MUSIC MINUTE: INTERVIEW WITH DJ KIND BEATS

will milne September 5, 2017

Mikey LaCroix is busy. You’ve probably enjoyed one of his performances under the name Kind Beats at Backyard on Bell, or listened to one of his radio shows. But, as he himself admits, he’s not the kind of performer you always notice. That’s kind of the point: As long as you’re happy, he’s doing his job.

The hip-hop head-turned-DJ has two shows, a booming SoundCloud page, and friends in every nook, corner, and cranny of DFW, but he’s still not satisfied. He’s on a mission to unite artists, unite sounds and make Denton even funkier.

We sat down with the music man to find out what drives him and his sound.

NEW NON-PROFIT TO SUBSIDIZE HEALTHCARE FOR DENTON ARTISTS

will milne August 6, 2017

Pursuing the music and arts as a career has never been known to be a financially easy or smooth path. Denton, a hot hub for budding artists and musicians is experiencing a population explosion says Nic Bagherpour. The problem this presents? Starving artists and musicians may find it more difficult to afford living here. Founders of the the new local nonprofit, the Denton Music and Arts Collaborative, have set out to combat that issue, starting with subsidizing health care for artists and musicians.

SKIMMED: FEBRUARY 1ST 2017

will milne February 3, 2017

Skimmed is our monthly look at current cultural, business and political information in Denton that you probably want to know about. It is designed to be read in under five minutes and we even bolded the important stuff so you can skim it! This week, we have info on a Denton-based super group, a bubble tea switcheroo, local murals, and plenty more. Skim away!

THE PLAYLIST: DENTON TXMAS HOLIDAY EDITION

will milne December 23, 2016

GLEN FARRIS AND SHAUN TREAT

TThe fine folks over at the Denton Record-Chronicle published a mighty fine “Denton Christmas Playlist” last weekend, which got our collective gears a’turning. To us, their 5 songs seemed like a good start to throwing together a longer selection of locally-sourced holiday cheer. So our gift to y’all this year is the following WDDI Denton TXmas Awesome Holiday Mixtape (vol. 7), our extended representative sampling in no particular order.

BOWLING FOR SOUP – “FATHER CHRISTMAS”

These Witchita Falls rockers honed their sound in Denton pubs, and this take is a fun way to kick things up a notch for your Holiday party.

NORAH JONES & WILLIE NELSON – “BABY ITS COLD OUTSIDE”

Both of these music legends have their roots in the Denton scene, and their take on a notoriously slightly creepy tune is actually a welcome breath of fresh air.

BAPTIST GENERALS – “ALCOHOL”

Okay, not a Christmas song proper, but definitely speaks to a major (some would say essential) ingredient in a lot of holiday celebrations. We stand by our selection.

ROY ORBISON – “PRETTY PAPER”

Few can belt out a soulfully lovelorn ballad like The O, an old-timey tune that deserves far more holiday play than it gets.

PAT BOONE – “WHITE CHRISTMAS”

It just doesn’t come any whiter or more Christmassy than this NTSU alum. Trust us, your momma will applaud this pick.

POLYPHONIC SPREE – “HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER)”

These choral dynamos deliver a pitch-perfect cover of the haunting John Lennon classic.

CENTRO-MATIC – “FUSELAGE (ITS STARTING TO LOOK LIKE CHRISTMAS ONCE AGAIN)”

This Denton indy legend mixes growling pop beats with abstracted instrumentals, a toe-tapping homage to the more angsty aspects of the holidays.

EAGLES – PLEASE COME HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

A Christmas mix without Don Henley and The Eagles? Blasphemy.

FISHBOY – “A SURPRISE RETURN”

Who else but our own beloved Fishboy could deliver a song about a zombie Christmas Tree returning for a hangout? That’s right, no one. You’re welcome.

SNARKY PUPPY – “THING OF GOLD”

Familiar holiday beats filtered through an acid jazz jam session? Yes, please.

NEW SCIENCE PROJECTS – “XMAS CALL”

One of our favorite punk blues tributes to another less-discussed holiday tradition, the drunken phone call to an Ex.

SLOBBERBONE – “GIVE ME BACK MY DOG”

The opposite of gift giving is demanding your dang pooch back, which is why we are totally counting this track on our holiday mixtape. I mean, Stephen King name-dropped this as one of his picks for the greatest rock-and-roll song of all time, so you can argue with him in the comments.

SARAH JAFFE – “CLEMENTINE”

Little known fact, Clementine is actually the name of Mrs. Claus before she… Okay, nah, just kidding. Because Glen appears in the hauntingly beautiful video for this amazing tune, we here at WDDI will always include it on every songlist ever. Always. It’s a thing, just roll with it.

If you want to sample and savor these songs along with plenty more local selections, then click on over to this WDDI MT007 playlist, or this epic YouTube mixtape variation by Shaun Treat. We went ahead and included the video for Centro-matic's "Fuselage" below because how can anyone resist all those stills from A Christmas Vacation?

As always, we love to hear your hot take in the comments in case we missed one of your favorites.

Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, and Happy Holidays from the gang here at We Denton Do It.

OAKTOPIA 2016: SATURDAY PREVIEW

will milne September 22, 2016

Over the past week, we've been picking a few of our "can't miss" shows and events that are a part of this year's Oaktopia festival in Downtown Denton, TX. You can check out our Thursday or Friday coverage for events for those days. Saturday, however, is a beast of a day. Read below to check out Nathan Williams' coverage of what you should check out at Oaktopia this Saturday.

OAKTOPIA 2016: FRIDAY PREVIEW

will milne September 21, 2016

Imagine this: You’re sitting outside letting the sun beams sink into your skin as the first bass notes of the day begin pulsing through your bones, a belly full of tacos and craft beer in hand, you close your eyes, become one with the collective consciousness of the crowd around you as the conversation of good friends fade into a moment of solace, relaxing deep within your mind, there’s nothing but you and the pervasive vocals of St. Beauty as rich, complex synths rain down around you, clarity washes over your body, this is heaven sent, this is what you’ve been waiting for, this is Oaktopia. Now come back to reality and get ready to experience this immersive music festival with another set of recommendations from your friends at We Denton Do it, we’ll help you get that second day schedule on track.

3 SONGS: AUGUST 2016

will milne August 30, 2016

Colder weather will be here eventually, y’all, and frankly, we’re getting excited. As you trade in those bikinis and swim trunks for peacoats and comically large scarves, you might find yourself looking for tunes to listen to on a lazy rainy day inside, a quiet walk through campus, or to help you get through that unexpected break-up you just went through. In this month’s 3 Songs column, our place to showcase great new music, we’ve branched out a little from our normal Denton-centric content and pulled together several tracks that’ll scare the summer right out of Texas, so plug in your headphones and get ready for some alt-country from Space Mountain, Pablo Maeda and Moonbeamer.

DENTON MUSIC TOWN HALL

Alyssa Stevenson August 23, 2016

Last night there was a meeting of the music masses of Denton hosted by Christopher Cotter, a devoted DIY scene supporter. The town hall was set up to last for 4 hours. We went, we listened and nodded, and heard what people had to say. From that we've gathered a few of our favorite quotes and ideas from the evening. Read on to find out our biggest take aways from a evening of DIY venue talks.

ON NOSTALGIA AND MUSIC VENUES

Alyssa Stevenson August 9, 2016

I remember being 18 years old, a freshman at UNT and my friends and I thinking that we totally had Denton figured out. We spent our evenings eating J&J’s pizza off of paper plates on the courthouse lawn and drinking mocha and mint milkshakes from Jupiter House before heading off to a show at Hailey’s to catch Mouse Parade or Explosions in the Sky or Flickerstick. I would make sure my cash and ID were ready, knowing that my hand was about to be stamped with ink that would take days to get off, which would alert the bartender that I was not old enough to enjoy the beer that everyone around me was drinking. We would hunt down house shows in ramshackle rent houses on Bernard Street, or in some kid’s apartment on Avenue G, hoping that the cops wouldn’t bust it because of too many cars on the street or the music being too raucous. We would roll into our dorm rooms sometime before dawn, peeling off our clothes that reeked of smoke and sweat and spilled beer - and close our eyes, too tired to wash the smell off of our bodies.