Critic's Notebook

Hip-hop is a genre where established artists become talent scouts and use their bully pulpit to develop the careers of younger artists, continually filling the genre with rising stars. Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, for instance, rose from obscurity after Eazy-E took them under his wing. Kanye West got his feet wet as…

If you’re a music fan in North Texas and you’re not following your favorite record store’s social media accounts, you’re missing out. Sure, it’s nice to know which new releases the shop has on its shelves every Friday, but that’s not the real gold to be had in most cases…

If you’re a local music lover, chances are you’ve seen The Effinays playing somewhere. They’ve done their time at festivals, outdoor shows and venues. And with major successes, sometimes come public fallings-out. Audiences were saddened to hear of the news that they were calling it quits in fall 2018 after…

Oscar-winning director Spike Lee is officially a fan of Dallas hip-hop. Four years ago he selected Buffalo Black’s song “Enter the Void” for the soundtrack to his movie Da Sweet Blood of Jesus. Yesterday, via Instagram, Dallas’s prodigal emcee So-So Topic, announced that Spike Lee has chosen his song “Expl0de!”…

It’s a dream scenario for any band trying to get off the ground: You cut some demos, pass them around and wind up working with a respected producer who digs your sound. That’s what happened to Holy Roller Baby, a rock band made up of Austin and Dallas musicians. There…

This Sunday, Sue Ellen’s on Cedar Springs will host its 20th annual Suesapalooza Festival. Every year, Sue Ellen’s hosts a variety of musicians and vendors for a queer-friendly music festival held in the parking lot of the famous lesbian bar. Over the years, Suesapalooza has become a household name in…

Every independent artist — at least those who want to make a living at music — must climb a mountain that seems insurmountable at best as they figure out on their own how to produce, protect and monetize their art in an industry that grows more complicated all the time…

Fort Worth’s Vincent Neil Emerson has plenty of famous supporters, like his friends and fellow singer-songwriters Leon Bridges and Charley Crockett. But the country artist’s newest fan has both DC-granted superpowers and been a Dothraki leader: Aquaman and Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa. If you have “Vincent Neil Emerson…

Hear ye, hear ye! Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings has announced that he likely has good taste in music, as one of his last acts in office will attest. On Friday, Rawlings and Dallas City Council elected to grant special recognition to the native Texans that make up the band ZZ…

From an outsider’s perspective, Deep Ellum Art Company has been crushing it ever since it opened in 2017. They should be crushing it. There is nothing else like DEAC, a venue where every facet of the arts is represented in some way, shape or form, founder John LaRue says. Even…

Dallas rapper Cardiac the Ghost has been slowly building a cult following upon a foundation of small-venue performances known for their intense, emotional style — more like something you would see at a punk show and not something you would expect from the quiet artist you might run into at…

It’s been a while since we last heard from Air Review. In 2013, it was hard for local music fans to avoid the indie-rock crew, thanks to its addictive single “America’s Son” receiving frequent airplay on KXT 91.7, in addition to their regular performance schedule. Another tune from Low Wishes,…

Elaina Kay spent two years in Nashville waiting for her stars to align, but before that she grew up in Wichita Falls, sneaking peeks at her older brother’s garage band rehearsals, not yet knowing she’d one day release a record of her own. Now based in Dallas, Kay says she’s…

Singer Trees Marie posted the following to her Facebook page on April 30: “I bet the frequency of female musicians carrying gear into the venue getting asked ‘Oh, are you friends with the band?’ is much higher than the amount of male musicians doing the same. PS: No, I am…

Alex Blair has a show in an hour or so. It’s her Thursday residency at The Mitchell, a spot she calls “chill,” which may be the perfect adjective to describe the soulful jazz singer. “The Mitchell fits me nicely,” she says, sipping a vanilla cold brew at a Starbucks off…

Is it possible that Leon Bridges is doing too many pop-up shows? Some would argue that it is more than just “possible” and, in fact, the truth, but that doesn’t matter. Fact is, Bridges is a star, and someone of his celebrity would likely avoid somewhere as down-to-earth as, say,…

Singer Joe Grah has received many injuries in the name of rock ‘n’ roll. Twenty years ago in Dallas, while opening for MTV darlings Silverchair, the Jibe frontman dived head-first into a group of buzzing hecklers, crowd-surfing and singing while taking a nasty shove from a drunken Silverchair fan. The…

“I say yeah buddy. Rollin’ like a big shot. Chevy tuned up like a NASCAR pit stop.” – Dorrough, “Ice Cream Paint Job,” 2009 April 7, 2009, was a beautiful spring day in Dallas. The skies were clear, the temperature never reached higher than 70 degrees, and Dorwin Demarcus Dorrough was…

Often described as the universal language, music has been a way to bring people together since the dawning of time, in joy and through grief. Earlier this week, an article noted that some bereaved have opted to have more modern music play at funerals for their family and loved ones, in…

Cameron Ray, a Dallas-born singer-songwriter, left North Texas to pursue his music career in Knoxville, Tennessee, just this January. He still comes back from time to time, like last week when he played The Kessler Theater for Bill’s Records’ Birthday Bash. Thanks to the advent of music streaming services, no…

To this day, John Lennon’s 1971 song “Imagine” remains an anthem for peace that’s revered around the world. The song, which became the best-selling single of Lennon’s solo career, was composed as a political rallying cry, a call for a world without hatred or divisions of any kind. Decades after…