'A Photographic History Of Music In Dallas' -- Yet Another Reason To Go To The Kessler Saturday

Saturday night's book-release party for Josh Alan Friedman's Black Cracker is an opportunity to catch Josh Alan's atomic-acoustic blues stylings, another chance to catch the gothic-caberet singer-songwriter Mark Growden and a performance by reformed skinhead slam poet Jason Carney at The Kessler Theater. Plus, the whole shebang is free. And...

By Jesse Hughey

March 19, 2010

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Saturday night's book-release party for Josh Alan Friedman's Black Cracker is an opportunity to catch Josh Alan's atomic-acoustic blues stylings, another chance to catch the gothic-caberet singer-songwriter Mark Growden and a performance by reformed skinhead slam poet Jason Carney at The Kessler Theater. Plus, the whole shebang is free.

And that's not even mentioning the autobiographical novel itself, which is an unflinching, anti-P.C. look at race relations as seen through the eyes of a Jewish white boy attending the last segregated school in New York. It's funny, tragic, scary and exhilarating, full of interesting historical tangents, celebrity cameos (you'll never look at Morgan Freeman the same way) and Friedman's dry sarcasm. Best of all, it's honest, with no sacred cows whatsoever. Uptight intellectuals, white-trash racists, ignorant poor African-Americans and even reform-minded NAACP activists--they're all subject to equal parts skewering and sympathy.

But here's another reason to go, as if you needed one: the theater will also serve as a gallery for "A Photographic History Of Music In Dallas," a 75-photo exhibit of the work of James Bland. Featured are The Buck Pets, The Toadies, Course Of Empire, Tripping Daisy and many more. DJ Mr. Rid (Mark Ridlin of Lithium X-mas fame) will spin Dallas music from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

However, if you miss out Saturday, you've got a week to stop by, as the photo exhibit is on display through midnight on Saturday, March 27.

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