The Rundown (6/25-6/30)

Been a while, I know — work, work, work, kid, kid, kid, yadda, yadda, yadda. But heck, here we are again (although I’m not entirely convinced anybody but me reads these things), with the list of stuff coming up in the immediate future that I/we think will be particularly cool. And no, I didn’t include the Police in the list, ’cause if you’re not already going to the show, well, you’re not going. (And nope, neither am I.)

Mon., June 25:
The Polyphonic Spree/Jesca Hoop @ Warehouse Live
Man, do I love these guys; The Beginning Stages of… was great, Together We’re Heavy was even better (even if I’m apparently the only person who thought so), and what I’ve heard of their latest, The Fragile Army, is equally cool. Bombastic, glorious, orchestral pop like the sunrise exploding over the horizon. (Oh, and I happened to luck into an interview w/one of the Spree-ers a few years back, which ended up being pretty entertaining, I think…)

Tues., June 26:
Radio Birdman/Awesome Color/The Kimonos @ The Meridian
Classic punk from Down Under + somebody I dunno + one of the better indie bands in town. Should be a good un’.

imadethismistake/The Rudyments/Forty Lashes/Fat Pat’s Water Rats/Boogdish @ Super Happy Fun Land
I Am Wolf/Loser Life/Cop Warmth @ Notsuoh

Supersuckers @ The Scout Bar (Clear Lake)
What the…? I’d wondered if these guys were dead & gone yet or not; I remember them as part of my introduction to the world of indie-rock, way back in the day when I was a wee KTRU DJ, and while I was never a huge fan, they were always fun. If you can make the drive…

Wed., June 27:
Turbojugend Humpday, featuring The Contingency & The Girlfriend Experience @ Rudyard’s
Commune Music, featuring Parts Per Million & Tha Fucking Transmissions @ The Proletariat
Tera Melos/By the End of Tonight/B. @ The White Swan

Thurs., June 28:
Satin Hooks/Bullets on Broadway/American Sharks/The Low Endz @ Walter’s on Washington
I owe Satin Hooks a big, big writeup on this site, and soon. They get better every time I see ’em, seriously.

Drop Trio/Two Star Symphony @ AvantGarden (411 Westheimer)
Drop Trio are cool, but Two Star Symphony are the draw here, for me. Amazingly talented, spooky-ooky chamber music about goblins and witches and, um, I’ve got no idea what else.

Morningside Drive/The Last Great Assault/Novista/Dorian Grey/Enter the Collector/Glass Intrepid/Memphis May Fire @ Warehouse Live

Rotten Piece/TEF/Crawling Iris/Carlos Pozo/Werewolf Jerusalem @ Contemporary Arts Museum Houston
Okay, I’ll admit it: I like the music these folks make a whole lot less than the fact that they’re playing at one of H-town’s most prestigious art museums. Which is fucking awesome, ’cause they’re going to peel the paint off the walls both at the CAM and at the MFA across the road. Turn up loud, y’all.

Fri., June 29:
Benefit Show for Reggie, featuring The Western Civilization, Buxton, Peekaboo Theory, Subject Optional, & Gretchen Schmaltz @ Walter’s on Washington
In case you hadn’t heard, Reggie of Mia Kat Empire/The Western Civilization recently had his home/van ripped off by some evil fuck, who stole a ton of very expensive recording equipment that Reggie needs to continue eking out a living as a producer/engineer. (Thanks, bastards; I hope fucks with your livelihood sometime, so you can see what it feels like.) See elsewhere on the blog for details, I don’t have the link handy… At any rate, the MKE folks are staging a benefit for Reggie that incidentally happens to be very cool, band-wise. I dig The Western Civ (duh), Gretchen, and Buxton, and I’ve heard darn good things about Peekaboo Theory. Check it out, and help the guy buy back some of his stuff, eh?

Heist at Hand/D.E.M.O./The Watermarks/The Soarce/DJ Sun @ The Engine Room
Flametrick Subs/Sean Reefer & the Resin Valley Boys @ The Continental Club
Little Brother/Orgone/DJ Haul @ Warehouse Live
July Alive/Placid Blue/Kemo For Emo/The Ride Home/Useful Information @ Fitzgerald’s

Southern Backtones/Tody Castillo @ Rudyard’s
I’m very, very happy to hear that Tody’s working on a new album, because honestly, the guy’s incredible. He writes songs like you dream you could, when you have those really cool dreams where everybody’s your friend and your dog never pisses on the carpet. (No, really.) Plus, I finally caught Hank of the Southern Backtones solo a while back, and he made me remember just why I’d always loved “Blue in July” so damn much.

Ceeplus Bad Knives/Yppah/Paramour/DJ Under Warranty/Mr. Castillo/DJ Haggerty @ G.R.A.B. (809 Pierce)

Sat., June 30:
Voxtrot/Tacks the Boy Disaster/Palomar/Brazos @ The Proletariat
Love, love, love Palomar. They rule. See here for why/how.

The Dead Science/Implied Violence @ Super Happy Fun Land

M.O.D./Ese/Oklahomos/U.Y.U.S. @ Walter’s on Washington
Holy shit. M.O.-fuckin’-D., motherfuckers. This is gonna rule.

Vicarious Me/The Mechanical Boy/Mothers Anthem @ Rudyard’s
Yeah, so one of our guys kinda-sorta ripped locals The Mechanical Boy a new one a while back. Sorry ’bout that, fellas… The band has bounced back from that crushing blow (hey, quit laughing, dammit) and tells us they’ve switched things up quite a bit and are doing better. Go see for yourselves…

The Weary Boys/Mother Truckers @ The Continental Club
Benefit for Madalyn Sklar of GoGirlsMusic, featuring Robin Leigh, Tabitha Monet, Celeste Terrell Music, Finding Garbo, Hidden Agenda, Katie Stuckey, Osirus, & 3 Kisses @ Last Concert Cafe

Michael Schenker Group @ The Scout Bar (Clear Lake)
Woo-hoo! Screw the Scorpions; U.F.O. were where it was at, man. Michael Schenker make German dudes with guitars look far, far less dorky than they otherwise would have, at least for their time.