San Francisco Bay Area

The Rocks Off 100: D.R.I's Kurt Brecht, Thrash Zone Supervisor

Who? Kurt Brecht is the iron-lunged front man of D.R.I. (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles), the ridiculously speedy hardcore punk band that got its start bashing out tunes inside his parents' house in Houston back in 1982. After shattering the sound barrier with the 18-minute, 22-song Dirty Rotten EP the same ... More >>

Last Night: Anthrax & Exodus at House of Blues

Anthrax, Exodus House of Blues April 10, 2013 I am going to come right out and say it: I never thought Anthrax should have been a part of The Big Four. When laying out the titans of thrash metal, the boys from New York -- a fact they never seem to want you to forget -- always seemed a bit out of p ... More >>

The Rocks Off 100: Elroy Boogie, Top Notch Turntablist

Welcome to the Rocks Off 100, our portrait gallery of the most compelling profiles and personalities in the far-flung Houston music community -- a lot more than just musicians, but of course they're in there too. See the entire Rocks Off 100 at this link. Who? Elroy Boogie of the Almighty Kracker N ... More >>

Alejandro Escovedo: "Just to Have a Gig Is Pretty Cool"

Earlier this morning, Alejandro Escovedo talked to Rocks Off about his recent albums Real Animal, Street Songs of Love and Big Station, which have put him in the vanguard of mature rock artists. But those albums are in many ways the culmination of a career that began in San Francisco punk rockers th ... More >>

Clockwork Angels

Veteran rockers Rush brought their steampunk-themed concept album to Toyota Center December 2.

RIP Dave Brubeck: "Take Five" Jazz Great Dies at 91

Dave Brubeck, the professorial jazz pianist and composer whose No. 2 album Time Out was a standard of the Mad Men era, has died at age 91, the Associated Press reported Wednesday morning. Brubeck's manager, Russell Gloyd, told the AP that Brubeck died of heart failure on his way to a cardiologist ap ... More >>

Merry Christmas, High Rollers: The Most Expensive Vintage Concert Tees On eBay

A few days ago I asked Rocks Off fans on Facebook what the most they had ever spent on a concert tee was. Most people topped out at $50 for touring legacy acts, while some shelled out a lot more for hoodies and limited-edition tees. Now the world of concert posters is a whole other animal unto its ... More >>

The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators & 10 Early Texas Psych Bands You Should Know

Forty-six years ago today, rock and roll got a hell of a lot weirder in the state of Texas. On Nov. 30, 1966, Austin garage band The 13th Floor Elevators released their The Psychedelic Sounds Of album on Houston's International Artists label. Powered by the raw, fluttering classic "You're Gonna Miss ... More >>

Vietnamese, Ice Cream & Pizza: One Perfect Day in San Francisco

Recently, I spent two blissful days in Napa Valley, which I chronicled here and here. It was hard to leave places like Bouchon Bakery, Bottega and about a million wineries behind, but I had another sunshiney (slash really foggy) day in San Francisco to look forward to before we headed to visit frien ... More >>

Chinese-Style Barbecue at Willie's

Years ago, when I was consulting in the Bay Area, I would drive to this street called Castro in Mountain View whenever I got the craving for traditional Hong Kong-style barbecue. I'm talking small diners with char-siu barbecue pork and roast duck hanging in the window. If you've ever been to a China ... More >>

Lost Boys

New research demolishes the stereotype of the underage sex worker — and sparks an outbreak of denial among child-sex-trafficking alarmists nationwide.

Soul Power

Still sportsmen after all these years, Huey Lewis & the News settle into some of their favorite Stax grooves.

Bartender Chat: Chelsea Drummond of The Dubliner

​It's halfway to St. Patrick's Day (truth), so we popped into The Dubliner earlier this week to...celebrate? Sure, why not? While sipping a Guinness, we started talking to Chelsea, a California native who's been living in Houston for three years. Her friends thought she was nuts for leaving th ... More >>

Tower of Power

Silk Degrees of Separation

Boz Scaggs turns to jazz, knows his Lightnin' Hopkins.

Houston: Least-Generous City (When it Comes to Free Stuff on Craigslist)

These kids are obviously not from Houston​Houston is many things, but one thing it apparently isn't is one of those hippie, commune-type places where people dig the vibe of being generous with things they no longer want. In short, we are not Portland or Seattle. Or Detroit, for that matter. ... More >>

Too $hort

Music Sales Down 2.5 Percent In 2010

​Nielsen SoundScan released its annual report on music sales Monday, and the results were less than surprising. Physical sales continued to decline, digital sales continued to rise, and crap pop continues to reign supreme both at the cash register and on the airwaves. During the period of Jan ... More >>

Special Regional Anti-Mexican Slur Edition

Cry for Yelp

The popular Web site has buckled to pressure, but it isn't enough.

World Music At iFest, From Galveston To Colombia, West Africa And Oklahoma(?!)

Over the next two weeks, Rocks Off will be previewing acts performing at this year's Houston International Festival Saturday and Sunday and April 24-25 broken down by genre (loosely, anyway) and with a guest pick from a true insider: iFest Director of Performing Arts Rick Mitchell. We begin with tha ... More >>

Anna Garza Reports Back From The Girls Rock Camp Alliance Annual Conference

​Last fall, Rocks Off's Gina Miller interviewed Anna Maria Garza, founder of Girls Rock Camp Houston, about what it took to get the local chapter of the organization, which organizes a weeklong camp teaching girls the ins and outs of rock and roll - from playing their instruments to silk-screening ... More >>

Long Way Down

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's Beat the Devil's Tattoo is the reverb-heavy rockers' most cohesive LP yet.

StubHub: Houston Is More "Rockin'" Than Vegas, Less So Than Hartford and Milwaukee

Craig HlavatyThe Phish of the Southwest and king of Houston's summer concert hill: George Strait​Online ticket broker StubHub.com released its annual list of America's Top 20 "Most Rockin' Cities" Friday, with Houston holding steady at No. 17 for the second year in a row. We probably would have be ... More >>

Brooklyn Gumbo

A chef from New York City is knocking them dead in Piney Point at Jonathan's The Rub.

Ex-13th Floor Elevator Tommy Hall Is Still Psychedelic

A Long, Strange Trip

Homeland Security Won't Let a Former IRA Man Out of Prison

After living in the U.S. for 25 years, Pól Brennan is now stuck on the Texas-Mexico border

Houston Has a Bad Reputation with Touring Indie Bands

They'd just as soon give us a miss.

“Mary Heilman: To Be Someone”

The leading lady of abstract expressionism shows at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston

Mims & "This Is Why I'm Hot"

New York rapper's hit single

Black Like Who?

David Levinthal records racist kitsch at the Menil

Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy

Meat Beat Manifesto knows how to hit you where it hurts

On Da Lingo, Part II

Confused by what all our hometown rappers are talking about? We’re here to help.

The Voodoo Chile's Slight Return

Greg Ashley resurrects the Mirrors for a summer tour; also: beware of Zipperneck

Deep in The Throes

Tired of guitar-and-drums blues duos? You haven't heard Two Gallants yet.

Smooth Landing

House DJ Mark Farina finally has an album. And no, that's not a bad thing.

Murs

Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition (Def Jux)

Die Like an Eagle

Michael Franti and friends fight the hawks with hits

Rock Death in 2003

Exhuming and scoring last year's pop-music demises

Greg Ashley

Friday, November 21

Andy Caldwell

Saturday, November 15

Soul Mates

Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel enjoy a State of love and trust

Half-Baked Notions?

Plus: Driving Them Crazy, Oyster Crabbing

Second Banana Blues

Scott Kannberg shows the world how to win fans and lose friends

Waiting for a Train

Saba Blue Water Cafe

Junk-Food Journalism

A new book detailing the "dark side of the all-American meal" could use a little more beef itself

Return to Metal

Testament recruits heavy talent for new record

North and South

Tranquil Canada flavors San Antonian Doug Sahm's rustic music

Night & Day

March 25 - 31, 1999

Sorry, Charlie