So our friends at Radio UTD hooked us up with a couple pairs of tickets to give away to Magnetic Fields' performance at the Majestic Theater in Dallas on Monday, October 13th. Want to win them? First, simply email us at weshotjrtix@yahoo.com. Then, in order to find out whether or not you've won, you'll have to tune in to Radio UTD this coming Monday (October 6th) from 6-8pm. One random winner will be picked from the list of names we send them, and they'll do the same thing at the same time with the same names on Wednesday and give away another pair. Bottom line? Email us your name by 2pm this coming Monday, and then tune in to Radio UTD to see if you're lucky.

So tonight's debate was supposed to be all about Sarah Palin, and although I realize that the McCain campaign has been managing the expectation game for the past couple of weeks, she did a little better than I thought she would this evening.  However, it seemed that Joe Biden turned in the performance of his lifetime tonight, and frankly, relative to Obama's performance in the first presidential debate,  Biden was the stronger advocate for the Democratic cause-- he seemed to have an authentic connection with working people as he made straight ahead arguments concerning the ways in which Obama's policies would have a directly positive effect on people's daily lives, and he also effectively calling into question John McCain's "maverick" status better than I've seen anyone do it so far this year.  So thanks to Joe Biden for doing even more than he probably needed to do.  

And by the way, it looks like a lot of other people agree with me.  Feel free to comment on the debate and the election in general.  Off topic comments will be erased because I do what I want!

Hey everyone. We will be announcing the winners of the 2008 Awards on Monday, so hold on to your seats... and here are shows for today:

Jonathan Richman (Rubber Gloves)
So, do I really have to say anything about Jonathan Richman? It isn't like you guys are Observer readers, right? I mean, I'll never forgive the guy for being in Something About Mary, one of the most un-funny movies I've ever seen, but, uh, Modern Lovers makes up for it, ok? Great Myspace URL too.

Climax Denial | Peter J Woods | Stillbirth | Ashes | Mistress (House of Tinnitus)
Milwaukee's Climax Denial utilizes harsh industrial noise as well as booming, pulsating bass attacks and dark ambient to pull together a set of compositions that will sound rather varied to anyone who regularly listens to this kind of abstract violence, although nothing too drastic takes place here, at least relatively speaking. Peter J Moore, who is involved in the controversial noise slude group Raperies, has received positive reviews from Thurston Moore, who actually praised his work for its willingness to be harsh without "having to show off arcane references." I guess that's sort of like getting praised by Sarah Palin for going to an Ivy League school, but hey, take what you can get, right?

Mom | Florene | Voice and Organs (Dan's Silverleaf)
Although we've listed this show the way it seems to appear everywhere else, I'm guessing it is possible that Swedish dream pop/folk group Voices and Organs will be headlining. Fans of stuff like Bibio, The Boats, 70's Scandanavian psychedelic folk and High Places will surely dig this stuff, and with good reason-- much of it contains the kind of interesting atmospherics that music like this usually lacks. Some of the tracks also remind me quite a bit of some of the sunnier moments on Nick Drake's Bryter Layter, which is certainly a good thing. Highly recommended.

ADD: House of Dang's Smack Down Movie Night will feature Dead Alive, starting at 830pm.  BYOB and a nice excuse to sit outside.  

80's Night with DJG (Hailey's)

I've always been an advocate of Fort Worth's subtle charms-- really, it's possible to have a really great time all day long in that town if you plan accordingly: brunch at The Modern, an afternoon at the best local museums, arboretum and zoo, dinner at Spiral Diner, early show at 1919 Hemphill, late show at Chat Room Pub, and old-fashioned ho-cakes at Ol' South. Pretty unbeatable. And then, the Fort Worth Weekly goes and chooses We Shot JR as "Best Blog" under "People and Politics" in last week's Best Of 2008 issue. And were you aware that Fort Worth Weekly is one of the rare alternative weeklies that's independently owned? Well, to receive such praise from such a maverick journalistic entity, needless to say, we're honored. Here's what they said:

When it comes to running a successful blog, consistency is the key. We Shot Jr wraps up the weekly music and art scene in the Metroplex in one big vitriolic package. Sure, the site can be pretty harsh, but damned if it isn't up on what's going on around these parts. From tiny house shows in Denton to hip gigs at Lola's, week in and week out, Stonedranger and his team keep self-aware hipsters clued in. Plus, they've branched out to providing news and photos from shows and events, along with interviews and features with local artists and musicians. They've also gotten a number of national acts to play along. Don't be offended by their holier-than-thou commentary - it kind of comes with the territory.



I wasn't clear who wrote this exactly, but thanks...

Sorry kids, gotta pull a DL today with a brief and fairly uninformative post. He really lowered the bar for us around WSJR HQ.

THURSDAY

Laray Polk Open Forum Discussion (Centraltrak) 7pm

14th Annual Artist Against AIDS Exhibit (Fort Worth Community Arts Center)
This isn't really a formal opening, just a show opening this week. Among the artists featured are Ed Blackburn and Jennifer Stufflebeam.

House of Dang vs. And/Or Gallery Summer Smackdown: Dead Alive (4219 Bryan St.) 8:30pm

SATURDAY
monochrome, Petite, and Glenn Downing (500X) 6-10pm

Dannis Blagg: Back to the Bend (Artspace III ) 5-8pm

Adriana Carvalho (HCG Gallery) 5-8pm

Peter Max (Road Show Gallery) 6-9pm
Road Show occupies the space that was formerly Gerald Peters.

Brevity is key today.  My apologies:

Nervous Curtains | Schwa | Jordan Fraker (The Cavern)
Nervous Curtains is Sean Kirkpatrick plus backing band, and I'm told that it makes his set sound significantly more "prog rock," though that might not be intentional. I'll have to see for myself. Schwa will DJ and photographer Jordan Fraker will be showing his work.



Yeah Def | It's What We Get (Hailey's)



Taxi Fare (Zubar)

We should be hearing from Dear Leader AKA Stoned Ranger soon, thank effing goodness. And before you start with your comments, I want you to remember something kids: you could never be as sick of DL as I am.