Massive Attack

Is That All There Is?: Philosophy's Greatest Hits

I love Queen, and the late Freddie Mercury had the best rock voice ever (in my opinion), so it pains me to say that some of music's worst thought-out lyrics are scrunched into the opening lines of "Bohemian Rhapsody." "Is this the real life?/ Is this just fantasy?", the song begins, but mere breath ... More >>

Bang Bangz: A Rare Houston Band Brimming With Mystery

To make a gross generalization that's still pretty much true, most of Houston's better-known musical acts (God bless them) aren't exactly known for their subtlety. Slim Thug, ZZ Top, Rusted Shut, Linus Pauling Quartet, Venomous Maximus, B L A C K I E, Indian Jewelry -- no matter the genre, broad str ... More >>

The Rocks Off 100: DJ Sun, Builder of Soular Grooves

Who? The man who goes by DJ Sun was born in The Netherlands, grew up in the small South American country of Suriname and moved to Houston in 1985. He began DJing in 1993 and has headed up KPFT's Saturday-night program Soular Grooves (9 p.m.-12 a.m.) for 18 years. After a couple of EPs and 45s, Sun's ... More >>

Top 5 Bands Influenced by Public Image Ltd.

Public Image Ltd will be performing in the Greater Houston area on Friday, tomorrow, and as previously mentioned here, their choice of Scout Bar out in Clear Lake is a little unexpected. Rewind: Talking Politics, and Almost No Music, With Punk Legend John Lydon For those who haven't heard of PiL, ... More >>

Saturday Night: Cafe Tacuba at House of Blues

Cafe Tacuba House of Blues August 18, 2012 Imagine for just a second that Fishbone, the raucous L.A. band that threw all sorts of music into a blender with minor success in the late '80s and early '90s, grew to an award-winning, arena-size act that could draw tens or even hundreds of thousands of p ... More >>

EDC 2012: Coachella or Electric Daisy Carnival: Which One Is Better?

See also: Our Complete Coachella Coverage Dance music is coming to an arena near you: Kaskade will be the first DJ ever to play L.A.'s Staples Center (July 27). And mainstream concert promoters such as Live Nation are diving into the electronic dance explosion. Electric Daisy Carnival, which is be ... More >>

'90s Soundtrack Battle: Angus & Batman Forever Duke It Out

​The movies couldn't be any more different. One is about an obese, kindly high school guy with a heart of gold. The other is about an crime-fighting millionaire orphan inside a cartoonish world full of super-villains, cringe-worthy puns, and Jim Carrey at his muggiest. Obvious Angus is a bette ... More >>

10 Songs For Pissed-Off Travelers

This spring, Austin honky-tonker and Pasadena native Dale Watson had some dates in Australia and made the mistake of booking a flight from Sydney to Melbourne on Singapore-based budget carrier Tiger Airways. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, not only did the airline charge Watson a $500 exce ... More >>

Get Ready: True Blood Report Returns Monday

​Rocks Off is super-excited that we'll once again be bringing you coverage of the music featured in Season 4 of Alan Ball's HBO adaptation of Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse novels. The fourth book is our favorite in the series, and as each season sequentially corresponds with the books ( ... More >>

1991: Best Music Year Ever?

Rocks Off Sr.'s choice for 1991's best album.​1991 was one of the biggest years in modern music. It was when metal went pop, radio country ruled, grunge went mainstream, and rap began its climb to chart dominance, even if it was spearheaded by a white candy rapper from Dallas. There were man ... More >>

Which Rockers Are Best Suited For Autumn?

​What season are you? It's a question that doesn't get asked often enough in the world of rock and roll, but if the half dozen fashion and beauty Web sites Rocks Off consulted while writing this are any indication, seasonal color analysis is big. The phenomenon took off in the 1980s, which as ... More >>

True Blood: Massive Attack At A Strip Club!

Alan Ball was known for his masterful use of music in Six Feet Under. He's lost none of his touch when it comes to his current HBO series, True Blood - which happens to be set in the Louisiana swamps, not terribly far from Houston. Season 3, Episode 4: "9 Crimes" ​When Gothtopia was just a ... More >>

Communication Breakdown

Local music writers and online commenters discuss how musicians might draw media attention.

(Don't) Book 'Em, Dano: 42 Artists Who Have Absolutely No Business Touring Together

​ When Rocks Off received word last week that indie duo The Big Pink was embarking on a 2010 tour with NYC's A Place to Bury Strangers, our initial thought was, "Cool," followed closely by, "Ew." For once, there's a promo poster we really have no desire to see. But then our next thought was, "Coul ... More >>

He Said She Said: Songs for Getting It On

[Ed. Note: While we were off watching Night Ranger videos or something - which should tell you all you need to know about our own sex life at the moment - Rocks Off No. 2, Craig Hlavaty, and Web Editor Katharine Shilcutt started going back and forth about how men and women want to hear very differen ... More >>

Dear Sy~3nc3

Team Sleep

Garbage

Absolute Garbage (Deluxe Edition)

Retro Active: 1987, Here We Come

Aimless Attack

Daddy G on Massive Attack's meanderings

Little Bit Louder Now ...

Taking Back Sunday turn up the volume

Crash with Karsh

Morrissey

Ringleader of the Tormentors

Sitar Star

Anoushka Shankar may soon be as famous as her dad -- but don't tell her that

The Show Band that Wouldn't Die

Three things you didn't know about Vince Vance and the Valiants

God Save the Scene

Sassy Brits, hoochie mamas and a dude named Beans attempted to invigorate a stagnant year for hip-hop

God Save the Scene

Sassy Brits, hoochie mamas and a dude named Beans attempted to invigorate a stagnant year for hip-hop

Music Awards Survey

A rundown of every act on this year's bill

Alpha

Stargazing (Special Edition) (Nettwerk)

Telefon Tel Aviv

Map of What Is Effortless (Hefty)

Massive Attack

100th Window (Virgin)

9,999 Maniacs

Though 10,000 Maniacs is still around, its pop appeal has dwindled a bit.

Past Imperfect

Into the Groovy

Raving about Simon Reynolds's techno-historical treatment, Generation Ecstasy

Human Machine

Symphony of Setbacks

Sleight of Head

Rotation

Rotation

Rotation

Rotation

Hum Along with Marshall

Rotation