Central Track Contributor
Pop Off At The Pool.
It's time once again to celebrate our country's birth by watching explosions in the sky (from rooftops if you know what you're doing) and taking an extended weekend away from our places of employment.
Birthdays not your thing? Over fireworks?
Well, there's plenty else going on these next four days, too.
Thursday
Young Widows and White Reaper at Dada
Prepare your eardrums and allow yourself to succumb to the sound of the hypnotic, garage-punk rhythms of Young Widows, plus openers White Reaper and Nervous Curtains. Young Widows' peculiar attention to detail and fashion-forward antics should make for an especially visually appealing experience, too. — Chrissi Chetwood
Lone Star Classic Dog Show at Dallas Market Hall
Each day of the Lone Star Classic is actually a different dog show put on by a different regional kennel club. So, technically, a dog could win Best In Show three times in a row at this thing. If it was a really good dog, I mean. Judging portion of this affair aside, wandering around and checking out the dogs waiting to be showed is always a good time. So, too, is talking to owners grooming their dogs. Long story short: These things are always good for a pretty fun afternoon full of awesome, cute animals. And, really, you can't beat that. — Jeremy Hughes
Henderson Avenue Block Party
Barcadia teams up with the Beauty Bar, Gin Mill and the Glass Boot Biergarten to throw down for this stretch of Henderson's second annual July 3rd block party. Since the 4th lands on a Friday this year, why not go into your three-day weekend with a bang? Expect DJ sets from Red Eye and Colly T at Beauty Bar, a live set from the Steve James Trio Band at Barcadia, plus $1 hot dogs, drink specials and dancing all night long. The party starts at 6 p.m., but let's be real: You'll come fashionably late anyway. — Chris Escarfullery
Fan Sleepover at Globe Life Park
What's the closest you've ever sat to the field at a Rangers game? The lower bowl? Front row, even? How about from on the infield dirt? Unless your last name is Andrus or Beltre, you've probably never watched the boys from on the field itself. At tonight's fan slumber party, though, you can watch the team take on the Orioles on the outfield scoreboard from the comfort of the grass. Then, if you wish, you can go ahead and stay the night. Just don't forget your sleeping bag and Rangers footie pajamas. — Cory Graves
Independence Day (35mm Print) at Texas Theatre
It's a classic 4th of July scenario: Someone dropped the ball on buying hot dog buns, the mustard's run dry and aliens from another planet are crashing the party. With lasers. And they didn't bring beer. Lucky for you, mankind's hope against guaranteed annihilation is its Will to survive. (See what I did there?) You can catch it all in the glory of 35mm down at the Texas Theatre this Independence Day weekend. Showtimes are at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Also, '90s Jeff Goldblum is a great Jeff Goldblum to watch. — CE
Brek Shea's Charity Art Show at Kettle Art
With soccer currently as popular it's going to be in this country until the World Cup returns in 2018, former MLS superstar Brek Shea's charity art show aims to strike while the proverbial iron is hot. Just know going in, though, that just because he's a top-notch athlete on the field, the outsider artist doesn't paint about anything soccer-related during his downtime. Instead, his works are all abstract acrylics. — CG
Convoy & The Cattlemen (Album Release) at Lola's
Despite boasting a sound, a look and an instrumental palate that is distinctly country and western, just as many rock and punk fans are likely to show up to a Convoy & The Cattlemen gig on a given night than members of the pearl-snap-and-jeans set. This could have something to do with the fact that Convoy steel guitar player Alex Johnson also splits his time with local metal outfit The House Harkonnen, sure. More likely, though, it has to do with the fact that, when this band whips out their covers of classic western tunes like Tex Williams' “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette),” they do so at unbelievably blistering tempos. Better yet, unlike so many run-of-the-mill punk groups, Convoy does this with machine-like precision — and every member of the group is capable of pulling a ridiculous solo or lead lick out of their back pockets at any moment. Now, after years of pulling off one jaw-dropping performance after another, the band is finally ready to release its first recorded effort. Pick it up at tonight's show. — CG
Friday
Willie's Picnic at Billy Bob's
If you're any kind of Texan at all, you've probably heard of the annual festival that goes down every Fourth of July known as Willie's Picnic. And, given that it's now 41 years into its tradition, we'd be ashamed of you if you haven't. Join the hippie movement this year for some classic American feel-good times. You can expect three stages with performances from Willie Nelson himself, Dierks Bentley, Josh Abbott Band, Ryan Bingham and several others, including Willie's son Lukas' pretty awesome band, Promise of the Real. — CC
Willie Nelson's Fourth of July Celebration (35 mm Print) at Texas Theatre
Not into the acts Willie Nelson's got lined up for his annual Fourth of July picnic this year? Relive the glory days with Willie, Waylon Jennings, Leon Russell and others as Texas Theatre brings you the 35mm screening of Willie Nelson's 4th of July Celebration in honor of the concert film's 35-year anniversary. — CC
Blues Brothers at Inwood Theatre Parking Lot Party at Double Wide Team America: World Police 10th Anniversary Quote-a-Long at Alamo Drafthouse Deep Shade at Crown and Harp Evil Dead: The Musical at Art Centre Theatre Lone Stars and Stripes at Lone Star Park Michael Winslow at Addison Improv 6th Annual Brass Knuckle Corn Dog Beatdown at The Libertine Open Carry Guitar Rally at Babbs Bros. BBQ Saturday Pop That! at Salt With or Without U2 at House of Blues South Main Saturdays with Hayes Carll at Shipping & Receiving Blue The Misfit ,The Outfit TX, Buffalo Black, KissedKilled and The Mohicans at 406 South Haskell Avenue Dallas Brew Bus 'Murica Tour at Community Beer Co. Steve Earle at Billy Bob's Happy Bullets and Calhoun at The Foundry (Free) MonkFest at Curtain Club KDGE-FM 25th Anniversary Party at Good Records Sunday Les Miserables at Wyly Theatre Basically Beethoven at Dallas City Performance Hall Uncle Lucius at Love & War in Texas (Plano) Smashing Buttons at Arcade Bar First Sunday at Sons of Hermann Hall To find out what else is going on today, this week and beyond, check out our events page.
In this 1980 cult classic, Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi's
Celebrate the Fourth the American way — for free and surrounded by drinkers. Here, you can enjoy the Fair Park fireworks show from the conveniently located Double Wide parking lot, and with a cold drink in hand. You'll even get a free sparkler with your drink purchase. Performances from The American Fuse, Honey and Pink Smoke in the venue after the fireworks are just an added bonus. — CC
What's more American than a film about a team of puppet action heroes fighting terrorism, blowing things up and saving the day? How about pretty much same thing, but done with marionettes? It's the most patriotic quote-a-long ever — and you know every word to the theme song of this 10-year-old gem. Don't lie, I know you do. Be a part of the magic that is Team America: World Police over at the Alamo Drafthouse this 4th of July. Showtime is at 8 p.m. — CE
Nothing screams “True American Passion” like the heart-warming, booty-shaking beats house and acid music, right? Right?!?! I mean, our founding fathers were basically fighting for our rights to shake our money-makers how we like. The DJ trio Deep Shade gets that. So does DJ Tim Funatik. Together, they're bringing that sense of patriotism over to the Crown & Harp for you to enjoy — and there's no entrance-tax for you to go, either. Such patriotism! — CE
Leave it to the Canadians to take a cult classic and make it into a musical. Since its first production in Toronto in 2003, Evil Dead: The Musical has gone around the world as a hit off-Broadway production. Now a community theater troupe in Plano is flashing its best chainsaw whirls, headless corpse dances and Bruce Campbell impersonations from the cult '80s horror franchise to the stage for two weekends. Tickets are $15 normal price, and $20 for sitting in the “splash zone”. Tickets can be bought here. Groovy. — CE
Celebrate the 4th of July with the rest of the family at the Lone Stars & Stripes celebration in Grand Prairie. There will be live music, fireworks, activities, thoroughbred racing and even a chance to win a truck. Can't get any more American than that. Or Texan, for that matter. — Ashley Gongora
Given your age, you may or may not remember Winslow's turn as that guy from the Police Academy movies who made all the realistic sound effects with his voice. For those of you under 30: Just imagine how impressive it is that this guy's managed to turn a pretty neat party trick into a three-decades-long career. — CG
It happens every year now, and every year, it straddles the line between epic and vomit-inducing. Just know this heading in: It's free to enter the competition if you want, but it seems like it's always the ones who drunkenly decide to do so without preparing for the event that end up sick. Maybe it's just best to watch. — Pete Freedman
Recently, members of Open Carry Texas gathered at an Irving Target brandishing loaded rifles and automatic weapons, which they then proceeded to carry inside the store whilst buying all the Oreo cookies they could manage to hold in their non-gun-wielding hands. In recent months, these “political activists” have made similar demonstrations at several area fast-food restaurants and retail stores, much to the chagrin of business owners, their employees, fellow customers and pretty much everyone else not currently in possession of a weapon of their own. In the process, they've drawn the ire of everyone from the left-leaning Jon Stewart to the NRA. Rather than put a damper on the Open Carry Texas demonstrations, though, these criticisms have only lead to more — and louder — displays. More recently, the to-do has spawned offshoot organizations eager to make waves with demonstrations of their own. Tentatively scheduled for next month, Nervebreakers guitarist Barry Kooda intends to follow Open Carry Texas' lead by gathering his own unruly mob of followers in public locations with their own weapons of choice — their instruments. Even more shocking is the fact that they don't plan on keeping them in their cases, either. Or as Kooda puts it: “Never point a guitar at anything you're not planning to rock.” — CG
Wye Oak at Trees
Now that Baltimore indie duo Wye Oak has made something of a name for itself, the band has partnered with Air Traffic Control for its current tour, meaning that $2 from every ticket sold to this show will be donated to a local charity of the band's choice. At the same time, the band has continued to develop its sound, and unlike past efforts, April's Shriek saw the band beginning the songwriting process on the bass, adding swirling synths and backing vocals after the fact. — CG
It's been almost four months since we last threw one of our recurring Pop That bashes with DJ Sober and our friends at Cricket Wireless, if you can believe it. So, yeah, it's about time that we brought this thing back. And with so much time off, perhaps it's fitting that this one's coming with a few twists. For one? Well, this thing isn't happening on a Friday this time around. Instead, we're all gonna get day-drunk. Secondly? Well, because it's Texas and because this sucker's going down in July, we're cooling this one down by hosting it at a spot with a pool — Salt, the old Ross Avenue spot once known as Ku De Ta, but now updated to no longer have an exclusive door policy. Beyond that, the formula remains the same: It's gonna be sweaty, it's gonna be rowdy, and it's gonna be raw. The drinks will be cheap, a full food menu will be in place, DJ Sober will be in the mix and Killa MC will be hosting. Oh, and helping Sober with the soundtrack for all that revelry this time around? His partner-in-grime from his monthly Houston party Top Notch — the one and only Dayta. Long story short: This special pool-party edition of Pop That is gonna be baller as hell, y'all. Come hang, get loose and get wet. — PF
Is there anything the typical Dallasite loves more than a cover band? Yup: Tribute acts. Hence, for the second summer in a row, the Dallas Observer is throwing its weekly tribute band series at the House of Blues. This week's edition features With or Without U2 and the Stone Temple Posers. We'll give you one guess as to which acts those two bands pay tribute. — CG
No, he hasn't released any new music since 2011's stellar KMAG YOYO, but, c'mon, Hayes Carll is just the best. A hyperliterate lyricist in the vein of Rhett Miller and a vocalist crooner indebted to Ray Wylie Hubbard, Carll's music is pure Texan — and in the best way possible. It swings and it swaggers, it rollicks and it bites. And, in live settings, his charms are only multiplied. He's a treasure. And he'll headline this concert that also features Telegraph Canyon's Chris Johnson and Nicholas Altobelli. — PF
A couple weeks back, the powers that be behind the decidedly non-pornographic 16bars.xxx domain name put together a showcase featuring some of the hip-hop scene's finest up-and-comers. At this one, some of the region's more established rappers take center stage. Expect the same rowdiness — albeit with perhaps even more anticipation this time around. — PF
Follow up the fireworks and cook-outs from the 4th with a little day-drinking with the help of the Dallas Brew Bus crew. The bus leaves at 10:30 a.m., so be sure to arrive at the Community Beer Company early so you can enjoy the spoils of touring three local breweries without the hazards of driving yourself. If you haven't visited any of the breweries in the area yet, this will be the perfect chance to bring yourself up to speed on what Dallas has to offer and the art of beer making. $50 gets you a seat in the bus with complimentary beer samples at each brewery and a commemorative snifter. Bring some extra cash to feed yourself at the food trucks that will be outside the breweries. — CE
While never quite being able to break into the mainstream because of his-not-quite-Nashville-but-no-quite-rock-and-roll way of making music, Steve Earle blurred the lines between the genres and gained a unique following of country bumpkins, rockabillies and nonconforming punks alike. Also, he was in The Wire! — CC
Need to kill two birds with one stone? Stop by The Foundry/Chicken Scratch to get your fried-chicken fix and happy-feel-good music fix in one blow tonight. The show is free but the eats aren't. To get a feel for what the vibe of tonight's bill will be like, check out The Happy Bullet's bandcamp page and listen to their track “Fuck Yeah, I'm In Love With You.” It's just so happy! — CE
To help Dallas Guitar Center employee Monk Cortez deal with some medical expenses several of his co-workers and customers will perform a benefit show to raise money for the cause. Among the dozen-plus bands performing at this one include Parallel Play, Reinventing Jude, The Paul White Consortium and several others. — CG
Twenty-five years ago this past Monday, the familiar refrains of The Ramones' “Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio” became more than just the first song ever played on KDGE 94.5-FM The Edge. The song was also the station's mission statement, as put forth by the station's very first music director, the great George Gimarc. A decade prior, Gimarc had given Dallas its first punk/alt-rock radio show with his “Rock and Roll Alternative” program for KZEW, sure. But, on June 30, 1989, the city finally got its first, full-time alternative rock station. (Check out what the station sounded like on its first day of programming here.) At this party, Gimarc and a whole slew of folks who've been instrumental making the station a long-running success will hold a reunion, of sorts, at Good Records. — CG
The Donkeys at Three Links
The Donkeys perform at Three Links tonight. But only because they want to. Good thing, too, because the band's California-centric brand of throwback Americana (think: The Eagles, CSNY, America etc.) is a great way to wind down a long Independence Day weekend. The Demigs and American Werewolf Academy open. — CC
For a limited time, the Wyly Theatre has been reborn as 19th-century France, putting the audience front and center of the singing and fighting for a stage production of Les Miserables. The musical runs through August 27, so you've got plenty of time to catch it before then. — Chase Whale
Dip your toes into the classical world on the cheap this afternoon. And it doesn't get much cheaper than completely free, does it? Young virtuosos Nicholas Garza and the Dallas-based Imperial Brass quintet will each perform at this one, as will another local chamber music outfit. Like what you hear? The fest will continue with more free performances the next three Sundays. — CG
It's hard enough for most bands to work through all their creative differences — at least enough so to record a few albums. Austin-based Southern Rockers Uncle Lucius somehow manage the feat with five songwriters in the band. More power to 'em, we say. — CG
The recurring Beat Culture happening — the only one of its kind in the Metroplex, or so says its creators — returns this month with eclectic performances from Urz Truly & DRNRDX, as well as Smashing Buttons resident DJs SMN PHX, Rob Viktum and Juno Complex. — CG
Every first Sunday of the month, the Deep Ellum Community Association gets together and hosts a free, open-to-the-public, discussion-oriented event centered around the issues the neighborhood cares most about. Given that this panel discussion will be moderated by Joel Triska of Life in Deep Ellum and the Deep Ellum Foundation, who will be joined by the likes of Scott Rohrman of the Deep Ellum Foundation and 42, Ernest Belmore of Buzzbrews, Officer Jeff LaBarba of the Dallas Police Department, it should be an illuminating look into the subject. Also? There'll be free food from Alligator Cafe while supplies last — and just in time for dinner, too, as this sucker is slated to kick off at 6:30 p.m. — PF
