The rumor spreading around the internet this evening faster than herpes at a Deep Ellum heavy metal bar is that Doublewide has closed.... we don't have any completely reliable source of info quite yet, but have heard second hand that a local booking agent has confirmed it.

MORE UPDATES WHEN WE GET EM

Monday Monday. I love monday! Is there anything better than getting back to work? Hell no! I love feeling productive, and knowing that I am really earning my keep in this world. It feels great....

As usual, DJ CEE PEE will be upstairs at the Cavern for Good Records Good Mornings. They will be having a listening party for the new Built to Spill album "You in Reverse," which comes out tomorrow. Pitchfork gave it a soso 6.8, and based on listening to the album twice, I would have to pretty much agree. Its pretty good, but not great. Anyway, go to the Cavern tonight to listen for yourself, because I'm sure that all of you people who are the kind of people that would go to a Built to Spill listening party are NOT the kind of people that have already downloaded it off Soulseek or something.

(let me say from the get go that because of some confusion with some of our pictures people, we weren't able to make it out on Sunday. Its too bad, because we really wanted to see Starlight Mints. But have no fear, I'm sure someone will tell you all about it in the comments thread, whether you like it or not.)

My first thought when I pulled up to the Ridglea in Fort Worth was: "Where the hell is everyone?" We only saw a couple of kids standing out in front of the theater, and the parking lot was somewhat full, but not at capacity like we had expected. We thought a lot more people would be there by the time we showed up since it was, oh I don't know, three hours later than we wanted to. Thats what a Friday night show in Denton followed by a couple of house parties and a 430am arrival back home in Dallas will do to you.

Once inside, we noted that the crowd was probably smaller than the organizers would have liked, but it was still fairly well attended all things considered. We walked into the main theater just in time to catch the Black Angels set on the side stage, which was positioned to the right of the main Ridglea stage. The sound for the Angels set was terrible for some reason, and it was really hard to make out any single instrument. Yeah I know I know, they are kind of a wall of noise psychedelic band, but we've seen them three other times (including at Avenue Arts, a place that doesn't have a "sound guy"), and it sounded much clearer than it did on Saturday. A disappointing set by a good band.

Next we turned about six inches to our left to watch Red Monroe play the main stage. This was something we really liked about the festival. Everything was very close together in the small Ridglea Theater, and there never seemed to be any break in the music. After one band finished on the main stage, for example, another started up on the side stage within minutes, and if you didn't want to see them, you could go upstairs and watch whatever was up there. And everything started almost exactly on time, which was really really nice. If the poster said 5:30, the band started at 5:30. Novel concept, huh?

Red Monroe was pretty engaging in the beginning, but it felt like they did a bit too much meandering during some of their songs, and some of their lyrics seemed a tad, um, underdeveloped, which took away from their otherwise solid material. Something about smoke stacks and Cadillacs. Anyway, we actually think they are a pretty good band, and at times they sounded wonderful... great atmospheric guitars and synths and a really good singer with great range and an interesting voice. They've just got some kinks to iron out, although we'll surely catch them again in the near future to see if they have.

After splitting for the Mexican Inn, we returned to catch the Angelus on the side stage. We had never seen them before, and were actually pretty impressed. Their music was an extremely dark and spacey take on neo-folk rock, and their singer had a intriguingly creepy stage presence and a solid voice. We'll surely add them to the list of bands we have to see in a smaller venue, so we can get a better idea of where we stand on them. But they certainly put on a good show Saturday, and it was one of the highlights of our time there.

Then we went upstairs and watched A.M. Syndicate for some reason. They weren't very good. They all seemed like good musicians, and some of their instrumental stuff wasn't bad, but their singer really annoyed me and many of their songs sounded like the Goo Goo Dolls with strings. Sheesh.

After that, we headed downstairs to see Record Hop. I'm sure I'll get some shit for this, but I just didn't get it. The sound wasn't too great, which might explain some of it, but it just seemed like straight forward Pixiesesque- Sleater Kinney rock music with few twists or surprises. They weren't bad, but it doesn't seem like it is my kind of thing. Considering that they were pretty tight and everyone else seems to like them, however, we'll probably go see them one more time in a smaller venue to see if we can pick up on what everyone keeps talking about. Having a few more drinks in me and seeing them at a small club would probably help, since volume seems to be a big part of what they do, and a small venue would certainly be more conducive to the kind of atmosphere that they seem capable of creating.

Next we watched Midlake, which was by far the highlight of the evening. They played several songs from their new album, and the two internet buzzy hits "Roscoe" and "Young Bride" sounded fantastic. I don't know if Sam from the Observer is right about them getting ready to put out the record of the year, because I haven't heard more than four songs from the album. But what I have heard is really really good, and clearly some of the best music coming out of Texas right now. Period. Their visual show was also well done, adding to an already strong performance. I'm really looking forward to seeing whether or not their new material can live up to the hype.

After Midlake we went upstairs and watched Mazinga Phaser II. They absolutely killed it in the beginning, and despite what seemed like a few mistakes, they played some really interesting and often exciting material. Lots of percussion and feedback and random blips and noises, but strong enough vocals and hints of pop to keep you interested. The upstairs area was packed for their show, and it was good to see that people were interested in one of the more experimental bands at the festival.

And really, that was my only complaint about the whole thing: it seemed like the line up choice was just a bit safe. Not that rock shows have to be "edgy" or strange or anything like that, and we honestly can't say whether or not an experimental art rock festival could really make any money considering that it wasn't even apparent that Wall of Sound turned a profit. But we would have liked to have seen some more adventurous acts thrown in with the indie pop stuff, even though much of what was there was very good.

Overall, the thing seemed well planned out, organized, and set up in a way to maximize the fans' enjoyment of the music. We have to give them credit for that. And as we expected, we saw a few shows that we liked a lot, a few that were ok, and a couple that sucked. But that is what you get at a festival. And although the attendance was decent, it could have been much better. There is an endless list of possible explanations for this phenomenon, so we're not going to even try. But Wall of Sound could be a very exciting thing for DFW if they can do it again, at least based on what we saw. Adding more diversity in the line up surely wouldn't hurt, and possibly having it outside somewhere might also be a good idea. We hope they can do it again next year, and that it will be a little bigger and a tad more diverse.

Mazinga Phaser II Upstairs

Midlake on the main stage
Midlake again

Am Syndicate: A Dave Matthews Band for people that have heard of Arcade Fire
The Angelus: Pretty damn good.

Red Monroe: Getting there
Festival Logo for maximum product placement

Black Angels on the side stage

Later this evening we'll have our coverage of Wall of Sound complete with pictures and shit! We figure a lot of people will be at Wall of Sound today, or simply recovering from a weekend of questionable choices.... so we're taking it easy this afternoon.

Oh, and be sure to check out Frequency Down tonight on 88.1 KNTU at 10pm. Its supposed to be indietastic.

So we'll be spending most of the day at the Wall of Sound festival (Our fest agenda is below). But we also wanted to let everyone know that the New York DJ duo Metro Area will be spinning at Minc (813 Exposition Ave, next to Ave Arts, Fallout Lounge, etc) this evening some time around 11 or 12 I believe. Its 8 bucks to get in, and it really should be worth it. These guys put out a great electronica record in 2004, full of classic house, disco, and even a little of the Kompakt microhouse sound. According to DJ G, who will be spinning next door at Ave Arts tonight, these guys play some great disco, Italo, and classic house music during their DJ sets, in addition to a lot of other stuff that we're not cool enough to be able to categorize for you. For the hipsters: they've worked with DFA on several projects, and sort of have a similar feel in that they often mix live instruments in with their mostly electro tracks. So there you go. Dancing and hipster cred all in one place.

Since I started writing this blog a few months ago, there have been many moments when I have started to feel that going out to shows was turning into a job. Some nights, such and such hipster band is playing at this and that place, and I feel like I have to go see them so that I can do a little write up on the blog and earn a couple scenester points and make everyone happy. Most of the time, it isn't that I don't like the band or don't think their show will be good. Its just that I'm tired, or not particularly inspired that night, or whatever. Sometimes I go because I feel like I have to.

Last night started off as one of those nights. Yes, I do like The Books. And yes, I had heard that they put on a good show. But it was in Denton, I was getting over a hangover, and I just wasn't sure what to expect. And when I drove by Hailey's and saw the biggest crowd I have ever seen standing in front of the place, there was a part of me that was excited that the Books could attract so much attention, and another part of me that was like, "Man, how long is it gonna take to get a beer in this place?" The show did in fact sell out, and it took a really long time to get a beer. But after seeing the Books play one song, I just didn't give a shit.

Last night I found out that the Books are an absolutely mesmerizing live band. And really, I don't even know if you can call them a band, at least in the traditional sense. Yes they play instruments on a stage and release albums, but nothing else they do seems to have anything to do with rock n roll. In fact, I don't even think that you can analyze the Books using any of the same criteria that you would to judge the White Stripes or Man Man or something like that. In one of the comment threads the other day, someone tried to draw a distinction between "art" and "artsy." I get that. "Artsy" is Thurston Moore name dropping Marcel Duchamp in an interview. Art is something entirely different, and although I'm not going to sit here and try to define it, I would say that the Books fall into the "art" category, however you want to label it, because they don't really seem like a "band" to me.

The Books live show consists of the two members playing a few different instruments at different times (including some that they have invented themselves, like a horn that blows smoke rings) and singing. The Books' songs also contain sound clips from a variety of different sources that I can't even begin to list here. But lets just say that most of them are human voices talking, some of them are funny, some of them are creepy, and all of them are very effective and well researched, like these guys went through the Library of Congress archives to find motivational speeches, interviews with sociopaths, history books on tape, religious ceremonies, and just about anything else that could affect a listener on a pseudo subconscious level. Take those sound samples, mix in some live music and pre recorded music, and then throw a huge video screen on to the front of the stage and press play. That is the Books live show. And of course, that kind of thing has been done time and time again, but never quite like this. The band's music is apparently based off of these videos, because they all coincide precisely with what is going on in the songs. You often see the people that you hear speaking on their records, and it really adds to the effect of the music. Many bands throw random psychedelic clips onto a disk and play them during their shows, but all of these videos were carefully edited and extremely well thought out. Each told its own story, if only a loose one, that kept me and everyone else in the place interested throughout the night. Really, even though there was the usual gaggle of scenester kids talking in the back, I have never seen a Hailey's audience so attentive.

Sometimes I even got a little emotional (not to get all emo on you) during the set. The song "Take Time" is beautiful on its own, but throw in a video of old people square dancing, mixed in with images of random violence, Charles Manson, people falling down America's Funniest Home Videos style, and random religious celebrations from different parts of the world, and you've got something that should have an emotional impact on anyone that has a brain. Really, there were several very moving moments throughout the set, which is something that "art rock" seems to rarely accomplish this well. This all probably sounds pretty stupid on paper, and I'm not even going to try to explain it any more, because I just feel like I'll just dig myself into a deeper hole. But I really just wanted to write this to thank the Books. I wanted to thank them for reminding me why I actually give a shit about music in the first place. Because trust me, I needed it.

weshotjr@yahoo.com

I have an extremely horrible hangover today. Like, one of the worst ever. So I'm not in the best mood right now, and I can't even begin to think about joining in on some of the conversations going on in the comment threads. Hopefully I'll be feeling a little bit better later on today so that I can enjoy some of the night's activities. Here we go:

1. The Books (Hailey's)
Probably one of the most interesting and innovative experimental groups in the United States, The Books use tape loops and samples of old commercials and pretty much anything they can find to put together strange, atmospheric pieces that often don't end up being "songs" in the traditional sense. Don't know how all of this will translate live, but I'm willing to go find out for myself. Here is a pretty good article about them in this week's observer.

2. The Chapters | Pegasus Now | Druggist (The Cavern)
A lot of people have been bitching about the Cavern around here lately, and we must agree that the sound often sucks over there. Not sure if its the room, the sound guy, or what, but they've gotta get that shit straight. Anyway, Pegasus Now is the current Observer-approved Dallas buzz band, and as much as we want to tell you that they suck, they don't. They are actually pretty good. The live show we caught a couple weeks ago wasn't absolutely amazing or anything, but it was pretty solid. I'm sure we'll be checking them out again. The Chapters are one of those Echo and the Bunnymen new wave kind of bands that you hear everywhere, but they sound much better and a little bit different than most of those, and are probably worth seeing too. Their singer sounds a lot like Peter Murphy. Opener Druggist doesn't sound like anything too special.

3. Prayer for Animals are opening for Blackheart Society tonight at Darkside Lounge for Blackheart's CD release party.

Oh, and it looks like the Wall of Sound Festival got a little press in Pitchfork today. Like we said before, unless people are getting screwed over or something, we don't see how having a music festival that gets national attention and features mostly good bands can really be a PROBLEM for DFWd. Do you?