So Midlake finally found their way back home after extensive touring had seen them trekking across this continent and Europe over the last six months. They'll be on the road and over oceans in the months to come in support of their stellar 2010 LP, The Courage of Others. In addition to the comfort of their own beds, they found an attentive, appreciative audience at Hailey's to show off their musical chops and penchant for performing captivating versions of their dark tales on stage.
Opener John Grant, who spent much of last year recording 2010's Queen of Denmark, with Midlake as his backers, performed tracks from that record beautifully to start the evening.
There's just no feeling in the world like watching songs from your favorite albums of the year being performed right in front of your face. It's what dorks like me live for. Both records are available from Bella Union, so pick 'em up if you haven't done so already.
Old 97s frontman and Dallas native Rhett Miller headlined the latest installment of KXT 91.7 Radio's Barefoot at the Belmont series on June 3. Mr. Miller burned through a set of Old 97s favorites like "Doreen," "Curtain Calls," "Barrier Reef" "Rollerskate Skinny," "Wish the Worst" and "Big Brown Eyes" as well as some of his solo songs such as "Fireflies," "Question," "Our Love," and "Singular Girl," which he dedicated to an 11 year old birthday girl in attendance. He's widely known as one of the nicest guys in rock 'n' roll, and he more than proved it that night with a lengthy, energetic set and a 40+ minute meet-and-greet with fans afterwords.
Kicking off the evening were Denton's folky up and comers Seryn, who dazzled the sold out crowd with a typically airy, harmony-focused set that matched the stunning beauty of the setting. More pics as always, at my flickr page.
Here is a vid i shot of Rhett performing a new Old 97s song that could be included on their new album. A rewrite (or "theft," as Rhett puts it) of Bob Dylan's "Desolation Row," it features the refrain, "You will not go to heaven, you'll go to Champaign, Illinois." Snort.
Whiskey Folk Ramblers filled Ft. Worth's Lola's in celebration of their long-awaited Salim Nourallah-produced second LP, ...And There Are Devils. As always, the whiskey flowed, the crowd hooted, hollered and boogied while WFR banged out a raucous set of their signature old timey jams. i think i saw sweat dripping from the ceiling. Or was that PBR?
The good people behind Ft. Worth venue The Where House held a benefit to raise cash for renovations and future shows on May 22. Featured performers Adrian Hulet, RTB2, Chatterton, The Orbans, The Quaker City Nighthawks, and HOYOTOHO treated the patrons to all kindsa booty-shakin' sounds. These pics and more can be found at flickr by clicking here.
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