The Lisps: Band Profile

The second of the bands that paid us an unannounced visit last night was The Lisps, a band from New York city, bound for South by Southwest ("SXSW"). Here's how their website describes the band:

The Lisps are a New York-based assemblage of 21st century indie-rock vaudevillians. They write songs about science and love, space and pain, babies and documents. Their performances have been known to involve bloody tambourines, wrestling, lipstick smeared melodicas, tap shoes, old kitchen cabinets and dinosaurs. The Lisps are the public/performative version of all the relationships you're struggling with.

That's a pretty fair description, but I'd like to add "high energy" and "a hell of a lot of fun to watch."

Vocalist Samantha "Sammy" Tunis also plays a rather unusual percussion instrument: an old battered red metal kitchen cabinet. It sounds like a big, metallic bass drum, and gives certain of their songs a little extra "oomph!"

You've got to give props to a band willing to dress up as a selection of broiled seafood.

If you are looking for a poppy, up tempo band that's lots of fun to watch, we recommend The Lisps.

Live show Saturday, March 15th!

Looking for something to do on the Ides of March?

We are hosting a free live show with four bands this Saturday night, March 15th.

Two of the bands are from New York City and are on their way to South by Southwest ("SXSW"). Come by The Amsterdam Bar this Saturday night to give these bands a big Texas welcome. Here's the lineup:

From Denton, Texas: RTB2

"RTB2 - one guitar, drums and tracks. great pipes on lead. some real heart-felt bluesy tunes" --from Adventures in Live Music

From Dallas, Texas: Jack with One Eye

"From noisy murder ballads to dynamic shoegaze, Jack With One Eye are a band you just can’t pin. As soon as you think you’ve found a comparison they pull you in the opposite direction and you’re not even trying to figure out who or what they sound like anymore you’re just in the moment.” –Fan at Gypsy Tea Room

From New York City: The Muggabears

The Muggabears are Travis Johnson, Emily Ambruso and Gabriel Wurzel, three friends in Brooklyn who play a structurally-mutilated brand of noise-pop featuring blissful interplay, sonic experimentation and song destruction. In 2003, Travis Johnson first recorded under the moniker The Muggabears in Norman, Oklahoma. The 2004 album, Kim Berlin, reveled in colorful guitar textures, off-kilter hooks, and diamond-sharp energy. Moving to New York from Dallas in the winter of 2005, he immediately drafted Emily Ambruso and Kevin Murphy, two other Southern transplants, on bass and drums, respectively.

From New York City: Famous Amos

"Famous Amos touch down in your town soon, like a funnel cloud, an unbridled dervish chewing its way across the landscape. Really, just check us out when we're in town and tell me that shit ain't true." --from their website, March 2008

The music starts at 9:00 PM. While there is no cover for this show, you must be 21 and show ID to attend this event. No one under 21 will be admitted under any circumstances.

Laura Palmer: Band Profile

If I had to describe Dallas chanteuse Laura Palmer with two words, they would be "bawdy fun." Think "South Park," performed live and in your face. Ms. Palmer and her percussionist, Li'l Hunky Rooks, opened last night's festivities at The Amsterdam Bar with their repertoire of off-color, but in key show tunes, including "Three Times a Rapist" and "Leaving LA."

Simply hilarious!

Ms. Palmer had the crowd rolling in the aisles before the end of her set. In addition to being a talented musical performer and incurable potty-mouth, Ms. Palmer is a talented improvisational comedienne, and she punctuated her songs with sharp, witty banter. It's easy to see why Laura Palmer is a Dallas favorite.

Check out this interview of Laura Palmer in Dallas Quick:

Q: Before you started writing these songs, did you have any interest in performing?

A: I was a theater major in college, and one of my favorite teachers was my music performance teacher. That really taught me good vocal technique and all that stuff. It also got me thinking about songwriting from a musical theater perspective. And I mean that in the least douche-y way possible. There are these great songs and different styles of writing all over theater.

I love a woman who can work the word "douche-y" into a sentence when describing her music.


To sum up, if you are a little on the prudish side, you'll end up leaving her show bleeding from your violated ears. On the other hand, if you like dirty show tunes delivered with a Broadway sensibility, we highly recommend Laura Palmer.

Some unexpected fun at The Amsterdam Bar!

Laura Palmer performing at The Amsterdam Bar, March 11, 2008

Last night saw some unexpected fun at The Amsterdam Bar. When one of our neighbor clubs was unable to open last night and asked us to host the three bands they had booked for the night. As a result, The Amsterdam Bar was treated to an impromptu show with Laura Palmer, The Lisps, and The Physics of Meaning.

We quickly set up our PA system, hustled the bands in through the back door, and fired up a couple of heaters. The result was one of the more memorable nights of live music on our back patio in years. I'm going to review each of the bands separately later today, but I just wanted to thank all the bands for providing great entertainment after having to suddenly shift gears on short notice. We had a blast!

Gouden Carolus Blond: Beer Profile

In honor of Governor Eliot Spitzer, we review a beer that is fit for an emperor!

Gouden Carolus Blond (Belgium) – 8% ABV: This blond beer was brewed in honor of the court of the Emperor Charles The Fifth. Its refined character, with a pure and rich taste, will captivate you. It is matured at length in cellar and bottle, and is brewed only from pale malts. It is traditionally top-fermented and is 100% pure. The beer features a great big frothy head that lasts for a while. There is a soft aroma of peaches, a bit of spice (coriander), and yeast. The color is a nice golden orange. The finish is clean, slightly bitter, and has a nice alcohol warming. Gouden Carolus Blond is a very good triple.

Come on down to our club for a Gouden Carolus Blond: you'll feel like a true VIP.

Under construction: online beer menu

Pardon the mess for the next few days: we are putting our beer menu online in the form of links to our various beer profiles. Hopefully this will give our customers access to some of our accumulated beer lore.

In the meantime, the pro-forma links will lead readers back to this post. Keep checking back to see what we are doing!

Ayinger Celebrator Double Bock: Beer Profile

Ayinger Celebrator Double Bock (Germany) – 6.7% ABV: A beer that has a dominant malty taste. This beer’s origins 
in a monk’s recipe are reflected in its heartiness. The Pope 
of Beers, Conrad Seidl, described it as: “Almost black with 
a very slight red tone, a sensational, festive foam and truly extraordinary fragrance that at first summons up visions of greaves lard. The first taste is of mild fullness with an accompanying coffee tone, which becomes more dominant 
with the aftertaste. There is very little of the sweetness that is frequently to be tasted with doppelbock beer.” The Ayinger Celebrator has been ranked among the best beers of the world by the Chicago Testing Institute several times and has won numerous platinum medallions.

The Lenten season is a great time for a fortifying double bock, so stop by The Amsterdam Bar tonight and enjoy a Ayinger Celebrator Double Bock.

Some random Melodica Festival pictures

Here are some random pictures I took at the Melodica 2008 music festival. What a great weekend: live music by starlight and firelight, great beer, and great new friends.

Treewave performs.

The crowd stays warm around the fire.

The crowd talks between acts.

Cold night, cool music.

We love our tree.

Does anyone recognize this band?

We really enjoyed hosting one of the stages for the Melodica 2008 music festival. We need to do this again soon, maybe when the weather warms up a bit! Until then, keep stopping by for more information about upcoming events at The Amsterdam Bar.

Beer Profile: La Fin Du Mond

La Fin Du Mond (Quebec) – 9% ABV: La Fin du Mond from Unibroue is a 9 percent alcohol, triple fermentation beer. This type of beer was originally developed by the monks of the Middle Ages to be served on special occasions. La Fin du Monde is a deluxe beer made with triple fermentation and a unique way of straining the yeast. This method produces an unexpectedly subtle flavor. With its champagne-like effervescence, it has a vigorous presence in the mouth, which accentuates its strong personality. Slightly tart, with the balanced flavors of wild spices, malt and hops, it belongs to the class of great Trappist beers and, in this regard, is a North American first. This beer is brewed to honor of the great explorers, who believed they had reached the end of the world when they discovered America.

La Fin Du Mond is available in bottles at The Amsterdam Bar.

Beer Profile: Kronenbourg 1664

Kronenbourg 1664 (Strasbourg, France) – 5.9% ABV: This beer comes to us from Alsace, a region on the border of France and Germany. Kronenbourg 1664 pours a light, clear yellow into a pint glass with a billowy white head. This is a delicious lager with sweet, fruit-like flavor (pears, apples) and maybe a slight hint of cloves. There is very little bitterness from the hops and a refreshing, sweet aftertaste: crisp and very clean.

Kronenbourg 1664 is on tap at The Amsterdam Bar.