BARC’s Alleged Dog-Puncher Is Out Of A Job
Murray Bailey, the BARC kennel attendant accused of punching a puppy in the head in June, is no longer working at the facility, Health and Human Services Spokeswoman Kathy Barton tells Hair Balls. We’re waiting to hear if there’s an official explanation, but Barton said Bailey was still on his…
The Heat Is On As High School Football Practice Begins
ERCOT, the people who run Texas’s energy grid, is once again warning against too much electricity use, asking that consumers limit it as much as they can today until 7 p.m.”The peak electricity demand is expected to be more than 63,200 megawatts (MW) today,” ERCOT announced. “The current record for…
George Strait Week, Part 2: Cajun George
After Tuesday’s look at the shockingly Morrissey-like sentiments of the many George Strait songs where his love interest is either already gone or on her way out the door, Rocks Off thought today we’d take a look at a much happier – and, it should be said, significantly smaller -…
Some Answers On The Method Man Lawsuit
News of a lawsuit filed against rapper Method Man for allegedly pelting a female autograph seeker outside Houston’s House of Blues with ammo from an air-gun sure has exploded all over the Internet. Some folks have questions, there’s a smattering of alleged eyewitness accounts, and many just want to add…
BBQ Crab at Floyd’s in Webster
The dog days of summer bring both good news and bad news for Houston seafood lovers. The bad news is that crawfish season traditionally ends around the 4th of July. Also, high summer is not the best time to eat raw oysters as the warmer waters of Galveston Bay tend…
The Smoking Gun Targets Two Houston-Area Internet “Pranksters”
The Smoking Gun website has an extensive, entertaining investigative expose on a group of webheads who pull off expensive pranks nationwide.Posing as authority figures, they have phoned hotel rooms and fast-food restaurants and talked innocent people into doing such things as breaking windows (because of an alleged gas leak) or…
Slide Show: Albums That Went Darker
For most rock acts, the traditional way to deal with success is to rework their lyrics, image and sound to become palatable to a larger audience. Usually this means brightening the subject matter, cleaning up the bad words, softening the sharp edges on those power chords and getting haircuts that…
Houston Breakfasts vs. Austin Breakfasts
This plate of huevos rancheros with bacon and homemade flour tortillas set me back $2.29 at Taqueria Jesus Maria in South Houston. You can breakfast equally well at dozens of other taquerias all over town — Kiko’s on Fulton and Pancho Villa’s on Wilcrest both charge $2.99. Dos Amigos on…
MP3 of the Day: Chase Hamblin
Chase Hamblin’s A Fine Time EP somehow bridges the gap between the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and the late orchestral work of Elliott Smith, without all the suicidal tendencies. The five-song release really is a marvel to listen, sounding like George Martin or Jon Brion themselves were…
Serve 30 Days In Jail To Get Out Of Fighting In Afghanistan? Sounds Like A Bargain
The sentence has come down in the case of Fort Hood soldier Victor Agosto, who has refused a stop-loss deployment to Afghanistan after doing a stint in Iraq.Agosto, an IT specialist, never saw any up-close combat in Iraq, but he says the Afghan War is illegal and hell no, he…
Artist of the Week: The Legendary KO
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. Last week we began the Top 25 Houston…
The Disaster That Is College Station
Via Swamplot, we’ve learned that College Station is a disaster. On purpose.Popular Mechanics offers a fascinating look at a 52-acre site near Aggieville that has been modeled to look like a town in the aftermath of a man-made or natural disaster. Finally, there is Disaster City itself, the urban search-and-rescue…
Uyghur Flavors at Chinese Halal Cuisine
Cumin lamb is my favorite lunch special at Chinese Halal Cuisine on Bellaire, the subject of this week’s Café Review. The pungent aroma of this spicy lamb dish might remind you of Tex-Mex, since cumin, chiles and garlic are major components in Chinese Muslim Uyghur cooking. China’s Xinjiang Province in…
Lonesome Onry and Mean: My Son, the Guitar-Slinger
LOM grew up in the oil patch, made a good living in it, saw the world because of it. So it made sense to want our son, Lance, to grow up to be a petroleum engineer. Alas, it was not to be. Now he’s a guitar player. Two years into…
Get Clicking: Voting Begins On This Year’s Best Of Houston
The time has come to put away childish things and vote in the Best of Houston contest, as the Bible almost says.This is your chance to give some love to your favorite auto mechanic, sushi restaurant, martini, dog park, politician, or countless other aspects of life in the Bayou City.Our…
Sure And You Might Be Holding Off On That Irish Consulate Here
This spring — the day before St. Patrick’s Day, in fact — we wrote about Ireland’s plans to open a consulate in Houston.Today — the day before St. Mary Major Day — we write to say it may not happen after all.The Irish Echo is reporting that the economic downturn…
Aftermath: Atmosphere at Warehouse Live
There are many genres where finding a good artist is kind of like finding a needle in a haystack – possible, but only after a long time of sifting to find exactly what you’re looking for. In hip-hop, there’s an artist for every fan. If you want good beats and…
Stirred and Shaken: Absinthe Brasserie’s Vinyl Sunset
I don’t love the taste of Absinthe, but I do love Absinthe Brasserie (609 Richmond, 713-528-7575). This gig sends me to a lot of bars, but if this isn’t the coolest, coziest, most comfortable cocktail lounge in town, I don’t know what is. From the dim candlelight and all-around warm…
Aftermath: Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers at Rudyard’s
Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers are a sort of Blue Ridge Parkway answer to Los Skarnales, mining Anglo-American roots music and all things Memphis – Sun Records, Beale Street and the Oblivians – to create a turbo-charged, gypsy-flavored, punk-speed rockabilly dynamo with a metric ton of harmonica and a freight-train backbeat…
Houston 101: “Amarillo By Morning,” One More Goddamn Time
Houston 101 is taking a bit of a road trip today in honor of George Strait. Our sister blog Rocks Off is counting down the days until Strait returns here for a non-rodeo appearance, and it put us in mind of the first time we’d heard a Strait song –…
Bayou Body Count: World’s Vaguest Murder
Houston police are looking for a pair of men suspected of stabbing 22-year-old Vicente Ramirez to death early Saturday morning. Police say Ramirez and some friends were at a bar at around 4:30 a.m. at 5901 Hillcroft when they got into a fight with a bunch of unknown men. During…
A Cafe Bites Nibble
Kenny Torprasitkul is one of the spokespeople for the Thai Group, owners of the Thai Cottage restaurants around town, as well as the latest expansion of the Blue Fish House II (2735 Town Center Blvd. N., 281-295-0707). “There are not so many sushi restaurants in Sugar Land,” says Torprasitkul. “Our…
Inquiring Minds: Crown of Thorns’ and the Plasmatics’ Jean Beauvoir
With his distinctive blonde mohawk, Jean Beauvoir struck not just a memorable visual presence in the ’80s, as his hard-charging singing and playing shone first as a member of notorious punks the Plasmatics, then Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul and finally a solo effort, 1986’s Drums Along the…
The Upstart Sports-Talk Station Is Making Some Strides
We’ve been hearing this since 1560 The Game went on the air, but the time is finally coming.Pending one last final approval from the FCC, come some time next month, the station should be broadcasting a booming 15,000-watt signal from Katy that will cover the entire city. The new signal…
Harris County Jail Actually Passes A Surprise Inspection
The Harris County Jail, which for years has been the subject of allegations of poor treatment of inmates, overcrowding and subpar facilities, has gotten a clean bill of health.A surprise re-inspection of the facility by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards found that the jail had fixed all the problems…
Upstairs, Downstairs: The Most Unoriginal SIN
Every so often, when Rocks Off is lucky enough to spend an evening at home, he’ll dig up a pen and paper and start scratching away. So it was Monday night… The longer you’re in this business, the more you learn to appreciate the nights when no one goes out…
TxDot Rethinks Its Plan To Close I-45 This Weekend, But Plan B Isn’t Much Better
Galveston is breathing a sigh of relief today — TxDOT has reconsidered its plan to close all southbound lanes on I-45 this weekend during road maintenance.With just a few more days of summer, losing a weekend’s worth of business would be a blow to the island’s already weakened economy. But…
Commuter Rail From Galveston And Hempstead By 2012!! Well, Maybe
The Citizens Transportation Coalition is currently giddy with dreams of 90 MPH commuter trains speeding from Galveston and down 290 into the city…possibly by 2012, which sounds like the far future but is only three years away. There hasn’t been much public movement on commuter rail since the HGAC’s study…
This Week’s No Reservations: Street Food
This week’s “Street Food” episode of No Reservations was kind of phoned in. The only new footage was of Anthony Bourdain wandering around New York City eating a hot dog and pondering aloud — the other scenes were cut from previous episodes. Rather than being presented regionally, the food was…
MP3 of the Day: Tontons
One of the best things to happen to Houston so far this summer will take place over at Eleanor Tinsley park: Free Press Summer Fest. To get in the right mood, this week Rocks Off is featuring a different local Summer Fest artist each day. Today, fresh from the whirl…
Pretty Vacant: The Trouble With Houston’s (Newly Award-Winning) Skyline
Forbes Traveler has a new list up — called alternately “the 13 greatest urban silhouettes” and “the world’s most stunning city skylines.”Here is what makes a skyline great, according to the article: It has to be more than merely memorable, it must have some exceptional characteristics: It not only should…
The Stampede Towards Buffalo Market
H-E-B is opening yet another new concept store in Houston, after finding success here with Central Market, H-E-B Pantry, Mi Tienda and the vast new 129,000-square-foot H-E-B at Bunker Hill and I-10. Buffalo Market, so called for its location along Buffalo Speedway at Bissonnet, will have its grand opening tomorrow –…
Bayou Body Count: There Actually Is An Ax-Murderer On The Loose
Did Houston police officer R.G. Gardiner shoot John Barnes on Saturday evening unnecessarily?The police department says no. The official version goes that Gardiner, who was working an off-duty security job at the Woodland Hills Village Apartments at 2139 Lake Hills Drive, saw Barnes and a woman arguing outside their home…
Getting High on Empanadas and Yerba Mate
The banana, Ghirardelli chocolate chip and dulce de leche empanada at Original Marini’s Empanadas is a crowd pleaser. And everybody loves the apple Gabriella empanada with chunks of apples, dulce de leche and cream cheese too. But my favorite, the fig, cheese and walnut empanada, is a complex, not too…
Bayou Beat: Three Fantastic on NPR, Beyonce Leads MTV Noms, Rocks Off Seeking Intern, More Live Nation Deals, etc.
Congratulations to Houston’s Three Fantastic, whose “Hot Summer Day” was chosen as NPR’s “Song of the Day” Wednesday. Comparing it to “one of those half-remembered Sugar Ray hits from a decade ago,” NPR’s David Browne is a little taken aback by the band’s idea of a “glorious summer day”: “As…
Asking for Method Man’s Autograph? That’s a Shooting
When Mary Anderson of Fort Bend County allegedly asked rapper Method Man for an autograph after a show last November at Houston’s House of Blues, she claims she got a different kind of signature: A wound in the stomach from a pellet gun.Anderson is suing Method Man, more formally known as…
George Strait Week, Part 1: Sad, Angry George
Note: All this week, Rocks Off is previewing George Strait’s first Houston show in several years by looking at different aspects of King Cowboy’s catalog. A few months back, when Morrissey played Jones Hall, we were asking ourselves if there was an artist out there – a Texas artist, namely…
Keep Your Fingers Crossed — Now We’re Down To Only Four Predicted Hurricanes
The pattern seems to be holding up — in the year after getting hit by a major storm, when you’re all tense and on edge for hurricane season — you get a break.The Colorado State University storm forecasters (Motto: Why Do We Care About Hurricanes In Colorado?) have once again…
Late Night Scene: Katz’s Deli
I know Katz’s really plays up the 24-hour schedule — even the logo declares that Katz’s Never Kloses — but walking in just before midnight, I wasn’t expecting a hostess or a 10-minute wait to be seated. The place almost feels like a suburban chain restaurant, with a calibrated kookiness…
A Three-Hour Council Meeting On BARC Achieves…About What You’d Expect, Unfortunately
The biggest surprise during yesterday’s City Council Committee on Human Services and Technology meeting on BARC was not that it was three hours of meaningless bureaucratic babble — Hair Balls had $50 on that — but that the ghost of Dante Alighieri showed up. “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here!” he…
Ask a Rapper: Yung Chill
The hip-hop world is a less than sensible place – lots of times, you’re even required to clarify when bad means bad and when bad means good – so once a week we’re going to get with a rapper and ask them to explain things. Have something you always wanted…
The Ten Least Intimidating Athletes In Houston History
There have been some tough guys in Houston sports history — native sons George Foreman, Nolan Ryan, and Roger Clemens (even if you factor in his chemically-aided roid rage) — all come to mind. Anybody can rattle off a list of ten of those guys — and we might just…
Where Are We Eating?
Last week’s Where Are We Eating was very nearly a no-hitter, although someone eventually guessed the right answer (the Renaissance Festival; never said it wouldn’t be tricky). Let’s see if you have better luck with this week’s entry. Leave your guess in the comments section below…
Lonesome Onry and Mean: The Disturbing Ballad of Bob Woodruff, Part 2
Note: Read Part 1 here. In 1994, Bob Woodruff was a hot Nashville property. He was New Jersey rocker who suddenly began to pour out great country songs, which lead to a deal with Asylum Records in Nashville and a well-received album, Dreams and Saturday Nights. But Woodruff eventually left…
The Music of HBO’s True Blood: Episodes 6 and 7
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. Though we’re picking up midway…
Some Aeros Miscellania, Including Cheerleaders
Just thought I would share a little Houston Aeros hockey news today — for some reason, I can’t get into football yet, but I’m fully up on all hockey. I can’t explain it…okay, yes I can. I got to watch the tryouts for the Aeros cheerleaders, the Aero Dynamics, on…
No One Cooks In Houston Anymore…Or Do They?
Michael Pollan’s latest piece in this past Sunday’s New York Times Magazine has once again proven to do what Pollan’s work does best: incite furious discussion among food lovers, food writers and food professionals. Best known for his books The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto, the…
Houston 101: Rice University’s Twisted, Tangled Birth
Rice University’s foundation story is amazingly checkered and includes spousal double-dealing, a secret will, a lengthy court battle, and finally, murder. A murder committed by the butler, no less, and one involving many of Houston’s first families. Dominick Dunne would love this one… William Marsh Rice arrived in malarial Houston…
Distant Early Warning: Band of Heathens, Glen Campbell, Mastodon, Thursday, etc.
The Academy Is…, The Secret Handshake, Set Your Goals, Mayday Parade: Thu., Oct. 22. Warehouse Live. All Time Low, Hey Monday, We The Kings, Friday Night Boys: Wed., Oct. 28. House of Blues. Band of Heathens (CD Release Show): Fri., Sept. 11. Warehouse Live. Brand New: Sat., Oct. 31. Verizon…
Why Does TxDOT Hate Tuna Does Vegas? (We Mean Besides The Usual Reasons)
Hey all you Tuna Does Vegas fans — TxDOT has a surprise for you. Seems the state department of transportation has decided to close all southbound lanes on I-45 this weekend, meaning those of you with tickets for opening night should leave around noon on Thursday in order to make the…
An ICE Round-Up Of Sex Offenders Reaps Rewards
Illegal Alien Sex Offenders is not, as you might imagine, the latest half-assed proto-surfpunk band out of Alief. Instead its the prize caught in a weeklong Houston-area sweep by the feds.The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency announced late Monday afternoon the results of that sweep — 25 foreign-born sex offenders…
Metro Also Getting Some Of That Stimulus Funding That HPD Missed
Last week we told you how the police force of Milo, Maine (Motto: “Such As It Is”) was receiving more stimulus funds than HPD. Admittedly easy to do, since HPD was getting zero stimulus funds.Now the snub gets worse: Metro will be feeding at the trough that is blocked to…
Weekend Video Roundup: The HPMAs, Katy Perry and John Mellencamp
Video by Kim Douglass Video by Kim Douglass…
Hard To Believe, But Texas Is Fouling Up The Process Of Distributing Food-Stamp Relief
It’s taking longer for people to get their food stamps these days, and that’s because so many people are trying to get food stamps. (INSTEAD OF GETTING A FREAKING JOB, as KTRH listeners are no doubt saying after reading that sentence.)Two civil-rights groups have sued the Texas Health & Human…
Taco Truck Secrets
I stopped at the Fast Taco truck on Fondren just north of Bellaire to get a pork taco the other day. While I was looking in the window watching the proprietor cook, I noticed a pan on a hot plate full of something that looked interesting. “What’s that?” I asked…
MP3 of the Day: Muhammidali
All this week, Rocks Off’s daily MP3 will spotlight the best and brightest of the local bands gracing this weekend’s two-day Free Press Summer Fest indie blowout at Eleanor Tinsley Park. Free Press Houston has assembled quite the lineup, with out-of-towners like Of Montreal, Broken Social Scene and Prince Paul…
The Beginning Of The End For Wilshire Village
Photos by Blake WhitakerIt looks like Wilshire Village, that strange, 1940s apartment complex on West Alabama and Dulavy, is finally facing the wrecking ball. Based on what we’ve observed so far, the demolition is still in the foreplay stages — a little sidewalk-breakin’, some strategically blown-out windows (safety first!), sleepy-looking…
Turning the Screw: Surreall, Asher & Cudi, Eminem vs. Mariah, Slum Village, Young Jeezy, Ghostface, Nas, DJ Hero, Guerilla Maab, etc.
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: “#1 Dame in the Game,” Surreall Wire To Wire Kid Cudi continues his rapid ascension to stardom, scores gig…
Feeling The Sweet Flow Of Freedom With Sean Hannity
Photo by Pete Vonder HaarConservative radio/TV host Sean Hannity began hosting his “Freedom Concert” series, benefiting Oliver North’s Freedom Alliance Scholarship Fund for the children of soldiers killed or disabled in action, back in 2003. Last Saturday the 2009 incarnation kicked off at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, boasting a…
Aftermath: De La Soul at House of Blues
“Hey, how you doin’? Sorry you can’t get through. But leave your name, and your number, and I’ll get back to you.” If you know where that came from, you might be worth your weight in hip-hop. In Aftermath’s mind, De La Soul is made up of three killers. Posdnuos,…
Obscure Wine Grapes: Fiano and Greco
The Greco grape, sometimes known as Trebianno, is thought to have been planted in Southern Italy by the Greeks at the beginning of recorded history. It’s now called Greco di Tufo after the town of Tufo in Southern Italy. Some historians believe that the other white wine varietals of Southern…
God Enters The Journalism Business
The Waco Tribune Herald is now operating under new ownership, having been sold by the Cox newspaper chain to the Clifton Robinson family.The first edition under the Robinsons came out yesterday, and there was at least one noticeable change: The front page now includes the slogan “In God We Trust.”In…
Aftermath: Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Sunday night’s Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Bob Dylan gig out at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion was an exhibition for an artist in his comfortable twilight, another on the cusp of a new revolution and the last one stoically fighting the violent currents of the wake he created nearly six…
Make It Stop: Now DPS Is Messing With Our Inspection Stickers
First they came for the driver’s licenses. Then they came for the license plates.Now, the DPS’s March to Mediocrity continues with…inspection stickers.Texas inspection stickers have been pretty low-key since they’ve been invented, but no more. Now they will feature a cowboy on a bucking bronco, because….because….that somehow has something to…
$13 at Asia Market
Where: Asia Market, 1010 W Cavalcade St., 713-863-7074 What $13 gets you: Thai food should leave you full, refreshed and feeling like you got way more than you paid for. Thirteen bucks at Asia Market gets you clear sinuses and more than enough food for two. Best served from tiny…
Aftermath: Katy Perry at Verizon Wireless Theater
Katy Perry kissed a girl. She liked it, and now she’s a huge pop star. If things broke the same way for boys, Aftermath would have been a huge pop star for the past 19, 20 years. But we’re not bitter. After bailing on two previously scheduled Houston shows -…
Houston’s Best (And Possibly Only) Olympic Luger Makes A Comeback
Ruben Gonzalez, a three-time Olympic luger, had already come out of retirement twice. It didn’t take much to inspire him to do it again. Last year was the 20th anniversary of his first Olympics, the 1988 Calgary games. Which got him thinking: What if he could do it one last…
Aftermath: Thee Armada at Warehouse Live
Few bands make being hip look so, well, hip, as Thee Armada, Houston’s addition to this breed of Urbanely Outfitted musicians. Opening the set with “We Will Rock You,” the quintet’s intent was made plain from the beginning: they intended to rock, no more and no less. Saturday at Warehouse…
Snackshot: Parisian Treats
This week’s sugary Snackshot comes to us courtesy of Gary R. Wise and Maison Burdisso: From the photographer’s description: “Maison Burdisso Parisian MacaronsAt Farmer’s Market every Saturday3701 Travis StreetHouston TX 77002″…
And Lo, A Rookie Shall Lead Them
Just when the Astros were looking their most desperate, just as they were teetering on the verge of collapse after losing four straight games and six of the last nine, just as the team’s two best pitchers had been beset by injuries that caused them to leave games early, one…
Aftermath: Jimmy Webb at the Dosey Doe Coffeehouse
Jimmy Webb was a one-man hitmaking machine back in the 1960s, cranking out an incredible number of long-remembered songs in a three-year period. He’s never replicated that success (possibly no one could), but he’s continued to write songs, musicals, a book and tour with a one-man show. He brought that…
Houston’s Own Professor Gates Incident, Except With Homeless People
It is not against the law to feed the homeless. Nor does this require a permit. Deputy T. McGilbray of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office was apparently unaware of this during his patrol on July 19, when he interrupted a local church group’s weekly Sunday afternoon homeless outreach in James…
Social Distortion: Declare Your Love In Five Easy Steps On the Internets
Uh oh. You’ve got “Amazed” on repeat. You’re in a positively radiant mood on Monday mornings, even before inserting your caffeine IV drip. Your tongue has never tasted a sweeter fruit than his kiss. Vomit! Wait, whoops. Guess who’s in loooooooove? You are, you are! You know what that means?…
Houston’s Most Overrated Restaurants
With Cafe Annie ending its nearly 30 year reign this month, Houstonians will have one less default restaurant to turn to when someone asks for a recommendation for a “nice meal” (“nice meal” being keywords for “I want to go somewhere fancy and try to impress one or more people,…
Aftermath: Asher Roth and Kid Cudi (and Bun B) at House of Blues
8:18 p.m.: Walking in, Pac Div, a serviceable hip-hop trio from L.A., is just finishing up their set. They’re cool. They make fun of some guy for wearing a Fubu jersey. We automatically like them for it. 8:21 p.m.: There are two hipster-rap fans in here, one close to 13,…
Texas Traveler: Chappell Hill
If you decide to head up to Lavenderfest, you might be wondering what else you can do to make your drive worthwhile. It turns out that Chappell Hill, home of Lavenderfest, is one of the most interesting almost-ghost towns in the Houston area. Once, it was one of the largest…
Joe Lopez Is Ready for White Linen Night
Joe Lopez says he used to have an inferiority complex. That’s hard to believe when you consider that the now outspoken San Antonio-based artist took on the Gallo wine company — and won! Gallo in English is a family surname. Gallo is Spanish means rooster. Lopez found the rooster image…
Yet Another Twisted Tale From BARC
When BARC volunteer Nela Brown accused a kennel attendant with a long criminal history of punching a puppy June 9, she assumed the matter would be investigated and the man would be dealt with accordingly. After all, when another volunteer, Shelby Kibodeaux, simply said he heard what sounded like animal abuse at the facility…
Things to Do This Weekend If You’re (Almost) Broke
Friday Newly crowned Best Indie Rock winners Spain Colored Orange bring their florid psych-pop to the Contemporary Arts Museum’s monthly Steel Lounge Underground, with Gracie Chavez and a showdown between Sasha Braverman and Henry Chow. 8 p.m., free. Houston industrial fiend Mike Terror menaces at under-new-management Alief rocker refuge The…
This Week in Deliciousness
Welcome back to the weekly round-up here at Eating Our Words, where we’re such food dorks, every time one of us gets sunburned the rest of us giggle about the Maillard reaction.To start the week off, J.C. Reid handed out a lovely comprehensive guide to Roman pizza and its nearest…
Last Call For Art: Two Great Musicals, Expertly Done
Two of the season’s best stage productions close this weekend, The Phantom of the Opera by Broadway Across America and The Producers at Masquerade Theatre. Make sure you see at least one of them.First is Phantom. This is the Broadway touring company, of course. (The show arrived in Houston with…
He Said She Said: A Stripper Soundtrack, Part 2
You can leave your hat on…but get the rest of that kit off fast. The ladies don’t mess around when it comes to superficially hot, oiled-up dudes (of questionable sexuality, but does that really matter?) getting naked on the stage at La Bare. But because the musical content at places…
Upcoming Events
Photo by WayTru White linen is ruling the night this weekend, as the Heights throws its annual White Linen Night bash on Saturday, August 1. The free event is billed as “sultry, steamy, exotic, and artfully provocative” which is PR-speak for “come sweat your ass off during Houston’s hottest time…
That Hyped Program To Fix Broadway Boulevard Apartments Didn’t Fix Broadway Boulevard Apartments
Someone asked us the other day what happened to all that grant money that was supposed to renovate apartment complexes along Broadway Boulevard and give the area a much-needed face lift. He was driving down the street and said it looked like not a single property had been fixed up…
He Said She Said: A Stripper Soundtrack
Rocks Off has a naked lady fetish. It’s shameful to admit. We really like seeing naked chicks. It’s been something we have dealt with since we were four years old and started sneaking into the women’s dressing room when our Mom would go clothes shopping. It’s not so cute today,…
Passengers!! Get Ready To Have Your Private Parts Ogled Or Laughed At!!
Bush Intercontinental is one of three airports to get the latest in imaging equipment that leaves damn few questions unanswered about what passengers look like under all those clothes.A new-generation “backscatter” machine, along with an improved “millimeter wave” machine, are coming to Terminal E in the near future, the Transportation…
Friday Night Noise: Satin Hooks and Newagehillbilly
Satin Hooks “Trinity School Road”: Houston’s Satin Hooks are a noise-punk band in the same sense that Liar-era Jesus Lizard and Incesticide/Bleach-era Nirvana once were: torture-slurred, aggrevied vocals, gunk-gummed stop-and-start guitars that wanna beat you bloody while sneaking an earworm melody in under all the crunchy grit. The whole thing’s…
Houston: One Tough Town for Noodles
Tho Lam, a waiter at Pho One on Westheimer at Wilcrest, told me his life story the other day. Tho works for his parents Thamh Lam and Kim Oanh Vu who own the place. The name of the restaurant is a wordplay on his mom’s middle name. Kim Oanh Vu…
TEA Releases Further Details On School Rankings
The Texas Education Agency has released the 2009 school rankings — let the talk of how schools are gaming the system begin!!Results are searchable by district, by category, by all kinds of things.The 12 HISD schools that have been ranked “unacceptable”:High Schools — Jones, Kashmere, Lee, Sterling, Westbury, Worthing and…
Cutout Bin: Rae Bourbon, Let Me Tell You About My Operation
[Ed. Note: In our humble opinion, this is the best post we’ve ever had on Rocks Off. Period.] Rae Bourbon Let Me Tell You About My Operation (UTC Records, 1954) One of the most jaw-dropping album covers in history is courtesy of one of the 20th century’s oddest, most interesting,…
It’s 100 Degrees: Let The Two-A-Day High School Football Practices Start!
Two-a-day football practices are scheduled to start next week at high schools in the Houston area, and, as always, the oppressive heat is cause for concern. Twenty-nine high school players nationally have died from heat stroke in the last 15 years, according to the Annual Survey of Football Injury Research,…
Inquiring Minds: Pop Princess Katy Perry
They say man can’t exist on indie-rock and metal alone, or something like that. Rocks Off firmly agrees, so when we hear good mainstream pop we ride that horse for all it’s worth. That’s why a little over a year ago, when Katy Perry hit with her single “Ur So…
A Cuban Cortadita on a Dog Day Afternoon
I stopped into a Cuban restaurant called Conga and ordered a café cortadita and a glass of ice water yesterday afternoon. Conga is located on Richmond in a shopping center with a bunch of Columbian restaurants including the very popular rotisserie chicken stand called Dodo. There is also a Cuban…
Halliburton Corruption: The Gift That Keeps On Giving
Earlier this year, Halliburton agreed to pay nearly $560 million in fines to the federal government to end an investigation into its former subsidiary, KBR, and its involvement in bribing Nigerian officials to get construction contracts. It was reportedly the largest fine ever paid by a U.S. company in a…
Five Spot: J-Dawg, Z-Ro’s Lyrical Match (Seriously)
Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we’ll examine a recent bit of music news and, sometimes awkwardly, tie it to a bit of Houston rap. It’s five videos and occasional cussing. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. You know, prior to the three seconds of gunshots that unwound all the good…
HISD’s Rankings Improve, As Promised Yesterday
HISD announced yesterday they had set a record for the percentage of its schools ranked “exemplary” or “recognized” by the state, and the official release of the information today backed up the claim.Last year 57 percent of the district’s schools were included in those two categories; this year it’s 73…
The Gloom Starts To Gather For The Astros
With the MLB non-waiver trade deadline fast approaching, the Houston Astros are a listing ship quickly going under. The Astros just lost three of four games to the Chicago Cubs and have gone from surging toward first place to trying to hold off the Milwaukee Brewers for third place.The latest…
New Smashburger to Make Food Bank Donations
The burger import from Denver, Smashburger, opened its new location in West University this week. The 2,150 square foot restaurant at 5520 Buffalo Speedway seats a maximum of 96 diners. To celebrate this latest bit of good fortune for the company that cooks its 100 percent fresh not frozen Angus beef…
Aftermath: The Houston Press Music Awards Ceremony
As Maureen McGovern once sang, there’s got to be a morning after. And it’s about as pleasant as you imagine it is. It’s not even that Rocks Off is hung over (much), it’s more that after Thursday night’s Houston Press Music Awards ceremony, we literally left it all on the…
Conference USA’s Media Day Perhaps Not As Smooth As It Could Have Been
“Media days” used to be a big thing in college football; reporters would fly in to town on a pre-determined day before the season and interview coaches and players. In some of the lower-echelon conferences, schools would gather in a central place to make it easier for reporters.Then came financial…
The 2009 Houston Press Music Award Winners
Best Local CD/LP: Bun B, UGK for Life Best Local EP/7-inch: Wild Moccasins, Microscopic Metronomes Best Local Song: Mechanical Boy, “She Does” Best New Act: Roky Moon & BOLT Songwriter: B L A C K I E Local Musician of the Year: Little Joe Washington Best Guitarist: Little Joe Washington…
A Chat with Mike Sammons of 13 Celsius
To some, a bartender is just a server with something to lean on. But Mike Sammons is an example of how, with passion and creativity, the job can be so much more. “I started doing this to make money, but I was really good at it because I liked it,”…
Houston 101: You Knew We Would Have To Do This One — Liberty Hall
Liberty Hall, by the 1970s, had somewhat survived its time as a church and an American Legion hall to become probably the hippest rock club in the city.Comfortably seedy, the Hall hosted legends like the Velvet Underground, Gram Parsons (with Neil Young and Linda Ronstadt sitting in), the Ramones and…
HPMA: Rocks Off Presents Awards to Whoever’s Left
10:09 p.m.: Like a proud momma when she sees her baby fly for the first time, that’s what this is watching both Chris and Craig present awards to Alvin Community College’s own Lost Fidelity, we’re proud of them as well.10:10 p.m.: Best local song of the year belongs to Mechanical…
HPMA: We Ain’t Done Yet: Winners Roky Moon & BOLT, Sean Reefer & the Resin Valley Boys, Kam, Bun B and Spain Colored Orange
Ben Wesley is killing with a song that, according to his good buddy Cornbreadd, he wrote two days ago. It just keeps building and building on itself, spreading its wings rather than collapsing under its own weight. Wesley started out with a guitar and a bass strapped to him, hunched…
HPMA: Guess What? More Winners: Sideshow Tramps, Homopolice & A Dream Asleep, DJ Sun
Well, Little Joe didn’t sit in with the Flamin’ Hellcats, but Scarface sure did. Dude’s got some serious Chuck Berry mojo going on. Who knew?Best Tribute Band: Beetle. Thanking a multitude of Houston music royalty. Beetle really is a sight to behold, and about a minute fraction of the cost…
HPMA: We Have Even More Winners: Los Skarnales, KPFT, Ryan Scroggins, Little Joe Washington
No performer, but here’s presenter Hailey Frances of Channel 39. She’s pretty.Best Latin Contemporary: Los Skarnales. That trophy case has got to be getting pretty crowded at this point.Best Radio Station: KPFT. Another snippy acceptance speech. “We don’t have a university backing us up. We don’t have a church backing…
HPMA: We Have Some Winners: Geoffrey Muller, D.R.U.M., Speakerboxx, Wild Moccasins, Los Pistoleros
Groovy, groovy acoustic reggae from Ryan Scroggins & the Trenchtown Texans, featuring Sideshow Tramps’ Geoffrey Muller, plus Pat Kelly banging on a couple of 4X4s. Singing about people watching “that old devil box.” We guess if they’re watching on Channel 39, it’s OK. For tonight.So far, our host Johnny Bravo…
HPMA: We Have Some Winners: Fat Tony, Cactus Music, Swishahouse, Nick Cooper, Kristine Mills
Born Liars injected some scuzzy rawk n’ roll to the festivities after we were dressed for not repping the zydeco scene. It’s really amazing how fast yet how together the Borns really are live. Equal parts MC5 and The Clash. Here come some more awards, kids…. Best Underground Hip-Hop: Fat…
HPMA: We Have Some Winners: Little Joe Washington, Cornbreadd, Flying Fish Sailors
Umbrella Man got the HPMAs off to a rousing start with some heel-kicking, toe-tapping zydeco gospel – after they cleared off the cables so hobbled singer Kam could get to center stage on her Rascal-like scooter. Then the first round of winners was announced… Best Folk: Flying Fish Sailors. FFS’…
Indian Borsch at Indika
Indika continues to establish its reputation as one of the most innovative Indian restaurants in the country. Its beet soup is one of the best bowls of vegetarian soup I’ve ever had. It looks like classic Russian borsch, but is made with coconut milk and garbanzo beans and comes with…
Tonight: All the HPMA Coverage You Can Handle
Only a few more hours until this year’s Houston Press Music Awards winners will be announced at Warehouse Live. There’s still time for you to head over to Momentum Audi (2315 Richmond) to pick up tickets; doors open to the public at 7:30 p.m. Performing tonight are HPMA nominees Kam,…
Lonesome Onry and Mean: Blacktop Gypsy and Shurman
Two fine bands who don’t come through much are playing just blocks apart tonight. Dallas’s Blacktop Gypsy will be knocking the audience out with their amazing harmonies and the virtuosity of fiddler Heather Stalling (wife of Max Stalling) and former Lake Jackson resident Rodney Pyeatt. Stalling was raised in a…
Food Fight: Battle Milkshake
When putting out the request earlier this week for the best milkshake in town, we were confronted with a curious question from commenter Dr. Ricky: “Forgive me, but what constitutes a milkshake? Versus say a smoothie? Do we count licuados or sinh in this?” An interesting question, for sure, as…
HISD To Announce It’s Done Better Than Ever In State Rankings
HISD has broken its record for schools ranked as “exemplary” or “recognized,” spokesman Norm Uhl says.Last year 57 percent of its 296 schools achieved that ranking; this year 70 percent of its schools have.”This is one for the HISD history books and a highlight for me as I end my…
Rick Perry Deserves Some Kicks, For Sure
Via Wonkette, we learn that the man they call “Shoe Pervert Rick Perry” has a new Flickr group, and Perry’s blog backs the claim up.It’s “Kicks For Rick,” and the idea (for some reason), is to send in pictures of your favorite shoes adorned with Rick Perry stickers, or something…
$7 at The Kitchen Soul Food
Where: The Kitchen Soul Food, 9381 Richmond, 713-977-2333 What $7 gets you: A bowl of chicken and homemade dumplings in a peppery gravy with a huge hunk of sweet cornbread on the side. The steam table also features melt-in-your-mouth oxtails, fork tender smothered pork chops, a falling-apart pepper steak, and…
Houston Band (Finally) Makes Rolling Stone
Thanks to Classic Rock Bob Ruggiero for passing along the following bit of happy news. In today’s edition of Rolling Stone’s “Rock and Roll Daily” blog, the first band listed in the “Hype Monitor” section is none other than Houston’s own listenlisten. The Hype Monitor got hip to Hymns from…
Channel 39’s Anchor Wants You To Watch Her (Doing The News, Possibly)
For a couple of weeks now, commuters on the Loop near Meyerland have been seeing a billboard featuring a lovely looking black woman leaning seductively into the camera, a come-hither look on her face, with the caption “Watch me at 9.” Her autographed first name just increases the intimate intensity.The…
My Top 5 Summer Beers
In the winter, a cold beer is a nice thing to drink with a sandwich. In the Texas summer, a cold beer is a necessity. It is a cure for the malaise brought on by too many days without a fucking break from this heat — the short term solution…
Stairways To (Foreclosed) Heaven
It’s tough having a McMansion these days. The economy, the a/c bills for cooling uselessly overwhelming foyers, it all adds up.But when times were booming, people loved their McMansions. And because no one actually wants to be accused of living in a McMansion, developers and designers doll them up with…
John Mayer Is Full of Crap
Something about John Mayer just gets under Rocks Off’s skin. We’ll admit there was a time he made us believe our body was a wonderland, and yes, we’ve even wanted to “run through the halls of our high school and scream at the top of our lungs.” But no more…
Chef Chat: David Luna of Shade
David Luna helms the kitchen as executive chef at Shade (250 W. 19th St., in the Heights), which was named top New American restaurant in Texas by the Zagat survey. Who were your cooking inspirations?Funny you should start with that question. My grandmother’s funeral was today and she was definitely…
Guy Wins $350,000 At The World Series Of Poker, Remains (In) Humble
Humble resident Jonathan Tamayo says his mother didn’t approve when he started gambling online a few years ago, but after winning $352,832 in the World Series of Poker Main Event in Las Vegas earlier this month, he says, “she warmed up to it.” The 23-year-old hasn’t had the need to use his…
The H-Town Countdown: Setting the Table
Roughly 84,000 rap albums have been released in Houston since 1989. For the next six months, we’ll be counting down the 25 best of all time every Thursday. Got a problem with the list? Shove it. Just kidding. Friendship. Email it to sheaserrano@gmail.com. For the last few weeks we have…
Recession Or Not, Pasadena’s Getting Some New Theater
Nobody told the Red Door Theater Company there was a recession going on. The plucky theater troupe launched their group earlier this year in, of all theater-starved places, Pasadena. With true Judy Garland/Mickey Rooney/”Let’s Put on a Show” spunk, Artistic Director Josh Jordon, Company Manager Tiffany Blair and Managing Director…
$13 at Bowl
Where: Bowl, 607 Richmond, 832-582-7218 What $13 gets you: A fresh, healthy salad or sandwich that makes you never want to bring your lunch again. The cheerful, inviting interior of this unfortunately out-of-the-way lunch spot is like the office canteen you always dreamed of. Close enough to downtown and the…
Houston Music Is More Than Just Wallpaper
The block of music-related businesses at 3700 Main known as the Island – Continental Club, Sig’s Lagoon, Big Top, etc. – will soon have some new neighbors. The Island’s owners are currently remodeling the building due north of the Continental, a former wallpaper store, into a coffee shop and poster…
The Astros And The Freedom Of Speech
Athletes aren’t exactly known as the brightest of people, especially baseball players. A recent Wall Street Journal report shows that of the current players on MLB rosters, there are only 26 college graduates (and that total includes managers like law school graduate Tony La Russa).So when one hears them make…
Houston 101: Where Comedy Greats Got Their Start
In the late 1970s, the explosion of stand-up comedy that eventually led to every half0sized burg having a strip-mall Laff Pit or Jokey McGags, complete with a bare-brick background, had yet to happen.Stand-up clubs outside of LA and New York were few and far between. That started to change in…
Dessert Gallery’s Luscious Lemon Cake
If a food isn’t labeled “luscious,” why bother eating it? Sara Brook of the Dessert Gallery, whose flagship store recently moved to a new location at Richmond and Kirby, shared her recipe for Luscious Lemon Cake. The three yellow cake layers are dampened with lemon syrup, lemon curd and frosting…
MP3 of the Day: H-Town Underground All-Stars
We heard a rumor bubble up a while ago about how a couple of the Houston Press Best Underground Hip-Hop nominees were supposed to be working on a group track together. There was even supposed to be a co-sign from Bun B worked in there somewhere. The names rumored to…
Kevin Nealon’s New Film Looks Like Absolute Crap And I Mean Crap!
Who greenlit Aliens in the Attic? I mean, honestly, who? What film exec got tanked on margaritas at La Casa de Enchiladas and said, yes, let’s make this film about aliens and a suburban family with Kevin Nealon as the put-upon Pop?I thought we were in a recession. Shouldn’t it…
“La Cosa Nostra”
Saying something new about an iconic piece of art is nearly impossible, but Tierney Malone succeeds in the Godfather-inspired exhibit “La Cosa Nostra.” Malone, who’s been a serious fan of the first two parts of the saga for 20 years, began to pay attention to the signs — advertisements, real…
The Magic Flute
The New York Metropolitan Opera’s The Magic Flute is back — on screen, at least. This is an abridged, English-language version of Mozart’s masterpiece put together especially for family audiences, with Julia Taymor (of The Lion King fame) in the director’s chair. The bright, colorful production swoops audiences into a…
Game 6
Writing a blockbuster movie that mixes baseball and Broadway ain’t easy. Just ask dark, fatalistic postmodern author Don DeLillo (Underworld, Falling Man), who wrote Game 6. The film features the exceptional talents of Michael Keaton, Robert Downey Jr., Bebe Neuwirth and Catherine O’Hara. Keaton plays a superstar Broadway playwright who’s…
“Friends”
The exhibit “Friends” is brought to you by Tim Kerr and his, well, friends. “I have always liked their work, but that really doesn’t matter,” says Kerr, curator/participating artist, who is showing in Houston for the first time. “What matters is you and your reaction.” Begging a response will be…
Target Free First Sunday
It’s all about colors at today’s Target Free First Sunday. There will be screenings of the classic family film The Red Balloon and the animated Indian tale Sita Sings the Blues, along with lots of art projects designed to teach kids how to identify and create colors (red + yellow…
Over the Hedge
Parents are counting down the days until school starts, but kids are hoping to stretch the summer out as long as possible. Helping the kids keep the fun going is today’s screening of the animated Over the Hedge. The story of a group of forest animals who wake up from…
George Lopez
Comedian George Lopez has had to look for new material since George W. Bush left office (“Fuck that puto!”). He seems to have found some in white Americans: “While you were out learning Sudoku, we were taking over the country.” Don’t think that’s funny? Well, somebody does. Forbes named Lopez…
Houston Shakespeare Festival
This year’s Houston Shakespeare Festival features two “very entertaining shows for the summer,” says Brandy Robichau, associate director of community relations for the University of Houston School of Theatre & Dance. First is Twelfth Night, one of Big Will’s most beloved comedies. Remember Viola and Sebastian, the twins who get…
Ghostbusters
Sure, it doesn’t have the special effects of, say, a Star Wars, and the plot’s slightly thinner than your average David Mamet flick, but Ghostbusters is fun all the same. Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd toting proton guns and chasing ghosts all over New York — what’s not to like?…
Murder by the Book: Jack Kerley
“Instead of researching meat products and eyewear and whatnot,” writes author Jack Kerley on his blog, referring to his 20 years as an advertising copywriter, “I research serial killers and dysfunctional minds.” It’s a trade-off not everyone would be willing to make, but it’s worked for Kerley, who just published…
Ceremony
Ceremony is “very abstract and ambiguous,” says Horse Head Theatre Artistic Director Kevin Holden. “I don’t envy the task that you have to write a summary of it.” We’ll try. Horse Head, Houston’s latest theater troupe, begins each run with a cocktail reception/paganish ritual dance party. The event is meant…
H-Town Sneaker Summit
Sexy lines, vibrant colors, dynamic designs — the footwear at the H-Town Sneaker Summit is about much more than providing a pad between your sole and the sidewalk. The intensity of the shoe love at this biannual event is almost enough to make an outsider feel a little shabby. But…
Circo Comedia
Montreal magicians Jean Saucier (juggler, cyclist, acrobat) and Patrick Côté (clown, drummer, roller skater) perform their signature mix of magic, comedy and daredevil stunts in Circo Comedia. Watch for the Magic Box trick, always a highlight. In a play on the Man in a Box illusion, Côté puts Saucier in…
UniverSoul Circus
Houston has seen several circus shows this summer. Each has its own flavor, but only UniverSoul Circus features an all-minority cast. There’s Trinity 3 (foot jugglers from Ethiopia and China), Twisted Soul (contortionists from Guinea) and the Rough Riders (horse riders from Gabon). Everything’s overseen by Maggie Shirley Lee Mae…
Menil Summer Movies in the Park: High Noon
Westerns aren’t usual fare for the Aurora Picture Show, but for a classic like High Noon, Aurora will make an exception. Today’s screening is part of the Menil Summer Movies in the Park series, a collaboration between the two organizations. If you’re thinking the 1952 Western might be a bit…
White Linen Night
Barely four years old, White Linen Night is already double its original size. More than 30,000 visitors are expected for today’s street fair/art show/outdoor concert. “This year there are around 100 businesses participating, and we’ve added an entertainment stage,” says Karen Mann, one of the organizers. Two pre-parties and an…
Cape No. 7
You’ve seen it hundreds of times – against all odds, adorable misfits make good. Let director Wei Te-Sheng convince you how such a tired plotline can be made fresh in the film Cape No. 7. Charming and utterly enjoyable, the 2008 Taiwanese blockbuster shows scenes of six mismatched small-town musicians…
The Andrews Brothers
You’ve heard of the Andrews Sisters? Now meet The Andrews Brothers, four brothers working as stagehands for a USO show in the South Pacific during WWII. When the Andrews Sisters are quarantined with chicken pox, the boys don wigs and high heels and take their place. It’s a lighthearted bit…
Last Easter
Any play that works Irving Berlin, the incomparable Baroque painter Caravaggio and Judy Garland all into the plot needs to be seen. Such is the case with prolific English playwright Bryony Lavery’s Last Easter. Presented by Mildred’s Umbrella Theater Company, the show follows lighting designer June, who comments and directs…
“One Must be Absolutely Modern” Curator Talk
Lan Haggo, manager for Rudolph Projects ArtScan Gallery and curator of its most recent show, “One Must be Absolutely Modern,” gives a Curator Talk today about the free-wheeling exhibit. The works are all sculptural pieces by Houston artists, but that’s where the similarity ends. Press materials explain, “The show is…
Houston Young Playwrights Exchange (HYPE)
Think teens are only about texting and television? If the subjects of the six plays to be staged this weekend at the Houston Young Playwrights Exchange (HYPE) are any indication, Houston’s teens, at least, have far weightier issues on the brain. Throughout the summer, the pros at the Alley Theatre…
Kiss Me Deadly
Lines like, “I don’t care what you do to me, Mike, just do it fast,” have kept audiences coming back for more Mickey Spillane for 60 years. Kiss Me Deadly, showing today at Domy Books’ Thursday Movie Nights, curated by the folks at Film Monitor, doesn’t disappoint. The 1955 film…
Kiki Melendez’s Hot Tamales Live
The comedians of Kiki Melendez’s Hot Tamales Live tackle a variety of subjects, including the earnest assimilation of new immigrants (“My father’s name is Tony — it’s short for Mohammad”), older women dating much, much younger men (“I don’t care, I’m willing to go to jail behind your ass”), and…
Hal Sparks
You’ve seen comedian/actor Hal Sparks on E!’s Talk Soup and Showtime’s Queer as Folk. Now see him onstage at the Improv. Sparks’s routines are more a running commentary about pop culture than a string of punch lines, so expect some comedic insights into the latest doings of the country’s movers…
Roundwall Rumble Skateboard Contest
Local kids get a chance to shine at today’s Roundwall Rumble Skateboard Contest, an open-call competition. “You can expect to see a lot of airs, carving, grinding and plants,” says Michael Niemann, one of the event’s organizers. “We’re expecting about 100 kids. It’s all very fast and action-packed. Spectators can…
Leave Your Genre at the Door
Outdoor and multi-venue festivals aside, Leave Your Genre at the Door is Houston’s premier musical buffet under one roof. As the name suggests, the annual event brings together local artists from across the musical spectrum to prick up some unfamiliar ears and hopefully win some new fans — although given…
Washington Ave. Revisited
The cold cured salmon at Catalan came with a duck egg on top. The fish was cured with Tabasco mash, the fermented pepper residue left over after Tabasco sauce is bottled. The cure gave the salmon a sharp tang and a hint of heat. I visited Catalan with Bill Addison,…
Thee Armada
Too many new acts marketed to the 19-and-under sect sound like they didn’t make the final cut for High School Musical. This is a big world — those of us who no longer need our friend’s older brother to buy us cigarettes and alcohol can survive without Zac/Jonas/Cyrus impostors plaguing…
Peter Case benefit
Even if you don’t know who Peter Case is, you know Peter Case. His first band, the Nerves, was in the same ’70s Bay Area power-pop/punk scene as the Nuns (Alejandro Escovedo) and the Dils (Rank and File), and had “Hanging on the Telephone” snatched up by Blondie on 1978’s…
Candelari’s Pizzeria
“I grew up in the Bellaire-West U-Rice area, and Albert Candelari was my grandfather,” says Michael May, the owner and founder of Candelari’s Pizzeria (2617 W. Holcombe, 713-662-2825). “We were looking for somewhere close by to move the original location, which used to be on Bissonnet. We needed good parking…
Jimmy Webb
Oklahoman Jimmy Webb is unanimously acknowledged as one of only a handful of living songwriting geniuses, with an amazing string of hits made all the more amazing by the breadth and depth of the artists who have performed his work. Glen Campbell had poppy mega-hits with Webb’s inventive ballads “By…
Double-Stuffed at Sabine River Cafe
That’s how you’ll feel after you eat the double-stuffed crabmeat casserole ($15.99) at Sabine River Cafe (10001 Westheimer, 713-334-2353). A casserole dish is layered with a bread stuffing, crabmeat and an au gratin topping made of a béchamel-like sauce mixed with cheddar cheese. It’s then baked in a brick oven,…
Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp
The irony of Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp touring minor-league ballparks — though Sunday’s Woodlands stop is the only major-league shed on the route — is as rich as their combined estates. It’s not like these Hall of Famers are headed for the farm anytime soon. With 2009’s Together Through Life, Dylan…
The Dynasty
Standing along the railing inside Club Roxy (5351 W. Alabama), an exotic dancer — here in an entirely non-stripping capacity — calls into question the taste of another female club-goer’s attire. “I can’t believe she wore that,” that sort of thing. As far as irony goes, a stripper calling out…
Atmosphere
When some people hear the word “atmosphere,” they think of blending in rather than standing out, no originality — beige, to put it lightly. All of these things go against what Atmosphere represents. Born a white guy in Minneapolis, MC Slug uses this potential disadvantage to his benefit, making quite…
A Bronx Tale: Black soldier can fight in Iraq, can’t get into village club
Spaced City By John Nova Lomax The weekend visit to Houston had been going well enough for Army Sergeant Mohamed Sesay. Now stationed at Killeen’s Fort Hood, he’d been back in the States for less than a week, after serving for more than a year at Camp Bucca prison in…
Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers
Few bands have chosen a moniker more evocative than Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers. While their name’s adjectival end may originally have been wishful thinking, its nominative counterpart has turned that into a self-fulfilling prophecy. As you may have gathered, Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers exude honky-tonk. Just being in the same…
Graffiti, English vs Spanish, Butter Pecan and Quinceañeras
Dear Mexican, Why do Mexicans at construction sites always draw a dick and vagina on the interiors of porta-potties? They sure are not as poetic as they are artistic. Then you got the white boy reply, “Here I sit flexing a…” You should know the rest. Original Schreck in Houston…
The Katy Perry Experiment
I had this awesome plan. It was called “The Katy Perry Experiment,” and the plan was to listen to nothing but the aforementioned pop tart until my head exploded. The plan was to start with the recently released record that Columbia rejected back in the early ’00s, move on to her…
Love in the Time of Leprosy: The Critter Connection
Along with humans, only one other creature on earth is susceptible to leprosy: the nine-banded armadillo. Leprosy thrives in cool conditions, and the armadillo’s 93° F body temperature is ideal. “That is a primary source of infection for our native Texan patients,” says Dr. Terry Williams of the Houston Hansen’s…
Love in the Time of Leprosy: Leprosy Lives On
Today, leprosy seems both antiquated and exotic, a disease if not extinct, then certainly foreign to the Houston area. According to dermatologist Dr. Terry Williams of the Houston Hansen’s Disease Clinic, it is none of those things. About one person a month in the Greater Houston area is diagnosed with…
It’s a Wacky Life
After devoting his first two films as director, The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up, to getting laid and having kids, respectively, Judd Apatow brings the circle of life to a close with Funny People, which stars Adam Sandler as George Simmons, a popular, Sandler-esque movie star diagnosed with a rare…
$timulating Show
In response to the demise of artist fellowships by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1997, Artadia was founded in San Francisco by investment banker and art collector Christopher E. Vroom to take up the slack and provide artists with unrestricted awards and support. In 2003, Artadia added Houston…
Man to Man
Lynn Shelton’s Humpday, a sexual sitcom, opens with a pair of breeders in bed. A youngish married couple, Ben (mumblecordeon Mark Duplass) and Anna (Alycia Delmore), confess that they’re too tired to procreate that night and then confess their mutual relief. As if in response, the doorbell rings at 2…
Missing the Mexican
Editor’s note: The Houston Press did not cancel Ask a Mexican. For space reasons, we have moved it to www.houstonpress.com. Popular column: Please understand that you have greatly underestimated the popularity of Gustavo Arellano’s Ask a Mexican column. Many Houstonians of various ethnicities look forward to the weekly chuckles provided…
That Other Rumble in the Jungle
“When you bad,” boasts the young and beautiful, piss-and-vinegar-filled Muhammad Ali early in the documentary Soul Power, “you can do what you wanna do.” The film, which takes too long to get to the meat of its matter, but captivates once it does, is an addendum to Leon Gast’s Oscar-winning…
Capsule Art Reviews: “Existed: Leonardo Drew,” “Perspectives 166: Torsten Slama,” “Toil and Trouble”
“Existed: Leonardo Drew” This exhibition, on view at the Blaffer Gallery and curated by director Claudia Schmuckli, presents a mid-career survey of Leonardo Drew’s work. The artist’s aesthetic is influenced by the junk he played with as a kid in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Even when he builds things new, he artificially…
Fresh Producers
It’s not only the big things that Masquerade Theatre gets right in its deliriously entertaining production of Mel Brooks’s politically incorrect musical extravaganza The Producers (2001) — it gets all the throwaways right, too. Might this be the best show Masquerade has ever done? The big things include the impeccable…
Capsule Stage Reviews: Andrews Brothers, Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, The Phantom of the Opera, Ps and Qs: the ABCs of Manners
Andrews Brothers If there’s a king of jukebox musicals, surely it’s Roger Bean from Milwaukee Rep, who’s created at least nine compilation theater pieces for his home company. The premise is simple, if not altogether easy to do — gather tunes from the past that everyone knows or will fondly…
Five Hour Energy
Five hours is not a long time. It is if you’re driving from Houston to Texarkana or Uvalde, maybe. But when hopscotching all over downtown trying to take in as much of the Houston Press Music Awards showcase as you can until your feet and your ears cry uncle, those…
COOL OFF WITH HUGO’S MALINCHE
Last week, I found myself sitting in my car angling the a/c vents so they would shoot down my shorts. What can I say, it’s effing hot. When it’s this blazing and you don’t have a pool, your outdoor options are few: (a) fill your trash can with ice and…
Asher Roth
Being a privileged white guy from the Philly suburbs doesn’t disqualify Asher Roth from legitimate hip-hop MC status — not being able to spin an interesting yarn does. The Scooter Braun-championed overnight sensation’s debut, Asleep in the Bread Aisle, has little to say, other than that Roth occasionally likes rapping…
Leaving L.A.
Mike Stinson hasn’t played much in the past month. He’s been packing 11 years of accumulated belongings, selling some of his stuff — especially his drums — and making a U-Haul trailer move to Houston. “Man, I haven’t had a whole month without a gig since 2001,” Stinson says as…
Love in the Time of Leprosy
Everybody thought college would be a breeze for José Ramirez. A starter on his high school football team, he was voted most popular in his senior class of 1966, and he had a pretty girlfriend named Magdalena Santos, who was voted second-most popular in her class. In addition to his…
