Audio By Carbonatix
Leaving town to visit family on Thanksgiving? If so, you should rethink hanging out with Aunt Ethel, because this week finds Dallas gravy-deep in can’t-miss concerts–particularly the ones plugged in B-Sides (page 67). But best of all, hands-down, has to be the Earlies, the 11-member trans-Atlantic supergroup that has overwhelmed thousands of European festival-goers in less than two years. The group’s genesis is certainly unique (see “Take Me Home,” October 20), but their stories of e-mailed songwriting sessions and members who don’t play a single musical instrument would mean nothing without great songs. Luckily, Dallas’ Brandon Carr and Abilene’s John-Mark Lapham, along with their Manchester, U.K., bandmates, whip up captivating stories of loss and lovely pop melodies in the half-symphonic, half-electronic soundscapes that fill their debut, These Are the Earlies, and the live versions are even more impressive, with the Earlies’ colder, krautrock tendencies reduced in favor of multi-instrumental explosions. Don’t miss this rare homecoming concert, even if it means telling Ethel to shove it. She’ll understand.
