News Roundup: The Toadies Reveal Fest Deets, Oso Closo Calls It Quits, Idol Records Signs Charming Gardeners, JT&TNL Offers Up Live Tracks and The Local Edge Announces Finalists

​We admit that we've been a little NX35 and SXSW-focused of late. And, for that we don't apologize. We do, however, apologize for letting a few big announcements skip past our bullhorn over the past few days. Seems like the perfect time to do a news round-up, huh? OK!

• We already told you the when and where info--plus where to get tickets--for this summer's upcoming Dia de Los Toadies Tres. Earlier this week, however, the Toadies went ahead and announced the first two acts on the list of bands joining it at this year's deal. And they are? The Riverboat Gamblers and Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears. Very nice.

• Just a month after its burrito debuted at Chipotle stores, Denton act Oso Closo announced its break-up at NX35 on Saturday night. Why? In short: Fontman Adrian Hulet wants to go solo. Already, though, the rest of the band has started a new project, this one called Foe Destroyer. Honestly? I never really got into the Oso Closo's material. The band killed as The Who, though.
• We must've missed the press release on this, but Pegasus News reported earlier this week that Dallas-based Idol Records has signed area act Charming Gardeners, which features members of Shanghai 5 (vocalist Amy Curnow), Solly (guitarist Marc Solomon) and Homespun Remedies (bassist Wade Cofer, who also plays in Solly). Sounds kinda prog-poppy to me, and Pegasus says a debut EP is on the way. So there you go.
• Earlier this week, fast-rising area southern-rock act Jonathan Tyler & The Northern Lights debuted a brand-spankin' new Web site--which is hardly ever notable news, 'cept that, in this case, signing up for site membership also gets fans free downloads of entire show performances. Not too shabby. Also, the band appears to have released the album cover art for  Atlantic Records debut, Pardon Me, and it's a looker, for sure. That record comes out on April 27. 
• Earlier this week, sometime Observer contributor, Mark Schectman, host of "The Local Edge," which airs every Sunday at 11 p.m. on KDGE-102.1 FM The Edge, announced the five local bands that won the first round of voting in his Local Edge Live competition to get onto the bill at Edgefest 20 as an opener. Who? Ishi, Hendrick, Andrew Tinker, Criminal Shift and Bridges & Blinking Lights. The bands will compete head-to-head, battle-of-the-bands style on April 1 at Trees. And speaking of Trees, a slight correction to my column from a few weeks back: A poorly worded headline and a just-as-bad in-copy transition may have made it appear as if Trees is killing local music from its schedule entirely. A quick glance at the venue's upcoming show calender obviously tells the real story.
  

...and that pretty much gets us up to speed.