Someone in the comments of my latest broadside on Mario Tarradell asked for something a little more formal from me. So, if interested, it’s after the jump. If you aren’t, here is a short clip of a 1990 pilot that featured Peter Boyle as a cop reincarnated as a talking bulldog.
Local Songs, Shows, and Records Enjoyed in 2009 By Someone Who Used to Do This For a Living But Now Does It As a Hobby So Get Off My Back For 1) It Being Late and 2) Not To Your Taste
(in no particular order)
White Denim/Harlem/PVC Street Gang/Fight Bite at Pastime Tavern: Two bands from Austin and two from here, so I suppose it’s more regional than local. If you want to get technical. But it happened here (and, if memory serves, it was strung together by Chris from Gorilla Vs. Bear), at a working-class bar in the Cedars that didn’t seem to mind being overrun by hipsters of various stripes for the night. Each band killed in their own distinct way, beginning with Fight Bite’s thrift-shop alternate Twin Peaks soundtrack to White Denim’s riotous jumble of genres propelled by sheer relentlessness.
Fergus & Geronimo, “Tell It In My Ear”: If you told someone you’d found it on a dusty compilation of 1960s one-hit wonders, they’d believe it. Even the name fits.
The O’s, “You’ve Got Your Heart”: Does it sort of rip off what the Avett Brothers have been doing, with its banjo-guitar-kick drum sound? Yes. But everyone steals a little bit from somewhere. And it’s undeniable enough — to me, at least — that I forget all matters of provenance.
Telegraph Canyon, The Tide and the Current: I came to this really late for reasons that are unknown to me, but probably can be explained by a deep-seated obstinate nature. Anyway. My friend Branton does a better job of talking about them here, so read that.
Josh T. Pearson opening for My Bloody Valentine at the Palladium Ballroom: Pearson hasn’t been heard from much since Lift to Experience disbanded years ago. He returned with a group that more or less approximated what Lift did (not surprising, since two-thirds of the band — Pearson and drummer Andy Young — remain intact), but with a different sort of presentation. Still had the rumbling drum sound, still had the cloud of guitars. But Pearson now delivers his songs more like a manic street preacher, like Nick Cave when he’s riled up. It wasn’t a one-off, either: he’s finishing up a record with John Congleton.
Pleasant Grove’s last show in Dallas (probably, or at least for the foreseeable future) at Bryan Street Tavern: Almost three hours of one great song after another, from laptop-infused experiments to simple two-guys-two-guitars simplicity. They were, for a decade, anything and everything you wanted them to be. Not enough people knew that.
Various others: Neon Indian/VEGA, Teenage Cool Kids, Fungi Girls, The Boom Boom Box
(I’m sure I forgot a ton. I’ll add them in the comments if I remember.)
3 comments
agree with the Telegraph Canyon record. that thing is strong. Nice to see some of Dallas’ better blogs gaining some national exposure in 2009. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, StonedRanger and WE SHOT JR is constantly entertaining and well composed. Gorilla-vs-Bear absolutely deserves its standing amongst the national blogs because they never cease introducing me to new music.
Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson- Summer of Fear – is my favorite album of 2009.
looking forward to watching Fungi Girls over the next few years-loads of talent balanced on potential.
I love Telegraph Canyon. I’ve been listening to that cd for weeks. I do love the short rocker on that album, Dressed in Flight. Very triumphant sound. Always lifts my mood.
I also like Chris Johnson’s solo versions, like the one he did at KXT, with Doug Burr.
Doug performed music from the CD he’ll relese later this Spring. I know the Shawl was not everyone’s cup of tea, but I loved it. I think people were put off by the religious lyrics, but I found the songs to transcend the religious nature of the lyrics, from the Psalms, although, the subject matter is appealing to me.
The new songs are in my opinion outstanding. He’s been working on some of them for a couple years. I also like the fact Glenn Farris is playing wurlitzer and banjo regularly with Doug. Glenn’s solo gigs are worth listening to. He did an accoustic show at La Reunion, which was a perfect fall day for an outdoor, non amplified show.
There were other worthy releases this year, including Elkhart, which gets regular play on KXT. It’s nice to hear local music on the radio again
Since it’s not as relevant, I will confine my national picks here. Again, no particular order, 10 that stand out:
• Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin: Best music festival in the country, and I don’t have to go to all of them to know that. Curated, not focus-grouped.
• Everything I heard by the Atlas Sound (including their perfect-for-the-rain set at the aforementioned Fun Fun Fun Fest)
• No Age, “You’re a Target”: Chaotic melody, melodic chaos.
• Solange Knowles’ cover of the Dirty Projectors’ “Stillness is the Move”: Confirms what I felt when I heard the original — best R&B jam of the year.
• Thom Yorke, “Hearing Damage”: Do I wish it didn’t come from the Twilight sdtrk? Yes. Do I wish all of his solo stuff was like this? Yes. Have I stopped playing it? No.
• Avett Brothers, I and Love and You: People have picked at their earnestness. And yet, that’s the part I like the most.
• Joe Pernice, It Feels So Good When I Stop sdtrk: A carefully selected batch of covers that he kills. If you hear this and like it, seek out his band stuff (Pernice Brothers, Chappaquiddick Skyline, Scud Mountain Boys), because it is even better.
• Surfer Blood, “Swim to Reach the End”: I would have listened to this just based on the band’s name.
• F****ed Up, Couple Tracks: Few bands with this kind of sound can pull off what they do live on record. They are one of the few.
• My Bloody Valentine at the Palladium: http://freedarko.blogspot.com/2009/04/you-made-me-realise.html