8/30/08 - Zest of Yore, Ume, Record Hop

made the journey westward to hailey's in denton to catch record hop. managed to drag Knuckles and The Piledriver wif me, cuz i knew they would enjoy the greatness of record hop, plus which, RH and Ume both have hot chick lead singers, and those two are just like that.

also enjoyed the company of a local denton gal, who apparently knows everyone in the denton music scene, being as how they all apparently have hung out at Dan's at one point or another (where she apparently has a chair reserved in her name).

first up was Record Hop. i've seen these guys 3 times now (previous write-up here), and they kick my ass every time. blistering, visceral, & gut-wrenching are terms i've used to describe them. small problem at hailey's - couldn't really hear ashley's vocals very well. still don't understand how the sound guy can't hear that, too, and fix it. knuckles and the piledriver seemed to be offended when ashley and scott turned their backs and jammed for like 5 minutes, but i thot they were kickin ass. great set.

next up was Ume, from austin. very similar in style to record hop - some incredible, high-energy, hard-rockin bluesy stuff. 3-man band - 2 guitars and drummer. awesome vocals (sounded just like ashley to me, and you could actually hear them (maybe the sound guy woke up)), plus some amazing guitar playing from the whirling dervish that was the lead. fantastic set - would definitely like to catch them again. knuckles and the piledriver actually liked them better than RH.

knuckles damn near had to kick some indie-rocker ass when the dude dared to get between him and the hot-chick lead (knuckles was front and center, as he is wont to do when there's a hot chick singin lead). too funny. he also had to dodge Drunken Lame' Boy, whose shirt was so shiny he served as a mobile disco ball as he stumbled around.

last up was Zest of Yore, and they were turrrrrrible. not sure what it was, but dear gawd, we couldn't wait for it to be over. didn't like the vocals, the guitar playin, the musical style, nothin. maybe it was because they were a let-down after two great bands, i dono. i'm not sayin they were bad, just that all three of us didn't care for it. at all. they closed their encore (!) with "purple rain", which just about killed us.

8/28/08 - Sean Kirkpatrick Trio, Jack with One Eye, Silk Stocking

headed down to club dada on thursday night to catch sean kirkpatrick. 'twas pretty strange - i didn't recognize any of the staff in the whole joint. hmmpf. not like the good ol' days.

first up was silk stocking (my second time to see 'em, my first time to remember it). loved it. two-man band - Liz on keys and vocals, and Shawn on drums, guitar, and tambourine. really dug what i heard - Liz's howling, gut-wrenching vocals on top of a bluesy, dirge-like mixture of piano and guitar. very unique, very talented. look forward to hearing them again.

next up was jack with one eye. 3-man band - guitars, keys, drums. some pretty good psychedelic-infused shoegaze. vocals an afterthought (or maybe they were just mixed down too low). kept firin off some pre-recorded voice tracks spouting political rhetoric, but i hate to tell 'em - you couldn't really hear/understand much of it. i heard "war in iraq", that's about it. anyways, 'twas an enjoyable set.

last up was the incomparable sean kirkpatrick, with a full band backing him (and by "full band", i mean Ian on synth, and Robert on drums). been a while since i've seen the trio. you know from my previous posts how much i've fallen in love with the solo stuff i've heard over the past few months, including the new stuff on the crazy jeff show podcast, but i have to say - having the full band backing sean added a fantastic new dimension to the music. i cannot wait for him to hit the studio (probably this winter, according to sean) and record his new stuff - it is incredibly good.

8/23/08 - AM Ramblers, Telegraph Canyon, Monahans, Doug Burr

headed out to hailey's to catch one of my favorites - telegraph canyon. fellow live-music fan joe the boy toy showed up, too. he managed to chat up half the women in the place before i even got there - dude has skeels.

pretty good crowd - pre-semester shenanigans, eh?

first up was Doug Burr, someone i've seen a lot of hype aboot. He had a full band backing him - keys, guitars, banjo, pedal steel, drums. everyone sat. doug has skunk hair. some pretty good stuff, tho it drifted off into alt-country land more often than i like. one or two were phenomenal wall-of-sound anthemic guitar pop tunes, wish there were more like that. seemed to go on quite a while - i think he's used to headlining, not opening. last song a real snoozer.

next up was Monahans, from austin. um, yeah - i can't say i can recall much about them. i was, uh, very distracted (it involved plenty of incoherent babbling, that's all i'll say (gentlemen never tell, and neither do i)). 5-man band, pretty sure, lotsa guitars. what i remember hearing (during lulls in the babbling) was pretty good - i'd like to hear them again, when i can devote my full attention to them.

next up was telegraph canyon, who proved once again why they are one of my favorites (read prior writeups here and here). another awesome set by this terrifically talented group. did miss sherilyn's harmonies, tho. hopefully a short-term absence.

last up was AM Ramblers, who seem to be following me around from show to show. again, some really well-executed bluegrass. if that's your thing, look them up.

all in all, a decent night of music, and some very interesting conversation. not too shabby.

8/15/08 - Ella Minnow, Bee vs. Moth, Timeline Post, Sean Kirkpatrick

headed out to hailey's, mainly to hear sean k, but it turned out to be a pretty good night overall.

sean kirkpatrick - seen him more times than i can count, and he slays me every time. he's just one of those songwriters that writes song after song that absolutely resonate with me. would love to know who he listens to - pretty sure i'd love it. his set list is definitely transitioning from first album material to a bunch of new stuff, which is all incredible. (you can hear some of the new material on the crazy jeff show page or the gutterth page, and i suggest you do). did a beautiful amy winehouse cover. i've said it before - sean is one of the very few artists whose covers i enjoy, cuz he does such a great job of making them his own. heard 'life without chocolate' live for the first time - one of my favorites from his album. an outstanding set. sean will be performing with his full band at club dada on the 28th - check it out. timeline post - 2nd time to see these guys - liked it much better this time. 6-man band - 4 guitars, keys and drums. some outstanding, dreamy, wall-of-sound guitar pop (didn't hear the keys too much). only problem - music that strong needs some kick-yer-ass vocals to stand above it, and the lead just doesn't have that kind of voice. probably works fine on a recording, but live, his vocals just got drowned out on every song. can't help but think that some beefy vocals would kick it up a notch. really dug the set, tho. bee vs. moth - um, no thanks. not a fan of jazz. cornet, bari sax, guitar, bass (sometimes upright), drums. seemed like they were good at it, but i just don't dig that stuff. ella minnow - holy shit, ella minnow kicked my ass. totally different take on them vs. the first time i saw 'em. songs kinda all over the map - some early-radioheadish stuff, some bluesy numbers, some 4/4 downbeat-happy songs, some wall of sound anthemic rock, some instrumentals - and all of it was fantastic. lead reminded me of stephen duncan (of chemistry set "fame"), except on speed. lead vox strong (great falsetto), if not exactly conventional (sometimes he reminded me of squiggy from laverne and shirley), but it worked. super-high energy, too - both the lead and the (cape-wearing) key/sax-player were spazzes, injecting the show with tons of energy. man, i loved it. can't wait to see 'em again. (soory for the crappy pic)

Weekend picks

after a little time off wif da kiddos, it's time to venture out again:

tonight (Friday), you'll find me listening to the twisted, tormented, but always tuneful stylings of Mr. Sean Kirkpatrick (winner of a DOMA for best instrumentalist, you know) at Hailey's:
http://www.pegasusnews.com/events/2008/aug/15/106290/

not so sure about the rest of the line-up, but hopefully it'll be worth the trip.

another decent show: Whiskey Folk Ramblers and 100 Damned Guns at Dan's:
http://www.pegasusnews.com/events/2008/aug/15/105720/


Saturday night's kinda up in the air. Might be goin to a private-party/gallery-opening (oo-la-la). Wouldn't mind seein Baboon at the Dee-dub, but dono if it's worth goin just for them:
http://www.pegasusnews.com/events/2008/aug/16/105138/

if you like the bluesy sorta stuff, you can't miss with this show:
http://www.pegasusnews.com/events/2008/aug/16/105162/

and if you likes the alt-country:
http://www.pegasusnews.com/events/2008/aug/16/100866/

8/6/08 - Parata, RTB2, Loxsly, Daniel Folmer

went out to hailey's on wednesday night -tryin to get my fill before i go out of commission this weekend.

happily, another live-music nutjob i've recently met - The Tara^TM - showed up, too, so i didn't have to drink alone (how cool is that!). plenty of incoherent babbling ensued (on my part, i should say).

up first was daniel folmer. saw him once before, playing with only a keyboard player, and really dug it. last night, i was excited to see him set up with a full four-piece band. bleebe it or not, tho - eh, not so much. not that it was bad by any means, but i definitely liked him better with a stripped-down band - i think it's a better fit for his intimate, soulful music. next up was loxsly, from austin. really dug these guys. nice collection of dark, slightly-psychedelic indie pop, full of great keys and pedal steel. the only lighting on stage came from projected images on a sheet they had rigged up behind them. dono why, but it kinda bugged me that i couldn't see them. really enjoyed the set, tho. rtb2 was next, and they were amazing. my third time to see 'em, and it was easily the best of the three. great bluesy, gut-wrenching stuff with incredible guitar work and kick-yer-ass drums. of special note last night - ryan's outstanding vocals (i'd never noticed how great his voice is). and my GAWD can that dude play. i'm always amazed how they can sound like a full band with only two guys on stage. funny how much your mood influences your opinions - the song i thot was a beating last time was one of my favorites last night. anyways, 'twas a great set. parata was last. seen them three times also, with mixed results - it seems like it's different every time, and not at all what i remembered. this time, i heard a lot of weezer, and even some happy bullets, bleebe it or not. The Tara said she heard the Beach Boys (and the ramones, i think). anyways, they were good at what they were doin, but every song started sounding the same after a while.

8/2/08 - Ghost of Blind Lemon showcase

headed down to club dada saturday night to catch the ghost of blind lemon showcase. happily, muh buddies tk and knuckles joined me for the festivities.

'twas a long night - we got down there at 6, so we had plenty of time to get really and truly plastered. i myself set a new record for # of ounces of vodker imbibed without having to use the facilities (yes, my parents are very proud). so you'll have to forgive me if some of the details are a little sketchy.

things got started with Kristina Morland. saw her a couple weeks ago and was blown away, and last night was no different. what an amazing talent. incredible voice, beautiful songs, great songwriting. last night, she had a violin player dude (who tk was totally gay for) accompanying her, which was a fantastic addition. the combination of the awesome vocals and the soulful music routinely gave me chills. wonderful set. probably the highlight of the evening for me (at least musically speaking). bot the cd.

next up was American Werewolf Academy. meh, they were ok - nice sound from the 3-piece band, but the vocals weren't the greatest. knuckles gave them a rating of NSM (not so much). Rahim Quazi continued things outside. some pretty nice acoustic pop. loved the french horn and trumpet. need to check out the cd that chris raves about. back inside were the felons. fred (the keyboard player) has recently gone off to pursue other endeavors, so the boys performed as a three-piece for the first time. there's no doubt - i missed fred's keys, but i still thought the set was great, and i look forward to what dave and the boys will do with their sound. talked to dave, and he said the stuff they've been writing lately has been a lot harder than their previous stuff. i definitely look forward to hearing that. those guys have enough talent that whatever they come up with, it's gonna be great. stay tuned, eh? up next was the cut*off, who i've seen multiple times now. these guys always put on a good show, with some very polished alt-country-tinged pop. last night seemed to be heavier on the country influence than the previous times i've seen 'em, but i dono - maybe not. (you see what i mean about the lack of detail? to further add to the problem caused by large amounts of alcyhol, at some point during the evening we actually started chatting with some females, which is so incredibly rare and shocking that i think i was momentarily disoriented and lost track of why i was there)

back inside were the backsliders, who knuckles is totally gay for (well, at least for the hot chick lead, which i guess means it's not gay after all). anyways, they always put on a rockin show. not exactly my thing, but it does get the ladies dancin. rose county fair was next. it was during their set that the interaction with the females was at a pretty high pitch, so i don't remember a damn thing about them. sorry. last up was Somebody's Darlin, who i've seen before. some really high-energy, bluesy alt-countryish rock with amazing vocals. all in all, a great night - lotsa booze, lotsa great people (wimmens, even!), and some really fine music. hope chris does this again soon.

Saturday night show

here's where i'll be saturday night:

pretty solid line-up, including one of my faves, the felons.

see you there...

7/22/08 - DOMA ceremony

had another great time last night, courtesy of the dallas observer (i promise, they ain't payin me) - went to the DOMA ceremony at the granada.

for me, it was like being a kid in a candy shop - all (or at least a lot of) my favorite artists and music people in one place at the same time. really cool.

unfortunately, missed sarah jaffe and doug burr (can you bleebe they actually started on time?)

coulda done without the lindsay lohan remix songs (??) and what-not by the DJs (just not my thing), but they kept people entertained between sets and awards. yo, for real.

Whiskey Folk Ramblers - really dug their set. dono why, but i liked it much more last night than when i saw 'em on saturday night. that kind of music aint usually my thang, but for some reason i really got into it. it seemed like their songs weren't the typical happy-go-lucky bluegrass stuff i thot it was, it was darker, more dirge-like (which i really dig). missed Lil Wil (enjoying a refreshing beverage in the car)

instrumentalist super-group - what a great idea, having the nominees for best instrumentalist perform their versions of the best song nominees. what a hoot, hearing a bluegrass version of "Julianne". what an amazing, talented group of folks. burton gilliam was also a hoot, tho he had trouble reading those cards (sean "patrick", "spectator" 45). backsliders - they were also better than i remembered them being on saturday (probably the acoustics). some pretty good stuff. went on just a tad too long, however. pete gave me a free drink ticket, instantly becoming my new hero. record hop - ho. ly. shit. saw them once before at the cavern, and was blown away, and they had the same effect last night. way harder than the stuff i usually listen to, but man, i absolutely loved it. i have got to get my buddies out to see these guys.
amazing how much was packed into less than 3.5 hours - 6 bands, plus awards. shows what can be done, if things start on time and keep to a schedule. now if only the venues would do that on a regular basis, maybe more people would show up? just a thought. what do i know.