Saturday, October 30, 2010

WEEKENDER

Stoned Ranger really regrets not doing this final Weekender as originally planned, so instead you're stuck with me, DL. However, he will have a special note for you this weekend, so make sure and sign the Guest Book sometime soon.

One last note: We will keep our Twitter and Facebook page around for any sort of last word, or post We Shot JR news, and to keep you abreast of any other writing projects we may be involved in, as there has been some "talk," but only time will tell. Perhaps there will be somewhere else that we are welcome to occasionally share our take with you, who knows? I encourage those of you that are so inclined to please continue writing about music on your own websites. I don't think writing about music is stupid. It's difficult, and people simply want to trash things that are difficult as pointless. It requires a lot of meticulous research and requires a certain lifestyle in some ways. You can't always stay in on weeknights.

If it wasn't for cranky and well informed music writing from decades past, I would have overlooked a lot of challenging or nondescript or seemingly unappealing music that would eventually become some of my most treasured moments or ideas or items in my life.

I want to thank the following people, places, and things:
El Tocadiscos
Cliff Notes
Sally Glass
Richardson Heights
Nevada Hill
Zac Crain
Dust Congress House: Nick Foreman
David Ireland at AEG Live.
Art Prostitute/Public Trust: Brian G.
Muscle Beach
Holly Jefferson
Groove Net Records
Secret Headquarters: Scott, Kerm, and Cody
Fra House: Josh, Ed, Chuck.
Marietta/Paperstain: Justin Lemons and David Sailor and Meredith.
Thanks so many times to Justin "JC" Collins for various favors and help.
Matt Barnhart, Rubber Gloves, Shep.
House of Tinnitus: Rob & Amelia.
Mark Church at Good Records.
Paul Slocum
K.O.L.D: Julie, Sasha, and Evan.
Joshaa
715 Panhandle, NPNR
Travis Smith
1919 Hemphill: Rick, Al, and various volunteers.
8th Continent: Lars, Heather, and Shane
The Chat Room: Dave and Ben.
Wisconsin: Chris, Brad, Garrick.
Majestic Dwelling Of Doom
Layla Blackshear
Preston Jones
Hunter Hauk
Sam M.
All the people that have written us nice letters.
To countless bands, artists, and fearless people that I have found inspiring even when I didn't feel up to doing this. Thanks very much to all of you.

-Defensive Listening


FRIDAY

Bad Brains/Spector 45/Here Holy Spain (Granada): Is there anything better than those first Bad Brains recordings, including the Black Dots demo collection? You really wouldn't expect reggae, punk, and thrash to actually work as well as it does, and perhaps it never really did again. In other words, I hope this set consists of early material only, but that's every fan's dilemma.

Rocket For Ethiopia/Legsweeper/Geistheistler/Kampfgrounds (Houseton located at 2311 Houston in Denton)

Doctor Troy/Blixaboy (Fallout Lounge): This show shouldn't be overlooked, as it features Doctor Troy who runs the great West Coast reissue label, Medical Records, which certainly contributed to a 200 plus dollar record buying binge I went on during a recent visit to Amoeba in LA. In fact, I wound up buying two copies of the same Robotnik record they put out, just because I knew I wouldn't see any in these parts. Dr. Troy is apparently an actual doctor, and originally hails from Texas, but most importantly he was mining the dust settled corners of the prog synth, minimal wave, space disco and similar 80's genres far before it became hip to do so, and his reissues and mixes are testament to that.

Wanz "Blixaboy" Dover has received a growing number of accolades for his work of late, from XLR8R, RCRD LBL, Fader and all the places you'd want a new record in this style to be mentioned. That sort of brings things full circle on this website. You see, Wanz was the subject of much debate early on, due to his intensely opinionated view of the local underground scene's evolution as well as his part in it, and I remember spending time on here both agreeing and disagreeing with him from time to time as an anonymous commenter before I took on the nom de plume of Defensive Listening. His Melodica fest in 2008 still stands as a favorite memory of many a music fan I know, and I'm talking people who actually listen to records and go to shows that aren't driven by modern bloggo publicist BS. Melodica was by far the best local festival of the past five years, no contest. When he was pointlessly attacked for his efforts, it helped bring an entire group of people together that might not have been unified otherwise, and of course now that he's getting national attention, well, hey it's fashionable and politically easy to cover his music. But that should have always been easy, and free of agenda and forced narratives. Instead, like so often happens in music and art, personal politics cloud the judgment of hack writers everywhere. You see it time and time again; some tiny band or artist goes largely ignored, someone with taste takes the time to shed some light on them, and then all of your former critics come running to your side, pretending as though they'd been there all along. That's okay. I've come to accept and expect that in the world. When it's work out that way, it's really best for the artists themselves to get that sort of recognition and justice, no matter how many fools they confused along the way.

I'm glad to see Wanz do well, and again, I'm glad the record is called "Kliks & Politiks." Full circle indeed. Event is free.

Costumed Critical Mass: Starts in Fort Worth, right?

SATURDAY

We Shot JR is Dead (Rubber Gloves): Yeah, so one more time: This event starts at six and is hosted by Fred Holston. There may be some "surprises." There might not be anything surprising at all. But I hope you join us, as I do vouch for almost all of the acts here. A lot of them represent everything we get attacked for, and I find that comforting. Yes, I know 99 percent of the lineup is awesome. You're welcome. My only regret is that it couldn't be just a few hours longer to incorporate the other handful of bands we like around here. I hope someone brings candy.

Darktown Strutters/Damaged Goods/Yeah Def (Hailey's)

SUNDAY

Pinkish Black/Transistor Tramps/Vaults of Zin (Chat Room)

Helmet/Intronaut/Descender (Loft)

Danzig (Palladium): I have never been into Danzig or Samhain and I think the Misfits are by far the most overrated punk band of all time, but he was pretty good at Fun Fun Fun Fest last year. If you're going this year, I'm sorry that Devo canceled. Total drag.

Commando/Heavy Cream/Uptown Bums/Video (Rubber Gloves): I like Video but if anyone ever calls them "No Wave" again, I'm going to vomit blood. No Wave is perhaps the only sacred genre of music in my world. You get knighted in that realm, and hopefully never erroneously.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

It List: Thursday


Wow my last It List. As Coach Taylor said in last night's Friday Night Lights episode while watching his college bound daughter Julie fuss with her mother over something trivial just moments before their familial unit is forever altered by the sands of time, "I'm gonna miss this". Remember you can still catch Monday Morning Rock over at my new movie themed blog Phosphate on Film (launching late next week) or you can always gchat with me via frankphosphate@gmail.com if you ever get lonely late at night, I'm usually around. Wish there was a show tonight that I felt like writing about but... yeah take a look. I don't have the negative energy to spare right now. See you Saturday.


Ra Ra Riot (Granada)

Tim Kasher | Minus the Bear (House of Blues)

And You Will Know us By the Trail of the Dead (Loft)

Ryan Thomas Becker | Jason Bonner (J&J's)

80's Night w/DJ G (Amsterdam)

Seryn | Volt Revolt | Stomach | Baruch the Scribe (Rubber Gloves)

Art List

THURSDAY, October 28, 2010

Magical, Mystical, Masterful (Jill Skupin Burkholder)
Sun to Moon Gallery
1515 Levee Street, Dallas, TX 75207
5:00 PM - 8:00 PM

FRIDAY, October 29, 2010

Dallas Portfolio Exchange #9 (large group show)
Magnolia Gallery
3629 McKinney Avenue, Dallas, TX 75204
8:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Indig-Nation: Agency and the Hegemonic State (smallish group show)
Visual Arts Building at University Of Texas at Dallas
800 West Campbell Road, Richardson, TX 75083
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM

SATURDAY, October 30, 2010

Easl Art Heist 2010 Fundraiser & Party (more info)
Lofty Spaces
816 Montgomery Street, Dallas, TX 75215
7:00 PM - 11:00 PM

The Language of Myth (Brent Kollock)
Watercolors (Michael Roque Collins)
Norwood Flynn Gallery
3318 Shorecrest Drive, Dallas, TX 75235
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Thanks, dudes. It was fun.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

It List: Wednesday



The Numerators/Sunn Talk/Kiwi Sisters (The Cavern): Always a great time with the Numerators. And I'd never heard of Garland's Kiwi Sisters until today-- kind of interesting, at times decent loner bedroom synth pop, and sort of shitty in parts too. I really don't know what to think, but its worth checking out to see what you think.

Bone Thugs n Harmony/Johnny Ringo (House of Blues): Goddamn, I love Bone Thugs. I also love Cleveland, where they're from. I don't know what it is, exactly, but Bone's best singles just fucking kill it every single time. I rocked em in 10th grade, and I like them as much or possibly even more now. Of course, the irony of a bunch of suburban kids singing along about "the first of the month" isn't lost on me, but that's kind of part of the fun, isn't it?

Interpol/White Rabbits (Palladium): What happens to someone like Carlos D when first they're cool, then everyone makes fun of them, then they become unworthy of even mockery? Now that hipsters are more or less a thing of the past, I can't imagine what this guy will possibly do with the rest of his life. I mean, he was more of a professional hipster than anyone I can think of. And if you haven't read the article linked in the previous sentence, I would highly recommend checking it out-- a good look back at the counterculture decade that never was. I'd be curious to see what any of you have to say about that.

We Shot Jr is Dead

Here's the new schedule for the show, and we hope to see you guys on Saturday at Rubber Gloves for our last day on earth:


Geistheistler 6:00pm (stage)
Cuckoo Byrds 6:30 (floor)
Fungi Girls 7:30(f)
Lychgate 8:00(s)
Eat Avery's Bones 8:35 (f)
Dharma 9:00(s)
White Drugs 9:35(f)
Cygnus 10:05(s)
Orange Coax 10:40(f)
Early Lines 11:10 (s)
Vulgar Fashion 12:05 (f)
One Baptist General 12:30 (s)

with DJG and Ben White spinning records

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

not new music



13th Floor Elevators - Death in Texas (IA)/The Magic of the Pyramids (Collectables)

Tonight we have two releases from Texas' finest, the 13th Floor Elevators. Both of these recordings are from the same show, the infamous February 18, 1967 gig at the Houston Music Theatre. I've only included the first two thirds of the Death in Texas cd, which is disc 10 of last year's limited edition (and totally awesome) Sign of the 3-Eyed Men box set put out by the resurrected label International Artists. The tracks I left off were from reunion shows in the late 70s and mid 80s. The Magic of the Pyramids has several songs from the same show that aren't included on Death in Texas, as well as an alternate version of the Easter Everywhere gem 'Dust.'

The Magic of the Pyramids was actually the first Elevators recording that I ever bought and I can't tell you how many straight months that it stayed in the tape deck of my 1975 Cadillac when I was a teenager. Maybe that's why I have always had a soft spot for these recordings when many consider them a complete mess and a document of a band that was falling apart. The late Elevators guitarist Stacy Sutherland gave his recollection of the night in a 1977 interview:

"The most mystic vision I ever had was concerning a show we did here in Houston, Theatre In The Round [a k a Houston Music Theatre]. And I had taken some acid, I hadn't had any in quite a while, and it was a super strong dose, about a 1,000 microgram or something. And we had to do a concert, and all of a sudden everyone started glowing. They had a foot of light, like a neon light around them in the room… real bright. And everyone started glowing away, and I freaked out that I was going to die or something. I had some bad trips before, but nothing like this. And then everybody turned into wolves, and I thought that our band was evil, because of some of the things we had advocated. We had had a controversy going on quite a while about advocating drugs and so forth, and mixing it with religion, you know. 'Cause I felt like that was pretty dangerous ground to tread. And Tommy and I were arguing about that quite a bit. I got on a bummer about it evidently. And I was tryin' to escape the room, I didn't know what I was gonna do, but I was gonna get out of there. I didn't want anything to do with it 'cause everybody was turning into animals. And all of a sudden there were angels, and I couldn't move my body anymore. I lost physical feeling all over and I was laying on the floor. And everybody turned into angels, and everybody in the room was the judge at my trial to decide whether I was worthy to enter heaven or hell. Because it was absolute that I was going to die anyway you know."

The rest of the interview, along with a wealth of other Elevators info, can be found here. Enjoy!

It list: Tuesday


The Fresh & Onlys | Royal Baths | Rayon Beach (The Nightmare)

Singles Going Steady (Rubber Gloves)

a video

There will be a Not New Music coming later today. In the meantime check out some great guitar work from Mark Knopfler in this Dire Straits clip from the Old Grey Whistle Test back in 1978.

Monday, October 25, 2010

It List: Monday


Aw, is this the last time We Shot JR will ever tell you about Cool Out at The Cavern? We had some good times at Cool Out. I remember discussing "Where The Scene Was At" and "What makes the perfectly bloggable MP3?" and "Why does that guy from The Observer always have that little notepad with him?" This is all while fielding requests to kiss Thatcher on the cheek. Cool Out is like so many other things around here:

1. People make fun of you for doing it.
2. The people who made fun of you wind up doing it themselves.
3. It becomes such an institution that nobody would question it either way.
4. Once it's gone, people will miss it.

I don't know if we'll be so lucky. I have no problem with Cool Out. I never have. I always heard more disco and soul and Danceteria tracks than anything that resembled "Blog Haus" during those tumultuous years.

Oh, I almost forgot. Speaking of the scene and since you're saying goodbye to us, I wanted to give a long-delayed goodbye to a local scene legend. Yes, this is a tribute to someone I came to know only through the wonderful world of the We Shot JR Twitter account. It's Dustin Hollywood, the local party photographer who moved to actual Hollywood. When he lived in Dallas, he worked for Helloooooo Dot Com and he also worked for Rockwell Collins, the defense contractor. You can read about this in the Dallas Morning News article linked above.
He recently did a remarkable feature with the fashion blog Style Like U, where he explained his largely organic jewelry style and it's worth checking out as well.

I always found that dichotomy of Hollywood's photography and the lifestyle it represents with the sometimes conservative tone in his tweets fascinating. I have friends who work for Rockwell Collins; but they tend to be housewives and family men, never a Dallas party photog. You might say that in his time around here, Hollywood was kind of like "The Juan Williams of Dallas Nightlife Photography," you know, kind of the way that Williams was the most conservative man on NPR, or now the most liberal guy at Fox News. Makes your head spin.

Speaking of NPR, I wanted to share with you some of Dustin Hollywood's most entertaining Tweets, in which he addresses National Public Radio. Read a few of these and you tell me if Dallas hasn't lost one of its most fascinatingly complex talents:

Five Classics From Dustin Hollywood's Twitter:

1. "FUCK NPR"

2. "I know it's wrong for me to say this but people with wheelchairs really annoy me."

3. "WHAT THE HELL, this fucking wheel chair man just ran over my foot like three times without flinching"

4. (Retweet): "AGREED RT @ninelleefremova: Homeless people are human litter. #justsaying"


5. "I gave $5 to a homeless veteran. They are the only people I believe should never be homeless!!"


ALSO:

Envy/La Dispute/Touche Amore/And So I Watch You From Afar (Rubber Gloves)

Monday Morning Rock



TUE: Interpol/White Rabbits (Palladium)
TUE: The Fresh & Onlys/Royal Baths/Rayon Beach (The Nightmare)
WED: The Numerators/Sunn Talk/Kiwi Sisters (The Cavern)
THR: Ra Ra Riot (Granada)
THR: Tim Kasher/Minus the Bear (House of Blues)
THR: And You Will Know us By the Trail of the Dead (Loft)
FRI: Bad Brains (Granada)
SAT: We Shot JR is Dead (Rubber Gloves)
SAT: Darktown Strutters/Damaged Goods/Yeah Def (Hailey's)
SUN: Pinkish Black/Transistor Tramps/Vaults of Zin (Chat Room)
SUN: Helmet/Intronaut/Descender (Loft)
SUN: Danzig (Palladium)
SUN: Commando/Heavy Cream/Uptown Bums/Video (Rubber Gloves)

Friday, October 22, 2010

WEEKENDER

//TENSE// - Turn It Off from tommy boy on Vimeo.

FRIDAY


La Meme Gallery Opening: Mustache Club/Skunk Ape/Yeah Def (Rubber Gloves): Featuring work by John Gonzalez. You wouldn't believe how many acts are called "Skunk Ape."

Black Friday One Year Anniversary with Tense/Anthony Stanford/Keith P/Ben White (Fallout Lounge): Well, this has easily been one of the best DJ nights that's come about in recent memory, and I'm glad to see it reach the one-year mark. Black Friday has always been great for its lack of pretense; you don't feel embarrassed to be there, and it's the perfect night for those who have a little too much Dark and Cold Wave in their collections to not be what one would consider a "closet goth." You know who you are. And you know that it's been a long time since you heard any new music, or returned to any of the spiky post punk records that got you into this stuff. Ben, Keith, and Anthony have all taken the respective tentacles of this genre to their most obscure tangential conclusions, and Dallas audiences have been lucky to hear this stuff blasting out of the taxed speakers of the Fallout for a whole year now thanks to their efforts.

They certainly must have put their heads together for this one, by recruiting //TENSE//, the Houston act that plays an updated version of EBM; the polyrhythms of which have evolved slightly from the more straight-forward Industrial attack that they employed at the K.O.L.D. venue in Denton a couple of years ago. Though their sound has changed somewhat, the mood and themes are as dark as ever, and one would be hard pressed to think of a more fitting band for this occasion.

It should also be noted that //TENSE// will be touring with Industrial pop legends Nitzer Ebb on their North American tour; surely a dream come true for most bands in this genre.

Missile/The Phuss/Max Cady (The Curtain Club): Have you seen the Missile video? Click on the link to check it out. Is this a small band pretending to be huge? Or a huge band pretending to be small? Semantics.

Free Energy/Hollerado/Foxy Shazam (The Loft)

SATURDAY

Vexed UK/Hentai Improvising Orchestra/New Science Projects/Tony Sims/Skeleton Coast/Anion/The Emissary/R-Type VS Nerio (The Gallery At Lander's Machine Shop)

SUNDAY

Lost Generation with Wanz/Gabe/Adam Pickrell (Arcade Bar)

The Thermals/Cymbals Eat Guitars/The Coathangers (Granada Theater)

Thursday, October 21, 2010

It List: Thursday




Guy Clark (The Kessler)

Thrones | Christian Mistress | DeadSea (The Nigthmare)

Pumpkin Carving Contest w/ DJ Boatdad (Rubber Gloves)

add:
Hoyotoho | Novaak | Darktown Strutters (City Tavern)

Art List

SATURDAY, October 23, 2010

Art Conspiracy
Starting at 7:00 PM (more info)

Denton Rising Artists
LuminArte
1727 East Levee Street, Dallas, TX 75207
7:00 PM - 11:00 PM

Open Studios
Shamrock Hotel Studios
4312 Elm Street, Dallas, TX
5:00 PM - 9:00 PM

New Works (Willie Binnie)
Bows and Arrows
1927 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75206
7:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Megacities (Christopher Lee Martin)
Haley-Henman Galleries
2335 Hardwick Street, Dallas, TX 75208
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Link
Adriana Carvalho
David Zalben
George Schroeder
HCG Gallery
1130 Dragon Street, Suite 190, Dallas, TX 75207
7:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

It List: Wednesday

I had shitty things to say about BOTH of these shows, but alas, I have to work:

Sufjan Stevens (McFarlin Auditorium)

Gorillaz/N.E.R.D (Verizon Theater)

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Not New Music


but first...

I have come to the conclusion that I do not enjoy writing about music, perhaps not as much as you do not enjoy reading my writing but that's besides the point. Before becoming a writer here at weshotjr I of course fantasied about becoming one, but I was much more interested in doing the Not New Music post where I could release my school girl adoration for albums I thought everyone deserved to hear before they died. While I was more than willing to take on the challenge of critiquing local and touring artist as well, I have always had a feeling that my musical taste were slightly askew of the general public's. Which in the end kept me excited and eager to write about the shows/artist that I did.

I can't stand music blogs, mainly the general purpose indie hit factory variety. The state of music blogging seems very stale to me. A race to see which site can post the latest "under the radar" video or attaching their domain name to a buzz worthy show. Very rarely do I see critical analysis, or even any kind of honest debate/thought that doesn't consist solely of reference to other artist and buzzy sub-genre names. After walking a mile in their shoes though, I don't blame them. As cliche as the line may be, Zappa said it best when we defined music journalism akin to "dancing about architecture".

Music is such a visceral experience to any true music fan. It is possible to pin point technical aspects of a song or album that turn you on but it is impossible to describe what is about certain music that just sucks you in. For the more technical minded people I can see how guitar virtuoso centered acts can be judged on their technical abilities as musicians, but for the most part music taste, just like love, makes very little sense. Although I feel like I have done a competent job articulating my point of view when it comes to music, I think it is too hard to do and takes the fun out of the music to a certain extent.

Having said this, I have decided to start a DFW centered movie blog. Although you may not be aware of it, the DFW is a very nice area to live in if you are a film lover. While we may not have any mom and pop indie theaters we do have two massive hulks - Magnolia and Angelika - that would make a cinephile in butt fuck Wisconsin eye balls explode.

So why write about film and give up music? I feel the cinema is a topic much easier to critique in an universal language that everyone can debate in. Even though I have had some great fun being a border line ass hole in my critique of some artist, especially local, about once a every couple months I have a little trouble sleeping when I think about some things I have said. Why it doesn't keep me from posting is because I believe an artist should never, ever be afraid of honest critique. I honestly do respect anyone who takes the time to create music to share with the world which makes it hard to label something created by someone else as garbage.

Also there is already alot of interesting stuff going on in the local scene, mainly with the Texas Theater, which I am sure will serve as great fodder for content. What I would really love to see is a place local film lovers and makers alike to have a place to congregate because I know most of us spend the majority of time alone with our projector and DVD player. I am even snobbier about moves than I am with music and would love to get in some discussions with you cats about film. It is easier to pin point what makes a good film versus what makes good music. This is something I will go into over on the blog at a later point, so instead of wasting my breath here I am going to direct you over to the URL http://phosphateonfilm.blogspot.com/ (which will drop the blogspot soon) and ask you to please come and visit November 4th when the blog officially launches.

What may interest you people who could give two shits about movies is that I will continue to do Monday Morning Rock at the new site. It will be the same format as it is here but maybe with links built in. The anonymous comments section will be open so if you need a place to vent there you go. Although I will not be doing Not New Music post obviously I will be doing (L)ost which is where I will be posting out of prints soundtracks with a write up about the music and probably the movie as well. Featured below is the prototype first (L)ost which can be found on the Phosphate on Film site but now also here.

You can become apart of the party with the Facebook group.



Not New Music

OST - The Sun of Dracula
1972 - Harry Nilsson/Ringo Starr

The early 70's were a wild and wacky time in cinema as the independent visions of auteurs were defining the standard for independent cinema for years to come. There were also numerous celebrities/musicians begging to burn out from years of drug abuse and made the financial decision to breach into the world of cinema. One of the many gems to come out during this wave was Son Of Dracula starring Nilsson as the young Dracula who longs to be a human capable of love and Ringo Starr as Merlin the Magician. The soundtrack is essentially a rehashing of songs from Harry's albums "Nilsson Schmilsson" and "Son of Schmilsson" with dialog interludes from the movie. There is one original song on the album, Daybreak, which is a typically delightful take on the highs and lows of vampire life. Surprisingly the musical selections and clips flow well into one another making for a fairly cohesive re-telling of the story. The film was directed by respected 60's B-Movie horror director and two time Oscar winning (Glory 89'/Sons and Lovers 60') cinematographer Freddie Francis.

Despite the chops of the personnel and the world's never ending love of vampire movies, this one has remained out of print for the past 25 years. So much like the rest of the world I have not had the chance to see this movie, there is a VHS release out there but is extremely hard to find. If anyone has the hookup let me know. While it's hard not to be interested in a vampire movie starring Harry Nilsson, the dialog from the movie - while fascinating - sounds pretty drug addled and non-nonsensical. Of course this doesn't have to be a bad thing. I'm just not expecting something of the caliber of The Point, Nilsson's more highly regarded foray into film. If you really want to see Ringo Star in a decent movie from this time check out Ken Russell's Lisztomania one of the finest pop art films of the early seventies, and another soundtrack I will be posting in the future.

It list: Tuesday


As you can see not much going on tonight. I'll have a very special Not New Music up shortly which contains information about our future together in cyberspace. Also wanted to let you know that Wanz Dover's Blixaboy project released it's album Kliks & Politiks today which can be streamed on his website here. Over and out.

Singles Going Steady (Rubber Gloves)

Something I'm Actually Excited About: The Orange Juice Box Set





I'm one of those people that still buys things new, yeah, brand new, not used; box sets, cd and vinyl reissues etc. I'll admit it, I'm thirty years old okay? In fact I actually have a saying about thrift stores and dumpster diving: "If I hate most things new, why the hell would I like them any better used?" But that's just me. I received some pub mail today that made me do something I have never done in almost five years of working on this site: Install the HTML code for a "promotional widget." You see, one of my favorite bands of all time, Orange Juice, is releasing a definitive box set on Domino Records called Coals To Newcastle, and I couldn't be happier.

Orange Juice is what I would consider a "tattoo worthy band,"; that may be self explanatory but more specifically they are one of the few bands (and definitely one of the few pop bands) that exist in a small category of acts for which if you've taken the giant leap of getting their name or logo tattooed on you, I can't make fun of you. Other candidates include Swans, Savage Republic, The Ex, The Fall, Throbbing Gristle, and maybe the Magma logo, though that's pretty dorky. Cholas in Los Angeles with décolletage tats that say simply "MORRISSEY" in Olde English are also acceptable. This distinguished distinction is only for people with complete and impenetrable career arcs that never started wearing hockey jerseys onstage.

The group will be heavily featured in a new BBC documentary focusing on Scotland's underground scene during the Post Punk Era called "Caledonia Dreaming," and you are probably already aware of this band's influence on everyone from The Smiths to some modern acts that I won't taint this rare promo post with by mentioning.

This monster set has seven discs and also comes with promo clips for "What Presence?!" and "Rip It Up," as well as their complete performances on The Old Grey Whistle Test. Finally, it also includes the sought-after concert vid entitled "Dada With The Juice," as well as a ton of unreleased tracks. The set is out on November 22nd and will probably be the first Christmas gift I buy for myself.

Monday, October 18, 2010

It List: Monday


White Denim/Elf Power/PVC Street Gang (The Loft): Wait, what does White Denim sound like again? I know I've written about them before but I can't really remember. Sigh. Guess I'll go listen again. I do a lot of shit for you guys, ya know that? Wait, didn't Gorilla vs Bear used to write about them sometimes? Oh now I remember. They had that song "Let's Talk About It" a few years ago. Are they on Casual Victim Pile? Um, nope, don't see em on the list. Bonus points for not being on that shit, but negative points for being "from Austin." I've listened to five of their songs and still can't think of anything to say. Is that saying something in and of itself? I guess so. Elf Power? Elephant 6 band. Think I used to listen to them sometimes too, can't remember. Feel like Hal when he's getting shut down.... things are moving sloooooowly.... some of the original members of Elf Power were also in Of Montreal. Cute. Minus 10 points, 9 of which are due to the fact that Kevin Barnes is a hipster libertarian who thinks "capitalism is a fun challenge." I hope the Bush tax cuts expire and that shitbag has to make drastic cuts in his monthly face paint budget. I don't think I'd hate the guy so much if he hadn't tried to defend his decision to sell a song to Outback Steakhouse with the kind of Intro to Macroeconomics arguments that most of our political leaders use to rape all of us in every way possible. Meanwhile Barnes dresses like a guy who rapes Unicorns. I'm listening to an Elf Power song called "Spiral Stairs." It's pretty good... sounds like T-Rex, which is alright by me. Now I'm listening to another song that sounds like a mixture of Yo La Tengo and World Party. What the hell am I supposed to do with that? Anyway, this is at the Loft, and I doubt I'd have a good time going to it, even after my third can of $5 bud light or whatever kind of overpriced bullshit they sell there. I'd probably watch the Rangers if I were still in Texas. In fact, I'm probably going to do that anyway.

Cool Out (the Cavern)

Monday Morning Rock



MON: White Denim/Elf Power/PVC Street Gang (The Loft)
WED: Sufjan Stevens (McFarlin Auditorium)
THR: Thrones/Christian Mistress/Dead Mistress (The Nigthmare)
FRI: No Thanks Fest (Emory, TX)
FRI: Los Campesinos/Johnny Foreigner/Gentle Ghost (Granada)
FRI: Free Energy/Foxy Shazam/Hollerado (The Loft)
SUN: The Thermals/Cymbals eat Guitar/The Coathangers (Granada)

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Weekender



Friday

The Vaselines | Jeff Lewis (The Loft)

Shapes Have Fangs | Rayon Beach | Kampfgrounds (Rubber Gloves)

Jessie Williams | Todi Stronghands | Adam and the Ancient Gods | 37 Cents | Rocket for Ethiopia (1919 Hemphill)

Women | Manchild | Nervous Curtains (The Nightmare)

Born Ruffians | Meligrove Band | Abacus (Haileys)

Brave Combo | Burnt Sienna Trio | Welcome Signs | Mariachi Quetzal (The Barn)

Saturday


The Cocker Spaniels | Eat Avery's Bones | World Racketeering Squad (The Hydrant Cafe)

Land of Talk | Suuns (The Nightmare)

MVSCLZ | Sir Name & The Janes (Fallout)

Azure Ray | Tim Fite | Nik Freitas (The Loft)

Big Fiction | Young Livers | Innards | Prognosis Negative (1919 Hemphill)

Disco Dallas (Pastime Tavern)

Lost Generation (Arcade Bar)

Sunday


These United States | Thrift Store Cowboys | Warren Jackson Hearne (Haileys)

BREAKING NEWS

It List: Thursday

Pack of Wolves/Baring Teeth (The Nightmare): Austin's Pack of Wolves prove that thrash/black metal can sometimes be about as intimidating as a breakfast taco. And is there anything worse on the entire internet than a "professional" myspace page?

Manned Missiles/Spooky Folk/Babar/Peopleodian (Rubber Gloves): I refuse to search for a band called "Babar," sorry. And although I've heard them before, I hadn't realized until today that Spooky Folk sounds like Barenaked Ladies covering Jeff Buckley songs. Is this what "kids" listen to now?

Jessie Williams/Todi Stronghands/Adam and the Ancient Gods/37 Cents (Hot Box Pizza)

The Toadies/Shiny Around the Edges/Here Holy Spain (Rockin' Rodeo): Sheesh. I used to like the Toadies when I was 15 but doesn't Razor Bladez or whatever his name is wear dragon shirts and shit now? And why does the Idol Records' logo make it look like a label that was started by Master P's broke ass cousin or some shit?

Tech N9ne/E40 (Ridglea Theater): This is without a doubt what I would do tonight if I were still around.

Art List


Wow, look at all the shit that's going on this weekend in your general vicinity.

WEEKEND EVENT

White Rock Lake Artist's Studio Tour (info)
Saturday, October 16 and Sunday, October 17, 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM

SATURDAY, October 16, 2010

Openings by Jules Buck Jones, W. Tucker, and Christopher Blay
Conduit Gallery
1626 Hi Line Drive, #C, Dallas, TX 75207
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

All That Glitters (Blakely Dadson)
The Public Trust
2919-C Commerce St, Dallas, TX 75226
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Ghost Stories (Tom Orr)
Marty Walker Gallery
2135 Farrington Street, Dallas, TX 75207
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Drawing From Life (group show)
Mary Tomas Studio Gallery
1110 Dragon Street, Bldg # 1080, Dallas, TX 75207
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

California Dreamin' (J. D. Miller)
Samuel Lynne Galleries
1105 Dragon Street, Dallas, TX 75207
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Allison V. Smith
Barry Whistler Gallery
2909 B Canton Street, Dallas, TX 75226
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

500X XPO: College (large group show)
500X
500 Expositon Avenue, Dallas, TX 75226
7:00 PM - 10:00 PM

SUNDAY

24th Annual Día de los Muertos (very large group show)
Bath House Cultural Center
521 E. Lawther, Dallas, TX 75218
5:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

It List: Wednesday


Some people read We Shot JR for the utilitarian aspect; the "It List" if posted promptly can lead you to your evening's activities; The Weekender might very well determine your inebriated trajectory for three whole nights; and Monday Morning Rock could very well do both. But I'm not always about that. We both know that. See, I'm not necessarily here to serve you. What have you ever done for me? With some notable exceptions, probably not much, besides insulted me in comments and sometimes even in person. But I'm into that. I'm sick like that. I feed off of your negativity. It means you can read, and you can pay attention, thanks to Anna ISD and Mesquite ISD and whatever lame suburb you came from before going to UNT. And for those quiet moments, you're all mine. And I love it.

The It List is more...conceptual to me. It bums me out in our last days to see us just posting names and nothing else. Because to me, that's not what WSJR is about. It's about everything else. It's about you reacting to a band name and getting pissed without hearing them. And you swearing up and down that some new genre that recently came into vogue is the halfhearted media fabrication of a bunch of lame intellectuals that imagine things into being without ever stepping foot outside of their overpriced lofts. It's about us "forgetting" to describe the music and talking about anything else. I know, I agree. So many times I've read an article and I'm screaming at the magazine or ripping off the phone film while exclaiming, "YES, BUT WHAT DOES IT SOUND LIKE, ASSHOLE?!" I know the feeling. I hate pretentious people just as much as you do, and I love them even more.

It's really awful that I'm posting this so late, I already know that. One of these shows has even started already. Now that bothers me a little. But overall, really? I don't care. When this works as a show listing hub, that's great. But it's not the point. What matters is the reaction. Otherwise, who cares? I've seen a million show listing sites come and go, and I hardly remember them because they weren't interesting. But it wasn't us that made this interesting. It was you. So, thanks. I mean that. I've defended all of your filthy tongues with so many Voltairian comebacks that it's really worn me out over the years. I think some of you are unbelievably mean-spirited but you're really nothing compared to what I put up with in my daily life. So, no big deal. Thanks for keeping my attention. I just felt like saying that, on with the list:

Mose Giganticus/Naxat/People Men (1919 Hemphill)

Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit/Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter/Mimicking Birds/Seryn (Haileys)

BC Tha Dinosaur/Sheptastic (Rubber Gloves): What is going on here exactly?

Serena Maneesh/Wovenhand (The Loft)

We Shot JR is Dead

Sat. Oct. 30th
Rubber Gloves, Denton, TX

$3 for over 21, $5 for under
(poster by Nevada Hill)

Geistheistler 6:00pm (stage)
Cuckoo Byrds 6:30 (floor)
Stefan Gonzalez 7:00(s)
Fungi Girls 7:30(f)
Lychgate 8:00(s)
Eat Avery's Bones 8:35 (f)
Fur 9:00(s)
White Drugs 9:35(f)
Cygnus 10:05(s)
Orange Coax 10:40(f)
Early Lines 11:10 (s)
Vulgar Fashion 12:05 (f)
One Baptist General 12:30- (s)

hosted by Fred Holston with DJ G spinning records

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

It List: Tuesday

Not much going on today other than Singles Going Steady over at Rubber Gloves, but it looks like there are plenty of decent shows going on throughout the week.... maybe if you're lucky one of us might even write about a few of them.

Monday, October 11, 2010

It List: Monday


Peelander-Z | The Mustache Club | We Are Brothers (Rubber Gloves)

Cosmos (Hailey's)

Chicken Little | Curtis Heath | Intent | Star Commander (1919 Hemphill)

The Futureheads (The Loft)

Monday Morning Rock



MON: Chicken Little/Curtis Heath/Intent/Star Commander (1919 Hemphill)
MON: Peelander-Z/The Mustache Club/We Are Brothers (Rubber Gloves)
MON: The Futureheads (The Loft)
WED: Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit/Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter/Mimicking Birds/Seryn (Haileys)
WED: Mose Giganticus/The People Men/Naxat (1919 Hemphill)
WED: Serena Maneesh/Wovenhand (The Loft)
THR: Pack of Wolves/Baring Teeth (The Nightmare)
THR: Manned Missiles/Spooky Folk/Babar/Peopleodian (Rubber Gloves)
THR: Jessie Williams/Todi Stronghands/Adam and the Ancient Gods/37 Cents (Hot Box Pizza)
THR: The Toadies/Shiny Around the Edges/Here Holy Spain (Rockin' Rodeo)
FRI: The Vaselines (The Loft)
FRI: Shapes Have Fangs/Rayon Beach/Kampfgrounds (Rubber Gloves)
FRI: Jessie Williams/Todi Stronghands/Adam and the Ancient Gods/37 Cents (1919 Hemphill)
FRI: Women/Manchild/Nervous Curtains (The Nightmare)
FRI: Born Ruffians/Meligrove Band/Abacus (Haileys)
FRI: Brave Combo/Burnt Sienna Trio/Welcome Signs/Mariachi Quetzal (The Barn)
SAT: The Cocker Spaniels/Eat Avery's Bones/World Racketeering Squad (The Hydrant Cafe)
SAT: Land of Talk/Suuns (The Nightmare)
SAT: MVSCLZ/Sir Name & The Janes (Fallout)
SAT: Azure Ray/Tim Fite/Nik Freitas (The Loft)
SAT: Big Fiction/Young Livers/Innards/Prognosis Negative (1919 Hemphill)
SUN: These United States/Thrift Store Cowboys/Warren Jackson Hearne (Haileys)

Friday, October 08, 2010

Weekender

Friday

XX | Warpaint | Zola Jesus (Granada)
School of Seven Bells | Active Child | Eyes and Ears (Hailey's)

Swedish Teens | Chant | The Wee-Beasties | Final Fight | Little Big Horn | Demigods (Rubber Gloves)

Electric Vengeance | Ratt Bastards | Tattered Flag | Youth Aggression | Corporate Whore (1919 Hemphill)

Matt And Kim | Fang Island (House of Blues)

Richard Thompson (Lakewood Theater)

Saturday

The Morning Benders (Kessler)

The National | Owen Pallett (House of Blues)

Sunday

Esben & the Witch | Darktown Strutters | Menkena (Nightmare)

Thursday, October 07, 2010

Live Feed - Sleep ∞ Over/Prince Rama 10/06/10





It List: Thursday

Music. Who needs it?

ADD: Wiccans/Back Stabbath/Prognosis Negative/Jah Breaker (Rubber Gloves): Seven inch release show for Wiccans.

Mayer Hawthorne & The County/Gordon Voidwell (The Loft)

Wild In The Streets (The Amsterdam)

The Soft Pack/Those Darlins/Here Holy Spain (Sons Of Hermann Hall)

Geistheistler/Marriage Material/Deflowered Electric Flesh Bride/Buck E. Bones (The Cavern)

Never Forget...

I just felt like posting this after seeing it in a Facebook feed. It's great and I don't even mind that Mr. Cheatham once said that I had the "soul of a toaster." I actually kind of agree with him. Anyways, fuck nostalgia, but also, try to name something else being made around here that looks and sounds this original now days. This is a Wolfe-Stone video.



hijacked by Frank

as long as we're reminiscing...

http://www.divshare.com/download/5026453-f21
http://www.divshare.com/download/5039429-97a

Art List

SATURDAY, October 9th, 2010

Contemporary Art Dealers of Dallas Bus Tours
Starting Saturday at 11:00 AM, tickets are $50 each.
See caddallas.net for more info and/or tickets.

DEEP ArtWalk
Deep Ellum, starting point on Elm St. at Kettle Art
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Classical Plastique (Vera Barnett)
Valley House Gallery & Sculpture Garden
6616 Spring Valley Road, Dallas, TX 75254
6:00 PM - 8:30 PM

The Matter of Matter (Martin Gerwers)
Sermons in Stones, and Books in the Running Streams (Cassandra Emswiler)
CentralTrak
800 Exposition Ave, Dallas, TX 75226
6:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

It List: Wednesday




Light Pollution | Prince Rama | Sleep ∞ Over (Hailey's)

Highly recommended. Thanks to whoever booked this for Hailey's, I remember a time when line-ups like this were not a once and awhile thing there. Light Pollution's stab at the ever crowding electronic dream pop genre is a little too confused for me right now, sounding stuck between Matthew and the Arrogant Sea's thematic avant-folk and Fur's intergalactic ambiance. The other two performers tonight, Prince Rhama and Sleep ∞ Over, are two of the more exciting examples of what the genre has to offer right now. Prince Rhama's approach is very lavish and distinct incorporating spooky world music flourishes along with a disregard for song continuity. Even though they are off the wall the trio retain an organic interplay that sounds like a perfect fit for a live performance. I have been digging the stuff Sleep ∞ Over are coming out with mainly because their songs feel like songs and not just electronic meditations. There is not a whole lot of material by the group out there right now but I look forward to seeing what they have in store for the future. Of course a show this rad has to happen on a school night and when I am broke.

Rock Bottom DJ Party w/ DJ Sarah Jaffe (Rubber Gloves)

Vampire Weekend | Beach House | The Very Best (The Palladium)

I think the thing I dislike most about Beach House is that Victoria Legrand is the niece of one of my musical heroes, film composer Michel Legrand. What a waste. I had never heard The Very Best before today but they sound like an indie pop Baha Men.

Every Interview We've Ever Done

As we start to wind down here over the next few weeks, we thought it might be nice to catalogue all the interviews we've ever done in one post so that it'll be easy for anyone interested in reading them to do so without searching. Below is a list of every interview we've conducted on this website since 2006, and soon we'll have a link at the top of the page to this very post. And who knows, we might do one or two more before all is said and done. Enjoy!

Undeniable Records (1/23/2006)
The Undoing of David Wright (3/1/2006)
Meat Radio (3/15/2006)
Voxtrot (4/21/2006)
Liars (5/24/2006)
High Society (6/1/2006)
Bubba Kadane (6/8/2006)
Gorilla Vs Bear (6/20/2006)
Castanets (7/21/2006)
Tree Wave (7/27/2006)
Zac Crain (8/10/2006)
The Clientele (8/10/2006)
Japanther (8/30/2006)
The Black Angels (10/9/2006)
Beach House (11/16/2006)
Lansing-Dreiden (11/21/2006)
Black Keys (12/7/2006)
Dr. Dog (12/7/2006)
Grizzly Bear (2/25/2007)
Dead Meadow (3/12/2007)
Tussle (4/26/2007)
Glass Candy (5/24/2007)
Dan Deacon (6/12/2007)
Jandek's Backing Band (7/20/2007)
Sonic Boom (9/18/2007)
Matthew Dear (10/8/2007)
Health (10/30/2007)
Mermaid Blonde (11/8/2007)
Clipd Beaks (12/9/2007)
Transona Five (1/10/2008)
Silver Apples (2/21/2008)
Finally Punk (2/22/2008)
Noahn Simblist (4/7/2008)
Negativland (4/18/2008)
Boris (6/23/2008)
Jason Mundo (7/18/2008)
DJ Hatcha (7/22/2008)
Indian Jewelry (8/28/2008)
Aids Wolf (11/20/2008)
Gang Gang Dance (11/20/2008)
Fungi Girls (12/15/2008)
Here We Go Magic (2/18/2009)
Nite Jewel (3/2/2009)
Wolves in the Throne Room (3/5/3009)
Fergus and Geronimo (4/1/2009)
Gorgoroth (4/8/2009)
Vivian Girls (4/11/2009)
Nardwuar (8/20/2009)
Neon Indian (9/15/2009)
Pains of Being Pure at Heart (9/28/2009)
Mary Anne Hobbs (11/20/2009)
Final Club (1/15/2010)
Ga'an (1/19/2010)
Maria Bamford (9/9/2010)
Robert Pollard (9/21/2010)
Dharma (10/4/2010)

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

It list: Tuesday

Monday, October 04, 2010

It List: Monday

Local q&a-- Dharma

Although I no longer live in the area and its obviously become more difficult for me to catch new Dallas/Denton groups perform, several recommendations from WeShotJr writers and other Texas friends that I respect have pointed me in the direction of Kevyn Green, aka Dharma. Her music, which has already attracted the attention of at least one European tape label as well as the highly respected 20 Jazz Funk Greats, is a brand of strange, hypnotic electronic daze that often utilizes the minimalism of cold wave and mixes it with the kind of warped pop sensibility that makes her songs much easier to digest than they should be. Swing by her Myspace page (we'll add a free Mp3 download a bit later) and read what she had to say about her music, which happens to be some of the most interesting stuff I've heard come out of Denton or Dallas for a while now:

Could you tell us some basic info about you-- your name, what you do when you're not making music, how long Dharma has been a project, how long you've been making music, and any other kind of music or art you produce, etc?

My name is Kevyn Green. I just graduated from UT Austin in May. When I'm not making music I'm at my job. I'm a debt collector in Dallas, but we prefer to be called Recovery Analysts. Dharma has been a project for about 3 years but the first 2 were just playing around in my bedroom and not releasing anything or playing shows. I used to play in a band with my old roommate before Dharma for about 2 years. I don't really do much else. I used to make collage art when I had more free time for CD and tape covers but that's about it.

Unfortunately debt collection seems like it has to be one of the fastest growing industries in the country right now. Does your job have any impact on the rest of your life, or are you good at ignoring it? How much do you think the harsh economy and larger social problems affect your music making and listening habits, if at all?

Yeah our company is growing really fast. I'm pretty good at ignoring the job. I really don't have a lot of sympathy for the people I deal with because I hear the same shit all day long. I try not to let anything really impact making music. Sometimes it can be a little frustrating not having nice equipment or trying to record in my bedroom, but that all just adds to the way the music sounds and I deal with it.

Describe how Dharma started as a project.

Dharma started because my old band mate was lame and we really didn't work well together. I was living in Austin and didn't have a lot of friends and spent most of my time alone so I started recording music by myself and realized I was much more comfortable doing that then trying to work with other people. It took me a while to start putting songs together that I actually liked. Most of the really early material is wild and noisy but as time went on they started sounding more like actual songs. As far as my drive to create.. I don't think life is very enjoyable if all you do is work or go to school so to have some sort of creative outlet is really important to me.

Whats the most difficult part about working on music with other people for you? Do you imagine yourself trying it again in the future?

I'm just really impatient and kind of picky about the way things sound. I wouldn't really mind working with other people again it would just have to be a completely different project. I don't want a backing band for Dharma or anything like that. I need all the attention.

Can you tell us about your creative process-- what kind of equipment you use and the method you employ to put songs together?

I don't have any cool equipment. I just use some mini synths and casios, a sequencer, a vocal processor, and some other things I use to make noise. I just record it all into my computer and hope they sound okay.

Your lyrical style seems at times loose, and at other times has an almost mantra like quality. Can you tell us about your lyrics-- how you write them, and maybe some of the things that inspire you to write them?

Lyrics are usually the last thing I write. I'll have an idea for a song and a title then write all the music and record it then I'll write lyrics. For some reason almost every song I write is about Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I have several about philosophy. Others are just about whatever I'm thinking about or reading or watching at the time.

So then are lyrics not all that important to you then? Do they serve more as an additional instrument than as a way to convey a narrative or express something directly with language?

Yeah I'm more interested in the way it sounds then anything else. Most of the lyrics are just completely ridiculous.

Can you tell us about some of Dharma's music influences?

I listen to a lot of different music. I like Depeche Mode, Soft Cell and Fad Gadget and Arab on Radar and I listen to a lot of 90s hip hop and some pop. I guess Dharma is a big mess of all those different genres.

I know that most any artist I have ever spoke with hates being lumped in with a "genre," so i have to ask-- someone in one of our comments sections the other day asked, probably half jokingly, if "Dharma is 'witchhouse?'" what would be your answer to that?

Dharma is BITCHhouse.

So how did you end up on 20 jazzfunk greats?

A small label in Denmark has released a Dharma cassette tape and they're doing an LP and they sent out a bunch of stuff to 20JFG. I guess they liked Dharma and wrote a really strange review about me. They said I was like a satanic aerobics instructor or something.

Could you tell us a little bit about the label and how you connected?

It's just two Danish guys who like a lot of weird noisy music. They've put out some cassette tapes, a few 7" and I think I'll be the first LP. They just emailed me one day because they heard my music on the internets and wanted to put out a tape.

What are some of your favorite bands in Denton and Dallas right now? Favorite place to play?

I really like Cuckoo Byrds and Orange Coax. I played a show with Darktown Strutters and they were really great. I'm friends with Florene and they're pretty good too. I think there's a lot of good music in Denton and Dallas right now, but there's also plenty of terrible bands too. My favorite place to play was DOOM but I guess it shut down after that show we played. I played Dan's Silverleaf a few times but wasn't very well received. I prefer house shows where everyone is crowed around me then playing on a stage though.

What do you think the general quality of the scene, bands and venues here is like compared to austin, or compared to a few years ago?

I definitely prefer to Denton's music scene to Austin. There's an overwhelming number of trashy garage shit punk bands in Austin who play almost every night. However, I think the Denton scene has really died down compared to a few years ago. A few years ago it just seemed a lot more exciting and there were good shows almost every night. Now there's not as much going on. There haven't even been any good touring bands coming to the big venues in town lately. It just seems kind of dead.

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