At this point in her career, Björk probably isn’t going to win over any new fans. Those who didn’t like her before won’t start with this release. Volta is challenging, confusing and likely to grate on the nerves, similar to the beatbox-driven Medulla. Björk has always relied on the patience…
Although born in Wills Point, Texas, roots singer-songwriter Jimmy LaFave is more closely associated with Stillwater, Oklahoma, the place where he honed his pleasing mixture of folk, country and rock. LaFave calls what he does “red dirt music” and throughout his fine new effort, Cimarron Manifesto, he presents an earthy…
Bright Eyes’ seventh full-length, Cassadaga, which was produced by Mike Mogis and features cameos from Gillian Welch and M. Ward, takes its name from an incorporeal community in Florida. In the opening song, “Clairaudients (Kill or Be Killed),” a collage of clairvoyants and social commentary on corporate and colonial corruption,…
Seems like you can’t front a popular indie band these days without being expected to do the acoustic solo-tour thing: Mark Kozelek, Jeff Tweedy, James Mercer, Jim James—they’ve all stripped down and indulged their fans’ desire for naked emotions and oddball covers. Tonight, Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard headlines…
Since being championed by Peter Gabriel in the early ’90s, Ohio-born singer-songwriter (and painter) Joseph Arthur has been walking the fine line between indie and mainstream for more than a decade. He’s toured with R.E.M., Tracy Chapman and a host of other big-name artists, yet his musical efforts have stayed…
In the diverse realm of literary indie rock—inhabited by bands such as Okkervil River, Mountain Goats, Centro-matic, Rock Central Plaza and the Decemberists —Frog Eyes’ tales of wrath and ruination/rumination may be the most difficult to decipher. On Tears of the Valedictorian, which follows the Victoria, British Columbia, quartet’s enigmatic…
Funk master George Clinton started off in the 1950s singing doo-wop. A couple of months ago, he was in the studio with rapper Scarface. Fifty-something years is a long time to stay relevant in the music business, but that’s what Clinton has done. Part musical genius, part social commentator and…
So, the House of Blues opened this past week, kicking off with Erykah Badu’s solo set, followed by the debut of her seat-of-their-pants soul collective the Cannabinoids (no review available by press time, of course, but hit up Unfair Park for the lowdown). When I initially heard it would be…
Forget the Foo Fighters—the true champ when it comes to blending melody and mayhem is a tumultuous trio known as Dinosaur Jr. These prototypical hard-core heroes were making heads bop and torsos flail back when Dave Grohl was still taking his cues from Kurt Cobain. The group’s bassist, Lou Barlow,…
It’s hard to say what’s more surprising: that Redman’s sixth solo album is actually decent or that it even exists. The long-rumored Red Gone Wild seemed to be floating in the ether for years, along with all the ganja smoke from the New Jersey rapper’s pothead flick How High. But…
There’s no shortage of bands composing ditties about love and loss in bustling alternative music sweet spots such as London and Brooklyn. Even so, if an indie group is capable of producing gorgeous modern ballads while residing in sleepy strip-mall South Florida, you can bet the players are tapping into…
While he was growing up, Olav Larsen would search the record stores of his native Norway for imported records by Jimmie Rodgers, Neil Young and John Prine. It only takes one listen to Larsen’s impressive debut, Love’s Come to Town, to appreciate the capability of the Scandinavian import/export trade. Although…
This is a story about Erykah Badu’s newest project, but let’s start with another soul icon. One of the most important—and overlooked—moments in the recent history of pop music—hell, pop culture—occurred at the end of the 2006 Grammys. Just when it seemed the awards ceremony was destined to go down…
Ask any random long-haired, denim-clad, reefer-smoking dude hanging out at the food court at Valley View mall what his favorite band is and I’ll wager that one out of three says, “Black Fuckin’ Sabbath!!!!” The strange thing is that if you asked the same question at a Microsoft office party,…
Pixel Revolt, John Vanderslice’s most recent concoction, was such a well-constructed, thoughtful and original piece of indie pop that it was a shock to find out he lists such bloated fare as King Crimson and early Genesis as key influences. Yet a quick glance at Vanderslice’s impressive bio will show…
If you happened to see the movie Closer, then that was probably your first taste of Damien Rice; “The Blower’s Daughter,” from his debut O, served as the movie’s ultra-depressing theme and proved even more ultra-depressing than the movie. Last year, Rice released his follow-up, 9, which was a bit…
Tristeza guitarist Jimmy LaValle is the Album Leaf, and it’s his orchestral vision that sets his music apart from many making similarly experimental pop. Tranquil to a fault, LaValle creates compositions with a pulse so faint that listeners might want to invest in a stethoscope. Into the Blue Again, LaValle’s…
Joss Stone is ready to finally introduce herself. Again. Well, again again. Her third album, Introducing Joss Stone, is supposed to be the truest representation of who she is as an artist, but, at the end of the day, it’s still just really funky, hip-hop-infused soul sung by a 20-year-old…
It might seem strange to call folk-rockers Cartright one of the best bands in North Texas—after all, they moved to Austin more than a year ago—but that’s exactly what the former Denton residents have been in recent months, playing North Texas shows every few weeks (or 10 times more often…
Since music is said to be the universal language, it should come as no surprise that many hidden treasures come from all around the globe. And with import/stateside release schedules fluctuating with reckless abandon, it’s easy to overlook some intriguing music. The focus this time is definitely international, but at…
Spam-a-lot: If there’s one thing the music staff here at the Dallas Observer can agree on, it’s Vanilla Ice. We love Vanilla Ice. We want to party with him. We want to party with him soooooo bad! So imagine our happy surprise when, upon checking our tricked-out MySpace page, we…
Denton’s Daniel Folmer is a prolific 20-something wunderkind who somehow found time between delivering pizzas and playing pick-up hockey games to release two CDs in six months. Folmer’s debut, Wear Headphones, was a 22-song indie rock paean to caffeine and contradictions that showed equal parts gall and slacker intelligence. Gloria…
