Oh, how I love me some acronyms... We're coming up on what I happen to think is one of the coolest local festival-type things to be found in this here city of ours, the quasi-annual SXSW Overflow Fest over at the most cheerily-named place in the Universe, Super Happy Fun Land.

From tomorrow, Thurs., March 11th, on through Wed., March 24th, the SHFL gang is playing host to a huge, quirky grab-bag of musicians and bands hailing from all parts of the U.S., plus a handful of other countries, encompassing pretty much any genre you can name. And best of all, unlike a certain festival that'll be taking place to the northwest of us, it's cheap as hell -- $8 for a night or a ridiculously low-ball $25 for the whole two-week deal.

I've missed out on the festival the past couple of years, unfortunately, but I went to a couple of earlier incarnations and had a ball. I view the Overflow Fest as sort of this Crackerjack Box-like event, where you never really know what you're going to get -- yes, I've seen a few bands that really and truly sucked, but barely twenty minutes later I'd have my mind blown by one of the bands that followed.

Past years have included folks like my personal fave Jonah Matranga, Tacks the Boy Disaster, Transmography, Nakatomi Plaza, & Two Ton Boa, plus several hundred lesser-known acts. It's an eclectic, chaotic, seemingly anything-goes thing, and I find that to be astoundingly cool.

In honor of this year's installment of the fest, I quizzed the Super Happy Crew a bit about their festival and how things generally work:

For the full lineup and times -- some of which have already changed pretty drastically since they first went up, so be warned -- check out the SHFL calendar page. I'm hoping to do exactly what the SHFLers mentioned above and listen to as many Myspace pages as possible, so keep yr fingers crossed for a sorta-kinda detailed rundown of who sounds like what and a list of my own personal picks. Or, hell, ignore me and just go and see what you get -- it's actually probably more fun that way, anyway.

Labels: Flyeration, H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Got a really good show up at Rudyard's tonight (Wed., February 17th), with Port Angeles, Washington-bred retro-rockers The Lonely H chugging back through town for the third(?) time in about a year.

I caught 'em the last time they played here, I believe (also at Rudz), and even though they were playing late, to a crowd that was somewhere south of half-capacity that was made up mostly of polite friends of the evening's earlier bands, The Lonely H played like a barely-controlled freight train barreling down the tracks. It was, to put it mildly, pretty freaking impressive.

Singer/keyboardist Mark Fredson was the obvious focus, in part because, um, he's about nine feet tall (okay, almost), and the howl that comes out of his lanky, blond-haired frame is mind-blowing -- holy shit, that guy can sing. He's like the love child of Steven Tyler and Janis Joplin, except better than that combination really has any business being, and I really, really mean that in a positive way.

The rest of the band measured up, to boot -- bassist Johnny Whitman and guitarist Eric Whitman effortlessly ripped through song after song, even while the latter had his jaw wired shut and couldn't do his usual harmonizing, with drummer Ben Eyestone pounding away behind 'em all. At times, they came off like a wind-blown Black Crowes or a countrified, Americanized version of The Darkness, with hints of gospel and flat-out blues peeking through from behind the curtain of scuffed-up, rough-edged rock.

The Lonely H looked and sounded like they dropped through a hole in time. And beyond that, they were tight the way a band only gets from playing off one another day in and day out, and it was a very cool thing to see. So I'm glad to see they're coming back through town, and I was able to fire off a handful of questions to Fredson, which he was nice enough to answer.

Check out the full Q&A (plus a more detailed writeup of that night's show) on over here. And in case you're wondering, it turned out Eric Whitman's jaw was wired shut because his brother Johnny had tried a wrestling move on him at a party while out on tour and broke his damn jaw. That's fucking rock 'n roll, y'all.

Alternative Stuff:
Yep, there's another show going on tonight that I can't miss mentioning... I still have yet to see 'em, unfortunately, but I've really been looking forward to seeing Prairie Cadets, the band of Adam Newton & Marc Brubaker (of Dryvetyme Online/Houston Press and Click.Wind.Repeat/Houstonist fame).

I like what I've heard of their quirky, sweet-hearted, folky indie-pop (esp. the now-old-school classic "Free ?uestlove"), and hey, they're really, truly nice guys, so I desperately need to get a real-live listen.

Which means tonight might well be my night, because the band's playing a free show tonight up at Walter's. They're playing in the middle, before headline-y bands Lazlo and Snowplow and after cool, Lucy Lawless-alike indie-folkster Sara Van Buskirk and Frank Freeman, who I dunno but who I hear is good.

Fun shows, both of 'em; get on out there, folks...

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Gotten a bunch of cool new stuff up on the site recently, so I wanted to point to it and let everybody bask in the wonderment... First and foremost, I did a writeup this week for an EP sent to me a while back by local boys Giant Battle Monster, entitled Giant Battle Monster vs. The Man With a Gun for a Head, and I have to say, it is one weird-yet-compelling slab of messy noise-prog. It goes full-tilt in every direction, coming off less like a band than a bunch of Surrealists handed instruments and told to just go to town, and yet, I find myself liking it quite a bit. Check the full review up here.

The band's playing tonight, by the way, up at Mango's alongside fellow local luminaries Cop Warmth (who're entertaining as hell) and Darwin's Finches, plus headliners Clockpole. Dunno about them, but definitely get there early for the GBM portion of the show; I hear it blows away the recorded stuff, so that's bound to be something to see.

We've got other reviews up, too, as of late last week, of stuff like the Blakroc album, the most recent (and stunning) EP from While You Were Gone, and the latest by ex-Reflux outfit Animals As Leaders (see here, here, and here), among others, plus a long, long, long-overdue review of the Muhammad Ali/Black Congress split-album, and that's how i forgot about the bomb.

I was lucky enough to catch MA early on was very impressed, but I didn't stumble across the actual recorded stuff 'til a ways after (and in CDR form, not the original cassette), but holy crap is it good, on the part of both bands. I'd recommend it highly, but honestly, you're not likely to be able to find it, so that'd probably just be salt on the wound. Check here for the full review, then go see Muhammad Ali on January 25th at Super Happy Fun Land, eh?

Of course, it's not all about the reviews, so I'm happy to say that we've got some new interviews up, namely of Amy Rigby and Def Jam impresario Russell Simmons(!). The former's the first part of a two-part set, courtesy of expat Houstonian Danny Mee, which he originally did back before Ike smacked our Houston-dwelling asses to the floor and pretty much killed all shows in the area for several weeks; it's languished in Limbo ever since, so I'm very glad to help it see the light of day. Keep an eye out for part 2, featuring Rigby's husband/musical compatriot Wreckless Eric, to be up in a week or so.

As for the Russell Simmons interview, hell, I'm convinced writer Rafael Rivas just fronted Simmons while he was out eating lunch somewhere, but I'm psyched to have their little chat up on the site. Both interviews are good shit, trust me -- see here and here.

Yr. Abbreviated Weekend, Pt. 1:
Before I go any further afield, I want to mention a few other things going on tonight... Well, and not going on, as it turns out -- just fyi, it seems tonight's Pierced Arrows/Lullabye Arkestra show's been moved backwards, from January 15th all the way to March 15th. If you were planning on hitting The Mink tonight to see 'em, you may want to make alternate plans. Or, hell, just go anyway, since Urbane Guerilla Sound System will be there doing their "Fistful of Soul" thing, and you know you can't beat vintage soul 45's, right?

Okay, maybe that's not your thing -- you could also head over to the ambiguously-named The Temporary Space (1320 Nance) for the opening of the Persuasion art show. The show features stuff by Michael Dee and longtime scenester/musician Domokos Benczedi, and there'll be music courtesy of Kunst Fascion; it's gonna be cool, I swear.

There's also Jody Seabody and the Whirls up at Super Happy Fun Land, a cool house show out in Richmond at the i.am.we.commUNITY House (819 Land Grant) with Hats & Statues, The County Lines, & Hobomouth, and waaaaay down in Clear Lake, you can hit The Scout Bar to check out the Supersuckers, with cool dudes Come See My Dead Person as one of the openers. Not as jam-packed a night as some, I'll admit, but still, there's some decent stuff going on.

With that out of the way, here's the full pile of new stuff:

Interviews: Amy Rigby; Russell Simmons

Reviews: Giant Battle Monster; Muhammad Ali/Black Congress; Blakroc; While You Were Gone; Skeletonwitch; Animals As Leaders; Grand Archives; Orioles; & Sounds Like BS.

More to come...

Labels: Flyeration, H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Sunday now (December 13th, to be precise), and tonight's got me fairly excited, actually, even in comparison to the last couple of nights, primarily because of the first thing on the list below, the show at Walter's with Seattle duo The Dutchess & the Duke.

I was able to chat a bit on the phone with Jesse Lortz the other day, actually, and got to embarrass myself asking him dumbass questions about his band, the music they make, & being a new dad (something I know a bit about, at least). Check out the whole interview right over here, if you're so inclined. Lortz is a very cool, very laidback guy, and I appreciate his patience while I tried out a new interview-recording technique using the Recorder app on my iPhone.

(Verdict on that, btw: very cool. I was able to record the interview without hooking up any kind of external recorder, then dump it into iTunes on my laptop. Hell, the recording sounded better than the actual conversation; there were a few spots where I couldn't catch Lortz's response, but thankfully, Recorder did. Nice.)

The reason tonight excites me, though, is the duo's new album, Sunset/Sunrise, which is honestly up there at the top of my personal Best of 2009 list. The resolutely '60s-ish sound from debut album She's the Dutchess, He's the Duke is still in full force, but shifted a bit this time out. Things are looser and less garage-y, from the Byrds-meet-Motown jangle-and-sway of "Living This Life" to the girl-group vibe of "I Don't Feel Anything" to the Nancy Sinatra-esque noir of "When You Leave My Arms," and it works spectacularly well.

Lyrics-wise, the disc is still bleak as hell, with Lortz and bandmate Kimberly Morrison spinning out bitterly tragic stories of love lost and betrayed, life gone down the drain, and trying to end it all. There're moments of hope here, though, that belie the premature elegy She's the Dutchess had seemed to be. I'm pretty sure it's no accident that "Sunset" comes second in the title of the new album. Again, check out the Q&A over here.

For tonight, the Dutchess & the Duke are playing with a couple of familiar faces. Their touring opener is hometown boy Greg Ashley, of the gris gris and formerly of The Mirrors but playing solo this time out.

Plus, there's more recent H-town rockers Passengers, who also do a seriously retro-'60s garage-pop thing -- and do it quite nicely, I might add. Ex-members of Teenage Kicks, Brian Jonestown Massacre-sounding, and, um, damn promising. Tickets are $8 via the Super Unison crew, and the show starts at 9PM.

Naturally, this isn't the only thing going on this evening; here're a few other options...

Saosin/Innerpartysystem/P.O.S./Eye Alaska @ The Meridian
This one's apparently the PacSun Tour, but eh, I couldn't really care less about anybody on the bill but Twin Cities rapper P.O.S., who is -- in my personal book, anyway -- the absolute best thing going about hip-hop today. Smart, raw, and passionate as hell, he's like one of those dream "would it work?" combinations of genres, in this case punk and heavy-duty rap.

No Talk/The Mahas (mem. of Born Liars/Something Fierce/Bolt)/Big Black Spiders @ The Mink
Haven't heard The Mahas yet, no, but their pedigree's impressive -- the band includes folks from Born Liars, Something Fierce, and Roky Moon & Bolt, which ain't no bad combination. I predict eye-gouging, throat-punching garage-punk. Besides, there's also leather-punks No Talk, whose old-school, maybe-serious-maybe-not take on hardcore always makes me grin.

Adam Butera (mem. of Kai/Ros & Exterminating Angels)/Endless Blinding Sunshine @ The Husk (2808 Milam; 8PM, $5)
This week's installment of the Resonant Interval Sound Series -- and serious kudos to organizer Lance Higdon for keeping it running nearly every damn weekend -- this time with local experimental guru Carlos Pozo's Endless Blinding Sunshine project and Adam Butera, who plays in both Kai/ros & Exterminating Angels.

Glad to see, btw, that the empty space beside Khon's now has a name -- "The Husk" fits quite nicely...

Rock The Shelter Toy Drive XXIII, featuring Blaggards, The Mighty Orq, The El Orbits, Dog Party, Whiskey Brisket, & Harbor Light Choir @ The Continental Club (2-8PM)
'Tis the season for cool, cool benefits for kids. And happily, this one features some good, good folks, namely Irish folk-rockers Blaggards and The El Orbits. I'm pretty sure toys are welcomed.

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Pseudo-Reviews, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

As mentioned a week or so ago, the Lost In Space Fest is set to explode (er, implode?) this coming Saturday (Dec. 5th, for the calendarless), so it seems like some updating is in order.

First off, the schedule -- the show starts at 6PM at Khon's Bar (2808 Milam), and it'll start up on the roof of the bar, moving downstairs to warmer digs around 10PM. Here's the lineup, last I've heard:

6:00-6:30	Wall With One Side
6:30-7:00	Chairs
7:00-7:30	Limb NOTE: Limb apparently isn't playing, but no word yet on who's in his place...
8:00-8:30	Forests
8:30-9:00	Defending the Kingdom
9:00-9:30	Weird Weeds
9:30-10:00	My Education
10:00-10:30	Ghost Mountain
10:30-11:00	Golden Cities
11:00-11:30	Solanae
11:30-12:00	Slow Motion Rider
12:00-12:30	Ghost Town Electric
12:30-1:00	Motion Turns It On
1:00-1:30	B L A C K I E

And hey, apparently there'll be hot dogs provided, courtesy of Ray's Franks, about which I've heard many glowingly cool things.

Added bonus time: had a bit of a conversation with Lost In Space organizers Marcus Gausepohl & Meghan Hendley, who were kind enough to answer some annoying/clueless questions. Here goes:

SCR: So, why did you decide to put on this festival?
Marcus: Well, when Golden Cities was on tour, we played the Death By Audio space in Brooklyn, which was hosting part of the Northside Festival. There were around 12 bands, tons of PBR, hundreds of people, good press, projections, etc. It was definitely one of the better shows we played while on the road.

I basically wanted to do something like that here. Houston is so spread out that bands that have a lot in common have a hard time getting to know one another. I wanted to bring bands together and cross-pollinate their friends and fans, and have a good time in the process. Just through putting this together, I have met tons of great people wanting to either play or contribute in some way.

Why now?
Marcus: Because I hate hot weather; I cannot get inspired to do anything when it's super hot outside.

Meghan: This is very true! We won't have to worry about people getting heatstroke or something terrible like that. Also, December is historically slow, show-wise, and lacking in good entertainment, so why not have a festival?

What led to the idea to make it a psych/spacerock festival? Actually, is that the general idea, or is it broader than that?
Marcus: Well, it getting called a "psychedelic festival" was kind of an accident. I mean, the bands that are playing are all really different from each other. The idea was to have a day fest with psych/experimental artists from the area that were more band-oriented. Houston has a very rich noise/experimental sound/modern music scene, with organizations like Nameless Sound and Resonant Interval. So I wanted Lost In Space to kind of have its own vibe to it. It was a really broad idea that kind of took on a life of its own as it came together.

Meghan: We've created a monster! (laughs) No, really, I think that all the bands, although they may not be of the psychedelic genre specifically, have elements of that vibe. These bands have experimental tendencies, whether it be with colors, textures, sounds, or instrumentation. Many of these bands are doing special things here in town but are not as well-known by audiences.

I think the festival is really going to open the ears of the Houston community to sounds that they don't hear week in and week out at the same venues. Many are hungry for new music, and organizations such as Nameless Sound and Resonant Interval, who offer weekly concerts, are pushing the boundaries of what an audience has grown to expect. Nameless Sound usually has concerts at Avant Garden Sunday nights, and now Resonant Interval is doing the same at Khon's during Sound's off season...and doing an awesome job! With this festival, we're just throwing an audience into the swirling deep end of bands, let them tread those waters, and let them enjoy the wall of sounds.

How did you folks pick the acts for the fest? My Education, Weird Weeds, B L A C K I E -- they're all fairly different variants of the psych thing.
Marcus: Most of everyone I know from either playing/organizing shows or just being a fan of what they are doing. A few of them were bands I randomly discovered while putting the fest together, like Chairs -- totally rad -- or Defending the Kingdom -- ex-Tana'ri! There are still a few people I am bummed about not playing, like Eat Grapes, but there's always next festival.

How did the rooftop idea come into it? I definitely like the idea of spacerock under the stars...
Marcus: I recently started working at Khon's, and they have been doing all kind of things on the roof and the space next door, theatre, shows, film, etc. So after getting to know everyone, it seemed kind of natural that it will take place on the roof.

Meghan: We kicked around different ideas for venues and were kind of getting frustrated with finding one location that could handle that amount of bands. We also wanted this festival to be unique in a way. Khon's had been throwing some shows up on the roof, and they had been a success. We're letting the stars illuminate the bands and keeping our promise of highlighting spacerock for the Space City.

In the interest of self-preservation, is there a backup location in case of bad weather? Or maybe space heaters? I hear it's going to be cold this weekend, and I don't want to freeze my ass off.
Marcus: Well, I don't think the weather will be unbearable, but we are telling people to overdress to be safe. Late '80s-era winter dress is totally acceptable for the evening. I myself am trying to dig up my Houston Oilers blue beanie to "keep it real."

Meghan: Hey, it ain't as cold as up north, right? We loathe the heat all year and always hope for a real winter. Well, Houston, we've got it now! At least, for a week or so before it goes back up to 102 degrees or something horrid like that. Speaking of '80s, I may just have to pull out the electric blue tights for this one. I suggest people wear leg warmers, hand warmers, ear warmers, knee-high toe socks with flip flops, etc. We'll have heated shelter for those who need to toasty themselves...

Marcus: Yeah, the fest is split into two areas, the roof and the bar. Downstairs we have DJs -- Psychedelic Sex Panther and friends, Ray's Franks hot dogs, hot tea, hot chocolate, beer specials, and wine. After 10 O'clock, the festival will be moving downstairs into the space next door. So we can warm up and keep it going.

Do you see the fest happening again? What's the pre-reaction been like?
Meghan: We've had nothing but positive reactions to the event. Even when I passed out fliers for the event, say like at Block Party, people got really excited! I think the name alone and the concept hook people in...then when they take a closer look at the diversity of bands, they have a hunch that it will be something truly musically awesome.

Marcus: I defiantly would like to make it a yearly event. Everyone has been super-supportive. We will just have to see how things roll out. But everyone involved so far would like to make it happen again.

Where did the "Lost In Space" name come in? Aren't you afraid Bill Mumy will show up and threaten to sue the crap out of everybody?
Marcus: I was sitting around with a few friends coming up with really bad names, and some one suggested we call it "Lost In Space." We agreed it was the most ridiculous name we had come up with, and it would do just fine. Bill Mumy has more important things to do than worry about the name of my fest, but if he says anything, just let him know next year we will change it to "Stuck In Space" just for him.

On a different note, how's Golden Cities going? Any plans for a second full-length?
Marcus: Golden Cities is going great, besides the fact that like every year we have holiday overload and can't get in the practice space for a month. Other than that, we are 70% done with writing the new record. SXSW will be the next crazy.

Meghan, you've gone full-time with something new called Solanae, right? And Lost In Space will be your first gig in town?
Meghan: Yes, and what a better way to introduce the band! As far as my transition into Solanae, I owe a lot to Marcus and Golden Cities. I really learned a lot from playing with them, such as how I contribute to an ensemble in unique ways with my voice and my instrument.

Working with Jeff Price and Mike Blackshear from Tambersauro, along with James Diederich, has been great. We all have such diverse backgrounds, from Jeff and Mike with crazy math-rock to my background, which includes a classical music degree, but everything just clicks. Also, I think that Solanae has a lot of unusual colors and textures that are borrowed from psych/experimental music that we've incorporated into a more traditional verse/chorus/verse form. We enjoy the fact that we can jam out instrumentally, as well. Right now we've got three demos out, and our first album will be released early next year.

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 1 comments

Been needing to do this for a looooong time; I'm way behind on my updates, sadly...

The up-and-coming goes first, this time out -- awesomely talented country-rockers The Literary Greats are playing the release show for their second full-length, Ocean, Meet The Valley, this coming Saturday, Nov. 14th. It's the same night as the Block Party, which makes my own personal dilemma even worse than it already was: go see the Block Party, go see the Greats, or stay at home with the one-and-a-half-month-old and hopefully keep my wife from killing me?

It's a tough call, made especially tough by the fact that, well, the Literary Greats are simply one of the coolest, most thoughtful bands in town of any genre. They write these subtle, interesting-but-not-complicated songs that have a warm, nighttime feel to 'em, and they play them laidback and raw all at once, like they'll never again be allowed to pick up their instruments and can't be bothered to worry about when it'll end.

I loved the band's self-titled debut quite a bit, so I was curious what the followup would be like -- make no mistake, it is a different band. The Literary Greats had a lot more of a pop vibe to it, an easy friendliness that made it feel soft and cozy like an old sweater. Ocean, Meet The Valley, on the other hand, cranks up the guitars and has a lot more sharp edges, melding indie-rock energy and fire to '60s California-style roots-pop.

Check out the full review over here, and after you do that, start planning to hit The Continental Club this Saturday night to catch these guys & openers Elkhart (who're a Dallas-area roots-rock band, if I recall, and are pretty damn good in their own right).

Of course, you could also check out the Block Party -- I've babbled previously about how excellent the bands will be, so I won't go into that again, but one of the headliners playing at Numbers on Saturday night are H-town-by-way-of-Austin gang (of, what, 9 people now?) The Eastern Sea. They've also got a new release coming out at this very show, second EP EPII (no, really), which I'm told is pretty much a continuation of their stellar debut EP.

And speaking of awesome bands, man... Seen them twice now, and I've been mesmerized both times by the band's effortless, almost casual, yet intensely tight, perfectly choreographed performances. Not that they all rock out in unison or anything, Judas Priest-style, but that they just know frontman Matt Hines' intricately-crafted compositions backwards and forwards, to the point where they can take a chance or three without fear of falling flat.

The Eastern Sea's first EP was also mindblowing, so I've got high hopes for the second, esp. after talking with Hines himself for a bit about all things band-related. You can read the full interview over here, if you're so inclined. And trust me, these guys (and girl) are really and truy one of the best bands I've ever seen. Ever, ever, ever. Period. Like I said, Saturday's a rough choice...

Of course, that's not all we've got. Nomadic writer Tom Koenig (who last chatted with the Meat Puppets for us) is back with a cool little interview with David Bazan, aka Pedro The Lion, the enigmatic Thomas McLuhan talked with seismic-shifting metal dudes Isis when they rolled through town a while back, and Rafael Rivas wrote up a recent trip to NYC to hang out with a couple of old-school graf artists.

Then there's a small horde of live reviews, including writeups of Mute Math and Wall With One Side by valiant contributors Rock Houston and Michelle Yom, and going back a little further, Daniel Yuan's excellent coverage of the Hennessy Artistry show, Scott Whitt's review of the Nebula show, and Dre Giles excellent meditation on the wonder of punk rock (even now0).

Oh, and shitload more reviews, of both music and films. In terms of timeliness, there's a review of the recently-released Moneen DVD, It All Started with Red Stripe , just time for them to come to town with Say Anything, and we reviewed Art Brut, The Black Crowes, & local psych-pop guys Springfield Riots before their shows, to boot.

Here's the full, full, big-ass pile:

Interviews/Features: The Eastern Sea; David Bazan; Two NYCs: Documenting Graffiti in the Big Apple; & Isis.

Live Reviews: Mute Math/As Tall As Lions; Wall With One Side/Trills; Sunny Day Real Estate/The Jealous Sound; Hennessy Artistry, with The Roots, Common, ELIZABETH the Band, Makano, Big Daddy Kane, & Al B. Sure!; Nebula/The Entrance Band; & Punk on Punk Crime -- The Shitty Limits/Logic Problems/No Talk

Reviews: The Literary Greats; Tortoise; Lyle Lovett; The Box; Moneen; Springfield Riots; Art Brut; Unholy; Teenage Kicks; Sage Francis; Arbouretum; Johnny Goudie and the Little Champions; Z; And The Moneynotes; The Dodos; The Black Crowes; The Whore Moans; The Snake Charmers; Class of 1984; Buddahead; Baby Guts; Death Sentence: PANDA!; Chinese; Digable Cat; The Sorely Trying Days; & To The Waves.

There's plenty more in the pipe, so check back soon, eh?

Labels: Interviews, Live Reviews, Musical Crap, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Yep, it's late-breaking update time -- we've got a bunch of good new stuff up this week, in typical kinda-timely fashion... First up is a nice little chat with Toby Butler of The Duke Spirit, courtesy of Houston Calling (which you should really be reading, btw, if you don't already) headman and SCR contributor David Cobb; it's a neat look into a band I've had folks telling me were awesome for quite some time now but could never really get around to checking out.

See the whole deal over here, and then go check the band out for yourself tonight up at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, where they'll be opening for (yeah, I know) Incubus. (And considering the traffic, um, you might want to get in the car right about now for that.)

Next up, a second piece by Mr. Cobb, this time a cool-ass review of the latest from The Warlocks, The Mirror Explodes -- and just in time on that front, too, 'cause they'll be in town tomorrow, Sat., August 22nd, playing up at Walter's on Washington with The Morning After Girls & The Vandelles. Check out David's writeup here.

There're more reviews, besides, of stuff like La Snacks (who, if memory serves, used to hail from the Beaumont area, so they're almost Hometown Crew), Vetiver, weirdo Midlands-dweller Atlum Schema, & stoner-rock homage/documentary DVD Such Hawks Such Hounds, among others.

Can't forget the live reviews, though -- we're got sweeeeet writeups of the recent Atmosphere/Eyedea and Abilities show at Warehouse Live, from writer Rock Houston (I also witnessed the show myself, and holy fuck was it a badass, badass show; lightyears better than the last Atmosphere show I saw, & Eyedea and Abilities do things with mic & turntables that I still can't quite comprehend), and the juggernauts-of-rock show late last month with the revamped Judas Priest and Whitesnake, courtesy of metal dude Scott Whitt. Writeups here & here, respectively.

Heck, here's the whole list:

Interviews: The Duke Spirit

Live Reviews/Previews: Atmosphere/Eyedea and Abilities; Judas Priest/Whitesnake.

Reviews: The Warlocks; La Snacks; Such Hawks Such Hounds; Vetiver; Atlum Schema; Blackwood Company; Mos Def; A Third Wish Granted; & From Autumn To Ashes.

Other Stuff For Tonight:
Of course, I know you might not want to drive all the way out to The Woodlands if you don't already live there, so heck, you don't have to. You could head for these cool-sounding shows, instead:

• The Lion Of Wall Street/This Year's Tiger/Pay It Forward/Another Run/Behind Buildings @ Mango's
• Rebirth Brass Band/Revivalists/Plump @ Warehouse Live
• Sean Reefer & The Resin Valley Boys/Ryan Scroggins & the Trenchtown Texans @ Fitzdown
• The Lotus Effect/Neon Collars/Electric Courage Machine/The Hidden Images @ The Mink
• Los Gutter Rats/Riot Upfront/Final Warning/The Quarantines/Pseudo Section/PenDayHoes @ Super Happy Fun Land
• Scriabin and Kandinsky: Hearing Color, Seeing Sound, featuring Jade Simmons @ Wade Wilson Art (4411 Montrose; 7PM)

There you go; never a lack of choices, in a city this big...

Labels: Flyeration, H-Town News, Interviews, Live Reviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Great though it was, the Free Press Summerfest brought with it a couple of bad, bad pieces of bad news for Houston music-scene fans.

I've already moaned about Joe Mathlete's announcement that The Mathletes won't be doing any shows for the forseeable future, but I missed the set from The McKenzies early on Day 2 and their announcement that they, too, would be breaking up after their next show on August 29th at Mango's.

I have to say, I'm bummed as hell about this. The McKenzies have been utterly awesome every time I've seen 'em, a veritable ball of energy up on the stage as they cranked through their wickedly sharp, sarcastic brand of guitars-and-keys indie-pop; I'd really, truly hoped they'd stick around a good long time.

With depression setting in, I pestered frontman/guitarist Miguel with a handful of panicky questions about the seemingly sudden news...

SCR: What the heck happened? I thought you guys were riding high, and then the announcement at Summerfest; has this been coming for a while?
Miguel: Well, we had decided to call it before the Summerfest. I wanted to wait 'til afterwards. It was something we talked about maybe a few weeks before the fest. It's been really hard to get together for practice and to write, due to everyone's hectic schedules.

Is everybody still on speaking terms? I hope?
Yes, everyone is still on speaking terms. We're all really good friends. I can't imagine us not talking to each other. It was a mutual decision.

I don't suppose there are any in-the-can new McKenzies track you're planning on releasing posthumously, Teenage Kicks-style?
Well, the funny thing is that we started recording some new tracks maybe one or so months ago. We were going to release a D.I.Y. sort of demo/EP before the end of the year. We haven't talked about what we're going to do with it.

What's next? Are y'all already moving on to other things, or is this a "timeout" sort of breakup?
What's next? We don't really now yet. No one is moving on to anything new as of right now. Guess we're playing it by ear.

And last but definitely not least: is there anything I and/or the Houston scene in general can do to change your collective mind? Please?
I really dont know how to answer that last question. But thanks so much for your concern, Jeremy! I hope to see you at our last show, man!

Ah, damn. So, it sounds like a reunion's not going to be in the cards, unfortunately. Keep yr fingers crossed, though -- maybe they'll release the new stuff somehow before they drift off into The Great Beyond...

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 2 comments

Damn, this one kind of fell by the wayside in all the Summerfest madness... Last week yours truly got some fine new writing-type things up on SCR, and it'd be a shame to let them slip on by without a word, especially since a couple of bits here and there are a sorta-kinda timely.

The first of those happens to be what I think is a very cool interview with local boys The Literary Greats, who're playing up at The Continental Club tonight (Thurs., August 13th) with Beetle. Brandon and Chris of the Greats were nice enough to answer my many semi-intelligent questions about their music, their history, and their soon-to-be-released new album (which I didn't think to ask the title of, but which'll apparently be called Ocean, Meet the Valley; you'll get a writeup on what it sounds like as soon as I hear it...), and in the end, it all came out pretty well. See the full thing here.

The show's part of a new showcase deal put on by the 29-95.com, btw, in an effort to promote H-town bands/musicians to the Continental Club crowd & beyond. It promises to be a good one, definitely, and I'm hoping they keep doing the showcases...

Beyond that, on Friday, August 14th, Washingtonian boys The Lonely H (who happen to be the only people I've ever heard of to come from/live in Port Angeles, WA., other than my ex-boss Steve) are coming to town, playing at Rudyard's with locals Fake Believe (who have the coolest band name ever, and whose song "Card Homes" I've really been enjoying).

The Lonely H do that '70s retro thing that seems to be popping up all over the place, with echoes of The Eagles & CSNY, among others. New writer Jowell did a nice writeup of the band's latest, Concrete Class -- check it out over here.

Of course, that can hardly be it, right? Let's see... We've also got live reviews of the recent Dredg/RX Bandits/Zechs Marquise show at The Meridian and the further-back Extra Golden/Grandfather Child show at Walter's, up here and here, respectively, and a pile of CD reviews, including stuff by ex-Too Much Joy(!) electronics project Wonderlick, Franz Ferdinand, WE ARE HEX, One Small Step For Landmines, & globetrotting Houston boy Oppressed by the Line. Here's the full list:

Interviews: The Literary Greats

Live Reviews/Previews: Dredg/RX Bandits/Zechs Marquise; Extra Golden/Grandfather Child.

Reviews: The Lonely H; Franz Ferdinand; Wonderlick; One Small Step For Landmines; WE ARE HEX; Oppressed by the Line; Does It Offend You, Yeah?; Foreign Cinema; & Chris Schutz + Tourists.

More soon, we promise...

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Live Reviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 1 comments

In case you hadn't seen/heard of it yet, local H-town scene icon and Bring Back The Guns frontman Matt Brownlie has a new plan, which happens to sound a bit like an old plan. Back in the day, Matt had the grand vision of a series of self-perpetuating showcases for local bands, and he called the thing H.U.S.H., short for "Houston Underground Social Hour." While the shows themselves went pretty well, y'know, these things do end, and H.U.S.H. quietly crumbled after a much-loved run.

Nowadays, Matt's a married man, halfway settled-down and homebody-like. (Much like, yes, my own lame, sporadically show-going ass.) Even still, though, he's decided to resurrect the H.U.S.H. name and give it a new purpose, kicking off what'll hopefully be a series of "early" shows at Rudyard's for us old dudes to be able to hit and still make it home in time for our Law & Order reruns on the teevee.

The first one'll be this next Thursday, August 6th, from 6PM to 10PM or so, and it's gonna be good -- the jaw-droppingly awesome Benjamin Wesley headlines, with openers The Takes and Muzak John. It's cheap, with only a $5 donation suggested, and the proceeds go to benefit Planned Parenthood of Houston & Southeast Texas.

Since I wasn't real clear on the idea behind this "new" H.U.S.H. thing, I hit Matt up with some questions, and we chatted for a while. Here's the transcript:

There you go -- mark yr calendars...

Labels: Flyeration, H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 2 comments

I desperately need to talk about what all's going down this weekend, but I've got to first mention, though, that we've got a bunch of new reviews up, most notably for the recent full-length from Deleted Scenes, who'll be playing up at Mango's with Young Mammals, News on the March, & Flowers to Hide tonight. It's a good disc, if somewhat scattered -- lots of very cool songs, definitely, but they don't necessarily fit together as a whole, y'know? When it does work, though, it really goes the distance, melding New Pornographers-style pop melodies with Death Cab/Modest Mouse hypnotic phrasing.

Check the full review here, and you can check out the band for yourself right here:

Deleted Scenes - "Fake IDs"
Deleted Scenes - "Ithaca"

And hey, even if that doesn't float your boat, the show's very much worth checking out for the YM guys, who throw down a frenzied, fist-pumping bag of indie-rock goodness every damn time they play, and News on the March, whose Beach Boys-meets-O Brother, Where Art Thou? pop-folk is pitch-perfect and unique as hell. I've heard really good things about Flowers to Hide for years, too, but have yet to catch 'em live, sadly. (Check the awesome Eli Sebastian Brumbaugh flyer, btw; H-town flyer art fucking rules, these days, I swear...)

Of course, there's other recent stuff, besides, like the recent Vaselines reissue(s), evil metallic pseudo-Buddhists Kylesa, two-piece mess-rockers The Ax, & some cool interviews I posted about earlier in the week -- here's the full list:

Interviews: The Wild Moccasins; The All-American Rejects.

Reviews: Deleted Scenes; The Traditionist; Kylesa; The Ax; The Vaselines; Star Fucking Hipsters; Invention; & Like Bells.

More to come...

Labels: Flyeration, H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Apologies to anybody else who's playing a show this evening, but if you're in town tonight, there's only one place you really, truly need to be: The Wild Moccasins' tour kickoff party at Mango's, on Westheimer next to the Avant Garden/Helios.

In honor of the event, I hit the band up with some (fairly lame) questions, to which Moccasins frontman/guitarist Cody Swann, guitarist Andrew Lee, and bassist Nick Cody (and yes, there are many "Codys" and "Andrews" for a band with only five people) were kind enough to respond in very entertaining fashion. You can check out the interview up here, should you feel inclined...

Anyway, they'll be playing with awesomely cool Riff Tiffs side project-run-wild Caddywhompus (who've released their two EPs as one collected digital download just called EPs, by the way; I've heard half of it and love it but still need to listen to the other half), the speaker-imploding, hoodie-wearing spectacle that is underground hip-hop supastar B L A C K I E, and the sweet sounds of the Urbane Guerilla Sound System, which is former Teenage Kicks guys John and Stewart spinning lots of Northern Soul, reggae, & old-school R&B stuff. (They were both enthusing about Sharon Jones the last time I talked with 'em, which makes them good people in my book.)

Seriously, this promises to be one awesomely cool show. In addition to things musical, Cody has warned/informed that the band will be silkscreening special limited-edition Mocs designs free onto any T-shirt you bring 'em, giving away copies of their extremely limited-edition tour posters, and selling cassette(!) copies of the excellent Microscopic Metronomes EP they released earlier this year (review up here, if you're curious), and they'll have Mango's all nicely decorated, I'm guessing kinda like they did for the sold-out EP release show at Walter's.

It's a measly $6, and the doors open at 8PM -- the show doesn't start 'til 9PM, but given how insane the crowd was when they did an all-out party like this back in January, it's a good bet the place will be filled to overflowing with hipsters & other lovers of good music. (Remember, as well, that this is their tour kickoff, so the band won't be playing these parts again 'til early July at the earliest.)

The Other Stuff: Well, not so much "stuff" as "thing," I guess... In addition to the Wild Mocs interview, hard-working writer Rafael Rivas managed to somehow talk his way into an interview with one of the guys from The All-American Rejects during their recent stop here in town.

I can't claim to know the band real well, myself (although I do like "It Ends Tonight", off 2005's Move Along, but that may be more because I first heard it in a commercial for Battlestar Galactica & thought it was really well-used), but I like Rafael's take on the band, even still. Check out the full interview here.

Labels: Flyeration, H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Hey, all -- heading off to yet another family dinner thing for the long weekend, but before I go I wanted to mention the new stuff that's up as of, well, just now... For one, we've got a brand-spanking-new interview with the mysteriously cool georgia's Horse., purveyor of dark, sweet-yet-melancholy folk-country rock, up right here, just in time for her first show in about a year(?) tonight up at Super Happy Fun Land.

Then there's a sweet review of the May 8th American Fangs show at Fitzgerald's with cool folks The Vettes (not to mention the last place you look, who also blew the roof off, The 71's, who were far, far better than I'd expected, and Female Demand, who made me finally go, "ah, now I get it..."). This one's by new (to us, anyway) writer Dre Giles, and it's up here, complete w/pictures by yours truly of the Fangs guys.

Check 'em both out, then get up to SHFL tonight, eh?

Labels: Admin Stuff, Interviews, Live Reviews, Musical Crap, Pseudo-Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Gotta make it quick for the rundown of good things to check out today, Sunday, April 26th -- doing the family thing, manning the grill all day & now gearing up for the sporadic game of Scattergories. Here's the list:

Phantom Orchard: Zeena Parkins & Ikue Mori @ Barnevelder Movement/Arts Complex (2201 Preston St.)
Definitely need to mention this one... The Nameless Sound have brought another intriguing-sounding show to town, this time to the Barnevelder. Phantom Orchard is a duo of accomplished experimentalists, Zeena Parkins & Ikue Mori, the latter of whom got her start in the NYC No Wave scene, drummming in seminal band DNA. They apparently meld electronics, harp, & drums; I don't entirely know what the sound like, but writer Michelle wrote up a little preview of the deal -- check it out here.

Houston International Festival 2009, featuring Cherish the Ladies, Los Lobos, Beoga, Kevin Burke, Joel Guzman, Lil' Brian & the Travelers, Keith Frank & the Soileau Zydeco Band, Lucia y Valdemar Gitanerias Flamenco, Jones Family Singers, Ezra Charles & the Texas Blues Band, Clandestine, Danny O'Flaherty, Texas Chainsaw Ceili Band, Cass Irish Dancers, Soular Grooves Sound System, Native Junkaroo Parade, Sirrom School of Belly Dance, Batt Burns, Wyndnwyre, Cal Scott, Tom Creegan, Mike Zito, Flaco Jimenez, Jaime DeAnda, Mark Towns Latin Jazz Trio, Rachid Taha, McTeggart Irish Dancers, St. Thomas Episcopal Pipe Band, Needfire, Los Texmaniacs, Terri Hendrix & Lloyd Maines, Charles Thibideaux & the Austin Cajun Aces, Nritya Indian Dancers, Grupo de N'Golo, Cosmic Steel, Koumanke'le Dancers, Voodoo Brass Band, & Baba Ifalade @ Downtown Houston
Today's IFest features a bunch of good folks, both Irish & non-Irish -- Cherish the Ladies, Los Lobos, Beoga, Clandestine, Rachid Taha, & Wyndnwyre. Already talked a bit about Rachid Taha, but the other folks are darn good, too.

MAE/Person L/Barcelona/Toyko @ Walter's on Washington
MAE is one of those guilty pleasures bands that's not really a guilty pleasure -- I have this indie-hipster twinge that y'know, I really shouldn't like 'em, but fuck it; they're just too damn good to ignore. Destination: Beautiful, the band's first album, is start-to-finish gorgeous, just about perfect sing-along-in-the-car music, and the next album (the name of which escapes me right now) isn't far off, either. Plus, Barcelona's ode to geek love, "I Have the Password to Your Shell Account," still makes me giggle...

Tera Melos/sIngs/Buxton @ Mango's
I dunno much about Tera Melos, but local boys sIngs & Buxton are darn good -- okay, I've only been told sIngs is good, but I can attest to Buxton being pretty badass. They do a sweet, rootsy-yet-poppy kind of alt-country stuff, like Conor Oberst fronting Uncle Tupelo or something. And they've got a cool-ass 7" coming out soon, so keep an eye out.

Runners-Up:
South Memphis String Band/Chicha Libre @ The Continental Club
Anal Cunt/Outlaw Order/Strong Intention/P.L.F./N.I.B.I.R.U./The Nothing @ The White Swan
afton: push play, featuring The Orchestra feat. Wes Coas, Tex-T, Tree House Music, Wednesday from the Bacliff Punx, Mutt aka Wolf, Money Mula Mafia, Ja'marr feat. J-Dawg, Self Made Clicc, Joseph, Fedz Hollow feat. Kause, Bobby Earth, Young C, & P. Rafa @ The Meridian
Texas Crawfish Festival, featuring Sun Salutation, Brandon Rhyder, Bon Ton Mickey & the Zydeco HotSteppers, Scooter Brown, Tyagaraja, Studemont Project, & Right to Refuse @ Old Town Spring (Spring)

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Fuck...has it been a week already? This week feels like it's gone screaming past me, leaving me confused and behind on everything. Not good... Anyway, I figured I'd do a quick hit on what all's going on this evening, Friday, April 24th, so here's the stuff I think is going to be worth checking out; your mileage may vary, as always:

American Fangs/The Manichean/ Heptic Skeptic @ Mango's
Yes, yes, yes. I've been totally stunned by American Fangs since my first listen to their too-short self-titled EP, to the point where I just can't stop talking about the damn band. They mash together elements of metal, punk, and straight-up pop to very cool effect, coming off like a streetwise version of the Foo Fighters hanging out with old-school East Bay punks, and they're really, really, really good, to my mind, and only bound to get better.

So, since our inglorious Myspace Age makes it next to impossible to actually find shit out about somebody by checking out their Website, I figured I'd blast some questions their way and see what happened. Lo and behold, singer/frontman Gus responded, in a highly entertaining, informative-yet-coy way -- check out the whole exchange here, if you're interested. It's going to be an off-the-hook show, from the looks of it -- no clue on The Manichean, except they look like grotty metal dudes, and I think Heptic Skeptic are a ska band that includes the excellent Kam Franklin, but I've never actually heard 'em play. And hey, it's all going down at the newly-relaunched Mango's...

Lamb of God/As I Lay Dying/Children of Bodom/Municipal Waste/God Forbid @ Verizon Wireless Theater
Metal, metal, metal. I'm sick of all the bullshit about how metal's dead, there hasn't been any good metal since '91 -- that's all crap. You're just not looking in the right places, folks, and Lamb of God is one of them places. Check out Scott's full-on review of their latest album here, if you haven't already.

Angry Samoans/ Molotov Compromise/Rats In The Attic/The X-Pats @ Walter's on Washington
The Houston Press had a cool writeup about how the Angry Samoans were a punk band made up of and aimed at music critics, but I can't find the link right now. Gah. Either way, they ended up being taken relatively seriously and became part of my own after-the-fact indoctrination into punk rock. A classic band.

Mos Def/Ledisi/Bilal/Stokley @ Arena Theatre
I'll admit it: I own no Mos Def albums. I do, however, still play Black Star's debut on a regular basis, and I love Mos's laid-back, sleepy-yet-sharp delivery in general. And if you haven't bothered watching 16 Blocks because Bruce Willis is tired & old, seriously, you need to see it just to see Mos's performance; he steals the show.

Electric Attitude/ Magnetic @ Dean's Credit Clothing (8PM; $5)
Dunno Magnetic, but I've seen Electric Attitude, and they won me over, slowly but surely -- funky and retro-sounding, but nowhere near pretentious, with a frontman who very nearly pulls off the whole Mick Jagger thing. Damn.

Steel Lounge Underground, featuring Suraj K, DJ Witnes, & Ceeplus Bad Knives @ Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (5216 Montrose)
Sadly, I've received word that The Mathletes will not be playing tonight's installment of Steel Lounge Underground, the cool-ass merging of music & art that happens sporadically over at the CAM -- Joe Mathlete is reportedly sick with some nasty variant of the bubonic plague or something, and it's bad, bad, bad. That said, the DJs who're slated to do their thing are all very cool,

Runners-Up:
The Soarce/Slivered/Orents Stirner @ Rudyard's
Wild Sweet Orange @ The Meridian
Big Business/Tweak Bird @ Warehouse Live
Texas Crawfish Festival, featuring Destroyer (KISS tribute), Cory Morrow, Leroy Thomas & the Zydeco Roadrunners, LT Roberts & the Zydeco Mob, Josh Ward, Glass Intrepid, Project H, Right to Refuse, & Leaf @ Old Town Spring (Spring)

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 4 comments

I'm gonna make it quick this time, I think... Got some new stuff up on the as of this AM/evening, including a new feature on Canadian alt-/emo-rockers Silverstein by new contributor Rafael here, and a handful of reviews. There's a review of the new split-7" The Eastern Sea & News on the March officially released just today (er, yesterday?) up here, one of Southern-bred metal heroes Lamb of God here, & strange, dark, bass-heavy Knife solo project Fever Ray here, plus a few more.

Here's the full list:

Features: Silverstein: A Crazy, Enthusiastic Sonic Shipwreck

Reviews: The Eastern Sea/News on the March; Lamb of God; Fever Ray; The Moondoggies; Starvin Hungry; & Mista White.

Still more to come, soon, so keep checking back, eh?

Labels: Interviews, Live Reviews, Musical Crap, Reviews

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments

Yep, yep, yep -- Friday night, and so here I am again posting this last-minute little note to mention that we've got a pile of brand-new reviews up (along with the excellent MI Ami interview I blathered about a few days ago). The reason for the hurried posting? Well, because this latest batch includes a review of Bright Nights, Bright Lights by local power-popsters The Favorites, who're playing this very evening up at Rudyard's (along with betterLUCK & Esther LaVonne & the Rottens).

It's a darn good disc, one good enough that I'm kicking myself for not writing it up sooner; seriously, the Favorites guys craft some insanely hooky, Fountains of Wayne-ish, Big Star-loving guitar-pop, the kind that drills straight into your brain and makes itself at home. (And that goes double for lead-off track "Something That You're Missing"). Check the full review here, then get on up to Rudz tonight...okay, assuming you're not already planning on hitting the Bolt show at Walter's, that is. If I could split myself in two, amoeba-like, I honestly would, folks.

Actually, amend that. I'd love to be able to split myself in three this evening, because along with the other two shows, one of my favorite singer/songwriters ever, Alejandro Escovedo, also happens to be playing tonight at some place called NiaMoves (508 Pecore) that I think is a dance studio or something. Odd venue, but damn, I'd love to see Alejandro again -- just thinking about him playing "By Eleven" long, long, long ago at the KTRU Outdoor Show makes a chill run down my spine. If power-pop & noisy rawk ain't your thing, well, maybe careworn, countrified, beautifully-written songs about love, loss, and all the rest will be.

The show reportedly starts at 8PM, and it's billed as a "special duo performance," although there's nothing that says what/who the other half of the duet might be, so... Oh, and sadly, it ain't the cheapest seats in town -- $35 is the ticket price, which somewhat makes me cringe...

On top of The Favorites, btw, we've got plenty of other cool stuff reviewed. There's the fine, fine, fine instro-metal soundscaping of local boys Scale The Summit (here) -- and yes, they're playing back in the area on May 2nd, up at Javajazz in Spring with Protest The Hero -- then there's the Magnolia Electric Company sidemen of The Coke Dares (here), Provo dance-rockers Shark Speed (here), and Ramones-loving DC punks The Points (here), who were supposed to have played here in town this past weekend but apparently had to cancel. Dang.

Oh, and there's also an excellent live review I missed when it went up -- writer Bill R. was kind enough to head down to Stafford to check out long-running classic rockers America (along with more contemporary stagemates Second Day Red, whom I've heard are pretty great) and write up his thoughts on the show here. It's good stuff. Here's the full list, for all you completists out there...

Interviews: Mi Ami

Live Reviews: America

Reviews: The Favorites; Scale The Summit; The Coke Dares; The Points; Shark Speed; Peel; Pretty & Nice; Warship;

More to come...

Labels: H-Town News, Interviews, Live Reviews, Musical Crap, Public Service Announcements, Reviews, Things To Do

gaijin || Link || E-mail || 0 comments