Big coup for the Aardvark, getting Reverend Horton Heat and 1100 Springs, two huge Dallas-based bands that have some history with Brian Forella, who owns both Lola’s clubs and the Longhorn and used to own the Wreck Room, where the Rev. and 1100 played zillions of times; a coup but not an entirely unexpected one, considering that Aardvark owner Danny Weaver plays in Holy Moly, a cowpunk outfit whose music falls somewhere between the Rev. and 1100. Holy Moly, BTW, will be touring Europe this summer, bringing the cowpunk to Belgium and Holland. Yee haw.
Tomorrow (Saturday) is the big Orbans/cut*off/Here in Arms (a.k.a. Brent Engel) show at The Moon. I like Engel. He’s Springsteen-y and Mellencamp-y, churning out tunes about regular guys and dolls in desperate situations, but not in any offensive or gratuitous way. I also like his no-nonsense and clear but musical vocal delivery. A lot of bands don’t realize how hard doing sincere music is until they try it. Well, they try it, realize they don’t have the chops or wherewithal to pull it off, and start an ironic garage-rock band, ‘cause they’re lazy or craven or both.
‘Weekly’ writers are gonna be all up in the Lola’ses this weekend. Ken Shimamoto’s Stoogeaphilia is playing Lola’s Sixth (2736 W 6th St, 817-877-0666) on Saturday with Bastardos de Sancho and One Fingered Fist. Eric Griffey’s Rivercrest Yacht Club is playing Lola’s Stockyards (121 W. Exchange Ave) on Saturday with Darktown Strutters. My band is playing in my head.
FREE TICKET GIVEAWAY
Catch moody alt-country purveyors Lucero on tour with the James Brownian Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears* at the Longhorn Saloon (121 W Exchange in the Stockyards, right by Lola’s) tomorrow (Saturday) … on the house. E-mail me at anthony.mariani@fwweekly.com for a pair of free tix. First come, first served. Valid ID will be required to pick up the tix at the door.
* Frontman has Mitch Ryder’s gritty, soulful pipes, the rhythms are funky, and the horns are huge. Dig the “Soulfinger” riff on BJL’s “Gunpowder.”
EDGEFEST
I’ve got nothing against mod-rock –– I’ve listened to several Green Day songs without puking and/or stabbing myself in the ears. I just think a lot of mod-rockers take themselves a little too seriously. Like that guyliner-wearing dude from Blue October. I remember the press info for one of his band’s albums talked about how he interviewed psych-ward inmates to get a feel of what it’s really like to be nucking futs. Like. Who cares, dude?! Just write good songs, and let your music do the talking! In his defense, though, the average teenager –– um, I mean, “average mod-rock fan” –– expects mod-rockers to be as dark in real life as they are in their always-dark songs. I’m not saying BO et al. aren’t complicit in the unrealistic images of themselves they’ve created, just that playing only to a certain core of fans is a great way to box out potential new listeners, including someone like me, a married thirtysomething dude who, for better or worse, has listened to more music and more kinds of music and has seen more shows than, like, 50 teenagers or 30 other thirtysomethings put together.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I won’t be going to Edgefest this weekend. Sharing the stage with BO at Pizza Hut Park out in Frisco will be fellow headliners Korn, 311, and Papa Roach, plus Shinedown, Taking Back Sunday, The Used, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, 10 Years, The Airborne Toxic Event, Anberlin, Electric Touch, Framing Hanley, Aranda, The Veer Union, and Saint Karla, a Dallas band that will open the festivities as the result of winning some sort of popular vote-slash-contest or something. Gates open at 11 a.m. tomorrow (Saturday). Tix are $29.50-49.50.
