Joe Wertz;News

Before they booked a show, recorded a song or even knew what to call themselves, Brandon Lovelace and his three band mates started writing. Songs and albums would have to wait. What Lovelace and fellow musicians Matt Toney, Casey Heald and Zach Dumbleton instead penned in December 2007 was an agenda. The action-item accounting was […]

The Donkeys with Action! 10 p.m. Wednesday, July 8Opolis113 N. Crawford, Norman447-3417$8 advance, $10 door The Donkeys will make you feel good. The San Diego foursome and indie darlings bring retro charm and sweet, bell-tone vocals that soothe with layered coos and melodic ahhs. The band’s latest, the 11-song “Living on the Other Side,” is […]

Four metro acts will perform Thursday at an all-locals Conservatory show booked to celebrate the full-length debut of Norman punk rockers Over Stars and Gutters.   The band recorded the 10-song album, “Consider This Your Curse,” with Stephen Egerton (of The Descendents and All) at his Tulsa studio, Armstrong Recording Co.   Singer/guitarist and principal songwriter Matt […]

The five members of A Horse Called War have been steadily gaining speed and steam since the Oklahoma City metal band broke through the stable in 2002. With a pair of EPs and a full-length already in the saddle, the Horse has dug its spurs deep, continuously coaxing faster guitar and bass riffing and ever-assailing […]

Like most men in their 20s, Kevin Dawson never paid much attention to his hips. The problems started about a year and a half ago. Pain spread from his lower back to his hips, becoming chronic, then debilitating. By the fall of 2008, Dawson was walking with a cane and feared his future would be […]

Rock ‘n’ roll is a beast that feeds upon itself, starving and growing.  Old themes are rediscovered and reworked by new voices, but the songs never quite sound like they once did. Rock always rolls, often over itself, crushing the hands that hold it most dear.        COLLINS’ MIX ‘GOLDEN’ ERA ‘HOT’ TROTS ON MEET […]

Before throngs of applauding fans and politicians, the Flaming Lips today joined Gov. Brad Henry as he signed an executive order proclaiming “Do You Realize??” as Oklahoma’s official rock ‘n’ roll song. A resolution to name the song unanimously passed a Senate vote last month, but failed in the House last week. Henry last week […]

Amanda Reynolds was among the crowd of 13,000 that stood shoulder-to-shoulder on Main Street last year for the closing performance of the inaugural Norman Music Festival. Reynolds, 24, said she eagerly joined a carload of her Texas girlfriends to made the three-hour trek to Norman so she could watch her favorite group, Dallas psychedelic-rock choir […]

LiveNation announced April 7 U2 and The Black-Eyed Peas will perform in Norman on Owen Field Oct. 18. Tickets will range from $33 to $253 will go on sale April 17 via their site, the U.S. Army Box Office at Ford Center, all Ticketmaster outlets including participating Homeland, Suncoast and FYE stores, charge by phone at […]

Local country singer Devin Derrick will join British singer/songwriter Rokhsan for a Friday performance at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond. The 7:30 p.m. show will serve as the first “recruiting event” for UCO’s new Academy of Contemporary music, which opens this fall under the direction of Flaming Lips manager Scott Booker. ACM@UCO is […]