DOMA Showcase “Review” (w/photo gallery)

by Erin Rice

Bartender, can I get a Long Island Ice Tea, a vodka tonic, and a crapload of bands playing all along one street in one night? Thanks.

If you were at the Dallas Observer Music Awards showcase last night on Greenville Avenue, then you probably understand why I'm posting this quazi-review so late. Let's just say, some of us are still recovering. As I attended the festivities for the purpose of just having fun, this will be a very light review. In any case, here goes.

DOMA Showcase 2007 Pictures

(Click photo to see entire gallery)

Max Cady

With something like 36 bands spanning six bars and six hours of music, this was definitely a great excuse to hit up Lower Greenville (now with fewer douche bags, but for one night only!). The first band we saw was Exit 380 at the Billiard Bar. One of the local groups that's starting to hit it big lately, Exit 380 is up for Best Hard Rock band. Despite a small venue and the accompanying small crowd (though the place was crowded), this quartet played like they were at the Curtain Club. They definitely rocked the place out and are a band I'll have to see again.

Following them we trekked over to catch the Backsliders set at What?Bar. This soulful rock group played a clean set and were very charismatic throughout. They're a fun band to watch and lead singer Kim Pendleton may or may not rock your socks off. Depends on how well you put your socks on each day. After half their set, we bounced next door to catch the end of Salim Nourallah and the Noise's show at Gezellig. I've said it before and I'll say it again, you really get the full experience of this band in a small venue where you can be surrounded by the noise (pardon) and the ambiance of the band's signature melodic pop rock. Salim and his Noise never disappoint.

FROM THERE we went back to the good ol' Billiard Bar. There was a clear distinction in the types of music that played at the various venues for the DOMA showcase yesterday. The line of distinction went like this: hard rock and metal bands = Billiard Bar; your more typical Observer-y bands = the other five bars. Probably a good idea not to mix those crowds. Not sure how the black t-shirted, tattooed freaks of Dallas would have liked Maren Morris or Rose County Fair (though talented, of course).

So, going forward with the theme, the next band to come on stage was Max Cady. This is one of those bridesmaid-but-never-the-bride-type bands in Dallas. They've opened up for a whole host of huge names in the hard rock and garage punk genres including Fu Manchu, Blue Oyster Cult, The Toadies, Local H, and the Breeders to name a few, and despite some spots on the Warped Tour and Ticketstock, they haven't quite gotten over the local hump. Hopefully this will all change with the release of their sophomore album, Gun Crime, on September 18. After getting to finally see them live for myself, it's clear they're on the verge. Max Cady puts together a no BS show that rocks from the start to the finish. They are definitely one of the harder local bands you must see in concert. And then, of course, there was Bob, the keyboardist (see photo gallery) who really brought it home.

Finally, sticking to our guns, we stayed at Billiard Bar for the last band of the night, Mitra. Talk about in your face metal, literally given the size of BBar. Let's just put it this way: Mitra does not f*** around. Throwing back to some solid 80's inspired metal riffs with a Southern twinge, these guys play like it's their last day on earth, and who knows, they look like they could party with the best of 'em so it might just be. In looking for more information on them after the show I ran across this gem of a quote about Mitra's music, courtesy of Slug Magazine:

"Mitra = Motorhead + Marijuana + Hieronymus Bosch. Here's a chronological recap of what happened when I first listened to "All Gods Kill." I was a decent person. I opened the CD, I put it in the player, and I instantly became evil. This is the sort of album that has the capacity to turn any good Christian into an unadulterated axe murderer... It makes Metallica look like a bunch of pussies and your average speed metal gods look like pretentious poseurs."

I was wondering where that end of the night urge to kill came from!

Max Cady, "Bob," and Brass Band photos taken by Kenneth Smith.