John Waite, Malea McGuinness
The Glass Cactus Nightclub
December 2, 2011

Better than: Paying for a table at some douche-filled nightclub. Oh wait, that's what I was asked to do.

First off, I have to say that John Waite, former frontman for The Babys and Bad English, still puts on a great show. Stripped of keyboards and backing singers, Waite's super tight quartet played all the expected hits in front of a decent Friday night crowd at the Glass Cactus.

The biggest problem was with the staff at the venue. At 5:00, I called and was told that the opening act (Malea McGuinness) would go on at 7:00 and that John Waite would hit the stage at 8:30. "But doors open at 5:30," the lady on the phone told me. I asked myself why the hell would anyone show up at 5:30. I should have known then that this particular evening was going to be odd.

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GWAR, Every Time I Die, Warbeast
House Of Blues
November 19, 2011

Better than: a Pulsar action figure whose blood has congealed.

GWAR

​A cloaked Death character entered the House of Blues darkened stage set up like a castle littered with weapons and viscera. As theatrical metal band GWAR came on stage to station their instruments, vocalist Oderous Ungurus (Dave Brockie) decapitated Death's lawyer, spraying the first gallons of blood of the night into the audience.

GWAR's set at the House Of Blues ran through a litany of punk and metal songs while a rogue's gallery of monsters fought each other and the band onstage. A pterodactyl, a mutant scientest Biledriver throwing a barrel of toxic waste into the audience and a godzilla-voiced janitor with a duster for a hand were all part of the performance. It's a bit like Gallagher, except with blood and gore.

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Real Estate, Big Troubles, Lonesome Ghost
Dada
November 17

Better than: Hanging out with Moz and them.

Real Estate

​In some strange turn of events, mellow new jersey buzz band Real Estate have become a party band.

Never mind that their latest release Days is a breezy, melancholy offering with a handful of surprisingly big choruses. It's mellow enough to expect that the band would have trouble commanding the attention of a full crowd even at Dada, but that simply wasn't the case. From the front of the stage to the back of the room, the audience was engaged with the music as the five-piece band operated as one well-synced body.

It's obvious from their performance that the band has been on the road together for a while. Their last album saw them here in Dallas three times, but this show was by far the best they've had in town.

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Octopus Project, Analog Rebellion
November 12, 2011
The Kessler Theater

Better Than: Having Octopus Project play at your house party and having to clean up the mess.

Mike Brooks

Octopus Project

​If limited to a single word regarding the live performance of Austin's Octopus Project, that word would have to be exuberance. Its definition, "joyously unrestrained and enthusiastic," really hits the nail on the head for what this Austin-based musical treasure consistently brings to the stage. Saturday night at The Kessler was no exception as the band played a crisp hour-long set to an very happy audience.

The evening started with the band hanging out in front of the theater, chatting with the friends and fans they have accumulated in Dallas over their years of local performances. Always friendly and accessible, the members never seem less than genuine and genuinely appreciative of their fans.

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Guns N' Roses, The Sword
Gexa Energy Pavilion
Saturday, November 5

Better than: I could have ever expected in weather that was damn near perfect.

Mike Alves

Do those jeans make Axl look fat?

​But somehow, perhaps because expectations were so low, a rather healthy-looking Rose and his current collection of sidemen put on a hell of a show.

Playing a collection of hits, deep cuts and surprising cover choices, Guns N' Roses were accomplished throughout the evening. The only drawback was an over-reliance on solos. Hell, I was half expecting the roadies to get their moment in the spotlight.

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Tags:

Axl Rose, Gexa Energy Pavilion, Guns N' Roses, Show Reviews, The Sword

Das Racist, Danny Brown, Despot, Fat Tony
Sons of Hermann Hall
October 29, 2011

Better than: losing your buddies at the combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.

Brayden Olson

Das Racist

​
The three members of Das Racist stepped up to grace Sons of Hermann Hall's' blue-curtained stage at just about 11:45 p.m. Heems (Himanshu Suri) appeared in a racing jacket emblazoned with U.S. Army branding.

It was a good time. The crowd was amped up, reciting along with the band the chorus to songs such as "Who's That? Brooown!" "Brand New Dance," "Rapping 2 U," "Hugo Chavez" and Heem's own single, "I Want It Bad."

The also set delivered the dry sarcasm the current Spin cover boys' whole identity is based upon.

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Wild Flag, Drew Grow and The Pastors Wives
The Loft
October 28, 2011

Better than: only experiencing the album.

Wild Flag

​At least every once in a while, a performance causes a person to reflect on that eternal question: "Did I waste my money on this?"

While the age of digital music has made it easier to avoid that question when it comes to buying an album, that same question of return on investment still raises its ugly little head from time to time as pertains to the live show end of things.

The performances at The Loft on Friday evening triggered that math for this reviewer.

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Explosions in the Sky, Burning Hotels
Winspear Opera House
October 28, 2011

Better than: living in Odessa

Explosions in the Sky

​When they attempted to perform at the outdoor Strauss Square in Dallas last month, the persistent rain prevented Explosions in the Sky from playing. To prevent any recurrence, Friday night's show was moved inside the Winspear Opera House. Still, the Austin-based instrumental post-rock outfit had to compete with an audience's attention again on this night.

Seems the Texas Rangers' were in some sort of bid for World Series glory.

As such, fans of the team and the band had to make a quasi-Sophie's Choice between 9 p.m. and 10:30. As the Rangers' hopes were dashed inning by inning, the Austin-based outfit delivered an absolutely delightful set.

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Tom Rush
The Kessler Theater
October 26, 2011

Better than: sitting at home waiting for it to stop raining in St. Louis.


At 70, Tom Rush is the elder statesman of the singer-songwriter era that began in the late 1960s. Known as the person who introduced audiences to the songwriting talents of James Taylor, Joni Mitchell and Jackson Browne, Tom Rush is just as astute a tunesmith as the folks whose songs he has covered.

And all of Tom Rush's charm, wit and instrumental dexterity were on display Wednesday night at the Kessler Theater.

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Soundgarden, Mastodon
Verizon Theatre
October 26, 2011

Better than: VH1's I Love The '90s.

Soundgarden

​2011 has been a pretty big year for grunge music. As this year marks the 20th anniversary of albums like Nirvana's Nevermind, Pearl Jam's Ten, and Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger, there seems to be a bit of a revival currently going on. More >>