Countdown to NX35 2010: 21 days ’til your weekend starts early.
A few months ago, upon discussing NX35, I overheard a fellow Dentonite saying she already put in her request to take Friday off for the music conferette. Brilliant! But why not go ahead and take Monday off as well? I learned my lesson two years ago when I hit up Austin City Limits for all three days, spent most of it in the burning heat and dust (oh, the dust!) and hit the road back up to Dallas on Sunday night, only to stumble into work five hours later. Needless to say, I slept in my car during my lunch break that day and made sure to take Monday off when I returned to ACL last year. So, don’t be a fool at NX35 – Buy your wristbands now, request March 12 and March 15 off from work, see as many bands as you can, have as much fun as you can, and make sure a Denton Pedicab safely takes your music-filled heart, your sore dancing feet, and your little ol’ liver home each night so you can do it again the next day. And the next day. And the next day.
photo credit: www.twopairphotography.com
The Rocketboys
Prior to college, I spent my life in a little dairy town south of DFW. My knowledge of Texas geography was limited to what little I paid attention to during class. However, my horizons were widened when I set sail for college in Lubbock. I came to know that trek through I-20 very well. The amount of trees and hills dramatically decrease westbound through Abilene, signifying the halfway mark between “home” and home. It took me awhile to get used to the dry plains of the west but I remember a bumper sticker that helped change my perspective. It pointed out the fact that West Texas skies are bigger. And they are. Beautifully, openly bigger. I’d like to think these skies have something to do with The Rocketboys and their music.
Originally named Homer Hiccolm and The Rocketboys, a misspelled nod to the movie October Sky, this indie rock band started in Abilene, Texas while a few of them were finishing their own college degrees. They managed to juggle classes with shows and in 2007, they won the Austin City Limits “The Sound and The Jury” contest which earned them a spot in the music festival. They eventually made the move to Austin, dropping the first half of their name then released their debut album, 20,000 Ghosts, last year. It’s a solid album, earning a spot on Paste Magazine’s “Eight Criminally Underrated Albums From 2009″ list. It brings the dramatic rock styling of Explosions in the Sky with the piano driven melodies of Keane, topped with the memorable melodic choruses that are their own. They may now be in Austin but their sound is as grand as those West Texas skies. You can travel to the west by traveling to NX35 if you catch The Rocketboys at Cold Fusion in March.
Notable tunes to preview online: “Heartbeat”, “All the Western Winds” / Myspace / Facebook
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