1. Half Handed Cloud | Vollmar | Fishboy (Metrognome Collective Ft. Worth)
Lately it seems that Metrognome has been pulling in some pretty intereting shows without that stupid focus on new wave revival bands that Dallas clubs. Tonights show features two out of town acts, Half Handed Cloud and Vollmar. HHC is a solid folk pop band that is actually interesting, and Vollmar is a strange lo-fi electro folk band that is probably an intriguing live act. Fishboy is Fishboy, and we like him.

One of the last songs Irving played on Friday featured a chorus in which they called someone a "pleasant waste of time." I don't know what the song was actually called, but it serves as a good description of the band if you take away the word "pleasant" and replace it with, well, nothing. "Waste of time" does just fine.

Irving appears to be a band that is gearing up for a big commercial push, and why shouldn't they? They've got a lot of ooohs and aaahs and a "funny" keyboard player and a fake Albert Hammond Jr. guitar player and probably some of the most boring, derivative songs you'll ever hear, effectively mixing the worst of the Dandy Warhols with the worst of Elephant 6 and a shitty Beatles cover band that listens to Death Cab but is too embarrassed to tell their friends. Throw in some gross sexuality and dorky girl-kiss ass lyrics and it becomes obvious that this band could be huge. Their songs have the perfect balance of TRL accessibility and Urban Outfitters street cred to ensure that every record executive in the United States will reference their album in attempts to be hip with the kids.

We're not here to bitch about commercially viable indie pop or bands that wear their influences on their sleeves, because both can be acceptable at times if they are done right, as Voxtrot showed us later on in the evening. We just keep seeing Irving on the Insound charts and reading glowing reviews on various MP3 blogs, and we have to say: don't believe the hype. Its really hard to believe that no one has called these guys out on their shit before until you find out that they are from L.A., where no one ever calls anybody out on their shit. Its like Dallas except its the real L.A.

After the horrible experience that was Irving, Voxtrot came out and changed our moods for the better, even if they didn't completely blow us away. Voxtrot's influences also come through pretty clear from the moment you hear them: Belle and Sebastian, the Smiths, the Vaselines, etc., but the difference between them and Irving is that they actually, you know, write good songs with memorable choruses, solid vocals and decent lyrics.

We're pretty big fans of Voxtrot's two EPs, and they certainly performed the songs with a lot of energy and tight playing. But even though their performance was more than adequate, we just couldn't get completely hooked in. All the elements for a good show were there (good band, good songwriters, lots of enthusiastic fans) but there was something about it that just prevented it from being exciting most of the time. I can't tell if I'm just sick of indie pop, or if Irving created a mood that couldn't be overcome, or if it was Voxtrot's fault. But there was something just kind of boring about the whole show, something that made us feel as though writing pop songs with clear pop influences might not be a bad thing if the songs are good and a bit innovative, but that you have to do a little more if you want people to actually give a shit. We enjoyed the show, but we certainly didn't spend much time talking about afterwards. And actually, to inject a bit of local music positivity into this review, we kind of wished that we had gone to the Strange Boys/Undoing of David Wright show at Rubber Gloves instead. Yeah, we can see those bands any time, but we can also see indie pop shows just about any time too, Pitchfork approval aside. Voxtrot is good, might become great, and surely has a bright future both commercially and artistically. I'm just not sure how much I care.

Solid win for the Mavs tonight. It was a real group effort, and they actually looked like a team that plays the way you are supposed to in the playoffs: lots of aggression, defense, and clutch shooting when necessary. It feels really good to get that first win at home, as opposed to what happened last year....

The difference maker tonight? Well, other than Dirk (of course), it had to be Erick Dampier. I never thought I would say that, but its true. 12 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks doesn't look amazing on paper, but anyone that saw the game knows what I mean. He really made some big plays. If he can keep playing like this, the Mavs just might have a pleasantly long post season.

Oh, and Dirk Nowitzki: 31 points, 11 rebounds. If this guy doesn't get MVP this year, I'm going on a shooting spree. End of story.

1. T.V. On the Radio | Celebration (Gypsy Tea Room)
Heard the new TV on the Radio today, and I really like what I hear so far... very experimental, and the songs sound a bit more alive than the ones on their first full length, which I thought fell a little flat after the brilliant Young Liars EP. It will be interesting to hear what they sound like live, but their new stuff sounds good enough to make me take the gamble. Celebration (whose lead singer does vocal duties on some TV on the Radio songs) opens, and they're pretty good too. Some very spastic kind of no wave rhythm heavy songs mixed in with some quiet weird ones. Go early and check them out.

2. Books on Tape | Captain Ahab | Malise (Metrognome Collective-Fort Worth)
Two strange bands from LA tonight: Books on Tape play rough, choppy, sorta minimal experimental electronica that leans toward the dance. Good stuff. Captain Ahab are a train wreck, and although I'm not usually into "Joke bands," this joke is made easier to swallow because their tunes are entertaining and sort of like, funny and stuff. And I'm not even sure it is a joke. Dallas' Malise, who I have never heard until today, play some strange noise that actually has a beat behind it. I'm not sure if you can dance to it, but this will probably be a really fun show. And its at a really cool not-for-profit DIY venue, so get off your ass, drive to Fort Worth and make something happen.

Also tonight at 10 on 88.1 KNTU, Frank of Frequency Down will give you this:

NEW Sonic Youth, Islands, Sufjan Stevens, Land of Talk, Rainer Maria, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Spector 45 and Midlake!Also songs from Wilco, The Helio Sequence, Crystal Skulls, Eniac, The Tah-Dahs, Prayer For Animals, Teenage Symphony, American Analog Set, Experimental Aircraft, Moonbabies, Drive By Truckers, Drop Nineteens, Single Frame, Thee More Shallows AND SO MUCH MORE!!!

If you're not at Fry Street Fair getting trashed today, or even if you are and are still able to function by the time the sun goes down, you might want to move it on over to one of these two spots:

1. Strange Boys | Attractive and Popular | Eat Avery's Bones | Cartright (Double Wide)
This should be a really good show. You all know Strange Boys and Eat Avery's Bones already, but Attractive and Popular play some pretty solid dancerock stuff, and Cartright does a set of folk inspired pop... which sounds lame until you hear it. Or actually, until you see them live. We caught them at the Yellow House a month or two ago and they were fantastic. Go early and see for yourself.

2. Spankrock | Dj Nature | Best Fwends (Hailey's)
Spankrock is fun and filthy Bmore club hip hop at its finest, and you all know what kind of shit nature brings. Get there around 10 to catch his set. Best Fwends at 11 too.

Once again, its happening in Denton tonight:

Voxtrot | Irving | Bosque Brown | Tacks the Boy Disaster (Hailey's- Denton)
Great line up tonight. We're still a bit skeptical about Irving, but we'll see how they sound live.... they do have some good songs, so who knows? The entire We Shot JR crew could possibly be in full force at this thing tonight. Tacks is pretty sweet.

Undoing of David Wright | Strange Boys | Attractive and Popular (Rubber Gloves-Denton)
Another great show up in Denton tonight. There is a possibility that you will have your face rocked off.

AND DONT FORGET: The Kettle, a gallery across the street from Trees, will have Unconscious Collective at 9pm, featuring Aaron Gonzalez of Sanctuary Studios fame. We are told that fans of Sun Ra and Ornette Coleman should get over there tonight. Sorry, no website for you or anything.

AND ANOTHER THING:

Tomorrow, the Yella House in Denton will be hosting a free show in the afternoon, starting at 3pm. There will be grilling involved, keg beer, and:

Sarah Reddington
The Undoing of David Wright
The Pebble that Saved the World
Meroe

AND ANOTHER NOTHER THING:

Good Records- Black Angels instore for the "Passover" release party. 4pm Saturday.

Heres a new track from the Theater Fire's new album Everybody Has a Dark Side, to be released in early May. Reminds me of Angels of Light a bit. And its pretty damn good by the way.

MP3 "Barrel Riders"

From our good friends at Radio UTD:

1 FLAMING LIPS At War With The Mystics
2 MONO You Are There
3 BUILT TO SPILL You In Reverse4
4 LIARS Drum's Not Dead
5 PHILIP E. KARNATS Pleasuresuite
6 GLISSANDRO 70 Glissandro 70
7 BOY LEAST LIKELY TO The Best Party Ever
8 ELF POWER Back To The Web
9 ISLANDS Return To The Sea
10 LOOSE FUR Born Again In The USA
11 EELS Eels With Strings: Live At Town Hall
12 CENTRO-MATIC Fort Recovery
13 MOGWAI Mr. Beast
14 SIMON JOYNER Beautiful Losers: Singles And Compilation Tracks (1994-1999)15 TALKDEMONIC Beat Romantic
16 SHOPLIFTING Body Stories
17 MADLIB Beat Konducta Vol. 1-2: Movie Scenes
18 ENVELOPES Demon
19 CALEXICO Garden Ruin
20 CASIOTONE FOR THE PAINFULLY ALONE Etiquette
21 I LOVE YOU BUT I\'VE CHOSEN DARKNESS Fear Is On Our Side
22 STREETS The Hardest Way To Make An Easy Living
23 CONCRETES In Colour
24 FIGURINES Skeleton
25 DEAD HEART BLOOM Dead Heart Bloom
26 EAGLE*SEAGULL Eagle*Seagull
27 ALOHA Some Echoes
28 TE' If That Is What Is Being Thought,Liberated Sound Talks The Depth Of "Musical" World
29 FIELD MUSIC Field Music
30 JOSH RITTER The Animal YearsRadio