Since we're actually starting to get sick of talking about it, might as well end our exhaustive NX35 coverage--and do so on a high note with this 15-minute clip from LOUD-quiet-LOUD opening (no, really) from The Flaming Lips' headlining performance on Saturday night.

And, yessir, this here clip comes complete with a pretty nasty power outage, too--and quite the explosive save, might we add. It's terrifying, hilarious and glorious--and in that order.

So here it is, Denton. Enjoy.

Perhaps you saw us at this year's NX35 Conferette in Denton? Well, we were there--in case you didn't know--and, as you'll see below, starting with a fairly intense live clip of HEALTH performing "Die Slow" at The Boiler Room on Friday night, we were shooting videos all weekend long, too.

For posterity.

And because we love you this hard. Enjoy.




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Danny Fulgencio

Mmm...Midlake

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Patrick Michels

Ishi played to a packed RGRS house on Sunday night.

​Another night, another slew of solid lineups all around the heart of downtown Denton for Sunday's final night of the four-day North by 35 Music Conferette. And, early in the evening after the previous night's blow-out Flaming Lips' show (and a slew of other excellent performances over the previous three days of the festival), it seemed that people were starting to finally lose some steam--though, really, the lines were no less long.

There were lines at most of the venues again last night, and it was nice to see some of the bars--like at Andy's Bar for Damaged Good$, DJ MomJeans and others--finally setting up very clearly-defined lines for the wrist-banded and the walkups.

Yeah, the crowds were out again last night. Early too. And, while it may have been all in my head, it sure seemed like folks were strolling around the Square a little bit slower and maybe even clapping and cheering a little softer after bands played than in previous nights.

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Patrick Michels

Alan Palomo with... wait, is that a rainbow in his eye????

​Band: Neon Indian
Venue: Rubber Gloves
Time: 12:30 a.m.

In September of last year, as mega-hyped area band Neon Indian prepared its debut smash full-length, Psychic Chasms, the band debuted its live show with a gig at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios. It didn't go so great.

Now, having spent the past six months touring--and, y'know, playing the late night TV circuit and all, too--the band returned to RGRS last night and wowed a one-in-one-out crowed with a more polished, more energetic, and all-together better live performance.

And it was a highly anticipated show, too: By 9 p.m., even, there was a line forming outside Rubber Gloves; by 10, it was one-in-one-out to get in; and, for the rest of the night, that's how it stayed.

Neon Indian's show was the busiest RGRS had been all throughout the NX35 festival (with Saturday night's Telegraph Canyon show coming in at a very close second, to be fair). And the band responded by playing its usual up-beat and catchy set, and gleefully performing uber-hits like  "Deadbeat Summer" and "Should Have Taken Acid With You." The band was clearly more comfortable in Gloves this time around: At one point in the night, Palomo even joked to the audience that no one in the press had yet called him out for sampling Mega Man 2 for "6699 (I Don't Know If You Know)."

By the end of the set, which closed with regular show-ender "Ephemeral Artery," the crowd was keyed up and wanting more. Palomo and his band obliged, performing an encore of "No Reasons," the highly danceable hit from Palomo's other popular outfit, VEGA. And, according to Palomo, VEGA will be done with its debut in May.  

DJ Mom Jeans, aka Danny Masterson.

​Band: DJ Mom Jeans, Sore Losers, AnonymousCultue, Damaged Good$ and Pigeon John
Venue: Andy's Bar
Time: All night long.

It's no secret that Danny Masterson is much more well-known for playing the character Hyde on That 70's Show than for spinning records. But for the crowd at Andy's last night, it didn't really seem to matter.

As DJ Mom Jeans, he managed to turn the quaint little bar into a bona fide dance club--if only for just the night. But it wasn't as if he had to do it all on his own, as the lineup that got the crowd loosened up before he took the stage was a DJ's wet dream.

Sore Losers, backed by Fizzy Dino Pop's Avery Williamson as its DJ, first got heads bobbing, and partying like it was its members' collective birthdays. Then AnonymousCulture, playing his first live set since releasing his album The Intervention, started and ended his set with impressive a capella verses, and, in between, had hands swaying left and right. By the time the rambunctiously belligerent duo Damaged Good$ was finished, the crowd was so pliable that it mostly had no qualms about raising its middle fingers in the air and screaming "fuck the bullshit," as the popular duo implored it to do. Later, backed by popular area DJ (and frequent Playdough collaborator) Sean P, the Los Angeles-based emcee Pigeon John put on the most polished performance of the night. The duo's smooth transitions, paired with Pigeon's witty lyrics and animated delivery, served to ramp the party up a notch further still.

But it was clear as the night wore on that DJ Mom Jeans was the real reason Andy's was at capacity, even if it was mostly for the curiosity factor of seeing TV's Steven Hyde behind the 1s and 2s. And, really, when you're that famous, it doesn't take much work to get the crowd to go your way. Despite his less-than-extraordinary skill set, it didn't take much more than a smoke machine, a 'hello', and an mp3 of the theme song from The Jeffersons to have the crowd in his favor the rest of the night.

He was joined onstage by a live drummer--Midlake's McKenzie Smith--for parts of the set, and, though he didn't add much to sound, he at least offered something else that was fun to look at.

The Walkmen

​Band: The Walkmen
Venue: Haileys
Time: 11:25 p.m.

The buzz was loud and the venue packed last night in anticipation for one of the bigger bands taking part in this year's version of NX35: New York City's The Walkmen.

Since I got to Hailey's early, I happened to catch a couple members of the band milling about outside the club before its show. Seems Hamilton Leithauser and crew will be in Dallas today to do some recordings with John Congleton.

That being the case, the guys in The Walkmen were anxious to get this NX35 gig out of the way. "The club told us we'd go on at 11, but then they told us they are always late," said keyboardist Peter Bauer with a frown. With that meeting in mind, I wasn't expecting the same great show I got from The Walkmen last year in Dallas.

But after fairly stellar sets from the other three acts on the bill, brooding frontman Leithauser and the rest of the Walkmen hit the stage just prior to midnight. As the band started its set in the dark, the singer seemed to have to wake the soundman out of a stooper to let him know the band was ready to begin. But once The Walkmen did begin, it was great to be amongst Denton's sweaty throng. Starting off with "On the Water" from the band's great 2008 release You & Me, The Walkmen held the stage with the same defiant arrogance and snotty power that results in the band's albums being so good to begin with.

After the band's fourth song, the exuberant crowd finally even got to the gloomy Leithauser, who smiled widely and introduced a couple of new songs that the band, presumable would be recording with Congleton today. The new numbers went over well--but not as much as fan favorites such as "In the New Year."

In the end, the sound wasn't that good, the song selection not that great and the band still seemed a bit rushed to get the whole thing out of the way. But The Walkmen's music is so good--its mix of Dylan, Velvet Underground and U2 so intriguing--that having any chance to catch the band is a good excuse to venture out and make it home far too late for a father of two like me.

Pomegranates

​Band: Pomegranates
Venue: Hailey's Club
Time: 9:30 p.m.

Hailing out of Cincinnati, the youthful quartet known as Pomegranates made one of my favorite records of 2009, the wonderfully chaotic Everybody, Come Outside. This evening was my first chance to catch the band live, though--and it had me (and the fairly large contingent that made it to Hailey's early) stoked to see the band hit the stage at 9:30.

Starting off with Everybody's title cut, Joey Cook and crew played an impressive set of arty, indie rock. The songs of Pomegranates are filled with quirky beats and odd time signatures, with influences as varied as Gang of Four and The Talking Heads floating in and out of a mix that sometimes veers into prog-rock territory.

Switching instruments frequently, the band members somehow managed to keep the momentum going, while the enthusiastic crowd showed a grace and patience little known in some venues in Dallas.

It's a tribute to Pomegranates that the band can make such unusual songs that somehow also remain catchy. After the Pomegranates set, many people made their way to the merchandise table as the guys in the band seemed blissfully stunned by the overwhelmingly positive reaction.

When I talked with a couple of the band members after the show, they displayed an uncharacteristic humility: When a new fan shook Cook's hand and told him how great the show was, the singer said, "That is so nice to hear!"

Who says an indie band can't have manners?

Giggle Party

​Band: Giggle Party
Venue: Boiler Room
Time: 1145 p.m.

Dallas' frenetic, mad-genius punk act Giggle Party started setting up onstage at The Boiler Room by not only plugging in, but by blowing up balloons.

As such, its show started with cheers--plus drunken catcalls and pre-recorded instructions on how the audience could participate, go figure. In turn, long before the band started to play music, its crowd had swelled, its audience already jumping.

It wasn't altogether unlike the New Year's Eve-like atmosphere you feel at a Flaming Lips show--only even more hyper-charged.

Four songs in, immensely-talented guitarist Aaron Eash paused to strip off his pants and sneakers. He's overly animated, and nearly elastic, onstage. Bassist Jason Reichl and keyboardist Katrina Michie were also pants-less before long, and pulled some 20 people from the crowd on stage to jump with them before launching into abbreviated, and, OK, botchy covers of the Beastie Boys' "Fight For Your Right" and Blur's "Song 2." More than anything, though, these songs provided an  entry into Giggle Party's own signature punk track, "Jason Bought A Hatchet," which saw the band passing out more party toys as it played.

As quickly as it started, though, it was over--and that much was signaled with a post-apocalyptic, colorful dust of confetti having settled over the stage while the band walked off in smeared clown makeup, and matching, sweat-soaked, turquoise underwear.

Per a decal on the bass guitar: "Sorry about the mess." No apologies for the fucking kickass live music, though.

The Middle East

​Band: The Middle East
Venue: Dan's Silverleaf
Time: 9 p.m.

True to the random, follow-your-nose nature of NX35, I was just heading out of Dan's to catch a spot in line at Hailey's before the much-anticipated Walkmen show filled to capacity, when Australia's Middle East kicked off just in time to change my plans.

At first, the sweetly arpeggiated acoustic finger-style struck me as somewhat saccharine--until a more tragic note in singer Jordan Ireland's delicate tenor caught me short.

45 minutes later, the seven-piece closed with "Blood," a haunted rave-up that somehow managed to wrap the contradictory emotions of deep loss and celebration around a celtic-tinged melody with four-part background vocals, leaving the now rapt audience literally yelling for more, and booing when it was clear no encore would be forthcoming.

With a lineup reminiscent of Telegraph Canyon's--banjo, acoustic and electric guitars, accordion, keyboard and multiple vocalists--and with an ambient, roots-indie sound just as hard to pin down, Middle East left an indelible impression. After the set, with the near-capacity crowd at the Silverleaf still yelling and catcalling during teardown, the band members kept looking up wide-eyed, genuinely surprised at the response.

Middle East's manager seemed completely unprepared for the rush on CDs that ensued: "Let me go back to the van and see what I've got," he said.

He came back with two.