Thurston Moore

For Musicians, Little Sucks Worse Than Stolen Gear

In 2010, Johnny Marr of The Smiths recovered his $45,000 '64 Gibson SG, after it had been stolen at a gig ten years earlier. Unfortunately, most musicians who have lost their gear to theft haven't been so lucky. The local musicians I talked to recently reported suffering similar losses. Occasionall ... More >>

The Great Outdoors

Your 2013 music-festival outlook, Texas edition.

22 Coots and Codgers Making the Rest of Us Look Bad

While the rest of the music business has been slow to awaken from its holiday slumbers, the biggest shows in Houston this weekend come from two artists who have been up a long, long time -- 87 years, to be exact: Bluesman B.B. King and country crooner Ray Price. (Actually, Price will turn 87 on Satu ... More >>

Your 2013 Music Festival Outlook (Texas Edition)

I don't know about you, but I am not totally in love with winter weather. Yes, it affords you the ability to wear beanies and cool fingerless gloves and dress like a hoodlum, but it's the heat that I love the most. That's why I love thinking about music festivals, because that's where we all get t ... More >>

Justin, Selena and Music's Top 10 Heartbreaking Split-Ups

By now, we've all had a few days to digest the awful, shocking news that North America's sweethearts, Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, have decided to buck destiny and call it quits. We're not entirely sure how this could have happened, but Obama was just reelected. Clearly, our worst fears are alrea ... More >>

SXSW Releases First Batch of 2013 Performers

Here go hell come, SXSW has just released the first batch of names for the 2013 festival. I know, only a week after Fun Fun Fun Fest and a month since ACL. Did you see the FPSF blog from earlier today? Yeah, time is moving too fast. The big names on the list so far include the Zombies, Alt-J, Akro ... More >>

The Damn Quails & 10 Other Bird-Brained Bands

Tonight the Houston Press Concert Series resumes at Pub Fiction with Oklahoma duo the Damn Quails. The Quails' song "Fools Gold," from their 2011 album Down the Hatch, is tearing it up on Texas country and roots-rock radio right now, landing them three Lonestar Music Awards and airplay on BBC roots ... More >>

#1 Crushes: Our Favorite '90s Rock Vixens

Tonight House of Blues welcomes Garbage back to Houston after a seven-year hiatus. The group, lead by fearsome Scottish redhead Shirley Manson, has been sorely missed from the music scene. They are currently touring behind their upcoming album Not Your Kind of People, which hits stores May 14. Rock ... More >>

Last Night: Jandek At Big Star Bar

Jandek Big Star Bar April 1, 2012 The first time I saw Jandek live, I learned to leave whatever I had been expecting in another room. That was Rudyard's in April 2009, and I had been expecting (correctly or not) some kind of solo Bill Callahan-like avant-folk implosion, and got a trio playing a sol ... More >>

Forever Young: Musicians Who Refuse To Age

The other day, looking around on YouTube for Pantera stuff -- did you know that this month Vulgar Display Of Power turns 20? -- I found a relatively recent clip of lead singer Phil Anselmo VH1 Classic's That Metal Show from late 2010. The current Down crooner and mouth from the south was guesting on ... More >>

The 2012 Katy Perry Fantasy Relationship Draft: Which Rappers & Rockers Should She Date Next?

​The pop and tabloid world was rocked last Friday as we got word that Russell Brand was divorcing his wife of 14 months, Katy Perry, smack in the middle of the holiday season. The pair spent Christmas apart, with Perry cavorting in Maui in a bikini - yes, there are boob shoots - and Brand repo ... More >>

French Onion Soup & Deathbugs: Our Nine Musical Turkeys Of 2011

Danzig Shame on us for thinking that a Danzig show would go off without a hitch, and infinite shame on Glenn Danzig for the debacle that was his "appearance" at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin. We will never look at French onion soup ever again without bellowing "Mother". Lulu We're not mad at Metall ... More >>

2 Become 1: Musical Match-Ups We'd Like To See

​Kanye "Hitler" West and Jay-Z released their (overused music writer word alert) epic Watch the Throne album this week, to mostly great reviews. This fall the first fruits from the recently announced Lou Reed/Metallica collaboration should be on the store shelves, which still sorta weirds us o ... More >>

Out Today: Other Things Besides Born This Way... Seriously

​This past weekend was magical, what with Rocks Off finally getting to see Foo Fighters play songs from Wasting Light and all. You may remember that we have been wanking over Light since it came out in April, but it's really good. Best rock album of the year? Maybe, unless Jack White or Josh H ... More >>

Ghosts of SXSWs Past: Justice, Glasvegas, Monotonix...

Craig Hlavaty​This year marks the fourth year Craig's Hlist has covered SXSW in Austin for the Houston Press, from the days when we had to shoot all of our own shows, had neither Facebook nor Twitter, and slogged through the day mostly drunk. It's a far cry from now, when we are glued to our p ... More >>

Buxton, Wild Moccasins Join New West Records

Here at Rocks Off, we try our best to cover all the local music news, both large and small. Where else are you going to read that you can play Slim Thug on Words With Friends? It is reasons such as these that we trudge the war zones of RSS feeds, seeking out crucial tidbits of information. Buxton o ... More >>

John Lennon's Top 10 Solo Songs

Cactus Music is hosting a Beatles & John Lennon DJ session featuring DJ Black Slacks from 5-7 p.m. today in the Record Ranch, 2110 Portsmouth. ​Today marks 30 years since humanity lost John Lennon. The man has haunted Craig's Hlist since he was very little, when the man broke out from being t ... More >>

Capital Steps

Dispatches from ACL 2010

ACL Day 1 Recap: Sonic Youth, Spoon, The Strokes, Nice People...

Brittanie SheySonic Youth​ For lots more pictures from Friday, see our slideshow here. Rocks Off wonders what kind of guitar budget Sonic Youth has. They aren't very gentle with their instruments. This occurred to us as we were standing a few feet from the large screens projecting their exte ... More >>

ACL Day 1 Recap: Vampire Weekend, More Strokes & Sonic Youth, Sulking

Photos by Marco TorresVampire Weekend​ For lots more pictures from Friday, see our slideshow here. Friday night at ACL began with Aftermath charging our phone up until 6:45 p.m., then sulking because the Internet was down in the media tent (duh), and then stocking our man-satchel with cans o ... More >>

Awesome Color

SXSW Aftermath: A Night Of Ecstatic Peace, White Mice And Courtney Love Singing The Blues

Photos by Craig HlavatyBlack Helicopter​Rocks Off Jr.'s fourth night of SXSW frolicking starting off groggily as we woke from a well-needed nap after what has seemed like a month now pounding the pavements of Austin, seeking out new music from club to club like soldiers kicking in doors in Iraq lo ... More >>

Still Not Sold On SXSW? How About Smokey Robinson, High On Fire, She & Him, Band Of Horses, Drive-By Truckers, Deer Tick, Anya Marina, Black Angels, Major Lazer...

Today the organizers of the SXSW Music Festival announced their showcase schedule for the music portion of the industry fest starting on March 17. This is the news Rocks Off has been looking for, so let's get it on. We are now one month away from Sixth Street and one of the world's biggest conglome ... More >>

Magnolia City Mixtape: Be Hollywood F.L.O.S.S.'s Pen Pal, Roky Erickson Okkervil River, New Something Fierce 7" and Dave Wrangler Mashup

​ Ever wish you had a pen pal like Hollywood F.L.O.S.S. when you were a kid? He's been sending out a mixtape called Art-or-Fiscal Intelligence to various bloggers around the U.S. You can listen online or download here, and read some of the props he's been getting. Austinites Okkervil River re ... More >>

2009 Concert Rewind: SXSW 09 Revisited, Broken Arm and Everything Else

​ Balaclavas: "On the way to see Houston's own Balaclavas at the Independent to debut new stuff off the soon-to-be released Roman Holiday, I abruptly hit a curb with my bicycle. Luckily my elbow took one for the team. Well, it ended up getting fractured and I have all kinds of internal business go ... More >>

SXSW: Kurt Vile and Keys N Krates at the Music Gym

Photos by Craig HlavatyKurt VileWe once again crossed the big ol' road to hit up the Music Gym to see Kurt Vile and Keys N Krates. Since we hit town, we have found the most satisfaction out of this venue, with it's relaxed and wholly chaotic feel. During regular hours it's a rehearsal space for band ... More >>

Tonight: Awesome Color at the Mink

Weekend Music: Setting Things Straight

SXSW: Lou Reed. Live. For One Song. Lou Freakin’ Reed.

SXSW Ephemera: Random Notes from the Field

Sunburned Hand of the Man

Shit Spangled Banner leftovers head to Houston fresh off South By

Drenched in Blog: Weird SXSW Alert: Care Bears on Fire

Black Leather Jesus

Punkhouse: Anarchist Interiors

Abby Banks explores the houses that punk built

Sonic Youth <3s Black Leather Jesus

Magik Markers, with Lambsbread and Rusted Shut

Friday, June 30, at the Proletariat, 903 Richmond, 713-523-1199

Rock and Roll and Rather Exhilarating

The best band in the universe does its Brecht thing with hooks

Extraordinary Machination

Sure, Fiona Apple is crazy...like a fox!

DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid

Saturday, November 26, at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 1001 Bissonnet, 713-639-7300.

Wolf Eyes, with Prurient and Rusted Shut

Thursday, October 6, at the Proletariat, 903 Richmond, 713-523-1199.

Veda, with the Jonbenet

Friday, September 9, at Mary Jane's Fat Cat, 4216 Washington Avenue, 713-869-5263.

Jam Session

Ume, with the Kants and Firebird

Wednesday, May 25, at the Proletariat, 903 Richmond, 713-523-1199.

Deep in the Bleeding Heart

Sonic Youth returns to the scene of one of its weirdest gigs ever

Space Cadets

Rotation

Rotation

Pop Moment

Puke Sick

Thoughts of Sonic Youth, kid's shows and animal testing with sick body and warped mind

Young, Gifted and Dead

Gallows humor at some club, and the attack of the killer accordions