October Concert Picks

The Dead Weather - Oct. 5 - House of Blues
Thursday - Oct. 15 - The Door
KMFDM - Oct. 21 - Granada Theater
Senses Fail - Oct. 23 - Granada Theater
Tiesto - Oct. 24 - Palladium Ballroom
Brand New and Thrice - Oct. 30 - Palladium Ballroom

September Concert Picks

She Wants Revenge - 9/10 - Granada Theater
The Mars Volta - 9/16 - Palladium Ballroom
Billy Talent - 9/30 - The Loft

July Concert - Picks

Warped Tour - July 5 - Superpages.com

Rise Against, Rancid, and Billy Talent – July 16 – Palladium

Poison the Well – July 19 – The Door

Nekromantixs – July 25 – House of Blues

VNV Nation - July 27 - Granada Theater

Rancid - Let the Dominoes Fall

Since the day Rancid's latest album "Let the Dominoes Fall" came out it hasn't left my cars cd player. "Let the Dominoes Fall" isn't going to when you over if your not already a fan of the band. But if you are "Let the Dominoes Fall" will be everything you are looking for in a new Rancid album. This albums represents everything I like about Rancid. Catchy, up beat, fast songs that make you want to sing along and jump around. Most of the songs have something to say about the state of the world today. They cover everything from the war in Iraq to the struggling economy. Some particularly strong songs are Disconnected, East Bay Night and my personal favorite You Want It, I Got It. All I can say is that if like punk rock go out and buy this cd right now!! For info on Rancid visit the bands myspace page at www.myspace.com/rancid

RANCID: "Last One To Die" video

Marilyn Manson - The High End of Low

Marilyn Manson has been one of my favorite musicians since I was in high school. I own all of his albums and have seen live multiple times in a number of cities. So I could hardly wait to get my hands on his newest release "The High End of Low." The album had been hyped quite a bit on the internet because of the return of Twiggy Ramirez and a quote form Manson comparing it to the "Antichrist Super Star." Sadly the "The High End of Low" does not live up to the hype. Its not a horrible album by any means. It is just not all that good either. Twiggy's influence on the sound of the album goes along ways. The thing that weakens the album in my opinion are the lyrics. A majority of the album's lyrics are about having your heart broken and the pains and anger that comes along with it. I hate to say it; but Manson has gone a little "emo" with this album. There are a few gems on the album that rank among Manson's best. "We're Americans" and "Leave a Scar" are two songs that come to mind. "The High End of Low" may be Manson's weakest album; but there is still enough for hardcore fans to warrant a purchase. For more enough on Marilyn Manson you can go to www.myspace.com/marilynmanson

June Concert Picks

June Concert Picks

New York Dolls - June 3 - House of Blues
Peaches - June 12 - Granada Theater
Chuck Ragan - June 21 - Prophet Bar
Futurefest - June 27 - Austin

May Concert Picks

Mad Sin - May 6 - House of Blues
Edgefest - May 9 - Pizza Hut Park
My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult - May 11 - Granada Theater
Fischerspooner - May 15 - Granada Theater
Isis - May 20 - Granada Theater
Benny Benassi - May 23 - Lizard Lounge

The Faint & A Little Bit of Ladytron @ the Granada

We arrived at the show kinda of late. I was a a little worried that we might miss the beginins of Ladytron's set. We lucked out and arrived when the were walking onto the stage. It wasn't long after though that things took a turn for the worst. Just as Ladytron was about to start there third song (it might have been there second or fourth) they started having technical difficulties. After a couple of minutes of trying to get there equipment to work they just walked off the stages. This is when I knew we were hosed. Sure enough after a couple of minutes later a roadie walked on to the stage and informed the crowd that Ladytron would not returning. Man that was a downer. I have been a fan of Ladytron for awhile now and this was my first opportunity to see them live. But hey, a little bit of Ladytron is better than no Ladytron at all. I figured the crowd would be a little out of it for The Faint. Luckly I was wrong. The atomosphere in the place was still realativly positve. The Faint played a really good set. The crowd was really into them and the bands energy reflected the crowds excitement. Their preformance made up for Ladytron having to cancel. For more info on the bands go to www.myspace.com/ladytron and www.myspace.com/thefaint

Taproot @ Wasted Space in Las Vegas, NV

After four days of saying we were going to go the Hard Casino; we finally did it. We went with the intentions to just drink and gamble. As well admire some of the music memorabilia they had on display. The coolest two items were a guitar used Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols and a suit worn by Prince on the Purple rain tour. Prince is a tiny man. While we walking around checking out the music memorabilia we learned that Taproot was going to play the club Wasted Space located in the casino area of the Hard Rock. I hadn't seen or heard anything new by Taproot since they were on tour for Gift many years ago. We were really more interested in checking out Wasted Space and Taproot gave us the excuse we needed. I have also always enjoyed experiencing the concert crowds in other cities. Wasted Space is a pretty awesome place. It has a tattoo parlor thing going on. As well as some pretty awesome designer art hanging on the walls and ceiling. The club was created by Carey Hart. The ex husband of the Pink. The show was packed. Everybody there seemed really into the bands. Taproot hadn't really changed that much since I saw them back in the day. Overall I enjoyed the show. I recognized a few of the songs form Taproots set. But for the most part it was my first time hearing many of the songs. For more info on Taproot visit there myspace page. www.myspace.com/taproot

Miyavi @ Anime Matsuri in Houston, TX

Miyavi is by far my favorite Japanese musician. As well as being one of my favorite all time guitarist. I was very surprised when I learned that Miyavi was a playing one of the smaller anime conventions in Texas. I never thought I would ever see him at a con. They only other time I have been able to see him preform was as the guitarist in SKIN at the Long Beach Arena a few years ago. This was my first chance to see him preform any of his solo material. As far as I could tell a majority of the people at the convention were to his him. The was really really long. As you can see form the video I found on YouTube posted below. You can even see me lying on the ground towards the end. We waited in line for close to five hours to get in. Its a good thing we did because they stopped letting people in to the hall once they hit the 2000 people max capacity. They pulled a little trick on every body once they got into the concert. Every body was all excited for the concert. Chanting Miyavi and what not. Then some goofy guy came on stage and told every body we had to watch the Showdown fighting game championships before Miyavi was gong to come on. I like fighting games so I thought it was kinda of neat to watch. Most of the people in the crowd didn't though. Finally after suffering through an incredibly boring Sagat vs Sagat match of SF4 it was time for Miyavi to come on. It was well worth wait and standing in line all day. Miyavi rocked the place. Well as much as you can "rock" an anime con. He played good mix of songs form through out his electic career. He knew a fair amount of English and chatted with crowd quite a bit. The only thing I was disappointed by was that he didn't play any of his acoustic stuff. He Miyavi had a very charismatic and flamboyant stage presence. Which is in lines with what I expected. For more info on Miyavi check out is myspace page. www.myspace.com/miyavi

April Concert Picks

It is a pretty good month for shows. Especially at the the Granada.

Miyavi - April 11 - Anime Matusri - Houston
The Faint & Ladytron - April 22 - Granada
The Horrors - April 25 - Granada
Dope - April 25 - Palladium Ballroom
Gaslight Anthem - April 28 - Granada
Napalm Death - April 29 - Ridglea Theater

Live Music Review: Senses Fail @ The House of Blues

I had been debating back and forth with my self on wither or not I wanted to go to this show. On one hand I really wanted to see Senses Fail. But they were not the head liners. On the other hand I really could care less about any of the other bands on the bill. I don't like The Hollywood Undead and Brokencyde is one of the worst bands I've ever heard. Haste the Day isn't too bad though. After talking it over with my brother we decided Senses Fail was worth siting through some really bad bands to see. We were right. Senses Fail was awesome, the crowd was awesome and the band talked mad smack about how bad the other bands on the tour were. Which was awesome. Senses Fail played a really long set for not being the head liner. Well over an hour. The band played all the songs I wanted to hear off of last years "Life Is Not a Waiting Room." Which made me happy because this was my first chance to hear these songs preformed live. They also played a good mix of songs of off there previous albums as well. If your interested in seeing Senses Fail for your self they will be coming back through town in July on this years Warped Tour. Which shaping up to be an awesome day. www.myspace.com/sensesfail

Live Music Review: Tricky @ The Granada

The middle of March is a good time to be a music fan in Dallas. A number of good bands play here either going to or from South by South West down in Austin. This is the case with Tricky. I have been aware of Tricky for a number of years. But never really paid much attention to him. I even saw him open for Tool many years ago in San Antonio. Over the last couple years I begin listening to more and more electronic and experimental music. During this process I rediscovered Tricky. If your a have fan of either Massive Attack or Portishead then you will probably be into Tricky. He played quite a long set. Much longer than I expected. He had a full band backing him which added to the experience. It was a pretty mellow show overall. Which was nice break form the wilder concerts I tend to go to.

March Concert Picks

Here are the concert picks for March. Enjoy!!

The Quakes – March 4 – Ridglea Theater
Infected Mushroom - March 7 - The Lizard Lounge
Tricky - March 16 - Granada Theater
Thursday - March 23 - Palladium
Senses Fail - March 25 - House of Blues
Mudvayne - March 28 - Palladium

Live Music Review - Bleeding Through @ The Ridgelea Theater

There are a lot of things I could say about Bleeding Through. I have seen them open for a number of bands including AFI, HIM and Marlyin Manson. But I have only seen them head line a show one other time. This time they were on tour for there newest album Declaration. An outstanding metalcore album if you haven't heard it yet. The lineup for this tour was supposed to quite good from what some friends told me. I didn't know very much about the opening bands but was pleasantly surprised by As Blood Runs Black. I went out and picked up there album the following day. The show was at Ridglea Theater. One of my favorite venues in the DFW area. Even though it is kinda of a dive. But thats the charm of the place. Bleeding Through played an awesome set. Not as long as I would have hoped. But they managed to play all the songs I wanted hear though. www.myspace.com/bleedingthrough

Thursday - Common Existence

Thursday is considered by many to one of the pioneering forces in the late 90's post hardcore scene. They were also one of the first bands to blaze a path for future emo bands in the mid 00's. I haved followed Thursday for many years now and I have found there albums to be hit or miss. At times they are brilliant and at times they are rather mundane. "Common Existence" is the Thursday album I have been waiting for. It has solidified the bands reputation as being one of the best. www.myspace.com/thursday

February Concert Picks

Here are this months concerts picks. Hope to see you there!

Gen-XX - The Church - 2/13
Cradle of Filth - House of Blues - 2/17
Bleeding Through - Ridglea Theater - 2/20
Ferry Cortsen - The Lizard Lounge - 2/21
Son of Sam - Red 7 in Austin - 2/27

Jeffree Star - Cupcakes Taste Like Violence

The subject of Internet phenomenon has always interested me. If Jeffree Star is anything; he is defiantly an Internet phenomenon. His latest outing "Cupcakes Taste Like Violence" is a mash up of him talking about being an Internet celebrity and his normal bisexual rants. The sound of this album has came a long ways since his first ep. The songs are sturctured better and have a more developed ectronic sound. You only need to listen to a couple of songs to find out if its going to be something you want to continue to listen to. www.myspace.com/jeffreestar

Live Music Review - Combichrist & Black Light Burns @ The Granada Theater

Combichrist has come along way since I first saw them open for KMFDM in 2006. Since that time the band held up a ruthless touring schedule. Building a loyal allegiance of fans across the world. Each time I have gone to see them the number of people at their show have doubled. The best way to describe a Combichrist show is energy. Not just from the band but from the crowd as well. The crowd knows the words to every song and is not afraid to sing along. The band that preformed before Combichrist was Black Light Burns. Fronted by Wes Borland. My brother turned me on to this band a couple of months ago. At first I was expecting to much from them. Mainly because I wasn't to impressed some of Borlands previous outings such as Limp Bizkit and Big Dumb Face. I was completely caught have guard by how good it was. The band has been in rotation on my Zune ever since. I have to give it to Borland though. He can put on a show. The opening band is also worth noting. Retard-o bot. I never thought I would see a band that was heavily influenced by Mindless Self Indulgence. At first I wasn't to into them. But as the set progressed the singer showed some charisma and me over. I forget to check how free memory was on my sd card before the show. Which wasn't much. Unfortunately we only able to recorded a couple songs from Black Light Burns set before we ran out of memory. I have post the videos below. Enjoy!!!

Top Ten Albums of 2008

Here they are my top 10 albums of 2008. When I first started putting the list together I had a hard time. I didn't really think 2008 was that strong of a year for new music. It was an amazing year as far as concerts go. But after going over my most listened to cds on my Zune I realized that a number of really good albums came out this year. In the end I even had a few that didn't make the list.

My Top 10 Albums of 2008

1. The Matches - A Band in Hope
2. Dir en Grey - Uroboros
3. Senses Fail - Life is Not a Waiting Room
4. Cradle of Filth - Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder
5. Alkaline Trio - Agony and Irony
6. Miyavi - This Iz Japanese Kabuki Rock
7. Bleeding Through - Declaration
8. Nine Inch Nails - The Slip
9. Thrice - Air and Earth
10. Mindless Self Indulgence - IF