Melodica Band Profile: History at Our Disposal

From The Dallas Observer's top 10 records of 2007:

Tangled in spacey macrobiotic ambience, History at Our Disposal's Symbols in the Architecture blends organic acoustic instrumentation, bubbling electronic flourishes, warm quiet passages, jagged dissonant asides, seemingly unsystematic surges and carefully calculated movements with an expertly reserved hand. If The Books and Neutral Milk Hotel assimilated into a colossal Japanese fighting robot that performed funeral dirges for circus clowns, the sonic product might be almost as eerily wonderful as Symbols in the Architecture. Artful without being obnoxiously avant-garde, audibly accessible without compromising creative uniqueness, History at Our Disposal has created an atypical breed of album that is not content to simply add atmosphere; it constructs its own orbit.

History at Our Disposal plays the Melodica 2008 music festival at The Amsterdam Bar on February 22, 2008.

Melodica 2008 Band Profile: Jetscreamer

Jetscreamer will be one of the many bands performing at The Amsterdam Bar during Melodica 2008. This Dentonite trio has a really interesting sound--I'd have to describe it as kind of blues-punk fusion, but hey, what do I know? Let's ask the professionals:

"It works brilliantly, the whole thing sounding like you're caught in the middle of a knife fight between Sonic Youth and some whiskey-addled bluesman. Seven-minute opener 'Front Porch' is the perfect battle cry, speed-thrill drums struggling to keep up once the guitars are unleashed. Elsewhere we get sprawling instrumental passages and blistering howls of pity. It's here we learn that jetscreamer really have got the blues. And they don't come much dirtier than this." NME - 7 out of 10

You can read a lot more and hear several sample tracks at Jetscreamer's Myspace page.

The Amsterdam Bar looks forward to hosting Jetscreamer during Melodica 2008.

Melodica 2008 Band Profile: The Happy Bullets

Only twelve more days until Melodica 2008! One of the bands slated to play at The Amsterdam Bar is The Happy Bullets:

Recording songs that combined a 1960's psychedelic nostalgia with ironic and literate lyrics, The Happy Bullets began when indie songwriters Jason Roberts and Tim Ruble met while working together at an art gallery in a suburb of Dallas. After a home recording demo was released and played on local radio, Roberts quickly recruited his wife, Andrea to learn bass guitar while lending vocal support to several of the bands more pop-oriented songs. Additional members were later added including Josh McKibben of The Sons of Sound, Rhett Jones, and Kris Youmans of The Paper Chase.

2004 saw the release of The Happy Bullets first record, Blue Skies and Umbrellas and was quickly followed up in 2005 with The Vice and Virtue Ministry, engineered by Stuart Sikes (Modest Mouse, Cat Power, the Promise Ring) and released on the upstart Dallas indie label Undeniable Records. The latter gained the band critical acclaim on the national college radio circuit and led to shared bills with Mates of State, Architecture in Helsinki, and Of Montreal.

In 2006, The Happy Bullets toured throughout the United States performing in Austin, Texas at the SXSW Music Festival, Athens, Georgia at the 2006 Athens Popfest, and at CMJ Music Festival in New York City.[1]

We look forward to having The Happy Bullets on our stage for Melodica 2008.

Melodica Band Profile: Record Hop

Melodica 2008 is coming to The Amsterdam Bar! We want to give our friends a preview of some of the bands that will be playing at The Amsterdam Bar during the Melodica 2008 music festival. We start today with a Denton, Texas band: Record Hop.

Record Hop consists of Ashley Cromeens on Vocals and Guitar; Scott Porter on Guitar; Tony Wann on Drums; and Cory Ward on Bass Guitar. According to their website, Record Hop has been gigging in the DFW area since mid-2002. They describe their music as "Chinese traditional / Crunk / Shoegaze" in what I can only assume is a tongue-in-cheek entry on their Myspace page. Having taken the time to listen to a few tracks off their album "Pareidolia" (2004), I can testify that they are neither Chinese Traditional or Crunk. I will wait until I see them perform before I decide whether they qualify as Shoegaze.

As noted above, their first album, "Pareidolia," was released in 2004. Tracks available for sampling online suggest a frenetic, guitar driven band. The track "Last Second" shows real promise, with a mysterious "grunge/alt rock meets The Cure" sort of hook. Word is, Record Hop's second album is nearly ready for release and they have begun to perform the new songs live. I'm looking forward to checking them out to see how their sound has developed since their first offering.

Record Hop is scheduled to play at The Amsterdam Bar on February 22, 2008 during the Melodica 2008 music festival.

Melodica News! The Amsterdam Bar will be a venue for 2008!

We received exciting news this week: The Amsterdam Bar will serve as one of the venues for this year's Melodica music festival. Some key information from the guys at We Shot JR:

Just wanted to let everyone know that passes to the Melodica Festival will be going on sale this weekend at Good Records and all Melodica venues (Sloppyworld, Fallout, etc.) $25 gets you access to every show (including the Sunday all ages show), and if you want one, I'd suggest buying it soon because as of right now, only 300 passes are available. Each venue will also allow you to pay a seperate cover for individual shows (ranging from $5-10), but the passes honestly seem like a much better deal if you're planning on seeing more than one show.

That sounds like good advice to us.

We are still in the process of getting information about the shows at The Amsterdam Bar, but we do have a tentative lineup of the bands involved:

On Friday, February 22, 2008:

Record Hop
Happy Bullets
Jetscreamer
History at our Disposal
Jack with one Eye

On Saturday, February 23, 2008:

We Shot JR Night:
Finally Punk
Cry Blood Apache
Medio Mutante
Yellow Fever
Treewave
Zanzibar Snails

We are especially excited to be serving as the venue for We Shot JR Night. These guys know the Dallas music scene and we know they'll be bringing a great show to The Amsterdam Bar.

For more information about weshotjr.com, you can click here.

Beer Profile: Old Rasputin Imperial Stout

Old Rasputin Imperial Stout (Fort Bragg, California) – 9% ABV: Imperial stout, also known as "Russian Imperial Stout" or "Imperial Russian Stout," is a strong dark beer or stout that was originally brewed in London, England for export to the Tsar of Russia. Imperial stout has a high alcohol content to preserve it during shipment. A classic example of this kind of beer is Old Rasputin from North Coast Brewing Co. Old Rasputin pours a rich dark-brown, molasses color that resembles coffee. The beer smells of caramel and nuts and it offers up a classic stout flavor with a nice punch of alcohol at the finish.

The Amsterdam Bar is proud to offer this mesmerizing brew in bottles.

Happy Thanksgiving from TAB

Just a very brief post this evening to wish all of our friends and patrons a very Happy Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to celebrating the holidays with all of you and ringing in the new year with plenty of good cheer.

Beer Profile: Chimay Red, White, and Blue

Chimay Red (Belgium) – 7% ABV: This unusual ale is a real classic among beer connoisseurs. Some regard it as the finest beer in the world. This beer is actually brewed by Trappist Monks--one of only five such breweries in the world. It's rich and hearty but also sweet, well balanced, and interesting. Chimay is bottle conditioned and is one of the very few beers that actually improves with age.

Chimay White (Belgium) – 8% ABV: This crisp beer bears a light orange color and a very bitter taste, and is the most hopped and driest of the three classic Chimay beers.

Chimay Blue (Belgium) – 9% ABV: This copper-brown beer has a creamy head and a slightly bitter taste. Considered to be the "classic" Chimay ale, it exhibits a considerable depth of fruity, peppery character. The taste continues to evolve and develop with a few years of age, and is extremely popular in Europe.

The Amsterdam Bar is proud to serve Chimay in bottles.

Beer Profile: Mothership Wit

Mothership Wit (Fort Collins, Colorado) – 5.9% ABV: New Belgium Brewing Company has always been an innovator and has done more than any other American brewer to popularize Belgian-style beers. Now New Belgium has brought out a new "wit," or white beer that is taking America by storm. Mothership Wit elevates the zesty Wit or White beers of Belgium with wheat malt, coriander and orange peel spicing—all of which are organically grown. The Mothership experience begins with a cloudy, pale yellow appearance capped by a creamy white head. Next is the alluring, slightly spicy, floral nose. The refreshing taste is the result of a gravitational balance of citrus and sour flavors held in suspension by a bright burst of carbonation. If you like white beers, this will soon be a favorite.

Beer Profile: Maredsous 8

Maredsous 8 (Belgium) – 8.0% ABV: This is one of our most popular beers. Maredsous 8 is a Belgian Dubbel and is a wonderful ruby brown with a large creamy tan head that is slow to dissipate. Maredsous 8's aroma is chocolaty and sweet with a hint of roasted malts; smells reminiscent of a stout with more spice. A taste of Maredsous 8 reveals hints of dark fruit, such as figs and dates. The feeling in the mouth is smooth and creamy—the finish is a very light hop note. Try one and you'll understand why people have been coming back to the Amsterdam Bar for years to enjoy Maredsous 8.

The Amsterdam Bar is proud to offer Maredsous 8 on tap.