Merle Haggard Back Home After Lung Surgery

Despite being in his 70s, country music legend Merle Haggard has always seemed to make his way to Dallas a couple of times a year. And hopefully that trend will continue after Haggard recovers from lung surgery at his home in Bakersfield, California. A recent biopsy revealed that Haggard had…

Giveaway: Two Pairs Of Tickets To Tonight’s Municipal Waste Show At Lola’s

Thrash act Municipal Waste, whose straight-ahead, in-your-face sound comes straight outta Richmond, Virginia, hits the stage at Lola’s Saloon in Fort Worth tonight–an interesting choice of venue, for sure, given the band’s penchant for wild-ass shows and the venue’s penchant for yelling at bands (cough–Dark Meat–cough) that make a mess…

Yes, Club Dada Is Open Tonight.

Just double-checked with Club Dada co-owner Ben Tapia to see if the plan to re-open the venue, whose doors have been locked for the past two days because the club was behind on its rent payments, was still a go for tonight. His answer: Yes. “We’re glad you missed us,”…

Paste Checks In With A Matthew And The Arrogant Sea Review…

That sea…so arrogant right now…that sea… (Melanie Gomez) …and it’s yet another positive one for the Gray family collective. Writes reviewer Henry Freedland: Although several tracks never quite develop beyond lulling repetition, and Matthew Gray’s lyrics have the tendency to nudge whimsical absurdity into outré distractions (“Last time I saw…

Club Dada Shuts Down..But Only For Two Days, Turns Out

Just got off the phone with Club Dada co-owner Ben Tapia after receiving an anonymous tip (and also, in retrospect, an anonomiss tip) that Dada’s doors were locked by an outside party this morning. And turns out, yep, they had been–by Dada’s landlords at Westdale Proprety Management. “The doors are…

Calhoun Lands On The Latest Paste Compilation Disc

Calhoun, whose latest disc, Falter.Waver.Cultivate., I really enjoyed (along with plenty of other folks, if the “Press” section on the band’s Myspace page is, indeed, accurate), shows up on Paste magazine’s monthly compilation disc for the month of November–and with good placement, too: “Breathe,” the opening track from Falter.Waver.Cultivate., shows…

And So It Begins: The End-Of-Year List Propaganda Arrives

It started last week. Not one, but two respected labels sent out email blasts containing all the records they’ve released in the past year. Y’know, just one of those “in case you were looking to get ahead in your homework” type emails to help get us in the mindset of…

So. We Shot JR Launched A Record Label.

Yep. It’s true. Oh, and it’s vinyl-only (like Nova Posta) and the label’s first release will be a Fight Bite single. Also: The free launch party/concert to celebrate the new label is set to take place Friday night with Fight Bite, fellow new labelmates Darktown Strutters and Orange Coax, plus…

Three Local Artists Are Possibly On Cusp Of Winning A Stetston-Sponsored Texas-Only “Rock” Competition. So They’ve Got That Going For Them. Which Is Nice.

Alright, alright, alright… Three local country acts–Dallas’ Craig Boyd, Arlington’s Maren Morris, and Carrolton’s Chris Miller Band–have made the Top 10 in the Stetson Rocks competition, which aims to highlight Texas-bred country artists while, at the same time, supporting the Texas Music Project, an organization focused on improving music education…

Clean Out Your Ears This Morning With Some Q-Tip

That’s “Life is Better” above, the latest leaked single from Q-Tip’s upcoming disc, The Renaissance. And, in case you can’t pick up the hint from listening to the track, yep, that’s North Texas’ own Norah Jones taking care of the former Tribe leader’s chorus. Nice. Seems like Ms. Jones, who’s…

Bruce Springsteen Does His Best Reverend Horton Heat This Halloween

Since we’re clearly not getting any real work done today at this point, let’s just keep the Halloween theme going, mmkay? Check out the above Halloween exclusive from the Boss hisself: “A Night With The Jersey Devil.” Kind sounds like the Reverend Horton Heat, says Wilonsky. Sure does. And, iff’n…

“Who’s Playing Tricks On Me?”

Hardly breaking news, as a certain other local publication that’s been all over this band’s junk mentioned this, oh, about a week ago… But, ah hell, since it’s Halloween and all… Sometime Denton-based electronic dance duo Roy G and the Biv also has a special Halloween release to tout today…