2006 Houston Press Music Awards Supplement

Electro experimenter DJ Ceeplus has been on the scene "for well over a decade now," spinning his patented, one-of-a-kind mix of Italo disco, hip-hop, funk, no-wave and just about any other genre you care to name. Fast approaching legendary status, DJ Z-Trip calls Ceeplus "Texas fam" and DJ Jester says he's "so gravy." You can catch his sets everywhere from the Proletariat to the grand hall of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, where he promoted this year's monster Beats of Basquiat party series. If Ceep ain't the hippest dude in H-town, he's damn close.

7 p.m.

Name: Little Martin

Nominated in: Best DJ

Web site: www.myspace.com/little_martin

Personnel: Little Martin

A native of Manchester, England, Little Martin has a bio states he's "ridden many waves and trends and created a few." Namely, acid house, a genre he helped to create while a resident at Manchester's legendary Hacienda club. There are many rooms to his house -- you're just as likely to hear "not just of house and dance but disco, pop, punk, R&B and Latin" beats as well. You can hear those beats at M Bar, Belvedere and Berryhill Montrose, or at the "Rent" party he co-founded. (That last was awarded as our Best Recurring Club Night in 2004.) Martin is fresh off the "24 Hour Party People" tour with fellow Mancunian Peter Hook of New Order.

8 p.m.

Name: Sean Carnahan

Nominated in: Best DJ

Web site: www.thedjlist.com/djs/sean_carnahan

Personnel: Sean Carnahan

Long a fixture on the city's dance scene, Sean Carnahan is fast becoming a curmudgeonly elder statesman, always ready to pimp-slap the wack amid his ranks. But he also recognizes and rewards talent when he sees it -- his old protégé Champa Moore blossomed into a true star under his guidance. His "decade-plus" on the decks has found him residing at "well over 20 different clubs all over Houston." Carnahan is also a well-known figure on the international house scene, and his booking company has brought Mark Farina, Paul Van Dyk, the Crystal Method and even the English Beat to town, all this summer.

9 p.m.

Name: DJ Sun

Nominated in: Best DJ

Web site: www.soulargrooves.com

Personnel: DJ Sun

A decade-plus institution on the Houston scene, both in the clubs and on the box, Sun spins "down-tempo, soul, nü-jazz, glitch, broken beat and beyond," and the people love him for it. He has racked up about as many Music Awards as local legends as Norma Zenteno, the Zydeco Dots and Carolyn Wonderland. The Suriname-born DJ also has been known to lug his crates to that country, as well as its former colonizer, the Netherlands. If there's a chill-out room in heaven, chances are DJ Sun will be behind the decks.

LIVE

4 p.m.

Name: Allen Oldies Band

Nominated in: Best Cover Band

Web site: www.allenoldiesband.com

Personnel:

Allen Hill (vocals), David Beebe (drums), David Schoenbaum (organ, guitar), Charlie Earthman (sax), Jim Henkel (guitar), Mikey Trafton (bass)

Allen Hill lives fully up to his name as "The High Priest of the Oldies." He might not be able to sing too well in the strictest sense of the word, but his manic energy and feel-good vibe more than make up for that shortcoming. The tuxedo-clad banshee is, as he puts it, completely and utterly "dedicated to living and playing the dance wonders of the '60s hit parade," songs like "Green Tambourine," "That's Cool, That's Trash" and "She's About a Mover." "Everyone loves the oldies," they say, "and no one does the oldies better than the Allen Oldies Band."

5 p.m.

Name: JW Americana

Nominated in:

Best Punk

Web site: www.myspace.com/jwamericana

Personnel: Doug Kosmo a.k.a. C.C. Dupree (bass guitar, vocals), Shane Lauder a.k.a L.C. Dupree (drums, vocals), Arthur Moreno (saxophone, vocals), Rodney Elliot a.k.a. J.W. Dupree (guitar, vocals), Geoffrey Muller (banjo), Scott (mandolin, vocals), Tony Barilla (accordion), Mike Switzer (trombone), Chris Kemmerer (trumpet)

Believe it or not, some bands can claim both Navasota songster Mance Lipscomb and new-wave freaks Devo as influences and can carry it off. JW Americana is one such band. Be warned -- their live shows tend to be spectacles and occasionally involve bloodshed. Little-known JW Americana trivia: According to published reports, singer-bassist Doug Kosmo "easily has the presence of a prominent cult leader as he has a huge fan base in Houston, Thailand, and five Eastern Bloc countries."

6 p.m.

Name: Clouseaux

Nominated in: Best Jazz; Best Keyboardist (David Cummings); Best Guitarist (Kelly Doyle)

Web site: www.clouseaux.com

Personnel: Jay Brooks (bass), Kelly Doyle (guitar), David Cummings (piano), Aaron Koerner (trumpet), Tomas Escalante (vocals), Steve Ruth (trumpet, percussion), Alfred Tam (trombone, conch), David Taschery (drums), Andy Salmon (percussion), John Best (vibes), Claudio Depujadas (percussion) and John Daniels (percussion/fire breathing)

What do you get when you mix Les Baxter, Combustible Edison, Martin Denny, Esquivel and Henry Mancini? Well, Clouseaux got "dark instrumental exotica with a twist of lounge and surf" music. All that "exotica" has filled up four releases, Clouseaux in 2002, the Destination Oasis EP in 2003, Lagoon in 2004 and Beyond Good and Evil this year. Guitarist Kelly Doyle has won Best Guitarist honors before, and the group is a repeat nominee in the Best Jazz category. There were rumors that band member John Daniels was planning a protest over the lack of a Best Fire Breathing category, but that's been settled.

7 p.m.

Name: Mark Towns

Nominated in: Best Salsa/Reggaetón/Latin Pop

Web site: www.marktowns.com

Personnel: Mark Towns (band members vary)