These Woman Just Can’t Stop (Allegedly) Giving Illegal Butt Jobs
Argiform, a soft-tissue filler material also called polyacrylamide hydrogel, isn’t the classiest thing to use to stay looking young and supple, but it does appear to be the favorite product of back-alley beauty clinics. Maria Lorena Teran and her daughter Camille Urgiles have been charged multiple times for allegedly administering…
Houston Spaceport, Still in Planning Stages, Has Its First Customer
If you thought trying to get app-based transportation approved here in Houston was tough, it’ll be interesting to see how smoothly it goes developing a plan for commercial space flight. Space travel is higher on the list, we think, especially since a project — a planned public-private partnership, according to…
Reality Bites: Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
There are a million reality shows on the naked television. We’re going to watch them all, one at a time. Like most people, I’ve eaten at restaurants. As luck would have it, I’ve also been to several of the eateries featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. I recall meeting the…
Ever Wanted to Go Vegetarian? Now’s the Time as Beef, Pork Prices Soar
Thanks to a drought across much of the major cattle-ranching states and a deadly pig virus, we may soon be doing what those pesky Chick-fil-A cows are always encouraging on the billboards: “Eat mor chikin.” Or veggies. Or tofu. The United States Department of Agriculture reports that beef prices are…
This Week in Food Blogs: Uni Revolution and Pink Tacos
Hank On Food: Hank attended the Goose Island Preview at Hay Merchant recently and taste-tested a few beers from the brewery. He enjoyed the Sofie, which he says tastes of citrus (even though it is a Belgian-style Saison), as well as the Rasselbock, a dark wheat ale with hints of…
Five New (& Easy!) Sides for Your Easter Meal
Whether it be a lavish brunch or a potluck dinner, we love a good Easter Sunday meal. Unfortunately, the same deadbeat dishes seem to make an appearance year after year. This time around, we’re giving the usual suspects (think scalloped potatoes and buttered peas) a bit of a makeover. Here…
The Importance of Being Earnest Is Oscar Wilde at His Best
The set-up: The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde’s glittering comic bauble, his last play and masterpiece (1895), gleams brighter the older it gets. I challenge anyone to name a funnier play. Classical Theatre Company’s production sets off sparks of its own, but doesn’t quite approach the Tiffany setting this…
TV Has So Many Daddy Issues
(WARNING: Spoilers) Last week saw the conclusion of the fifth season of FX’s most underrated show, Justified, and fans of the program finally got the confession they have been waiting to hear for five years. In an attempt to get the youngest of the Floridian Crowe family, Kendal, to fess…
Make a Classic Southern Dessert: Hummingbird Cake
If you’re from the American South, then there’s a 99 percent chance you have heard of Hummingbird Cake. To me, Hummingbird Cake is like a cross between Pineapple Upside Down Cake and banana bread. When you add the sliced bananas and pineapple chunks to the batter, its texture is much…
Texans Tracker: Texans Have Allegedly Already Decided on Jadeveon Clowney
In previous years, we’d be in the home stretch for NFL Draft season now. Forever, the draft has been in or around the third weekend of April, but for reasons that don’t really matter at this point, the league has moved it to May 8 through May 10. And in…
Breakfasting at Einstein Bros.
Breakfast is the meal I am least likely to eat out. (Brunch, a different story). I’m not usually in the mood to consume a lot of food early in the morning, especially if I am going to go running, which is my usual matutinal practice. Last week I happened to…
100 Creatives 2014: Kaitlyn Stanley, Tattoo Artist
What She Does: Kaitlyn Stanley wanted to do two things with her life. She wanted to draw, and she wanted to hurt people. Luckily, she stumbled into one of the very few professions in the world that will allow you to legally do both of those things simultaneously when she…
’90s Fashion Is Back Just in Time for Festival Season
I took a stroll through one of our friendly neighborhood malls this past weekend – something I don’t do very often since I’m addicted to indie boutiques – and felt like I had been transported 20 years in the past. The H&M looked like the wardrobe trailer from the first…
2014 International Festival Celebrates Australia…But Hold the Vegemite, Please
I’m excited about this year’s International Festival highlighting Australia for two reasons: One, it gives me an excuse to post the music video for Men At Work’s brilliant 1980 song “Land Down Under” (see the next page), and two, I honestly don’t know much about Australian food. Being that the…
Van de Putte Isn’t One of Those Serape-Wearing, Tortilla-Tossing Candidates
Leticia Van de Putte’s experience and what she represents makes her more viable than either of her opponents.
One Writer’s Most Profound Musical Man-Crushes
The Man Crush. It’s what made John Wayne an American icon. When The Duke was riding, it wasn’t entirely acceptable for another man to admit an overwhelming fondness for him or his true grit. But, c’mon — those movie theaters screening his films weren’t exactly teeming with women. Nowadays we…
Five Better Producers for Michael Jackson’s New Album
No one was more disappointed than I was with the fact that producers were deciding to capitalize on unreleased Michael Jackson material with the album Michael just one year after the King of Pop passed away. It was a crass, money-making maneuver, and the album showed it. They’re doing it…
The Everlasting Joys of “Let’s Work Together”
Lonesome Onry and Mean was pondering the greater meaning of all things with the aid of a cold bottle of Thought Elixir when Dwight Yoakam’s version of the old Wilbert Harrison R&B smash “Let’s Work Together” came up in the iPod mix. Harrison’s original has been part of our DJ…
Die Young Never Stray From Their Chosen Path
Less than a year after one of Houston’s best hardcore bands was resurrected upon front man Daniel Albaugh’s return from Philadelphia, Die Young is back with an EP that is short on running time but very long on a peculiar brand of confessional, compelling metalcore. Chosen Path is all you…
The Seven Toughest Pop Songs to Understand
Recently, Rocks Off looked at the most difficult song lyrics to understand in all of music, period. While that was fun, my editor brought it to my attention that virtually all of modern death-metal could qualify for that list. Since the advent of screaming, including metal in a list like…
Rick Perry: The Rise and Fall of a Boy From Paint Creek
Will all of this rich Texas dirt hurt Perry’s 2016 Presidential aspirations?
Hoarders, Trash Keepers, Beware Proposed City Ordinance (UPDATED)
Updated 4/16:The city council approved the ordinance unanimously. As the Houston Chronicle reports: The ordinance, which applies only to apartments, townhomes and condominiums, creates daily fines of up to $500 and clarifies when police can enter a property with a warrant. Original story Last week the Houston City Council presented…
Rice University Does Well by Little Shop of Horrors
The setup: There is nothing little about Little Shop of Horrors, a comedic musical spoof by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, a rock musical about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood and flesh. It made a fortune for its investors,…
H-E-B Debuts Pretzel Croissant
Well, at least they didn’t give it some lame-ass portmanteau. H-E-B’s newest food creation, the “pretzel croissant” is pretty much what the name implies. Though I will say that when I first saw the sign advertising their new product I envisioned a croissant in a pretzel shape, rather than vice-versa…
Awkward Nick Saban Photo Is Pretty Awesome
At its best, a major college athletic department is about synergy. When you compete against the Goliaths of your sport in all sports, teams at a school need to be helping the other teams. All for one, one for all. (Add here whatever other cheesy motivational slogan about togetherness you…
HISD Names New Mascots, Goes With Second Choice at Lamar
When the Houston ISD school board decided to retire some mascot names that it found culturally insensitive, it opened up the naming process to the community, who were invited to submit their top two choices to HISD administration. As is being announced this morning at a 10:30 a.m. press conference,…
Dance Salad Festival 2014: Three Nights of Back-to-Back Highlights
Dance Salad Festival 2014 is a heady mix of brilliant works, in both classical and contemporary styles, by choreographers and dance companies from around the world. Nancy Henderek, the festival’s artistic director, says in a three-night program made up of back-to-back highlights Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s tango-influenced m¡longa stands out. London’s…
Texas Hill Country Cuisine Defined and Made Doable
New Mexican cuisine is a thing. It evokes thoughts of Hatch green chiles and blue corn. California cooking is on the healthy side, with an emphasis on fresh, local ingredients. The Midwest is known for its meat and potatoes, the Gulf Coast its seafood. But when I saw the new…
Texans Defensive Line Coach Bill Kollar Once Wrestled a Bear
When Bill O’Brien was assembling his staff that would lead the Houston Texans into the new post-Kubiak frontier, it was widely assumed he would bring in entirely his own staff, and truth be told, he would’ve been completely justified in doing so. I mean, 2-14 is 2-14. Clean house. Nobody…
Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt Debuts New Samoa-Inspired Flavor
When I first watched The Addams Family ,at age 10, I immediately found a new hero in Wednesday Addams for the way she cleverly turned the tables on a persnickety Girl Scout. I then proceeded to steal this joke and repeat it to people when I was trying to sell…
Insko Lends Time Stands Still Some Tracks
Over at Main Street Theater you can catch some seriously dark excellence in the form of Donald Margulies’s play Time Stands Still, and just to make it even sweeter local band Insko has lent their music to the score. The play follows two journalists played by Sean Patrick Judge and…
Top 10 Easter Candies for Your Basket
The grocery stores are PACKED with Easter candies, and there’s a lot to choose from. You don’t want to make a poor decision when buying some of the worst candies, like Easter candy corn. Seriously? That’s disgusting. Kaitlin Steinberg created her list of the worst Easter candies, and I have…
Flopping Is Probably One of the Greatest Sports Sins of Them All
I got into a semi-argument on air with my SportsRadio 610 cohost, Ted Johnson, the other day. The tiff was about Seattle Seahawk Richard Sherman, and his act in the wake of the NFC Title Game on FOX, when he eviscerated Michael Crabtree in an interview with Erin Andrews and…
Pop Rocks: Airlines Demonstrate How to and How NOT to Do Twitter
Social media is complicated for corporate America. All companies feel the need to be involved in Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the like, but not all of them know exactly what to do. It has led to a lot of missteps, some real triumphs and a bunch of people getting hired…
The Rocks Off 200: Erin Rodgers, the Keys to Glass the Sky
Welcome to The Rocks Off 200, our portrait gallery of the most compelling profiles and personalities in the far-flung Houston music community — a lot more than just musicians, but of course they’re in there too. See the original Rocks Off 100 at this link. Who? Describing Glass the Sky’s…
Doughmaker Doughnuts Joins Houston’s Food Truck Scene
There’s a food truck for just about anything in Houston. Burgers and fries? You bet. Cupcakes and sweets? Heck yeah. Mexican food? Of course! Asian food? Absolutely. Mexican-Asian fusion? No doubt. Doughnuts? Not so much. If there’s one thing the Houston mobile dining scene lacks, it’s breakfast options. More specifically,…
Matt Devine’s Small Metal Works and Christy Rogers’s Experimental Photography Now Showing at Laura Rathe Fine Art
Matt Devine and Christy Rogers are shown in tandem at the Laura Rathe Fine Art Gallery, with no connection between them, except that both are highly contemporary artists, with Devine working with small metal pieces assembled together to form complex, abstract patterns, while Roger uses experimental photographic techniques to achieve…
Rockets Secure Home Court in First Round With Win Over the Spurs
In her first trip to Las Vegas, my wife decided to place her very first sports bet on the Houston Rockets. She and two of her friends put $100 each on the Rockets in their game against Minnesota on Friday night. Any win would net them $190 each and even…
For No. 42: Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?
While most of us are off sweating our taxes today, there is at least one cause for celebration. Today is Jackie Robinson Day, celebrating the anniversary of Robinson’s first taking a major-league baseball field with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. As the first African-American MLB player, Robinson blazed a trail…
The 13 Best Things About Coachella’s First Weekend
Note: The first weekend of Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, has just concluded Sunday (or early Monday) in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly made it through the whole blessed thing, and kindly brought us this recap. Photo by Timothy NorrisRound…
Teachers in Atherton Elementary Testing Scandal Appeal to the TEA Commissioner
The Atherton Elementary teaching scandal entered its next phase Monday when the attorney for the three teachers who Houston ISD trustees voted to terminate last week, filed a petition for review with the state commissioner of education and slung some serious allegations the superintendent’s way. In the document filed by…
The Mammalian Fascism of Peppa Pig
Having a four-year-old I watch a lot of children’s programming. In fact, it’s the only television I do watch these days outside of Doctor Who, and if you want to call Doctor Who a kids’ show I won’t argue with you. It’s fine though. Not every person has managed to…
State Rep. Jason Villalba Pleads Once Again for Sriracha to Bring Operations to Texas
In January, we told you about Texas state representative Jason Villalba and his quest to convince Huy Fong Foods, Inc. to move to our fair state. At that time, complaints from the city of Irwindale, California, where the plant that makes Sriracha is located, threatened to force the company to…
Old Testament Tales That Fit Today’s Musicians
In April 2014, one of the hottest figures in Hollywood is an old-timer called God. He’s the subject of Noah and God’s Not Dead, two films that have somewhat surprisingly charted multimillion-dollar grosses this Easter season. Whether the actors and producers are true believers isn’t the point. Their personal salvation…
The Nine Worst Things About Coachella’s First Weekend
Note: The first weekend of Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, has just concluded Sunday (or early Monday) in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly made it through the whole blessed thing, and kindly brought us this recap. Photo by Timothy NorrisCoachella’s…
Upcoming: Lisa Marie Presley, Marc Anthony, Aerosmith, Slash, Diarrhea Planet, etc.
Aerosmith: With Slash. Mon., August 25, 7:30 p.m., $39.50 TO $155.00. Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, 2005 Lake Robbins Dr., Spring, 281-363-3300. Andy Grammer: Sat., July 12, 7 p.m., $20 to $24. Fitzgerald’s, 2706 White Oak, Houston, 713-862-3838. The Antlers: Mon., July 21, 8 p.m., $15 to $17. Fitzgerald’s, 2706 White…
The 50 Most Beautiful People of Coachella 2014
Note: The first weekend of Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, has just concluded in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly made it through the whole blessed thing, and were kind enough to share their recaps with us. This article is by…
This Little Spring Storm That Hit Us Knocked Out Power for More Than 5,000
If your power went out this afternoon, you weren’t alone. CenterPoint Energy’s outage map was reporting 6,542 customers out by late afternoon, with folks getting restored sometime around 5 p.m., according to a spokesperson. There’s no telling why this cold weather couldn’t keep its ass in winter like it’s supposed…
The Worst Wheel of Fortune Contestant Ever (And He Actually Wins!)
I think there’s a spectrum of intelligence on which most board games fall, with games like Candy Land at one end and games like, say, chess at the other end. Games such as Scrabble and Monopoly fall somewhere in between, probably somewhere to the “chess” side of center. Television game…
Eat and Drink Your Tax Day Woes Away With These Offers
In the United States, April 15 ranks up there as one of the worst days of the year. Tax Day. The day by which everyone must file their individual income tax returns to the federal government. Bye bye, money. In an effort to lessen the blow, many businesses offer freebies…
5 Things: Dash Fall in Inaugural Match
Four months to the day that the Houston Dash were officially announced as the first expansion franchise in the National Women’s Soccer League, they played their inaugural match against the defending champions Portland Thorns. The two MLS-owned franchises kicked off the NWSL season at BBVA Compass Stadium on Saturday night…
Olive and the Bitter Herbs Might Have Been Better if We’d Been Able to See the Ghost
The setup: Playwright Charles Busch’s considerable fame rests on his parodies of film genres, in drag himself, with his Vampire Lesbians of Sodom becoming a five-year off-Broadway hit, opening in 1985 at the Provincetown Playhouse. Another work by him, The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife, opened on Broadway in 2000…
Slick Rick at Warehouse Live, 4/11/2014
Slick Rick Warehouse Live April 11, 2014 Legends don’t need a fancy stage, dazzling lighting or flamboyant dance routines. And they definitely do not need a 20-piece entourage to stand with them onstage doing absolutely nothing. All a legend needs is a little bit of your time and a platform…
Tableside Prime Rib Service and More at Liberty Kitchen & Oysterette
I am always looking at pictures of food. One of my favorite pastimes, it’s the reason why my Twitter and Instagram feeds (and now, my Facebook feed) are constantly crammed with photos of food, and why I spend countless hours mentally drooling over pictures of what people are cooking or…
Game of Thrones: “A Royal Wedding Is Not an Amusement.”
So that happened. In the unlikely event you’re unaware of the events of last night’s episode, I’ll refrain from revealing anything until after the jump. Suffice to say, after the last four episodes of Game of Thrones, I’m willing to add a new item to the list of classic blunders:…
Dish of the Week: Mazel Tov, Potato Kugel
Since today is the first day of Passover, this week’s recipe is an Ashkenazi classic casserole, potato kugel. Kugel is a baked pudding or casserole traditionally served on the Jewish Sabbath or other holidays. Originally puffed and baked in a ring shape, the name of the Yiddish dish likely referenced…
Taxpayers to Pay for Part of “Affluenza” Kid’s Rehab
The parents of Ethan Couch, the 16-year-old Fort Worth-area kid sentenced to probation after killing four people while driving drunk in 2013, will only pay for a fraction of his stay at a state rehab center in Vernon, MyFoxDFW.com reports. Couch drew headlines and ire after a defense expert testified…
Helstar & Venomous Maximus at Fitzgerald’s, 4/12/2014
Helstar, Venomous Maximus, Sanctus Bellum, Termination Force Fitzgerald’s April 12, 2014 The list of local bands that can still fill up Fitzgerald’s more than 30 years after jamming out on their first power chord is a short one. On Saturday night, the metallic warriors in Helstar proved they can still…
Barrage of Lies Means the NFL Draft Is Almost Here
This is where the NFL Draft process really starts to get fun. (This is also where I wish that sarcasm had its own font.) We are only a few weeks away from the 2014 NFL Draft, and maybe it’s because we sit smack dab in the middle of the city…
Eugene O’Neill’s Anna Christie: Seafarers Caught in Strong Emotions
The setup: Eugene O’Neill is one of the towering playwrights in American theater, and this play Anna Christie about seafaring men, and their women on shore, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1922, and a 2011 production in London won the Olivier Award as Best Revival. Despite its credentials, it is…
Lonely Leftovers: Get More From Your Spinach-Artichoke Dip
Someone once told me that it’s not a party without spinach and artichoke dip. Keeping this old adage in mind, I made a batch of the gooey three-dairy dip for my recent housewarming. Only I forgot to take the casserole out of the oven until everybody had filled their bellies…
Fantasy Crime League Update: Aldon Smith Begins What Could Be 49er Surge
If Vegas had put out a big board on Sunday afternoon with a futures bet on “Next San Francisco 49er most likely to be charged with a crime,” the prohibitive favorite would have been quarterback Colin Kaepernick. After all, Kaepernick is under investigation for a “suspicious incident” in Miami where…
Das Rheingold a Stunning Spectacle of Music, Voices and Stagecraft at HGO
The set-up: Well, it’s finally arrived! The “it” in question is, of course, Richard Wagner’s monumental operatic myth, The Ring of the Nibelung. The four-part epic, staged by Houston Grand Opera over a span of four years – one opera per season – is a mammoth undertaking: gigantic orchestra, strenuous…
Fluffy Biscuits, Breakfast Biscuits and People Biscuits
Despite the intended confusion, Nature Valley Breakfast Biscuits are delicious.
Does No Progress in CSN Houston Mediation Effort Really Mean No Progress?
The Houston Astros, Houston Rockets and Comcast gathered before federal district court judge Lynn Hughes on Friday. This wasn’t a hearing, and no judicial orders were handed down. It was, instead, the third mediation session for the parties within the past several weeks. The dispute under mediation is the CSN…
Artist Elena Wortham Digs Deep and Sparkles at d.m. allison gallery
Elena Cusi Wortham was born and raised in Mexico City, but has lived in Houston since 1975. She works in various mixed media, and the current exhibition of her work at the d. m. allison gallery features striking collages, usually with a dominant central image. One work, titled Demolition 2,…
It’s Passover, So I’ve Taste-Tested Manischewitz Sangria for You
True story: I still have Manischewitz left over from the kickass Hanukkah party my fiancé and I threw last year. I say it was kickass because it was. The apartment complex security arrived shortly after dinner, when our game of “drinking dreidel” (we’re still working on a name) got a…
Jeff Bridges & the Abiders at Warehouse Live, 4/12/2014
Jeff Bridges & the Abiders Warehouse Live April 12, 2014 Sometime during Jeff Bridges’ headlining set at Warehouse Live on Saturday night, things just seemed to click. It took a little bit for the band to warm up to the room, and more specifically the room to warm up to…
Top 10 Worst Easter Candies
It’s that glorious time of year once again. Spring has sprung, we’re turning on our air conditioners, and an entire aisle of the grocery store is devoted to sugar-coated, pastel-colored Easter things. If you’re a parent, you’ll likely be heading to said aisle sometime soon to stock up on candy…
Doctor Who: How The Ninth Doctor Became Smaller on the Inside
I was rewatching “The Day of The Doctor” the other day and I’ve come to a very sad conclusion about it. Though I adore what John Hurt did with The War Doctor, the fact is that his very existence has firmly placed the Ninth Doctor in the unenviable position of…
Five Things That Make Houston More Country Than You Think
The most country city in America, according to Estately.com is Fort Worth. Okay, we’ll buy that, but Houston at No. 16? Preposterous. We fell into the “somewhat country” category, a couple of notches above Austin and way below San Antonio, which came in at No. 2. But we’re not going…
Drake Leaks Dates of His Cryptic “Houston Appreciation Weekend”
When he’s not being the nicest rapper ever, Drake tends to surprise fans with random song releases in the wee hours of the morning, cryptic tweets and multiple moments of canoodling with Rihanna. The sad part about the Rihanna thing is that our boy Aubrey is fine and dandy with…
More Cute Coachella Couples Than You Can Shake a Glowstick At
Note: The first weekend of Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, has just concluded in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. This article is by Mary Carreon. Photo by…
Canada’s Rip-Roaring Monster Truck Packs Tons of Furiosity
For this article, this wasn’t supposed to be how Rocks Off interviewed Jeremy Widerman, guitarist/singer for the heavy, heavy Canadian classic rock-inspired band Monster Truck. Widerman was supposed to call from Germany, where the band was wrapping up some European dates before heading to the U.S. and open gigs for…
The Five Best Concerts in Houston This Week: Anvil, Dick Dale, YG, etc.
Debonair Lounge Cafe 4212, April 14 Since approximately Labor Day 2013, the only way to get each week off on a good foot has been at this Museum District oasis of cool. Debonair Lounge has already welcomed a who’s who of Houston’s hottest young hip-hop and R&B performers — this…
Lady L.A. Rockers, Coming Soon Here, Kill It at Coachella
Note: Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, is going on this weekend in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. This article is by Adam Lovinus. Photo by Chris VictorioH-Town…
The Celebrity-Endorsement Scene at Coachella 2014
Note: Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, is going on this weekend in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. This article is by Paul T. Bradley. Perhaps you’ve heard…
Alley Theatre Announces Its 2014-15 Season in Its Home Away From Home at UH
A version of Dracula that hasn’t been seen since the Broadway production in the 1970s , another Horton Foote play featuring Elizabeth Ashley and Hallie Foote, and the return of The Foreigner with company member Jeffrey Bean are all part of the seven-play season that Alley Theatre will be kicking…
Matching Coachella Bands to the Appropriate Drugs
Note: Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, is going on this weekend in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. This article is by Adam Lovinus. Ever since sunshine acid…
Coachella’s Five Funniest Craigslist Casual Encounters
Note: Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, is going on this weekend in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. This one is from OC. Nanette Gonzales/LA WeeklyLooking for loveThere’s…
Meet the Folks Who Come to Coachella for the Sobriety
Note: Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, is going on this weekend in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. This article was written by Mary Carreon. Did you know…
Five Houston Fashion Instagram Accounts That Made Us Say “WOW”
Be honest as soon as you wake up you check it. You want to know how many followers you have and who liked your photos. Instagram has become more than just the place where you see pictures of your friends partying or your favorite celebrity bragging about their $1500 shoes…
BBVA Compass Stadium Finally Gets a Concert, and It’s a Big One
More than two years after opening, BBVA Compass Stadium will finally host its first concert in a little more than two months – and it’s a big one. Earlier this afternoon the stadium and 93.7 The Beat announced they would bring a who’s who of hip-hop and R&B stars to…
Texas Might Avoid Blackouts and Brownouts This Summer
Game of Thrones people like to talk about how “winter is coming” but around here, we all know summer is what you have to be worried about. It’s the time when air conditioning is essential, and also the time when a blackout or brownout may see you AC-less. The rolling…
Got $2K? It’s Not Too Late for Coachella
Note: Coachella, Southern California’s version of FPSF, starts today in the high desert outside Palm Springs. Our friends at LA Weekly and OC Weekly will be there the whole weekend and will be bringing us regular updates. If you don’t have tickets yet for the first weekend of Coachella –…
Rockets Release Greg Smith, Sign Former Longhorn Dexter Pittman
The Houston Rockets’ magic number (combined Rocket wins and Portland losses) to clinch home court in the first round of the playoffs and lock up the fourth seed (and a likely first round tussle with those Trail Blazers) is two. So let’s start there. With four games to go in…
Adam Goldberg Returns as Judge for Big Taste of Houston
On April 13, the second annual Big Taste of Houston benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) Houston will take place at The Corinthian downtown. The annual food extravaganza will feature live music, dancing, free-flowing alcohol and tasting samples from more than 20 of Houston’s best restaurants. Last year’s event was…
What’s in Fashion: Selling Pot for a Prom Dress, Kohl’s Gets Cool, Spanx for Your Eyes
Lots of breaking fashion news hits the interwebs and I don’t want you to miss one bit of it. So, I present some of the biggest headlines each week for your reading pleasure. Click and enjoy!…
Kings of Leon at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, 4/10/2014
Kings of Leon, Local Natives Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion April 10, 2014 Welcome back, Kings of Leon. We had missed you since you skipped out on our last show. While you might’ve been touring pretty relentlessly since your return last year, it was nice to see you back at the…
Kliff Kingsbury Launches the Debate: Which College Football Head Coach Is the Best Dancer? (VIDEO)
Every year, there’s a weeding out process in college football, where the certain percentage of head coaches are cut loose, retire, or move onto other endeavors. The coaching carousel begins spinning and schools that fired their coach generally begin looking for something the opposite of the guy they just let…
Aisha Tyler Says, “Don’t Worry, I’ve Got Jokes”
Actor/comedian Aisha Tyler doesn’t take requests when she’s on stage. “I know people have their favorite jokes so I understand when they ask for something but I’m not a rock band, I don’t do the same thing over and over. I don’t get up and do “Freebird” as an encore…
Five Matzoh Dishes to Help You Survive Passover
Leave the leavened bread at the store, folks; Passover is here. The Jewish holiday observes the biblical story of the Exodus, in which Israelites were freed from Egyptian slavery. The story goes that after the Pharaoh finally released the Children of Israel (ten plagues later), the Israelites had to leave…
Reviews for the Easily Distracted: Oculus
Title: Oculus Another Introspective Art House Flick From WWE Films? If they were smart, they’d have found a way to make the Ultimate Warrior’s ghost the antagonist. Rating Using Random Objects Relevant To The Film: Two-and-a-half Aerosmith albums out of five. Brief Plot Synopsis: Young man released from mental hospital…
“Crimes of Passion” – Inspired Art Show Arrives in Connection With TUTS Underground’s Murder Ballad
Works from 20 local artists will be showcased in a special art exhibit reception connected to the approaching TUTS Underground production of the pop rock opera Murder Ballad. The one-night-only event — a partnership between Texas Art Asylum and Theatre Under the Stars — runs from 5;30 p.m. to 8:30…
Churrascos Reintroduces Diners to Classic Cocktails With a South American Twist
In this week’s cafe review, you can read all about the magnificent meat and tantalizing tres leches at the newest Churrascos restaurant at Gateway Memorial City. However, there’s something else about Churrascos–and, indeed, all the Cordúa restaurants–that should not be overlooked: The drinks. Back in March 2013, James Watkins joined…
This Team MMA Fight Better Be the Wave of UFC’s Future (VIDEO)
Competition for attention on the American sports landscape is fierce. The first tier sports like football, basketball, and baseball dominate with their billion dollar television deals and prime placement on Sportscenter. It’s not easy being on the second tier. Yeah, soccer, golf, and a few others get their occasional day…
The 5 Best Things to Eat or Drink This Weekend: Dunk Eric Sandler
Mixers & Elixirs @ Houston Museum of Natural Science Friday, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. 5555 Hermann Park Drive The Houston Museum of Natural Science will host another Mixers & Elixirs event tonight from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m. Tonight’s theme revolves around the final frontier — space. Listen to…
The Best Pot-Related Jobs in the Cannabis Industry
Hey, so you know how pot is legal in some states, but totally not in Texas? Yeah, well, we’re not only missing out on those fancy tax dollars, but we’re also missing out on some serious business opportunities. When surveying the dismal unemployment numbers, it may seem a thing of…
HISD Trustees Kiss Dodson Elementary Goodbye and Will Never Speak of It Again
The lineup of guest speakers ready to once again argue before the Houston ISD school board that Dodson Elementary should be saved never got their chance Thursday night. In an unexpected move, Houston ISD trustee Harvin Moore made a motion that “the item be tabled indefinitely.” As people throughout the…
Jeff Bridges Abides, in or out of Character
When it comes to music, Jeff Bridges is not some dilettantish actor noodling around with a guitar. Inspired by Bob Dylan and the Beatles, he and a friend would play hootenannys at L.A. clubs like Ledbetter’s while still in high school. Years later, while filming the infamous 1980 western Heaven’s…
Upcoming Events: Weekday Lunch Menu at Saint Arnold Brewery
Saint Arnold Brewery now has a lunch menu , and it’s offered Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. Visit the brewery and order the Saint Arnold Daily Lunch Special for $17.55, which includes the lunch special of the day, two extra courses and beer. Order the Meat…
100 Creatives 2014: Eleazar Galindo Navarro, Retro Video Game Maker
What He Does: If you’re in your 30’s or 40’s and your parents loved you then you probably owned a Super Nintendo because it was literally the result of fun assuming plastic form. The 16-bit era of gaming was a magical, whimsical time, and while I wouldn’t trade The Last…
Openings & Closings: Dirk’s Coffee Ceases to Brew After 15 Years in Business
It’s always sad to see a long-standing restaurant shutter, but, after 15 years, Dirk’s Coffee, formerly Diedrich Coffee, has decided to close its doors. The coffee shop on Montrose Boulevard closed on Tuesday, April 8, according to Eater. Back in 2012, Katharine Shilcutt ranked the Mayan Mocha at Dirk’s Coffee…
Top 5 Things to Do in Houston This Weekend: Cakeless Dancers, Magical Doors, Killer Puppets and More
Fresh off their uplifting arts-for-all children’s program say please and thank you, Hope Stone Dance Company presents i was told there would be cake, one of our choices for Friday. Fans of the video game Portal might have more insight than the average dance-goer about the cake in question. As…
UPDATED: Liberty Hall Founder Michael Condray Recuperating After Brain Surgery
UPDATE (April 11, 2:15 p.m.): According to Lonnie Brantley, Condray will be released from ICU this afternoon. I last saw Michael Condray five years ago at his home outside Porter. I was working on a story about his legendary Houston venue, Liberty Hall, where Bruce Springsteen found his first success…
H-Town Metal Institution Helstar Feathers Its Wicked Nest
Over the past three decades, countless bands, clubs and backpatches have come and gone in the Houston heavy metal scene. But there has always been Helstar. Thirty years after the release of their Combat Records debut, Burning Star, the city’s quintessential power-thrash quintet shreds on, anchored as always by the…
Kyle Hubbard Exits the Rap Game, Head Held High
“I talk to the pastor, I talk to the atheist/ Both of them said to me that life is what you make of it.” — Kyle Hubbard Life is a journey, one where choices sometimes make all the difference, and other times don’t matter for shit. There are times where…
Top 10 Songs to Download While Drunk
Boozy playlists are the very best, better still when they randomly appear on your playlist the day after you’ve knocked back a few beers. Your drunk brain always knows what kind of music the sober you needs. Or most of the time, anyway. Unfortunately, sometimes drunken downloading can be just…
The 10 Best Concerts in Houston This Weekend: Slick Rick, Los Lobos, Celtic Woman, etc.
Slick Rick Warehouse Live, April 11 Arguably the greatest pure storyteller in rap history, UK-born “Slick” Rick Walters first appeared alongside Doug E. Fresh as the tag team responsible for the 1985 touchstones “The Show” and “La Di Da Di.” Great as those songs were, though, he really made his…
Puppetsploitation
The puppeteer scene in Houston is simply amazing, and there’s no better annual showcase for all that talent than Puppetsploitation. The festival, presented by Bobbindoctrin, features live puppet plays and films that range from the creepy to the absolutely hilarious. Carmella Clements and Larkin Elliot debut two shadow-puppet satires at…
i was told there would be cake
Fresh off their uplifting arts-for-all children’s program say please and thank you, Hope Stone Dance Company presents i was told there would be cake. Fans of the video game Portal might have more insight than the average dance-goer about the cake in question. As the catchphrase goes, the cake is…
Japan Festival: The Way of Japan
Get a taste of Japanese culture at the Japan Festival: The Way of Japan. Though modest in scale, it’s a weekend filled with art, music, food and cosplay. The festival features a rare treat, Rakugo artist Katsura Sunshine. Born in Toronto, he is one of only two Westerners ever to…
CounterCurrent Festival
The new CounterCurrent performing and visual arts festival, organized by the University of Houston Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts, is putting a twist on things: A total of 11 performances and installations will be spread out across the city in the festival. Suzanne Bocanegra’s Rerememberer is a violin…
Merry Wives of Windsor
Katy Visual and Performing Arts Center’s Encore Players perform The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare, a comedy of chicanery and planned seductions that go amusingly awry. The wives, who are not only merry but wise as well, turn the tables on the scheming Sir John Falstaff, one of…
Tchaikovsky’s Romeo & Juliet
Conductor Laureate Hans Graf is at the podium for an all-Russian program including Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet. German-Canadian cellist Johannes Moser (seen above) performs Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations. Moser won the top prize in the 2002 Tchaikovsky Competition, as well as a special prize for his interpretation of the Rococo Variations…
My Voice Would Reach You
Filmmaker and visual artist Y. David Chung discusses and screens his documentary Koryo Saram — The Unreliable People as part of My Voice Would Reach You, a festival of visual and performing arts that explore cultural and economic freedom in Asia. Taking its title from Stalin’s designation of Koreans in…
Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour 2014
Mix the world’s most beautiful wild places, adventurous athletes and daring filmmakers and you get the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour 2014. The program includes newly selected short films that capture world-class athletes performing incredible stunts on skis, mountain bikes and hang gliders and in kayaks. We’re talking base-jumping…
University of Houston Moores School of Music Jazz Orchestra: The Great American Songbook
Radio broadcaster Donna McKenzie and Grammy-nominated singer Tianna Hall join the University of Houston Moores School of Music Jazz Orchestra for The Great American Songbook. The concert features such jazz standards as Cole Porter’s “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg’s “Over the Rainbow” and Jerome…
Amber Gallego
Sign-language interpreter Amber Gallego has worked with Snoop Dogg and Kendrick Lamar (her video interpreting Lamar at Lollapalooza has had more than 3.5 million hits). She’s as big a rock star to her viewers as the musicians she interprets. Gallego talks about her unusual career and demonstrates her skills during…
Disney on Ice: Let’s Celebrate
There might be springlike weather outside, but inside NRG Stadium (formerly Reliant Stadium), it’s a winter wonderland at Disney on Ice: Let’s Celebrate. The Disney Princesses, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, Lilo and Stitch and other popular Disney characters take to the ice to celebrate a variety of holidays including…
13th Annual Bellaire Guitar Festival
St. Petersburg native and flamenco virtuoso Grisha Goryachev is the special guest for the 13th Annual Bellaire Guitar Festival. The artist-in-residence for the Bellaire Honors Guitar Orchestra, Goryachev performs each night with the students from the program, as well as at the festival’s finale. Goryachev will play both classical and…
The Miracle Worker
The inspirational story of blind and mute Helen Keller and her teacher, Annie Sullivan, is chronicled in The Miracle Worker, presented by the University of St. Thomas Fine Arts and Drama Department. Pitied and alternately coddled and ignored by her family, Keller is locked in a silent world all her…
Fences
Part of August Wilson’s ten-part Pittsburgh Cycle, the Pulitzer Award-winning drama Fences is being mounted at the University of Houston—Downtown’s O’Kane Theatre. Chronicling the difficult relationship between an African American father and son, Fences is set in the late 1950s. A veteran of the Negro League, the father is a…
Gattaca
The sci-fi film Gattaca was back in the news cycle last year thanks to Senator Rand Paul quoting whole segments of its Wikipedia website description in a speech about abortion he gave at Liberty University (Paul accused pro-choice advocates of supporting eugenics, such as seen in the film). Set in…
The Little Shop of Horrors
Roger Corman directed the 1960 film version of The Little Shop of Horrors. The high-camp, low-budget comedy became a cult classic and spawned the rock musical by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken. (The two men worked on Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid.) Horrors follows the unexpected adventures…
Bubblegum Yum Video
Filmmaker/DJ/arts advocate/general rabble-rouser Stephanie Saint Sanchez leads the Bubblegum Yum Video Jukebox Love Party, a nod to 1960s bubblegum music. Sanchez has curated a showcase of shorts from local filmmakers. The films, each three to eight minutes long, discuss “groovy love” as depicted in bubblegum music (think The Archies and…
Das Rheingold
He’s a god, in fact the ruler of the gods, but he’s got only one eye (he gave the other one up to gain wisdom in a trade that occurred before this opera starts). In Das Rheingold, he’s a rash young man, still far from what Scottish bass-baritone Iain Paterson…
#womenfordance
The disparity in the numbers of male versus female dancemakers continues to confound Marlana Doyle, artistic director of the Houston Metropolitan Dance Company. Rather than simply bemoan the gender inequality she sees, Doyle put together #womenfordance, a program featuring work by five female choreographers. The production includes two world premieres…
Anna Christie
Lisa Schofield directs the Theatre Southwest production of Anna Christie. Eugene O’Neill’s Pulitzer Prize-winning drama chronicles a sailor’s reunion with Anna, the adult daughter he has not seen in 20 years. Her father objects when she becomes involved with another sailor, but both her father and lover are in for…
Prodigal Dad
Stephen Fales was once a devout Mormon missionary…a devout Mormon missionary with homosexual inclinations. That eventually led to his excommunication. A gifted raconteur and actor, Fales turned his life story into Mormon Boy Trilogy, a trio of one-man shows. Theater LaB Houston has already brought us the first two plays,…
I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change
If you’ve ever been in love, you’ll recognize something onstage during the Music Box Musicals production of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. Directed by Jimmy Phillips, the musical comedy revue chronicles the rocky, rocky road to love from the swinging singles scene to pre-wedding-day jitters to dealing with…
100 Favorite Dishes 2014: A Love Letter to Houston Food
When I was preparing to move to Houston nearly a year ago, I heard a lot of apologies from people. “Houston?” they would say, incredulously. “Wow. I’m sorry. Sounds like you’ll be eating a lot of Tex-Mex and steak and nothing else.” I’ll be the first to admit that I…
The Newest Churrascos Is a Satisfying Chip Off the Cordúa Block
There weren’t any steaks like this in Houston 30 years ago. There were trompo and fajitas and filet mignon, but there were no churrasco steaks. Not until the oil business took a hit and a Nicaragua-born man in the shipping industry decided to turn his hobby into a career. In 1988,…
Wadjda Provides a Rare — and Heartbreaking — Look at Life in Riyadh
Like all child protagonists in movies, Wadjda’s Wadjda wants one pure thing so much that the very concept of want shades into need. If this plucky Saudi Arabian girl (played by preteen Waad Mohammed) doesn’t get a bicycle, it seems, some fundamental quality of hers might not survive adolescence. Her yen for small rebellions…
After His New Film on Donald Rumsfeld, Errol Morris Is Tired of Interviewing People
‘I’ve interviewed a lot of nasty characters over the years,” says a cheerful Errol Morris over lunch on a bright Los Angeles day. “I’m a connoisseur of bullshit.” He’s sampled some of the finest: Holocaust deniers, murderers swearing their innocence, a beauty queen who claims she only kidnapped and raped…
Where to Eat in Houston for Easter 2014
On the Menu Some of you may be wondering, “When is Easter?” And I bet those of you who gave something up for Lent know exactly when Easter is (you’ve been counting down the days). Well, this holiday is Sunday, April 20, and the best way to celebrate any weekend…
Rick Perry Is the King of Pay-to-Play
Highlights from Hair Balls Political Animals That quaking and creaking isn’t from the Chilean earthquake; it’s a destructive seismic shift to right-wing extremism and plutocracy in real time with its epicenter in Texas. The rumble began with Attorney General and Texas gubernatorial hopeful Greg Abbott’s new educational model, “Teach the Best and…
The Astros Need New Music, Wu-Tang Clan Doesn’t
Only in Houston The 2013 Houston Astros were beyond bad, the second-worst season ever by a franchise in Major League Baseball’s recorded history. That should give you this article’s frame of reference, which will be long on hope and short on snark. If you want to read a bunch of…
Linguistics and Mexican LoJack
Dear Mexican, Even though throughout the years since I came to the U.S. 20 years ago I have seen it happening with less frequency, the use by Mexicans of the expression ¿Mande? (Command me) has always struck me. I personally see it as a symbolic legacy of submission probably originating…
Capsule Art Reviews: April 10, 2014
“The Age of Impressionism: Great French Paintings from the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute” These days, Impressionist exhibitions are the art museum version of the ballet The Nutcracker: frothy and beautiful, if a little overexposed, and sure to pack ’em in at almost any price. Even though we’ve already…
Capsule Stage Review: April 10, 2014
By the Way, Meet Vera Stark The award-winning playwright Lynn Nottage is as gifted at humor as she is at drama, delivering a sophisticated comedic tour de force that makes fun of Hollywood’s stereotypes of blacks. The lead characters — it’s Hollywood in 1933 — are Gloria Mitchell and her…
