1) I wouldn’t be surprised if the Built to Spill/Afghan Whigs show at House of Blues on Thursday night is sold out, but I’m gonna list it anyway, in case you’re a fan and you didn’t know about this show, which seems unlikely because both of those classic indie rock bands have a pretty devoted following, seeing as how they’ve been around for forever and all. The show starts at 7pm. Try your luck with the ticketing situation here; otherwise, enjoy this Built to Spill video – you bet it’s a super long version of their “Cortez the Killer” cover!
2) Need a reason to go to the Curtain Club? How about Fu Manchu on Thursday night? Along with bands like Kyuss and Yawning Man, Fu Manchu helped make the ’90s Palm Desert rock scene a thing, as well as expanding the concept of “stoner rock” to a mainstream audience, as much as that was possible anyway. Mos Generator and Speedealer round out this bill. Doors are at 8, show starts at 9, and it’s 18+. Here’s a live version of a song off their new album:
3) Be sure to wash your Star Wars gear by Friday, because MASS has a “May the Fourth Be with You” fest that night. It’s only four bands, so I hesitate to call it a festival, but at least the Star Wars motif will be in full, um, force, as one of the bands is named Millennial Falcon, and another is a ska punk band, and everyone knows that ska punk bands are usually at least 50% nerds, and nerds love Star Wars like a Hutt loves cake (made out of some kind of slimy frog creature snatched from a gross bowl). Local punks Dead Words are the headliner (who have a song about the original trilogy called “Space Bear,” which makes me laugh, because that’s what the fucking Ewoks are, right?), emo folk Better Now play at 11, How’s My Driving (the aforementioned ska punk band) are at 10, and Millennial Falcon (who are from Portland, OR and have a recording about the Crow’s ill-fated star Brandon Lee open the night. Here’s the trailer for Solo. I can’t wait to see this movie!
4) Saturday is Cinco de Mayo, and while the Mexican holiday is typically used by bars and restaurants to push margaritas and Tecates, Fort Worth’s 3rd-annual taco fest aims to actually celebrate Mexican culture rather than sell a bunch of Patrón shots to frat guys. Called El Fuerte (the Fort), the all-ages fiesta is once again at Panther Island Pavilion, and it features dozen of different tacos from all over the city, as well as performances by mariachi bands and more. Admission starts at $15 (there’s a VIP ticket that costs more), and the event goes from noon to 6pm. You can also buy tickets here.
5) Say what you want about Fat Mike, but he’s stuck to his guns for over 30 years now, and even at the ripe old age of 51, that mohawk continues to flop over his smug, shit-talking visage. On Sunday, and his band (NOFX, in case you’re like 11 years old or something and don’t know who Fat Mike is) are headlining the Punk in Drublic Craft Beer and Music Festival at Panther Island Pavilion on Saturday, along with Bad Religion, the Interrupters, the Mad Caddies, the Last Gang, and some other bands that aren’t listed on the flyer. It’s sort of like Untapped minus the I-Think-Coachella-Sounds-Awesome-If-You-Couldn’t-Already-Tell-By-This-Ridiculous-Wide-Brimmed-Hat-I’m-Wearing factor, multiplied by hundreds of people who are champing at the bit to yell along with “The Brews,” which sounds like it’s about beer but is actually about people who wear a different sort of wide-brimmed hat. The fest starts at 1pm and is 21+. General admission is $39.95, or you can get a $99 VUP (Very Unimportant Person, because Fat Mike makes jokes like that) pass that gives you access to beer tasting and nicer bathrooms. All my hat jokes aside, you should wear one, as well as plenty of sunscreen, because Panther Island is a great spot to get hilariously sunburned. This is a karaoke version of “the Brews” in case you want to practice your festival singalonging:
FULL DISCLOSURE/WRITER BIO ALERT: per editorial suggestion, in addition to writing about music and other shit for the FW Weekly, I am an investor in a venue/bar called Main at Southside, colloquially known as MASS. I also bartend at the Boiled Owl Tavern, a bar that also hosts shows a few times a month. And, since we’re on the subject of warning you against what may be perceived as my own icky, unseemly self-promotion and/or conflicts of interest, I play bass in the following bands: Oil Boom (for a few more weeks, anyway), Son of Stan (SOS rides again this summer), Darth Vato (we appear a couple times a year). Sometimes I talk about one or more of those entities in this space, but I assure you that it has very little to do with my own vested interests; it just happens that the aforementioned venues and bands are part of the Fort Worth music scene, and this music scene is something I care very passionately about, as I have been part of it since 2002.
