It's okay if you aren't making the trek on down to Austin for Austin City Limits Festival. You won't miss out on much -- other than the much beloved stop in West for some delicious Czech Stop kolaches -- because there's more than enough shows to catch at home this weekend. Katy Perry double dips, performing again after last night's concert on Friday. Benjamin Booker, rock's newest golden-child-to-be, is sure to melt down the house at Three Links, Lecrae has a homecoming show after a stellar year and Double Wide celebrates its 11th anniversary. Here are your weekend picks:
Poliça With Web of Sunsets and Orenda Fink, 7 p.m., Friday, October 3, at Trees, 2709 Elm St., treesdallas.com, $15-$18 The sprawling, tongue-in-cheek Gayngs crew (they set all their songs to 69 b.p.m.) out of Minnesota consisted of some of the upper Midwest's most exciting acts in recent musical history. From Bon Iver, to Har Mar Superstar, to Dessa and P.O.S. of the Doomtree collective, Gayngs was a serious party with some serious talent. Out of that cradle of creativity was born another project, Poliça, featuring several members of Gayngs including singer Channy Leaneagh and producer Ryan Olson. This moody synth-pop group with dual drummers is a forbear to current acts like Sylvan Esso, its material being both utterly danceable and undeniably dark at the same time. In its smoky, auto-tuned haze, Poliça makes for one hell of a party comedown. Jaime-Paul Falcon
Benjamin Booker With Doug Burr, 8 p.m., Friday, October 3 at Three Links, 2704 Elm St. Dallas, TX, http://www.threelinksdeepellum.com/, $10-$13 Keep your eyes peeled for Benjamin Booker; he's a unique force. He's Hendrix in a dusty, grimy, dirty garage in New Orleans playing the guitar with such command that the Gods rise from their graves with each frenzied strum of his guitar. He's full of the youthful energy that once embodied rock n roll, as opposed to the dainty middle class music and psudo-artsy bullshit we hear so often today. If you have the fever for something raw, this is a must see. H. Drew Blackburn
Danny Diamonds With Western Star, 10 p.m., Friday, October 3 at Dan's Silverleaf, 103 Industrial St, Denton, TX 76201, 940-320-2000, www.danssilverleaf.com, $7 Daniel Rush, a former member of the Paper Cup Band and someone whom we profiled at length in a print feature last month, becomes his latest alter ego, Danny Diamonds, tonight at this headlining show at Dan's Silver Leaf. A prolific musician in Denton's music scene (most musicians in Denton's music scene are actually quite prolific), Diamonds takes some of the quaint folkish lore from his most recent project Danny Rush and the Designated Drivers and polishes it with some bleakness and a little more noise. HDB
16Bars.xxx With DJ Sober, Young Wave, Datahowler, FLCON FCKER, and DRNRDX 8 p.m., Friday, October 3, at 406 S. Haskell St., http://www.16bars.xxx/, $3-$5 16Bars.xxx is a house party created by K104-FM's digital content coordinator, Rico Slice. In the past, the event has showcased the wide swath of talent North Texas' rap scene has to offer. This go-round, the DJs get the spotlight with live sets from DJ Sober, Young Wave, Datahowler, FLCON FCKER and DRNRDX. And there's gonna be some visual art, food, and beer as well. Sounds like a hell of a party. HDB
Zac Brown Band With Ryan Kindler, 7 p.m., Friday, October 3, at Gexa Energy Pavilion, 1818 1st Ave., 214-421-1111 or gexaenergypavilion.net, $30-$330 In a radio interview last year, Zac Brown really hurt Luke Bryan's feelings by calling "That's My Kind of Night" the worst song he's ever heard. Brown was probably just being honest, and of course it is the worst song many people have ever heard, but you have to wonder if he was also being cagey: by publicly hating on the bro-iest of bro-country anthems, he managed to dodge the insatiable maw of public dismay. It's not as if Brown isn't singing about beer; in fact, "Toes," the PBR-and-Jager-branded single off his 2008 debut, name checks drinking almost as hard as the "1-800-Bartend" commercial. It's a pleasantly dopey song that sounds like he was trying to rewrite "Margaritaville" but with an even lazier plot. In fact, Jimmy Buffett even guested on a verse of Brown's 2011 single "Knee Deep." So you'd think people would sneer at Brown the way they do at Florida Georgia Line, but it also turns out he writes plenty of folkier, traditional country songs. Even a song like "Chicken Fried," which sings the praises of Friday night redneck mainstays like beer and correctly fitting jeans is more like the spiritual successor to Mel McDaniel's "Louisiana Saturday Night" than some Jason Aldean bro-down. Then again, who cares, really? The Zac Brown Band is also huge, which is why they're playing Gexa on October 3. Steve Steward Ty Dolla $ign With Lil Bibby, 7 p.m. Saturday, October 4, at Trees, 2709 Elm St., 214-741-1122 or treesdallas.com, $20 The landscape of R&B has changed a great deal over the past few years. The usual run-of-the-mill silliness and subtleties have evaporated. Mainstream R&B is as brash and confident as it wants to be. You see, unlike any generation to precede it, millennials grew up on rap music. Generation X did as well, but it wasn't during a time when Eminem and 50 Cent were constantly shown on a mass media cultural staple like Total Request Live. Somewhere during its lifespan, rap became a part of our collective American consciousness, so much so that R&B singers basically have the same panache as rappers. Exhibit A: Ty Dolla $ign. From his name to his provocative lyrics, he has the attitude of your favorite contemporary emcee. He's got an insane knack for melodies as well. "Or Nah," "My Cabana" and "Paranoid" are examples of Ty Dolla $ign at his absolute best. HDB
Lecrae With Andy Mineo and DJ Promote, 8 p.m. Saturday, October 4, at Verizon Theatre,1001 Performance Place Grand Prairie, TX, 972-854-5111 or http://www.verizontheatre.com, $20-$96 Jumbo shrimp. Living dead. Christian hip hop. These are all oxymorons. The former two are just things that happen to be the opposite of one another, antonyms. But, Christian hip hop, that's a true curve ball. Hip hop is generally a secular genre of music (a thoroughly seculrar one, at that). Yes, for years rappers have made songs about religion, but they're usually placed at the very end of an album full of musings about unsavory activities. And yes, there's been plenty of Christian hip hop throughout the years, but let's face it: it's more or less always terrible. However, University of North Texas alum Lecrae has done the unthinkable: His album Anomaly earned the top spot on the Billboard 100, selling roughly 88,000 copies in its first week. Also, the album is actually pretty good. Look at God. HDB
The Double Wide 11th Anniversary with High on Fire, Roky Erikson, The Derailers, and Riverboat Gamblers Saturday, 5 pm, October 4, Double Wide, 3510 Commerce St., www.double-wide.com, $28 In honor of its 11th anniversary, Double Wide is bringing out a few "big enough" names to celebrate the joyous occasion. The San Diego stoner metal band, High On Fire, legendary psych rocker, Roky Erickson of the 13th Floor Elevators, Austin country band the Derailers and Denton punk rock outfit, Riverboat Gamblers, are all set to play some tunes. Also, there's gonna be food trucks, vintage shopping, photo booths, indoor/outdoor bars, mechanical bull riding and other ancillary stuff. Oh, and almost forgot to mention: At 12:30 Double Wide will unveil a brand-new tornado on its roof after the bands play. HDB
Snowmine With Nightbox, 8 p.m., Sunday, October 5 at Three Links, 2704 Elm St. Dallas, TX, http://www.threelinksdeepellum.com/, $10-$12 If you want to get something done, sometimes it's best to build it yourself. That's want the Brooklyn-based band Snowmine did when they readied the release of their album, Dialects. Since they weren't interested in the prospects of signing to a record label, they just up and made their own called Mystery Buildings. You have to admire their initiative here. Dialects is full of shimmering vocals and a bright production. Listening to Snowmine is taking a happy pill -- if it came in the form of an indie rock band, that is. HDB
Turquoise Jeep 8 p.m., Sunday, October 5, at Club Dada 2720, Elm St. Dallas, TX, 214-742-3400, http://www.dadadallas.com $15-$17 You probably remember the video that sits above this text from its viral celebrity a few years back. It is particularly strange and kind of funny. If you're somehow legitimately gotten into this odd take on rap music, I say go for it. Have your fun. Take a ride on the Turquoise Jeep and smang it. The performances of this group on YouTube look particularly awesome and lively. If you're just gonna go and gawk at the scene, then that's fine too, I guess. Just be aware that you're an asshole. HDB
