Wildflower! Festival
Friday - Sunday, at Galatyn Park, Richardson
There's a pretty long list of well-known performers at Wildflower! Festival this year. Friday's headliner is Nelly, who will be joined by The Commodores and a handful of local acts, including The King Bucks. Saturday will have Dashboard Confessional, Augustana, Joe Walsh and Zhora.
Taste of Addison
Friday - Sunday, at Addison Circle Park
Taste of Addison centers around food, and most of the restaurants hawking small portions of food are the ones you would've taken your prom date to if you had the money. I'm looking at you, Texas de Brazil. The music's pretty good, too: Casey Donahew on Friday, Mat Kearney and Rhett Miller on Saturday, and Dallas String Quartet on Sunday.
Yann Tiersen
Thursday, May 17, at Trees
The charm of the 2001 film Amélie wasn't all from Audrey Tautou, though she did steal the show. Yann Tiersen's extremely French score pushed it over the top. Tonight, he'll make Trees feel like a Parisian club, which is next to impossible.
The Twelves
Thursday, May 17, at Rio Room
Rio Room continues to bring in internationally known acts for their Thursday night DJ series. Brazilian duo The Twelves, well-known for their remixes of modern and classic pop, will feel right at home, because Brazil feels like the inside of a space orb.
Nervous Curtains, The Blurries
Thursday, May 17, at The Common Table
Besides the bands on this bill being two of Dallas' best, there are other reasons to go to this show. For one, there is good beer. Two, it's free. Not the beer, the show.
Binary Sunrise, Yells At Eels
Friday, May 18, at City Tavern
Gone are the days that Binary Sunrise would saturate the metroplex with up to five shows a month. Singer and mastermind Kenneth Kemp is moving to San Fransisco in July, so this is the band's last show, though you have one last chance to see him in a different capacity. "I'll be playing Salvador Dali in Matt Posey's new play [Cicerone, at The Ochre House]," he says.
Seryn, Calhoun
Saturday, May 19, at The Live Oak
It's the soft opening for The Live Oak, a South side venue in Fort Worth that is supposed to mark the beginning of the Fort Worth music scene's golden age.
Black Dice
Saturday, May 19, at Sons of Hermann Hall
Longtime New York experimental electro act Black Dice will be at Sons of Hermann Hall, a venue that just keeps getting cooler.
Dave Matthews Band
Saturday, May 19, at Gexa Energy Pavilion
If only I could translate to dorkiness of the intro of "Ants Marching" to written word ...
M83
Saturday, May 19 and Sunday, May 20, at Granada Theater
Seeing M83 at a venue the size of the Granada is not something you'll be able to do again after this weekend. Next time around, they'll be at Palladium, and after that who knows? Their sprawling 22-track album, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, topped most 2011 year-end lists. The shows are sold out, but the Granada has been giving tickets away over on their Facebook page.
Daniel Hart
Saturday, May 19, at Dada
Daniel Hart's The Orientalist has been streaming online for almost a year, but Saturday night marks the official release. It's a fantastic album, and his live show is really great too. He's one of the best emerging artists in Dallas.
Gustafer Yellowgold
Saturday, May 19, at Good Records, Noon
Gustafer Yellowgold is a cartoon character created by Morgan Taylor, an ex-punk rocker from Ohio who went on to play in The Autumn Defense with members of Wilco. He decided to write children's music, and now has five albums that you will like just as much as your kids will. Assuming you have kids.
Glossary, Austin Lucas
Sunday, May 20, at The Foundry
Centro-matic's Mark Hedman informed me about this show earlier today. Murfreesboro,
Tennessee, act Glossary is a damn fine rock and roll band with a Southern hint, kind of like, uh, Centro-matic. To top it off, it's free and early. Show starts at 7:30 p.m.
