Fine Line: February, 2007

Um…Leslie?

No…no…wait…um…Ally?….

WTF? Hunter?…hold me….

If you’ve been knockin’ on Sam’s door and he doesn’t seem to be at home, not to worry. The lad has been having server wars, but he’s still alive and kickin’ – Click Here

Bobinsky reports great news from camp Gimarc…

…And among the pieces is one called “Tiny Tunes: Forget the drum solo — Radio SASS pares songs down to the bone.” Hey, lookit that. We know what Radio SASS is: It’s the “Short Attention Span System,” pioneered and patented by none other than George Gimarc, the Rock and Roll Alternative hisself who debuted the format on Unfair Park the first week in September, when he tried to sell his brainchild to radio-station execs who were in town for the Radio & Records Convention and the National Association of Broadcasters’ annual Radio Show convention at the Anatole. And what is SASS’s format again? One in which no song lasts longer than two minutes — yeah, even “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.” Like I said in September, imagine your favorite song reduced to verse-chorus-verse-adios without the dickin’-around guitar solos and wankin’-off drum solos…

Yessireeindeedy, George did make his highly anticipated cut in Wired and the rest, as they say, will be history. Click here to finish-up what Robert started.

Back in January, Mr. Gimarc kindly welcomed me and Reid into his lovely home for a chat. If you click here you can take a listen and a gander.

Okay, so I’m a sucker for a healthy band competition. ‘Specially the kind I don’t have to sit through a gazillion hideous bands to get to one good ‘un. So I’ve been watching in horror at the beating my Midlake boys are taking from The Coffee Nods.

I was just over at BlahBlah inquiring as to exactly whom these “Coffee Nods” were and how they could possibly be leading in their Midlake match-up (29.80% to 70.20%). Whaaaaa…?

MySpace found my answer.

The Coffee Nods are a new version of an old idea: music that is fun and sounds good. They harken back to what some call the “golden age” of rap music, but it’s really more timeless than that label. However they might get described, the music is a breath of fresh air in this climate of bling, cling, and booty.

The Coffee Nods are lead by the astute story-telling ability of Benisanna, the fearless leader of the group. Behind him is a plethora of talented humans adding their little spice to our grown up soup.

I don’t know about you, but that last sentence makes me hungry for soup.

The Coffee Nod crew runs far and wide from producers, to emcees, to musicians, to just plain creative people who’s thoughts and input mix to create the best tasting rap music since rap tasted good to begin with

It seems this band is led by Big Ben Rogers (a Ticket regular), aka Benisanna and his pal DJ Theory. After taking a listen, I think I dig this band. Yep. Yep, I do dig ‘em. Will they replace my darling Midlake? Whaddayathink. But I’m most definitely a new Nods fan.

UPDATE: Theory pointed me to some video of the band’s live performance at TicketStock. Go here for your viewing pleasure.

“Grown” by The Coffee Nods

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If you, like me, missed both Grizzly Bear performances, not to worry. Chris over at GvB saves the day, yet again. Click here to watch a couple of suuuuuweeeet videos, shot by Rye Clifton, at the Good Records in-store.

Damn me and my recent non-show-going ways…

Hunter Hauk has cleared up some issues concerning the big big band battle voting. Click here for further instructions. Check out the rest of Quick’s BlahBlahBlahBlog for some interesting head-to-head results thus far.

Happy voting…

“Miss Sugar Pie” by Johnny Lloyd Rollins

“Avenue” by Salim Nourallah

The Chemistry Set Live at Haileys’ Recorded by The Fine Line

“Hope is Calling” by Fishing for Comets

Well lookie lookie at what fun Ms. Allison V’s life has been as of late. Photographer extraordinaire, and damn fine friend, just got 2 of her “Marfa Texas Series” picked up for permanent residency at The Dallas Museum of Art. That, my friends, is one helluva big deal.

In other news, AVS hung out with the wondrous David Byrne recently too. She’s gold I tells ya, Gold!

I’m guessin’ ’twas about 5 years ago or so that I stumbled upon Ohio-based Two Cow Garage. Chaz and I had ‘em on our show on TexasRadio1 and I thought to myself at the time, “self” I said, “these kids are really gonna make it big.” And for the most part they have – in an independent working their collective asses off sort of way. Two Cow is a band that truly epitomizes the life of the struggling, touring, hard-working independent band. They’s good kids and I catch their shows every chance I get.

So back in 2004, a fella named John Boston made a decision to chuck everything and follow Two Cow around for a solid year, documenting it all on video. That’s how “”The Long Way Around: One Badass Year With Two Cow Garage.” came to be…

This feature length documentary follows Columbus, Ohio rock band Two Cow Garage as they record, release and tour behind their second album entitled “The Wall Against Our Back.” Incorporating interviews, studio footage, live performances, touring life and day job dues, the film presents the reality of the fabled “rock and roll life” as it is for most bands in the indie music world: long drives, small audiences, bad food, loud guitars… too many smokes, not enough cash, annoying harp players… the hope of breaking even, the frustration of breaking down… doubt, passion, sleep deprivation and the determination to keep rockin’ through it all.

Shot on digital video during the course of one year and produced on a tiny budget, “The Long Way Around” celebrates the D.I.Y. ethos in both its content and creation. The film takes the spirit of the 80′s underground puck documentary “Another State of Mind” and combines it with the style of more recent rock docs like “Year of The Horse” and “Westway To The World”. The result is an unglamorized portrait of a young band struggling to make its mark… one album at a time… one gig at a time… one mile at a time.

“The Long Way Around” had several screenings in St. Louis, Winston-Salem, Buffalo, Chicago and Columbus, and is currently available on DVD via the band’s website: www.twocowgarage.com In June of 2006, Whiskey Bender Productions began providing exclusive video content to the music website Glorious Noise. In the first four months, we produced eight short features on bands such as The Dirty Pretty Things, Deadstring Brothers, Tim Easton, Marah and The Blacks. You can view these features (and future productions) at: www.gloriousnoise.com

The documentary features our very own Brent Best and Matt Pence during the time TCG recorded at The Echo Lab in Denton.

You gotta couple of shots to see the band live comin’ up in March…I’ll meetcha there…

Tuesday, March 13th
Beerland
Two Cow Garage / Mike Damron & Thee Loyal Bastards / Grand Champeen
Will I be there? You betcher sweet ass!

Wednesday, March 14th
Mother Egan’s
Two Cow CD Release w/Mic Harrison / Miranda Sound / Mike Damron and Thee Loyal Bastards / Tommy Womack / Tim Easton / The Drams
Will I be there? You betcher sweet ass!

Go here to check out some sweet, sweet tuneage and to view more Texas dates. Be sure and pick up Two Cow’s third, and from what I’ve heard, finest, album III. The street date release is April 24th, but you can get a head start here.

The Long Way Around

So Saturday I ventured over to the new Bill’s Records location to check on Bill and see how the store is coming along. It’s most definitely coming along swimmingly. It’s a really cool, hip little joint, complete with room for a stage – so all eyes forward for upcoming Fine Line in-store extravaganzas. Don’t let the “coming soon” on the banner fool ya. Bill is open for bidness all the day long…

Enter Bill’s, just a skip and a jump next door to Poor David’s Pub

The entry way is decorated with lots of Bill’s nostalgia

…more…

A nifty new front desk

…and then came the CDs…

…and the vinyl…

…and the posters…

This is where the stage will be built…and the magic will ensue…

This past Saturday, Reid Robinson, Frank Campagna, Hal Samples and I met with our future Mayor Zac Crain over at Adair’s. This was a very informal round-table discussion about Dallas, Deep Ellum, the current state of City Hall, local music and Zac’s ideas as to how to better our city and even a Simpson’s reference.

The bar-keep at Adair’s turned the jukebox up to full blast about midway through our talk – but Zac still comes through loud and clear.

Now let’s go “Inside the Mind” of Zac Crain. It’s a 2-parter cuz he’s got lots to say..

Inside the Mind – Zac Crain – Part One

Inside the Mind – Zac Crain – Part Two

Frank Campagna adds Zac’s Campaign Logo to the legendary walls of Adair’s Saloon

There ’tis

Vote!

“Luzern” by Pleasant Grove featured on the Crain For Mayor Compilation CD

“Our Love” by Red Monroe – featured on the Crain For Mayor Compilation CD

You think deciding on the best show to go this weekend is tough…check out the little competition QuickDFW has cooked-up. Bands going head-to-head include such FineLine faves such as Theater Fire, Centro-Matic, American Werewolf Academy, Jayson Bales, The Angelus, Steve Austin, Shanghai 5, Deathray Davies, Collin Herring, Calhoun, Black Tie Dynasty, The Strange Boys, Record Hop, Fishing for Comets, [DARYL], The Hourly Radio, PPT, Baboon, Teenage Symphony, Smile Smile, Midlake, Money Waters, Bosque Brown, Radiant, Johnny Lloyd Rollins, Strange Fruit Project, The Drams, Robert Gomez, Shibboleth, Mr. Pookie and Mr. Lucci, Spitfire Tumbleweeds, Saboteur, Salim Nourallah, Current Leaves, Sorta…sigh…what to do…what to do…

Quick is proud to announce its first-ever March Madness battle of the bands. Check it out online (quickdfw.com) and see if you made the cut.

Basically we put together a bracket like the NCAA basketball tournament, with 64 bands, rappers, singer-songwriters, etc. You can see the matchups in print tomorrow, and you can already vote online at QuickDFW.com.

You can vote (as many times as you like) for each matchup online. The winners of Round 1 advance to the next round, and so on, until we get to the final matchup.

Who’s the top band, rapper or singer-songwriter in town? Here’s your chance to have your say. We made a list of 64 of the top artists in the area. We split them into four brackets to mirror the NCAA basketball tournament. Yes, we know we left lots of bands out. And yes, we’re sorry about that. You can vote (as many times as you like) for each matchup. Winners of each round advance to the next round, and so on, until we get to the final matchup.

* Round 1 begins Feb. 27 and ends March 5.
* Round 2 (32 bands left) begins March 6 and ends March 12.
* Round 3 (the sweet 16) begins March 13 and ends March 18.
* Round 4 (the elite eight) begins March 19 and ends March 22

* Round 5 (the final four) begins March 23 and ends March 28.
* The championship matchup begins March 29 and ends April 3. We’ll crown a winner after that.
* What do the winners get? Braggin’ rights. Lots and lots of braggin’ rights.
Any questions or comments, e-mail us at quicknews@quickdfw.com.

The championship matchup begins March 29 and ends April 3. We’ll crown a winner after that.

What do the winners get? Braggin’ rights. Lots and lots of braggin’ rights.

We hope you’ll help us get the word out, and have your friends, family and fans vote.

Should be interesting to watch as the pairings are unusual to say the least…like…Money Waters or The Feds…or Bosque Brown or Fat Bastard…or…well, you go check it out for yourownself…

Here are a few we have here on file at The Fine Line…

“85 Feet and Falling” by Sorta

“Breaking Glass” by Baboon

“Fiddleback Weaver” by The Theater Fire

“Roscoe” by Midlake

“That Girl” by Radiant*

“Dead Skunk” by Spitfire Tumbleweeds

“The Same Sad Song” by Robert Gomez

“Sad Song” by Smile Smile

Teenage Symphony – “Our Best Days are Behind Us”

“Frustrated” & “Work it Out” by PPT

“Dead Man in a Motel” by Shanghai 5

…More to come…

The party is ON today at Adair’s! Yep, even ol’ FineLineLiveherownself is gonna venture south for some crawdaddies and some Eleven Hundred Springs.

Come. Eat. Drink. Dance. Delight.

Sunday, February 25th
Adair’s Saloon
2 PM – The Crawfish Boils Commences
5 PM – Eleven Hundred Springs Takes the Stage
Free!

“Raise Hell Drink Beer” by Eleven Hundred Springs

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Now this here, kids, is a show that should not be missed. I would so be there if I hadn’t made promises elsewhere. Check it…check it good…

Sunday, February 25th
Hailey’s
Callithump Productions Presents:
The Happy Bullets / Tacks, the Boy Disaster / Bosque Brown
You will so thank me in the morning…
Doors at 9 PM – $6.00

“Disquieting Letter” by the Happy Bullets

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Getcher ‘puter on tonight at the Double-Wide…

Sunday, February 25th
Deathmatch #12 – Laptop Deathmatch
9 PM – $5.00
No Need to Bring Your Mouse

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More Good Stuff:

Gypsy Tea Room
Mewithoutyou & Sparta / Aloha
Doors at 7 PM – $13.00

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Barley House
Hilarity shall ensue with funny-men on-stage
Dave Little / Mark Agee / Paul Varghese / Aaron Aryanpur
10 PM

“Bad Ass” by Dave Little

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Granada Theater
Musiq Soulchild / DJ Viz
Doors at 7 PM – $20.00

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White Elephant Saloon
Justin Frazell takes his hit show Live From the Front Porch back to Cowtown!
Wade Bowen / Ryan Turner
6 PM

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Radio Sunday…

The Adventure Club on KDGE 102.1 The Edge with the wicked awesome Josh Venable – starts at 6 PM

The Local Show on KDGE 102.1 The Edge with the always hot ‘n hunky Chris Ryan – Tune in at 9:00 PM

The Front Porch on 99.5 The Wolf with the better ‘n buttah Justin Frazell – 6:00 PM

The Good Show on KTCU – 88.7 FM with my fave 3 stooges Tom U. Tony Diaz & Chris Bellomy starts at 9:00 PM.

90.1 at Night with my mentor Paul Slavens – 8-10 PM

Uncut with DJ Steve Nice – The absolute best in local Rap/Hip-hop/R&B 8 PM.

Rampage Radio Hosted by Jessie on 89.3 KNON. – You’ll hear an eclectic mix such as the Sex Pistols to Johnny Cash – Midnight to 4 AM

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News:

The Meridian Room Reports…

Attention Artists! Hang your art on our walls! Our next show isn’t for three more weeks, so here’s the deal: You keep 100% of what you sell. You hang it yourself (with your own tools) this Sunday night (as in today)…or maybe Monday afternoon if you’re really, really cool…

Email Simon at mcdonald.simon@gmail.com. I’m not an expert, but first decent response (i.e. not tracings of Bob Ross masterpieces) gets first dibs. All others get forwarded to Andrea (who books our art openings) for future consideration. We do cool stuff for openings here, they can be great if you invite all your friends to eat the free food we put out…

The walls are bare and it’s depressing in here… change it today!!!

Love

Simon & Mike

P.S. like I said, you keep 100% of what you sell…

Please join The Fine Line today at Adair’s for an open forum “interview” with Mayoral candidate, Zac Crain. Your voice will be – literally – heard, as the gathering will be recorded and posted here on Monday.

I know what your are thinking, “but Cindy, you are so obviously supportive of Mr. Crain, will this just be a big love-fest with no real hard-hitting conversation?” No. It’s true, Zac has my vote. But I plan to keep my trap relatively shut – with the exception of a few things I’m curious to hear Zac’s thoughts and ideas. This is a forum for you, the voters, to come out and find out why Zac Crain should get your vote. Ask what you wanna. He’s an honest guy and has some honest-to-Gawd good ideas to ship-shape this city. This is a very casual, laid-back forum. Hell, I’m half in it for the great Adair’s burgers and a cold beer.

No more bitchin’ about the problems facing Deep Ellum or the need for more Police officers, or the state of the DISD or the mess that is the Trinity River Project. Come on out and let’s try to do something about it.

Specifics:

Saturday, February 24th (that’s today kids)
Adair’s
2 PM
Inquisitive Panel Includes: Reid Robinson / Hal Samples / Frank Campagna, DJ Sista Whitenoise and YOU!

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Later tonight you simply must go….

And/Or Gallery Show #8:
Chad Hopper + John Michael Boling and Javier Morales

Our second showing of painting and collage by Austin-based Chad Hopper, and one of the first gallery shows of the quickly rising video and net artist team from New York, John Michael Boling and Javier Morales.
February 24th – March 31st
opening reception Saturday, February 24th 6pm-9pm

www.andorgallery.com
4221 Bryan St. Ste B

Double-Wide
The Strange Boys / Faceless Werewolves / A Few Nice Things
10 PM – $5.00

Darkside Lounge
KNON Rampage Radio 3-Year Anniversary Party!
Sawed off Sick / Dead City Shakers / Dog Company
Doors at 9 PM – $6-$8

The Granada Theater
Midlake / St Vincent / Tacks, the Boy Disaster
Doors at 8 PM – $14.00

The Cavern
The Laughing / Prayer for Animals / The Lemurs / The Flashlight Party – Upstairs – Zoo: The Video DJ
Doors at 9 PM – $5-$7 or free with Midlake Ticket
With special guest DJ Eric from Midlake

Barley House
Shibboleth / Big Loo
Free

Poor David’s Pub
Eastwood / Bruce Robison
8 PM – $15.00

Dan’s Silverleaf
Lumberjack Festival
Doors at 5 PM – $7
Performing:
12:45-1:30 – Spitfire Tumbleweeds
11:50-12:30 – jetscreamer
11:00-11:35 –Current Leaves
10:10-10:45 – RTB2
9:20-9:55 – Pinebox Serenade
8:30-9:05 – Chris Flemmons
8:10-8:30 – Katy Margolis
7:30 – 8:00 – Stanton Meadowdale
6:45 – 7:15 – Isaac Hoskins
6:25 – 6:45 – Jason Ashbaugh
5:45-6:15 – Big ol Bastards
5:25 – 5:45 – Jeff Moore

Hailey’s
Black Tie Dynasty / The Burning Hotels / Comrade
Doors at 9 PM – $5.00

Secret Headquarters
The Great Tyrant / Zanzibar Snails
8 PM – $3.00

Wreck Room
Albatross / LaSubida / For Those who Know / Little Black Dress
9 PM

ED. NOTE:

Saturday, February 24th The Fine Line will host an open forum with Mayoral candidate Zac Crain. Any and everyone welcome! Bring your questions, your concerns, your ideas and join us! If you simply cannot make it, I’ll have the full audio posted here on The Fine Line by Monday.

Saturday, February 24th
Adair’s Saloon
2 PM
Panel includes Reid Robinson / Hal Samples / Frank Campagna and YOU!

I’m quite honestly sick to death of Deep Ellum talk. But I do have a wee bit of care and concern for this city, where I was born and raised, where my parents were born and raised, and where my children were born and continuing to raise. The above picture circulated through the halls of MySpace, and several were sent to my inbox. Dunno where it’s from, who drew it, what the real plans are…nada. But I do have concerns about the historical integrity of what little is left of our fair city.

I was glad to see Bobinsky talk about history and intergrity and pride once again over at Unfair Park. My admiration for Robert and his efforts grows on an hourly basis. – Go read. Comment.

The post drew comments far and wide, most of which were rah-rah comments about grabbing a friend and going to Deep Ellum tonight! or tomorrow night! or last night! or whenever. I hate to break it to ya kids, but pouring our hard-earned cash into Club Dada ain’t going to save an entire neighborhood/community/business/arts district. Sure, we can all meet up at the Double-Wide tonight and hoist a few whilst listening to fine tuneage. We can each drop a cool $100.00 on booze and parking. But how does that really help all the vacant buildings, or change the minds and hearts of non-caring landlords, or fill those crumbling pieces of history with MORE businesses that could potentially attract others like us? The answer lies in the hands of landlords, building owners, city officials and the tremendous need for retailers, restaurateurs, well-managed music venues, etc.

Another thing about existing music venues, how’s about you club owners try to do something to attract more folks – like relatively comfortable seating. Earlier shows. Drink specials. Maybe it’s the ex-flight attendant/luxury camping owner in me, but why not spiff things up a bit and make the clubs more welcoming? I’m probably the only one in town who despises the Gypsy Tea Room. I’ve never had a pleasant experience in the Tea Room nor the Ballroom. The staff should have “asshole” imprinted on their black t-shirts. You have to stand during entire shows. Drinks are overpriced. Parking…sheesh… I’ve been to shows for my own personal pleasure, I’ve taken carloads of teenagers to shows there on many an occasion and I’ve recorded and interviewed bands there numerous times. I always walk out pissed. Same with Curtain Club, Trees, Clearview…standing room only, crap parking, surly employees, smoky, dirty, sticky. Not a pleasant experience.

If club owners want to attract more people, then they need to CATER to more people. I’m most definitely not a target customer for Deep Ellum venues. I’m a middle-aged mother of 2 living in the ‘burbs. I suppose if I hadn’t started booking The Lonelies back in the day, or birthed a budding young metal-head who gigs regularly at The Door, I may have never ventured back into Deep Ellum past 1995 – unless it was a show at Sons or Adair’s with TFG. However, if there were charming shops (there were, but they didn’t last long), perhaps a mini-farmer’s market, daytime live music, inviting outdoor dining, more galleries – all housed in those splendid original buildings, I’d have been down there all the damn time. If there were shows that started earlier and ended earlier at venues that were clean, welcoming, friendly and provided a chair – I’d have gone. And so might my PTA-Ralph Lauren Wearing-Cosmo-Drinking cohorts here in the Northern corners of Big D.

It’s like a vicious circle. Deep Ellum needs tenants. Tenants need fair, affordable and easier ways to lease commercial space. Tenants also need customers. Customers need more than one or two places to shop in order motivate a trip to Deep Ellum. What to do…what to do….

So I ventured down to Deep Ellum this morning, the first time in a couple of months, and snapped a few pics to show just exactly why Deep Ellum is “dying” and “empty” and in need of more than a bunch of music lovers filling the pockets of the few live music venues left. We have to keep in mind that Deep Ellum isn’t just about live music. It’s a community that needs attention. It’s a part of our history (musically and otherwise) that needs care, repair and respect.

I can tell you this, however, that a vote for Zac Crain is a vote for salvaging what’s left of Deep Ellum and making positive changes that don’t include The Gap. Zac speaketh. You readith.

The below pictures show buildings that sit empty, either for lease or not for lease, but vacant nonetheless. I’d say that this is about 1/8th of what is vacant on Main, Commerce and Elm. I was in the car, fighting morning traffic, so I got what I got…

I took this on the M-Streets off Lower Greenville – don’t even get me started on what they are doing to Lower Greenville and Lakewood…sigh…

All eyes on Unfair Park for late-breaking updates on the status of all things Deep Ellum – and more. Meantime, here are a few suggestions that might whet your Deep Ellum whistle this weekend…

Friday

Kettle Art
Tangible Transience Continues with
recent work by Ansen Seale
7-10 PM