Bentli's, Dillard's, and Guns...Oh My!

Friday nite 04/30 @ One2One.

Bentli is his name ( www.bentlimusic.com ) and kicking ass on the acoustic is his game. He has only been in Austin for a couple of months, but is now in love with the music scene and the weirdness of Austin. SOOO, his voice was so powerful he could definitely do it without a mic. How about this, when he has a movie made about his life, Brad Pitt will play the part of Bentli. Every time he started a song I could swear it sounded like Joe Walsh on the guitar, really did.
Another great pick for a night out and "who do we see?" Check him out, on the web or better yet live!

Michael Dillard, yes shut up, I did review Mike last week. That was acoustic, this was with a backing band. Well as much as I like him acoustically, the backing band filled it in nicely and made his already unique voice shine even more (you should check him out acoustic..the faces he makes while singing...Priceless). Mikes lead guitarist at this show was playing some amazingly wicked mean licks. Michael Dillard is definitely playing a more regular schedule, so take advantage of the ridiculously low cover charges and go listen.

Cody, OMG, about fuckin time I could clearly hear you above the band. Aimless Gun was up..and yes they were (up for about 24+ hours...a show in college station [nope did not go there] then an early Fri morning performance on Fox Austin). Go to their web page and follow the link to the early morning performance. They are still always fun to see, had folks dancing in the tiny space provided. OK! So which of you reading this hasn't seen these guys yet? Quit being a bunch of douches, just effin go! One night, two hours, Fun, fun, fun...what would you actually lose (besides the bug up your ass)?
Pointless Machete failed to show up, but TGIF 'cause Aimless Gun showed up and blew it away ; -)

Later

Earth Day Burns in Austin Texas

Sooooo, I have been away for a spell, but I managed to creep out and catch some local live music. It's what I do, THAT'S WHY!
I have hung out with Mike Dillard at several other shows, been there when MC Overlord has called him up on stage to spit some fresh rhymes. Loved him in the Video 'The Flow'. I have always thought Dillard had the absolutely most unique voice I have ever heard. If you get a chance to talk to him, you won't believe that's the same voice.
Enough about Dillard, how about his performance at Hudson on 5th. Nice place. The patio bar is very cool, inside is very nice too. Dillard was set up in the corner and I could hear him before I saw him. Now how could I miss the giant teddy bear by the entrance when I walked in. Yes, MC Overlord was in the house reppin his boy Michael Dillard.
It was a very good performance, had his lead guitarist with him and they were rockin it ALL acoustic that night. My compadre, J Gonzalez, was with me. He was so impressed by the sound and stylings, he made my promise to take him to the show on 04/30 show at One to One. Michael Dillard will be with a full band and opening for Aimless Gun.

On to the next episode...with Ryan Harkrider and the boys (how Johnny Branch escaped and made it to the gig is a question yet to be answered).
I haven't seen Harkrider in over a year, yes it is sad...I know, i know. But once again, as I have said before, there is a great joy in seeing Austin talent at a show supporting Austin talent. Micheal Dillard, MC Overlord, and EMPB (who was performing after Ryan) were all hanging out.
Well since this about the performance let me tell you it was stellar. Ryan and his group kept the pace very nicely through their set. Albeit it was an abbreviated set, it was impressive none the less. Ask Dillard when you see him next. WHY? Cause Mike was cutting a mean rug at the end of Harkriders set. Ask him to Jitter Bug with you next time you see him.
I will tell you that in the year it has been since the last time I saw Ryan Harkrider perform to now, what a HUGE impact. His confidence and stage presence has gone through the roof.
Check him out, wether or not you have seen him perform previously, you will notice his confidence on stage is powerful.

Later

They got yo kids!!!!

DeadPool (http://www.myspace.com/deadpoolsociety) is from San Antonio, but definitely seemed at home in Austin. For the few people that were there in attendance, we enjoyed. Too few to mosh and thrash, but still enjoy the shit outta their music. Typical short set for first up, but you should look forward to them coming back to Austin and getting to play a later set. Now, Club Encore is well suited for these guys and they are well suited to kick some thrash on a later set time. Let the crowds kill each other in the pit when they hit the stage. Good stuff.

Shrapnel, (http://www.myspace.com/shrapnel) well know these guys were just sharp. The duel guitars with completely different sounds, and I'll be damned if the lead singer didn't remind me of a very young Ted Nugent (though he surely didn't sound like him). These guys got the stamp of approval from Angel. "I just love the sound of the [lead] guitar. And the singers voice is sooo good." and actually they pulled off some great stuff. Got the audience in on some of the music and even had the balls to chastise the now growing crowd, "Man I don't know why you weren't here earlier, Deadpool KILLED IT!" They did play one song that was an intstumental and said they weren't sure if they should put lyrics to it. Say guys, great song, but as I stood there in the crowd listening to it and watching the crowd, put lyrics to it! Everybody was just kinda standing there, as awesome as the song is, everybody just stood there. HOOK IT UP!

The Dirty Wormz ( http://dirtywormz.com/ , http://www.myspace.com/dirtywormz , http://www.facebook.com/pages/DIRTY-WORMZ/124217714674 ) so I wrote about their performance at the Rozone Showcase for SXSW and I thought they were supremely entertaining. uh-duh, that was a VERY abbreviated set compared to this night. Odd thing to me was how many kids were in the audience, it just seemed weird. Nothing wrong with it, just odd. And just to prove how diverse the crowd is, I was standing next to the bass player for Sacrefix and Vows in Ashes (what up Jay).

My blog is all about the performance, I don't try to review the music, I leave that to you. To me it's about the performance, the stage presence, the stage presentation. G*ddammit if the Wormz didn't bring down the house. From the latex incased woman that leads the band out, to Dirty D and Jax with their masks on, Doc just stands there and creeps you out. For the Dirty Wormz it is ALL about the performance. Mix that with a crazy metal grind, DJ Crash doing some crazy mixes with heavy metal you've never heard, a live drum sound (no drum machine here) and a unique vocalization by front man Smackola, it is as much about entertaining the audiences eyes as it is their ears. Check out these two videos to get a weak ass idea of how much fun the shows are (I say 'weak ass' cause it's a video...you weren't there) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXcaMZ74iTo and (http://www.youtube.com/user/soundfiend001?feature=mhw4#p/a/u/0/2M-M39GiIRw).

For a local Austin born band that has been around as long as they have been, I am sad I haven't been to more live shows. I am glad they are not stopping to rest yet (new project on the horizon - 10.10.10, Kobosh). It seems like they have plenty more to come. I have said this before and it definitely rings true here, see them now, see them soon, don't regret it, because once you've seen it and experienced it...you WILL BE A WORM HEAD too!

Later