Author Archives: Charles Jordan

This Friday night at the Basement Bar (105 W.Exchange) in Fort Worth, Overtone Booking and Management Presents: American Graveyard, Earthquake Country and the Marfalites.

Based out of Austin, American Graveyard has been performing throughout the southern United States since the spring of 2004. Their sound eludes classification in a traditional genre, but has been referred to as southern gothic stomp with elements of country, blues, gospel, and punk playfully wrestling in the muck. Come hear American Graveyard drench the Basement Bar in their deep, heartfelt and bone chilling lyrics this Friday. Earthquake Country was recently formed by members of The Transistor Tramps and Telegraph Canyon and have been getting excellent reviews for their live shows. They consider everything fair game, but are especially interested in mining that vein of majestic Americana that was born in juke joints and honky-tonks and re-born on the Mesabi Iron Range. The Marfalites, on the other hand, are Texas cowpunk at its Finest! This country, rockabilly band has their own special brand of train beat driven honky tonk laced with faster-than-lighting guitar hooks that are sure to have people dancing until close. But don’t let “honky tonk” deter you. This four-piece band just as easily pleases punk rockers and boot-scooters.

We have two pair of tickets to giveaway to this show, so post a comment to enter to win and I will e-mail the winner by noon on Friday.

Friday, we told you about the free show that Dallas band, Polyphonic Spree was putting on at Dallas Museum of Art. TVD Dallas contributor, Nicole Rea, had a chance to chance to go check the band out. Here is her take on the show:

Seemingly plucked straight out of the free love era, The Polyphonic Spree put on another psychedelic hometown show tonight at the Dallas Museum of Art. Adorned in white robes, the group played their hearts out and front man Tim Delaughter, in all his flamboyant magnificence, put forth an A+ performance unaffected by the hundred-degree heat.

Delaughter and crew had the crowd in a musical trance playing many of The Polyphonic Spree’s popular songs and despite the heat, everyone just kept on dancing. At the end, with the disco balls still spinning, Delaughter said goodbye with a peace sign. It was hard not to walk away feeling good.

That show was just the fix I needed after feeling a little something missing at Homegrown Fest this year. The Polyphonic Spree hasn’t announced any upcoming Dallas shows, but I’m hoping they won’t be away too long.

Well, the weekend is upon us and I’m sure the clebration of the Mavs’ winning the NBA title will continue here in Dallas. There’s also a few good shows going on as well if you’re all Mavericked out. In the late 60’s, Bootsy Collins and his brother Catfish along with their band the Pacemakers became James Brown’s backing band, later joining Parliament-Funkadelic and having many side projects and collaborations, Bootsy’s Rubber Band being one of my favorites. Bootsy has had a pretty solid career and some might say he is one of the greatest bass players around. Bootsy will be dropping the funk on Saturday at the Palladium Ballroom. 

Here’s a look at some other shows going on this weekend:

Friday Polyphonic Spree – Dallas Museum of Art (free)

Big J – Plush

Saturday Electric Daisy Carnival – Fair Park 

The O’s – Dada

Bootsy Collins – Palladium Ballroom

Sunday R. Kelly, Keyshia Cole, and Marsha Ambrosius – Verizon Theater (For the grown and sexy)

As you can see there is a good variety of music going on this weekend so everyone should get their fix. Happy Friday y’all and check out this gem I found on Youtube….thank you Bootsy.

TVD Dallas contributor Nicole Rea, wants to let you know about tonight’s events at Good Records:

Well, it’s Monday again and that means you should wind down your day with Good Records Music Movie Monday. Showing this week is Who Took the Bomp? Le Tigre on Tour. This flick follows the iconic feminist trio on their 2004-2005 international tour.

As always, Music Movie Mondays is free and the Lone Star beer is cold.

I remember buying Midnight Marauders, back in 1993 and playing the hell out of it. This was really my first introduction to A Tribe Called Quest, who are pretty much the foundation for my love of hip hop. So may classics from this album, “Scenario”, “Electric Relaxation”, “Sucka N*gga” and pretty much every other song. Not to mention the cover of this album, which I don’t know how many times I’ve played the “Name Everyone on the Cover Game”.

Well if you haven’t heard by now, actor and certified hip hop head, Michael Rapaport, has been working on a documentary about A Tribe Called Quest. Featuring footage and interviews from the 2008 Rock the Bells festivals that they headlined, this documentary takes a look at the history of Q-tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad and sometimes Jarobi. From their beginnings in 1988, the release of five albums, and their influence on today’s hip hop artists, this film will cover everything ATCQ, even the beefs.

There has been some issues between Q-tip and Phife, as well as Phife being sick, which ultimately lead to them breaking up years ago. I had the chance to catch their reunion show back in 2006 in New Jersey and the fire was still there. So for any fan of ATCQ, hip hop, or music documentaries I think this will be a must see. Amidst all the BS of creative control, producer credits, etc. that you may have read about, Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest is scheduled to be released on July 8 in New York and Los Angeles and eventually will make it to 32 other cities. The film hits Texas theaters on July 29.

Check out the trailer, check out the film, and Check the Rhime……

Well it’s Tuesday and we all know what that means…new music day. Here’s a look at the newbies that hit the shelves at Good Records. Of course I have to show some love to fellow Detroiters, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. who drop their full-length album, It’s a Corporate World, today.

The Appleseed Cast: Middle States [Graveface]
Arctic Monkeys: Suck It and See [Domino]
Battles: Gloss Drop [Warp]
Black Lips: Arabia Mountain [Vice]
Chris Mills: Heavy Years 2000-2010 [Ernest Jenning]
The Coathangers: Larceny & Old Lace [Suicide Squeeze]
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.: It’s a Corporate World [Quite Scientific]
Depeche Mode: Remixes 2: 81-11 [Mute]
Ford & Lopatin: Channel Pressure [Software]
Fucked Up: David Comes to Life [Matador]
Hospital Ships: Lonely Twin [Graveface]
Jackie O Motherfucker: Earth Sound System [Fire]
Jessica 6: See the Light [Peace Frog]
Love: Black Beauty [High Moon]
Peter Murphy: Ninth [Nettwerk]
The Rosebuds: Loud Planes Fly Low [Merge]
Sondre Lerche: Sondre Lerche [Mona]
Suede: Coming Up [Demon] [reissue]
Vetiver: The Errant Charm [Sub Pop]
The Wooden Birds: Two Matchsticks [Barsuk]

Tonight , Ft. Worth label, Saint Marie Records will be having a double showcase at Good Records (1808 Greenville Ave.) Gulf Coast group Sunshine Factory, will be bringing their shoegazing and psychedelic sounds, while promoting their latest release Sugar.

Bloody Knives, the Austin electro-punk duo, has made the trip up I-35 to join in on some early evening fun. Show starts at 6pm and should make for a good way to kick off the weekend. Enjoy.

Over the weekend, we lost one of my favorites, artist, poet, musician, author, and activist, Gil Scott-Heron. “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” was one of the first Gil Scott tracks I was introduced to. I remember going through my dad’s record collection back in the day and finding Pieces of a Man, which starts off with “The Revolution Will Not be Televised”. This was his second album which used more of the convential song structure as opposed to his first album, Small Talk, which had a more spoken word feel.

Gil Scott-Heron’s style is a fusion of jazz, blues, blues and soul, mixed in with political references and pro-black subject matter. With over thirty plus years in the music industry and 15 plus albums, Gil is widely considered by many to have been a heavy influence on hip hop music as well as the neo-soul movement. His songs have been sampled by the likes of Dr. Dre, Mos Def, Q-tip, Kanye West, and MF Doom just to name a few. Last year Gil Scott-Heron, released his first album in 16 years, I’m New Here, which proved that he still was a force in the music industry. This album was remixed earlier this year by English group Jamie xx and the end result was We’re New Here, which is on my list of must have album’s of 2011.

The music world will definitley miss Gil. He helped shaped one of my favorite love’s, Hip Hop, and I am sure his legacy will continue to live on. RIP.

Well, the three day weekend is coming to an end as are all the BBQ’s and fun in the sun. New TVD Dallas staff writer, Nicole Rea, would like to let you all know that there is still one last thing to check out this Memorial Day weekend:

Head out to Good Records (1808 Lower Greenville Ave.) tonight at 9 PM to catch a free flick and drink some free Lone Star beer. Take a walk down memory lane with Ben Gibbard and gang with Drive Well, Sleep Carefully: On the Road with Death Cab for Cutie which documents Death Cab’s spring 2004 tour.

This Good Film is just in time to celebrate Death Cab for Cutie’s, Codes and Keys album release on Tuesday, May 31.

Can you think of a better (or cheaper) way to spend your Monday night?

Tonight, legendary trio, Primus, brings their brand of funk metal to The Palladium (1135 South Lamar Street). There have been a few different lineups in their 25 years. But there has been one constant and that is the man, the myth, the legend, bassist and lead vocalist, Les Claypool. I had the chance to catch Les live during the short lived Oysterhead days and this guy is truly a genius. He does things with the bass that I’ve never seen anyone else do and some things I’m not sure if I want to repeat. Their last realease was, June 2010 Rehearsal, which is a four track rehearsal EP that can be downloaded for free on their website. Primus will be releasing their new album, Green Naugahyde, in July. Here’s an oldie but goodie for your pleasure…

Well, the weekend has come and gone and so has the so called Rapture. Surprised? I’m not. Whenever someone mentioned the rapture, the first thing that came to my head was not, what am I going to do in my final hours, but the melody of the 1981 hit “Rapture” by Blondie.

A lot of hip hop fans may think that Sugarhill Gang’s, “Rapper’s Delight” was the first number one rap single, but in reality Rapper’s Delight peaked at #36 on the US Pop charts and #4 on the US R&B charts. “Rapture” although not such a straight forward rap track reached #1 on the US Billboard charts and is also the first rap video ever to be shown on MTV. The fact that a new wave band was the first to have a rap video played on MTV is still kind of crazy to me. This song and video are a classic from the Man from Mars, cameos by Fab Five Freddy, Basquiat, and Deborah Harry dancing in the streets of the East Village. “Rapture” was an integral part in hip hop history whether people admit it or not.

One more week down and TVD Dallas is still going strong. Dallas is proving to have a wide variety of local talent as well as national acts playing here. Congratulations to Christy and Shawn for winning tickets to see The O‘s tonight at Sons of Hermann Hall and thanks to everyone that participated. Here’s a reminder of few things going on this weekend. Saturday, Steve Aoki and Bone will be showing Dallas some love. Decisions, decisions. See you at the crossroads….

FRIDAY

The O’s – Sons of Hermann Hall

Portugal. The Man – Granada Theater

A Vibe Called Fresh w/ DJ M-Night – Zubar

SATURDAY

Wildflower Arts and Music Festival – Richardson, TX

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony – Granada Theater

Steve Aoki – Lizard Lounge

LMFAO – Gilly’s Dallas

SUNDAY

Brew Riot 2011 – Eno’s Pizza

It’s been a busy couple weeks for Dallas record label, Idol Records, and their artists. The Texas TVD teams have been there along the way keep you up to date with album reviews, in-store performance news, and last but not least ticket giveaways.

Fresh off their new release Between the Two, bluegrass, pop folk duo, The O’s, will throwing down this Friday at the Sons of Hermann Hall (3414 Elm Street). It’s about time TVD Dallas gave away something free. So, we have two pairs of tickets to the show on Friday. For a chance to win, shoot me an email at charles@thevinyldistrict.com and throw in the name of your favorite musical duo for kicks. I will notify the winners by Friday at noon. Good luck.

Tonight, Fort Worth rockers Calhoun will be stopping by Good Records (1808 Greenville Avenue), for an in-store performance. They will be promoting their new album, Heavy Sugar, which came out today, courtesy of Idol Records. Show starts at 8pm and yes, there will be a keg.

Well, the ACL 2011 line-up was released today and it’s a doozie. A lot of good music is going to descend onto Austin for three days in September. Some of my must sees are Stevie Wonder, Kanye West, Nas and Damien Marley, Aloe Blacc, Mavis Staples, Chromeo, and fellow Detroiter’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. In reality, this whole line-up is a must see. Have a look for yourself … Read More »