Since it opened its doors in 2013, Deep Ellum's Twilite Lounge has earned a reputation for being one of the area's best places to grab a drink, have a conversation or take a date. Lost sometimes in all the fawning over the jukebox and boozy concoctions is that owners Danny Balis and Jess Barr have gone out of their way to bring a varied collection of unique musical artists to perform in their Crescent City-styled bar.
It's no surprise, then, that the duo have pulled out all the stops to celebrate the bar's second anniversary: Thanks to the long holiday weekend afforded by the Fourth of July, Twilite Lounge will be spreading its birthday festivities across three whole days this summer, with bands like the Old 97's and Brent Best's Slobberbone there to help celebrate.
The first two night will be feature two bands apiece. On Friday, July 3, doors open at 4:00pm with Naptime Shake and American Werewolf Academy capping off the night on the indoor stage at 10:00 and 11:30, respectively. Saturday, the nation's birthday, sees the biggest show of the weekend happen on the outdoor stage on the Twilite patio as Slobberbone opens for Dallas' favorite sons the Old 97's. The Old 97's are no strangers to the stage at Twilite; the band are good friends with the owners and they've been known to show up to play impromptu gigs, especially on Rhett Miller's birthday. The Old 97's go on at 11:30, which means Miller should be a sweaty mess by about 11:45.
Things come to an end on Sunday the 5th with 1:00 doors (two house earlier than Saturday) and performances from Telegraph Canyon's Chris Johnson, Fort Worth's Quaker City Nighthawks and Hamel on Trial. Admission is free throughout the weekend, meaning it should be a packed house for all the shows.
The weekend of the Fourth hasn't traditionally been a concert hotbed in the DFW, and with the long-running Willie Nelson's Picnic moving this year from the Forth Worth Stockyards back to Austin there could be a big hole to fill. So the timing for the Twilite parties is pretty well perfect. The choice is yours: pool parties and hot dogs, or one of the city's best bars hosting some good old all-American music. Most likely we'll be doing both.
The full schedule for the weekend:
Friday, July 3
4:00pm Doors
(Indoor Stage)
10:00pm The Naptime Shake
11:30pm American Werewolf Academy
Saturday, July 4
3:00pm Doors
(Outdoor Stage)
10:30pm Brent Best
11:30pm The Old 97’s
Sunday, July 5
1:00pm Doors
(Outdoor Stage)
8:00pm Chris Johnson
9:00pm Quaker City Nighthawks
(Indoor Stage)
11:00pm Hamell on Trial