Beth Hart understands the hand she’s currently playing consists of the cards she’s dealt to herself. After winning some cash on a latter-day version of Star Search in the ’90s, the Los Angeles resident tasted fame after her 2000 hit, “L.A. Song (Out of This Town),” found its way onto…
The last time Frisco’s Crushed Stars released a record, 2010’s Convalescing in Braille, singer Todd Gautreau — the man behind the moniker — only played one show. It happened on a Thursday night at La Grange and that was it.Now, fans can expect the same as Crushed Stars announces plans…
So, let’s see … we’ve got Bro Fest, 35 Denton and actual SXSW all rallying around March. What’s that? Another festival? OK! South by So What?!, that annual gathering of hardcore, punk and hardcore-punk bands has been scheduled for Saturday, March 17 at QuikTrip Park in Grand Prairie…
I was thinking about unique ways to bridge the gaps between Dallas, Fort Worth and Denton music this past weekend, but The Kessler apparently beat me to it. Friday, January 13, the Oak Cliff theater, in conjunction with KXT 91.7, presents Triple Play, showcasing acts from each corner of the…
Of all the events taking place this weekend, Lights All Night, which goes down tonight (Friday) and Saturday at the Dallas Convention Center, seems to be dominating the sphere with an astounding 35 electronic music acts. Last year’s inaugural Lights All Night took place at the Plaza of the Americas…
Tim DeLaughter has never played a solo show. Not one anybody can remember, anyway. But last week, the Kessler Theater added his name as the opening act for YES lead singer Jon Anderson on Tuesday, February 28. The show is part of the venue’s “Storytellers” series, which has already featured…
If that 2012 movie was right — and it surely was because, ya know, Hollywood knows science — then we’re all going to die in a spectacularly crappy tidal wave of CGI effects next year. Huzzah. However, that movie came out in 2009. C’mon, Hollywood. We need to be more…
Whenever Red Animal War plays, it feels more like an event than a show, which is great because the four-piece doesn’t shortchange an audience with their Texas-tinged version of post-hardcore. In the last few years, the band only plays around the holidays, but for plenty of good reasons. This year,…
They did, right here. And we’re inclined to agree. Congleton’s been all over DC9 at Night, most recently over the summer when his band the Nighty Nite made its debut with True Widow at the Double Wide. And he’s been all over everywhere else too, producing albums for a who’s-who…
We reported a few weeks ago that Dallas is getting its own Girls Rock Camp. They’ll be starting a Kickstarter campaign, too, in anticipation of this summer’s camp. But right now, they need your equipment. Got an old guitar lying around? A bass? An amp you keep tripping over? A…
…And that date is Saturday, May 26, at Main Street Garden Park. This year’s Homegrown Music and Art Festival rallied the local music community around standouts like Gallery Cat, Astronautalis, Neon Indian, Burning Hotels and more. As local music festivals go, 2012 promises to trump that, especially since organizers have…
New York City’s Derek VanScoten is a musical innovator. He’s given a whole new meaning to the term “one-man band,” as he electronically dishes out tracks while simultaneously looping guitar riffs in his solo project, D.V.S*. VanScoten worked consistently over the last year on a double album, entitled Coming Up…
Singer/songwriter Charlie Mars has had an interesting life. Born and raised in Mississippi, Mars actually plied his craft in Dallas for a few years in the ’90s. Some heavy duty partying landed him in rehab a few years after that and those internal demons forced Mars to retreat to an…
Do you have a lot of free time? Are you possibly un(der)employed? Do you know DFW music like the back of your pale, writerly hand? It’s hard out there for a scribe these days but hark! The Observer music section is looking for a few good freelancers. That means having…
Known as the bellowing frontman for alternative metal band Staind, Aaron Lewis shocked many when he released the Town Line EP earlier this year. Not only did it feature Lewis singing a collection of country-influenced songs, but the singer was insistent the project was not a one-shot endeavor. Fans of…
It’s been a year of starting over for Ishi. Earlier in 2011, the band lost dynamic singer Taylor Rea, who was replaced by the talented but far less charismatic Becky Middleton. The band seems to be moving forward nicely, though.And, as we see from the above interview piece posted over…
Danny Balis is a well-known man about town. Thousands of KTCK 1310-AM The Ticket P1s (people who have The Ticket programmed to the first button on their car stereo) listen to him as he produces and interjects his often storm cloud-covered opinion during the afternoon show “The Hardline.”Those same listeners…
Seems Denton concert promoter Matthew Gray stepped out the limelight for about a month, which was a smart move. He garnered quite a heap of press and ill will in October and November, when Denton Country Proper — his upstart company — booked and canceled high profile shows from John…
Since we’ve already got Baboon on the brain today — have you seen the insane slideshow from last night’s Scratch Acid show yet? — let’s add one more bit of news. Kirtland Records will be releasing the debut album from The Boom Boom Box, featuring members of Baboon, Ghostcar and…
Some local bands play so much that you take them for granted. In the case of Elkhart, they’ve barely played this year, but with good reason. Luckily, their Americana-influenced rock returns to City Tavern tonight. Frontman Travis Hopper, who told us earlier this year about the band’s future plans, gave…
Since 1967, some form of the band Chicago has been a part of the American musical experience. Formed as a jazz-influenced jam band, the early incarnation of Chicago bore little resemblance to the pop hit-making machine the band would become in the late ’70s and early ’80s. When singer/bassist Peter…
For over a decade, Dustin Blocker has led some form of Exit 380, one of the most intriguing local bands. When they first started, Exit 380 was more of a conventional alt-rock act, playing songs that mixed a rural influence into a muscular Stone Temple Pilots vibe. But Blocker has…
