Depeche Mode

UPDATED: Is ACL Festival Ignoring Houston? Does It Even Matter?

UPDATED (Thursday, 2:50 p.m.) to reflect the Houston-area roots of a few ACL performers this year, as pointed out by reader comments. We stand by our original point, though. As most of our readers no doubt know by now, the Austin City Limits Music Festival announced its 2013 lineup at the stroke of ... More >>

Depeche Mode, The Cure, Kings of Leon, Phoenix, Lionel Richie Head 2013 ACL Fest Lineup

Moments ago, Depeche Mode, The Cure, MUSE, Kings of Leon, Atoms For Peace (featuring Thom Yorke and Flea), Lionel Richie, Phoenix, Wilco, Vampire Weekend, The National, and Eric Church were announced as the headliners of the 2013 Austin City Limits Music Festival, which plans to expand to identical ... More >>

Book of Love: Open Book

Synth-pop band Book of Love's sunny '80s sound is suddenly back in vogue.

Liquidating Your Record Collection Is Harder Than You Would Think

Every time I come home from work, I find myself going to my guest-room closet and staring at crates and crates of compact discs and vinyl I don't know what to do with. Aside from the ones that I hold dear to my musical development or use for my DJ work, I have tons for which I have no sane plan. D ... More >>

Madman Across the Water

Sir Elton John piano-pounded Toyota Center March 28.

The Rocks Off 100: Breye "7x" Kiser, Pillar of Houston Electrogoth

Who? Breye "7x" Kiser is best known as the driving force behind Provision, one of Houston's longest-running and most respected electrogoth acts. Kiser, like all great EBM frontmen, hits the stage like a bolt of lightning, holding court over the intense beeps and boops crafted by his wife Jen "Skully ... More >>

What Was Your Favorite Concert at The Summit?

It must be music-venue day today. Rocks Off would like to thank Jon Harvey of Houston (@oompahead) for alerting us via Twitter to the fact that on this day in 1975, when I was a few weeks away from turning one year old, the sports and entertainment arena then known as the Summit opened in Greenway P ... More >>

Last Night: Rob Zombie & Marilyn Manson at Reliant Arena

Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson Reliant Arena October 30, 2012 The men of the "Twins of Evil" tour made two important statements at Reliant Arena Tuesday evening. Marilyn Manson's was that people are zombies. Rob Zombie's was that fire is awesome. Which one do you think was more fun? Manson must have ... More >>

Happy 51st, Depeche Mode's Martin Gore: A Birthday Playlist

Today is the 51st birthday of Depeche Mode's Martin Gore, and here's to hoping he's around for another 51 years because he remains an amazingly talented songwriter and performer. You simply can't say anything bad about the man who gave us "Personal Jesus," unless you want to gently whack him for tha ... More >>

Jane's Addiction & Other Big 1987 Debut Albums

Tonight Jane's Addiction comes to the Bayou Music Center, touring behind last year's The Great Escape Artist, only their fourth studio album in their nearly 27 years as a band. A few weeks back Rocks Off talked to lead singer and Lollapalooza honcho Perry Farrell about the band's future and what cou ... More >>

Happy Birthday, Dave Gahan: 5 Essential Depeche Mode Songs

Today Depeche Mode singer Dave Gahan turns 50 years old. This is a remarkable achievement, in that he was once declared legally dead but still looks like he's 20. Not only that, but he, Martin Gore and Andrew Fletcher are easily the most popular and influential electronic-rock band of all time, stil ... More >>

Taking Apart Yesterday's Facebook Music Screed

​Yesterday, about a half-dozen of my Facebook friends forwarded a gloom-and-doom listicle from a site called Buzzfeed entitled "12 Extremely Disappointing Facts About Popular Music." Now up to over one million hits, the doom-and-gloom piece is subtitled "This is the saddest thing you'll read a ... More >>

Electric Six: Love Songs for Mentally Disturbed People

​If Barry White did a record with Al Jourgensen it might sound something like Heartbeats and Brainwaves, the eighth studio album from Electric Six. This is the first time we've come into contact with the band, having only been aware of them vaguely from their song "Gay Bar" and the fact that ... More >>

Grave Babies

1986: Best Musical Year Ever?

​For almost two weeks now, Rocks Off has been obsessed with the year exactly 25 flips of the calendar backward from this one. It started when Steve Earle did one of his "Time Machine" shows, where the singer-songwriter who plays House of Blues Wednesday spotlights a dozen or so of his favorite ... More >>

Meet at the Junction

Finally, a sports bar that your girlfriend won't hate.

Deliciously Macabre Desserts at the Gothic Beauty Pageant

​It became apparent as soon as I took my place in the line outside the venue that - in jeans, a green sweater, and ankle boots - I was not properly outfitted for the occasion. In line ahead of me: a woman costumed in top hat and braids a la Boy George (oh, the irony), two guys in spike-laden ... More >>

Match These Bands With Their Awful Original Names

​Provided they didn't take the easy way out and name themselves after a song (Rolling Stones), their hometown (Boston) or each other (Hall & Oates), almost every band that went on to sell millions of records, get tons of radio play and sell out arenas has had some form of the following convers ... More >>

Artopia, Honky Tonk Blood & A Gang Of Music News

​Another Friday, another Magnolia City Mixtape, assembled just for you. Seriously, we put in a lot of time crawling through the internet just to bring everyone up to date on the scraps of local music news floating out there in the cyber-abyss. For this week's soundtrack, how's about this inst ... More >>

106.9 FM Gets In The Zone, Misses The Point?

​Another Houston radio station has changed formats, or "flipped," although early reaction from some listeners is that the change is so slight it's hardly a change at all. Cox Communications has rechristened its property at 106.9 FM from "The Point" to "The Zone." It's not a sports station, al ... More >>

Guitar Zero: Who's Never Heard "Copperhead Road"?

​One of the joys of attempting to learn a new skill at an advanced age is that little nagging concern in the back of your head that makes you wonder how much of a dipshit your instructor thinks you are. My particular sensei - this guy, in case you'd forgotten - has, like every other person who wor ... More >>

Tonight: Enlist In the Kunst Fascion at Persuasion Art Opening

Kunst Fascion: Alles Klar?​Rocks Off is a big fan of the honky-tonk, Southern rock and all things bluesy and soulful (as you may have guessed), but our first love will always be the throb and grind of industrial music. Seriously. The first live performance we ever saw was Nitzer Ebb opening for De ... More >>

UK Web Site Shines "Unsigned Spotlight" on Houston's Watermarks

myspace.com/thewatermarksThe Watermarks at Warehouse Live, September 2009​ ​When Rocks Off wrote about Houston electro-rockers the Watermarks' Thoughts Like Bombs back in May, we said a song or two off the quintet's five-song EP - still available as a free download on the band's Web site - remin ... More >>

He Said She Said: Songs from the Year We Were Born That We Still Listen To, Part 2

​When He Said began researching the music that came out the year we were born, 1983, we were taken aback by how much of this music has warped, shaped and informed our life. Pretty much all of the albums and bands that were prevalent that year are still on our turntables and playlists. Why just thi ... More >>

Aftermath: Depeche Mode's Black and Blue Celebration at The Woodlands

Photos by Eric Sauseda​ Far, far away from the group once known for bubbly synth-pop anthems like "Just Can't Get Enough" and "Everything Counts," Depeche Mode circa 2009 has pressed its small army of keyboards and electronics into the service of primal urges and raw sexuality. Not terribly surpri ... More >>

Sounds of the Universe

Synth-pop icons Depeche Mode do read their reviews.

Single-Album Sets We'd Like to See, Part 2: Blondie, Green Day, U2 and More

There are so many artists coming to Houston this summer and fall who should pick up on the "classic album" trend Rocks Off could hardly stop at just five. See our picks for Nos. 6-10 here. 5. Blondie (Arena Theater, August 23) Album: Eat to the Beat (Chrysalis, 1979) After 1978's Giorgio Moroder-ass ... More >>

Morning MP3s: Two From the Watermarks' Free Thoughts Like Bombs EP

Houston electro-rock quartet the Watermarks was kind enough to allow Rocks Off to post a couple of tracks from its brand-new Thoughts Like Bombs EP, which you can download for free on the band's Web site. To us, "I Used to Be Your Rock n' Roll" sounds like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's chocolate ... More >>

Summer Sounds

Enough shows to keep concertgoers busy all season long

Defending The Buzz: Does 94.5 FM Really Suck That Bad?

What with Creed reuniting, BuzzFest coming up in a couple of weeks and, hell, maybe even the swine-flu scare - As in: What's worse than coming down with swine flu? A Houston radio that only tunes in 94.5 FM - Rocks Off sure has been thinking a lot about The Buzz lately. Probably too much. I mean, it ... More >>

Five Spot: What's Worse Than a Blink-182 Reunion?

Welcome back to Five Spot. Every week, we'll examine a recent bit of music news and list five reasons why it's either brilliant or dumb-assed. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Apparently, God hates us: Blink 182 possibly plotting comeback. There were a few other things we considered for ... More >>

Sigur Rós: Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Debra from Two Star Symphony

Precisely 88 mph at Etro Lounge

Montrose Throwback

Wicked Poseur

These local rockers keep our attention with a mature, new wave sound

Hootenanny

Miss Pop Rocks: Pop Culture Dealbreakers

Drenched in Blog: Unknown Pleasures

POISON GIRL's

THE JONES

Angst à la Mode

How I became my own personal Jesus

Spank Rock

Yoyoyoyoyo

Infused Beats

Will the Real Blue October Please Stand Up?

Local band suffers identity crisis

Junior Boys, with Caribou and the Russian Futurists

Thursday, May 12, at Mary Jane's Fat Cat, 4216 Washington Avenue, 713-869-5263.

Nouvelle Vague

Nouvelle Vague

Minibill

The Faint

Depeche Mode

Saturday, July 14, at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, 2005 Lake Robbins Drive

G-strings

Without the right music, strip-club routines can come undone faster than a dancer's outfit

Pony Tricks

The Deftones stick to aggressive rock and watch as the rest of the world plays catch-up

Rotation