Since this special issue is called Alive & Kicking, let’s call this week’s music section a “wellness check,” shall we? While recently searching for ideas on how music and health intersect, I came across one alternative healing practice in my feed: sound baths. These are meditative, immersive experiences where you relax, often lying down, while a practitioner uses instruments like singing bowls, gongs, chimes, and drums to create resonant vibrations and tones, aiming to induce deep relaxation, reduce stress, and promote healing by shifting your brainwaves and energy. It’s a form of healing that soothes the mind and body, similar to a water bath but with sound instead of water.
The Fort Worth Museum of Science & History (1600 Gendy St, Fort Worth, 817-255-9300) is hosting a Sound Bath Under the Stars in their new Omni Theater on Sat, Feb 15, at 6pm. Tickets are $30 at FWMuseum.org. Embodii Crystals (7410 Blvd 26, Richland Hills, 817-455-6148) offers sound baths throughout the year, with the next one that same day at 7:30pm. Tickets are $30 on Eventbrite.com.
As for the aforementioned sickness, Texas Motor Speedway (3545 Lone Star Cir, Fort Worth, 817-215-8500) is getting back into the big-show business with the Sick New World Festival. While TMS has hosted several festivals over the years, notably major rock events like RockFest and CountryFest in 1997 when it first opened, the most recent was the Hwy 30 Music Fest in 2023. In the fall, TMS will be only the second location of the Las Vegas-based Sick New festival on Sat, Oct 24, with System of a Down, Deftones, Slayer (performing Reign in Blood), Evanescence, Marilyn Manson, The Prodigy, Knocked Loose, Mastodon, AFI, Filter, P.O.D., local thrash favorites Power Trip, and many more. Tickets are already on sale at SickNewWorldFest.com, but they are so expensive that the promoter is offering layaway plans. We’re talking about a starting price of $339 for GA. You can also try to win a pair of tickets. Enter now at TheBuzz.iHeart.com/promotions.
If seeing more live music this year is on your resolutions list but finances dictate otherwise, the layaway route isn’t a bad idea and not just on the pricier concerts. Even if the promoter isn’t offering that, you can create your own plan by using Affirm, Klarna, or PayPal and taking advantage of a pay-in-four plan. That way, you can pay it off over a few paydays without racking up credit card debt.
You can also vow to #KeepItLocal. Some of your favorite brand-name bands that are either moving up in the world or coming back down will have club dates, and some of the best local musicians will have opening spots. What’s happening in the near future locally? Flip two pages over, and Johnny will tell you. #ItsAllHappening
Courtesy Sick New World Festival
