Weekend Concert Roundup: Nov. 30 - Dec. 2

by Erin Rice

Weekend's back, like it always is. Funny how that happens, huh? Oh, space/time continuum, or whatever, you are sooo dependable.

A different format for Weekend Roundup

This week we are going to try something a little different with the Weekend Concert Roundup. The old format of picking about five shows a weekend to feature seemed to be leaving many of our non-featured-genre-loving music fans out in the cold (unless of course you check out our extensive list of Pegasus Picks or the even extensiver list of all events). And, as you well know, we're Texans. We friggin' hate being left out in the cold, dammit, so here's what we're going to do.

This weekend we are going to present a slightly more extensive list that will give the featured show per Friday and Saturday for several genres. What this hopefully means is that more people will get to salivate in anticipation of their favored music types. Not to mention that it will be more like an actual round-up than previously. Unfortunately, some genres will still be limited by what is available any given week (such as our polka following, who pretty much get a raw deal unless Brave Combo is in town).

As is the case with anything on the site, we would love your input. If you like the new format let me know. If you hate it, come down to the office and punch me in the face. Or just send me a nasty message via the website. But you might find that I like that, so it's your call, really.

Friday

Alt-Country / Americana / Country - Miles From Nowhere - Should probably be called Miles From Somewhere originating from Paris, TX and all...

Alternative / Indie / Pop - Victory Calls / Kessler / Me vs the Sea / Brake Vegas / Chasing Scarlet / Oh The Irony - Kessler started in 2005 and gained a solid local fan base pretty quickly. They release their CD soon. This is your chance to catch a show before they get big so you can say, "I was a fan way before." And you can feel vindicated in a year or so when you tell new fans about how they sold out, even though they probably won't. But you can say it, because you saw them at the Door Dallas before the were really, really big. You could. The option is out there for you.

Blues / Jazz / R&B Soul - Andrea Dawson / Linny Nance - Locals with great larynxes.

Classical / Symphonic - Dallas Symphony Orchestra - Beethoven Festival Finale - It's that damn Beethoven. He's so hot right now!

Cover / Tribute - The Spazmatics - A must see band, especially if you are into that whole 80s music, Revenge of the Nerds vibe.

Latin - Alejandro Sanz - This show was rescheduled from a previous date. A show postponement is always annoying. But he's kinda attractive, so we'll call a mulligan on this one.

Metal - 100 Proof Hatred / Skard Soul / Neuropathy / Paleface / Habit of Force - Grrrrr.

Rock / Punk / Experimental - Lions / Max Cady / White Drugs - There's no hiding how much we/I like Max Cady around here, and while it's hidden so far, I would also like to point out that White Drugs are noise-rocktastic. And Lions, well lions have manes.

Saturday

Alt-Country / Americana / Country- Dierks Bentley / Jack Ingram / Steve Holy - The ladies seem to love Dierks and the guys seem to listen to him to get the ladies who like him. It could work for you too. Give it a try. My question: What the hell is a Dierks?

Alternative / Indie / Pop- Astronautilus / The Listener Project / A-B Theory - While you may have difficulty understanding some of what Astronautilus says in his performance, you will be happy you heard it.

Bluegrass - The A.M. Ramblers / 100 Damned Guns / The Naptime Shake - 100 Damned Guns may be the only bluegrass band on the lineup, but outside recurring events, pickins are slim for this genre this weekend.

Blues - Hamilton Loomis - According to Loomis's website, "It speaks volumes when the likes of [Bo] Diddley, Johnny 'Clyde' Copeland, Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown, and Albert Collins take you under their wings." There is certainly no disagreeing with that.

Christian (and Screamo) - As Cities Burn / Mayday Parade / Greeley Estates / Ivoryline / Forever Midnight Sun - Three cheers for all the angst-driven, screaming, Christian kids out there who love to buy records. I make fun, but the sad thing is that they are far more supportive of their bands than many older Dallasites who claim to live and die for local music.

Classical / Symphonic - Richardson Symphony Orchestra - "A Holiday Celebration" - Finally it's December, so you can listen to all that holiday music without feeling so guilty.

Cover / Tribute - Poison Cherry / The Allmost Brothers - You get 347 guesses as to who these two bands are covering.

Metal - Strongpoint / Redefine / Broka's Bliss / Elocation / Systane - Not as grrrr as Friday's metal selection, but some metal nonetheless.

Rock / Punk (Ska/Reggae) / Experimental - The English Beat / Eleven Fingered Charlie - One of the greatest ska bands of all time meets one of Texas' notorious ska bands who also happen to have, count them, at least eleven fingers.

R&B / Soul / Hip-Hop - R. Kelly / Ne-Yo / Keyshia Cole / J. Holiday - "Do You" by Ne-Yo deals with the artist's infatuation with his ex-girlfriend. Some call that adorable and heart-warming. I call it grounds for a restraining order. Of course with pee-man himself on the tour, Ne-Yo's infatuations are the least of anyone's worries...

Sunday

Well hey, I don't spend all that time on the Pegasus Picks list for nothin'! Psst, Fuel and Trapt are at the Palladium Ballroom while Dane Cook will likely make you laugh and potentially touch you inappropriately at the American Airlines Center.