DC9 At Night

Last Night: The Whigs, What Made Milwaukee Famous, The Dead Trees and Collin Herring

2008-05-10 08:57:14

The Whigs, What Made Milwaukee Famous, The Dead Trees and Collin Herring
The Loft
May 9, 2008

Better Than: Well...the record, in The Whigs' case.

You know, for a town than supposedly views Austin with disdain, Dallas sure supports Austin musicians...

It's fairly well known that both The Black Angels and Bob Schneider are big draws around these parts (albeit with different crowds), and at The Loft on Friday, that love extended to wholeheartedly embrace the Austin-based What Made Milwaukee Famous.

For the 45 minutes, as WMMF played to a three-quarter-filled Loft crowd, the audience ate it up. Not too difficult to see why: The band's got an easily accessible indie pop-rock sound (despite what a certain area tattoo artist might think), and lead singer Michael Kingcaid's got himself an enviable set o' pipes, which are just as impressive live as they are on record.

But what was most surprising about this night wasn't the love shown for WMMF. It was the lack of support the audience showed The Whigs.

]]> Granted, the time between WMMF and The Whigs' sets was a few minutes longer than most people likely anticipated, but by the time the Athens, Georgia, garage rock trio took the stage, at least two-thirds of the audience had taken off for the night.

What those early leavers missed was an impressive display of something I, for one, didn't anticipate: a more garage punk than garage rock sound, with slightly faster-paced songs and raspier lead vocals than The Whigs have shown on their recorded outputs. Yeah, the changes were minor, but they made a huge difference, morphing The Whigs from a pleasing--but not groundbreaking--act to a kinda Stooges-meets-Strokes punch in the face.

Maybe it was just how hard the trio wailed away on their instruments. As drummer Julian Dorio pounded away complicated beats and lead vocalist Parker Gispert (who kinda has a Thurston Moore look to him) whipped his body back and forth across the stage, bouncing into amplifiers and thrashing about like he hadn't noticed the drop-off in attendance, it was tough not to be somewhat inspired. This wasn't The Whigs I'd expected to see. It was The Whigs on HGH. Turned up to 11.

And the 40 or so people in the crowd sure seemed to enjoy it. I know I did. The hundred or so people who left The Loft after What Made Milwaukee Famous' set sure missed the boat on this one.

Critic's Notebook:
Personal Bias: If anything, I was a little sick of WMMF's "Sultan" heading into this show, thanks to a couple WMMF posts on our blog this week. But, even so, I was looking forward to that band's set. And, like I said, I hadn't really been that blown away by The Whigs previously (tonight, though, I bought the band's new record, Mission Control--and given the sheer volume of free discs that come our office's way, that's a resounding endorsement, folks).

Random Note: We've written a bit about Collin Herring in the paper, but I'd never really listened to his stuff seriously before tonight. And, turns out, it was pretty good. Very Doug Burr-like.

By The Way: Portland, Oregon, indie rockers The Dead Trees played a nice set, but what was most remarkable about it was the fact that the five young fans in attendance seemed to come to this show just for them. The Dead Trees' lead vocalist noticed, dubbing these fans "The Dallas Five" about halfway into his band's set. And yes, "The Dallas Five" did leave shortly after The Dead Trees' performance--but not before giddily chatting it up the members of their favorite band. --Pete Freedman

Good Friday: The Whigs, Fight Bite, Car Stereo (Wars), Sarah Jaffe

2008-05-09 18:29:56

Sarah Jaffe sings. (allisonvsmith.com)

Mostly local stuff bubbling up as the tops in town this weekend, which is totally cool by us. Each one of the acts we're mentioning are ones you should be familiar with--one ones you should familiarize yourself with. So how's 'bout we step it up, 'mkay? Here's your weekend:

What Made Milwaukee Famous, The Whigs
8 p.m. on Friday, May 9, at The Loft

The best-looking touring bill to come through Dallas this weekend is one we've already talked plenty about. So, we won't really talk too much more about this bill in this space, except to say that it offers up bands from two of our nation's finest music hubs (Athens, Georgia, and Austin) and that these are two of those town's proudest acts.

Nouns Group, The Carrots, Daniel Francis Doyle, Fight Bite
9 p.m. on Friday, May 9, at Hailey's in Denton

Not to slight the other talents on this bill, all of whome bring something unique and worthwhile to the table, but the band that seems to makes this show a must-see is its opening act. Fight Bite's music's been getting all sorts of love love for a while now from both the locally based Gorilla Vs. Bear and the local local WeShotJR, and the tragically beautiful sound certainly seems deserving of the praise. Chances to see this band live have been few and far between at this point, outside of the DIY circuit, but that certainly seems to change tonight as the band finds itself on Denton's most commercial stage.

Car Stereo (Wars), Sidney Confirm, Genova Vs. Indio
10 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, at The Cavern

]]> Newly crowned clubs editor Jesse Hughey gave a nod to this show in this week's paper, mostly mentioning Car Stereo (Wars), and I gave an appreciative nod to Sydney Confirm back when I reviewed the Melodica Festival in February, and then again in March. This bill should be a hot, sweaty mess, filled with dancing, lots of bass and, in Car Stereo (Wars)'s case, lots of samples. Dress lightly.

Sarah Jaffe, Emil Rapstine, Glen Farris, Jens Seman
9 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios in Denton

Sarah Jaffe, who took home the best female vocalist prize at last year's Observer Music Awards, is certainly the big name on this bill, which, after her, features the solo works of musicians who are more prominently known for their band work around town. Glen Farris dutifully backs in the great Doug Burr's band, Emil Rapstine's the lead vocalist for The Angelus and Jens Seman normally performs with Shiny Around the Edges. Should make for an interesting diversion of a night.

Whiskey Folk Ramblers, RTB2, Naptime Shake
10 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, at the Double-Wide

We recently showed some love to Fort Worth's Whiskey Folk Ramblers, and this bill, in which the Ramblers find themselves paired with RTB2 and The Naptime Shake (full disclosure: The Naptime Shake is Night and Day co-editor Noah W. Bailey's band), should make for an Americana tinged good time. --Pete Freedman

Playback: The Week (5/2/08 - 5/9/08) In Review

2008-05-09 17:53:28

What you missed on DC9 this week as you sat around marveling at how much you actually enjoyed Iron Man...

- We told you about Strawberry Fields' move and what it meant for the future of the store's DIY concerts.
- We let you know about a certain icon's upcoming tour stop in town.
- We told you how to score front row seats to a show from a band that will never, ever, ever play Dallas again.
- We clued you into free downloads from Nine Inch Nails and The Offspring and told you about NIN's upcoming tour.
- We updated you on Argyle's Footloose situation.
- We went to Ghostbar for nostalgia's sake.
- We told you how to score a signed copy of Mogwais' Young Team re-issue.
- We hit the streets to get your thoughts on What Made Milwaukee Famous.
- We broke down what TVT Records' bankruptcy means for some locals.
- ...and we said goodbye to our local American Idol contestant.

Oh, and we gave you a crap-load of free mp3s:
Nine Inch Nails -- "Echoplex"

Tomorrowpeople -- "Cruel"

Mom -- "Skipping Stones"

Akkolyte -- "A Generation of Fuckfaces"

Airline -- "Farewell Republica"

The Lash Outs -- "The Kids Don't Wanna Dance"

What Made Milwaukee Famous -- "Sultan"

Good Friday's coming up, then we're out. --Pete Feedman

Coldplay To Play American Airlines Center on November 19

2008-05-09 17:09:05

Go ahead and set your iPods to the over-used but somehow still uplifting anthem “Clocks.” Because, ladies and gents, Coldplay’s coming back to town.

According to the press release that arrived in our mailbox this afternoon, the “Viva La Vida” tour (same name as the upcoming album which, unfortunately, doesn't make it any less lame) brings Chris Martin and cohorts to Dallas's American Airlines Center on November 19. Tickets should go fast (no info there yet, though), especially if you believe the band's publicists, who claim that, during a one-week period of free download, Viva La Vida’s first single, “Violet Hill,” was snagged by two million people.

Given the amount of time you've got until the band gets here, you'll have plenty of time to familiarize yourself with the new disc before the show (it gets released on June 17). Plus, you'll probably see them a lot. For instance: Coldplay will be on The Today Show on June 27.

In sorta related notes, if you’re still wondering what to give your Mommy for Mother’s Day, there’s always a donation in her name to one of Chris Martin’s favorite charities. —Merritt Martin

Why the Black Crowes Won't Have Any Trouble Finding Munchies Tomorrow

2008-05-09 16:29:20

The Black Crowes land in Addison.

Does Addison have good taste in music? That’s debatable, judging by this lineup, but this weekend’s food and music festival, Taste Addison, has certainly managed to secure some big names for this year’s festival, including Friday performers Switchfoot and Gavin DeGraw and Saturday headliners The Black Crowes.

Locals got some love too: Black Tie Dynasty plays tonight at 5:30, and their Idol labelmates PPT takes the stage tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. Jonathon Tyler and the Northern Lights, The Afters, Celtic rockers the Killdares and other locals are also featured on the lineup, which is available here.

Grown-ups aren’t the only ones who will be entertained. The children’s stage features performances from Eddie Coker (whom Sara Hickman once called “The James Brown of Children’s music”) and Bonkers the Clown.

Incidentally, Bonkers was a frequent guest entertainer at the preschool my son attended last year. Here’s my son Lyle’s review of his act: “He was funny and he did funny jokes. He put a ball inside his hand and then it disappeared, and then it went inside his pants. He was juggling balls, and the dog ball fell inside his mouth. He said it was disgusting. And that’s all I remember.”

No word on whether any of Taste’s food vendors serve dog balls. --Jesse Hughey

Quebe Sisters Charm Our Socks Off, Invite Everyone To Come See Them Play

2008-05-09 15:52:44

How often do we get mail from bands? Often.

How often do we get an actual hand-written letter from a band? Pretty damned rarely.

I remember an inspirational greeting card from witty songstress Laura Palmer around last November and Daniel Folmer has been known to keep us updated on new releases via notebook paper, but two artists does not a lot make.

So the Quebe Sisters Band of Burleson sort of made our collective day when I popped open an envelope and discovered an invitation to cover their show at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Arlington’s Open Door Coffeehouse…in swooping ballpoint. The letter also contained many exclamation points and, coupled with the inherent energy of the group’s music, we kinda felt the contagious excitement.

Since we can’t very well give the old-school “playin’, singin’ and swingin’” Sisters props in print at this point, we may as well say here that, along with winning folks over with actual correspondence, they also churn out some skilled Texas swing, Big Band-era standards and general western fare that couples airtight harmonies with skilled fiddle and guitar parts rivaling the precision of bluegrass greats. A heel-kickin’ good time for $18 at the door tomorrow night, iffin’ you want…and I think you do. --Merritt Martin

Tim Halperin Hits The Chicken Ranch, Then Heads Home To Omaha

2008-05-09 13:28:33

Fort Worth singer/songwriter Tim Halperin plays his final area show this Friday at the Chicken Ranch, a club located in the Stockyards. The TCU student will then be off to his hometown of Omaha for a few months to reconnect with his roots.

“The guys I used to play with are all in Omaha,” says Halperin. “I hope to get a band together here in Texas for the fall.”

Halperin released his debut EP, You Are the Moon, in January and response has been so overwhelmingly positive that, well, none are left.

“I actually just sold out,” says the shocked singer. “I will be getting more duplicated in Omaha in a couple of weeks.”

Listening to songs such as “Just Can’t Get You,” “Nice to be Free” and “What I Want” (the last of which is available for download on his Myspace page), it’s easy to see how Halperin has so quickly gained a solid following.

Of course, a high profile gig opening for Nashville crooner Matt Wertz and a featured spot on XM Radio’s Unsigned show hasn’t hurt his exposure.

Obviously influenced primarily by Ben Folds and (don’t cringe too much) Billy Joel, Halperin is the proverbially nice guy who doesn’t finish last, a college kid from Nebraska who uses his innocence to best advantage on songs that speak to a specific demographic: nerds. --Darryl Smyers

Pennywise Bass Player Randy Bradbury Talks Myspace, Calls Punk Rockers The Salt Of The Earth

2008-05-09 12:15:08

Odd that these guys wrote "You'll Never Make It." (Chapman Baehler)

California’s Pennywise has been playing its brand of working man’s punk for nearly 20 years now, and the members show little sign of slowing down.

Even after the 1996 suicide of original member Jim Thirsk, the band soldiered on, releasing a new effort every two years and continuing to embrace the punk ethos of defiant liberalism--along with a refreshing DIY mentality. Bassist Randy Bradbury took some time to talk to DC9 about the band’s newest CD (Reason to Believe, available via free download from MySpace records when you add Textango as a friend) and how the band plans to stay hard into its third decade.

So does the fact that 600,000 people have downloaded the new CD from MySpace validate your band’s continued relevancy?

Having the CD available for free is really a new frontier. We are riding the wave of the new frontier. Within days, we hit half a million downloads. For us, the top priority has always been to get people to hear our songs, so we’ve taken the smallest advance that we ever have just to achieve that goal. We’re the first band to totally give away our record for free [Editor's note: These guys might beg to differ]. We were joking around saying that we should have made it multiple choice: Pay this much if you’re just a little bit of a fan all the way down to the biggest fan ever paying what they thought it was worth.

You’ve been playing in the band for twelve years and came on right after the death of Jason Thirsk. How difficult was it to simply keep the band going?

]]> Jason was so incredibly talented. He wrote many great songs with lyrics that blew everyone away. He had been dealing with alcoholism for quite a while and it was something the band was trying to help him overcome. When Jason left during the tour in 1995, I got a call in the middle of the night. Jason was obviously an important part of the band and he was going to come back and I was going to switch to guitar. A year went by before we got the news of his death. It was shattering. We were on the Warped Tour and we went home for the funeral. Jason’s songs were all about pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, so the other guys in the band decided that Jason would have wanted us to keep going. It was also a matter of keeping his memory alive. If the band had ended right then, it would have always been like an unfinished chapter.

Pennywise has been described as edgy, post punk, frat rock. What the hell does that mean?

We’re heavy into the bro thing. We’ve been called bro-core, and we like to drink beer, so I can understand the frat part. We’re not little pipsqueaks. We don’t look like your typical emo or mohawk punkers. Everything we do has our heart and soul in it. We are involved in the surfing lifestyle, the skating lifestyle and we have fans that personify that common man mentality.

It’s kind of hard to be common man with lyrics so politically confrontational.

[Lead singer] Jim Lindberg has written some of our best, politically insightful lyrics. We just write songs from our own perspective. Before 9/11, Jim’s lyrics were already tied in to the pulse of what was going on, the unrest and the shenanigans. The band started out with a self-help, positive message and then you grow up and you start noticing things, asking questions. Now, things are more political. A lot of people have woken up to the inequities of our government. The message of “wake up and open your eyes” is kind of redundant seeing that we’ve been saying it forever. We feel like the new album offers a sense of hope. So many people are paying attention. Maybe there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Is that why the song “Western World” was chosen as the first single?

That song is catchy and it has a great slant on what’s going on in the media, the distractions that happen, things that try to take your mind off of the important things.

The band has been around nearly 20 years. Did you ever think punk would have such a long shelf life?

Back in 1988, Bad Religion was the biggest punk band. Punk really had almost died out and Bad Religion released Suffer, and it influenced so many people. To think that you would form a punk band and do any of the things we have done, to travel around the world and to last this long would be basically unthinkable.

Punk seems to be resilient to the general cycles of the music industry. X and the New York Dolls are still around making noise. Is there something about the passion of punk that makes it self-sustaining?

Punk is just real. Anyone who got into punk back in the day knew it wasn’t the positive thing to do. You were truly following your own instincts. If people now can continue to resist the newest fad and continue to do what you believe in, then you are resonating and making a difference. Punk rockers are really the salt of the earth. They are not shooting for the stars, trying to be something they are not.

Punk has certainly evolved with new genres such as emo certainly coming to the fore. Is there more fashion involved now?

I know some of the guys in the band rail on emo and can’t stand that stuff, but I am a little more tolerant. The Sex Pistols were all about dressing up. That was part of what they were rebelling against. I’m more interested in substance and music and the songs. If you want to wear make up, then more power to you. --Darryl Smyers

Pennywise performs with Strung Out, Authority Zero and Saboteur tonight at the Granada Theater.

Bonus MP3: What Made Milwaukee Famous -- "Sultan"

2008-05-09 11:25:58

What Made Milwaukee Famous (Cambria Harkey)

We launched a new weekly DC9 feature called Aural Ambush yesterday, in which we hit the streets, armed with an archaic discman, and ask the people of Dallas their thoughts on a song from a band coming through town.

Yesterday's bit focused on the Austin-based What Made Milwaukee Famous' song "Sultan." In cased you missed it, here's what our fellow citizens had to say. Not sure we really get the Goldfinger comparison the second guy mentioned--like, at all--but to each his own, I guess...

You can catch What Made Milwaukee Famous playing with The Whigs (who we wrote about in the paper this week) at The Loft tonight at 8:30.

In the meantime, if you dug the track yourself, here it is, on the house...

Bonus mp3: What Made Milwaukee Famous -- "Sultan"

Enjoy. --Pete Freedman

Looking For Funds, John Freeman Puts Sloppyworld PA System Up For Sale

2008-05-09 09:54:18

This is not the Sloppyworld sound system. This is just a tribute.

John Freeman's had himself a rough 2008 so far, between opening Sloppyworld, perhaps closing Sloppyworld, definitely closing Sloppyworld and trying to scrounge up the money to pay Sloppyworld's leftover bills. Now, just four months before he heads off to New York City to write rock operas with Corn Mo, Freeman's still looking to pay off Sloppyworld's debt. And this time, at least, he's got a pretty enticing offer out there.

"I am selling off almost all of the Sloppyworld PA
equipment to cover some outstanding fees and help pay for some repairs to
the space," he writes in an email.

I'm sure a few venues out there could use an upgrade to its sound system. And I, for one, can confidently say that, for all its issues, the one thing that Sloppyworld never had a problem with was its sound. Interested parties should email John for more information. --Pete Freedman