Purveyors of heavy metal always seem to be obsessed with epic literature.Take Russell Allen of Symphony X. He’s fronted New Jersey’s progressive metal act for nearly 20 years, and in that time, Symphony X has released albums based on both The Odyssey and Paradise Lost. Last year, they released Iconoclast,…
There’s a good chance you haven’t heard much about Dallas dream-pop act Crushed Stars. Singer Todd Gautreau generally flies below the radar, and the Frisco native plays an average of one live show per album, which, by our calculation, makes six.His bandmates stay pretty busy with their own projects: Drummer…
Here’s hoping Dustin Cavazos doesn’t die before his funeral today. The Oak Cliff-dwelling, bike-riding rapper — who has one of the most sobering deliveries in local hip-hop — is filming a new video for his song “Bless the City” this afternoon at Calvario Funeral Home at 1 p.m. He’s putting…
Even after more than 20 years in the music business, Ronan Harris of VNV Nation still rambles on like a kid half his age. Enthusiastic and confident in the extreme, Harris believes (correctly) that the music he and partner Mark Jackson create is as important now as when it first…
Are people still using PlayStations? If the brand is looking for a charming accomplishment via their product, they need look no further than Big K.R.I.T. As a resourceful teenager, Justin Scott used PlayStation’s MTV Music Generator to form his first beats, and that entrepreneurial spirit guided him as he continues…
Talking to Matthew Good can feel like being reprimanded by your high school history teacher. Opinionated, well-spoken and extremely blunt, Good never hesitates to delve into areas of interest not common to most singer-songwriters. The guy just happens to be a damn fine songwriter as well. Whether fronting his own…
Yesterday, various social media outlets were literally on fire with the news of Centro-matic singer Will Johnson’s “supergroup” with the Kadane Brothers and Pedro the Lion’s David Bazan. That almost made us forget about his other other band, New Multitudes, which features Jay Farrar, Anders Parker and his former Monsters…
Some bands just like to be mysterious. Take Houston’s Indian Jewelry for example. Although the band has been around for a little over a decade, very little biographical material is available. Various articles on the band list five members, but some list only two, and even then, pseudonyms are used…
Portland’s Nurses sound as odd as their moniker. Dracula, the band’s 2011 effort and second Dead Oceans LP, upped the ante considerably over former releases with its focus and poise. In anticipation of tonight’s opening slot for Steven Malkmus & the Jicks at the Granada Theater, keyboardist and vocalist John…
There have been some notable record deals inked among North Texas artists in recent years — Jonathan Tyler & the Northern Lights on Atlantic and Midlake on Bella Union pop to mind — and as of February 10, Dallas-based singer-songwriter Ronnie Fauss joined the ranks of regional artists with serious…
A little over five months ago, John Carbone of Gilded Splinters decided to move from Boston to Austin. Seems the trio felt the scene in New England was restricting the band’s chances of breaking out nationally, so they loaded up everything and headed South. Speaking from his new abode in…
In keeping with their goal of booking Texas-wide this year, the Homegrown Music & Art Festival has announced Austin’s The Octopus Project and Ume, San Antonio’s Girl in a Coma and Dallas’ Mystery Skulls as their first round of bands. I seriously miss getting to see Ume on a regular…
Dallas emcee and producer -topic definitely perked my ears with his latest 12-song project, Songs About P___y (no relation to Big Black’s Songs About Fucking), explained on his Bandcamp page as “a collection of the personal, emotion-related struggles of men, my perception and thoughts on the man/woman relations.” It’s a…
As the leader of Soul Coughing, Mike Doughty made a name for himself as a songwriter with a penchant for jazz grooves and stream-of-consciousness poetry. Too bad feuding amongst Doughty and the rest of the band over songwriting credit and other issues brought an end to Soul Coughing after just…
With Brandon Blue currently making some of the most innovative beats in Dallas hip-hop, it’s no wonder Slim Gravy (A.Dd+), Dave (The Mohicans), Dustin Cavazos and -topic joined fellow Brain Gangbanger JT in reworking “Party On,” the lead single from the Numb EP. Not only is this beat a dramatic…
Although Laura Gibson’s engaging and challenging music owes as much to jazz as it does to any notion of folk. La Grande, her recently released sophomore effort, is a collection that laces those sounds with a bit of atmospheric rock. Just waking up before the long drive from Marfa to…
Intense barely scratches the surface when talking about Suicide Silence. The California extreme metal outfit has been around for just over a decade, and in that time, they’ve created three of the severest slabs of deathcore to be found. Speaking from a Houston restaurant in anticipation of tonight’s show at…
In the early ’90s, Matt Hillyer and his band, Lone Star Trio, were packing venues with a rootsy sound about the same time that Rhett Miller and Murry Hammond were forming the Old 97’s. Since 1998, Hillyer’s fronted Eleven Hundred Springs, an old-school honky-tonk band that’s released several top-notch albums,…
In 2008, influential Canadian heavy metal forerunners Anvil finally tasted the fame that had eluded them for decades, thanks to the documentary Anvil! The Story of Anvil. Instead of becoming novelty stars who had a heart-warming yet heart-wrenching movie to their name (like the stars of The King of Kong),…
Sunday afternoon at the Webb Gallery promises to be quite the feat of synergy, which seems to be a keyword on the blog this week. The Waxahachie gallery and Good Records are combining forces to bring you Groove, a fusion of Texas music and art. The art part comes via…
Since You Me at Six is already a major success in their home country of England, Josh Franceschi and crew have now set their sights on conquering America. To that end, the pop-punk five-piece recently released Sinners Never Sleep, their most mature effort to date. Featuring intense numbers like “Bite…
Judging by Jillian Edwards’ recently released sophomore effort, Head First, the Richardson-bred singer-songwriter shouldn’t have much trouble making it in Nashville. Tunes such as “No Other Plans” and “Mind Made Up” show Edwards wiser than her 23 years might indicate. Speaking from her parents’ home in Richardson and in anticipation…
