North Texas Music Community Mourns Loss of 'Treasure' Mark Ridlen

Over the weekend, the North Texas music community received news that one of its most cherished icons, Mark Ridlen, had died after a long struggle with kidney cancer.

Ridlen had been a long-established fixture in the Dallas music underground since the 1970s, when Deep Ellum was a place that appealed only to those wishing to escape the mainstream rock ‘n’ roll scene.

It was in those hallowed warehouses and dives that Ridlen would form bands Quad Pi, The Klogz, The Moondials and perhaps his best-known band, Lithium-Xmas, which released a new self-titled, limited-edition vinyl album in 2022.

But as Dallas’ classic punk scene gave way to the club scene, Ridlen continued on as the house DJ at the legendary Starck Club, a gig that would cement his legacy and establish him as the influential DJ Mr. Rid for the next four decades.

Cameron Brand of post-punk band SEVIT, aka DJ Culturegang, remembers Ridlen as “the kind of guy who flew under the radar, yet somehow knew everyone. He didn’t care what people thought of him; he just lived with an authenticity and passion that inspired everyone around him. He’d do anything for you without expecting a thing in return." Brand pointed to Ridlen's many karaoke/DJ-themed nights that brought pleasure to fans of the scene.

Ridlen was known for sending random messages to people across the music scene, whether it was just to check in, to suggest DJing opportunities or to talk about music.

Tim DeLaughter of Tripping Daisy and The Polyphonic Spree wrote in a memorial post that he would specifically “miss our random texting and conversations about music… at all hours day or late night to early morning. He's the only one who's listened to the most unlistenable piece of music I've ever created, a 36 min of vocal "uhh's and ooh's", it was enough to drive anyone insane, *except* Mark, not only listened to it, but on repeat no less.”

For DeLaughter, Ridlen was always one of the first people to reach out in the beginning stages of a project and say what the music did for him.

“Mark, you made our city special with your passion for taking it as far as you could,” DeLaughter’s post concluded.

And that passion was experienced by anybody who came into contact with Ridlen. Stefan Gonzalez of Trio Glossia remembers Ridlen as “a treasure of a city… always beaming with positivity, support and excitement. An OG Dallas punk rocker since the '70s, but always stoked to see what the future held for younger artist and musicians… never cocky, only loving.”

That love was shown in the way that Ridlen built up his compatriots in the scene as the city’s musical landscape grew and shifted through the years.

Dallas experimental pop singer Lily Taylor remembers Ridlen as a “an important connector between social circles — a collector of music and creative people.”

Ridlen was the first to play Taylor's 2015 album, The Ride, on the radio.

“Mark and Reid [Robinson] had me on as a guest on their KNON show and showed me how to produce and host a show,” Taylor says. “They invited me back a few times from 2015–2016. I then got my own show on KUZU in 2017 and was able to co-host with Mark for an episode.”

Even beyond the professional music setting, Ridlen was well-known for his ability to connect with people through music.
Alan Cook, musician and owner-operator at Signworks, remembers Ridlen from the early Single Wide karaoke Sundays when the two would be overwhelmed by how many people were there.

“Mark was a wonderful guy, as we all know. He was easy to talk to and I always felt comfortable around him,” Cook says. “He was the perfect person to DJ our wedding because he was, again, so comfortable to be around and definitely on the same page as [wife] Laura Harrell and I when it comes to music.”

Restauranteur Peter Tarantino, who had been friends with Ridlen since his early days at the Starck Club, also remembers the way Ridlen would stand out with his own style and class, which was second to none.

“He always dressed Mark Ridlen-style, from really cool T-shirts to Polynesian-style button-down shirts,” Tarantino says. “There is an overwhelming amount of friends Mark has, friends that have been touched by his light and love as you can see from the incredible amount of posts that have made light in the past two days.”

For everything he was in the North Texas music community, it was what he did for others, even in the face of his health struggles, that made Mark Ridlen a name that will live long in the annals of Dallas music history.

For his longtime friend and frequent collaborator Reid Robinson, “Mark was a star in his own right, but one of the things he loved the most was making other people shine, as well as finding their hidden talents. Mark always had half a dozen projects in the works including short films, concept albums, live productions, and he was even working on some stand-up material. All of this continued full-force while he was being treated for cancer and on dialysis.

“He was a creative force of nature who could not be slowed down. Mr. Rid was a mentor, a friend and like a big brother to me. I have no doubt many others share this same sentiment. We lost one of North Texas's greatest cultural icons when Mr. Rid left the stage last Saturday, and the stars look very different today.”

A celebration of Ridlen’s life will be held from 9:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Wednesday night at Charlie’s Star Lounge (4319 Main St.) with DJs Cameron Brand, Sam Ramirez and Diosa. Robinson is also working on a full-scale memorial blow-out for Ridlen in January, with details to be announced.