Geez, what a bunch of shows. Why does everyone feel the need to constantly express themselves? Come on, take the night off. Do you really want to be worried about your big show all day, and all that entails? Having to load in, load out, walking around nervously while the other bands play or DJ's are on (who you are most surely better than, of course), monitoring your merch table and pretending you haven't made a mental note of everything you've sold and given away for free, until finally, it's your moment to shine. I have faith in you. You're going to be great. But you might also consider just kicking back and watching a baseball game or trying to make some real money or something. Dreams do have an expiration date, kids. Don't choke on the sour milk.
Music is supposed to be fun, right? Well, I can say with confidence that some of these shows actually do look fun.
-DL
FRIDAY
Keith P | Redsean | DJ Dean Dillinger/Young Adult Fiction (Fallout Lounge)
My Son, My Executioner | Pee Wee Hermanator | On Earth As It Is In Heaven (Eisenbergs Skatepark located 930 E 15th St in Plano) Eisenbergs is a great place to catch a hardcore show. There is something about physics of the sound waves bouncing off of concrete and skate ramps that makes everything sound even more piercing and disgusting. Throw in the background clamor of worried parents shuffling about and you have yourself a real suburban punk experience, which is what it's all about when your really think about it. Beware of little in-line brats whizzing past you with all the confidence of a suicide bomber. Love this place.
Bob Dylan And His Band | John Mellencamp | Willie Nelson (Quiktrip Park located at 1600 Lone Star Parkway in Grand Prairie) Whoa, talk about commerce trampling all over taste in this lineup. I mean, Nelson and Dylan is a no-brainer, but throw in the experience of having to endure Mellencamp sing about chili dogs and shit just reminds you that the target demographic of this show is still often clueless about what's great concerning their own era's music.
Vega (DJ Set) | Big J | Yeah Def (Suite Basement) I'm assuming this DJ set follows the "band" set at the Lounge, with what I don't doubt will be an illuminating listen into what influences separate Alan Palomo's project from similar acts.I saw some Denton parody Twitter thing recently where Alan was called a name, and I assure you from a strictly "pro" blog bro standpoint, he most certainly does not live up to what was said, and is about a million times easier to deal with than much less popular artists.I'm sure the Tweet was a joke, but I just want to reiterate that this guy is an angel compared to people you think would be a walk in the park.
Sleep Whale | Perhapsy | Dear, Human | Echo-Toll (Hailey's) So Sunnybrook is on Pitchfork, but I don't know if I've seen Sleep Whale (or Mom) on there before. It can be awkward when a solo project takes off, but sometimes it's the best thing for a band.
| /TENSE/ | | Preaux Breaux Geauxld | Diamond Hymen | Skeleton Warrior | Vulgar Fashion (Castle Of Luxurious Diamonds located at 1007 Oakland St. In Denton): Vulgar Fashion has one of the best dance tracks I've heard by a local group in the past year or so, "Krystal Lies," which is featured on their Myspace page. This show should be pretty chaotic, thanks in no small part to jittery minimal synth act //TENSE//, who are appearing after having to cancel a recent show at Mable Peabody's.
SATURDAY
DJ Set by Daniel Ash of Love and Rockets, Tones On Tail etc. (Agave located at 2067 Summer Lee Dr, Ste 105 in Rockwall(!)) Where do I even begin about how weird this is? Sometimes a musician's life is all about looking at a sheet of paper and just saying yes if the money or exposure seems okay. Sometimes a little "Citysearch" on a place like Rockwall should also factor into the decision making process. Just a suggestion.
Method Man | Ghostface Killah | Redman (House Of Blues): Great lineup, though Ghostface seems to be the last guy here who has done much in the past five years. Did you know Killah Priest is playing the Lounge soon? Crazy.
New Works by Marty Ricks Banks Fine Art 1231 Dragon Street, Dallas, Tx 75207 August 6 : 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
At first glance of Marty Ricks' stuff I thought "boring...", but I looked a little closer and these are some really beautiful landscapes. "Ricks is an avid hunter and fly-fisher; his favorite locations often become the subject of his work."
Summer Conversations Betsy Daves Bass, Dorothy Clarke, Pierre Durand, Bob Johnson, Jane Kleve, Jim Kraus, Sheila Mann, Christopher Lee Martin, Karen Piloto, Alan Roberston, Elisabeth Schalij, Jack Seely, and Silvia Thornton Haley-Henman Gallery 2335 Hardwick Street, Dallas, Tx 75208 August 6 : 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
FRIDAY
Phosphate Gabriel Macias Rising Gallery 4631 Insurance Lane, Dallas, Tx 75205 August 7 : 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
The 'Muddersun' Benefit Art Show Max Vatovac and Hart Rueter Artists Showplace 15615 Coit Road, Suite 230, Dallas, Tx 75248 August 7 : 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
"Artists' Showplace gallery will host an exhibition featuring the paintings of Maximiliano (Max) Alessandro Vatovac, age 19, and sculpture by his mother, L. Hart Rueter."
SATURDAY
Meltdown Closing Art Hotel Gallery 1112 South Akard, Dallas, TX 75215 August 8 : 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Non-Objective Art Exhibition TVAA Downtown Gallery 700 North Pearl Street, Suite G207, Dallas, TX 75201 August 8 : 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
TV Ghost | Ultra Twist | Pipsqueak | Video (818 Hickory in Denton) I heard Mark E. Smith complain in an interview recently that bands who claim to be influenced by The Fall often just sound like The Talking Heads, who he considers "the enemy." Well, some of TV Ghost's mix of organ and erratic guitar parts do sound like The Fall, particularly something off of the "Grotesque: After The Gramme" record, and I think that works in their favor. I expected this to be yet another formulaic garage rock/punk band, and I think they are definitely above that designation.
The Ultra Twist are here all the way from Siena, Italy and they have a sound in that is unsurprising for a band named after a Cramps classic, though it should be mentioned how impressively dirty and nasty their recordings are. Video now features two wah pedals (that's right, one on bass. Yikes.)
Decades With DJ No Dad (Rubber Gloves) This is an interesting format for a DJ night; each hour represents a different decade from the 20th Century, with 10 PM representing the '60s and the Nineties aptly closing out the night around 1 AM. Hmm. Here's hoping we don't start with Lou Christie and end with Len. Luckily, I have faith in amateur DJ "No Dad," whose identity I won't reveal just yet. We're not into blowing someone's cover around here; Where's the fun in that? This will all be accompanied by projections and DND will also be taking requests. Event is free for 21 and up.
I want to add that earlier today I did one of those silly "50 Shows" lists on Facebook, and I was reminded of how many important or just plain great shows I've seen at RGRS over the years. Pretty remarkable.
Mount Righteous | England Ramaband/Politico/Flute Of The Loom (Zuroma located at 2140 Hall Johnson Rd. in Grapevine)
Charlie Parr | Burntsienna Trio (The Hydrant): So now that Myspace is becoming a spooky, antisocial graveyard, will it be cool to have a website again? Or is it cool and ironic to have a Myspace now? So confused.
Church Of The Snake | Color Club | Bleach Boys | Bad Sports (J&J's Pizza): A couple of really solid bands here from the fruitful Fayetteville, Arkansas* music scene along with a couple of great local punk bands. I had never heard of Color Club before today and now I'm glad I have. They have a nicely spacious yet quirked-out sound full of yelping and some rhythmic and aesthetic similarities to early Rough Trade's or even Crammed's finest moments.
*Church Of The Snake is actually from Hot Springs, Arkansas, which is almost four hours away. That's like saying some Dallas band is from Austin. My apologies.
Reading Rainbow | Fungi Girls | A Smile Full of Ale | Teenage Cool Kids (Majestic Dwelling of Doom) Great show at one of the best DIY spots anywhere in the area-- Majestic Dwelling of Doom has been around for a long time under a variety of names, and its unique, basement-like setting sets it apart aesthetically from a lot of other paces to see a show in Denton... or anywhere else around here for that matter. Philadelphia's Reading Rainbow is a band that plays with a lot of sounds that are in vogue these days, and fans of Crystal Stilts, Vivian Girls, Wavves and Psychedelic Horseshit will likely dig this stuff-- but their material cannot be properly described solely in those terms, as they seem to lean closer, at least in song structure, to a kind of mish mash of C86 and droning, noisy guitar work thats most conveniently associated with Jesus and Mary Chain. You could call their stuff "noise pop" if you'd like, and you'd probably be more or less accurate-- just don't let the label get in the way of some really great music. Catchy, messy, and a lot of fun, I wouldn't miss these guys on this tour before Pitchfork or someone notices them and they get a record deal that requires them to play in a place not nearly as fun as Majestic Dwelling the next time they come through town. Highly recommended.
Dark Party | Blixaboy | Mux Mool (the Lounge) Two Ghostly International acts come through town tonight, and Dark Party's band name actually provides a rather helpful hint as to what their music sounds like-- lots of dark sounding synths and crisp drum pads, with influences ranging from disco to hip hop to early electro, and its all quality, spaced out goodness with a nice helping of excellent electro funk beats to bring it all together. Mux Mool is bit rougher in most respects but a good deal of fun, and possibly the more interesting of the two out of town acts-- sort of like what might happened if Burial teamed up on some mixes with Black Moth Super Rainbow, but with more of a focus on electro house than either of those two acts might have. Blixaboy seems like a very appropriate opener for the evening.
MON: Reading Rainbow/Fungi Girls/A Smile Full of Ale/Teenage Cool Kids (Majestic Dwelling of Doom) MON:Dark Party/Blixaboy/Mux Mool (the Lounge) TUE: Church of the Snake/Color Club/Bleach Boys/Bad Sports (J&Js) FRI: Broken Social Scene (Palladium) FRI: Tense/Preaux Breaux Geauxld/Diamond Hymen/Skeleton Warrior/Vulgar Fashion (Castle of Luxurious Diamonds, 1007 Oakland St. Denton) FRI: Dead Mellotron/The Chimeneas/Wufrudelu/Tiago Varjao (Bee's Manor) SAT: Method Man/Ghostface Killah/Redman (House of Blues) SAT: Divorce/Orange Coax/Random Cuts/Nu Sensae and more (Castle of Luxurious Diamonds, 1007 Oakland St.) SAT: ST 37/Book of Shadows/Echo-Toll/The III Eat (Rubber Gloves) SUN: Nick Hennies of Weird Weeds/James Talambas (Firehouse Gallery)
