It's fitting: For a radio station festival with no radio home, the most intriguing act on the bill is a band that isn't a fully-functioning band.
But as is the case with keeping EdgeFest alive, the temporarily-reunited Nixons are back for a plugged-in trip down a local memory lane. For the first time in 15 years, the Nixons, one of the primary rock bands often associated with Dallas' mid-'90s glory days, will take the stage together for a couple of shows, first in Oklahoma City on March 31, then at EdgeFest on April 1.
It's important to note that the group was an Oklahoma band, not a native North Texas act akin to contemporaries such as Tripping Daisy or the Toadies.
"We dealt with being called a Dallas band the whole time we were together," says lead singer Zac Maloy, now a successful songwriter in Nashville with hits for Carrie Underwood, among others, to his name. "It's sort of been a case of mistaken identity, but at a certain point, we outgrew Oklahoma City and Dallas was the logical choice for us because there was a great rock scene and great clubs to play."
The band's ties to Dallas are legitimate, however. Dallas-based Rainmaker Records released both early and latter-day Nixons records, while Maloy lived here for a time just before the band's end in 2002. And Maloy says that a gig at Deep Ellum spot Trees was the band's coveted crown jewel, even though it required them pestering a bartender before they were allowed to play on tribute nights, where the band learned Van Halen and AC/DC songs in order to get on stage.
Another key Dallas connection is that there aren't many bands who have taken the EdgeFest stage more than Maloy. Several EdgeFest appearances with the Nixons and one during his post-Nixons solo project are evidence of how adored his band was in D-FW while the rest of the country caught on, soon turning songs such as "Sister" into national radio hits.
As for why now was the right time for the Nixons to reunite at EdgeFest? Maloy cites both "fluke timing" and a rare hole in the busy professional schedules of the classic Foma-era lineup.
"When I heard EdgeFest was still happening, I said, 'wait, what?'" Maloy says, assuming the festival ended with the station's alt-rock format. "But we've wanted to do this for a long time now and we're ready to get out there and have some fun."
EdgeFest features the Nixons, Blink 182, the Offspring, 311, the Toadies and more. April 1 at 1 p.m. at Toyota Stadium, 9200 World Cup Way, Frisco. $45-$225. ticketingcentral.com.
