Digital Music Players

Christmas Past: 15 Odd Christmas Gift Ideas for Musicians

While we celebrate the holidays, Rocks Off is resurrecting a few of our best Christmas-themed blogs from the past few years. (Wait... resurrecting is Easter. Never mind.) This blog originally appeared November 21, 2011. As the timeless tale of the Little Drummer Boy reminds us, there is no greater ... More >>

Gen. Petraeus: A Possible Glimpse at the Spymaster's iPod

Nuge the Stooge knows what CIA director needed. Enough already about Gen. David Petraeus and his private harem ... err, his embedded biographer with the flashy wardrobe and bad vision. Petraeus is a patriot, a winner of wars, a brilliant strategerizer, a man dedicated to little beyond his own caree ... More >>

Stormy Christopher Smith: Splendora Dandy Is a Skyperv, Police Say

In June, after the 15-year-old Humble girl at the center of these alleged crimes ran away from home to be with her secret boyfriend, 23-year-old Stormy Christopher Smith of Splendora, the girl's father confiscated all her electronic devices. He thought that would bring the age-inappropriate relation ... More >>

For Even "Failed" Musicians: Influence Is Success

Welcome to Ask a Failed Musician, in which I will help struggling musicians make sense of their careers and even offer some advice. Whether or not it will work, who knows? It obviously didn't work for me. But then again, I was on Kimmel once, so there's that.BY DANIEL HOPKINS A musician responded t ... More >>

Insane Clown Posse Incites Spiritual Debate, Asks "Where's God?"

Here's a Video of the Entire Geto Boys Show From Saturday's Juggalo Gathering We've all asked the question, believers or non-believers alike: "Where's God?" In times of personal trial, family strife, financial disaster, or just sailing the choppy seas of relationships, when we need some sort of sup ... More >>

HPMA Showcase: DJ Afterparty at Jet Lounge

HPMA Showcase: The 12 Best Artists of 2012 HPMA Showcase: Rocks Off's Top 7 Discoveries HPMA Showcase: Sunday's 11 Best Random Moments SLIDESHOW: HPMA Showcase -- The Bands SLIDESHOW: HPMA Showcase -- The Crowds "After the show it's the afterparty..." -- Jay-Z Another year, another successful ... More >>

West Houston Homeowner Association Director: Call Police If You See Black Youths in the Neighborhood

If there's one lesson we've all learned from the Trayvon Martin controversy, it's this: Young black males are generally up to no good. This appears to be the message one of the Walnut Bend Home Association directors sent to fellow Walnut Bendians Tuesday. Under the subject heading "Suspicious B ... More >>

15 Odd Christmas Gift Ideas for Musicians

​As the timeless tale of the Little Drummer Boy reminds us, there is no greater gift than the gift of music. But what about those on your Christmas list who already have plenty of music in their lives? Buying gifts for musicians is no easy task -- most of them already own the entire Rush disco ... More >>

5 Ways Apple Revolutionized the Music Industry

No other company has changed the music industry as much as Apple. For the better part of the last decade, the late Steve Jobs and his co-conspirators have empowered music consumers in ways no one would have ever imagined. The monstrous iTunes store made it possible for anybody to buy music without ... More >>

Hot Stuff: Will The Texas Heat Melt Your Vinyl LPs?

Note: All temperatures in the following article are given in degrees Fahrenheit. Here is a helpful Celsius conversion calculator. ​You might not have noticed it lately, but outdoors, rays of this thing called "sunshine" are hitting the Earth like the planet didn't bring the Sun a sandwich wh ... More >>

Five Spot: Dwane Sweazie's The Remix Vol. 1

​Dwane (pronounced Dwane) Sweazie (pronounced Sway-zee) is a new guy, but he's an old guy too. He's been rapping for about six years and ghostwriting for an untold number of those. He's fairly secretive about the ghostwriting process, responding to most queries with a politely short, "Ehhh, ... More >>

Music from The Lion King

Lonesome Onry And Mean Plays "Spin The iPod" (Almost)

​Facebook, that great time-waster, is always a source of mindless brain candy. Just a few moments ago, Lonesome, Onry and Mean was tagged in a note titled "15 Random iPod Songs." The rules were fairly straightforward: Put your unit on "random" and list the first 15 songs that play. This sound ... More >>

iPod: Happy Anniversary, You Little Devil

Can somebody please tell us what the hell Firewire is? Nine years ago today - November 10, 2001 - Apple unveiled a new kind of MP3 player known as an iPod. About the size of a deck of cards, the device contained five gigabytes of memory, enough for about 1,000 songs, and cost $400. Four. Hundred. ... More >>

First Play: E. Wood's "Dirty Harry" Vs. Coast's "Tonight You're A Star"

Houston exists largely as its own market. As such, rappers here tend to not like to -on the record, anyway- rank themselves or their albums or songs against each other or each other's. So we'll do it for them. Email sheaserrano (at) gmail (dot) com. ​The Songs: This week, we've got relative n ... More >>

Skate & Rock No. 3

A Third Ward Pawnshop iPod and the Mysterious Fate of Previous Owner "Scooby"

Whoever he is (was?), Scooby's iPod wasn't short on R. Kelly.​So a couple of weeks ago, after three or four years of increasingly faltering service, Rocks Off's 30 GB iPod finally died. Completely. Out of sheer broke-assedness, we had held on to it for longer than most. By the end, its quirks and ... More >>

TPWD Says "Great Outdoors Day" Is Coming: How To Celebrate It With Your Teen-Ager

Photo by marxchivistYou knew this, of course, but June 13 is National "Get Outdoors" Day. We knew this because the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department just sent out the news."As a part of the second annual GO Day, more than two dozen Texas state parks are joining federal agencies, nonprofit organi ... More >>

Playing Favorites

Chairlift

Pioneers of Hip-Hop Tour

Houston: Come for the Renovations, Stay for the Electric Cabs

While trolling the nether regions of the UK press, we came upon this, touting the wonders of Houston as a luxury vacation spot. It's all enough to make Hair Balls wish it didn't live here already so it could start making travel plans now!We cannot help but imagine how impressed our luxury-seeking Li ... More >>

New North Heights Hipster Hang: Big Star Bar

Bad Motor Scooter

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Phillip from Sharks and Sailors

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Ben Murphy

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Chris Ryan from Black Congress, Dead City Sound Studio

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Zahira from Wild Moccasins

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Tyler from Balaclavas

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Ryan (ADR) from The Skyline Network

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Levi aka Levitcus, The Mayor of Music (read: Guitar Center Hook-up)

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Tomas from Sig's Lagoon, Clouseaux, El Orbits, The Suspects

Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Eric C. Hughes from El Orbits, Freddy Steady Five, Allen Oldies Band

Bryan Adams's 11, 11 Times Through

Just Like "Heaven"

Racket vs Racket Jr

Thursday Night: Umbrella Man at the Big Top

You're with Me, Leather

First names only at Montrose's historic Ripcord

2007 Music Year in Review

J Dilla and Lupus

Power-walking tracks to remember the beatsmith by

Hittin' the Note with Gregg Allman

Anders Parker

The Return of Magic iPod

Magic iPod

In with the New

Despite doom-and-gloom predictions, 2006 wasn't at all bad

DISConnect

Sales of CDs are falling faster than you can say iPod

Loony Zunes

Universal Music helps Microsoft set a crappy precedent

Not That We Don't Love the Classics...

Podnography

And you thought those audio files were only used for music

Man, Oh Man! Another Tie?

Men's gifts

Talk About Speedy Delivery