The Lucky Thirteen: 12/27/10

I must say that even though 2010 has not ended yet, it appears that 2011 is going to be a killer year for local music. Below I have shared just a few tracks from albums to be released next year that are among my most eagerly anticipated releases.

But first, let's talk about memories, like the corners of my mind. Misty water-colored memories of the way they were. No, there are not going to be any Streisand tunes on the playlist. I will, however, take a few moments to reflect on a few bands that called it quits in 2010.

So here's the deal: the first six tracks on the Lucky Thirteen are by bands that broke up this year, and the last seven give an opportunity to happily look forward to the metroplex's musical future.

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. "Infatuations Never Last", The Slack
   It appears that The Slack doesn't last either. The band made no fanfare, fading out quietly with their final show being an opening gig for Cas Haley. Fortunately, lead singer Chris Holt has continued releasing solo CDs. In fact, A Cosmic Joke is easily one of my favorite CDs of the year.


2. "Evil on the Highway", Dove Hunter
   Quincy Holloway is easily one of my favorite drummers in the metroplex. Now that Dove Hunter is gone, I'm wondering what project he'll take on next. If anyone knows, feel free to pass that info my way.


3. "Need a Release", the cut*off
   After about eight years together, the cut*off played their final show this past May. The band not only featured surprisingly sharp lyrics set to a Pixies meet Neil Young backdrop, but the members are some of the coolest, nicest musicians around.


4. "Undercover", Bridges and Blinking Lights
   It seems that the trend this year was for bands to quietly break up without an official farewell show. Personally, I prefer having the farewell show, but that's just me. Here's another band that opted to skip the farewell show.


5. "Fine Line", Macon Greyson
   The band has never announced the breakup, but I have it on good word that Macon Greyson are no more. Here's a track from their Uneasy CD. In case you were wondering, yes, Cindy Chaffin's blog is named after this song.


6. "Echo and the Pass", Hendrick
   In my countdown of favorite local songs of last year, "Echo and the Pass" took the number one slot. So what does the band do for an encore? Nothing apparently, as the band broke up. There was supposed to be a farewell show, but the band didn't even make it to the farewell show. What a shame.


7. "Knife Fight", Calhoun
   Enough looking back now, let's get our first taste of 2011. Calhoun's Heavy Sugar should be released early this year, and this will satisfy anyone's sweet tooth for catchy pop tunes.


8. "We Will All Be Changed", Seryn
   I finally experienced my first Seryn show recently. There has been a lot of hype surrounding the band, and after seeing them, I can tell you that should believe the hype. I don't even know where to begin in describing how amazing the band is. I do know this: you'll start seeing my face at several of their shows in 2011.


9. "Save Your Breath", Camille Cortinas
   Almost five years after Camille's first full length with Fishing for Comets, here "solo" CD should come out this year. Of course, I thought she'd have an album in 2010, but according to her, it will be released in 2011.


10. "We'll Go Walkin'", The O's
    Many local CDs will be released next year, and of course everything is available for download. I even feel safe in saying there will be a healthy number of local vinyl releases in 2011. But how many bands will be able to claim release in all of the previously mentioned formats PLUS 8-track? Only The O's.


11. "Barn Burner", The Roomsounds
    I'm not sure when in 2011 the band will release a CD, but I'm fairly certain it will happen. Also, keep your eyes on the lookout for a cool show featuring The Roomsounds. Soon. Very soon.


12. "Coffee at Midnight", The Red 100's
    The Red 100's have just started to make their mark on the local music scene. I feel safe in saying that this will be an even bigger year for The Red 100's.


13. "Shivonne", Menkena
    January 28th. Kessler Theater. CD release for With You I'll Travel. Kessler Theater. Also featuring Luna Matto and Daniel Folmer. Be there. No excuses.

Local Edge Playlist: 12/5/10

"Cut the Lights", Manned Missiles
"Virgin Eyes", Hoyotoho
"to the 9's", hormones (NOTE: I'm normally very picky about capitalization and grammar, but the band insists on doing lower case rock)
"Stories", Heard
"Allison", The Burning Hotels
"Rome", The Fox and the Bird
"River Song", Seryn
"You're No Good", Pale Horse
"Truth or Fiction", The Slack
"Two Tone", Sundress
"Just Wanna Try", Luna Matto
"Black Swans", Datahowler
"For All I Know", Charming Gardeners

Finally, thanks to Mark for the kind mention on the show, and thanks for all the cool tunes like these that you bring to the airwaves.

The Lucky Thirteen: 1/31/10 - 2/6/10

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 addy to email me mp3's, and if I like the song then odds are it'll wind up on a playlist.

Now, on with the playlist:

1. "When Hammer Hits Stone", RTB2
   This Friday, RTB2 will join Cocky Americans and Orange Peel Sunshine onstage at Hailey's. Dallas people, fear not: the same lineup shall be repeated Saturday at Double-Wide. I also believe that both shows are CD


2. "The Longest Winter's Gone", The Crash That Took Me
   Speaking of CD releases and Double-Wide, The Crash That Took Me will be the opening act at the Hello Lover CD release party. If you've never seen the band perform their "sex rock" music (their words, not mine), Friday would be a great opportunity to do so. I would've added their song "Same Old, Same Old", but alas, I don't have the CD (or an mp3 of the song). That needs to change. Soon.


3. "I Howl at tha Moon", Morning Elephant
   Morning Elephant performs an all too rare show this Saturday at Barley House, along with Camille Cortinas performing a set of her own songs. If we're lucky, she may even join ME for a few songs.


4. "The Message", Dem Southernfolkz
   There's a push right now to get the video for this song on one of the MTV stations; I can't recall if it's MTVu or the MTV Hip-Hop station. Whichever station it is, it would be nice to have Dallas represented by such an intelligent hip-hop band as Dem Southernfolkz, a band that avoids the stereotypical rap subjects (thug life, bling, pot, etc.) in favor of thought provoking social commentary. There is a need for more hip-hop bands in this vain. Click here to watch the video.


5. "Libertine", The Buck Pets
   I was on last.fm for the first time in eons, and found that all the track from the band's 1990 album Mercurotones were available for free download. I'm ashamed to say this, but I had not heard the band until then, but I like what I hear, particularly this track. One question: why was this song not in heavy rotation on KDGE at the time?


6. "Houston", Elkhart
   For people who want a night of beautiful dreamy music, head to City Tavern this Saturday to catch Elkhart, Little Black Dress, and Menkena all in one evening. But please, if you attend, do NOT chatter over the music. These are bands that deserve the undivided attention of the audience, and for those willing to listen, your ears will be richly reward. I know I'm standing on my soapbox, but there is a strong tendency in Dallas to talk during a musician's performance, and it's the quieter bands that pay the heaviest price for the inconsideration of the talkers in the audience. These are three incredible bands that deserve respect, so please, use your ears more than your lips during their sets. That is all.


7. "Have You Ever Been Down?", THe BAcksliders


8. "Back Is Broken", Oso Closo


9. "Write for You", Goodwin
   This is the strongest linest I've seen for a show in Funkytown in a long, long time. I've raved and raved about THe BAcksliders, and I'm becoming a bigger fan of Oso Closo with each passing day. Throw in the fun straight rock of Goodwin, and you've got a winning show.


10. "Another Day in the Life", Tim Miller
    Mr. Miller recently released an EP with acoustic version of several tunes. This was not one of the songs that received the acoustic treatment, and while it would seem like a less likely choice to perform acoustic, I've heard this song stripped down and it works even better than the original heard here.


11. "Sleepwalking", Luna Matto
    Until the band releases their first 7" single, you'll have to settle for the songs on their MySpace playlist and this nice track that Ms. Matto was kind enough to share with me.


12. "The Fine Art of Bleeding", The Slack
    For what reason did I include this song? Isn't the fact that it's The Slack reason enough?


13. "Along the Seawall", Jayson Bales
    Thanks to Mr. Bales for sending me this unique version of the song. In the email he sent along with the mp3, he told me about this particular recording. Here's what he said: "This recording of the song is a live acoustic version I did in a songswap with Carter several years ago. I performed this song with the wrong string hurriedly strung on my guitar. After breaking a string, I accidentally strung another D string and stretched to a G and so essentially the guitar sounds kind of cool/weird because it has two D strings and no G string on it." Here's what I have to say. Add Mr. Bales' Springsteenesque voice to the bare bone acoustic melody, and it adds up to an emotionally intense and honest performance. This is, in a word, amazing.

Playlist: 1/10/10 - 1/16/10

If any artists that are on this playlist do not wish to be on the playlist, please email me at ghostofblindlemon@gmail.com and I will gladly remove the song. If, on the other hand, you'd like to be featured on the playlist but I don't have any songs by your band, feel free to email me at the same email and perhaps I'll add you on a future playlist.

Now, onto this week's playlist:

1. "For Keeps", Iris Leu
   I've searched the names of several local artists on Hypster, and frankly the current selection is underwhelming. Number of songs by The O's? Zero. Number of Chomsky songs? None. How many Midlake songs? Only one. Number of Iris Leu songs? Four. Obviously I'm not the only fan of Ms. Leu's who uses Hypster.


2. "Acts of Man", Midlake
   Oh, scratch my previous comment about the number of Midlake songs. I've placed this track off their upcoming CD, The Courage of Others, on the site now. You're welcome.


3. "Pipe Dream", The Slack
   I am officially declaring The Deep End as the first important release of 2010, and Holt and company are starting off the year on the right foot. Don't forget, the CD release show is on the 22nd of this month at Sons of Hermann Hall.


4. "All Because You're Mine", Air Review
   Their song "Chasing Corporate" ranked number six on my year end countdown, and that's definitely their most immediately accessible track. "All Because You're Mine" is one of the those songs that takes its sweet time to worm its way into your head. Once it's there, it is there and setting up permanent residence. I would probably say that after repeated listens to Landmarks, this is truly their finest track.


5. "View from the Track", Dust Congress
   The fine folks at Gutterth have created two compilations of tracks that can be downloaded for free on their website. I've been particularly enjoying this track from Compilation: One.


6. "The Spilling Blood Child", RTB2
   Have you heard about the In*And*Out Tour of 2010? Okay, so "tour" might be too strong of a word. RTB2, new GOBL fave Luna Matto, and PVC Street Gang will be playing at The Cavern this Friday, and taking the show north on 35 when they play Hailey's the next day. Make a point of attending at least one of the shows.


7. "Flat Black", True Widow
   True Widow will play at Sons of Hermann Hall with the pAper chAse and The Boom Boom Box, and I predict they will steal the show.


8. "Say Hello", Tim Miller
   According to Opening Bell Coffee's website, Tim Miller & Friends will be performing there this Saturday. As to who those friends are, I have no clue, though I'd love it if one of those friends was Sara Donaldson. I've seen the two perform together, and it's one of those situations where the sum of their performance is greater than the parts of either solo. Oh, and Jayson Bales & The Charmers open the show. For the record, it seems as if Opening Bell has a LOT of good shows booked in the upcoming weeks.
   
9. "Paperweight Eyes", Sorta
   While Hypster's selection of local artists is currently limited, I intend to change that. The beauty is that it at least allows me to expand their selection, something that is not available thru MySpace. This is particularly frustrating when a band you love has a very limited selection of tracks available. This is the case with Sorta, where their first two albums are unavailable for playlists. Here's one of my favorites off their first full length, Laugh out Loud.


10. "Echo and the Pass", Hendrick
    Once again, my congratulations go out to Hendrick, who came in at number one on my year end countdown. It has been a mission of mine to convince people to listen to this track, and I can only hope it impacts my readers the way it did me. Thank you, Hendrick, for creating this masterpiece.

MySpace Playlist: 12/6/09

My Playlist Playlist by Ghost of Blind Lemon on MySpace Music - Play Playlist Songs & Download Tracks

I've just learned how to post the actual playlist on the blog, so hopefully this will encourage more of you to listen to the songs. Also, two weeks from now, I'll be doing an all Christmas themed playlist, so I'd encourage any bands who have recorded songs for the holiday season to post them on MySpace.

Now, on with the playlist:

1. "Reconnect It With a Curve", The Crash That Took Me
   Be a little patient with the song, as you might not hear anything until approximately twenty seconds into the song. Once you get past the intro, the song takes off with TCTTM's trademark blend of experimental sounds, unique rhythms, and solid hooks. I've always liked this band, but even I was taken aback by how amazing their new material is. You can catch the band perform this Saturday at Art Conspiracy 5, which takes place at The Prophet Bar. RTB2, Telegraph Canyon, and The Boom Boom Box will also perform.


2. "Christmas (Doesn't Have to Be so Bad)", THe BAcksliders
   Not many artists have Christmas songs up yet, so I'm carrying over this tune from last week's playlist. Enjoy.


3. "Barcelona", Luna Matto
   This track has been a favorite of mine at Luna Matto's live shows, so I'm thrilled that the band finally posted this on their MySpace. This is just my prediction, but I think this band is going to explode in 2010. If they don't, I just might lose my faith in the Dallas music fan, as they really are that incredible.


4. "Miss Sugar Pie", Johnny Lloyd Rollins
   This track is for the anonymous idiot who dissed Mr. Rollins on the Dallas Observer (to see the war of words, click here). I'd suggest he/she come out to see Johnny at City Tavern along with Something in the Wheel and The Marfalites, but that would require anonymous to both reveal his/her identity and to also have musical taste. I'm not holding my breath on either happening.


5. "Beg You to Stay", Smile Smile
   The duo of Smile Smile has been touring with Bowling for Soup, and the two acts perform Monday night at Granada Theater. I'd like to suggest a few equally sensible pairs of artists that could tour together. How about Fair to Midland and Camille Cortinas? Perhaps Old 97's would like Damaged Good$ as an opening act? And I'll bet Erykah Badu's sound would fit perfectly with Spector 45.


6. "On a Mission", The Burgundys
   This is one strong lineup at Lakewood Bar & Grill this Thursday night. The Burgundys and The Monco Poncho will perform together that night. Both bands played at previous GOBL showcases at the venues, and both bands brought down the house. I predicted The Monco Poncho would do so, but The Burgundys pleasantly caught me by surprise. The only thing that surprises me now is that The Burgundys aren't selling out venues the size of Trees and The Prophet Bar's large room. The band's power-pop influence is undeniable, as are the hooks in these songs, guaranteed to work an audience into a frenzy. Just one warning: if you go to this show, have your excuse for why you won't make it to work Friday prepared beforehand.


7. "I Can't Make You Happy", Ronnie Fauss
   I can't make this song leave my head. I couldn't make it leave my head, even if I tried.


8. "You Just Got Sued!", Boys Named Sue
   The Boys are calling Adair's home this weekend. I'm sure you can catch them playing this song both Friday at Saturday night there. Even though the weekend may seem Light Beers Away, once it arrives it will be filled with plenty of Whiskey Talkin'. Alright, I'll lay off the alcohol related BNS references. But you know I'm right.


9. "Straight Out the Gate", Oso Closo
   Several months ago, Sarah Crisman, music editor at Pegasus News, recommended that I give Oso Closo a second listen. I saw them at Cottonwood Arts Festival last year, hardly an ideal venue for most bands. I was also tired that day, and not in the ideal frame of mind to properly receive their music. I heard this a live version of this track on The Local Edge, and instantly realized that I have not given the band the credit that they are so due. I doubt I'll be able to make it to their 5th annual Christmas show at Rubber Gloves this Saturday, but I intend to see the band again VERY soon.


10. "Maybe Heaven", The Slack
    If you've seen Chris Holt perform in the last two years, you've undoubtedly heard him sing this tribute to Carter Albrecht. The song will now be available for purchase, as it will be included on The Slack's upcoming CD, The Deep End. It will be available for download on itunes January 5, and the CD release show will happen January 22 at Sons of Hermann Hall. If you can't wait that long to see the band, however, you can see them this Friday at Bryan Street Tavern.

NOTE: I thought the playlist would be embedded in the blog entry, and obviously MySpace doesn't allow that. If you click on the link, however, it will post the playlist in a new window, allowing you to listen and read at the same time. Sorry, it's the best I can do for now.

MySpace Playlist: 11/29/09

1. "Christmas (Doesn't Have to Be So Bad)", THe BAcksliders
   One of my life rules is to never play Christmas songs before Thanksgiving. So even though THe BAcksliders have had this track up for several weeks, I didn't want to post it until Thanksgiving had past. Now that it's over, I'm thrilled to share this song with you.


2. "The Fine Art of Bleeding", The Slack
   The Slack's new album, The Deep End, won't be available for purchase until early next year. Fortunately, Chris Holt and the gang have felt generous enough to share some tracks from the upcoming CD on their MySpace. As usual, Mr. Holt's songs are stellar and his musical skill is otherworldly.


3. "Celtic", Shallow Reign
   If Deep Ellum nostalgia is what you're craving, then The Prophet Bar is the place you should be Saturday. The lineup reads like a who's who of late 80's/early 90's local bands. Shallow Reign are on the lineup, as are Locos Gringos, Decadent Dub Team, Bat Mastersons, Buena Vistas, and too many more to mention.


4. "Every Now and Then", They Were Stars
   I know many people have been quite critical of the reopening of Trees. Admittedly, not all of the music is my personal taste, but the return of this venue is something that Deep Ellum desperately needed. I saw Dovetail there in September, and I must say I think the place looks great and the sound system is good. I may make a return visit this Saturday, as They Were Stars opens up a fabulous lineup including Pale Horse (featuring members of GOBL favorite Greater Good), Air Review, and Radiant.


5. "Awakening", Summer Ames
   Pascale (from Opening Bell Coffee) started chatting yesterday about favorite local acts, and she mentioned Summer Ames as one of her personal favorites. I saw her perform earlier this year, and I must admit that she's got a great voice and some solid tunes. And is it just me, or does this song seem tailor made for an ipod commercial?


6. "Finger Trace", Ryan Thomas Becker
   I've really been digging "Seek Fire, Anime Kids" from Mr. Becker's new solo CD, Neighborhoof. That track, however, almost sounds like what you'd expect from RTB2. I opted for this track, as it showcases a very different musical side of Ryan.


7. "Release the Squid (Box 6)", The Deathray Davies
   I'm surprised I've heard such little fanfare in regards to this band's show at Double-Wide Saturday night. I still suspect that DW will be very packed for the band's show. Few bands are as consistently good live as this band.


8. "Friendly Fire", Jet City Rotation
   I love it when good bands find and befriend me on MySpace. That's how I discovered Jet City Rotation. The band seems to have a definite Strokes influence, as well as a hint of new wave influence. Everything I've heard from this band shows great potential, and I have a suspicion that this band could put on an amazing live set. I'd love to test that hypothesis soon.


9. "Henry the Skunk", The Boom Boom Box
   I have nothing new to say about this song. I've said before that it rocks, and it continues to rock. What more can be said?


10. "Afraid of the Dark", Sorta
    I recently discovered that Sorta had uploaded its self titled CD on MySpace, as well as their previous effort, Sad and Strange But True. This closing track of their farewell eponymous CD ranks as one of my favorite songs ever by the band. This song never fails to yank at my heartstrings, particularly towards the end as the band continues to sing "oh, it's over." I miss this band, and more to the point, Carter, you are still (and always will be) missed.