“I lost my old hair in Denver, girl, so I had to get new hair today,” Christeene Vale says over the phone. “But, ya know, I have to fuck it up, wash it in the sink.” Vale, who has been labeled a “drag terrorist,” a nightmarish gutter of filth, bruise…
Last month, Stereogum ran a review of Animal Collective’s new album, Centipede Hz, which conceded that “we need to accept the possibility of a record so excellent we don’t understand it yet.” Laughable when talking about any new album, but especially a group like Animal Collective, which has whipped critics…
If the oft-employed term “influential” still has meaning in today’s musical universe, then a massive amount of its worth lives within the work of John Prine. A legend without being a household name, Prine’s songwriting is a force that’s turned many aimless youth into wonderful artists in their own right…
In its second year, Up To Eleven Entertainment’s musical gathering, Rock-a-Tron 5000, makes its way back to Fort Worth, where many of the bands on its lineup reside. Locals Sally Majestic, How’s My Driving?, Southern Train Gypsy, Here Holy Spain, Perdition, Mothership, The Dangits, The Phuss, One Fingered Fist and…
The Pistol Annies are not a “supergroup.” The trio, led by country singer Miranda Lambert, is super talented, however. Aside from the small tastes of Music City success fellow member Ashley Monroe has received, this is the greatest professional triumph for both Lambert and Angeleena Presley. The subject matter of…
In the wake of Russian punk band Pussy Riot’s famed prison sentencing for “hooliganism with religious hatred,” following their February arrest in Moscow, two North Texas activist groups are hosting a benefit show at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios. The groups include the International Socialist Organization and the Radical Alliance for…
The Granada Theater is turning 8, and instead of begging for a sweet new dirt virtual reality bike or whatever kids ask for these days, they’re inviting us over for a drink and a show. Portland duo Menomena pump up the jams with tracks from brand-new album Moms. Australian experimental…
It sat in storage for years, a broken record player and its un-played records. It had not spun a tune since my freshman year of college, and with each move I planned to get it repaired, to have a proper place for it in my home, to amass a collection…
“I lost my old hair in Denver, girl, so I had to get new hair today,” Christeene Vale says over the phone. “But, ya know, I have to fuck it up, wash it in the sink.” Vale, who has been labeled a “drag terrorist,” a nightmarish gutter of filth, bruise…
Nas, Lauryn Hill Palladium Ballroom, October 29, $54 Having seen Nasty Nas at SXSW this year, working an entire Austin City Limits stage solo for an hour while he performed Illamtic, this double-header looks to be one of the more solid Palladium shows this fall. The appearance of Ms. Hill…
Party Mouth, Matthew Posey’s latest play at the Ochre House, is a tale of two best friends named Baby Doll (Elizabeth Evans) and Bunny (Natalie Young). They shoot up, smoke, snort and drink a day away in a cramped Dallas apartment circa the late ’60s, while three n’er-do-well men and…
2 Chainz House of Blues Tuesday, September 25 Look, we all make mistakes. The first mistake occurred when Daniel Hopkins somehow ended up behind the velvet rope at the 2 Chainz show last Spring. The second mistake happened when I completely procrastinated buying my 2 Chainz ticket for House of…
Welcome to Ask a Failed Musician, in which I will help struggling musicians make sense of their careers and even offer some advice. Whether or not it will work, who knows? It obviously didn’t work for me. But then again, I was on Kimmel once, so there’s that.A musician responded to my previous…
Brandon Butters drums for two of Dallas’ most promising new bands, The West Windows and Things of Earth. The West Windows debuted earlier this year to a packed Double Wide and are gearing up for an opening slot with The Jealous Sound. Things of Earth have yet to play live,…
As a teaser for his upcoming album Writer Dye: Deux or Die, which comes out October 22, Dallas rapper Playdough just unveiled this video for “King of Queens.” The Queen part is taken literally, as the whole song hinges on a sample of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which Playdough repurposes for his…
Local folk-rock artist Andrew Delaney, along with his band, The Horse You Rode In On, has steadily improved over three years and two studio albums. He’s created a catalog that isn’t easily defined, yet is easily accessible. In a live setting, he and his band are able to give even…
This year’s Fun Fun Fun Fest scavenger hunt began at 4 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, when I found the Raving Lunatics – Sheriff Red, Inmate 66247, P.P.O.P. and Sherlock Ownz – at the Libertine Bar. Each team registered for the hunt received a packet with a list of tasks separated…
Adam Ant Granada Theater Friday, September 21 Red lights flooded the stage of the Granada Theater as Adam Ant’s band played an interlude on Friday night. The anticipation from the sold-out crowd was high, as shrieks, cheers, whistling and applause washed over the band’s introduction. As scheduled, Ant took to…
Ben Folds Five Palladium Ballroom Sunday, September 23 For a band that hasn’t toured together in over a decade, Ben Folds Five certainly didn’t play like one last night. In the span of nearly two hours, the trio had plenty of random moments, flubbed notes, impromptu songs, and even a…
Action Bronson Dada Sunday, September 23 In an industry where opulence is the modus operandi, Action Bronson favors a blue-collar sensibility. He prefers Carhatt over Cartier, New Balance over Neiman Marcus, “Giambi Lenses” over Gucci frames. His beard, which looks like an orange Christmas wreath, would put even the most…
Riot Fest Gexa Energy Pavilion Saturday, September 22 Though the inaugural Dallas edition of Riot Fest was a mild success, here’s something the festival’s organizers should consider if it returns next year: give the audience some kind of clue when bands are going on. While the Heineken Pavilion stage (curated…
When Denton musician Glen Farris arrived at the corner of S. Locust and E. Hickory Street on the morning of September 12 and uploaded an Instagram photo of Denton’s familiar First State Bank plaque, people embraced it and spread its viral joy. The brass plaque observed September 12 as the…
