Not a bad musical selection to start out the work week. A legendary band out in Grand Prairie and a rapper/comedian highlight a night in which some locally affiliated acts also provide some worthwhile options.
LATE ADD: Donald Glover/Childish Gambino at South Side Music Hall
In this week's paper, Cory Graves previews tonight's performance from Community star Donald Glover, which will find the actor/comedian performing stand-up and also a hip-hop set of songs he's released under his Childish Gambino moniker. Writes Graves: "[As] the rapper spits on "The Last" from his 2010 LP, Culdesac, "I rap
about my life, not 'I'm On A Boat' / 'cause this joke-rap shit's gotten
out of hand / Only ones who do it well's Lonely Island." The
line is a battle cry that has become as much of a disclaimer as a
mission statement -- a sort of pleading with potential audiences to treat
his stand-up and rap careers as two completely separate entities." See if he's victorious in said quest at tonight's show.
The Moody Blues at the Verizon Theatre in Grand Prairie
Besides a short break the band
took in the mid-'70s, The Moody Blues have been making music for nearly
45 years. In that time, the band has gone through two distinct phases:
From 1965 to 1972, The Moody Blues basically created symphonic rock in the vein of their debut album, Days of Future Past, and that disc's accompanying
single "Nights in White Satin"; Following a brief hiatus, The Moody
Blues reconvened in 1977 as a more conventional pop act. To the surprise
of many, the band had its biggest success in 1986, when the album The
Other Side of Life produced the No. 1 hit, "Your Wildest Dreams." Many
people who became fans of the band in the '80s and went to see them in
concert, only to be taken aback by their early material. These days, older songs
like "Tuesday Afternoon" sound fine next to latter hits such as "I Know
You're Out There Somewhere." It's all well-played, contemporary adult
rock.
OK Sweetheart at Dan's Silverleaf in Denton
Splitting time between
Denton, Tulsa and New York City, the couple of Eric Austin and Rob
Gungor, known together as OK Sweetheart, have just released their debut effort, the
rocking and retro Home. With assistance from members of Midlake and the
Polyphonic Sphree, Austin and Gungor have constructed a dozen cuts that
recall the weirdness of The Zombies while still managing to sound
decidedly modern. Songs like "You Let Me Down," "Traitor" and "Grunge"
show a band with a keen grasp of '60s-style psychedelic pop. OK
Sweetheart makes music that's pretty damn infectious, and not overly
serious -- a combination the pretty much works every time.
Les Cousins at Absinthe Lounge
Dallas'
Les Cousins are a nice, little indie folk quartet that plays songs of
quiet intensity. Kind of like an alt-country or jazzy version of Mazzy
Star, Les Cousins create atmospheric backdrops for singer Betsy Palit to
pleasantly emote over. Songs like "Angel," "Be Free" and "Color of
Maude" are perfect music to accompany your wine-sipping after a hectic
start to the work week.
