Probably the biggest show of the week is tonight (Wednesday), when Telegraph Canyon and Dawes take the stage at Casa Mañana (3101 W. Lancaster Av., 817-332-2272). Catch Telegraph while you still can. Frontman Chris Johnson and company will be taking a break soon to begin recording the follow-up to their last album, the brilliant The Tide and The Current, at Ramble Creek in Austin.
Twiddling the knobs will be The Tide and The Current production team of Will Johnson (frontman for Centro-matic and South San Gabriel) and Britton Beisenherz. In a few months, in anticipation of the release, Telegraph Canyon will also put out a 7-inch. In between recording sessions, Chris Johnson will be pursuing his side project, Pelicanstate, a collaboration with Mike Sempert from San Francisco’s Birds & Batteries, a band with which Telegraph has played several shows. Pelicanstate –– a reference to the state bird of Johnson’s native Louisiana –– promises to be electronic and poppy where Telegraph is organic and orchestral. Good seats for the Casa Mañana show are still available. Doors open at 7 p.m.
The Telegraph/Dawes show won’t be the last non-theatrical production presented at Casa Mañana, according to theater spokesperson Darcy Koch, though no future shows have been scheduled yet. “We plan on getting a great mix of musical offerings,” Koch said. “The intimate feel of the 1,000-seat house makes it ideal for concerts.”
To the list of DIY venues that includes 1919 Hemphill, The Where House, and The Gallery at Lander’s Machine Shop, we can add Doc’s Records & Vintage (2111 Montgomery St., 817-732-5455), a good ol’ fashioned record store and vintage clothing shop on the West Side. Doc’s moved to its current location just north of I-30 about a year ago after thriving in HEB for years and now has a barn out back that’s ideal for intimate shows. There have been shows there in the past –– two weekends ago, about 40 people came out for a performance by the Mid-Cities’ rowdy Spanish Inquisition –– but nothing regular. However, Jenkins Boyd, who co-owns the business with his father, Jerry Boyd, wants the space to be fully operational. “At some point, we will be a music venue,” Jenkins said. Hosting shows, he added, “is cool, fun. We want to have people come out and play –– free food, free beer –– and make it a good time for everybody.” The Boyds are currently saving up money for the project. “It costs a lot,” Jenkins said. The Boyds hope to have the barn completely finished by the end of this year. The next scheduled show is an in-store in August. Between now and then, though, Jenkins said, “If someone wants to play, we’ll make an event out of it.”
Larry Joe Taylor and Fort Worth’s Phil Pritchett will headline a show on Sun., Aug. 8, at Billy Bob’s Texas (2520 Rodeo Plaza, in the Stockyards, 817-624-7117) to benefit the family of Ruben Martinez, a Ben E. Keith delivery driver who was shot during a crime spree in June and died on Monday. All proceeds will go to Martinez’ pregnant wife and 6-year-old son.
Contact HearSay at hearsay@fwweekly.com.
