Never particularly agreed with Sam’s taste (championing local hip-hop was a step in the right direction in terms of coverage… just too bad Dallas hip-hop generally blows), but the floundering of the local scene is hardly his fault. He didn’t go out and start a hundred bad Spoon-wannabe indie bands (though he was too kind to them), nor did he start a thousand bad butt-rock acts – the two biggest crimes of the ‘scene.’

He was critical, as a reviewer and guardian of ‘the scene’ should be. (Personally, I thought he was less dismissive than past regimes – ‘sack of kittens’ anyone? oh how I miss that feature…)

Watch for the Observer to start importing even more coverage from the national New Times network – that’s how they cut costs. Paying someone editor-money for articles vs. paying someone in Duluth freelance money and printing it in a dozen papers nationwide. Don’t believe for a moment this will improve local coverage in any way.

That just cracks me up.

The Observer will roll on like it always has. Nothing will change. Sam will find a new job. The local music community will continue to rock or suck, depending on your perspective as it always has.

I can appreciate you standing up for someone you like though. Nothing wrong there I suppose. But seriously, it’s not a life or death situation. There are lots of lessons to be learned here folks. Pick you battles wisely.

Now go out and buy your favorite band a beer. That works for everybody involved. It’s the single greatest thing you can do for your local music scene. Everybody wins.

You know, there are quite a few good shows this week. How’s about everyone head out and see a show and support a band/local venue sometime between now and Sunday? Maybe even buy some merch and tip the bartender. Oh, and Friday is pay day!

I bet Cindy and Amanda will tell us who’s where when…

Thank God! What you all did not know is that Sam spent his entire professional career reviewing VIDEO GAMES before his current (read: former) gig.

His taste in music generally sucks, and he doesn’t write well. He seemed like a good fit for the horsepussy publication we call the observer; maybe, they decided to go legit, and start by letting go of the game genie bitch in sheep’s clothes.

Hope we never have to read him again.

I’ll miss Sam’s writing, even the things I didn’t agree with. I would miss the writing of anybody that did what he did: praised what he thought was praiseworthy, bitched about what he thought was bitchworthy, and did both with what seemed to be little regard for the powers-that-be within this little music world we live in.

Oh, and who the heck is Belafonte? Am I really that out of touch?

People who bitch and moan about “no scene” in Dallas are discounting the freedom of the very blank slate they are whining about: make your own. A scene is what you make of it, just like a city — just like this city. Ripping on the tattered reputation of this city’s music scene (or those supposedly responsible for it) is the easy, lazy thing to do. Instead, do your part to repair it the way you’d like to see it restored.

Many people already are.

Above is reason #99 why I adore Paul…