11/22/08 - David Garza, Sunward, Rahim Quazi, Bryan Wakeland, Morning Elephant

gettin way behind, gonna keep it short...

went to club dada with tk, a fellow Sunward fan.

morning elephant - with clay pendergrass and manya from blue petal, although they played most of the set without manya. tk fell in love with the oldster guitar player that he said was channeling jerry garcia. were like two completely different bands with and without manya - in fact, the aforementioned guitar player left the stage whenever manya came on - strange, we thot. enjoyed them both, but preferred their sound with manya - i'm a big fan of her voice.

bryan wakeland, "drummer for the polyphonic spree", was up next. wasn't especially captivated. some decent pop, nothing special. his hairdo offended me (kidding!) rahim quazi and the supernaturals - seen them a couple times before. very nicely done folky pop, including horns, which i love. Sunward - one of my favorite local bands (see previous write-ups for massive amounts of gushing). outstanding as usual. love those guys. David Garza - very talented, lots of variety in the set list. enjoyed it. tk made me leave early.

9/13/08 - Airline, Sunward, Homer Hiccolm and the Rocketboys, Here In Arms, King Bucks

braved hurricane ike to head to dada for method entertainment's second annual bbq bash. knuckles and the piledriver came with, and josephus, batman and wifey showed up, too. damn near a real crowd, eh?

pretty big turn-out at dada, i thought, especially since it was only 7:15 when we got there. and as knuckles put it, the place was crawlin.

doorman made my fuckin year by doin a double-take while checkin my ID and sayin, "man there's no way you look that old". ha!

first band we saw was the King Bucks, and they were damn good. really enjoyed their set, which surprised me, being as how i am not a fan of the country. i would say they probably lean closer to the americana side of the country genre (since i actually liked it), but whatever it was, i dug it. really talented group of musicians, great vocalists. loved the multi-part harmonies. don't know how many were covers and how many were originals, but i liked everything i heard.

next up was Here, In Arms, who i've seen once before. some really nice folky, bluesy, alt-country-ish pop.

Homer Hiccolm and the Rocketboys were next, with the Unabomber making a guest appearance, sittin in on lead. really like these guys - very well-done piano/guitar-pop tunes, with a little wall-of-sound thrown in every once in a while. everyone in my crew (except for josephus, who has taste) let out a collective yawn and headed over to zini's after a couple songs, but screw them - whattatheyknow. joe and i really dug it. great set.

at one point, john solis (method entertainment head honcho) bought me, the piledriver, and knuckles a shot (a red-headed slut, if you must know), thereby instantly making him Our Hero.

next up was Sunward, who was easily the highlight of the evening for me (but you coulda guessed that, eh?). one of my earlier descriptions of their sound: dark, lush, wall-of-sound, sometimes moody, anthemic art rock with a splash of psychedelia thrown in. loved the new visuals. loved the radiohead cover (i think i might like it better than the original, actually), love the scorching violin, love the psychedelic guitar and lap-steel. fantastic, high-energy set. shoulda been the headliners, no doubt.

at one point, my man pete blew through at ninety miles an hour, just to make an appearance and secure his indie music cred, i guess.

Airline headlined the evening, since Deadman had to cancel, being as how it was raining and all. i've seen airline a couple times before, and i usually enjoy it. maybe it was because knuckles kept screaming in my ear "this band sucks ass" over and over, but for some reason, i just didn't get into it. they played their usual brand of guitar/piano pop, but i had to agree wif knuckles - after a while, it started to get repetitive. i won't hesitate to catch them again, tho, since i've enjoyed them in the past, but last night, they just didn't connect with me.

managed to prove my "creepy old man" status by rapping to manya of blue petal, tellin her how much i liked their set at the ultraviolet show, which caused her to run screaming from the room (kidding, but she did move a few chairs away from me. great ego-boost, that was).

at some point while airline was playing, some fire-twirlers showed up and started flingin fire on the patio. apparently, they were associated with some sort of art show goin on in the far-bar. also associated with that was holy diver, who somehow showed up on the bill. i really wanted nothin to do with what they were bringin, so we went and checked out the (seemingly way-overpriced, at least to this art novice) art in the far-bar. didn't buy anything, case you were wonderin.

all in all, a pretty good night. so i can say what i said last year - nice job, solis.

5/17/08 - The Felons, mr. Gnome, Sunward, Falken's Maze

this one's gonna have to lean more towards the "photo-journal" side of things, folks, being as how i had a pretty rough night on saturday. i over-drank, and i paid for it, at one point having to, uh, use the facilities for terribly unpleasant purposes. i'm pretty pissed at myself, since i was really looking forward to a great night of music (my two favorite local bands in one show!), and i don't remember anything, except for a few songs at the end of the felons' set and a couple conversations i had early in the morning as i sobered up. i definitely heard all four bands (i have the pics to prove it), and i'm sure i enjoyed it at the time, but if you can't remember it, what's the point? oh well, another learning experience for me (i'm what you'd call a rookie when it comes to the drank (that's a long, tirade-filled tangent that i'll skip for now)), so i'm not that good at it yet. workin on it hard, tho. real hard.

i do remember that my buddy josephus made it out, tho, wantin to see if the felons and sunward could live up to all the hype i've been spewing. you can read his take on the evening here.

first up was Falken's Maze, and all i can say is that i thought it was unusual that there were 3 keyboard players, and no guitars. that's really all i got.

next up was the greatness of Sunward. absolutely love these guys - see my previous raves here and here. i am sure they kicked my ass again saturday, just sure of it.

next up was mr. Gnome, from cleveland. two-man band: smokin-hot chick on guitar, dude on drums. cool trip-rock, like portishead on roids, howling soulful voice on lead, some really cool, unusual percussion playin by the dude (this is all based on a short video i took of these two, so...).

last up were my boys, the felons (previous write-ups here and here), whose music always takes me to a happy place.

after the felons finished up, dave and the guys decided to play a few radiohead covers in honor of their first dallas appearance in 10 years. i loves me some radiohead, so that was a nice finish to the evening.

speaking of that, i was actually at that radiohead show in '98 at the music hall in fair park, when they toured for OK Computer, and i think i know why they've skipped over dallas ever since then. during the whole concert, thom didn't say one word to the audience - no interaction at all, until one point late in the set, when he walks up to the microphone and says "hello, dallas"...{wild screaming from audience}..."pretty fookin dull in here". of course the audience cheered for that, too, prolly not quite realizing they'd just been dissed. ah, well, 'twas a great show anyways.

see you out there...

5/17 - Saturday night pick

come to Dada on Saturday night to catch the Felons:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGJE7w8BNzY

and mr. Gnome:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3MHusvdW6pE

see you there...

awwww yeah! - late-breaking word - sunward has just been added to the line-up. my two favorite local bands in one show - shweet!

4/27/08 - Ultraviolet Rock Show

omigod, what a fuckin blast i had on saturday night at the Ultraviolet Rock Show and Art Auction for CF at Club Dada. man, what a night - an incredible line-up of bands, some cool art, a huge crowd full of great people, perfect weather, etc. etc. c'mon, can't we do this every weekend? seriously, i loved the way they alternated inside and outside stages, so there was no break in the action. they packed an amazing amount of entertainment into one evening.

luckily, i had a couple buddies with me (batman and zac), plus all my favorite people were there - fred, dave (who's apparently had some work done lately (only AA's, tho)), amanda, Giggly Underpants Boy (you'll have to ask him), and sweet petey F. lots of incoherent babbling and laughter ensued (well, at least on my part).

anyways, on with the show:

(fair warning - this one's gonna be kinda rough, folks. saturday night was the third day of my three-day live-music bender, so i was what you might call Thoroughly Pickled by then. i'm having trouble recalling a lot of the details, but i'll do my best)

first up was disconnected in '73, a solo acoustic singer/songwriter. couldn't hear all that well (he was outside) but i remember i liked his voice. i think i thought it was unique. that's all i got.

next up was blue petal. very nice. one vocalist, with two back-up musicians on guitar and harmonica (i don't think there was a drummer). when i first saw manya (the lead singer), i instantly thought of Bic Runga, and then i heard her sing, and that reminded me of her too (strange). some really beautiful, haunting songs. loved her voice - amazing. only caught a couple songs, but i'd love to catch these guys again.

outside, lovie took the stage. i've been waitin forever to catch them, but i swear i could not hear a damn thing that night. i still have no idea how they sound live. seriously - you could not hear them. ah well, next time...

next up inside was sunward, who i've seen once before. jeebus christ, their performance was orgasmic (is that gay? that's not gay. is it? i don't care). i'm serious, these guys floored me. absolutely incredible stuff - easily the highlight of the night for me (read my earlier write-up for a description of their sound - i don't wanna repeat myself). yea, they've lost their sundress-wearing keyboardist, who definitely provided some nice scenery, but i hardly noticed. wished their set would never end. they are now tied for first place in the 'My Favorite Local Band' contest.

back outside, the felons (the other co-leader of the MFLB contest - check here and here) cranked it up. unfortunately, they also suffered from the sound system problems, though not as bad as Lovie. i'm used to being surrounded and enveloped by their sound, and the outside system just wasn't quite up to it. still, i loved their set as usual.

next up was el gato, who i was really lookin forward to hearing. unfortunately, i missed most of it, and i really don't recall much of what i did hear (damn you, free beer lady! (just kiddin, can you come back next week?)). heard a couple songs, but they didn't really grab me, so i stumbled back outside.

next up outside was bridges and blinking lights. now, i have made my opinion known aboot these guys many times before (check here and here), so i aint gonna say any more, except to say that after hearing them for a third time, i can definitely say - I Am Not Wrong.

closing out the night was Wonderfool. really enjoyed these guys, some really cool wall-of-soundish psychedelic stuff. some glam, too - heard spacehog, bleebe it or not. would definitely like to see them again (to further evaluate).

have to say, during the wonderfool set, i was distracted and very confused by these gals,

who sat there calmly thru the whole set and slowly waved those giant sunflowers back and forth. very strange. 10 bucks says they're Girlfriends of Band Members.

well, there you have it - one hell of a show, and for a great cause, too. check the link below to pick up the compilation CD - 21 tracks for $15:

http://www.theconnextion.com/ultraviolet/

see you out there...

3/14/08 - Sydney Confirm, D Numbers, Sunward

made a rare friday night appearance at club dada (spring break schedules, you know). fellow local music aficionado tk, whose wifey-poo was nice enough to give him a hall pass (ca-rack that whip!) came along for the ride.

was runnin late due to a wreck on central, so prolly for the first time ever, i was completely sober upon entering dada. was none too happy aboot that, but i didn't want to miss any of sunward's set- i'd liked what i'd heard on myspace.

and holy shit, was i right. i fucking loved this band. right up my alley - dark, lush, wall-of-sound, sometimes moody, anthemic art rock with a splash of psychedelia thrown in. but what really blew me away was the incredible collection of talent on the stage. 5-man band: lead on guitar/violin, chick on keys & back-up vox, 2nd guitar (sometimes lap-steel), bass and drums. let me tell you, what that dude can do with a violin is stunning - it was run thru filters and such, and he could make the sucker sing, shriek, shred, whatever. it was absolutely phenomenal. half the time it didn't even sound like a violin - you'd swear you were hearing an unbelievable electric guitar virtuoso. anyways, the rest of the band was fantastic, too. loved the harmonies from the backup vocalist (who also jumped around in her red sundress to a pleasing effect). also loved the lap-steel - damn, what an awesome sound. didn't think it was possible for that thing to not sound hillbilly, but he managed it. the sound fit perfectly in their songs. bass player was kickin some ass back there, and i don't usually notice the bass player. anyhows, easily one of my favorite performances of the last year. definitely a band i will keep an eye on.

got to talk to doug (lead of sunward) for quite a while after the set, whilst D Numbers was setting up their super-conducting super-collider. really nice guy. bot the cd. seems doug and i have been leading parallel lives the last couple years, what with our, um, life-changing events and all. however, the parallellisms came to a screeching halt when doug described his recent successes regarding the fairer sex. won't go into detail, but let's just say there won't be any calls to $4300 hookers from his loft.

tk nearly got bitch-slapped by the keyboard chick's gal-pal when he called her "keyboard chick".
now THAT would've been funny.

chatted with dave of the felons, who informed me that he has, in fact, quit smoking, which is cool for two reasons - one, he really needs to, to save those beautiful pipes of his, and two, it means he actually reads this pieceofshit blog.

talked to greg from hendrick - warned him about the life-force-sucking ability of the firewater bands he was gonna be playin with on saturday night.

d numbers, from santa fe was up next. incredible number of machines and wires and such on stage. 3-man band, two guitars and drums, plus loops, effects, etc. some really fantastic psychedelic grooves, some absolutely incredible beats, wonderful stuff (i was blitzed by then, which really enhanced the effect (is that so wrong?)).

last up was sydney confirm, and they were teeeerible. maybe i should give them a pass cuz they were worn out by sxsw, or maybe this is just a genre i don't "get", but shee-ut i was not diggin it at all. 3-man: guitar, drum, and keys/vox, tho there didn't seem to be much need for the actual keyboard, since all he did was hit one button and a track would start, and he would then sing (horribly) over it. at one point early on, tk leans over and says "it's napoleon dynamite, with pedro on guitar and uncle rico on drums". ok, i couldn't take them seriously after that. again, i freely admit that this type of stuff just ain't my bag, so mebbe they're the best ever at it (whatever it is), but i just couldn't take it, so we left.

went to zini's, as usual, but my alt-universe girlfriend was nowhere to be found. we ate their pizza anyways.