It List: Wednesday

Bad Taste (Art Six): So for the past couple of weeks we've really been diggin' on a song called "Can I Keep Her" from a new Denton singer/songwriter who goes by the name of Bad Taste. The "punk" or plugged in version of the song (you can hear it on the Myspace page) is a surprising and excellent bare bones track that draws heavily from the Stooges and the Misfits while managing to throw in a few touches of swirling distorted guitars in the background a la My Bloody Valentine and Catherine Wheel (listen with headphones if you want to hear what I'm talking about). We think he'll be playing acoustic tonight for the first ever Bad Taste performance, and we're interested to see where he can take some of his heavier material. Bad Taste goes on at 8pm sharp, and I believe this is FREE.

Lupe Fiasco/Optimus/Sessions (House of Blues): I have to admit that I haven't heard any new material from Lupe Fiasco, but dude brought the De La/Tribe flavor back to the forefront of hip hop quite successfully with singles like "I Gotcha" and "Kick Push," which happened to be the coolest hip hop skateboarding track this side of "Deeper Shade of Soul." The best part was that none of it sounded derivative. A great MC with lots of style and an ear for both history and the future. Hip hop shows are more often miss than hit in my experience, but I could see this one being an exception.

It's What We Get (Hailey's)

Taxi Fare (Zubar)

Cartright/Paleo/Audrey Lapraik (Rubber Gloves): I remember being pretty amazed back in 06' when I saw a room full of people singing along to Cartright's songs at the long lost Yellow House on multiple occasions. Pretty good times. But of course, some of us here at WSJR HQ don't have any patience for Cartright at all, and there is probably something to be said for that perspective too. It's amazing what a lot of beer and a good party can do for a band or a song or a sound or a moment in time. I don't know, you've probably already made up your mind about that guy anyway.