Rick Perry’s Biking Accident Somehow Leads To Outbreak Of Hair Jokes
The news day is nearly done, and we can begin to total up the Official Rick Perry Hair-Joke Count.As you likely know, Perry broke his collarbone while riding a bike. If you didn’t know, then you were, apparently, one of the few people who didn’t head directly to the web…
Moody Gardens, A Bigger Tourist Attraction Than The White House
If you had your choice to stand anywhere as a tourist in the United States, where would you choose?The Las Vegas Strip? Mount Rushmore? The White House?No way, dude — you prefer to be standing in Moody Gardens in Galveston.At least you do if you’re one of the respondents to…
The Battle Rages On: Fried Chicken Throwdown at Beaver’s
Some had come for the spectacle of it all: 17 different fried chicken dishes, 9 enormous casseroles filled with various macaroni and cheeses, salads and side dishes and desserts enough to feed Alexander’s own army. Some had come to observe the madness. And some came, bloodthirsty and ravenous to win,…
Before We Go: House of Blues’ “Rock & Roll” Night, Tontons, Gallant Knight, a Willie D Tribute, Britney Returns and More
Tonight, see how – or where, anyway – the beautiful people kick back at House of Blues’ new weekly “Rock & Roll” night in the venue’s ultra-plush and oddly brothel-like Foundation Room (entrance on Dallas Street), with no cover, $3 beer and whiskey, tunes curated by Metropol/Stuka/Mink veteran Tim Murrah…
A Guilty Plea And 15 Months For That Big Dogfighting Bust
Photo by Paul KnightThe announcement of the big bust.That much-ballyhooed dogfight bust last year has yielded some jail time: A 35-year-old Houston man has pled guilty and will receive a 15-month state-jail sentence for both causing and attending a dogfight, the DAs office has announced.”Belinda Smith, an Assistant District Attorney…
What’s Your Favorite Musician Joke?
What do you call a musician without a girlfriend? Homeless. What do you throw a banjo player if he’s drowning? His banjo. What’s the difference between a saxophone and a lawnmower? You can tune a lawnmower. What’s the difference between an accordion player and a terrorist? Terrorists have sympathizers. How…
Goat Brains Masala at Indika
Indika, the high-end Indian restaurant on Lower Westheimer, serves tandoori chicken, slow-cooked baby goat, grilled paneer and mulligatawny soup, along with kicked-up versions of crabmeat samosas, seared foie gras with onion masala and tandoori quail. But the dish almost every write-up of Indika mentions is the “goat brains masala.” I’ve…
He’s 24 And Has Down Syndrome, Which Makes Him A Hot Commodity In Texas
Before our first trip to Richmond State School, we imagined it as a dark place with prison-type buildings, a prime spot for the type of abuse stories that have been widely publicized in the last several years. It wasn’t that way.When we started going to privately-owned facilities — often called…
Curiouser And Curiouser At The Chron
We told you yesterday about how the Houston Chronicle was being uncharacteristically modest in writing about federal inspectors criticizing the Harris County jail.Their story mentioned only how the jail “came under scrutiny” without mentioning that the scrutiny in question was spurred by Chronicle stories.Cynics that we are, we wondered if…
Tonight: John Egan and Little Joe Washington at Under the Volcano
Word has reached Lonesome, Onry and Mean that Little Joe Washington will be on hand tonight when local blues rocker John Egan takes the stage. And Washington will have his guitar with him, if you know what I mean (wink, wink). Egan, who was featured in the Chronicle’s Sunday Zest…
Summer Wines: Think Pink
I asked the wine guy at Richard’s on Bissonnet at Wesleyan what he’s recommending these days. He pointed at the end-cap display, which was stocked with several rosés from the Rhone, all selling for under $10. Makes sense — it’s cheap, you can serve it chilled, and your wine geek…
You’ll Be Shocked To Learn BARC Doesn’t Much Seem To Care About Its Dead Dogs, Either
So you’re a higher-up at Houston’s Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care, which has experienced public relations problems for the last…um, decades…and then one of your employees comes to you in February with a concern: An exposed-bed Solid Waste Department truck that hauls from the shelter to the landfill is…
Aftermath: Third Eye Blind at House of Blues
There has to be something special about a band from the late ’90s, that hasn’t released a proper album in six years, to sell out the House of Blues. For the life of us, Aftermath is still trying to figure that one out. Tuesday night, Third Eye Blind roared onto…
Blockbuster Disses Houston As A Movie Location
Blockbuster has put out an interactive “Road Trip” map for the summer, listing locations where great movies have been shot.Sixteen of the listed films are in Texas. The number of those shot in Houston? Zero.Included are Bonnie & Clyde (Dallas) and Dazed and Confused (Austin), but even the TV show…
A Café Bites Nibble
Na Chan is the general manager of the newly opened Trios Downunder (10535 Westheimer, Suite 104, 713-975-8900). “This is really a first for the U.S. and the first in Houston,” she says. “It is a franchise that was started by three brothers in Australia. It’s flavorful but healthy fast food…
Come Help a Brother Out This Friday
Roburt Reynolds Rocks Off knows we make it look pretty easy down here, but it’s really not. Case in point: On his way to cover Balaclavas’ SXSW showcase in March – that’s right, bands were there from all over the world and we’re checking out the locals; that’s how much…
Hey Drayton: Stop Treating Astros Fans Like Idiots
The Chron did a story yesterday on the concession policies of the Houston Astros. The important thing to emerge from the story is that the Astros are the only team in major league baseball that does not allow fans to bring in their own food or drinks. That’s right, out…
Flannel File: Quicksand
Speaking of the early days of the Warped Tour, let’s talk about Quicksand. Along with Helmet, Quicksand developed and popularized a particular type of post-hardcore that took the metal-influenced hardcore punk of 1980s New York, cut the tempo in half and filled up the resulting space with melody and atmosphere…
Bayou Body Count: When The Current Girlfriend and Estranged Wife Fight, Nothing Good Happens
A Harris County Constable reserve deputy has been charged with killing a man outside a bar early Friday morning at 2708 North Shepherd.According to Houston police, reserve deputy Jose Castillo, 39, was outside Buffalo Fred’s Icehouse at around 2 am when he is accused of shooting Angel Erevia Jr., 31,…
In Honor Of Will Ferrell: The Five Biggest “Summer Blockbuster” Duds
That thud you heard last weekend was Will Ferrell’s career settling noisily back to earth. With a budget estimated at over $100 million, Land of the Lost was supposed to propagate the 2009 summer blockbuster season (handily inaugurated by the new Star Trek) and continue Ferrell’s successful box-office run. Surprisingly,…
Remembering 1969, Part 1: Altamont, Rosemary’s Baby, Santana at Woodstock and More
1968 might have been – at least politically – one of the most turbulent years of the ’60s. Students rioted left – specifically, the Left Bank in Paris – and right against the war in Vietnam, while back home racial tensions escalated, especially after the murder of Dr. Martin Luther…
The 10 Best Burgers In Texas
Calvin Trillin once said, “Anybody who doesn’t think that the best hamburger place in the world is in his home town is a sissy.” I think the best hamburgers places in the world are all in my home state. Here’s my list of the 10 Best Burgers in Texas…
Why Does The Chronicle Hate People In Wheelchairs?
If you’re in a wheelchair, it’s almost impossible to navigate the north side of the 800 block of Texas Avenue, home to the Houston Chronicle. There are trees planted in the middle of the sidewalk, splitting the already-narrow walkway into sections as thin as 26 inches. There are light poles…
Artist of the Week: Daylight Coma
Each Wednesday, Rocks Off arbitrarily appoints one lucky local performer or group “Artist of the Week,” bestowing upon them all the fame and grandeur such a lofty title implies. Know a band or artist that isn’t awful? Email their particulars to introducingliston@gmail.com. Growing up, we were big fans of conspiracy…
The Space Age In Houston — In Color!
The 1960s in Houston still mostly exist in black and white….except in the photos of Calvin E. Burdick, Jr. He was an inveterate photographer whose son, Josh, offered us some shots for an item we did on the Astrodome documentary that’s being made.We asked him to dig through his Dad’s…
Before We Go: News on Girl In a Coma, Willie D, Live Nation, Nameless Sound, Golden Cities and More
Before heading to Fitzgerald’s tonight, Girl In a Coma had to make a little pit stop: a courtroom in downtown Houston, where the band’s Jenn Alva and Nina Diaz had a preliminary hearing for the felony assault on a peace officer charges stemming from the late-night brawl at Chances back…
Saint Arnold’s Celebrates Their 15th Anniversary With the First Annual Beer Olympics
Sunday’s bracing heat and thick humidity didn’t stop the hundreds of beer lovers who turned out to help local microbrewery Saint Arnold celebrate its 15th anniversary while feasting on barbecue and watching the spectacle that was the first annual Beer Olympics. Temperatures inside the brewery itself were near-stifling, all the…
Bayou Body Count: An Attempt To Steal A Car Ends Badly
Texas and the right to defend oneself with deadly force seem to go hand-in-hand. And so it was for one man and his wife on Saturday along the 1100 block of Langwick. Houston police say a man shot and killed Darryl Milton Franklin Jr., 37, after Franklin tried to steal…
The Texans’ Owen Daniels, Conducting His Contract Holdout Via Facebook
You might have heard the news today that Houston Texans tight end Owen Daniels has decided to join Texans defensive back Dunta Robinson by not reporting for “voluntary” off-season training activities today. And both are holding out for a better contract offer from the Texans.But Daniels took his hold-out that…
Recession Dining: $1 Frankfurter at Yapa
The first time I walked into Yapa Kitchen Café in the shopping center at Buffalo Speedway and Bellaire a couple of years ago, I turned around and walked out again. There wasn’t anything wrong with the prepared foods in the refrigerator case — in fact, they looked fantastic. It was…
Slideshow: Sengelmann Hall in Schulenburg
Sengelmann Hall, a 115-year old saloon and dance hall in Schulenberg, has been closed up since the 1940s. Until last week, that is, when Houston entrepreneur Dana Roy Harper opened the doors to his million-dollar renovation on this sleepy main street halfway between Houston and San Antonio. The hall features…
The Bushes, Like You Have Never Seen Them (Or Wanted To)
George Bush, playa!! According to TMZ via Gawker, at any rate. And Barbara’s not to be outdone, as the photo after the jump shows…
Houston Chronicle, Modestly Declining To Blow Its Own Horn. For Some Reason
The Houston Chronicle bannered a headline Saturday over a story about federal inspectors criticizing the Harris County Jail: “County Jail Fails Feds’ Probe.”The story outlined the results of the inspection, saying “poor access to health care and life-threatening conditions” at the jail violated inmates’ rights.What brought on the inspections in…
Ten Classic Restaurant Commercials from the 1980s
If you’re a child of the ’80s, much of your misspent youth was misspent in front of the television taking in shows like Mr. Wizard and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. But just as those classic TV shows from your childhood have remained with you all these years, so have the…
Slideshow on Demand: You Make the Call
Rocks Off loves to put together musical slideshows, and if the response to a few of our recent ones is any indication (hi, Digg!), you like them too. Album covers are an almost inexhaustible resource that are always fun to look at and can be grouped together any number of…
The Indictment Comes Down For Willie D
We noted yesterday that Houston’s own Willie D had finally gotten out of jail, bonding out under an agreement that limited his travel and internet use.If that was considered good news for the Geto Boys rapper, today brought more bad news — he has been formally indicted on the iPhone…
Black Mushroom Stir-fry
A dozen different brands of dried black mushrooms line the shelves at Asian grocery stores. Yes, they look woody and their aisle has a distinct aroma – it’s even hard to tell that they are mushrooms, and shitakes at that – but once you cook with them, you’ll see they…
Annise Parker Says She’ll Get Rid Of HPD Chief Hurtt
Mayoral candidate Annise Parker has plans get rid of Police Chief Harold Hurtt if she’s elected. “I will replace the police chief. I think he’s ineffective,” Parker told the Houston Property Rights Association at a luncheon on Friday. “He doesn’t…” Parker was interrupted by someone in the crowd before she…
Distant Early Warning: Avant, Brad Paisley, Fear, King Sunny Ade, Ra Ra Riot and More
Avant, Mateo: Thu., Aug. 13. House of Blues. Babyface, Frankie Beverly & Maze: Sat., Nov. 7. Reliant Arena. Brad Paisley: Fri., Sept. 11. Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. Candlebox, Earshot: Mon., July 6. House of Blues. Celtic Thunder: Tue., Nov. 17. Verizon Wireless Theater. Datarock: Thu., Sept. 24. Warehouse Live. Davy…
The Closing Of UH’s Pre-School Is Getting Nasty
When last Hair Balls looked into the sudden closure of the Human Development Lab, UH’s venerable and acclaimed (if ominously named) pre-school, the situation was just starting to simmer. By now the stew over on Wheeler is on full boil. A Save HDLS web site has been created, and parents…
Montrose’s SWAT Excitement Comes To An End, Thanks To The Dogs
The canine units got some love last night after all. At around 8:30 pm Hair Balls spoke with an officer who was somewhat sullenly patrolling his German Shepherd around the sidewalk as he controlled traffic a couple of blocks from the action.A woman was holed up in a Montrose house after…
Diet Cola Goes Healthy
Zevia Natural Cola is the first of the new stevia-sweetened diet soft drinks I’ve tasted. There is also a Zevia diet root beer and a diet lemon-lime. No doubt you’ve heard of stevia, the newly approved natural sweetener that’s 300 times sweeter than sugar, with no calories. Stevia isn’t a…
Is It Just Me, Or Does The New Eddie Murphy Film Look Terrible?
I have this vague memory of being a kid and watching Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood on Saturday Night Live. There was Eddie Murphy, making serious fun of my childhood idol Mr. Rogers by creating a freaky, parallel universe where Mr. Robinson could joke freely about his wife leaving him (“I’m so…
Texas Heat Festival Announces Lineup
Add yet another coat of suntan lotion on your pasty ass and get ready for another outdoor Houston music festival. The Texas Heat Music Festival is descending on Jones Plaza downtown for a weekend residency over the Fourth Of July weekend. The event, set for July 4 and 5, is…
The Aeros’ Award Winners, Acccording To Us
I thought that, with the Houston Aeros season now over, I would do one of those end-of-season award things. So here goes. MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Krys Kolanos. Kolanos barely played in half of the team’s regular season as he was constantly up and down with the Minnesota Wild. But he…
It’s A Nice Taxpayer-Supported Gig For Former Chronicle Reporter Alan Bernstein
As we told you last month, 29-year-veteran Houston Chronicle reporter Alan Bernstein started off his new gig as communications director for Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia by promising openness and transparency, a policy that did not quite include divulging his new salary.”That will be a matter of public record once…
Where Are We Eating?
The intoxicating aroma of freshly-baked bread. Pies glistening with merengue. Cookies in dozens of shapes and sizes… Everyone loves a bakery. But looks can sometimes be deceiving, as in the picture below. Can you guess where we’re eating this week? Leave your guess in the comments section below…
Eyeballin’: Bob Dylan 1978-1989: Both Ends of the Rainbow
An increasingly prolific genre of the home-DVD market are the independent “review and criticism” releases, which focus mostly on classic-rock artists and are manna for hardcore fans. And no performer has generated more titles than Bob Dylan. This release focuses on dissecting Dylan’s least-covered but still very controversial era: the…
Album of the Week: Tori Amos’ Abnormally Attracted to Sin
Tori Amos Abnormally Attracted to Sin www.toriamos.com If, like me, the only song you had heard off Abnormally Attracted To Sin prior to its release was the single “Maybe California,” then (like me) the first few seconds of opening track “Give” made you whisper a relieved “Oh, thank God. It’s…
Why The Hell Should Wandy Rodriguez Listen To Pudge Anyway?
In this corner, we have Wandy Rodriguez. Wandy’s the very definition of a mediocre pitcher who has managed to hold on in the majors only because he’s a left-hander. His career record is 42-45 and his career ERA is 4.59. This season, he’s 5-5, but he’s lost his last three…
Shooting In Montrose Area Closes Streets
View Larger Map The call came in to Houston Police around 6:30 p.m. that a white female in a black blouse shot a retired police officer in the upper arm. The officer is in stable condition, but the woman, thought to be his cousin, is currently holed up in her…
Faulty Lab Report May Buy Death Row Inmate New Trial
It’s good news for death row inmate Charles Raby – and more bad news for Joseph Chu. The former Houston crime lab analyst has taken a beating in the Michael Bromwich reports, which determined that, among other things, the lab had manipulated results to help with convictions. And it seems…
Win a Songwriting Session With Guy Clark… For a Price
Imagine getting some pointers on the links from Tiger Woods, cooking lessons from Bobby Flay or a one-on-one session with Bernie Madoff where the infamous Wall Street financier explains how to bilk investors out of millions of dollars. When it comes to songwriting, especially of the Texas persuasion, Guy Clark…
Texas Traveler: Food in Fredericksburg
The Hill Country town of Fredericksburg is the capital of the Texas German Belt. You can pretty much tour the whole town by driving up and down Main Street. The coolest restaurant in town is Rebecca’s Table next door to the Rather Sweet Bakery and Cafe. Both businesses are owned…
Downtown Houston is the Way of the Future… According to India
Apparently urban planners in every corner of the world have decided that downtown Houston is the Way of the Future, at least if the BBC and the Times of India are to be believed. Last Friday, the Beeb reported that Houston’s Scottish sister city Aberdeen is in the early stages…
Producer, Rapper, Promoter Reveal Formula for Successful Houston Rap Song
Mr. RickiLi was at home with his wife and three sons when he got the call. It was his producer J-Kut, and J-Kut was excited. He’d just come up with the perfect beat. RickiLi dropped what he was doing and headed to the studio. The 25-year-old Missouri City rapper has been in…
Felix’s Queso Makes a Comeback
When Robb Walsh chronicled the closing of Felix Mexican Restaurant last year, the outpouring of grief was reminiscent of the sadness accompanying the loss of a great statesman or member of a royal family. And in a way it was. That restaurant was the last remaining legacy of Felix Tijerina…
Willie D Out on Bond, Still Can’t Travel
About a month ago, pioneering Houston rap star Willie D. (nee Willie Dennis) was arrested by the Feds at Intercontinental Airport and charged with wire fraud for his alleged involvement in an international iPhone scam. When last we updated the story, on May 20, the rapper was still behind bars,…
Lonesome Onry and Mean: Hoyle Nix and Big Spring’s Stampede Club
There’s an old saying in West Texas about Midland and Odessa, two oil towns only 20 miles apart in the middle of nowhere: raise your kids in Midland, raise hell in Odessa. True enough, Midland has all the soul of a loaf of Rainbow bread – come on, George W…
Crossings by Cruz-Diez
Wondering what is going on with the brightly-painted crosswalks in the Museum District? Wonder no more. Houston has become the first city in the United States to have a street installation by Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez. The five crosswalks that connect the buildings of the Museum of Fine Arts (Houston’s…
Snackshot: Mojito Limonada
Today’s thirst-quenching Snackshot comes to us from aynsavoy and Empire Café. From the photographer’s description: “At Empire Cafe. I can never resist when we go there. So refreshing!”…
Aftermath: Better Than Ezra at House of Blues
Better than Ezra sounds like biscuits look after being popped from a can in your grandma’s kitchen the Sunday after Halloween, belly full of candy. Like junior high – or more like high school (post-acne) – they’re an Ansel Adams painting hung on the wall of your hotel room after…
Annise Parker, The $5 Mayoral Candidate
Taking a page from the Barack Obama playbook, Houston City Controller and mayoral candidate Annise Parker announced today that she’s launching an “I Can Make a Difference” campaign on the Internet in which she’s asking supporters to send her $5. Parker proposes to use the Internet to raise campaign funds…
$7 at Bodega’s Taco Shop
Where: Bodega’s Taco Shop, 1200 Binz St., 713-528-6102 What $7 gets you: A Bodega taco plate that includes three tacos built to order and a choice of two sides, and that pretty much means rice and beans. The first step to get food at Bodega’s Taco Shop is “pick the…
Turning the Screw: Paul Wall, Pink, The Kanye, Jay-Z, Eminem, Necro, Bow Wow, Black Eyed Peas, Big Moe and More
Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off’s weekly rap post. It probably won’t rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. Single of the Week: “Bizzy Body,” Paul Wall feat. Webbie Wire To Wire Pink is upset at The Kanye because of his appreciation…
Travis Elementary Gets Water
We told you last week that Travis Elementary, the school that was so afflicted with swine flu and/or the fears thereof, was starting its summer session of classes. This morning we heard from Houston ISD spokesman Norm Uhl who tells us the “water samples tested last week are clear. Travis…
Playbill: Matisyahu & Les Claypool Tonight at the House Of Blues
Fans of the 1990s funk-metal band Primus can’t forget that famous Woodstock ’94 footage, where the band’s resident bass god, Les Claypool, dexterously covered Metallica’s “Master of Puppets,” slapping out the guitar part on his signature Carl Thompson. To top it off, he then brought out legendary grunge guitarist Jerry…
Texas A&M’s Administration Doesn’t Think Much Of Its President
Texas A&M has released the performance evaluation of its president, Elsa Murano, and things aren’t looking so hot for her. Murano’s January 2008 hiring was held high by A&M, because she was the youngest president ever and also the first Hispanic and woman to hold that post. But a review…
Texas Traveler: Bolivar Peninsula
Photos by Brittanie SheyCrystal Beach, TexasSometimes vacations don’t always go as planned. Texas Traveler hadn’t been to the Texas Coast since last summer, a month or two before Ike hit. We’d seen the footage and heard the stories — it was just too depressing to imagine our favorite beaches covered…
Wal-Mart Goes Tex-Mex
Wal-Mart has entered the highly competitive Hispanic grocery store category with a prototype on Long Point at Wirt. Supermercado de Wal-Mart opened its doors a month ago. The nation’s biggest retailer is going up against the well-established Fiesta supermarket chain and HEB’s Mi Tienda concept in Pasadena. When you walk…
Social Distortion: Sweet Caroline’s First Birthday (Only 17 Years ‘Til She’s Legal)
If you weren’t at Caroline Collective’s anniversary affair this past Saturday evening, chances are you’re pretty much as lame as they come. Or you hate Houston’s burgeoning artistic and technological communities. Take your pick. Amidst what was described by revelers as “the most interesting mix of people,” Caroline Collective celebrated…
Playbill: Pontiak Tonight At The Mink
Some albums, indeed some artists, can only be truly appreciated when listened to at near injury-inducing volume. Pontiak, with its earthy blend of bluesy psychedelia, proto-metal and sub-harmonic doom drone, is one such band. When you crank it all the way up, Maker hits like a mild concussion with the…
We’re In The Red Zone At T.H. Rogers; Meanwhile, HISD Supervisor Answers More Questions, Kinda
The results are in from the Houston ISD survey of teachers at T.H. Rogers, the school where teachers and the local union have circulated increasingly loud complaints that their principal, Dr. Cathryn White is an intimidating, arrogant taskmaster who needs to see the error of her ways, if not just…
Friday Night Noise: John Wiese & C. Spencer Yeh, Yellow Swans, Headdress
John Wiese & C. Spencer Yeh, “Pink Pyramid” Noise dudes do love their collabos, huh? Sometimes, I love ’em, too. Often these meetings-of-the-messed-up-minds produce muddled junk. Laptop-power-electronics-psycho Weise and violinist-electronic-twiddler Yeh have crossed circuit boards more than a few times, and Cincinnati (DroneDisco), their latest Marvel Team Up, doesn’t disappoint…
Upcoming Events
Whether your beverage of choice is wine, coffee or beer, we’ve got you covered in this week’s upcoming events. The French Open takes place this weekend, and if you’re looking for a spot to watch, then Coffee Groundz is the place for you. The coffee shop-cum-gelateria in Midtown is offering…
This Week In Deliciousness
I can’t write this column on an empty stomach. It’s difficult to maintain your trademark acerbic wit when all you can think is, “I would literally murder somebody for that hamburger / pizza / pastry / whatever insane but incredible dish from Feast we’ve featured this week.” Having taken a…
Last Call For Art: Casual Encounters and Indian Film
The art exhibit “Casual Encounters” closes at Domy Books this Sunday. A group show featuring work by Dirty Jeff, Will Boone, Patrick Griffen, Derek Albeck, French, and curator Give Up, “Casual Encounters” includes photos, drawings, portraits and collages. The international group of the artists share an outsider sensibility. Wheat-paste artist…
Playbill: Strange Boys Hit Mango’s Sunday Night
Between the haphazard hooks, ramshackle rhythm section, mumbled vocals and lo-fi lust for vintage psych, Black Lips comparisons are unavoidable for Austin four-piece the Strange Boys. That doesn’t mean there’s not room for a few bands who plunder the 13th Floor Elevators with the kindergarten abandon of early Clean records…
Bolivar Is Back From the Brink
Last weekend’s Stingaree Music Festival was proof that Bolivar is back from the brink. Need further proof? Check out these video of two Vidorian lovebirds dirty dancing in the beer-scented sea breeze… Now that’s what we like to see down on Crystal Beach: wife-beater shirts, skin-tight jorts and rolls of…
Jukebox Hero: Little Big’s in Montrose
Little Bigs, the slider joint at the corner of Westheimer and Montrose, is spinning some of Houston’s best and brightest bands and it’s all because of owner/chef Bryan Caswell’s dream of having his own jukebox. Life-long Houston resident Caswell opened up the slider hut just a few months back. He…
Forty Years Of Intercontinental Airport, For Better Or Worse
Monday marks the 40th anniversary of what is now Bush Intercontinental Airport, the huge facility north of town that forever banished Hobby Airport to second-class (a much more convenient second-class, though, if you ask us.)IAH, as its known on luggage tags, was a modern marvel of little trains and massive…
Nerd Alert: Trailer for “The Beatles: Rock Band” Debuts
After almost two years of programming and tinkering, the developers of the Beatles edition of the “Rock Band” videogame have released a trailer for the game in advance of its release in the fall. The visuals in the trailer are faithful to the boys from Liverpool, down to every detail…
The Do-It-Yourself Bloody Mary Bar at the Cadillac Sunday Brunch
When considering where to go for Sunday brunch, we too often allow meaningless considerations like the fluffiness of the pancakes or the quality of the smoked salmon to interfere with sound decision-making. Stop and think about it. What’s really important on Sunday morning– I mean, besides church. I am saying…
The Tomball Area Dominates Texas Monthly’s Worst Legislators List
Texas Monthly’s eagerly anticipated list of Best & Worst Legislators is out, and one thing is clear: Tomball and its environs are a sticking cesspit of ineptitude and hackery.Two of the top ten bad legislators on the list (a list which is generally accepted to be nonpartisan) are from the…
Aftermath: New York Dolls & Black Joe Lewis at the House Of Blues
Aftermath is not going to purport to know what the New York Dolls were like live, in their Thundered and Killer-ed heyday of kitsch and campy kiss-offs. We weren’t even in Pre-K when Buster Poindexter was singing “Hot Hot Hot” on Saturday Night Live. But for chrissakes, they couldn’t have…
Sweet Carradine: Five Great Moments From His Career
It must be hell out there for a Hollywood actor. Not only is every role dissected by fans and eviscerated by critics, but no aspect of your personal life or fashion sense is left unexamined. And you’d better hope you die in as unexciting a manner as possible, lest your…
Live Shots: New York Dolls at the House Of Blues
Aftermath stepped out to see the legendary New York Dolls hit the House Of Blues last night off Caroline. Our photographer Dan Kramer took some amazing pics as always. Here’s a taste of his work while we get our review together…..
Another Rock Mag Bites The Dust: Performing Songwriter Says Goodbye
Print publications focusing on music continue to fall like pine trees in a hurricane. The latest to close its doors is 16-year-old Performing Songwriter. Editor/publisher Lydia Hutchison announced Wednesday that the June issue would be the last. The magazine joins No Depression, Blender and Country Standard Time, all of which…
Amnesia Victim’s Possible Scam Restores Hero Curmudgeon’s Lack Of Faith In Humanity
In a story you read first on Hair Balls, local rocker and Bookstop warehouse manager (and occasional Press contributor and full-time curmudgeon) John Cramer helped Houston police crack the case of the mysterious amnesiac woman.Since then, the woman’s identity has been made public. Her name is Janene Luttrell Nicewonger and…
Five Spot: Big Pokey
Welcome back to The Five Spot, a Rocks Off recurring feature. Every Friday, we’ll examine a recent bit of music news and list five reasons why it’s either brilliant or dumb-assed. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Wednesday, RapRadar.com threw up an interview with former Roc-A-Fella rapper Freeway in which he discussed…
Another Sex-Abuse Lawsuit Filed Against Episcopal Diocese Of Texas
A fourth man has filed a $15 million lawsuit against the Episcopal Diocese of Texas and St. Stephen’s Episcopal School for allegedly covering up his sexual abuse at the hands of the school’s chaplain.Filed Thursday in a Corpus Christi federal court, the suit is the third to accuse then-headmaster Allen…
Randy Johnson’s Astro Days — Short But Electrifyingly Sweet
Randy Johnson got his 300th career victory yesterday as the San Francisco Giants defeated the Washington Nationals 5-1. Johnson pitched six innings, giving up only two hits and one unearned run (he had a no-hitter through four innings) as he got the 300th win in his first try.Johnson got the…
20 Fictional Foods & Drinks We Wish Were Real
The Everlasting Gobstopper. Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans. Klingon bloodwine. Magical (and sometimes terrible) foods and beverages from literature and pop culture throughout the ages have always resonated with us. We dream of what they might taste like, look like, smell like. We relish the idea of their amazing properties…
This Just In: Dave Alvin, Darrell Scott Coming To Mucky Duck
We’ve just gotten an email alert from McGonigel’s Mucky Duck about two stellar shows added to the fall lineup: Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women on September 19, and Darrell Scott on November 15. Undoubtedly, both of these shows will sell out. Tickets are on sale now. Alvin has just…
Houston’s Most Expensive Homes For Sale: Are They Worth It?
The real-estate market is tough all over, even in Houston. It can be especially tough if you’re trying to unload some high-priced luxury home that’s been built to your…unique tastes. You’re asking someone to spend six, seven million dollars, and maybe they don’t agree with your decision to install big…
The Hollister Burger
Hollister Grill on Hollister St. at Long Point is a neighborhood diner specializing in comfort foods like meatloaf, pot roast and chicken-fried steak. Its hand-formed eight-ounce burger comes with lettuce, tomato, purple onion and pickles with mustard and mayo on the side. The fries are of the chunky, steak-cut variety…
The Bachelorette Kicks Houstonian’s Ass
Recent additions to the list of Things We Did Not Know:1) The Bachelorette is still on TV.2) There was a Houston guy competing to be whatever it is you compete to be on The Bachelorette.3) He lost.Not only that, but the guy he lost to is “a snake,” meaning, we…
Social Distortion: The Facebook Friend Inaugural Oath of Office
Adding folks to your posse of Facebook friends is far from an automated algorithm. Facebook often serves as the Internet’s Final Frontier – you’re either down with the innermost of highly personal circles, or you’re merely relegated to the comparative impersonality of being a Twitter follower or Flickr contact. Woe…
Jukebox Hero: Little Big’s In Montrose
Little Bigs, the slider joint at the corner of Westheimer and Montrose, is spinning some of Houston’s best and brightest bands and it’s all because of owner/chef Bryan Caswell’s dream of having his own jukebox. Life-long Houston resident Caswell opened up the slider hut just a few months back. He…
This Just In: The Flatlanders Cancel Cactus In-Store Gig
This morning word came from Cactus Music, via a quick MySpace bulletin, that the Flatlanders’ in-store performance set for Saturday afternoon has been cancelled. No reason was given for the band backing out of the midday appearance. The roots-rock supergroup, made up of Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch…
Travis Elementary — A/K/A Swine Flu Central — Reopens
Travis Elementary’s swine-flu heyday came just as the topic was losing its national cachet, but the school made the most of it — closing completely after days of frantic parents keeping their kids home, leaving the school a ghost town.At first HISD said a weekend scrub-down would be enough to…
Flannel File: The Descendents
One hot morning in August of 1997, my little brother and I hopped on MARTA (Mom wouldn’t let me use the car) and moseyed on down to the Lakewood Fairgrounds in Atlanta for the third-ever Warped Tour. Should the writer of a column about experimental music be ashamed of having…
Amnesty International Not Impressed With The Immigrant Facilities At Port Isabel
Lack of access to legal counsel and bond hearings were just two things that Amnesty International representatives found trouble with after touring the Port Isabel Detention Center near Brownsville this week.”It’s very hard to find legal counsel,” Sarnata Reynolds told Hair Balls. Reynolds, AI’s police and campaign director for refugee…
Openings and Closings
It wasn’t a good week to be an Asian restaurant in Houston. Japanese, Chinese and Thai — none were exempt from the executioner as three well-known restaurants closed around town. Café le Jadeite (1952 West Gray), the eye-catching Chinese restaurant in River Oaks, closed out the month of May by…
Block 7 Looking for Local Bands for Compilation
Block 7 is a wine bar set to open in the next few weeks near Shepherd and Washington that is looking for a shot of good ol’ Houston noise to break it in. The owners of Block 7 have an ear for local music, and they’re seeking Houston bands to…
The Books Are Alive!! They’re Aliiiiive!!!!!!
Check out a book that walks and talks during Saturday’s Living Library. Presented by the Houston Public Library and the Center for the Healing of Racism, the Living Library is made up of more than a dozen members of the community who will have a give-and-take conversation with readers on…
The Whole Wide World: Goran Bregović
Listening to the first half of this Bosnian-born composer’s U.S. debut, you would think that all he does is write party music, which isn’t true. Goran Bregović (pronounced BregoVITCH) is a respected writer of movie scores – for instance, he penned the themes for Emir Kusturica’s films Underground and Time…
HISD Regional Supervisor May Have Memory Problems About Teacher Concerns At T.H. Rogers
T.H. Rogers is known as a pretty great school, in or out of the Houston Independent School District. But as my column this week (“Let the Record Reflect”) shows, the principal there, Dr. Cathryn White, is at odds with several of her teachers.Quoted in the story is the Regional Supervisor…
The New Q: Smoke-Braising
There’s no reason that you have to choose between braising and barbecuing. While working on a new backyard barbecue cookbook, I discovered that the two techniques can be combined with awesome results. Start off by smoking or grilling the meat. Next, prepare a braising liquid in the kitchen and bring…
Our New License Plates: We Demand A Recount, Dammit
The e-voting is over and the results are in, and the state of Texas now has a new license plate.We’re wondering if people who have it in for our great state stuffed the virtual ballot box, because the winner, with over 455,000 votes out of 1.1 million cast, is this…
Eyeballin’: Charles Mingus’ Epitaph
Charles Mingus had been dead and buried for more than a decade by the time his jazz concerto, Epitaph, had its public debut on June 3, 1989 in New York City. But then again, the bassist/composer never thought any audience would ever hear it. After Mingus’s death, more than 20…
Bayou Body Count: Two Dead East Of Downtown
Two men were shot and killed Wednesday morning during the attempted robbery of a Phillips 66 gas station east of Downtown. Chahzad Anwer Quraishi, 57, was dead at the scene. Mohammad Aziz Zubair, 55, was taken to Ben Taub Hospital, where he died.Police say they received a call from Zubair…
Building the Perfect Pizza
If a psychologist ever decided to make a Rorschach test out of food, then pizza would have to be the equivalent of the inkblot. More than any other food or cuisine, pizza stirs emotions, stokes passions, and provokes endless debates about which version or preparation is best. Around here, barbecue…
Greg Abbott Goes After BP On Pollution Charges
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has announced a major case against BP Petroleum and its Texas City refinery, claiming almost 50 separate violations of the state’s clear-air act.”BP Products is charged with polluting our environment, concealing information from authorities and harming Texans,” Abbott said. “In recent years, more than 45…
Remembering Koko Taylor
Yesterday, as we were sifting the interweb for Koko Taylor material in the wake of her passing on to the great blues joint in the sky, we found this picture during a Google search. This photo is of Taylor, with blues great Muddy Waters, Waters band member Jimmy Rogers, and…
Bitching About Pitch Counts Is BS
I don’t follow college baseball as much as I should. The ping of the aluminum bat just bugs me. But there were was a really good College World Series game the other night between the University of Texas and Boston College. The game went 25 innings before Texas finally pulled…
Stuffing Hog Casings: Home Butchery Supplies
I’ve wanted to buy a sausage stuffer for some years now. I have tried using the sausage tube that attaches to my electric meat grinder — that’s a joke. I also bought the handy-dandy sausage-making attachment for my heavy-duty KitchenAid — fine for a pound or two. But if you…
The Distillery: Eminem’s New “Workmanlike” Effort Stalls
“Workmanlike.” There – I said it. Though I’m thinking that “workmanlike” might actually be too kind an adjective to use in describing Relapse, Eminem’s fifth album produced by Dr. Dre. “Workmanlike” suggests a modicum of competence, and Relapse isn’t satisfying on any level whatsoever. Like, at all. It literally fails…
Playbill: Merle Haggard Tonight at the Stafford Centre
Few outlaw country legends come as hard-assed and grizzled as Merle Haggard, and even fewer have actually lived the shady, hardscrabble life he has. From an early age, Haggard seemed drawn to crime, with his nefarious hobbies earning him vacations in penitentiaries across Texas and California. During one San Quentin…
Finally, Someone Is Once Again Eradicating All Those Charming Montrose Bungalows
Via Swamplot, who got it from whatever magical leaks Swamplot gets all its real-estate scoop from, comes this artists’ rendering of the building going up at the corner of West Gray and Waugh.Bungalows are being knocked down to provide parking space for this, but that’s fine because Montrose has plenty…
Houston’s Hottest Donuts
Just because you’re out in the sun being active at Discovery Green, doesn’t mean you can’t be eating donuts at the same time. This is Houston. Follow the irresistible, sugary, fried smell to the cart labeled Houston’s Hottest Donuts. The donuts are like funnel cake but without the old-grease flavor,…
Miss Pop Rocks: Books I Read Too Soon
As a nerdy child who devoured books, I have to say there are a few I simply read too soon. Be it sex, drugs, or violence, my consumption of the following tomes sort of scarred me. I probably should have stuck with my Little House books until I was at…
Catastrophic Theatre’s Head Lives Up To His Theater’s Name
When last we talked to Jason Nodler of Catastrophic Theatre, he was eagerly looking forward to a trip to the Netherlands for vacation and a chance to work on a new musical.The production, on which he’s working with Pixies frontman Black Francis, centers on the life of Herman Brood, a…
Asian Comedy Night
Enjoy three comics who explore the “cultural disconnects” Asian Americans experience in the U.S. with Asian Comedy Night. Steve Byrne, who’s returning after a successful stint here last spring, and Tisher Singh support headliner Paul Barghese. 7 p.m. Improv, 7620 Katy Freeway. For information, call 713-333-8800 or visit www.improvhouston.com. $25…
Brantly Martin
The main character in Brantly Martin’s debut novel, Pillage, is named Cracula. Can you guess that addiction issues play a part in the plot? There’s also sex, the possibility of sex, money, perceived beauty, promises, lies and hallucinations, all set in the microuniverse of Manhattan. Martin swears it’s not autobiographical…
Beginning Photography for Teens
Kids will learn more than just which button does what during Beginning Photography for Teens with Sarah Sudhoff. The principles of composition and different creative approaches to photography will also be covered during the four-session class. 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesdays. Through June 18. Houston Center for Photography, 1441 West…
“Round 3”
We’re pretty sure Amber Eagle, one of three participants in the Lawndale Artist Studio Program, isn’t giving us the finger in the “Round 3” exhibit, but we could be wrong. The piece in question is a giant fingertip (about two feet tall), complete with a long red polished nail, sitting…
C. M. Mayo: The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire
They didn’t call it geopolitics back then, but Mexican Emperor Maximilian was playing international power games just the same. Set up as a puppet ruler by Napoleon, Maximilian is one of the central characters in The Last Prince of the Mexican Empire. After being installed as emperor, Maximilian and his…
“North Looks South: Building the Latin American Art Collection”
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s newest exhibit, “North Looks South: Building the Latin American Art Collection,”shows just how much the MFAH has become a gateway to Latin American culture. The exhibition of more than 80 works from South and Central America also demonstrates the MFAH’s aggressive buildup of its…
5th Annual Tomato Fest
The main draw at the 5th Annual Tomato Fest is the tomato tasting. Offerings come from backyard gardeners who have just a handful of tomato plants, to family farmers who have a couple dozen acres. There’s also going to be a Tomato Doctor with growing advice, a Tomato Cook-off with…
23rd Annual American Institute of Architects-Houston Sandcastle Competition
This time of year, kids building sandcastles are everywhere on Galveston beaches, it’s Rockwellesque charm turned up to 11, right? Well, the 23rd Annual American Institute of Architects-Houston Sandcastle Competition isn’t kid stuff. This event, one of the largest of its kind in the world, is serious business. More than…
24th Annual Heights Fun Run
Kids can take their parents along for the children’s part of the 24th Annual Heights Fun Run, but adults will have to make the 5K run/walk segment on their own. Everyone’s invited to a post-race celebration for awards, music, food and “juice.” (What? No cold brewskies?) 7:30 a.m. Marmion Park,…
Natural Disasters
Jack Heifner’s 1976 play Vanities ran for five years, and his musical revue Leader of the Pack (he wrote the book) was nominated for a Tony Award in 1985, so while he’s not as renowned as Albee or O’Neill, he certainly knows what he’s doing. In Natural Disasters, the two–comedy…
Attention Deficit Improv
Attention Deficit Improv, “where it pays to think fast,” is comedy aimed at teens. Kids can expect improv games, offbeat characters, impersonations and even an impromptu song or two. Everything is age-appropriate (there are two sessions, 13- to 18-year-olds on Fridays, and 18 and older on Saturdays). Attention Deficit Improv…
The Power of Movement
The Houston dance scene is an unusually chummy one; it’s routine to see several companies perform together or a handful of choreographers unite to make moves. But The Power of Movement, today’s one-night-only event hosted by Dance/USA, a dance trade group, is quite literally a must-see lineup of not several…
Fifth Element
Bruce Willis still had a little hair on his head when he made the 1990s flick Fifth Element. In it, Willis is Korben Dallas, a cab driver living in a futuristic world. He stumbles across a strange, beautiful woman (an orange-haired Milla Jovovich as Leeloo) who is the fifth element…
Loves of a Blonde
Czech cinema came into its own, winning international acclaim, in the early ’60s when the New Wave splashed all over everything. Loves of a Blonde is a 1965 film from Milos Forman (pre-One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Amadeus) about an impressionistic village girl who follows her one-night stand…
Surf Nazis Must Die
Beware of grandmas with guns. Once you piss them off, there’s no turning back. Just ask the dead guys in Surf Nazis Must Die, today’s installment in the Tromatic Thursday guts-and-gore film series. After neo-Nazi surfer dudes kill her grandson, Grandma goes on a rampage, cutting down everyone in her…
“Danielle Frankenthal”
Painter Danielle Frankenthal’s 2008 exhibit at Wade Wilson Art was a casualty of Hurricane Ike. (The show was open only a week before the storm struck.) But lucky for us, she’s back with a show of new work, the self-titled “Danielle Frankenthal.” For this series, Frankenthal has painted panels of…
Gallery One Three Seven: Victoria Whitaker
See the tiniest art gallery in town at the opening of Gallery One Three Seven: Victoria Whitaker. “It’s 1.37 square feet. It’s a miniature gallery within the museum, inside the “No Zoning” exhibit,” explains Connie McAllister, communications and marketing manager for the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. Gallery One Three Seven…
“Jan van der Ploeg”
Ariane Roesch, assistant gallery director for Gallery Sonja Roesch, says visitors should expect to be surprised at the “Jan van der Ploeg”exhibit, the first-ever Houston show by the Dutch artist. It’s a very striking composition, with lots of color, she says of the show’s centerpiece, the wall-size mural Wall Painting…
3rd Annual KBR Kids Day on Buffalo Bayou
The preteen crowd will enjoy the 3rd Annual KBR Kids Day on Buffalo Bayou. More than two dozen nonprofit organizations will have activity stations set up on the bayouís banks. Sun prints, wetland hikes, kayaking demonstrations and pontoon boat rides are on the schedule, along with a series of bird…
The Farnsworth Invention
Idiot box, boob tube, babysitter, best friend, however you regard your television, you should give a shout-out to boy genius Philo T. Farnsworth. He’s the guy who created the electronics behind TV. The West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin’s historical play The Farnsworth Invention looks at the conflict between Farnsworth and…
Glenn Beck
You have three chances to see political pundit/social commentator Glenn Beck this week. There’s his live appearance at Verizon Wireless Theater, and then there are two broadcasts (one live, one encore) of his Kansas City performance. Beck calls this The Common Sense Tour, so you can expect that most of…
Lincoln Hall
The title of Lincoln Hall’s book describes him to a tee: Dead Lucky. That’s because he narrowly escaped becoming a Mount Everest fatality three years ago. During a climb, the famous Australian writer/mountaineer collapsed from altitude sickness. His companions were unable to revive him. Believing he was dead, they left…
Urinetown, The Musical
Mark Hollman’s comedy, Urinetown, the Musical, uses pee to poke fun at Broadway, capitalism, bureaucracy and small-town politics, among other topics. The play is set in a water-starved future where the Urine Good Company is in charge of all things wiz and charges for the luxury of using a toilet…
Drink for Aurora!
Show Aurora Picture Show you care, by getting boozed up. At Drink for Aurora!, local bar Poison Girl will donate a portion of the day’s sales to Houston’s favorite little independent film house. As you raise your glass, check out selections from Aurora’s DVD label. There’s Enid Baxter Blader’s A…
A Day at the Races
Poor Mrs. Upjohn. Those pesky Marx Brothers tormented the uptight society dame every chance they got, and their treatment of her in A Day at the Races is no different. The 1937 comedy classic finds the brothers trying to weasel money out of their frequent foil (deliciously played by Margaret…
Man on Wire
It took tightrope walker Philippe Petit more than six years to plan his illegal high-wire walk between the then-newly constructed Twin Towers in New York. Petit snuck onto the towers several times before the stunt, posing as part of the building crew and as a reporter before finally making his…
Disney’s Aladdin: Dual Language Edition
In 1992, the Disney version of Aladdin charmed young fans into dreaming of magic carpets and genies (oh, and it sold millions in ticket sales and related products). Today kids can see a whole new theatrical version from Theater Under the Stars. TUTS is calling the newly minted musical Disney’s…
Bike & Bugs II
Feel like letting the good times roll? Head over to Bikes & Bugs II. There’s live music by the Zydeco Dots and L.T. and the Zydeco Mob, a crawfish boil and a motorcycle wash (think pretty girls in short shorts scrubbing your tires). There’s also a 2009 Harley-Davidson Sportster up…
Houston 48 Hour Film Project
It’s a race to the big screen at the Houston 48 Hour Film Project. The annual contest challenges local filmmaking teams to conceptualize, write, film and edit a seven-minute masterpiece in a span of two days. Teams are also assigned a genre, character, prop and line of dialogue to be…
Come Blow Your Horn
In 1961, Neil Simon was a nobody as far as Broadway was concerned. That all changed when his play Come Blow Your Horn opened. The family comedy follows a guy who moves into big brother’s swinging bachelor pad in the big city and gets pretty comfortable living large. Back in…
The Flatlanders: Hills & Valleys
>One thing you have to give Flatlanders Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock: Their hearts have always been in the right place. The trio’s latest album, Hills & Valleys, fits perfectly in the Obama era, one begun with a serious push to deal with the plethora of problems…
Crunchy Lunch
If you’re not careful, it’s easy to overlook the crunchy chicken ($15.95) at benjy’s (2424 Dunstan, 713-522-7602), since it’s a little buried on the lunch menu. That would be a pity, since it’s one of the best-tasting chicken dishes you may ever encounter. Two chicken breasts are completely coated with…
Girl in a Coma: Trio B.C.
It’s so nice to type the words “Girl in a Coma” for something that has nothing to do with the San Antonio trio’s altercation with some off-duty Houston police officers at Chances, which landed two band members a weekend in jail and a court date later this summer. It’s especially…
Have a Nice Summer!
For the second time in too many years, Houston faces the worst kind of hurricane season — the kind that follows a serious hit. The anxiety level leaps just a little bit higher as June rolls in during one of these years; memories of shocking visuals, huge annoyance at power…
Here’s to you, John Cramer: Misanthrope cracks the case of amnesia victim.
Spaced City World’s Crustiest Hero Misanthrope cracks the case of amnesia victim by John Nova Lomax If you work on loading docks long enough, you develop an eye for the rhythms of a parking lot. You learn whose car is there daily, of course, but you also learn who’s living…
How Classic Is Classic Rock?
Father Tucker Ludicrous: If Carol Barnwell is the official spokeswoman of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas, why did Craig Malisow not bother to publish anything she had to say during her 2007 interview [“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” May 21, 2009]? Why did he deem her remarks irrelevant to a story…
Capsule Art Reviews: “The Art Guys: New Clichés,” “Casual Encounters,” “New Art in Austin: 20 to Watch”
“The Art Guys: New Clichés” With “New Clichés,” the Art Guys present recent work still rooted in the familiar blend of bizarre humor and smart, confident swagger we’ve long associated with the names Jack Massing and Michael Galbreth. They are avid, eager experimentalists in process and materials. It’s as intriguing…
MUY CALIENTE SUMMER EDITION
Dear Mexican, I am a Chicano in Connecticut. I moved from Arizona to the East Coast for my dream job. I have to admit that I’m still homesick. Connecticut is a completely different world. To sum it up in one phrase, vale madre. It took awhile for me to find…
Capsule Stage Reviews: Beauty Queen of Leenane, Big Range Dance Festival, Fiddler on the Roof, Of an Era
Beauty Queen of Leenane If you know anything about the works of playwright Martin McDonagh (The Pillowman, Lieutenant of Inishmore), then you’re well aware that his vision of Ireland does not include leprechauns, four-leaf clovers or pots of gold. His plays are infamous for their willful violence, black-as-pitch humor and…
Judge Not
I always thought Osama Bin Laden had strangely kind eyes. At least that’s how he looks in photographs, and that’s how he looks in The Pilgrim (2006), a portrait by Marlene Dumas. Dumas has painted an “evil-doer,” not sympathetically but just as she paints everyone else, without judgment and with…
Merle Haggard
Few outlaw country legends come as hard-assed and grizzled as Merle Haggard, and even fewer have actually lived the shady, hardscrabble life he has. From an early age, Haggard seemed drawn to crime, with his nefarious hobbies earning him vacations in penitentiaries across Texas and California. During one hitch in…
Personality Crisis
If you’ve been keeping up with rock and roll current events, you may have heard that the New York Dolls are back with a new record, Cause I Sez So (Atco), the puckering proto-punks’ second release since 2006’s reformation souvenir, One Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This…
Jamey Johnson
Jamey Johnson has proven a lot of people wrong. Not so much the people who thought Nashville wouldn’t be interested in him at all; the Alabama native has, after all, written or co-written several hit songs, including Trace Adkins’s “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk” (that’s right) and George Strait’s “Give It Away,”…
Good Manners
Valentine’s Day 2007 was responsible for two strains of viral phenomena. The first, appearing in January, was a Valentine’s Day-themed Trojan horse that automatically dispatched e-mails with syrupy headers like “Our Love Is Free” and “Eternity of Your Love” at the rate of about 11,000 addresses an hour. Clicking on…
Accordion Kings & Queens Festival
One Chinese legend says the accordion is as old as music itself, that around 3,000 B.C., Emperor Huang Ti sent a scholar into the Western mountains charged with reproducing the song of the phoenix. The scholar returned with the cheng, a multi-tube device fashioned out of bamboo. It was the…
Armadillo World Headquarters
Texas Renegade is onstage at Goode’s Armadillo Palace (5015 Kirby), but the most renegade thing about the San Marcos country-rockers is a solo by harmonica stud Kasey Klepfer that squirts its way to sampling Violent Femmes’ “Blister in the Sun.” That’s not to say the band isn’t any good, because…
The Strange Boys
Between the haphazard hooks, ramshackle rhythm section, mumbled vocals and lo-fi lust for vintage psych, Black Lips comparisons are unavoidable for Austin four-piece the Strange Boys. That doesn’t mean there’s not room for a few bands who plunder the 13th Floor Elevators with the kindergarten abandon of early Clean records…
Fight for Your Right
It’s not every day you can flip on C-SPAN and see chrome-dome Smashing Pumpkins front man Billy Corgan testifying before the House Judiciary Committee, an image reminiscent of previous rocker/lawmaker showdowns like Pearl Jam vs. Ticketmaster or Frank Zappa battling Tipper Gore’s Parental Advisory stickers at the PMRC hearings. But…
Les Claypool
Fans of the 1990s funk-metal band Primus can’t forget that famous Woodstock ’94 footage where the band’s resident bass god, Les Claypool, dexterously covered Metallica’s “Master of Puppets,” slapping out the guitar part on his signature Carl Thompson. To top it off, he then brought out legendary grunge guitarist Jerry Cantrell,…
Vegas, Babies
What Fletch was to plaid-checked water-cooler wits in the ’80s, what National Lampoon’s Van Wilder was to college-bound douches at the dawn of Dubya, that’s what 2003’s Old School is to Gen-X frat rats — a secret-handshake movie. A shaggy, intermittently hilarious wish-fulfillment nightmare about sorta dissatisfied, sorta middle-aged dudesters…
J.J. Grey & Mofro
Not one write-up about proud Floridians J.J. Grey and his backing band Mofro fails to mention how their music is a stew of Southern soul, swamp-rock and blues – including, apparently, this one. (Dammit!) Although that’s a completely accurate description, Mofro definitely branches out a bit on its fourth and…
Let the Record Reflect
Dr. Cathryn White came to T.H. Rogers two years ago, and whatever good will she initially generated, what with being the new principal and then having to take maternity leave to give birth to twins at age 49, seems to have pretty well dissipated by now, at least among a…
Little Joy
The Strokes have been on hiatus since 2006, but if the band’s members keep making great records on the side, the New York quintet needn’t hurry back to the studio. Guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.’s first two albums were little slices of California power-pop, and now drummer Fabrizio Moretti follows suit…
CEDAR CREEK’S COUNTRY ASS TEA
It was Riddell’s birthday, so several friends met at Cedar Creek (1034 W. 20th St., 713-808-9623) for drinks after work. A few buckets of beer and some frozen Country Ass Teas later, the conversation was in full boozy swing. The topic was weird tattoos. Whose was the best? Whose was…
Glasnost: Great Divide EP
Since the ’80s, bands that have dared to cross-breed rock and dance music have been all too happy to let their synthesizers do the songwriting for them — even the most successful ones like the Faint, the Bravery and the Killers. On its debut EP, Great Divide, Houston quintet Glasnost…
Crawfish Season’s Tail End
Seafood dealer Jim Gossen sat in the booth across from me at Boiling Crab. It was the first time I had ever seen him with tears in his eyes. No, Gossen wasn’t overcome by his emotions — the crawfish were so damn spicy, they were making his eyes water and…
Bonnie “Prince” Billy: Beware
Beware isn’t nearly as ominous as Will Oldham might want you to believe. Although its 13 tracks do gravitate toward themes of disappointment and disillusionment, it’s with panache and, not infrequently, a bit of levity. Take, for example, “You Don’t Love Me.” With its zippy strings, hand claps and a…
Cafe Kubo’s
Yoichi “Yogi” Ueno opened the first Kubo’s Sushi in the Village in 2001. “We wanted to expand into a fast-food restaurant serving healthy Japanese fast food with our new Cafe Kubo’s [9889 Bellaire, 713-995-4200],” he says. “Most of the Japanese restaurants in Houston are going for the high end but…
