WEEK IN REVIEW: WEEK OF MARCH 4TH

​Here's what's going on this week. If you have a specific show that we missed, let us know in the comments!

Efterklang has come all the way from Denmark to rock your world at Dan's Silverleaf this Tuesday. ​

Monday, March 4th:

Adam Faucett / RTB2 / Thomas Wynn & The Believers | Dan's Silverleaf | 9pm | $10
Man of much soul, Adam Faucett, plays Dan's Silverleaf Monday evening. This Arkansas native's beautiful voice will kill most of those in attendance. Openers Thomas Wynn & The Believers have a definite RTB2 thing going on about them or is it the other way 'round? Either way. This has shaped up to be a great show. 

Jazz Night​ - The Green House | 10pm | Free 
We're not sure who is actually playing tonight (does The Greenhouse publish these things in advance?), but hitting up The Greenhouse on jazz night is always a good idea. Lots of fun drinks and the bands are pretty good more than 50% of the time. Remember the time that we actually had a jazz club? 

Boxcar Bandits | Hailey's | Free/$5 | 10pm
Boxcar Bandits is a regular at Hailey's Club. They're currently playing every Monday when not on tour. They will also be playing at 35 Denton next month.

Tuesday, March 5th:

Efterklang / Nightlands / Chambers | Dan's Silverleaf | 9pm | $15 | Tickets!
The danes in Efterklang are touring the states in support of their critically well-received 2012 album, Piramida and the documentary, The Ghost of Piramida, about the recording of the aforementioned album. Efterklang always puts on a great live show. And this will be a great warm-up to 35 Denton. Openers Nightlands and Chambers keep the dreamy feel alive throughout the whole night. You can leave your bottle of drank at home. 

OSDH 1 Year Anniversary Party - Oak St. Drafthouse and Cocktail Parlor | Free | 4pm
OSDH is on a roll of great events, following up Armadillo Ale Works' release of Quakertown Stout last Friday. It feel like just yesterday we were so amazed and happy to have our very own beer garden in town. Hard to believe it's been a whole year. You rarely see a local business become so engrained into the culture of a small town as quickly as OSDH has. Go and show them your appreciation and support on Tuesday. It won't hurt that they'll have plenty of awesome beers in keg form, including a personal favorite of We Denton Do It, Peticolas Brewing Co.'s Wintervention. 

Wednesday, March 6th: 

Various Artists / Mockingbird Station / Blue Bear / PurlSnapShirts / Stormy Durant - Hailey's | 21 and up - Free, $5 under | 8pm

Thursday, March 7th - Sunday, March 10th - The beginning of 35 Denton | EVERYWHERE. BE READY. 
We'll have much more on this as the week progresses, y'all. 

INTERVIEW: ARMADILLO ALE WORKS

Words and images by Courtney Marie

​The brains behind Armadillo Ale Works, Bobby Mullins and Yianni Arestis. - Photo by Courtney Marie

Bobby from Armadillo Ale Works let us pick his brain about craft beer, their first official beer release, and what the future holds before the big Armadillo Ale Works launch party at Oak Street Draft House this Friday, March 1st.

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It’s obvious that you guys love Denton. You even have a beer called the Quakertown Stout. Why have you struggled to keep as much of your business here as possible?

Well, I grew up in Denton and Yianni [Arrestis, his partner] moved here to go to UNT; we met a short time before that. We both love the small town feel that life in Denton provides. I love the fact that I run into people I know every time I go out. The arts, music, and the people of Denton are what makes this town great for us. Those things, along with the local history and culture inspire a lot of what we do with Armadillo Ale Works.

You’re releasing the Quakertown Stout this weekend at Oak Street Draft House. How did you decide on this beer as your first official release?

After more than two years of doing tastings around town, it was obvious Quakertown was the one to launch with. People always went nuts over it every time we served it.

Photo by Courtney Marie

Tell us a little about the name.

We named it after the original community of Quakertown and Quakertown park where several large community events are held each year. It’s an important area for the people of Denton, both past and present.

What makes Quakertown Stout special? ​

The beer is a powerhouse of roasted barley, oats, and maple syrup that comes ​

in at 9.22% ABV [Alcohol by Volume]. It’s a very malt-forward beer with notes of chocolate, coffee, vanilla, and roasted nuts.

Tell us about collaborating with Deep Ellum Brewers - how/why did that happen, how has that experience been so far?

The guys at DEBC are great. We’ve had a blast working with them too. They approached us about a year ago with their offer and it’s worked out tremendously. The craft beer industry has always been very collaborative; we’ve just taken it a step further. We’re all little guys and we’ve got to stick together to fight the good fight against boring, mass produced beer.​

What is different about the craft beer scene in Dallas that Denton could learn from?

Well, with all the breweries that have popped up in Dallas I think they are much more aware of craft beer. We hope to get Denton to that point as soon as possible.​

What beers are next?

We plan to introduce our next beer, Greenbelt Farmhouse Ale, in the spring and the rest of our lineup when we get our Denton location up and running. 

Oak Street Draft House is the natural choice for a beer launch. Anything special planned for the big launch party?

We love Oak Street Draft House! It’s a haven for Denton craft beer enthusiasts. Pan Ector will be there screen printing shirts, my sister, Haley Mullins, will be running a photo booth, and Courtney Marie will be taking candid photos of everyone who attends. We also have some cool pint glasses that people will get to keep when they order our beer.

How can we acquire your beer after this weekend?

We’ll have a map of all retailers up on our website. If you want your favorite place to carry our beer have them contact us!

Everyone wants to know about their favorite sodas that you guys put out. Are the sodas gone forever? If not, will there be other sodas joining the ranks, eventually?

The sodas will be back. We had to put them on hold to make the transition to beer. Once we get our place in Denton open we will bring them back in cans and they’ll be better than ever! We are looking into other flavors but there’s nothing set in stone yet.

How much experimenting do you do when crafting a new brew? 

Well mostly we just think of styles and unique ingredients we might want to play with and we just brew it and see what happens. Once we think we're onto something it we will stick with it and tweak things with each batch until we're happy with it.

What is in the future for Armadillo Ale works? 

We have every intention to come back to Denton.  Armadillo Ale Works is Denton's brewery after all. Our goal is to have leased a place in Denton by the end of this year. All of that is, of course, dependent on how long it takes us to get some more investors.

What is the most valuable thing you’ve learned since you’ve started the Armadillo Ale Works journey?

To always do what you love and never give up doing it

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​If you want to see just how far Armadillo Ale Works has progressed in the past few years, check out this interview we did with them way back in September of 2010.

Website / Twitter / Facebook

REVIEW: GUATELINDA CAFE

Recently, we had a chance to check out Guatelinda Cafe on N. Elm St. Here's how it went. 

The outside of Guatelinda Cafe.

Denton has a sordid past with Central American food. We had some excellent Venezuelan food in what was Mi Taza, the hard-to-get-to restaurant in a strip mall in front of the Kroger on University. For the first six months they were open, they served delicious Latin-American food including cachapas and arepas. If you didn’t go, they had bad service and eventually the place changed management and menus. While they are still open and carry the same name, you can no longer get amazingly good Venezualen food at Mi Taza. Regular Tex-Mex, sure, but who wants that?

A similar story happened years ago at a little place on Elm St. a block or two south of University. This place was called Cafe Garabaldi and every Wednesday they served Peruvian specialties in the form of a three course meal. It was cheap and it was delicious. Once again, we didn’t go because we Dentonites are apparently more interested in eating at the La Mexicanas and Mi Casita’s of the world (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) than we are traveling slightly north of the square. Eventually, it closed down. We miss it to this day.

A few months ago, a new Central American restaurant opened in the same location as Cafe Garabaldi. Guatelinda Cafe was the name. We were more than excited when we first drove by it. The name is good enough to be the title of your band’s next EP, but a name ain't everything. After a few months, we made our way to Guatelinda. Here’s how it went.

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Guatelinda Cafe on Elm St. in Denton, TX. ​

Walking into Guatelinda is confusing. There are tables at the front and a counter at the back. If our visit is the norm, then the restaurant is also completely empty -- no customers or employees present. After a few minutes, a man will walk over to the counter from the back of the restaurant and stare at you for a little while. This was most likely our cue to leave.

We took our seats. The dude brought us some menus. He’s actually pretty nice, although very quiet. He understood neither our English nor our 8th grade Spanish, but you could tell he wanted to. In addition to the print menu, there is also a large menu above the counter. Confusingly, parts of this menu contradict the printed one in our hands. We tried to order, only to find out that apparently only three or four of the various dishes are actually available every night. The rest of the menu is unavailable, just there to tempt and ridicule you. We even tried to order one of the specials on the signs only to be told that they didn’t have it that evening. We eventually ordered a couple of Guatemalan tamales (like a tamale but wrapped in a banana leaf and made with potatos and black olives in lieu of masa), some carne asada and some chicken pepian (boiled chicken served in a mole-like sauce).

​The Guatemalan tamale at Guatelinda Cafe. 

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Up close and personal at Guatelinda cafe. 

The tamales came out first. They were soggy, plastic-like and tasted a little off. Still wanting to like everything, we attempted a few more bites of the tamales -- we even tried adding salsa to no avail. Some things that aren’t so great initially are actually acquired tastes and are pretty good after a couple bites (or years). This was not one of those items.

Eventually, the kind, older man brought us out our main dishes. Both were accompanied by interesting sides. The chicken pepian came with a side salad and a pasta salad. The carne asada was completed with some mashed avocado, a potato salad and some black beans. The carne asada was actually pretty okay, but it was slightly dry and the cuts of beef were extremely small. The chicken pepian was less than stellar. It was a thigh and a leg covered in a tannish sauce. The chicken was over-boiled but definitely tender and the sauce’s taste was completely undetectable. The sides were the strange highlight. It was interesting having both pasta salad and potato salad especially with Central American cuisine. We’re not sure if either are Guatemalan customs, but those were the only things on our plates that were gone by the end of the meal.

The tortillas were hopeful. They were small, thick corn tortillas (remember, it’s girth that matters) that had obviously been made by hand. They had the texture of thick flour tortillas, but they tasted more akin to bland corn tortillas that lacked salt. Our hopes were quickly dashed. Even our five year old self-proclaimed "world's biggest tortilla fan" didn't eat more than two of the things.

But wait! Quiet counter guy brought us some fried plantain thing with some sour cream on the side. I believe he referred to them as plantanos fritos. They were not necessarily great by any stretch of the imagination and we probably wouldn’t order them again, but they didn’t leave us in agony. They left us thinking that Guatelinda Cafe has promise that they haven't delivered on. 

Upon paying, we found out that Guatelinda Cafe also doubles as a Mexican bakery and opens most days at 7am. Being as nice as we are, we hope to give ‘em a second shot, (this time for breakfast) but they've got a pretty high bar to reach with the other Mexican bakeries in town that we already know and love. 

Guatelinda Cafe is located at 1813 N. Elm St. in Denton, TX.

WEEKEND PREVIEW: FEBRUARY 28TH

​This weekend starts off strong, but kinda fizzles once Saturday comes along. If you know of something fun going on, please let us know in the comments!

Local faves Botany play Dan's Silverleaf this Thursday. 

Thursday, February 28th:

• We Denton Do It Presents: This Will Destory You / Botany | Dan's Silverleaf | 9pm | $16
  We've told you plenty of reasons why you should be attending this show. At this point, we're pretty sure you're going. If not, read our reasons again! We'll see you there. 

• Free All You Can Eat Mac and Cheese Buffet ​| MacDaddy's | 7-10pm | Free
  When we decided to open up our weekend previews to more than just music, this wasn't exactly what we had in mind, but c'mon, can you beat free macaroni and cheese especially when it's in buffet form? Quit your stupid paleo diet and carbo load before hitting up This Will Destroy You at Dan's.

Friday, March 1st:

• Armadillo Ale Works Launching Party | Oak St. Drafthouse | 5-10pm | Free
  You've already thoroughly enjoyed their two non-alcoholic beverages. Now it's time to pony on up to OSDH&CP on Friday to be one of the first to enjoy the official first beer of Armadillo Ale Works, Quakertown Stout. A free glass will come with your beer! Also, local awesome screen printing dudes, Pan Ector, will be there live printing AAW and OSDH&CP shirts, too. Can you beat that? 

• First Friday on the Square | The Square (mostly Oak St.) | Friday evening | Free
  When you're done at OSDH, walk the block over to the square for more free Friday fun. Lots of fun stuff happens on first Friday. Businesses on Oak St. (and some on the square) will be having live music, etc... Make sure you stop by and check things out!

• Cartright / Cozyhawks / Daniel Folmer | Dan's Silverleaf | 9pm | $5
  Denton ex-pats, Cartright are coming back to town again to bring their specific brand of scorched vocal cord folk rock to the masses. Over the years, Austin has treated Ben Cartright well. Come see how. The odds on suspenders-usage currently sit at 2:1 for your show betting purposes. 

• Midnight Society / Diamond Age | Rubber Gloves | 9PM | $5/$7

Saturday, March 2nd:

• Electric Saloon Burlesque / Cabaret Review | Rubber Gloves | 9PM | $10/$15 
  And then on Saturday there's an interesting looking burlesque/cabaret show at Rubber Gloves. It's an eclectic weekend, folks.  

Sunday, ​March 3rd 

• Hares on the Mountain - Dan’s Silvearleaf | 7pm | Free
  And, as always, hit up Dan’s early Sunday evening for some always-good Americana for free, but you're already going to these shows, right?
  

SEVEN MILE BARISTA BATTLES

Photos and words by Jordan Smith

Is latte art important? Do I really need a leaf, a heart, or a humpback whale on top of my latte? Well, of course I do! 

Denton is now home to quite a few independent coffee shops that ​are striving to give you a quality espresso experience. We now have the option to enjoy our coffee without the need for a few pumps of syrup in every cup. The question still stands, though, "Why do I need some squiggly design on top of my espresso and foamed milk?"

Those squiggly lines mark the level of craftsmanship inside your cup. To achieve good latte art, a barista has to understand the science of your drink. This science includes things like the freshness of the beans, how they've been ground, the temperature of the milk and the amount of foam. None of these things can be handled by an automated machine. Your Starbucks Verismo espresso machine will never dispense a latte with a rosette on top. This is why we were excited to hear that Seven Mile Coffee decided to start throwing monthly Barista competitions to find out who has the best latte art in town. 

We had the opportunity of serving as one of three judges at the first Seven Mile competition. A handful of competitors showed up from around the metroplex. Contestants went head to head until everyone was eliminated but two final baristas. The final heat was a best of three showdown. The last two baristas had to create three different styles of latte art. In the end, victory went to Noe Lopez, a barista at Cultivar Coffee in Dallas. He walked away with a pocket full of cash and a room full of respect. 

Pictured is Contest winner Noe Lopez

​Runner up and good sport Aaron Aguilar handing over the cash prize to Noe

We are happy to see Seven Mile facilitating this competition that celebrates the advancement of quality product in Denton. We hope the quality and consistency being poured (yes, literally) into these cups begins to reflect the efforts of other businesses striving to make Denton a city of substance. 

The deciding pour that won the night.

​Seven Mile Coffee hosts latte art competitions the third Thursday of every month. Follow them on Facebook for more info. And be sure to tip your baristas! 

SHOW PREVIEW: THIS WILL DESTROY YOU

​One of our favorite post-rock​ outfits out of Austin/San Marcos is coming back to town. Its been a little while since they set foot on a Denton stage and we are more than happy to have them back. In fact, we were so happy that we decided to make this our first "We Denton Do It Presents" show since our relaunch!

This Will Destroy You has continued to tour and make music that transfixes especially in a live setting. Their music has always been heavy on atmosphere and crashing melodies and their last album, Tunnel Blanket found the band brooding and ferocious as they ever have been before. Their last show in town was an outrageous performance that left us breathless at Hailey's. We know that they are more than capable of captivating Denton once again. We're pretty pumped to see what they have in store for us this time around. You should be, too. 

Dan's Silverleaf | 9pm | $13 ADV / $16 DOS | Buy Tickets: spunetickets.com

​Here's a video of This Will Destroy You performing their song "Communal Blood" live at Good Records in Dallas, TX. 

FISHBOY AT RECYCLED

Article and photos by the talented Dave Koen 

What were you doing on Friday night? Well, you probably should have been at Recycled Books & Music with Eric Edward Fishboy, also known as the founder, songwriter, and front-person of the Denton band Fishboy. He was there to celebrate the release of a live, acoustic album and a new book of comics that chronicle the 2011 US tour for his album “Classic Creeps”.  Not only were we treated to a show, but we also got a tour of some of Recycled’s deepest and darkest corners, as each song was played in the section it most closely related to. You haven’t lived until you’ve been crammed into the science section at Recycled with thirty strangers and a guy with a guitar.

​Fishboy will be playing at J&J’s Pizza on March 14 with Sad Baby Wolf.

THAT HAPPENED: SPIDERWEB SALON

Local creative artist group and friends of We Denton Do it, Spiderweb Salon, hosted a guerrilla-style throw-down on the courthouse lawn this past Saturday afternoon. We were there to take some photos and snap our fingers at some poetry readings. Read on for more info!

A crowd gathers before the show at this past Saturday's Spiderweb Salon. 

​Saturday afternoon 30 some-odd people gathered around a makeshift stage created out of an old white door, some busted-ass milk crates and some clamps on the south-east corner of the Denton square. Some were there to listen to poetry, music and some works of nonfiction by some of Denton's purveyors of literature, others were just there because people are attracted to large crowds Behind the stage was a gigantic white banner that read "spiderweb salon" in all lowercase letters. 

Spiderweb Salon has been doing things in a similar vein for quite a while now. They've gained enough notoriety over the past several months to even garner a 35 Denton showcase and a regular feature on an awesome local blog (read: us, duh). 

Comedian Ron Lechler looks down as ponders his next non-sequitur. 

This particular event marked a departure from the norm for the group (led by WDDI contributor Courtney Marie and her partner in non-crime, Conor Wallace) who normally showcase local artists at a local house and not in front of the court house in the middle of the day. Thankfully, the group was not even given a second glance by local law enforcement who just seemed to give a cockeyed glance to the comedy-stylings of Ron Lechler as they past by.

The event started off strong with local writer, Matthew Salack's account of a young romance from behind the counter of a Chic Fil-A. The crowd was engaging and laughed often. Afterwards, many local poets and musicians shared their art. Many participants who had not prepared any work in advanced even participated in an open mic after the six or seven planned performances were done. It was a nurturing, supportive environment that encouraged those attending to share - if not during the open mic, then to at least send something to read at the next event.  

Local duo {we, bees} singing a duet about a girl full of trouble.

​Shannon Hall reading her poem about reality. 

The guerilla-style showcase went over very well for Spiderweb. After the initial greatness that was Salack's short story, the local poets, musicians and comedian (which just so happened to be the strongest one man comedy performance we've seen in Denton) mostly kept the bar at that high point. If this recap is making you sad you missed this, fret not. Spiderweb Salon's next event will be here before you know it. You can catch the largest show Spiderweb has put on yet at 2pm Sunday, March 10th at Dan's Silverleaf as part of the 35 Denton schedule. Leave your tomatoes and rotten fruit at home. You won't need 'em. 

WEEK IN REVIEW: FEBRUARY 25TH

​Here's what you should be doing this week, Denton. 

​This Will Destory You brings their particular brand of post-rock to Dan's Silverleaf this Thursday evening. 

Monday, February 25th:

Jazz Night​ - The Green House | 10pm | Free 
We're not sure who is actually playing tonight (does The Greenhouse publish these things in advance?), but hitting up The Greenhouse on jazz night is always a good idea. Lots of fun drinks and the bands are pretty good more than 50% of the time. Remember the time that we actually had a jazz club? 

A Taste of Herb: a Tribute to Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass - Dan’s Silverleaf | 5:00pm | Free
If you haven't made it to check out A Taste of Herb at Dan's yet. Today is your day. What else are you gonna do? Spend time with your loved ones? Do you even have booze at home? 

Boxcar Bandits - Hailey's | Free/$5 | 10pm
Boxcar Bandits is a regular at Hailey's Club. They're currently playing every Monday when not on tour. They will also be playing at 35 Denton next month.

Tuesday, February 26th:

Joe Pat Hennen - Dan's Silverleaf | 5pm | Free

Paul Slavens and Friends - Dan's Silverleaf | 8pm | Free
And if Dan's hasn't given you your fill of Paul Slavens goodness (or free shows, for that matter) yet, hit this up. 

Wednesday, February 27th: 

The Green Hour Residency with Robert Gomez - Dan's Silverleaf | 5pm | Free 
an's has another great early, free show on Wednesday. Check this out especially if you like headless chickens. 

Denton Comedy Collective - Hailey's | 9pm | Free/$
We've heard rumors that some people in Denton are actually funny. Hit this up and tell us if they're true. Also, free pizza. Can you beat that? 

​Foreign Mothers / Atomic Tanlines / Deep Throat / Endless Thoughts - Rubber Gloves | 9pm | $5/$7 
Foreign Mothers is a fem-fronted post-rock band that you should definitely check out. Deep Throat is a local band that you'll definitely be hearing more about in the weeks to come. They'll 

Thursday, February 28th:

WE DENTON DO IT PRESENTS: This Will Destroy You / Botany - Dan's Silverleaf | 9pm | $13 ADV / $16 DOS | Buy Tickets: spunetickets.com

​Friday, February 29th:

Armadillo Ale Works Launching Party - Oak Street Draft House | 5pm | Free
Yes. Finally. Go to this.