Weekender

FRIDAY

The King Khan and BBQ Show/Wax Museums/Uptown Bums (Rubber Gloves): I'm a bit confused as to all the different stuff King Khan is involved with, but I do know this--most of it rules, and the BBQ show stuff is no exception. The latest record from Khan's other band The Shrines, What Is?, has slowly become one of my favorite albums of the year, with a seemingly perfect mix of psyche, soul, garage and punk/hardcore influences that would probably be fairly impressive on their own. What makes the album great however is the fact that the guy can write insanely energetic, sloppy and soulful songs fifteen times over and stuff a record full of them. Seriously, this record is head and shoulders above the latest Black Lips, and anyone who likes the latter will certainly dig the former. All of the BBQ material I've heard has been good in the same manner with a slightly more melodic twist. This show will be great. And really, download that album.

ADD:

There's a grand opening for new Denton record store/clothing store called Time Bandits, located at 108 W. Oak St., Suite 102, on the Square. I'm pretty excited to have a new place to shop for vinyl. The records they show on their Myspace page look really good, and I hope it's indicative of their potential inventory. Show up at 7 tonight, I've heard there will be free vegan cookies.

ADD:Bleach Boys/Stanton Meadowdale/Golden Boys (J &J's Pizza): The Bleach Boys are a fierce surf-influenced punk band as well as an unlikely match for these two bands, but that makes this show definitely worth checking out. I've heard so many different things about the "loud band" situation at J & J's, and this bill seems to sum up all of that confusion nicely. I like being confused, so see you there.

The Dead See/4 Days to Burn/The Conquerors (Red Blood Club):

The Dead See features members of disbanded Lubbock hardcore acts, Dolores and Skyscraper. If the intensity of those groups is any indication, my curiosity is definitely piqued. Fun Fact: Dead See guitarist Neil Barrett is the guy talking to Lightning Bolt about how awesome they are in the Lubbock scene of The Power of Salad DVD. Bands such as High on Fire and Pig Destroyer are listed as influences on their Myspace page, and it probably serves as a fairly accurate description of their sound-- grindcore and metal and various subgenres emerge throughout.

Tegan and Sara/Northern State (House of Blues)

SATURDAY

The Evens (Public Trust): This certainly appears to be the Public Trust's coming out party as a viable place to see music in the area. How the rest of the venues in Dallas missed this one I'll never know (I guess they couldn't cancel one of their cover band nights or something), but honestly, I'm glad I don't have to go somewhere depressing (see the vast majority of bars and venues in Dallas) to see this show. I'm going to assume that I don't have to give anyone here a lesson on Minor Threat or Fugazi, and I probably don't have to tell any of you that The Evens sound nothing like either of those bands, so instead I'll just tell you that this show is cheap (5 bucks), there are NO PRESALES, and it starts promptly at 830. I've head rumors that those who can't get into the softer side of Ian via the Evens have consistently been impressed with how good they are live, and the chance to see such a legend in an intimate setting like this would be worth it even if he was just farting on a drum stick or something. Get there early sweeties.

Old Time Relijun/Burnt Sienna Trio/Violent Squid (Hailey's): Considering that Old Time Relijun sounds like what would happen if Talking Heads formed a band with James Chance and Captain Beefheart, it's a bit surprising that they are on K Records and associate with the Portland/Anacortes, WA psyche folk crowd, but that's how they roll. I had the chance to watch some of their performances on Youtube, and I bet you won't get short changed if you watch em in person... and somehow, Burnt Sienna Trio and Violent Squid seem to be the perfect compliments for this band. Props to whoever put this bill together.

Record Hop/Meneguar/Teenage Cool Kids/Nouns Group (715 Panhandle):

Meneguar and Teenage Cool Kids share some similarities in that: A.) Both inspire spirited sing-alongs with the crowds they play in front of. B.) They seem like they could have co-existed and toured together in the mid to late 90's. Not only is that not a knock against them, I doubt they would ever take it as one. Record Hop has started to sound so huge, it will be a privilege to see them try to trap their arena tendencies within the confines of the fairly small playing area of Panhandle. This show starts early, at 8 O'clock. Pray that the Denton Police aren't the surprise special guests.

Wastemaker with Estaw/Chew Fu Phat/Select/Prince William/hosted by Pretty Vacant (Sloppyworld): The owner of Sloppyworld recently commented that he was going to be running some underground type of unofficial shows at his new spot, and this one looks to be a really good excuse to go check this place out (but I'm just going for the show considering that I was like the first person to see it... ha ha). I've had the chance to listen to some Estaw remixes, and after hearing them AND Prince William's latest mix tape, I'll be more than happy to head to sloppy world and drink the FREE BEER they'll provide. And I don't take free beer from just anybody you know.

Official ADIKT Party-- Do Over with A One/Joe Rich/Churz (Gezellig)

Paul Oakenfold (Lizard Lounge): Yeah, Lizard Lounge sucks, and most of the people who will be at this show probably think Paul Oakenfold is like an ugly Robbie Williams or something, but the guy basically started Madchester, introduced the concept of Raves to England, and was like the first dude to ever party in Ibiza. That's worth noting. A friend of the late Tony Wilson is a friend of mine.

The Theater Fire/Mermaid Blonde (Lee Harvey's): Wildcat did a lil' interview with dude from Mermaid Blonde below, and I have to say that as much as I love to hate anything from Austin, I really dig the tracks I've heard from this guy-- quite noise, dreamy bedroom pop and a drugged out glaze are probably things you could say to describe MB's songs, and I wonder how this music might sound outside on a cool evening. Guess you can find out if you want.... I just might.

Bridges and Blinking Lights/Red Monroe/George Neal/Matthew and the Arrogrant Sea (Rubber Gloves): CD release party for Bridges and Blinking Lights.

Denton County Revelators are playing at Campus Barber Shop on Fry St. at 5:30... free BBQ will supposedly be included.

Lyrics Born/Underdawgs (The Loft)

SUNDAY

AIDS Wolf/Undoing of David Wright/El Paso Hot Button/Church of the Snake/Pretty Vacant DJs (Public Trust): Public Trust really knocks it out of the fucking ballpark this weekend. First The Evens, now this. For all the talk of how noisy AIDS Wolf is, they are surprisingly accessible. Comparable 90's act Harry Pussy were much more erratic when I heard them again recently. In other words, go see this show even if you think it might be that kind of music or just formless noise shit. You might be pleasantly surprised. There will also be a "one night only" exhibition of work from the group's poster making outfit, Seripop, which would be worth attending even if all these great bands weren't performing. Seripop's output has looked a little cleaner lately, but no less interesting or bizarre. We've covered the live activities every other act playing here on a regular basis, but I wanted to add that it's cool to see Pretty Vacant playing as well. Shows at the Public Trust aren't always of the greatest sound quality in the world, but the atmosphere is perfect.

(Defensive Listening contributed to this post)