The Lucky Thirteen: 2/27/12

This is the part where I'm supposed to give some witty prologue to the playlist. I've used up all my wit in writing the blurbs on the songs and the artists, as it should be. The only thing I have left to say is this: listen and enjoy!

Standard playlist disclaimer: any artists, record labels, etc. who do not wish to be on the playlist for any reason whatsoever, email me at ghostofblindlemon@gmail.com and I will gladly remove the track. And if you'd actually like to be on the playlist, you can use the same email address to email me your mp3's. If I like the song, then odds are it'll wind up on a playlist.

1. "Knockout Rose", Bad Design
   I don't think that in the past two weeks there has been a single day where this song didn't get played at least twice. The unique rhythm of this track combined with the striking guitar solo keep me coming back for more. With February not even over yet, it's way too early to declare this the track of 2012. Instead, I will say that Bad Design has thrown down the metaphorical gauntlet, daring other local acts to outdo them. Let the games begin.


2. "Hotel Denalian", Bravo, Max!
   This Saturday, The Crown and Harp celebrates its one year anniversary. Yes, 1914 Greenville Avenue has become a mainstay in the local music scene for well over a decade, but this marks one year under the new moniker. Bravo, Max! will help the venue celebrate the special occasion, along with performances by Goodnight Ned and Temple Diver. And to make it a sweeter deal, there is absolutely no cover charge.


3. "All the Reasons Why", Emmeline
   Speaking of Crown and Harp, Emmeline will be spending more than her share of time at the venue this week. As usual, she hosts the Wednesday night open mic in her usual entertaining manner, sprinkling in amusing anecdotes and coaxing audience members onstage. In addition to the Wednesday show, she will also open Friday's show featuring Backwater Opera and Cassie Holt. Disclaimer: yes, I do help book at Crown and Harp, which gives me a reason to promote the shows there. I helped make these lineups for one simple reason: they're good lineups. And really, what more do you need?


4. "When Your Hope Dies at Your Feet", The Farstar
   The Farstar has made no fuss to big to do over their latest album, God Be With You, Heaven Knows the Devil Is. In a strange way, it's rather fitting. Upon first listen, the songs might not grab you immediately. But give the album a few chances, and you'll find that tracks such as this one stick in your head. So perhaps the album will quietly worm its way into the consciousness of the collective known as our local music scene.


5. "Wait for Us", Mind Spiders
   At the end of 2010, I had barely heard of this band. In that time, the buzz surrounding this band has grown for a quiet din to a deafening roar. With tunes like this that are equal parts sloppy and hook driven, it's easy to see how they've become so popular.


6. "Lay Low", Black Tie Dynasty
   Laying low seems to be exactly what ex-BTD frontman Cory Watson is doing with his latest project, Mon Julien. What I've heard seems to be moving into a more standard indie rock territory, although I've heard people say that Mon Julien stays on the same musical turf as Mr. Watson's previous band. Either way, I'd like to see them play more so I can catch them and judge for myself.


7. "Turn on Your Radio", THe BAcksliders
   Not only will Chris Bonner of THe BAcksliders celebrate a birthday this week, fans of the band have reason to celebrate. They will be headlining March 23 at the Double-Wide, their first show since the CD release of their live album last August. Allan Hayslip joins the band as the new bass player, but I suspect the band will rock as hard as ever in their live shows.


8. "Cats in the Dark", Nervous Curtains
   The wait is officially over... Nervous Curtain's latest, Fake Infinity, is available in both digital and physical format. If the latter is more your cup of tea, swing by Good Records this Thursday to pick up a copy on CD or vinyl. And while you're there, you can catch Nervous Curtains performing a set on the store's stage.


9. "Tape Number 7", Chomsky
   I kept hearing that Chomsky was playing Edgefest, and I thought there had to be another band out there named Chomsky who was playing. Nope, THIS is the Chomsky that will be at Edgefest this year. And that, my friend, is no small deal. I can only hope this will be more than a one-off deal. My fingers are crossed.


10. "Take It Back", To Coda
    Yes, the band is a young band, with all four members still in high school. And yet for a band so young, they possess an unusually strong sense of musicianship and hint that the band is capable of even more than has surfaced thus far in their young career. The band's EP is filled with catchy pop nuggets, including this, the title track. As for the live show, the powerful vocals by lead singer Heather Darwin are reason enough to catch a live show.


11. "Swagger", The Gypsy Bravado
    Congrats to the Gypsy Bravado, who were one of the Dallas finalists in the Hard Rock Rising 2012 contest. The next round takes place on March 31 at Hard Rock Cafe. The goal: to get Gypsy Bravado to perform at the Hard Rock Cafe in London. Dallas, let's make this happen.


12. "Snow in June", Little Black Dress
    Now if you'll excuse me, I need to take a break and carefully examine what I'm wearing on my feet.


13. "San Francisco", Dead Beat Poetry
    Finally, here's a slight departure from the dreamy shoegaze vibes of Little Black Dress. And by slight departure, I mean an enormous change of sonic pace, and volume too. Dead Beat Poetry is full throttle rock and roll with a definite bluesy vibe in many of their tracks. But this is not some Black Keys wannabe duo. The songs, like this, are fierce and unrelenting. Don't just take my word on it though, you can see the band headlining at Liquid Lounge on Friday night, with GOBL fave Arielle opening the show.

The Lucky Thirteen: 12/21/10

Standard playlist disclaimer: any artists, record labels, etc. who do not wish to be on the playlist for any reason whatsoever, email me at ghostofblindlemon@gmail.com and I will gladly remove the track. And if you'd actually like to be on the playlist, you can use the same email address to email me your mp3's. If I like the song, then odds are it'll wind up on a playlist.

With all the legal mumbo jumbo out of the way, let's listen to some tunes and try to get into the holiday spirit, okay?

1. "Christmas Time Is Here", Chomsky


2. "Waiting on Christmas", The Adventures of Jet
   I suppose I could do a Christmas playlist and not feature any tunes from Electric Ornaments, but it just wouldn't be right. Here are two of my faves from the CD.


3. "My Christmas List", Scott Riegel
   I first saw Mr. Riegel perform at Bryan Street Tavern along with The O's and Whiskey Glass Eye (aka Slobberbone), and there's a certain charm to this 17 year old musician that has me highly curious about where he'll go next musically. For now, enjoy this fun acoustic Christmas ditty.


4. "What I Always Wanted", Chris Holt


5. "Christmas (Doesn't Have to Be So Bad)", THe BAcksliders
   I'm lacking anything witty or insightful to say. I like Chris Holt. I like THe BAcksliders. I like these songs. Ok, on to the next song...


6. "Merry Christmas Now", Rahim Quazi
   I hope everyone has enjoyed my gift of the Rahim Quazi mp3's. What, you haven't downloaded the tracks yet? Click here and get yourself some good tunes.


7. "Winter Wonderland in Dub", Clay Pendergrass
   This is admittedly a rather long track, but I recommend sitting yourself down, relaxing, and allow yourself the time to appreciate this hypnotic gem from Mr. Pendergrass.


8. "Here It Is Christmas Time", Old 97's
   Dear Santa, I've been a good blogger (for the most part). Could you leave me a pair of Old 97's New Year's Eve tickets in my stocking?


9. "Santa Baby", Smile Smile


10. "Silent Night", Smile Smile
    Smile Smile has had quite a good year, and Truth on Tape was easily one of my favorite CDs of the year. I figured it'd be nice to have a double dose of Smile Smile.


11. "Run Rudolph Run", Reverend Horton Heat
    Definitely one of the most rocking local music Christmas tunes ever. One would expect no less from The Rev.


12. "Christmas Eve", Salim Nourallah
    There's nothing that'll get someone into the Christmas spirit than hearing Salim sing "Why can't we cheat death?". Merry Christmas!!!


13. "Christmas Time", Black Tie Dynasty
    After that last track, I figured it was either hand out Prozacs or let you hear this song. For my money, this tune is the ultimate Christmas party song. Turn it up everyone, you'll know it's Christmas time because you won't be able to fight it.

Local Edge Playlist: 12/19/10

For those expecting to see Days 5 and 6 of Christmas over the weekend, sorry. Things got hectic and well, no gifts this weekend. I hope Santa doesn't hold it against me and leave a lump of coal in my stocking. In the meantime, Mark put on his 2nd annual "It's a Local Edge Christmas, Charlie Brown" episode. Forewarning #1: there will be a notable amount of overlap between his selections and tomorrow's Lucky 13. Forewarning #2: Mark said he played centro-matic's "Fuselage", which I didn't catch. In all fairness, I don't recall him mentioning the BTD song that I know he played. Oh, and for the cover of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", he gave credit to Junuis Recording, but I did not hear him specify an artist. I think it may be the Dallas Family Band, but don't hold me to that. Anyways, here is what I believe to be the playlist. I promise to give a full refund of the price of this blog entry if I'm wrong.

"What I Always Wanted", Chris Holt
"Santa Baby", Smile Smile
"Jesus Christ", RTB2
"Christmas Swag", LehtMoJoe
"Up on the Housetop", The Rocketboys
"Christmas Time Is Here", Chomsky
"Merry Ex-Mas", GalleryCat
"It's Christmas time", PPT
"Last Christmas", Hendrick
"Angels We Have Heard on High", Quiet Company
"Christmas Time", Black Tie Dynasty
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
"Happy X-Mas (War Is Over)", The Polyphonic Spree

The Lucky Thirteen: 10/4/2010

This week's Lucky Thirteen contains absolutely no new music whatsoever. Instead, I'm taking the opportunity to travel back in local music time to the early 2000's.

Some might think that to be an unusual period for waxing nostalgic. Perhaps this is because I was not a first hand witness to the glory days of late 80's/early 90's Deep Ellum. I missed out on the rise of New Bohemians, as well as such local heroes as Ten Hands, Course of Empire, Tripping Daisy, Rev. Horton Heat, Toadies, Deep Blue Something, and the many others that helped define that musical era. While I did catch on to the Old 97's early on, it wasn't until the early 2000's that I became consumed with the sounds of the metroplex. If it wasn't for the early 2000's, I would not have come to love local music, and there most certainly would not be this blog. I wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on where this journey of local music started for me.

(Next week, I will return to playing newer songs, so if you want your song to appear on the list, email me at ghostofblindlemon@gmail.com and if I like it, you may wind up on the list.)

1. "Jack Never Crashes", The Deathray Davies
   The first time I saw them, they had the unenviable task of opening for Old 97's. Although this is arguably prime musical real estate so to speak, there is one problem with opening for them. Usually, there's only one thought going through my mind when seeing a new band open for Old 97's: how much longer until they start? The Deathray Davies pulled off a nearly impossible feat during this set; I never was wanting their set to quit. I knew from that moment on that this was one amazing band.


2. "Just Like Anyone", I Love Math
   This band originated as a means for John Dufilho to test out potential DRD songs before taking on a life of its own. This is probably my favorite track from their self titled debut.


3. "Big Drag", Lucy Loves Schroeder
   Before becoming a Rental or even going solo, Sara Radle made her mark on the local music scene with this pop-punk band. During a period where the phrase pop-punk got a bad rap due to national acts like Sum 41, Simple Plan, and Good Charlotte, Lucy Loves Schroeder kept true to a more classic pop-punk style a la Ramones or Buzzcocks. The band may not have broken much new ground, but it managed to create some really short but amazing pop melodies. In fact, "Big Drag", clocking in at barely over 3 minutes, could be classified as an epic in the LLS songbook.


4. "Hello", Sugarbomb
   This band came so close to the big time. RCA signed the band and released their album Bully. The lead single, "Hello", was even getting radio play not only in Dallas, but across the country. There was even talk of them doing a national tour with Garbage or The Verve Pipe. Then 9/11 happened. The music business, like the rest of the country, was thrown into a tailspin. Sugarbomb was one of many bands that lost major label support after 9/11. The band never really recovered, and broke up less than two years later.


5. "Cold And Grey", Sons of Sound
   Looking back, Sons of Sound could easily be regarded as a Dallas supergroup, even though no one knew it at the time. The band featured Josh McKibben (Happy Bullets), Chad Stockslagger (The Drams, The King Bucks), and at different points both Chris and Jason Bonner (THe BAcksliders). It always amazed me that for as much talent as there was in that band, not many people still know who they were. Here's hoping a little Ghost of Blind Lemon love helps change that.


6. "Gonna Be A Rockstar", The Happiness Factor
   Although I'd heard a few Moon Festival tunes (most notably "Desert City Sleeps"), this was my first true taste of Salim Nourallah. This was easily Mr. Nourallah's most aggressive sounding band, but this trademark sarcasm and wit can be easily found in this track.


7. "Cut from the Same Cloth", Legendary Crystal Chandelier
   I could isolate probably half a dozen lines from this song and analyze their brilliance. Instead, just listen to the whole song and save me the time and effort.


8. "Straight Razor", Chomsky
   One cannot discuss Dallas music of the early 2000's and not mention Chomsky. Okay, it can be done, but it would be an omission of epic proportions. Their live sets were equal parts professional musicianship and onstage debauchery (Glen Reynolds was a master of both). Throw in some killer hooks, a certain amount of new wave nostalgia, and Sean Halleck's trademark vocals, and it equalled one of the biggest local acts of that time.
   
9. "It's All Gone Wrong", Pennywhistle Park
   For a few months in 2001, it seemed like Pennywhistle Park was destined for greatness. Their live shows were growing stronger with each listen, and this song set up permanent residence in my head. In fact, if I had made a list of the best local songs of 2001, this would've EASILY made the number one slot. Shortly after the release of their album, The Built Up for the Big Let Down, lead singer Lindsay Romig left town to move to Los Angeles. She has since moved back to Dallas, but has not actively pursued music. Lindsay, let's change that.
   
10. "Star", Captain Audio
    Admittedly I wasn't a die hard Captain Audio fan, but I gotta give props to this tune for being really catchy.


11. "Bring Me the Head of Jose Cuervo", Sparrows
    This may not be the most profound song Carter Albrecht ever wrote, but it's probably the most fun one.


12. "The Technology", [DARYL]
    Before there was The Crash That Took Me, there was [DARYL]. Both bands shared a certain sense of musical ambition and experimentality under the helm of Dylan Silvers. But while TCTTM leans more towards 60's psychedelia, art-rock, and shoegaze, [DARYL] meshed together a balance of loud guitars and classic synthesizer sounds. There was also quite a fixation on technology, as exemplified by this title track to their 2002 album.


13. "Execution by X-Mas Lights", Flickerstick
    In 2000, there were three bands critical in developing my love of local music: Deathray Davies, Chomsky, and Flickerstick. Flickerstick called it quits last year, and it was an emotional show for me. Chomsky had already called it quits, and at the time Deathray Davies were on an indefinite hiatus. The show marked an end of an era of sorts for me. At the end of their farewell show, Brandin Lea performed this song, adding a few extra verses toward the end. You can click here to the see the video. In spite of having part of the song cut out and questionable cinematography, I can't watch it without getting a lump in my throat.