The flames could be seen for miles as the fire consumed the corner structure on Fry Street in Denton, Texas, igniting the well-known sign and signature name. “The Tomato is burning down” says one resident, who doesn’t sound near as surprised as one would expect upon realizing an iconic shop…
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…
Saturday night, I will take stage with a band I’ve never played with before: Silver Saint Guitar Army, the brainchild of Wanz Dover, and I will be one of over a dozen guitarists. Dover still speaks highly of his time in New York with Glenn Branca’s guitar orchestra and he…
Here it is, the moment we’ve all been anticipating and dreading at the same damn time. With cold fronts moving in, the first freeze of the year already behind us, Winter-time is upon us. If you’re brave enough to bare the elements, there are plenty of great shows going on…
A knight wearing a cardigan steps into a mosh pit. Men and women resembling barbarians, vikings and neanderthals – with long hair matted, sweat soaking their black t-shirts with the words “Slayer” written in blood across their chest and shoulders – surge like an angry sea all around him. Upside…
It’s no secret that Denton’s Robert Gomez is one of North Texas’ true artisitic treasures. Currently, he has a few irons in the fire that prove as much. As he tours with Sarah Jaffe as her guitar palyer, he’s also released an EP that is as unique of a concept…
Just ask any of the regular performers at the Dallas Comedy House or any long-form improv comedy center and they’ll tell you that scenes come and go in their head as fast as the last night traffic on the U.S. 75 overpass that runs over Commerce Street (during non-rush hour…
Music festivals: Not just for Austin and/or giant corporations. Just ask the upstarts behind Oaktopia, this weekend’s downtown Denton takeover featuring Del The Funky Homosapien, Dallas expat Astronautalis and a slew of exceptional homegrown bands and artists. In other Denton news, the town’s elder statesmen Midlake open for Pearl Jam…
This year marks thrash metal’s 30th anniversary, and what better way to celebrate than watching one of the Big Four bands that helped to bring it to the masses? Tonight, Slayer will bring their pulse-pounding metal to the South Side Ballroom at Gilley’s in Dallas. It’s their first tour since…
Someone mentioned the idea of a Dallas sound to me the other day. I don’t know if any city ever winds up with one sonic thumbprint that truly captures everything about the place, and if they ever did they certainly don’t know. The population shifts faster than ever and musicians…
Look, you work too hard for blank walls. And that swath of white above your couch, everyone is talking about it. It’s time to pony up, and the conspiracists have your back. This year’s Art Conspiracy is conveniently scheduled for Saturday, November 16, right after pay day, so instead of…
Pleasant Grove were one of Dallas’ most treasured bands in the early 2000s. Their four albums earned them devoted fans here at home and a record deal with European label Glitterhouse. They earned the attention with a folk band’s command of melody and a psych band’s command of reverb and…
There was a pretty good party in Austin this weekend. Much of what you need to know about Fun Fun Fun Fest this weekend can be found in the look on this dude’s face, as he crowd surfes at Slayer. But we have plenty more, if you’re into specifics:…
It’s nice when a festival eschews mega-huge beer money and goes with something more respectable, like Fun Fun Fun did with Shiner, the only beer available onsite (although in many varieties). No Budweiser Tent/Stage/Building here, and the festival’s all the better for it. Hell, the lack of any blindingly obvious…
Among Fun Fun Fun Fest’s many strange little wrinkles and amenities, the Taco Cannon stands alone. Sometimes, its appearance would be listed on the schedule, but sometimes it would just appear, at the end of a set, always soundtracked by the Mortal Kombat theme song. Its posse would appear, in…
Last year, when Drake hit the road to support Take Care, he ended up headlining the highest grossing rap tour of 2012. The critically revered Club Paradise tour earned $42 million worldwide and included guest appearances from Nicki Minaj, Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky, Meek Mill and 2 Chainz. It will…
The Days began the evening’s soul session with a short, grimy set of swamp rock and countrified R&B numbers. Quickly, the Expressions stepped on stage, calling the main service to order with a rumbling instrumental. But the crowd hesitated to dance or approach the stage too closely, worrying, perhaps, that…
Beats Antique sold out Trees in Deep Ellum on Friday night, while on tour promoting their new album, A Thousand Faces- Act 1. I have purposely held off on watching any live videos of the band, since I was told the magic lies in their live performances, and wanted to…
Rock & roll is less than sixty years old, remember, so the idea of multiple generations of active bands is still a fairly new one. But as big-ticket concerts and festivals become prevalent, more and more people are going to get the ol’ band back together for another shot. This…
There are too many people in the Yellow tent at Fun Fun Fun Fest. This is true at almost all times. It’s awesome, because a festival has a comedy tent, but it does mean that if you want to see a comedian, or one of the ragtag collection of bands…
Dallas rapper -topic is crouched low, sitting on his heels, his weight resting on the balls of his feet. He’s at Fun Fun Fun Fest, behind about four fences he really shouldn’t be behind, and standing fifteen feet away is Lupe Fiasco. -topic has a CD in his hand. Lupe…
The “big name” attraction of the first set of Fun Fun Fun Fest Nites was the Misfits, because you could only get in to see Sarah Silverman if you were invisible and had the ability to pass through a very firmly closed glass door. Obviously, the Misfits are one of…
