Concert Review: Radiohead Tribute Night at Club Dada

by Erin Rice

Saturday night marked another in Method Entertainment's tribute series at Club Dada. The band we all paid homage and drank to was Radiohead. As is the case with every of John Solis' tributes, no songs were repeated, and all the bands on the lineup were in some way influenced by Radiohead in their musical upbringings.

Regrettably, I was unable to catch the first two acts, due to a day of punk and perspiration spent at Warped Tour.* Which is upsetting because I've yet to see The Felons, who came on at 10 p.m., but have heard so many good things about them. They are definitely on the list of bands to catch, which shouldn't be too hard to achieve, since they play at Club Dada pretty much every hour on the hour. Or, I guess, The Cavern too. This means I also missed Dylan Sneed's 9 o'clock acoustic set. I was told, however, that he picked some of the most difficult of Radiohead's songs and played them to frightening precision. The praise for his set was so glowing, in fact, that Sneed is also on the list with The Felons.

Taking the stage at 11 p.m. was Hendrick. Having seen Hendrick live before, including an in-office performance from Josh Hendrick, I was curious how the set would go. Though a young band, they have a sound that is ever-maturing, as one can derive from their latest album, We Share The Sky. It was that maturity, and a clear passion for Radiohead, that made their set unforgettable. The instrumentals were solid and spot on as far as I could tell. In addition, several of the songs they chose were rather difficult lyrically, and Josh Hendrick managed to nail each and every one of them. It was an impressive set, to say the least. More impressive still that they could fit six band members on that little stage.

To be clear, I myself am not a huge Radiohead fan. I can't list off their albums or song titles. I know few facts about the band. I like them, but I'm not obsessed with them. So I brought someone who was. A skeptical one at that ("I hope none of the bands play 'Creep.' It's Radiohead's worst song. Even Thom Yorke thinks so.") In any case, throughout the night my overly critical friend was nodding his head in appreciation, so I think even the most doubting Radioheads in attendance were pleased.

Finally, at midnight, Mr. Dallas music himself, Chris Holt, brought on stage with him members from The Slack and the All-Nighters, and Robert Holley from Airline to close out the show. Every member on stage for this final set should get kudos for their performance. Naturally, Chris Holt is an incredible musician, and while the go-to guitarist and everything else-ist for several local bands, he's a great frontman and vocalist as well. He adeptly evoked Yorke's "distinctive falsetto... and his ability to reach, and sustain, high notes." Eric Swanson, of the All-Nighters was solid on the bass while Holley mastered Radiohead's tunes both with the electric and acoustic, if memory serves. To say that the set was good, great, grand or wonderful would be almost an insult. Mesmerizing. That's a good one.

*If you were able to catch either Dylan Sneed or The Felons during the Radiohead tribute and would like to give your opinions on their sets, please do share in the comments below.

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