I admit. I don’t go to as many local shows as I used to. I’m lazy, 1.), and 2.) I’ve seen pretty much every must-see band at least twice. But I still go out. I like drinking. A lot. And one of the perks of hanging out is hearing new tuneage before it’s officially released. At least once a week, I’ll be at a bar, getting my drink on and my smoke on, and I’ll run into some local musician who’ll either hand me a rough copy of his or his band’s new stuff or take me to his car and play new tracks for me.
Heard Calhoun‘s eponymous first album before probably anyone else that way. And Collin Herring‘s second album. And Goodwin‘s second one. More recently, I’ve heard a rough mix of The Burning Hotels‘ forthcoming EP (“Austin’s Birthday” should be on the radio now), a new song by Alan (a majestic romp about the sinking of a ship — or something), a four-track disc by My Wooden Leg (the alt-C&W solo project of Catfish Whiskey‘s Michael Maftean), and, perhaps most memorably, four new tracks from Merkin. I’m not normally a fan of mod-rock, the kind of self-serious sonic machismo played by dudes in guyliner and spun on The Edge. But Merkin’s new mod-rockers are killer: huge sound, huge hooks, and not-by-the-numbers song structures. Sitting there in frontman Joe‘s SUV outside The Grotto on University Drive last week, listening to the tracks, I said, “The Toadies would be proud” (or something like that), which the River Oaks trio rightfully took as high praise. For a taste, visit www.myspace.com/merkin. Or just hang out at The Grotto. The boys are always there, and they’re cool as hell. … Har Herrar is a new lo-fi project by singer-songwriter Justin Spike, who recently left Mount Righteous, the popular acoustic-rock mini-orchestra that he helped found. “I just felt I needed to move on to other things musically and in my life at large,” he wrote in an e-mail. He’s still putting the finishing touches on Har Herrar’s forthcoming debut album, This Knowledge, but will be performing the songs live on Monday, with Asbestos Mouth, at J&J’s Pizza (118 W. Oak St., Denton, 940-382-7769) and on Sat., May 30, at The Chat Room Pub (1263 W. Magnolia Ave., on the South Side, 817-922-8319), with New Science Projects and The Slow Burners. The music is clangy and bright, and Spike’s vocals are airy and unaffected, paying homage to both dark, outré ’60s songsmith Alexander “Skip” Spence and the lighthearted Dead Milkmen, plus certain points in between. “Jaywalker” is a waltz across Dave Edmund’s baritone guitar, “Of Time and Space” is a Beatles dirge, and the dramatic wig-flipper “Toy Ode Uh” recounts a particularly miserable tour experience. Raw versions of some of This Knowledge‘s tracks are up now at www.myspace.com/harherrar. … Jack FM, the closest thing terrestrial radio here has to an iPod, is going to be hosting showcases at the Longhorn Saloon (121 W. Exchange St., in the Stockyards). Some heavy-hitters are lined up. Stay tuned for more.
Contact HearSay at hearsay@fwweekly.com.
