Plan to Stay Awake (during the Battle of the Bands)

Oh, come on! Headkrack JUST. CAN'T. WIN.
Watch. Then VOTE.

bigDlittled Ddown

Currently, the link to "www.bigdlittled.com" is dead, dead, dead. This is because I registered the site's name with RegisterFly.com, which has apparently started falling apart. Worse, I can't just up and leave--because RegisterFly has imploded, I can't even get the company to enter an "unlock" request so that I can move the site name. For the time being, PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD that the site is still up at http://samred.com/bigdlittled ... sorry for the inconvenience. Hopefully I can get this resolved before too long. Ugh. -SM

Pure Talent

Reggie Watts: Out Of Control on Vimeo

Not from Dallas, but amazing.

Battle of the Bands!

Fun fun fun for a Tuesday morning. Got an email from one (one?!) of my fav bands that they had been selected to "compete" in Quick's "Battle of the Bands." It's a March Madness-like lineup of all our favorite local bands. WE get to vote on who goes to the next round. The little disclaimer that "you only get to vote once and you can't change your vote"? Wrong!! Keep clicking and watch those percentages add up! I, personally, put Deathray Davies ahead of Headkrack. I consider it my community service done for the day.
Bored at work?
Click
Click
Click!

photo: The Deathray Davies, beaten, but not out.

North Texas does SxSW 2007

It's that time again… here is my annual "Who's Going To SxSW From North Texas" list. I've put in the shows I wouldn't miss in bold, but then, that's my taste in music; it may not necessarily be yours. I'm thrilled for all the bands that have showcases, but there were many many wonderful bands from here that were not offered spots. Why not? Who knows? I mean, where is Sorta? I could go on, but I've spent the morning researching this for y'all, since I can't go to SxSW this year (*sob, sob*) and will also miss everything going on in Dallas the week before. Family trip. Attendance required. Can't get out of it. So, this is for you, and especially that contingent coming over from Manchester, UK. Take the list and have a brilliant time. Without me. =(

*************************

North Texas does SxSW:

Weds 3/14

8:45pm Hourly Radio @ Elysium

9p Black Tie Dynasty @ The Tap Room at Six

9p Hogpig @ Bourbon Rocks (rock)

11pm The Theater Fire @ In Music We Trust (followed by Glass Family from Austin – nice bill.)

1a Radiant @ Tag Team

Thurs 3/15

10p Doyle Bramhall for Yep Roc Roots @ Continental Club

10p Carmen Rodgers and Geno Young @ Club One 15

11p Keite Young @ Club One 15

12:45a Faktion for BMI @ Club de Ville

1a Fair to Midland for Universal Republic @ Eternal

Friday 3/16

7p Ray Sharpe @ Opal Divine's (alt country)

8p St Vincent for Billions Corp @ Antone's

10p Bosque Brown @ Hilton Garden Inn

10p The Mullens @ Habana Patio

10p The Drams for New West @ The Parish (Rock)

10:30p Money Waters @ Visions (Hip Hop)

12:45a Bobby Patterson @ Opal Divine's (R&B)

TBA The Polyphonic Spree for Paste @ Austin Music Ballroom

TBA Play-N-Skillz @ Beauty Bar Patio

Saturday 3/17

8p-2a Dallas Hip Hop night @ Visions with PPT on at 9:30p (Hip Hop)

9p The Strange Boys @ Blender Bar (Rock/Punk)

10p Kristy Kruger @ The Tap Room (singer-songwriter)

11p Robert Gomez for Bella Union @ Buffalo Billiards (Rock)

12a Midlake for Bella Union @ Buffalo Billiards (Rock)

12a Nayrok @ Club One 15 (R&B)

11p Eisely @ La Zona Rosa (Rock) with a special guest after and…

1a "Thee Spree" ?! Polyphonic? @ La Zona Rosa

1a Bowling For Soup @ Maggie Mae's

Sunday 3/18

No official shows of North Texas artists.

Other Notables

The Cincinnati contingent:

Thurs 10p The Sundresses @ Lava Lounge Patio

Fri 10:30p Buffalo Killers @ Beerland

Fri 10p Six Parts Seven @ Maggie Mae's (experimental)

Fri 1a Nocturnal Collective @ BD Riley's

*****************************

Artists I love and showcases that you shouldn't miss:

Sun 8p Astronautilus @ Emo's Jr (alt hip hop… not kidding)

Weds 12a Experimental Aircraft @ Blender Balcony (dreamy rock)

Weds 11p The Mountain Goats @ Emo's (Rock)

Weds TBA Har Mar Superstar @ Flamingo Cantina (a trainwreck of a show… so horrible, you can't stop watching)

Weds TBA White Ghost Shivers @ Molotov (Jazz? Um, more like Old Tyme Country Jazz)

Thurs 10:30p Sondre Lerche @ Antone's followed by

Thurs 12:30a Sparklehorse @ Antone's (Astralwerks)

Thurs 12a Robbers on High Street and 1a Albert Hammond Jr @ Blender Bar

Thurs 11p Mute Math @ Dirty Dog

Thurs 9p Thomas Dolby @ Elysium

Thurs 11p Octopus Project @ Emo's Main Room with Voxtrot @ 1a

Thurs 11p-1a @ La Zona Rosa What Made Milwaukee Famous, Architecture in Helsinki and Ghostland Observatory

Thurs 12:45p Okkervil River @ Mohawk Patio

Thurs 11p Badly Drawn Boy (only because it's ACOUSTIC) then @ 12a Aqualung!! (exclamation points are mine!!) … all @ Parish for Hotel Café's acoustic showcase. Cool.

Thurs 9p Aqualung @ Stubb's (busy night for them) with The Dears and Block Party after. Wristband wearers, prepare to see only this one show bec you're not getting in after 8p.

Fri 10p Duncan Sheik @ Central Presby Church (ok, ok, but I still like him)

Fri 11p Ian Moore @ Continental Club (his annual sxsw show)

Fri 1a Apples in Stereo @ Dirty Dog (with John Dufilho of Deathray Davies on drums!!)

Sat 12a Kid606 @ Beauty Bar (electro)

Sat 11p Daniel Johnston and the Nightmares @ Blender Bar

Sat 8p-1a A Fine Frenzy, Paolo Nutini (*dreamy sigh*), Kings of Leon, Spoon, The Stooges @ Stubbs. Since you wouldn't want to miss the first part of this show, you should arrive at daybreak.

****************************************

And band names you just can't not go see*:

Holy Fuck

Holy Shit! (sadly, they don't play together)

Sissy Wish

The Grass

Oh no! Oh my!

When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth

Mittens on Strings

Die!Die!Die! (hey, it's a showcase with those last three – someone has a sense of humor)

Peter, Bjorn, and John (gotta love Swedish bands)

Kissing Tigers

Quien es, BOOM! (from Austin, actually good)

Shapes Have Fangs

Brighton MA (from Chicago IL)

Frightened Rabbit

The Jonbenet (ack!, of course, a Metal band)

I heart Hiroshima

The Hot Puppies

Shitdisco

Say Hi To Your Mom

Menomena (ba ba bababa, babababa bababa ba)

my!gay!husband!

These Arms Are Snakes

Les Brestfeeders

Menwhopause (from India, I wonder if they get the possibly inadvertent humor in this?)

Alabama Thunderpussy

Psychedelic Horseshit

Get cape. Wear cape. Fly.

The Crack Pipes

The Woggles

Apostle of Hustle

The Ugly Beats (are they poets, or just unattractive musicians?)

Flaming Arrows Mardi Gras Indians (from NO LA, of course)

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin

The Femurs (they should play with The Lemurs)

The Tragically Hip

Deaf in the Family (I heart hip hop humor)

Michael Zapruder's Rain of Frogs (not a Dallas band)

The Sippy Cups

Fake Problems

*all band names are actual bands on official sxsw shows. And they might actually be decent musicians.

Don't go to this show

Please don't go to Good Records on Sunday. No one you need to see is playing the instore. Yup, that's right, just move along. Nothing to see there. Please find something else to do. No worries, it'll be a beautiful day for, oh, I dunno... biking, kayaking White Rock Lake, bathing the cat... just don't go to the instore. That's right. No instore. There's a rumor it was cancelled.

But, if you MUST, and I will be very unhappy with you, you can find out what WON'T be happening here.


(I hate crowds.)

Fun with Poor David!

This March, I will move into Poor David's, if Dave gives me a break on the rent. Look at this schedule... I mean, LOOK at it! wow...

MAR 2- ANYTOWN REUNION W/ COLBY LOGAN AND OTHERS
MAR 3- STEVE FROMHOLZ AND MARK GERMINO
MAR 4- MARATHON OPEN MIC FROM 2-10PM. ANYONE FROM
ANYWHERE DOING ANYTHING ON POOR DAVID'S
STAGE TO HAVE APICTURE TAKEN WITH MANY
MEGA AND MINI, NEO & NONO CELEBRITIES!
THIS PROMISES TO BE A HUMONGOUS HOOT!
MAR 8- TIM MILLER
MAR 9- SMALL STARS
MAR 10- BENTLI CD RELEASE
MAR 16- TROUTFISHING IN AMERICA CELBRATES WITH US
AS THEY TURN 30- 7PM KIDS SHOW (CAKE AND
KIDS SING HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US) 10PM
BIG KIDS SHOW.
MAR 17- AT 2PM OUR SIDEWALK PARADE OPEN TO PUBLIC
PETS, EXTROVERTS, JUGGLERS, MIMES
STROLLERS AND MOTORIZED BAR STOOLS.
EVERYONE WELCOME! MUSIC IN CLUB AFTER.
MAR 19- RUBY DEE AND THE SNAKEHANDLERS
MAR 22- BOB SCHNEIDER
MAR 23- MAX STALLING
MAR 24- KINKY FRIEDMAN IN A UTOPIAN RESCUE RANCH
BENEFIT AND CELBRATE 30 W/ DAVE.
BLACKTOP GYPSY OPENS.
MAR 29- O'TOOLE
MAR 30- BRAVE COMBO PLEASE JOIN US SOON!!
PD

Inspired by .... Ansen Seale

It's not Photoshop. And it's not mine, either. All the photography on this blog is mine, except this image, Temporal Form No.8. This is so wonderful, beautiful, inspiring, I need to make an exception and post this work. Ansen Seale, the brilliant photographer/artist/geek (you don't mind if I call you that, do you? I mean it in the best sense) developed a camera that takes slits of images, only one pixel wide. 1 pixel. For those of you not in the digital world, that's not at all wide. First he used to it record panoramic landscapes and virtual tours, then he noticed that artifacts or mistakes happened when something moved in front of the camera. He exploited the camera's inadequacies and found a new reality. He is the Dali of photography. Enjoy more at AnsenSeale.com.

Thanks to Kettle Art for the show!
image posted with permission. don't steal. ask.

back soon, I promise.

Good Lord, I'm being like dconstruction. But I'm not promising a post anytime soon, just saying I'm busy with the non-posting parts of life and this hiatus will end sooner or later. I'm striving for quality over quantity. Is it working?

Gypsy closes?!?!

My internet goes down for a week and this happens? Horrors!

Click to watch the CBS video of an interview with Robert Wilonsky.

Wilonsky is a former Music Editor at the Observer, and still an editor there. He cares passionately about music in Dallas and Dallas music. If you don't know the difference, watch the video.