Dave Alvin

L.A.'s Tremoloco Drops Smokin' Salsipuedes With Local Help

Nothing gets Lonesome, Onry and Mean's blood pumping like opening the mail and finding a long overdue album from Los Angeles roots outfit Tremoloco. The band's previous release, 2008's Dulcinea, was in heavy rotation on the jukebox at our local water hole for several years, and the album seldom left ... More >>

A July 4 Playlist That Goes Boom!

July 4 is truly America's national holiday, because it combines two of the country's grandest traditions: Taking the day off work and blowing shit up. Because freedom isn't free, fireworks and other explosives are embedded in America's formative myths and our national character. Also, they're pretty ... More >>

RIP Bert Jansch: Legendary Folk Guitarist Dies At 67

Dave Alvin alerted us via Facebook shortly ago that British guitar master Bert Jansch has died. Jansch, who along with his band Pentangle was at the forefront of the '60s British folk movement, was 67. According to the Associated Press, the cause of death was lung cancer. The Scottish-born Jansch o ... More >>

Just Playing

Readers write us regarding illegal game rooms.

Robust Night Of Roots-Rock Shows Scene's True Grit

Jay LeeDave Alvin​Rocks Off feels like we live in a Western. This is nothing unusual for us, except right now is the part of the movie (every movie) where one cowboy turns to the other one and says, "It's quiet out here." The other answers, of course, "Yeah... too quiet." Since about Free Pre ... More >>

Half a Paycheck

Dave Alvin is an inveterate troubadour and staunch advocate for Houston's blues history.

Out Today: Bon Iver's Bandwagon Bait, Weird Al Goes Gaga

Greetings From Bon Iver Land! Now, grab a rifle. It's almost dinner time.​In the next few weeks, you may be reading about the new Robert Ellis album, Photographs, so we are just giving you fair warning. It's a stunner through and through, and goes nicely with early morning traffic. Have you ev ... More >>

Lonesome Onry And Mean's Top 11 Shows Of 2010

Jason WolterToots & the Maytals at House of Blues, May 2​Along with the season of shopping madness and suicidal depression comes the season for Best-ofs. Live show-wise, 2010 was very benevolent to Lonesome Onry and Mean. Some of our favorites from 2010: 11. Jon Cleary, The Big Easy: Cleary ... More >>

The Knitters

The Blasters

iFest Aftermath: A Whirlwind Afternoon With Zydepunks, Some Cha-Chas, Taj Weekes And Dave Alvin's Guilty Women

Jason WolterZydepunks​ There was a moment as Aftermath was walking through the Caribbean Market section of iFest Saturday when we had the most visceral of flashbacks -- stepping off a Carnival cruise boat at the rip old age of 14 in Nassau, Bahamas, and being inundated by tourist-baiting marketeer ... More >>

iFest Closes To An Afro-Cuban-Reggae Beat

Eggs/ breakfastontour.comBaba Maal​ If the first weekend of the Houston International Festival felt like a detour down Canal Street, the second evoked the festival's emphasis on "Spotlighting the Caribbean." Summer picked this weekend to descend two months early, as it tends to do, resulting in in ... More >>

Five Great Cajun Songs By Non-Cajuns

​As far as He Said knows, he has zero Cajun blood in his veins. His family is pretty much straight-up Anglo/Scotch-Irish, settling in the Piney Woods of Newton County via Alabama in the early 1800s. However, although the Sabine-straddling area around Newton, Burkeville and Wiergate is about an hou ... More >>

An Americana "Billie Jean," Fried-Chicken Fight And More Great Shows From The Fabulous Satellite Lounge

[Part 2 of a three-part series. Read Part 1 here.] Richard Thomspon: LOM's brother-in-law called us on a Sunday afternoon and said Thompson was playing the Satellite that night; we'd heard nothing about it. Thompson had just released his rock record, Mock Tudor, and we went what we thought was ear ... More >>

The Night BYOB-Packing Jason & The Scorchers Fans Trashed The Fabulous Satellite Lounge, And 3 Other Great Shows

[Part 1 of a three-part series.] ​ Houston International Festival Director of Performing Arts Rick Mitchell's recent remembrance of great shows he saw at Rockefeller's got LOM to thinking about great shows next door at the funky old Satellite Lounge. We spent way more nights in the Satellite, our ... More >>

Lonesome Onry and Mean: This Is Not (Really) a Best-Of-2009 List

​Lonesome, Onry and Mean saw a great comment from Dave Alvin on Facebook recently that went something like this: "I do not do Best of lists or End of the Decade lists, the only lists I do are 'crap I have to do' lists." We gladly second that, Dave, as there is nothing other than Christmas shopping ... More >>

Lonesome Onry and Mean: Sideman Supreme Rick Shea Hits the Mucky Duck

Rick Shea is one of the most in-demand sidemen in the Los Angeles area. Seven years on the road with Dave Alvin certainly boosted Shea's profile outside the L.A./SoCal scene, but the Alvin gig is only one of many. Shea cut his teeth in the truck stops and roadhouses in his native San Bernardino an ... More >>

Lonesome Onry and Mean: R.I.P. Amy Farris

​Fiddler Amy Farris, an Austin native who played most recently with Dave Alvin's Guilty Women band, died last weekend in Los Angeles. Information is still sketchy at this point, but a press release from Yep Roc Records Wednesday stated that Farris had passed away Sept. 26 "after battling a long il ... More >>

Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women

Aftermath: Tremoloco at Under the Volcano

Photos by Vera Mitchell  Los Angeles roots band Tremoloco brought Doug Sahm-type Mexican soul to an enthusiastic audience Wednesday night at Under the Volcano. After warming up with a brand-new song called "Old Man," the band sucked the eager crowd in with a stellar country version of Warren Ze ... More >>

Lonesome Onry and Mean: Tremoloco Headed Back Under the Volcano

Doug Sahm is probably up in heaven with a bottle of Big Red in his hand and a huge smile on his face and bending God's ear about Tremoloco. Lonesome, On'ry and Mean has received an early warning that Tremoloco is returning to Under the Volcano July 22, after a 13-month absence. Composed of Los Lobo ... More >>

Local Motion: Top Sellers at Area Record Stores

Cactus Music 2110 Portsmouth, 713-526-9272 www.myspace.com/cactusmv1. Springfield Riots, Say When EP 2. Todd Snider, The Excitement Plan 3. Jubal Lee Young, Last Free Place in America 4. Sonic Youth, The Eternal 5. Steve Earle, Townes 6. Elvis Costel ... More >>

Girl Star, Grown Up

Still proud of her family band, Susan Cowsill does her own thing now.

Local Motion: Top Sellers at Cactus Music, Sound Exchange, Soundwaves, Sig's Lagoon and Vinal Edge

Cactus Music 2110 Portsmouth, 713-526-9272 www.myspace.com/cactusmv1. Ryan Bingham, Roadhouse Sun 2. Dave Matthews Band, Big Whiskey & the Groo-Grux King 3. Steve Earle, Townes 4. Grizzly Bear, Veckatimest 5. Elvis Costello, Secret, Profane & Sugarcane 6. Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood, Live at Madiso ... More >>

This Just In: Dave Alvin, Darrell Scott Coming To Mucky Duck

We've just gotten an email alert from McGonigel's Mucky Duck about two stellar shows added to the fall lineup: Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women on September 19, and Darrell Scott on November 15. Undoubtedly, both of these shows will sell out. Tickets are on sale now. Alvin has just released a new a ... More >>

Aftermath: SXSW

Top Five SXSW Performances

Chris Gray Black Joe Lewis and a couple of HoneybearsWell, thank God that's over. SXSW 09 is history now, so before we completely block it out of our mind for another 11 months, here's Rocks Off's top five reasons it was worth going to after all. Dave Alvin & the Guilty Women: ... More >>

Tonight: The Derailers at Goode's Armadillo Palace

Outside Asleep at the Wheel's almost 40-year run, the Derailers are one of Austin's longest-lived retro-country acts. Country bands in Texas don't attain this kind of longevity unless they can find that two-step dance pocket and fill a dance floor. True dancehall pros, the 'Railers have been doi ... More >>

SXSW 09 Will Be a Groover's Paradise

A few weeks ago, Rocks Off could barely contain his enthusaism when he opened the mail - a momentous enough occasion in itself - and found an advance of Vanguard Records' Keep Your Soul: A Tribute to Doug Sahm. He put it on as soon as he got home (his piddly office CD player is just not gr ... More >>

Lonesome Onry and Mean: A Tribute to Chris Gaffney

Chris Gaffney Right on the heels of Wednesday's announcement of Vanguard's new Doug Sahm tribute album comes Yep Roc's tribute to Chris Gaffney, The Man of Somebody's Dreams. Ironically, it includes some of the same high-profile roots artists who pay tribute to Sahm: Dave Alvin, Los ... More >>

Doug Sahm Tribute Album Due March 24

Vanguard Records (Billy Bob Thornton & the Boxmasters, Kim Richey, the Watson Twins) announced today it will release Keep Your Soul: A Tribute to Doug Sahm, a 14-song disc honoring the late musican known as Sir Doug, March 24. Artists include Delbert McClinton, Los Lobos, Alejandro Escovedo, Da ... More >>

Dave Alvin

The Hacienda Brothers mourn fallen bandmate Chris Gaffney

Brothers in Arms

Tremoloco

Chris Gaffney, R.I.P.

The Knitters, Dead Rock West

Local Motion

Larry Cooper

Larry Cooper performs Thursday, December 7, at Mojo Risin' Coffee House, 1600 Shepherd, 713-426-1505.

The Derailers

Friday, June 23, at Blanco's, 3406 West Alabama, 713-439-0072

The Knitters

Thursday, August 25, at the Continental Club, 3700 Main, 713-529-9899.

Hacienda Brothers

Self-Titled

Chroniclers of History and Heartbreaks: Tom Russell, Katy Moffatt and Dave Alvin

Saturday, April 20

Going Public

Dave Alvin's private loss inspires him to search for the eternal sounds

Rotation

Night & Day

April 9 - 15, 1998

Rotation

Dutch Treat

Blasters Redux

Live Shots

Big Sandy and his Boys