It was a wild night on Wednesday with White Reaper and tourmates Taipei Houston and Narrow Head at Dallas’ Granada Theater.
It all began with an explosive set from San Francisco’s Taipei Houston, which consists of Layne and Myles Ulrich (yes, as in Lars Ulrich), the sons of Metallica’s drummer. The group’s set was fast — so fast that during some of the songs they seemed to have lost their bearings. But what they lost in rhythm they made up for with nonstop energy. There were some points where Myles wasn’t even in his seat while drumming. His playing got aggressive. Layne bantered with the audience, getting everybody to clap along during their last song.
There was a moment where Layne asked a couple of questions, the first being “Do you like loud music?!”, and then “Do you like The Beatles?!”, followed by the most assaulting and chaotic cover of “Eleanor Rigby” ever played.
click to enlarge 
Layne Ulrich is the bassist and vocalist for Taipei Houston.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Myles Ulrich plays drums just like his father Lars.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
The lights dimmed for the follow-up act Narrow Head, a Houston shoegaze band formed by vocalist Jacob Duarte in Dallas. The mood shift was palpable as the crowd stopped dancing to sway along to the loud and heavy droning guitars, occasionally breaking out into small mosh pits during their more hardcore tracks.
click to enlarge 
Layne Ulrich ripped into a chaotic Beatles cover on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
Duarte switched between soft sentimental vocals and hardcore screaming, keeping the audience on their toes. At long last, White Reaper took the stage, starting off with the title track of their latest album Asking For a Ride.
click to enlarge 
Siblings Myles and Layne Ulrich play in Taipei Houston.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
The dynamic shifted immediately as everyone up front started dancing. This new album is very different from their last, You Deserve Love. They’ve traded their Thin Lizzy-style guitar riffs for a faster, more aggressive Motorhead-meets-Cheap Trick whirlwind, while still keeping Steve Esposito’s power-pop-influenced vocal styling.
A couple of tracks into their set, the crowd stopped headbanging to Hunter Thompson’s ripping guitar solos as Ryan Hater played the opening synth line of “Might Be Right.” In an instant, the entire audience was singing the words back to Esposito.
click to enlarge 
Myles Ulrich likes an ultra-fast beat.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
The party kept rolling as White Reaper brought it back to their 2015 track “I Don’t Think She Cares,” and bodies began slam-dancing to Nick Wilkerson’s hypnotizing drumming.
The group strategically weaved old bangers such as “Sheila” into their set, which consisted mainly of rippers from their latest album. But they closed out the night with a crowd favorite, “Judy French.”
Whether you went as a new fan, or as a longtime listener, their setlist did not disappoint one bit.
click to enlarge 
Taipei Houston played with White Reaper and Narrow Head on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Layne Ulrich plays bass and sings in Taipei Houston.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Is there such a thing as “blood rhythm?” The Ulrich siblings were in sync in Dallas.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Myles and his brother played a high-energy set.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Taipei Houston warmed up the crowd at the Granada.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Technically, they’re a drum and bass band.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
We need to know what kind of energy drink Taipei Houston recommends.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Taipei Houston’s Myles Ulrich plays a mean bass.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Narrow Head is a shoegaze band from Houston.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Jacob Duarte went from soft vocals to sheer screaming on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Kora Puckett brought some violent string sounds to Dallas.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Jacob Duarte rocked on Wednesday in Dallas
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Narrow Head drummer Carson Wilcox kept up the energy in Dallas.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Narrow Head played Dallas’ historic Granada Theater on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Bassist William Menjivar and Jacob Duarte from Narrow Head.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Kora Puckett’s sound is not narrow at all.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Narrow Head was a standout on Wednesday’s bill.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
White Reaper closed the show on Wednesday night.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Nick Wilkerson plays drums in White Reaper.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
We weren’t hatin’ keys player Ryan Hater.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Ryan Hater played synth on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
White Reaper led a wild lineup on Wednesday night in Dallas.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Hunter Thompson, no S, is the guitarist for White Reaper.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Sam Wilkerson held it down at the Granada.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Steve Esposito delivered on vocals.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Nick Wilkerson drummed up an intense show in Dallas.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Hunter Thompson shredded on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Steve Esposito from White Reaper.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
Sam Wilkerson gave us a winning shot on Wednesday.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
White Reaper was red-hot at Dallas’ Granada Theater.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
The crowd rocked along with white Reaper.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
White Reaper had the perfect setlist.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
click to enlarge 
White Reaper closed the night with an old favorite.
Vera “Velma” Hernandez
