Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin House of Blues Cambridge Room November 23, 2010 Better Than: Watching old clips of Boris Yeltsin. When I walked into the Cambridge Room at the House of Blues to see Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, two things were immediately obvious: there weren’t a…
Welcome to a new feature here on DC9 called My First Show, where we give bands a chance to talk about the first shows they ever attended — no matter how uncool and embarrassing those tales may be. Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow have (save for a couple years apart)…
Better than: Seeing the Flatlanders at the Wyly or the Granada, where they’ve played their last two shows. The ballroom at the Sons of Hermann Hall is their natural element, as dusty and real as the colorful West Texas characters that populate the band’s best songs. The silver-haired hippies that…
The gods of rock were most pleased this Sunday night. Roger Waters lit up the American Airlines Center with spectacles of epic proportions in the name of Pink Floyd’s The Wall, and we had our photographer Roger Caldwell there to geek out with a camera. So, just in case you…
Black Mountain, Black Angels Kessler Theater November 20th, 2010 Better than: seeing Laser Floyd while sober. For those lucky to get into the sold out Black Mountain/Black Angels show, they witnessed probably one of the best shows of the year. Yes, it was that good…
Kurt Vile & The ViolatorsCity TavernNovember 19, 2010Better than: Revisiting the Nightmare This was sooo much better. Forced to relocate from what would have been a triumphant re-opening of Club DaDa to City Tavern (thank you, ponderous permitting process of our local government), Kurt Vile and the Violators delivered an…
Social Distortion, Lucero and Frank Tuner House of Blues – Dallas, TX November 20, 2010 Better Than: A show that Frank Turner wasn’t opening. Saturday night at the House of Blues, the social skills of Mike Ness and his crew of rockabilly punks were anything but distorted. Orange County’s timeless…
The Dresden Dolls The Granada Theater November 19, 2010 Better Than: Watching a midnight screening of Cabaret at the Granada, which, hey, might not be that bad of an idea… Amanda Fucking Palmer – as she introduced herself to the crowd earlier in the night -perched herself on the balcony…
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin ExperienceFair Park Music HallNovember 18, 2010Better than: I could have ever expected.Not being a fan of cover or tribute bands, I ventured down to Fair Park Music Hall with quite a bit of trepidation. Sure, Jason Bonham was the son of John Bonham, the (sadly deceased)…
Octopus Project South Side Music HallNovember 18, 2010Better than: Quadrophonic?It was bleeding Octophonic! Or so it was last night, when The Octopus Project treated a couple hundred people to an immersive performance of their new Hexadecagon release.As promised in the promotion for this event, the four-member Austin-based band trucked in…
Welcome to a new feature here on DC9 called My First Show, where we give bands a chance to talk about the first shows they ever attended — no matter how uncool and embarrassing those tales may be. Austin four-piece The Octopus Project hits up the South Side Musical Hall…
Wolf Parade, Ogre You AssholeGranada TheaterNovember 16, 2010Better than: finding out after the fact where the opening band got their name. Maybe the band was oblivious to the muddy sound that buried the vocals. Or maybe it just didn’t matter to them if the audience could hear the words because…
Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy Camp is a chance for musicians to get a crash course in playing in a rock band. Whether your drumming skills are on par with Meg White’s or somebody who can play “Pride & Joy” note-for-note in a dark corner of a Guitar Center, the intent…
Elton John and Leon RussellFort Worth Convention CenterNovember 13, 2010Better than: living your life like a candle in the wind. The backstory behind Elton John’s most recent tour isn’t really about Sir Elton at all, actually: He’s touring, you see, alongside Leon Russell, with whom he collaborated for his latest…
Felice BrothersThe LoftNovember 13, 2010Better than: wondering how far TCU will fall in the BCS standings because they didn’t win by 50 points. For the second consecutive night at The Loft in Dallas, a band showed up and gave the crowd not only more than it bargained for, but almost…
On Saturday night, for the second time in two years, the Dandy Warhols rocked out at the Granada, this time in support of their greatest hits album The Capitol Years 1995-2007. And although the band is getting older (lead singer Courtney Taylor-Taylor is 43), the band’s still surprisingly energetic. And that’s…
Freelance Whales, Miniature Tigers, GenerationalsThe LoftNovember 12, 2010Better than: helping my wife put up the early Christmas decorations in our house (for real). It’s sometimes easy to forget how powerful of an impact that buzz can have on a young band’s existence. And, yes, buzz is a bit of an…
Levon Helm, Ray LaMontagne Verizon Theatre, Grand Prairie November 11, 2010 Better than: watching my old Rick Danko instructional bass VHS tapes. I don’t know what’s wrong with some people. We’ve all been in a situation where we go to a show to see only one artist on a bill,…
Dr. Dog, Here We Go MagicSouth Side Music HallNovember 13, 2010Better than: hanging out with a bunch of college students anywhere else. On Thursday, Dr. Dog brought quite the diverse crowd to the South Side Music Hall. They had the token indie rock fans, loads of SMU undergrads, and an…
Joanna NewsomGranada TheaterNovember 10, 2010 Better than: listening to Joanna Newsom’s recorded songs. I think it’s fair to say that very few people would accidentally find themselves at a Joanna Newsom concert. With her unique voice, epic song structures, and unusual instrumentation, she is not a casual musical choice. Last…
Welcome to a new feature here on DC9 called My First Show, where we give bands a chance to talk about the first shows they ever attended — no matter how uncool and embarrassing those tales may be. Tomorrow night, Dr. Dog brings its unapproved-by-Pitchfork Americana stylings back to town…
Apples in StereoGranada TheaterNovember 8, 2010Better than: going forward in time at regular speed. Robert Schneider is an interesting man. When not fronting the The Apples in Stereo, the guy spends his time speaking at math conferences and tinkering with mind-controlled synthesizers. Fronting the Apples is something entirely different, though…
