Words by Melissa "Sausage" Cox. Photos by Anna "Hashbrowns" Vernon.

The last time local artist Sarah Jaffe was in the Granada, she cleaned up at the Dallas Observer Music Awards, winning Best Solo Act, Best Album, Best Song, Best Folk Act, and Best Female Vocalist. This time, she performed to a sold out crowd, who came in droves to listen to her sing. Jaffe released her first full-length album in April, Surburban Nature, now available in vinyl.

There were two opening bands – Jonathan Evan Clark and Seryn. We missed the first opener, but made it in time to see most of Seryn’s set. It was quite striking walking into the theater in mid-song. Read on for the full review after the jump.

Dallas

Tuesday Sept 28: Jenny and Johnny w/Eternal Summers and Whispertown @ Granada
8pm. Doors at 7pm.
Get tickets here for $16.

Tuesday Sept 28: Ratatat w/Bobby Birdman @ Palladium
8pm.
Get tickets here for $27 with fees.

Wednesday Sept 29: CocoRosie w/Sleep Whale and New Fumes @ Granada
8pm. Doors at 7pm.
Get tickets here for $18.

Thursday Sept 30: Michael Franti and Spearhead @ House of Blues
9pm. Doors at 8pm.
Get tickets here starting at $27 ($23 for a 4/pack).

Saturday Oct 2: Ishi and Black Tie Dynasty @ Granada
8pm. Doors at 7pm.
Get tickets here for $10.

Northwest Arkansas | Little Rock

Monday Sept 27: Shwayze @ Chi Omega Greak Theater, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.
Show starts at 9pm and it's FREE.

Wednesday Sept 29: Citizen Cope @ George’s Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville, AR.
Starts at 8pm and tickets are $25.

Friday Oct 1: Michael Franti & Spearhead @ The Village, Little Rock, AR.
Starts at 9:00pm. Doors open at 8pm.
Tickets are $25 in advance, $28 at the door.

Saturday Oct 2: The Black Crowes @ The AMP, Fayetteville, AR.
Starts at 8pm. Doors open at 7pm.
Tickets go from $20-$100.

This is so humorous to me. Love this song, love this video.

The fucking Flaming Lips.

Photo by Chad Smith, courtesy of Madison House Publicity.
Interview by B "Café con Leche" Gutierrez.

BOT had the opportunity to chat it up with Joel Cummins, founding member and keyboard-master of Umphrey's McGee. We talked about new Umphrey's material, side projects and interests, and even baseball came out in the conversation.

Umphrey's McGee is playing a show in Fayetteville, AR at George's Majestic Lounge on Sunday, Sept 26. Do you have your ticket yet? Don't miss out! Check out the interview after the jump.

Have you HEARD The Sound of Sunshine yet? If your answer is no, you have to go listen to it right now. You can do so here.

Are you back yet? Did you open it in another window and have it playing at the moment? OK, good. As you might guess, this a must-buy album.

Michael Franti & Spearhead hit the Top 40 nation with his single "Say Hey" from his last album All Rebel Rockers. From the moment that song became a hit, Franti & Spearhead took flight. Talk about seizing the moment! I remember reading about him in a CA newspaper about a year ago, he was asked about working on new material and he said something along the lines of "...Our single 'Say Hey' is now in the Top 40. Since that’s blowing up, we’re trying to stay out on the road."

Turns out, they didn't need to stop performing to create a new album. In fact, that's exactly what they needed to keep doing. A lot of the songs in The Sound of Sunshine were completed on the road. Franti & Spearhead spent their winter as the opening act for John Mayer's Battle Studies tour. Perhaps the opportunity to perform for so many Mayer-lovers did a world of good, introducing Franti to many that otherwise wouldn't be found as part of his audience. Continue reading after the jump.

Tomorrow, Houston temporarily gets even more badass, from the moment the Drive-by Truckers cross into our city limits till the moment they leave. You’ve got two chances to check out one of the hardest-working bands in the business, who over the course of 14 years have carved out a reputation as some of the best songwriters and performers in alt-country. Their three-guitar blitzkrieg is now supplemented by keyboardist Jay Gonzalez, who joined the band prior to the recording of their latest album, The Big To-Do. As part of the promotion for the record, the band released webisodes explaining either the lyrical or musical origins of most of the songs. Check out the webisode for my favorite song off of it, “Drag the Lake Charlie,” and head to Cactus tomorrow at 3:30 and House of Blues tomorrow night. Snag your tickets here!

I love that the DBT’s are forming relationships in the jam world… almost as much as I love the lyric: “I’m almost out of Valium, courage, and self-respect.”

A couple months back, a post was sent out on our local internet message board and throughout Facebook requesting as many young hip kids as possible to gather together and shoot a video for LCD Soundsystem's song "Home" from their latest effort This Is Happening. Well, with a bit of acting added to all of the partying, and a Robot that eventually ends up in an drug-addled orgy scene in a hotel room, the results are now being presented for everyone to see. Created by the Funwunce Supergroup, more specifically Rick Darge and Mark Armes, they bring a new and rather odd perspective to the nearly eight minute dance tune. Check out the video...

So many familiar faces in this video! It's weird to see someone you know do (fake?) blow off of a robot on video and another one grinding on him in a bikini.

Dallas

Wednesday 22: O.A.R. w/The Dirty Heads @ House of Blues

Thursday 23: Papa Grows Funk w/Backside Pick @ Granada Theater

Thursday 23: Kings of Leon w/The Black Keys @ Superpages.com Center

Saturday 25: Jamie Lidell w/Twin Shadow @ Granada Theater

Saturday 25: Drive By Truckers w/Henry Clay People @ House of Blues

Northwest Arkansas | Oklahoma

Thursday 23: O.A.R. w/The Dirty Heads @ Cain’s Ballroom, Tulsa, OK.
Starts at 8pm. Doors open at 7pm.
Tickets are $30 in advance, $32.50 at the door.

Thursday 23: American Aquarium @ George’s Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville, AR.
Starts at 10pm.

Thursday 23: Charliehorse @ Sound Warehouse, Fayetteville, AR.
Starts at 6:30pm and it's FREE

Thursday 23: The Hold Steady @ Revolution Music Room, Little Rock, AR.
Starts at 8:30pm and tickets are $18

Sunday 26: Umphrey’s McGee w/Speakeasy @ George’s Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville, AR.
Starts at 9pm and tickets are $25

Sunday 26: The Avett Brothers w/Grace Potter and the Nocturnals @ Bricktown Events Center, OKC.
Starts at 8pm and tickets are $32 in advance, $35 at the door.

Photo by OpenEye.

Tomorrow a BoThead is interviewing the deliciously talented keyboard / vocalist of Umphrey's McGee. Joel Cummins will be answering a few questions and we thought it would be fun to pose him a few queries from fans here on BoT. So comment below with any questions, and we'll pick a few outlandishly great ones to ask.

There aren't any shows left in Texas, but you can run up to OKC this Saturday to see them, or Fayetteville, AR on Sunday to party with Cafe Con Leche at George's Majestic Lounge. Should be an awesome show since it's a smaller venue - and in the middle of the downtown party strip, Dickson Street.

Deadline is midnight tonight!

We are excited to give away a pair of tickets to see The Smashing Pumpkins at Houston's Warehouse Live on Tuesday, September 21. All you have to do to win is leave a comment with both your full name and either an e-mail address or telephone number in which you receive text messages. We will be choosing the winner randomly on the day of the show, and announcing it through either e-mail or text.

This is a rare opportunity to catch The Smashing Pumpkins in such an intimate (for them at least) venue. The last time I saw the Pumpkins, which was headlining Voodoo a few years back, they performed in front of over ten thousand people. While it's not all of the original members, Billy Corgan does a great job at bringing his songs out with a newly established vigor that wasn't there many years back during their rockier times. I'm extremely excited for this show, and can't thank The Messina Group, AEG Live and Warehouse Live for allowing to let a couple lucky people also check it out. Tickets are still on sale for what will assuredly be a sold out show, so if you don't think you're gonna win, head on over to WHL's Frontgate ticketing site to pick up as many as you need.