Episode 32 - We’ve Never Been "Normal": Dentonpalooza Celebrates the City’s Oddball Charm

Nov 18 2021 • 27 mins

Dentonpalooza, set for Dec. 3, is a festival meant to celebrate the people, places and things that make Denton … well … far from normal. The idea started as a random conversation between local musicians and UNT alums Joey Liechty and Eric Michener before evolving into a meme and then a full-fledged event. The lineup features local characters like Tiger Head Keyboard Dude, Denton Spider-Man, Frenchy and Shaun from Midway Mart, musicians like Paul Slavens and Brave Combo, and events like a flat earth pinata party and a Rose Costumes contest. “It just popped into my head, just these Denton fringe characters,” says Liechty. “What if they were all together for no other reason than we all love Denton?”

In this episode, we discuss:

● Dentonpalooza’s origins

● The festival lineup

● Denton’s quirkiest people, places and things

Featured in this episode are:

● Joey Liechty, UNT alum, local DJ, computer programmer and creator of Dentonpalooza

● Eric Michener, UNT alum and staff member, local musician and performer at Dentonpalooza

● Carl Finch, UNT alum and member of the “nuclear polka” band Brave Combo, which will perform at Dentonpalooza

● Paul Slavens, UNT alum and coordinator of dance musicians, host of the Paul Slavens Show on KXT 91.7, and musician who will perform at Dentonpalooza

Helpful links:

· See the original flyerthat started it all.

· See the festival lineup and buy tickets.