Tame Tame And Quiet | The Demigs | Dios Malos | Corto Maltese (The Cavern)
Tame Tame And Quiet is probably one of the only bands that could get me out to The Cavern, as far as bands that would realistically play there. I don't know much about the other acts, but I've heard good things about The Demigs.

Wanz And Ineka (Fallout Lounge)
His new mixtape has The Pop Group and I'm a fan. Do you like the Pop Group? They're kind of like The Rapture minus the irony.

80's Night With DJ G (Hailey's)

Sorry this is late and lame, but it's still better than YOUR It list:

Strawberry Fields is doing the Short Attention Span Theatre tonight at Hailey's. Some kind of Western theme is involved tonight, meaning they will show strange cowboy themed stuff I'm assuming. Usually fun.

Also in Denton, Warren Jackson Hearne is playing at Rubber Gloves with Jason Webley and Will E. Lee.

Looks like that's about it.

Sally Glass has pictures from The Party's One Year Anniversary and Monday's Cool Out on her page. I usually hate those "funny" "vintage" t-shirts that dudes wear at stuff like this, but Select always manages to dig up a Garbage Pale Kids shirt or something that makes us laugh.

Voot Cha Index | Hardin Sweaty And The Ready To Go | Ryan Anderson | Fishboy (J & J's Pizza)
A lineup worthy of a Friday night, especially if you're a pop fan. Good Records' child prodigies, Voot Cha Index, continue in a spate of shows before they all split into different post-summer directions, collegiate or otherwise. Ryan Anderson is a singer/songwriter from Austin with some pretty goofy lyrics and a very straightforward style. Eric from Fishboy is actually playing sans backing band tonight. Hardin Sweaty And The Ready To Go should have done the preview soundtrack to Dunston Checks In. I don't think that's an insult to a pop act. Oh, and this show is free and that's always cool.

Based on the admittedly small amount of research I've done on Jandek, I would venture to say that his show at Rose Marine Theater on Saturday night was one of the most structured and digestible performances he's given since his emergence from anonymity a couple years ago. This is not to say that the music wasn't strange, because it was; and it's also not as if Saturday was the first time he's ventured into the realm of more traditionally structured music, because it wasn't. It's just that the unique combination of musicians accompanying him on Saturday night helped to make his music sound quite different than most of the recorded Jandek material I've heard, and for the most part, this had the effect of bringing his vision closer to tangible, every day life than I imagined it ever could be.

Ok, let me explain. To me, Jandek's music brings to mind Sigmund Freud's initial conception of dreams and the unconscious. Particularly in his early material (with which I am most familiar), Jandek's method of writing, playing and recording music seemed to draw the listener into the dark, playful and often painful world of the unconscious through the dreamlike atmosphere of the material. Just as Freud believed that dreams were something of an open door into the unconscious, Jandek's music acts as a gateway to the darkest and most inexplicable spaces of the artist's mind, inviting you into a world of surrealist images, random thoughts and flowing, often structureless sounds that seem to be guided by anything but coherent rationality. Essentially, Jandek songs remind me of those last few moments before you fall asleep at night, as you slowly lose control of your thoughts while maintaining awareness of them as you drift off. And more than just about any other musician I can think of, it sounds, at least to me, that Jandek is trying to make some kind of direct presentation of his unconscious existence, turning songs and lyrics into bits and pieces of surreal dreamscapes as he invites the listener inside his mind.

What made Saturday so different was the pull between the aforementioned qualities of Jandek's music and the performances of Ryan Williams, Will Johnson, Ralph White and Susan Alcorn. Although the music they played was fairly abstract, formless and experimental by most standards, the elements of jazz, folk and country that were apparent throughout the set seemed to keep Jandek's vocal and harmonica performance grounded in waking life, not quite permitting him to go to the deeper, darker place he goes in much of his most striking recorded material. This might sound like a bad thing at first, but it was honestly quite intriguing. As the bits and pieces of more traditional American music faded in and out of the largely avant garde set, it became quite exciting to watch Jandek interact with a group of musicians that seemed to come together quite well despite having no idea what to expect. Although under most circumstances their performances would qualify as subtle and strange, with Jandek, the music often came across as bold and colorful, revealing ways in which his haunting vision could work in an entirely different musical context while honoring the abstract nature of his work. The backing musicians seemed to effectively challenge Jandek to work and interact with them, pulling his highly introverted style outwards while giving him the space he needed to remain in the personal zone he seems to invite us all into. These contradictions between the band and their leader created a tangible tension in the room that made his performance quite powerful despite the fact that he always maintained the detached and self involved persona that makes his music so intimate yet so foreign. It was as if the audience was being invited back into Jandek's house, just like we are on his records, only this time, he had friends over. And he wasn't exactly sure about them just yet.

Of course, I've probably heard less than 1/4 of his vast catalogue, and there very well could be many other instances of such interaction in Jandek's history (I'm aware that he has recorded with other people, for example). It's just that it was great to see him play live with complete strangers, participating in a give and take that I couldn't possibly have imagined the first time I heard his first album. And I'm sure that back when he was recording Ready for the House in 1978, he probably couldn't have imagined himself on a stage in Ft. Worth either, playing in front of a group of people that were happy to once again explore his mind.

We'll have some posts for you later this evening, but for now:

Cool Out (Cavern upstairs)
Recently, a lot of people decided to start going out on Monday nights in Dallas, and I believe roughly 90% of them go to this.

Nux Vomica | Ippur | Akkolyte (1919 Hemphill)
The Gonzalez brothers provide a guaranteed ass kicking in Ft. Worth with their grindcore outfit Akkolyte.

A reader recommended this to me in an email and asked whether it was "appropriate for Monday Morning Rock." Yes. Yes it is.



THIS WEEK'S SHOWS OF NOTE

SAT: Pase Rock/Nature/Sober/Select (The Green Elephant)

Goddamn it Friday night. Why do you have to let so many things happen tonight? Would it kill you to give one or two shows to Saturday night so that I don't have to make the Denton or Dallas decision again? I guess I could try to be one of those overly ambitious people who hits both cities in the same night, but I'm just too lazy for such things. Have you ever been carrying something, dropped it, and then kicked it the rest of the way because you were too lazy to bend over and pick it up? Yeah, I just did that. So obviously I'm not going to have the energy to go Zubar | House of Tinnitus | Fra House/Monkey Bar all in the same night. Oh well. I'll live. Here we go:

FRIDAY

The Party One Year Anniversary (Zubar)
It's really hard to believe what a big deal these guys have become over the past year. Whether it's packing the Zubar for their monthly party, enticing the SMU kids to dance to that new house at Green Elephant, showing up at every party around town or bringing in critically acclaimed touring acts, these guys have been everywhere and done everything this year. And although some people might dismiss their fans as misguided fashionistas, The Party would be a success in any major cosmopolitan city in the world right now, and their sets lists are the proof. And you know what, it's pretty hard to not have a good time at these things, no matter who you are.

Dead Echoes Fest (House of Tinnitus)
Another anniversary of sorts is happening here as House of Tinnitus hosts the second annual Dead Echoes drone fest. You can click on the Dead Echoes link above for the full line upset times, and Myspace links, but Sports, Shiny Around the Edges, Yellow Crystal Star, Mike McGuire and Shortwave Death System are the highlights in my mind, exposing the kind of musical diversity that most people don't seem to notice within what is popularly called "drone." Expect a friendly and enthusiastic crowd of people coming and going from a house that has really made a name for itself as a prestigious center for anything not-pop. Oh, and it's free.

Night Wounds | Modern History Duet | Red Faced Laughter (Fra House)
Denton's other big show of the night is also a house show and also free. What do you think of that? Night Wounds sort of play a rhythm focused post-punk/hardcore thing that seems to draw inspiration from the likes of Fugazi, The Raincoats, the Slits and New York no-wave. Whitehouse,Tx band Red Faced Laughter sounds like a very good reason to show up around the official start time of 10pm, packing a punch with a similarly abstract but aggressive freak out peppered with a demonstrable sense of shoegaze-like atmosphere all over the place, sounding at times like a marriage between Slowdive and Extreme Animals. A really interesting band from a strange place. Those are usually good, aren't they?

The Wrens | Get Him Eat Him | Midgetmen (Hailey's)
I'm not the biggest Wrens dude in the world, but I certainly respect them and enjoy their music whenever I happen to hear it.

Eat Avery's Bones | She-Dick | Prince William (Monkey Bar)
Parade of Flesh put this thing together to celebrate one of their birthdays. It's too bad it's happening on the same night as the big Party event, but I bet it's fun. I'm just curious to see what Eat Avery's Bones are like at the damn Monkey Bar.

DMA Late Nights (Dallas Museum of Art)
Tonight's DMA Latenight sounds like one of the better ones they've had, with a focus on the "dawn of Modernism" that will feature a screening of Fritz Lang's Metropolis and lectures on Marcel Duchamp, as well as drinks and food and all the other stuff they usually have. Good times.

White Drugs are playing at Doublewide with a couple bands I don't care about.

SATURDAY

Jandek (Rose Marine Theater-Ft. Worth)
We've already talked this show up enough, but we should say that this very well could be a once in a lifetime opportunity to see this guy in person. Sounds like he'll have some great backing musicians as well.

Broadcast Sea | Nouns Group | J Versus K (Hailey's)


Pre-New Sabbath Fest feat. Matthew and the Arrogant Sea | Fishboy | Ben Fleming | New Science Projects | Eli Brown | Daniel Folmer | Stanton Meadowdale | Sarah Reddington 6-12 (J&Js)
As a preview to the exciting folk festival happening in August, stop by J&Js all afternoon to check out a variety of acts. As for the organizers, the dudes involved with Gashcat and Matthew and the Arrogant Sea, we'll have more on them early next week. I've gotta go, so I just linked to the bands I know off the top of my head. Sorry.

SUNDAY

Mothfight | Ghosthustler | Mom | Instruments (The Cavern)
This Party Ends sponsored show has the makings for a good one: whether it's the spellbound electro-acoustic Mom, the strange electro indiepop of Mothfight or Ghosthustler, the only worthy recipient of the "new band" award in the Observer Music Awards, Party Ends is providing a good look at a lot of different sounds that are getting attention right now. And you know what? "Ride the White Horse" DOES sound like it could be a Ghosthustler song. Last time I checked, that was good.

Wild in the Streets (Hailey's)