4/4/09 - Robyn Hitchcock & Venus 3, Brent Best

speaking of demanding females (i was - see below), i agreed to take a fellow live-music lover and rabid REM fan (she has an REM tattoo on her ASS, fer chrissakes) to the granada to see Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3, being as how the Venus 3 is made up of original and "affiliate members" of REM (Peter Buck, Scott McCaughey & Bill Rieflin). so's i did.

Bad sign right away - they had tables set up in the middle section. to me, that means one thing - oldsters.

Brent Best (the Drams), Joe Cripps (Brave Combo), and Scott Danbom (Centro-matic) opened. very talented bunch, very nice songs. yes. very nice. The aforementioned Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 headlined. k, so i don't really have an appreciation for all the wonderful things Robyn Hitchcock has done for rock-n-roll over the years, so. i dono, i guess it was alright. i labeled it oldster pop. very pleasant. not really crazy about Robyn's voice, but i think that's supposed to be a signature of his or something. all of the backing musicians were very competent. i did like the harmonies provided by Scott.

3/30/09 - The Felons, All the Day Holiday

headed to club dada on monday night cuz it had been too long since i'd heard the felons. i was caught by surprise by this show, which i didn't see until i was at work on monday, so i've got no crappy pics for ya.

All the Day Holiday opened, and holy shit were these guys fantastic. they're from Ohio, and it looks like it hasn't been too long since they've seen the inside of a high school classroom. despite that, their sound was phenomenal. the voice on the lead was incredible. awesome drummer (who was situated up front for some reason - maybe due to his awesomeness?). wonderful guitar-work. fantastic collection of anthemic, soaring, head-bobbin' tunes - sort of a harder-edged Keane/Coldplay vibe. bought both their EP and sampler. full album due out soon. watch out for these guys.

The Felons were up next, and you know I loves me some felons, so i won't repeat myself. Needless to say, i loved their "old" songs, and sung along with every one of them, and i loved the new stuff too. dave and the boys have a knack for writing songs that just do it for me. look forward to seeing them again soon - i never get tired of 'em.

there was another band up next, but more pressing matters came up. you know how females can be...

3/28/09 - Matthew Gray, Nick Foreman, Nana & Popo

went to my very first house show in denton (if you don't count the Secret Headquarters shows), a fund-raiser for The Bee's Fifth Collective. i think it was at matthew gray's house (he of Matthew and the Arrogant Sea fame, one of my favorite local bands). 'twas a very interesting experience - pretty much what i expected from a house show - keg set up in the corner, bunch of college kids sittin around, amps and mics set up in a spare room, minimal lighting (thus the crappy pics). pretty cool. took a fellow music-lover to the show - we were easily twice everyone's age, but i felt totally comfortable there. i sooo love denton.

nana & popo was up first. one dude, one guitar, lotsa effects. some really cool, dreamy, fuzzed-out stuff. really liked it. Nick Foreman, of Dust Congress (who i've seen twice), was up next. this is one talented dude. he played accordian, guitars, drums. great voice. nice collection of soulful, bluesy songs. Next up was Matthew Gray (yea, that's him in the pic - he apparently is afraid of the light). Seen him many times with MATAS, and once solo. Another very talented guy. Had the whole crowd singin along with him. Love his song-writing, his voice. So since my companion kept FALLING ASLEEP between sets, we decided to hit the road after Matthew.

3/22/09 - Paul Banks, Quote

went to the effin cavern for an early sunday show. really appreciate them doin that sort of thing for us 9-to-5 folks. HOWEVER, if you put on your website that you're gonna start at 8:30, then godammit, start at 8:30!! we (myself and the illustrious green-eyed greek gal) got there at 8:30, only to catch the last few bars of The Subjects' set. which pissed me off to no end, since i was intrigued by what i heard on myspace. i mean - wtf? you're gonna start EARLY? before the advertised start time?? goddam cavern. so, great start to the evening.

Quote, from Nashville, was up next. Two dudes, both on acoustic guitar. Nice harmonies. Some decent folky acoustic pop, but nothing that really grabbed me. I was there to see the genius of Paul Banks, from austin. i saw him a couple of times a couple years ago, and fell in love with his music (see this), and i'd been waiting and waiting for him to come back. my buddy Joe the Boy Toy, a fellow PB fanatic, was there also, with his lovely ladyfriend.

unfortunately, i don't really remember much of paul's set. i'm afraid i over-indulged - either that, or someone slipped me a roofie, cuz i spent the rest of the show in a semi-catatonic state on the couch in the back (thank gawd the GREGG was driving). i do remember thinking a couple of times, "hey, i know that song", but that's about it. soory. Joe assures me that, despite the fact that paul's voice was a bit weak after all the SXSW shows (for which he apologized), it was an awesome set. it was a stripped down version of the band - only Paul and one other - so it wasn't the rockin show i saw before, but we were assured he would be coming back soon with the full band. be sure to catch that if you can - this guy is truly awesome.

3/17/09 - The Airborne Toxic Event, Alberta Cross, Henry Clay People

headed to the Loft, mainly to catch the greatness of The Airborne Toxic Event. knuckles came with.

first things first - for the love of all that is holy, will someone please install a goddam exit to Lamar from west-bound I30? dear gawd, what a pain in the ass. my map and instructions had so many moving parts it made my head hurt.

anywho, Henry Clay People, from LA, was up first. some nice, good-timey rock-n-roll, with a touch of the south. 'twas pretty good, tho not exactly my thing. got peeved when they closed with a cover of 'Honkytonk Women' - can't stand it when a band closes with a cover.

Alberta Cross, from Brooklyn, was up next. Some soulful, good-timey rock, maybe a bit darker than HCP. definite hints of CSNY. 'twas pretty good as well.

The Airborne Toxic Event headlined, and omg, this is now my Favorite New Band (move over (ever so slightly), Frightened Rabbit). what an awesome performance. an amazing collection of soaring, dark, catchy, anthemic, beautiful songs. absolutely wonderful violin playing, love the deep voice on the lead. my gawd, what a fantastic, uplifting experience. i was in heaven for the whole set. even knuckles was clapping along and woo-hooing for the band, something i'm not sure i've ever seen. it was just that damn good.

3/7/09 - What Made Milwaukee Famous, Dove Hunter, Black Joe Lewis, Telegraph Canyon, The Orbans, MATAS, Doug Burr, the cut*off, Little Black Dress

endured the beating that is the HOB ($10 parking, service fees, $6 drinks) to catch what looked to be a great line-up of texas bands. had Sunshine in tow, and the Les Savy Fan showed, too.

once again, i was about the only one who paid attention to the "no photographic equipment" warning on the website - last time i'll do that. so all the pics are from my cell phone, and only from the main stage - sorry.

gonna keep it pretty brief - memory's fading...

showed up late, and only caught one song of the Little Black Dress set. liked what i heard, tho i wasn't crazy about the wispy lead vocals. will definitely try to catch a full set of theirs.

Matthew and the Arrogant Sea was up next, and despite the fact that they seem to have permanently adopted the one-drummer line-up, I loved them as usual. still don't like 'I'm No Snake' as a closer, but hey.

The Orbans - really enjoyed their set, much more than i did the last time i saw them. was especially impressed by peter's voice - fantastic. he reminded Sunshine of John Mayer. i think that's a compliment.
Doug Burr - just two band members that night, but damn that was some beautiful stuff. dude can write some awesome songs.
the cut*off - for some reason, i didn't enjoy this set as much as i usually do. kyle's voice sounded strangely reedy that night. Sunshine kept calling him Larry the Cable Guy.

Telegraph Canyon - how cool to see one of my favorites at such a great-sounding venue. awesome as usual - lots of great new stuff. definitely missed "You & Jane", tho.
Black Joe Lewis - blech. high-energy funk/r&b. definitely good at what they do, just not my thing at all.


Dove Hunter - i don't recall any of this set, which probably is a good indication of my interest. Sunshine thought the lead singer was wearing a yamulka.

What Made Milwaukee Famous - second time to see - good stuff

2/28/09 - Heartless Bastards, Record Hop, Will E Lee

Will E Lee was up first, and lo and behold, if it wasn't my ol' buddy Drunken Lame' Boy, staunch defender of Zest of Yore and sometime mobile disco ball. anyhows: 3-man band, some decent bluesy/folky stuff, some acoustic, some electric. definitely appreciated the laid-back acoustic stuff more than the fuzzed-out, sorta-rambling bluesy electric stuff, which was not my bag at all, baby. all in all, it was OK, fairly low-energy, nothin overly compelling.

Record Hop was up next - my second time to see them that week. unlike the show at the Lounge, their set was not marred by bad sound, and they returned to their former glory (at least, in my mind). loved it.

Heartless Bastards from Ohio headlined. loved these guys too. lead has very unique voice - gritty, husky, soul-filled, the kind you never get tired of listening to. some really outstanding, sometimes-folky, sometimes-garage-y blues rock. some songs very janis-joplin-like. really enjoyed the set. check 'em out.

2/26/09 - Ume, Record Hop, League of Fucking Decency

went to a parade of flesh show at the lounge on thursday night, with Knuckles in tow:

The League of Fucking Decency started things off. 4-man band, pretty standard guitar rock, pretty average. two leads traded off vocal duties, neither voice that great. for some reason, i kept thinking of a bunch of 13-year-olds jamming on their first guitars in their parents' garage (and i think that might be what they're goin for, believe it or not). couldn't get that thought out of my head, especially when they stopped down in the middle of a song so all four of them (including the drummer, who stood up) could shout/sing the chorus, which was some sort of rock-n-roll manifesto about rebelling or stickin it to the man or somesuch. i thot that was pretty damn funny. dono if it was supposed to be or not. anywho, i'm not tryin to be mean, i guess i just wasn't that into what they were doin. plus which, the guitar player's permed-out ted nugent hair offended me (kidding!). next up was Record Hop. seen them a number of times, and have been blown away each time. that night, however, i think they fell victim to a poor sound mix - the vocals sounded awfully muddy and muffled. one of my favorite things about RH is Ashley's voice, so to not be able to hear that clearly diminished their performance. not their fault, tho, at all. still dug the set overall. Ume was up last. saw them at Hailey's a while back, which is when Knuckles fell in love (blistering guitar rock + hot female lead = Knuckles In Love). amazing amount of sound coming from only three people, nice strong voice coming from pixie-like lead. i enjoyed the set, tho it's not exactly my kind of thing. Ume was the band Knuckles came for (he and the lead have this "thing", wherein he stands down in front and leers at her, and she pretty much ignores him (they're practically married)). and wouldn't you know it - just like last time, he damn near had to bitch-slap some guy, this time the nugent dude from LoFD, who parked himself right in front of Knuckles and proceeded to fling his rock-n-roll hairdo all around, thus obstructing Knuckles' view. too damn funny. have to say, that was another strike against that band, as they all pseudo-moshed with each other at the front of the stage, distracting the shit out of me, anyways.

show was done at 12:15 - not bad for a school night. wish more promoters would do that during the week (fuck you, cavern, and yer goddamn 1030 start times!)

2/15/09 - The Physics of Meaning, Hormones Limited, Romp Almighty

headed down to the cavern for an early sunday show (started at 7:30, no kiddin). no idear why it started so early, but i definitely appreciated it.


first up was one of my favorites, Romp Almighty. fell in love with these guys the first time i saw 'em, and they still do it for me. their sound is so raw and organic (i'm not even sure what that means, but it kept coming to my mind during their set), yet catchy and groove-filled at the same time. and look out - romp is now 50% larger, having added a second guitarist. have to say, tho - i was crushed they didn't play Drift - crushed i tell ya. but i still really enjoyed the set.
next up was Hormones, Limited. 3-man band, with drummer performing lead vocal duties. not sure how to categorize their sound - sorta punk-influenced garage-y metal? influences listed on myspace include helmet and pavement, so there ya go. lead vocals were of the talk-shout variety. not exactly what you would call my kind of stuff, but i thought it was pretty well done, and i actually enjoyed the set.

last up was The Physics of Meaning, from North Carolina. 4-piece band, with lead playing the violin. the dude was pretty good ('tho i have to say Doug from Sunward is at a whole different level). anyways, they played a decent collection of folky pop tunes. sometimes i heard Bends-era radiohead, believe it or not, especially in the vocals (the melody and stylings, not the voice). I'd really enjoyed what I'd heard on myspace, and i have to say i was a little let down by what i heard at the cavern. this was one of those cases where the recorded stuff outshines the live show. still, a pleasant set overall.

2/11/09 - Loney Dear, MATAS, Sunnybrook

headed to denton on thursday night, mainly to get my MATAS fix.

sunnybrook was up first. solo acoustic. i'd liked what i'd heard on myspace, but the presentation thursday night was very stripped down compared to that. still, some nice ethereal, airy acoustic tunes.Matthew and the Arrogant Sea was up next, and they were awesome as usual. see previous write-ups for a description of their sound and embarassing amounts of praise. seems like they've dropped to only one drummer now - dono if that's permanent or not - i hope not. and one tiny tiny complaint - i wish they'd stop closing with "i'm no snake". it's by far my least favorite MATAS song, and in my opinion, not one of their strongest. anywho, 'twas a great set. Loney, Dear headlined. they're from sweden, ja? they played a collection of catchy, folky, gentle acoustic pop songs, most with multi-part harmonies, which i love. frontman was very funny and engaging. reminded me of a calmer version of frightened rabbit, without the angst or (dare i say it?) passion. some really nice tunes, but overall, they didn't really connect with me (not their fault, you understand - just sayin).

1/31/09 - Los Campesinos, Titus Andronicus

headed to dada on saturday, with no one in tow (sniff).

first up was Titus Andronicus, from Joisey. pretty good stuff. some nice jangly, energetic punk-influenced rock. vocals not my favorite, but they fit the band.

headlining was Los Campesinos!, from Wales (a country right next to England, we were informed - who knew?), who must be sorta famous or something, being as how there was a $14 cover charge and everything. 7 folks on stage, including a violin player, and you knows i'm a sucker for bands with violin players. lead singer played a cymbal and bells to add to the mayhem, and it seemed like vocal duties were shared by two or three band members, which mixed things up nicely. pretty good stuff. very high-spirited, catchy, melodic-yet-noisy pop. noticed several fans in the audience, singin along with each song. pretty fun set.

1/17/09 - King Bucks, Calhoun, Jack County, The Atoms

headed to dada saturday night with knuckles, to meet up with the green-eyed greek gal and her gal-pals, who were celebrating a birthday in true girls-night-out fashion, with plenty of tequila, live music, pizza and puking (in that order).

first up - the atoms. to tell you the truth, since i couldn't for the life of me find their myspace page before the show, i assumed they were a country-ish band (which was sorta the theme that night), so i didn't really listen to them. soory.

next up was Jack County, who in fact ARE a country-ish band, so i didn't listen to them either. soory again.

next up was the greatness of Calhoun, one of my absolute favorite local bands. seen them too many times to count. and they were awesome as usual. i moved all the way up front so i could be pounded by their sound. it was painful, but worth it. absolutely love those guys.

got to witness the spectacle of the ticket's own mike rhyner attempting to make time with the birthday girl. pretty damn funny. but hey, give him props - i hope i'm that randy when i get to be his age.

king bucks were last. saw them once before and enjoyed it. didn't really pay attention this time.

soory for the especially lame-ass write-up folks. you know country just ain't my thang - i really only wanted to hear Calhoun.

1/10/09 - Hendrick, The Campaign, Sounds Under Radio

headed to the granada with Sunshine, my new lady friend (no, i am not kidding).

Sounds Under Radio was up first. these are the guys i missed t'other weekend in denton cuz i was uh, otherwise occupied. and unfortunately, i missed most of their set this time, too, being as how we were late, and the granada actually starts on time (imagine that!). anyhows, i heard three or four songs, and really dug it. only three guys on stage - no drummer - i must've missed that explanation. definitely derivative of radiohead, but that's cool, cuz i dig radiohead. would definitely like to catch a full set of theirs.
the campaign was next. seen them ages ago, and thought they were great, and that opinion was reaffirmed saturday night. as i said before, that dude can wail on that piano. very energetic, entertaining front-man with a great voice. loved it. and thank gawd, they changed their one cover song from billy joel to Cake.
hendrick was up last. i've seen them many times (cuz they seem to end up in line-ups with bands i like), but i've never really fallen in love with them, and saturday night continued that trend. to tell you the truth, after the dynamic set by the campaign, hendrick bored us a bit. we left after a few songs.

1/3/09 - New Frontiers, Gazelles, Eleisha Eagle

after a way-too-long hiatus (goddam holidays and what-not, you know), i headed to dada to catch the New Frontiers' last show. GReen-Eyed-Greek Gal (who has some sort of super-secret, sordid connection to the new frontiers, it seems (i'm guessing she was one of their groupies, at one point)) and Knuckles came with.

showed up only to see a long line out front. wow - never seen that before at dada. thot we might not even make it in, but we did, and the place was packed inside and out (luckily, it was a beautiful night for hangin' out on the patio). good for them - maybe they'll be able to keep their doors open for a while longer. thanks, solis.

one major disappointment - the drinks that night were easily The Weakest Drinks I Have Ever Had. even my man frankie, who usually makes a pretty stiff drink, let me down. ah well. can't have it all i guess.

Eleisha Eagle opened. 3-piece band: Eleisha on keys, plus bass and drums. nice stuff, very strong voice. kind of a tori-amos-does-cabaret vibe. GREGG thot she was tryin too hard and straining when she belted it out, but liked her when she toned it down. anyways, an enjoyable set. catch her if you can. Gazelles were up next. I've seen them many times, cuz they seem to get put on bills with bands i like, but i've never really liked 'em all that much. GREGG thot they were good, except for the lead vocals. This Will Destroy You was up third, but we missed them somehow. got lazy hangin out on the patio, i guess. wish i had seen them - this dude seemed to think they were awesome.

New Frontiers headlined. i've seen them many times, and always enjoyed it. i don't get fired up over them like i do some others, but it's always very nice. thankfully, there was no 'stop-down to play solo acoustic' that plagued the set the last time i saw them. 'twas a nice set. i enjoyed screamin out 'mirrors' one last time, and it was cool to have such a large crowd singin along with me. it's sad to see these guys go.

12/13/08 - Siren City, Fantastic Circus

went to andy's for the 2nd week in a row. and this time, get this - i had a date, i shit you not.

first up was Fantastic Circus, from Tyler. interesting, very interesting. but not always in a good way. strange melange of heavy metal riffs and calliope-like music (thus the 'circus' moniker?). mi compadre said it sounded like 5 different bands were playing at once. next up was Sounds Under Radio from austin. was looking forward to hearing them, based on what i heard on myspace, but alas, 'twas not to be. too busy re-injuring my tailbone in my car.

last up was Siren City. uh, not really my thing. pretty standard modern rock, with a touch of screamo thrown in. i began to regret not having my earplugs, as that kind of stuff can get pretty hard to take in a small place like andy's. all in all, tho, quite a memorable night. ;)

12/06/08 - the cut*off, beauxregard, the demigs

went to andy's in denton, wif muh buddy tk

the demigs, who tk is now even more totally gay for, started things off. pretty good, i thought. tk liked the new alt-countryish stuff they played. he spent a lot of time beatin down chris demiglio after the set, setting up some sort of after-hours rendevous at a recording studio or somethin. he is so gay for them...after the set, we wandered around the square. public property was attacked, santa was saved, trees were climbed, and tailbones were cracked. good times.

next up was Beauxregard, who i've seen many times. always enjoy their set. good stuff, and very well done. added bonus of a guitar-shaped pinata, which spewed some much-needed munchies. first time to see front-man J Quincy in something other than his usual all-white outfit. last up was the cut*off. seen these guys many times also - see previous write-ups. great stuff, as usual. always get "it's a beautiful life we live" stuck in my head for days after hearing them. went to fuzzy's taco shop afterwards - damn good stuff. back at home, someone decided to fertilize my lawn with fish tacos. good times...