Joe Ely

The Best Concerts In Houston This Weekend: Blues Control, Loretta Lynn, The xx, etc.

Blues Control Mango's, February 8 Blues Control's Lea Cho and Russ Waterhouse make a tremendous clatter with keyboards, guitars and synths. The Queens, N.Y., duo started grabbing cool-kid support way before last year's Drag City effort Valley Tangents, which built on their already kaleidoscopic bod ... More >>

Alejandro Escovedo: "Getting Older Every Day, But I'm Digging It"

Alejandro Escovedo is one of Texas' most gifted and versatile singer-songwriters, with the soul and background of a punk rocker, the work ethic of a tradesman, and the undying faith in rock and roll of two of his closest contemporaries -- also men of uncommon emotional range and teeth-gritting tenac ... More >>

Coming Next Week: The Texas 30

One day this summer, it must have been, a certain Mr. Craig Hlavaty brought a book he had found at a Houston-area thrift shop called (the) Genuine Texas Handbook into the office. This book is about everything you ever loved about Texas in the early '80s condensed into 200-something pages -- big hair ... More >>

ZZ Top Sucks. There, I Said It.

The Clash In Houston, 1979: A Case of Legionaire's Disease

By the time The Clash hit Houston's Cullen Theater on October 5, 1979, Lester Bangs had described their tour-de-force as "desperation uncontrived, unstaged, a fury unleashed on the stage ... real pain that connects with the nerves of the audience." Yet Texans had already been enthralled by the Sex ... More >>

Unknown K. Phillips Records With Dream Team on American Girls

Above: K. Phillips and the Concho Pearls doing NSFW "Rambler" Most people won't have heard of K. Phillips, but his new album American Girls is getting some serious critical raves. Checking the list of personnel on the album -- Rick Richards on drums, Bukka Allen on keys, Jimmy Pettit on bass, Kevin ... More >>

The Flatlanders

Pat Green

7 Cool & Cheap Weekenders: A Fistful of Soul, Waylon Tribute, Etc.

Houston's favorite happenin' soul/funk/R&B/rocksteady/ska DJ night, A Fistful of Soul, returns to the Big Top about 10 p.m. this evening. Free. Say happy birthday to DJ Wes Wallace, who has been named "Best Dance Club DJ" by this publication more than ten times, at "Classic Numbers" this evening.

Last Night: Jane's Addiction At Bayou Music Center

Jane's Addiction Bayou Music Center May 9, 2012 Perry Farrell is a twisted freak. Of course that's intended as a compliment. Farrell has become one of rock's most successful misfits of the past 25 years, combining an astute business sense with a sincere interest in the any number of alternative su ... More >>

Promised Land

SXSW 2012, from Bruce Springsteen to Buxton.

SXSW: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Rock ACL Live

Bruce Springsteen's Thursday started with a keynote speech in one of the big ballrooms at the Austin Convention Center, and ended with a mythic three-hour set at ACL Live across town, in front of a few thousand people cooing "Bruce". The keynote and the show went hand in hand. If you weren't there ... More >>

Ian Moore: When Good Record Deals Go Bad

The Ian Moore Band today (L-R): Ian Moore, Chris White, Bukka Allen, Michael Villegas​Ian Moore had both the good fortune and misfortune to be a young, good-looking Austin guitar hero who came to prominence shortly after Stevie Ray Vaughan's death created an opening for the position. Joe Ely d ... More >>

Capsule Art Reviews: "Collections: Annual HSPVA Juried Show", "Dan Kopp: TIMEAWAY" and "Josh Bernstein: Galveston", Hardbodies, Marc Swanson: The Second Story, Mitch Dobrowner: New Work, Musicians Who Make Art

Upcoming: Aretha Franklin, Blink-182, Kyuss Lives!, Etc.

​Agnostic Front, The Mongoloids: Mon., Sept. 19. Walter's On Washington. Amon Amarth: Fri., Aug. 26. House of Blues. Aretha Franklin: Tue., June 14. Arena Theatre. blink-182, My Chemical Romance, Matt & Kim: Mon., Sept. 26. Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Buxton: Fri., July 8. McGonigel' ... More >>

13 Lucky Songs For Friday The 13th

​Happy Friday the 13th, everyone. Unlike most Fridays, this one has gone pretty smoothly here at Rocks Off HQ, which means we must be in for a hellacious Monday. But hey, that's next week. Our luck may be holding up - for now - but we couldn't let the occasion go by unremarked (plus a couple ... More >>

“Musicians Who Make Art”

The Five Most Texan Types Of Music

​Happy San Jacinto Day, fellow Texans and people who wish they were; i.e. everyone else. If you don't know why today is special, shame on you. But since us Texans are a friendly sort, allow Rocks Off to fill you in. On April 21, 1836, Texian forces under Gen. Sam Houston (aka "Big Drunk") lau ... More >>

Upcoming: Billy Joe Shaver, Def Leppard, Stephen Marley, Etc.

​"20th Annual KTRU Outdoor Show" With Washed Out, Real Estate, Fat Tony, Young Mammals, Grandfather Child, The Tontons: Sat., April 9. Rice University. Billy Joe Shaver: Sat., June 18. Dosey Doe Coffee Company. Chingo Bling, DJ Ebonix: Fri., April 8. Bronze Peacock Room @ House of Blues. C ... More >>

Americana Pioneers Wagoneers Reuniting, Playing Houston

​Overnight, Lonesome Onry and Mean received word that the Wagoneers, one of Texas' earliest alt-country bands, are coming back from the dead. The hard-twanging roots band that was essentially a precursor to the Americana movement will perform for the first time in 22 years at the Austin Chroni ... More >>

Before the Flood

West Texan Ned Sublette reflects on pre-Katrina New Orleans in a new memoir.

Distant Early Warning: Colbie Caillat, Cyndi Lauper, Delta Spirit, Jerry Jeff Walker, Knitters, Nas, Supersuckers, Etc.

​America: Fri., June 25. Stafford Centre. American Sharks, Scorpion Child, Betaplayer: Thu., April 22. Boondocks. Cyndi Lauper: Thu., Aug. 12. House of Blues. Colbie Caillat: Fri., Aug. 27. Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Delta Spirit, David Vandervelde, The Romany Rye: Wed., July 16. Mango's. "D ... More >>

Hiding on the Backstreets, Part 3: Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's Last (and Final?) Four Houston Shows

[Ed. Note: This is the final installment of our series reminiscing on Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's long history in Houston. See here for the '70s, and here for the '80s and '90s.] April 18, 2000: E Street Band Reunion Tour, Compaq Center (the Summit) Daniel Kramer​"It was on this to ... More >>

Distant Early Warning: 30FootFall, Agnostic Front, Dropkick Murphys, George Thorogood, Joe Ely, Slayer, etc.

​30FootFall: Fri., Dec. 25. Fitzgerald's. Agnostic Front, Death By Stereo: Sun., Jan. 24. Walter's on Washington. American Sharks, The Watermarks: Wed., Nov. 25. Boondocks. Band of Heathens: Fri., Dec. 11. Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe. Basses Loaded, Springfield Riots, Nosaprise: Fri., Nov. 27, 8 p. ... More >>

Ghosts of Washington Avenue

Noise goes whistling through the scenester artery's music venue graveyard.

A Musical Guide to Post-Secession Texas: "Palo Duro"

View Five States of Texas in a larger map As any proud Texan can tell you, the Lone Star State is entitled constitutionally to split into five states if it so wishes. The scenario has rarely been more in the news than it has relatively recently, when Gov. Rick Perry played to the wingnut gallery in ... More >>

Lonesome Onry and Mean: Another Record Store Day at Cactus Music

Cactus Music and the Record Ranch is having another Record Store Day Saturday, with a lineup of events that borders on serious party happening. The highlight of the day will be a live appearance by red-hot San Antonio band The Krayolas (above). San Antonio's oldest and most respected rockero outfit ... More >>

Tonight: Carrie Rodriguez and Jubal Lee Young at Conroe's Free First Thursday

Carrie Rodriguez kicks of Conroe's free First Thursdays concert series tonight. After a long tenure as a duet with hall-of-fame-quality songwriter Chip Taylor, Rodriguez struck out on her own last year with She Ain't Me. The album is very much in a Patty Griffin vein, but the title track would d ... More >>

Bruce Springsteen Confirms Second Houston Show in a Year

Alejandro Escovedo with Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band,"Always a Friend," Toyota Center, April 14, 2008 After last year's sold-out show that ended with both Alejandro Escovedo and Joe Ely duetting with the Boss, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are headed back to Houston for ... 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 >>

Aftermath: The Magpies and Sideshow Tramps at the Continental Club

Photos by Chris Gray It didn't look good at the beginning. A few minutes after 9 p.m. Wednesday, the posted start time for visiting Cleveland roots-rockers the Magpies, the "count" at the Continental Club front door was all of 16 paying customers, and the band was nowhere in sight. Two chicken t ... More >>

2008 in Texas Albums and Local EPs

Noise's Handy Holiday Local-Music Gift Guide

Election Eve With Fred

The Greatest Texas Rock Album of All Time

Patricia Vonne

Firebird www.patriciavonne.com

The Small Stars

Small Stars perform Friday, February 2, at the Continental Club, 3700 Main Street, 713-529-9899. Scott Biram also performs.

Todd Snider

The Devil You Know

Two Hoots and a Holler, with Jesse Dayton and Guy Forsyth

Friday, June 24, at the Continental Club, 3700 Main, 713-529-9899.

David Holt

Perpetual Motion (Blue Corn)

MOFRO

Coal Miner's Brother

Chris Knight extracts songs from the same ravaged west Kentucky earth he once rehabilitated

Don't Fence Us In

Aztex refuses to be ghettoized in the Tejano market

Racket

The Last Concert Cafe has glimpses from its unique history

A Practical Angel

Night & Day

November 12 - 18, 1998

Dream So Real

Folk-rock space boy Todd Snider awakes to find a career on the upswing

Press Picks

Leaving the Country

Jimmie Dale Gilmore broadens his horizons -- and if he's lucky, his listeners'

Press Picks