The Best Concerts in Dallas This Week: Gorilla Vs. Bear, Phish and More

Let's face it. You're probably sick of hearing about social media during the Week of Twitter Beef. So if you want to avoid the exhaustive subtweeting in the coming days, make a swift departure by going out to one of these shows. Whether you're charged up for the week or feeling a bit meek, mill through our range of concert choices headed for the fine folks of Dallas. 

Faith No More
With Napalm Death, 8 p.m. Monday, at South Side Ballroom, $65
The entirety of my experience with Faith No More is this exact music video. And I can't explain it, but something about it incites uncontrollable laughter. The '90s sweaters? The random lightning strikes? The L'Oreal-worthy hair? I don't know. I have no idea what to think about anything after watching this video. But if we can hope for anything, it's that the incorrigible joy they seem to demonstrate playing this song will endure after 26 years. And hopefully they still have the sweaters tucked away in some closet. Matt Wood

Los Lonely Boys
With Larry g(EE) and Sammy Adams, 8 p.m., Friday, July 31, at House of Blues, $25
Los Lonely Boys is famed for making the adult contemporary Billboard charts for “Heaven,” which they produced with Texas singer-songwriter/legend Willie Nelson in 2003. Adult contemporary is a pretty spot-on description for this Chicano power-rock trio from San Angelo. After all, this is the band that your sad, companionless tio loves to listen to in his bungalo post-break up and after a night of heavy drinking at Ships. (Rest in peace.) And with their latest album Revelation, the band revisits their roots. The Garza brothers combine their classic mix of Tejano, a brush of the blues, a tinge of country and a healthy dose of rock ‘n’ roll guitar solos in songs like “Blame It on Love” and “Don’t Walk Away.” Singer Jojo Garza shines in particular with his rugged, yet calm vocal styling, as brothers Henry and Ringo lay down the smooth rock foundation for Jojo’s guitar solos. They also have elements of conjunto and reggae in some of their songs, like “Give It a Little More,” demonstrating that the group isn’t just sticking to their old formula. Of course, their lyrical content is filled with the emotional heartbreak of life, just perfect for that solitary uncle. Pablo Arauz

Phish
Wednesday, July 29, at Verizon Theatre, Grand Prairie, $65
Phish is the jam band to end all jam bands, and thank God for that. Unless that's your thing, in which case, more power to you and your patience with guitar solos — I bow to your weed habit lifestyle and, admittedly, envy the good times you must've had with your prog-rock-maestro uncle. For the rest of us, there's always the off-chance Phish will take their undeniable instrumental chops and apply them to someone else's vastly superior music; when I inadvertently caught their 3-hour-plus set in 2012, they took on TV on the Radio's "Golden Age" and brought out Kenny Rogers for "The Gambler" — everything was right with the world for a brief moment. As I recall, the so-called fan next to me wasn't sure if the TVOTR track was a Phish original. To use her words: "There's just so many songs, ya know?" Indeed.  Brian Peterson

Tor Miller
With Holly Miranda, 7 p.m. Thursday, July 30, at The Belmont Hotel, $30
Formerly a student at NYU’s prestigious Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, singer-songwriter Tor Miller is currently making the touring rounds in support of his debut EP Headlights. Headlights’ vocally haunting “Hold the Phone” was recorded solely on an iPhone and quickly found its way onto influential former British BBC Radio 1 presenter Zane Lowe’s playlist. “Midnight” has the potential to be a breakout hit. Having already sold out venues around the U.K. for his tour this summer, the New York native and New Jersey-raised Miller is embarking on his first headlining tour in the U.S., as well as several shows opening for fellow singer-songwriter James Bay. His soulful, wise-beyond-his-years voice and piano-driven sound align him with popular gospel-tinged pop artists such as Hozier and Sam Smith. Miller’s understated approach will perfectly accompany the Belmont Hotel’s intimate Barefoot at the Belmont outdoor concert series. Tor Miller’s sold-out performance will wrap up this season’s lineup. Kristin Lockhart

GVB Fest
With Jamie XX, Lower Dens, Tei Shi and More, 7 p.m., Friday, July 31, Granada Theater, SOLD OUT
The vicious, unforgiving world of music blogging left few survivors after its huge surge somewhere in the early ’00s. Gorilla Vs. Bear, against all odds, has endured several waves of online publication-culling and managed to grow at the same time. I mean, beyond Pitchfork, there aren’t many blogs successful enough to book big-name shows under their name. But Gorilla Vs. Bear has managed to pull in Jamie xx, the brooding, tousle-haired producer for the xx whose solo album In Colour peaked at No. 3 on the U.K. charts, and Lower Dens are set to play their dreamy indie-pop right before him. These acts sound about right at the Granada, too. This also marks the first year that GvB has expanded to two nights in two cities: They’re playing a follow-up show, featuring three more bands, in Austin the next day. If booking Jamie xx on back-to-back days isn’t a measure of your blog having “made it,” we don’t know what is. MW

311
With the Green, 8 p.m. Saturday, August 1, at South Side Ballroom, $39.75-$135.
On the surface, 311 are easy to hate. They started over 25 years ago in Omaha, Nebraska, mixing rap-metal with reggae and taking their name from the local police department’s code for indecent exposure after one of their members got arrested for streaking. But 311 relentlessly toured at the regional level, playing awful festivals in Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri, putting in the time and effort to build a grassroots following before breaking into the mainstream and selling millions of albums in the 1990s and early 2000s. 311 haven’t lost that strong work ethic. They rarely take a break and it continues to pay off. After hitting the big time, the group has had its share of ups and downs, but they manage to bounce back with songs that show up in countless soundtracks, surprise hit singles and devoted audiences that still show up to relive those feel-good high school and college memories. Jeremy Hallock

Randy Rogers Band
With Jason Isbell, Stoney LaRue, and Whiskey Myers, Saturday August 1, Gexa Energy Pavilion, $19.75-$49.75
In the crowded, increasingly generic Texas country scene, Randy Rogers is still an artist who soars above the rest with a deft combination of crystal vision and an unmatched dedication to not only his personal roots, but also those of country music. Only a few weeks removed from the unbearably sad death of his newborn daughter, Rogers is back on the road with his musical brothers in the Randy Rogers Band. Of the few key groups that ignited the past decade’s surge in Texas country’s popularity, only the RRB have kept their core lineup intact, and the results of that chemistry continue to bloom on record and on stage. The duets album Rogers released with pal Wade Bowen in April is a stone-cold country killer. When it comes to making soulful, danceable, rocking and thoughtful country music, Rogers kicks out the footlights as most others scurry through the swinging exit doors. Kelly Dearmore

Mayhem Fest
1 p.m. Sunday, August 2, at Gexa Energy Pavilion, $25-$66.66
This summer, like every summer, the most brutal of all tours is coming to Texas to open a hole straight into your soul and unleash mayhem. Yes, we’re talking about Mayhem Fest, the yearly touring festival that brings people in black jeans and shorts together in 105-degree heat to rock. The. Fuck. Out. This year’s lineup includes King Diamond, Slayer, The Devil Wear Prada, Vinci, Feed Her to the Sharks, Mrs. Potato Dick, Thy Art is Murder, The Best At What We Do and What We Do Isn’t Very Nice, Code Orange, Jack Rabbit Slim, Hellyeah, ShadowKat, Kissing Candice, Rickon, Shaggydog, Jungle Rot, the Dandy Lions, Shattered Sun, Alexis Texas, Sister Sin, Go Set a Watchman, Sworn In, the Yellow King and Whitechapel. (Let me catch my breath.) And if that’s not enough to get your metal pants excited, they offer a 666 ULTIMATE SIX PACK, AND THAT’S SO METAL!!! No word on whether Dirk Nowitzki will be shooting BB guns this year. Jaime-Paul Falcon

---

Follow @DC9AtNight