The Suffers, The Bandulus, Guilla, Gio Chamba
House of Blues Bronze Peacock Room
August 22, 2015
It was a hot one in Houston this past Saturday evening, with many entertainment options to choose from around the city. Down the road at Minute Maid Park, Astros great Craig Biggio was being honored for his accomplishment of entering Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame earlier this summer. Further south, Peyton Manning would showcase his future Hall of Fame arm as the Denver Broncos faced off against J.J. Watt and our hometown Houston Texans.
However, the real star of the night and hottest ticket in town was the sold-out homecoming show for local darlings The Suffers, who just came off an extensive tour across the USA, even a making an appearance at a music festival up in Canada. Last Thursday night, the Gulf Coast Soul group racked up 11 trophies at the 2015 edition of the Houston Press Music Awards.
The sign near the entrance to The Bronze Peacock Room reads: "Capacity - 147". Add in the band members, bartenders, sound man (grrrrr!), and guests... and the room quickly filled up. As I walked in to catch the last two songs of the amazing ska/soul group The Bandulus, I could feel my mild claustrophobia senses tingling. I am told that upstarts Guilla and GIO Chamba totally rocked the house as they opened up the night's showcase.
And yes, when The Suffers finally took the stage, we were treated to exactly the exceptional and emotional set we have come to love from the crew. We sang along to songs about love, peanuts, and micheladas. It was also great to see Pat Kelly back on keys, making his gradual recovery after sustaining a broken arm during a fall the night before playing the Newport Folk Festival last month.
As the night drew to a close and the band trickled one by one off the stage, percussionist Jose "Chapy" Luna lead a call and response for Kam and Nick to return. The song selected was one the band rarely plays live, a heartfelt plea for love, support and self-improvement.
"It's gonna be on the next record" proclaimed Kam. As we patiently wait for that to drop, we present this preview:
"Better" by The Suffers from MarcoFromHouston on Vimeo.
When he's not roaming around the city in search of tacos and graffiti, Marco points his camera lens toward the vibrant Houston Music scene and beyond. You can follow his adventures on Instagram: @MarcoFromHouston.