Critic's Notebook

…just by going to the band’s web site. You have all week. –Pete Freedman…

Wow! Apparently there weren’t scores of noteworthy performances at this weekend’s 28th Annual Denton Arts & Jazz Fest–because so far the only performance uploaded to Youtube is this kid’s solo: . Slightly more entertaining, the video of the “Freeze Mob” organized by the Denton-based group United Aid:…

Sorry, guys, but there was no way I was heading to Pizza Hut Park yesterday to see Edgefest 17. A festival headlined by 3 Doors Down and Puddle of Mudd doesn’t really tickle my fancy. And it wouldn’t have in 2002, either. Apparently, though, DC9 photographer Roger Caldwell didn’t get…

Well, if this review from our sister paper in San Francisco is to be believed, tonight’s Caribou/Fuck Buttons show at The Loft isn’t to be missed, if only to see Fuck Buttons perform its “downright menacing” knob-twiddling in person. And, just a reminder, in case you can’t make it to…

High on music, man. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but not long after we totally harshed on DFW NORML’s mellow about the terrible bands that perform at the organization’s events, they announced a party with music that approaches tolerability. Well, at least it’s not rap-rock. Reform-minded folks in more than 200…

The rumors ran rampant through the crowd at the Palladium Ballroom on Thursday night as people settled in to watch Ghosthustler perform the opening set at Quick’s Big Thing awards show. Was it true? Was this the final time we’d see Ghosthustler perform? Turns out, yes–to an extent. The band’s…

Nicholas Altobelli (Shawn Hannon) Local alt-country singer/songwriter Nicholas Altobelli (Italian descent, you think?) has just released his debut, Streetcar Visions, and he’s cautiously optimistic about the release. “The record is not perfect,” he says, “but I’m proud of the songs even though I’m trying to stay away from the country…

Just came across this short, little behind-the-scenes Youtube doc on the Old 97’s’ soon-to-be-released disc, Blame It On Gravity, which includes interviews with Rhett, Murry, Ken, Philip and even the band’s locally-based producer, Salim Nourallah. Says Rhett: “We’re back, man. We’re in Dallas. I keep thinking of this record as…

Aspiring rappers, DJs, producers and urban fashion models might want to keep their last weekends in August open: The Sixth Annual Texas Summer Music Conference will be held at the City Center Westin Hotel in Dallas on Friday, August 29, through Sunday, August 31. The TSMC is intended to educate…

All those who voted for Handshakes and Highfives to win Rock and Rumble back in November are about to be totally happy. The poppy screamo band from Granbury just signed with Hollywood-based Nightmare Records. The label is owned by Nick Moore from Before Their Eyes and Joey Simmrin of One…

This weekend The Party will be a tad different. This time out the dance party will feature a four turntable setup. We’re not sure it’ll be all that different, but since it’s free for the 21 and older set, It wouldn’t hurt to find out. As usual, Nature, Sober and…

Whiskey Folk Ramblers’ lead vocalist Tyler Rougeux.Midnight Drifter, the debut album from Fort Worth’s Whiskey Folk Ramblers, will be available for the first time at their CD release party Saturday at Lola’s in their home city. While they won’t be selling copies until then, you can get a taste of…

James Dante Kings was 17 years old. The Austin American-Statesman reports today that James Dante Kings’ family is offering a $4,000 reward for “leads to the arrest and conviction of the motorist who failed to stop” after striking Kings on I-35 in Austin at around 2 a.m. on Friday, March…

….then you might want to head over to Kidd Kraddick’s studios in Irving. Here’s why: Kraddick, host of the nationally syndicated radio show Kidd Kraddick in the Morning (heard locally on 106.1 KISS-FM), thinks he’s found a gem in a a young unsigned artist he found named Freddy Wexler. Kraddick…

The members of White Arms of Athena, a progressive metal act from Mesquite, are checking out studios in order to complete their debut recording. “The full-length will be called Astrodrama and it shouldn’t take longer than a month or two to complete,” says guitarist Colin McDonnell. The band just played…

Seekers of Knowledge, take heed. Sixty Second Ape Magazine presents The Return of Knowledge tomorrow night at the Liquid Lounge in Deep Ellum. From 2001 to 2005, Knowledge was a regular hip-hop showcase run by the Nice People collective. After taking a break to focus on recording and starting up…

Only a handful of people have so far watched this Youtube clip of the Women’s Chorus of Dallas performing “Istanbul (Not Contsantinople)”: Let’s fix that; this is a damn fine performance. Well done, ladies. –Pete Freedman…

Jordan Barrick When Dallas playwright Lacey Lalene Lynch asked Jordan Barrick to provide music for her show Reason for Referral, the acoustic singer-songwriter was eager to help. Reading the script for her play, which is about three college theater students dealing with the apparent link between their creativity and mental…

…oh, oh, and you’re Mary Tyler Moore. If anyone knows Maria Elena Holly, the widow of Buddy who happens to live in the Turtle Creek area, they might wanna pass along this exceptional find: Eric Clapton covering the Lubbock legend’s immortal songs “Maybe Baby” and “Peggy Sue,” both of which…

Real Texas. Real music. Word just came down that we have three pairs of three-day passes to the Real. Texas. Festival. to give away on this here blog. If you want to spend your weekend watching Chris Cagle, Stoney LaRue and Dallas’ own The Killdares, shoot me an email with…

The Recording Academy–you know, the folks behind the Grammy Awards–are throwing a big bash at the Granada tonight in conjunction with some T-Mobile Sidekick promotion. The show will feature normally big-time draws Kid Rock and Gretchen Wilson, either of whom could probably sell out the theater. Only this show is…

In tomorrow’s print edition Pete will tell you all about the highlights from last weekend’s Mokah Music Summit and Showcase (M2S2), but we just couldn’t resist sharing this video FineLineLive.com put together of Dave Little talking about the Dallas music scene. Let’s just say it includes the sentence: “The Dallas…