It’s with some reservation that I would ever recommend a cover band as a way to chew up an evening, but this particular concept sounds like it will be treated with the proper respect. “Homage Nation II” will see Los Angeles resident Scrote, fronting an all-local cast of very competent musicians, running through the entirety of the Talking Heads’ album, Remain in Light. That includes such talents as the keyboardist virtuoso Adam Pickrell, as well as the ubiquitous Ryan Becker.
Now, why am I so confident that this is not another tepid rendition of another’s work by lesser artists? Because, while I’m not necessarily the biggest fan of every little thing that Becker has ever done, I accidentally caught him performing a Talking Heads song one evening, closing out a wedding party at Dan’s Silver Leaf. He was leading another band of musicians entirely through a take on “This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody).” And just like any halfway decent marriage, it was faithful, restrained, and yet, still inspired. I’m a tough sell, but it won me over, and I wasn’t even grading on a curve. After all, it wasn’t that long ago I saw the same song performed by the man himself.
“Homage Nation II” is at the Kessler on Saturday. Doors are at 7 pm. Devil’s Progress, a Sparklehorse tribute, will open.
Other weekend highlights:
THURSDAY
“What it is” (The Gold Standard Bar)
Set and Setting/Cerulean Giallo/Apocrypha (J&J’s Pizza)
Weedeater/ASG/Terminator 2 (Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios): Note that this show is free for 21 and up, but six dollars for minors.
“Stereo on Strike” (Zubar): Along with Jack Dover, the guests this evening include Allen MD, and Vector Vision, which will be a live performance by DJ Brian Bishop.
FRIDAY
Tom Grrl/New Science Projects/White Knight/Weakness (Macaroni Island): Austin’s Tom Grrl samples “Bikeage” by the Descendents with a geek’s charm, but I don’t know if the update on the track is evolved enough to warrant such tampering. I bet they’re better live. Ditch the pop punk vocals and we have a winner.
Internet Trap God/Jenny Robinson/Deb Doing Dallas (Beauty Bar)
SATURDAY
Radioactivity/Wanz Dover (Texas Theatre): It seems like you can’t just enjoy a band nowadays without some aging music fan telling you how this-or-that-act actually came first, and how you need to run down to Premiere Video and check out the lone international copy of a documentary about said act. The problem with this endless history lesson? These jerks are usually right.
Such is the case with the band Death, who hailed from Detroit, Michigan in the early Nineteen-Seventies, and were playing a recognizable form of what would eventually be called punk rock, years before the predominantly white version that came years later. A reunited version of Death has been touring for a few years now to much acclaim, along with a reissue of their work on the Drag City record label. I’ve seen them twice, both times at an Austin music festival (of course). They were incredible each time. Still, Dallas gets the Death documentary this week, and Peter Simek has more for you in our Movies section. This after-party features historically accurate DJing, as well as a set by Radioactivity, which features members of the local act Marked Men.
Kill the Client/Cleric/Kaliya/Godless Jihad/Dmar/Suters (Taqueria Pedritos, located at 4910 Capitol Ave, in Dallas): Now that Denton’s Taqueria Picante has ceased hosting shows, your best bet is to make it to this one in East Dallas. The event starts promptly at 8 pm.
Homage Nation II/Devil’s Nation II (The Kessler)
La Luz/Fungi Girls/Bitch Bricks/Toy Gun (The Wherehouse)
Frauen/Slumberbuzz/Pierre Burger (The Crown and Harp)
“Away from the Numbers” (Single Wide): Tonight’s guest is George Quartz.
