After reading another depressing article about the ever-climbing cost of rent (this one was a Buzzfeed list, and the act of reading that particular content format compounded the depressing feeling), I got to thinking about how “more bang for your buck” is now more of a determining factor in consumer choice than ever, meaning that massive festivals with an exhausting number of acts written in the small font beneath the headliners are probably more appealing than they have any right to be. I don’t understand how the thousands of small-font bands got paid playing the So What?! Fest — held back in May at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington, featuring headliners like Sum 41, Hatebreed, and Rebecca “Friday” Black, of all people —but I guess if you forked over the $99 for a ticket to that thing, you ostensibly got your money’s worth.
I’m pretty cheap, so I did not fork over any money for that thing, but, in practice, I am indeed a fan of lots of performers on a bill for a reasonable price. This is a long way of saying that local comedian Brian Breckenridge is headlining a show at Addison Improv (4950 Beltline Rd, Ste 250, 972-404-8501) on Wed, Jul 13, that showcases six other up-and-coming comedians, and the general admission price is essentially $5 a person, built into a $10 table for two, $20 table for four, and $30 table for six. Before Breckenridge takes the stage, catch sets from Paulos Feerow, David Diaz, Vinnie Corales, Kyle Roberts, Emily Grefer, and CJ Landry. Tickets are available at the door or ImprovTx.com/Addison.
Other shows of note this week: Celebrated singer-songwriter James McMurtry will bring his wry tales of American life to Magnolia Motor Lounge (3005 Morton St, 817-332-3344) on Thu, with New Braunfels-born troubadour Jonny Burke opening, and doors to the show are at 7pm. Side note: McMurtry’s most recent album, 2021’s The Horses and the Hounds, is pretty darn good. This show will be a good one.
On Saturday night at MASS (1002 S Main St, 682-707-7774), the bill is heavy on industrial music. Why am I recommending this in the same paragraph as a literary, storied, venerable Americana artist? Because one of my favorite albums of all time is The Crow soundtrack, that’s why. Put on by a promo label called Distorted Heartbeat Productions, the show features Stoneburner, Apparatus, CHANT, Terrorvoid Complex, and DJ Joe Virus.
There’s also the Black Tie Dynasty show at Tulips FTW (112 St Louis Av, 817-367-9798) on Saturday (see: Music story), and it looks like you can still get GA tickets to it, in case you slept on them when the show was announced months ago.
Finally, if the price of rent has cut your going-out budget, Wayne Floyd’s biweekly Weird and Wild Waynesday songwriter showcase at MASS is on Wed, Jul 13, as well, and in terms of bang for buck, those shows are always full of unpredictable fun and surprise guests and are also totally free. I have yet to hear of an artist covering Rebecca Black, but you never know what’ll happen at those things. — Steve Steward
Contact HearSay at Anthony@FWWeekly.com.
