RIDE ON
You may have noticed that Las Vegas’ favorite country-punks, The Clydesdale, have been missing in action of late—since an October gig at the Gold Spike during Life Is Beautiful. Don’t fret. The 9-year-old band has been on temporary hiatus, but 2014 could bring the return of a bigger, better and maybe even bluesier Clydesdale.
“I suppose we needed time away, so we could bring the romance back,” says singer and guitarist Paige Overton. “We wanted to make sure we could take some time off for the holidays ... to take a step back and reevaluate and re-fall in love with our band. I’ve been doing a lot of songwriting, so I think in January we’re just going to put our heads down and go for it.”
March’s aching rockabilly EP, Trail of the Painted Pony, points in a strong direction, with lyrics that sound as if they were torn from tear-stained diary pages and warm, dusty guitar riffs. “We were talking about recording a record,” drummer Courtney Carroll says, “like, the ‘best of’ from everything that we’ve done ... and doing a [vinyl] pressing of it. We were planning on recording a new album, too.”
Overton and Carroll also hinted at the possibility of some touring in 2014, but Clydesdale’s main goal is simple: “To make the best music we’ve ever written,” Overton says. “I want to share it with whoever we can.” —Leslie Ventura
Sal Giordano of The Core released a solo project under the moniker No Red Alice on December 6.
BEYOND THE CORE
Half of local punk outfit The Core is releasing solo projects near-simultaneously. The first is from guitarist Sal Giordano, going by his solo moniker No Red Alice. Recorded as a split with Brendan Scholz (Deadhand/Mercy Music), Ebony and Irony is a four-track EP recorded with Ian Tyler, released December 6 at Velveteen Rabbit. This is the first in what Giordano says should be five splits with local musicians. “I’m literally picking people I love musically,” he says. “Brendan was my first choice, because I know how he works.”
The second comes from guitarist Brock Frabbiele, releasing his sophomore live album, Unemployment Is a Helluva Drug, recorded in early 2013 at the Bunkhouse Saloon. “At first I tried to go in the studio, but I don’t get the emotion I get when I play in front of people with just a guitar,” Frabbiele says. “I’m a huge fan of recording that way.”
The December 14 release party, taking place at the Artistic Armory, comes in the midst of an 11-date West Coast tour. Frabbiele will be joined by a handful of local musicians, including Lawn Mower Death Riders, Dead Frets and Mercy Music.
For fans of The Core, this isn’t a phase-out for the quartet. Besides shows spread over the next couple months, both Giordano and Frabbiele say things are brewing. “We’ve got a bunch of songs for a new record,” Frabbiele says, “but we’re gonna spend some more time on it to make it a good one.” —Max Plenke
Dusty Sunshine plays the Access Film Music Showcase during the Sundance Film Festival next month.
ALL-ACCESS
The ladies of Dusty Sunshine will make an early-2014 festival appearance next month in Park City, Utah, which houses the Access Film Music Showcase during the Sundance Film Festival. Dusty member Megan Wingerter says Access “helps invited artists connect with opportunities to license their music in film and television.” Which means that even though Sundance and Access aren’t officially affiliated, they do work in conjunction. —Jason Harris
THAT’S AMORÉ
Hard-touring Vegas outfit Caravels has been tapped to open 11 shows for Touché Amoré and co-headliner mewithoutyou, in February and March. Touché might be the hottest hardcore band on the planet, having recently grabbed abum ratings of 8.0 from Pitchfork, 5 stars from Alternative Press and 4.5 stars from Punknews, which means Caravels could gain significant new exposure while playing iconic venues like Detroit’s Magic Stick, Washington, D.C.’s Black Cat and Carrboro, North Carolina’s Cat’s Cradle. —Spencer Patterson
