The Lucky Thirteen: 3/5/12

Well, it's that time of year again. Time for the NX35 35 Conferette 35 Denton Festival. The event certainly seems to have a hard time sticking with a name, coming up with a new one almost every year. Hopefully this time they've gotten the name right.

Either way, the festival seems to consistently get things right on the music end. This year is no different. The mere opportunity to see The Jesus & Mary Chain perform in the metroplex for the first time in over a decade is reason enough to spend the money on the wristband. Other out of towners on the lineup include The Hood Internet, Best Coast, The Raincoats, Peaking Lights, Built to Spill, and Designer Drugs (just to name a few).

But you didn't come here to read about the out of towners, right? You know that The Ghost is almost exclusively fixated on local musics. So here's a look at thirteen of the finest local acts playing this year's 35 Denton Festival. In fact, consider this a potential schedule, as all these acts are at different times. Note that lineup times provided may change, but as of this moment, the set times are accurate.

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. "The Man with the Golden Snack", Old Snack
   Performing at 9:30 PM Thursday night at The Labb.


2. "Wither", True Widow
   Performing at 11:30 PM Thursday night at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios.


3. "Gambling Preacher and His Daughter", Whiskey Folk Ramblers
   Performing at 6:00 PM Friday evening at Main Stage #1.


4. "Knockout Rose", Bad Design
   Performing at 10:15 PM Friday night at J&J's Pizza.


5. "I Got This Fever/O Ye Devastator", Doug Burr
   Performing at 11:30 Friday night at Dan's Silverleaf.


6. "Buy You", Spookeasy
   Performing at 9:30 PM Saturday night at Banter.


7. "Forever Today", Soviet
   Performing at 10:30 PM Saturday night at Denton Square Donuts.


8. "America's Son", Air Review
   Performing at 12:45 AM Saturday night at Dan's Silverleaf.


9. "Sexy Weekend", Leg Sweeper
   Performing at 3:30 PM Sunday afternoon at Main Stage #2.


10. "Cut the Lights", Manned Missiles
    Performing at 9:30 PM Sunday night at Mellow Mushroom.


11. "Red Palomino", The Demigs
    Performing at 10:30 PM Sunday night at Denton Square Donuts.


12. "Like a Charm", Here Holy Spain
    Performing at 11:30 PM Sunday night at Abbey Underground.


13. "Remember You", The O's
    Performing at 12:30 AM Sunday night at Sweetwater.

And that's just a small sampling of the quality local music featured at 35 Denton. My apologies to A.M. Ramblers, Backwater Opera, The Blurries, The Burning Hotels, Damaged Good$, Fox and the Bird, The Hope Trust, The House Harkonnen, Jessie Frye, Museum Creatures, The Phuss, RTB2, Sealion, Shaolin Death Squad, Shiny Around the Edges, Sore Losers, and all the many other fine acts that I could not fit into the playlist.

Pre 4th of July Weekend Plans

Expect to hear more from me in the coming days. In the meantime, there are a few shows happening this weekend that I couldn't let pass without mentioning. Without further ado, here they are.


FRIDAY
Ian Moore & The Loosy Coils/Seth Walker/Rahim Quazi (The Kessler)
My Weekend Plan segment has always been a favorite of Mr. Quazi's, so it only seemed appropriate to do one on a weekend he's playing. Granted, he's only the opening slot, but any show featuring Rahim is one worth mentioning. There are few artists who not only put on a consistently good show as he does, but also even fewer who manage to keep each performance fresh and unique. My only complaint? It's taking WAY too long for the follow up to Supernatural to be released. What's up with that?
Gravity Feed/Ten Can Riot/Regetta de Faux/Geronamo/Christian Rios/Blake Mackey (Lakewood Bar & Grill)
This show is a celebration of the club's assistant manager (and friend of the Ghost) Jon Keener, and that's reason enough for me to attend. Get there early, as Blake Mackey is worth hearing. The man just might be the most talented acoustic guitar player in the metroplex. And while I've yet to hear Ten Can Riot, I've heard plenty of good reviews on the band.
Fate Lions/Soviet/Man Factory/Tape Deck Mountain (Lola's)
Power pop makes a strong showing tonight at Lola's, and Fate Lions are arguably the best power pop act in town. Soviet has often mislabeled as punk, whereas garage pop would be a much more fitting label. Either way, Soviet makes some pretty catchy tunes themselves.
The Demigs/Paper Robot/Deep Snapper (Andy's)
For those who have listened to my show on Deep Ellum Radio, you've undoubtedly heard me play The Demigs on more than one occasion. Their album Cities Can Wait is easily one of the best sounding albums of the year. Yes, the production is first rate, but more importantly, the songs match the same level of quality as the production. Fans of late 80's/early 90's pre-grunge a la Pixies will not want to miss this show.


SATURDAY
Rock-A-Tron 5000 Music Festival (Dada)
Somehow this festival almost slipped underneath my radar. I don't know if that's a sign that the show is being underpromoted or if I'm just that out of the loop. Either way, this all day event has plenty of good acts, including openers Spookeasy (2:15 pm), Sealion (8:15 pm), and Here Holy Spain (12:45 pm), all of which are playing on the indoor stage.
The Marfalites/Southern Karma/Steve Jackson/Mr. Troll (Poor David's Pub)
I previously called The Marfalites "Dallas' best kept secret in country music." Perhaps part of the reason they're not better known is that the band as of yet has not released a CD. They're working on their official CD, Three Penny and No Soul. But around the time that CD is released, they will ALSO release a live CD of Saturday's show. In fact, every one who pays the cover at Saturday's show gets their very own copy of the CD free of charge. And The Marfalites are definitely a band deserving of its own live CD, as they are easily one of the better live acts in the metroplex.
The King Bucks (Adair's)
There's been a lot more talk about The King Bucks this week due to a rather vicious writeup in the DC9 at Night blog. The author blasted the band for not having enough stage presence and not connecting with the audience. Admittedly, the band is pretty much the antithesis of flashy, but that would really not fit the Bucks. The King Bucks play simple, old school country: nothing more, nothing less. And if real country is what you're looking for, you'll be hard pressed to find a better option than the Bucks. And as for not connecting with the audience, Chad Stockslagger's banter alone shoots down any arguments that the band cannot connect with its audience. And the songs definitely connect with the audience, and really, isn't that what it's about?
Bronze Whaler/The Virgin Wolves/Binary Sunrise (Hailey's)
Tweed EQ/Bigelow Station/The Roomsounds (City Tavern)
Dead Rider/Nervous Curtains/Pinkish Black (Double-Wide)
Too many good shows, not enough time to discuss them. What a wonderful problem to have.

Local Edge Playlist: 2/27/11

I first came up with the idea of posting the playlists from The Local Edge because its host Mark had gotten severely behind on posting the playlists at KDGE. That's what made me decide to post them on the blog. Well, as you've probably noticed, I'm the one who's behind on posting. I'm not going to bother with the ones I've missed, as those can be obtained on the KDGE website. But I'll bet this one isn't up there yet, so enjoy.

Oh, and speaking of cool radio shows, be on the lookout for more shows from yours truly on deepellumradio.

"Marnie", Novaak
"Dog's Light", Bravo, Max!
"Citizen", El Cento
IN STUDIO: JESSIE FRYE
"Fortune Teller"
"Prepared"
"Like a Light"
"Alyson Revere", Fishboy
"Save Me", Hares on the Mountain
"Via Matilda", Spookeasy
"Mad", The Missile Men
"My Niagra Heart", Spooky Folk

The Lucky Thirteen: 1/24/11

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. "Supernatural", Rahim Quazi


2. "Until We Meet Again", Phoenix Hart


3. "Two Songs", Goodnight Ned
   For those looking forward to Wednesday's GOBL showcase, here's a little update. The Roomsounds, alas, are not able to play the show. Do not fear, however, as I have gotten Phoenix Hart and Madison King both to agree to do acoustic sets. Rahim Quazi will kick off the show with an acoustic set as well, primarly focusing on material from his upcoming Born on a Sunday. And of course, Goodnight Ned will end the night with a full band set. So if you need something to do on a Wednesday night, you know what to do.


4. "Set Me Free", The Red 100's
   I believe I've said before that The Red 100's are one of the bands that I predict will have a big year. I believe that statement is worth repeating. Obviously, as I have just repeated it. But seriously, there seems to be a move on the part of many bands towards a more rootsy, blues oriented sound, and The Red 100's could easily position themselves as leaders of this musical movement.


5. "Red in the Morning", Menkena
   First off, if you missed the band's CD release show at LaGrange, shame on you. I've never seen the band in finer form, and GOBL fans know how much I've always loved the band. But if you did miss Saturday's show, you can at least partially redeem yourself by going to the Kessler Theater on Friday night. They'll join a bill with another GOBL fave, Luna Matto, and Daniel Folmer will be on the bill. Or will it really be "Danny Rush"? I'll let you know if I figure out which identity shows up.


6. "Kids in My Backyard", Soviet
   Wow, this band has really come out of nowhere it seems. The band's formula seems to be pretty straight forward: write fun, catchy songs. It seems to be working for them. Who knew it was that easy?


7. "Charmed", The Bright
   The Bright has certainly received plenty of attention from local ABC affiliate WFAA (Channel 8), having played the channel's New Year's Eve show for the past two years. This particular song of theirs has really grabbed my attention more than any of their other works. It reminds me sonically of Sugarbomb, except with heavier guitars in place of Les Farrington's keyboards.


8. "You Pressed The Crash Button", Novaak
   Is it too early to start nominating best song of 2011 contenders? If not, this gorgeously performed song would be fighting for top honors.


9. "I'm Immune", Chris Holt
   Mr. Holt has really cut back on live shows, which is a shame because the tracks off A Cosmic Joke deserve to be brought to life on a regular basis. But until he plays more shows, you need to take advantage of the shows he does, like Friday's gig at Club Dada with Salim Nourallah and The Monco Poncho.


10. "Coming of the Century", Course of Empire
    After seing Mike Graff's solo performance at LaGrange this past Saturday, it inspired me to dig up this CoE classic and share it with everyone. It's very different from the Lou Reed/Stones/Bowie boogie blend played that night, but until he records some of that, you'll have to settle for this. And by settle, I mean enjoy.


11. "Buy You", Spookeasy
    Not enough people know about Spookeasy yet. I'm out to change that.


12. "Tryin' to Have a Good Time", The O's
    I've seen people use posters for GOBL showcases as Facebook profile picture. But last week was the first time I've ever had someone take a picture of the Grooveshark player on my page and use that as a profile pic. What can I say, except that featuring a new O's song can have that effect on a person.


13. "Emulate", Spector 45
    Spector 45 booked a show for this Saturday at LaGrange before Frankie Campagna passed away. The remaining band members decided to fulfill their obligations to the club, and recruited a longtime friend of Frankie's, Cody Bigham, will take over the vocal responsibilities. It obviously won't be the same, but for those who missed Frankie's last performance, consider this your chance to say goodbye to the band.

The Lucky Thirteen: 1/17/10

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.

1. "Red in the Morning", Menkena
   Menkena fans, this is your lucky week. Their new album, With You I'll Travel, hits iTunes this Tuesday. If you'd prefer a physical copy of the CD, go to Good Records on Thursday where the band will perform and sign copies of the CD. Then on Saturday, it's the big CD release show at LaGrange with Novaak and Mike Graff (ex-Course of Empire). I'm starting to drool just thinking about all this Menkena.


2. "New Hope PA", The Chemistry Set
   I got into a lengthy discussion with Scott Tucker from The Orange this past Friday night, and we discussed many bands that are no more, including Hi-Fi Drowning (one of his favorites EVER) and Chemistry Set (one of my favorites EVER). He was talking about what he thought was their last CD (their self-titled full length), but in fact he didn't know about their second full length, Blue Monsters. I told him about this CD, and how the opening track "New Hope PA" is one of my favorite album openers of any album. I figured I'd include it on the playlist for Scott and the rest of you to hear.


3. "Buy You", Spookeasy
   It's been a long time where I've been lured into a show while walking down the street, but that's exactly what happened to me Friday night. I passed Club Dada, liked what I heard, and paid cover for Spookeasy. Their live set is a little more rocking than the CD, which has a slight new wavish feel to it. The intro to this track almost reminds me of Cocteau Twins for some reason. But whether live or on CD, this band gets two enthusiastic thumbs up from me.


4. "Tryin' to Have a Good Time", The O's
   I'm having a hard time buying this song. The O's trying to have a good time? The O's don't try to have a good time. To use the word "try" implies a possibility of not succeeding, and The O's NEVER fail at having a good time. Like I said, The O's don't try to have a good time. If anything, good times try to have The O's.


5. "Knife Fight", Calhoun
   Bet you enjoyed that O's song, didn't you? And I'll bet you're digging this Calhoun song too, aren't you? You're probably wishing you could see both bands live right about now, correct? Well good news my friends, because both acts will play this Friday at The Moon in Fort Worth, along with Taylor Craig Mills.


6. "Save Your Breath", Camille Cortinas
   I've been noticing a marked increase in shows by Mrs. Cortinas, and that's good to see. I'm hoping this means she's getting ready for a CD release show in the very near future. No word on that yet, but I can tell you that your next opportunity to see her comes this Saturday at Opening Bell Coffee. The OBC website says it's "Camille Cortinas & Friends". Not sure who the "friends" will be, but I feel safe in saying it'll be a good show.


7. "New Disco", Stella Rose
   If you listened to my podcast of my top 40 songs of last year, many of the selections were no surprise. This track, however, got very little attention on the blog, even though it charted at a quite impressive #21. I felt now might be a good time for my readers to become better acquainted with the track.


8. "Set Me Free", The Red 100's
   Last Friday found me wandering around Deep Ellum, going from show to show. Many sets that I wanted to see I either missed or didn't see near enough of the set. The latter situation is what happened for me with The Red 100's. But what little I saw of their set had me simply in awe of the band. Remember the name Red 100's, because you'll be talking about them this year. A lot. A whole lot.


9. "Beautiful Girl", Mr. Sleaze
   After hearing this song the past few weeks on The Local Edge, I've gotta admit that this song is really growing on me. And no, I don't know who Mr. Sleaze is. His identity, for now, remains a mystery.


10. "Flower on the Wall", Kerri Arista
    I must admit to an error on my most recent blog spot. Kerri Arista's show at Uncle Calvin's Coffeehouse was NOT this past Friday, but will instead be this Friday. My apologies if I sent anyone out to Uncle Calvin's only to be disappointed by there being no Kerri Arista there.


11. "to the 9's", hormones
    No interesting comments on my behalf or breaking news on the bad. I just like this song.


12. "Barn Burner", The Roomsounds
    Have I mentioned that there'll be a GOBL showcase coming soon? I'll give you more details very soon, but in the meantime, I'll say that The Roomsounds will be part of the fun.


13. "Japanese Space Opera", Mazinga Phaser
    I've been trying to dig a little deeper into the history of Dallas music and research artists I was not as familiar with. I'd heard about Mazinga Phaser and started checking out tracks from their CD Abandinallhope. I'm not sure how I missed out on the band the first time around, but I'm seriously loving their shoegaze melodies and dreamy vocals now.