It was pretty tight in the front standing section at the Granada Theater this past Saturday. My mother, an avid live music fan, usually prefers to stand further back at shows, but I grabbed her hand and led her up to the stage anyway. Behind the stage curtain, we could…
A couple weeks ago, we introduced you to some of the best live sound engineers in Dallas. Those people voluntarily run complicated circuits late at night in rooms full of beer and idiots. Our hats are off to them. Alan Ayo, who wrote that post, asked each of them what…
Last weekend I went to Raleigh, North Carolina for Hopscotch Music Festival. It was cool, and before I go on I want to acknowledge that there was plenty of cool to be found in Dallas/Fort Worth/Etc. music last weekend as well. There was a growing beer/music music festival featuring cool…
We’re divided into two distinct groups: those whose parents prepared Hamburger Helper on occasion and those whose parents adamantly refused to. Kids who received the occasional beef, noodle and maltodextrin sautée most likely thought it was just another salty meal. But the children who were denied the boxed delicacy were…
For the better part of four decades, Lucinda Williams has been one of Texas’ best and most dependable songwriters and performers. Over the course of ten albums, Williams has moved from earthy blues and folk to jangly country/pop and has even dabbled in more contemporary sounds. What has remained consistent…
Football season has returned, and with it we are reminded of the ridiculous lengths some players will go to garner national attention. From recording songs, to appearing in commercials, to crafting signature end zone dances for when they score, players on all levels do their best to raise their Q-score…
Every week, when we examine our proofs at the Observer — big sheets of paper with the article laid out as it will appear in print — I’m treated to another drool-worthy photo of a dish I’ve selected because I think it will resonate with my review. See also: This…
“It’s money” opens Doris, the way-way-way-too-much-anticipated album from Odd Future standout and internal rhyme genius Earl Sweatshirt. “It’s money,” the intro repeats, “It’s money.” If you bought a physical copy, you’re hearing that opening while thumbing through the artwork: an intoxicated-looking (though he kind of always is) Earl standing next…
This week’s music feature is an interview with Joe King Carrasco, the king of Tex-Mex Rock ‘n’ Roll, who was born in the Panhandle and lives in Puerto Vallarta today. His most recent album is a reunion with El Molina, a band that features several members of the Texas Tornadoes…
Halfway through “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart,” the leadoff track on 2002’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. That’s when I stopped listening to Wilco, which had been one of my favorite bands of the ’90s because of their first three albums- A.M., Being There and Summerteeth, as well as the…
Deep Ellum is not the only place in where music happens in Dallas. But it is the most storied: It’s where our blues scene found its legs and where Kurt Cobain found our fists. And today, the neighborhood is home to every kind of show, from one person with an…
In breaking local music news, a Burleson woman, 31, has decided to elope rather than go ahead with her elaborate wedding plans. Presumably a bunch of caterers and florists in Nashville are bummed, but Kelly Clarkson herself seems relieved…
If you dine out with any frequency you’ve surely encountered the custom. Your waiter comes to the table, politely hands out menus and says hello. Then, as he prepares to deliver his opening service monologue detailing local farmers, the meaning of share plates and the chef’s guidance on special menu…
NSYNC reunion talk has dominated music news this week, because everybody in America really, really misses the ’90s, and despite a non-denial from Lance Bass it seems like there’s still a good chance it actually happens, even if nobody at the VMAs was planning on it originally. (How could they…
When was the last time you decided to split an entree with your date because you weren’t that hungry, only to find a split plate charge on your bill? Or how about a fee for the sauce you chose after you’d already committed to a $50 steak? CNN’s Eatocracy is…
Nate “Igor” SmithFor five magical days in August, Cave in Rock, Illinois hosted one of our favorite events, The Gathering of the Juggalos. Our photographer, Nate “Igor” Smith, took thousands of pictures at the Gathering, but some of the folks he captured stood out more than others. There was the…
Daniel Markham, with his shoulder length, straight brown hair and soft-spoken demeanor, is one of those rare breeds of cat who is both incredibly talented at his chosen craft of songwriting and sharply handsome, and were I a little farther toward the middle on the Kinsey scale, I’m sure I’d…
Of course, rapper Machine Gun Kelly always talks a big, lewd game, but he backed up his boasts during last Friday’s show at the newly opened Monroe Lounge. Porn star Rachel Starr gave the fans in attendance a chance to make a sex tape of their own after she dropped…
Nate “Igor” SmithCody Morin, juggalo and Make-A-Wish recipient.We first heard about 17-year old Cody Morin on our way in to Cave-In-Rock, Illinois, site of the 14th annual Gathering of the Juggalos. After hours spent driving through Southern Illinois we stopped at a restaurant/visitor’s lodge in the park to ask for…
Drew AilesWondering what’s in a “stoner bowl?” Keep reading.One of the true hardships that we face as a nation is the omnipresent problem of being surrounded by booze and stimulating foods. In the comforts of your own home, you may be able to curb your pizza roll addiction into having…
During the Gathering of the Juggalos, Cave-In Rock, Illinois becomes a sonic disaster zone. Even if you’re a rap lover, it’s hard to keep your mind sharp with all of the noise. But within the cacophony of sounds, a few incredible Juggalo statements were somehow deciphered and recorded by our…
[Editor’s note: Daniel Hill and Drew Ailes are covering the Gathering of the Juggalos in Cave-in-Rock, Illinois.] Update: Reached by phone on Sunday afternoon, Hardin County coroner Jessica Cullum released the name of the man who died as Cory Collins, 24, of Harrisburg, Illinois, a town about 35 miles northwest…
