20 June 8 - 14, 2023 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Rediscovering Indie Sleaze 13 Dallas bars to live out your Lana Del Rey delusions. BY VALERIE WHITE W e hate to break it to you, but millennials are getting up there in age. Arrested de- velopment aside, one of the perks of getting older is watching people younger than you are take an interest in what you got to experience first-hand as a degenerate 20-year-old. The latest trend to reemerge is indie sleaze. If you aren’t knee-deep in several different internet niches, you may not be familiar with the specific term, but you undoubtedly re- member the subculture whether you knew the name or not. The original iteration lasted from 2006 to about 2012 — the hipster heyday: A post-millennium patchwork of cherry- picked elements from ’60s and ‘70s trends mixed with mod- ern influences from the digital era. Indie sleaze was characterized by thrifted outfits, skinny jeans, PBR, winged eyeliner, the seductive melodies of Lana Del Rey, Alexa Chung’s Peter Pan collars and rolling at the club to an Amtrac remix of a Two Door Cinema Club song. It was raw and unabashedly DIY. Rock and electronic music went hand in hand, and everyone had a leather jacket and a matching striped shirt. Social media was still in its infancy, not yet overtaken by overly curated lives. Indie sleaze was reflective of the larger social climate of the first decade of the new millennium, marked by a sense of disillusionment and dissatisfaction with mainstream cul- ture, particularly in the wake of the great recession. It was a resistance to the slick and sanitized music and fashion in- dustry, a bold statement about artistic integrity and personal expression. Perhaps that explains why kids today have taken an interest in the bygone era. The hope and change thing didn’t go very well, and now we are all stuck trying to pres- ent the best version of ourselves to the internet just to feel something. So, yeah, the carefree and fun spirit of indie sleaze is truly something to be missed. So, now that you’re feeling nostalgic (even if you weren’t there), put on the Born to Die album and start hitting the bars. Maybe you’ll find your very own cocaine cowboy sip- ping fireball and smoking an American Spirit. Luckily, Dallas has a few of these havens catering to your indie sensibilities. Here are the best Dallas bars for an indie sleaze night. Double D’s 1404 N Riverfront Blvd. What can be said about dance club Double D’s that hasn’t been said already? It’s magical. A perfect blend of the kind of stylized Americana that is deeply intertwined with the indie sleaze aesthetic. There’s also a touch of uniquely Dallas de- bauchery; it’s a rare microcosm of the city, consistently packed to the brim with a great crowd of all different types of people. The drink menu is unique enough yet familiar, and everyone basks in the glow of pink neon. Yes, the line is defi- nitely worth it. Dallasite Billiards 4822 Bryan St. An East Dallas institution that has been around for 35 years, Dallasite Billiards is weathered, it’s dark and it exudes nos- talgia. The interior is charmingly gritty and vintage, and there isn’t an espresso martini in sight. If you squint, you can almost see a drunken Pete Doherty at the end of the bar. There’s pool, a dartboard and a patio cat. Interesting charac- ters flow in and out, and you won’t even want to pick up your phone and post about it. It’s an experience that every Dallas- ite needs to have, even if it’s just for the plot. Round-Up Saloon 3912 Cedar Springs Road Arguably the best gay bar in the city, Round Up is all the cowboy with none of the bigot. The collision of urban hip- sterism with the freedom and romanticism associated with the Wild West is a key element of indie sleaze. So, get up to Dolly Python, get yourself a pair of vintage cowboy boots and hit the dance floor. And straight people, make sure you respect this place and don’t ruin the vibe with voyeurism and no-vibe clothes. Charlie’s Star Lounge 4319 Main St. Quite possibly the epitome of indie sleaze, Charlie’s is not to be missed. If you were in on the original trend, you will cer- tainly be in good company here. If you’ve been in Dallas long enough, you may remember that this bar used to be the Star- light Lounge. The new owners kept the spirit of the old while managing to inject it with new life. Now the place is a haven for local musicians, artists and every type of hipster in between. Chase Place 1724 E. Belt Line Road, Richardson You know when Lana Del Rey sang, “Watching all our friends fall in and out of Old Paul’s”? The imagery that the line conjures is the aesthetic of this bar. It’s not glamorous, it smells like cigarettes and it’s in an old strip mall. It might be a tough sell to your friends, but it’s a justifiable trek to the burbs. You will have an unpretentious but fun time; there’s even a karaoke night if you want to go all out. And hey, it doesn’t hurt that Free Play is next door if you get tired of in- haling smoke fumes from 1978. Cosmo’s 1212 Skillman St. A classic and beloved Lakewood establishment, Cosmo’s has an interior that’s colorful mid-century, and you can play as many songs as you can afford on the old jukebox. Zooey De- schanel would love it here. There is always an array of ▼ Music Valerie White From top, clockwise: The Round-Up Saloon and Dance Hall; Charlie’s Star Lounge; Chase Place; Cosmo’s; Dallasite Billards; Double D’s Mike Brooks Melissa Hennings Taylor Adams Courtesy of Double Ds Valerie White
