have featured several different lineups and this year is no exception…
On January 26, A.Dd+ threw an album release party like Greenville Avenue had never seen before. For the debut of their highly anticipated sophomore album, DiveHiFlyLo, the Nawf Side of Dallas’ dynamic duo packed 776 people in the Granada. With supporting acts -topic, Tunk and Brain Gang rounding out the…
Eric Pulido sounds excited and apprehensive at the same time. His band, Midlake, is about to open some high-profile shows for Pearl Jam (including one last week at American Airlines Center) and there is also a new Midlake album, Antiphon, that hit streets a few weeks back. But it is…
Pearl Jam’s Lightning Bolt tour stopped in Dallas on Friday. It already had a fairly significant North Texas tie — Denton heroes Midlake are opening a string of shows for Pearl Jam, including this week’s hometown stop. But the local spotlight got even bigger during PJ’s second encore, when Dallas…
Ask three members of Denton country-rock outfit Rodney Parker and Fifty Peso Reward where the band name came from, and you’ll get three humorous, and ultimately, unrevealing answers. “Nowhere,” say bass player Brooks Kendall. “From drunk 22 year-old idiots.” Multi-instrumentalist Danny Skinner adds, “The story is really not interesting unless…
