The T Visa Program And A Fatal Crash
In this week’s feature, a man named Steve Morrison was hit in his car and killed by Rosa Villegas-Vatres, a legal immigrant from El Salvador. Villegas-Vatres was allowed to stay here through the T visa program, which was founded about nine years ago by then-Attorney General John Ashcroft as a…
Stopping in El Pupusodromo
We have always been a big fan of businesses that occupy old Taco Bell buildings. It seems like those adobe buildings with the arc windows in front are everywhere. They usually become other restaurants, but we have seen everything from a dentist office to donut shops move in. El Pupusodromo…
Judge Who Reportedly Told Domestic-Violence Defendants Women Had Them “By The Balls” Resigns
County court-at-law judge Reagan Helm has resigned, the Houston Chronicle is reporting; the move comes right before a hearing in which prosecutors sought to remove him from 74 cases because of comments he had made belittling domestic-violence cases.The motion, filed last year by the DAs office, says Helm had a…
Some Late-Afternoon Funk From Johnny “Guitar” Watson
Amid all the Lightnin’ Hopkins talk lately, Rocks Off almost let another local blues milestone get by us. Today would have been Third Ward native Johnny “Guitar” Watson’s 75th birthday. Watson, who passed away in 1996, started out as a piano player and first made his mark in the mid-’50s…
Super Bowl Recipe: Salsa
Over the years we’ve found there is a bit of an art to making a decent salsa. The first few tries, years ago, we would just throw everything in the blender and build from there. But we’ve learned over the years that you start with the tomato and onion, and…
Krabby Patty Sandwich
On the way to Baton Rouge, I hit Lake Charles around noon and decided to take a break. The crab cake burger at Mazen’s Seafood on Prien Lake Road made a decent lunch. The crab cake was a nice blend of crabmeat and seasoned breading served with lettuce, red onion,…
Guitar Zero: Who’s Never Heard “Copperhead Road”?
One of the joys of attempting to learn a new skill at an advanced age is that little nagging concern in the back of your head that makes you wonder how much of a dipshit your instructor thinks you are. My particular sensei – this guy, in case you’d forgotten…
Game Time: National Signing Day, The Creepiest Day In Sports…And I’m Part Of The Problem
It’s all a matter of how you look at it — if you’re a diehard college football fan, then today is December 25. You woke up this morning and ran over to your computer to pull up ESPN’s Recruit Tracker the same way you ran downstairs to see what was…
Vegan’s Orders
We recently ordered a meal from Banh Mi Hoàng (3509 Elgin St.) containing no meat products. We normally would send anything without a bone back to the kitchen, but our vegan accomplice urged us to take the plunge and try a vegan-certified Asian lunch. We had a tofu banh mi…
Bellaire High Students Take First Steps On Road To Godless Communism, Possibly
We guess they didn’t get the memo out at Bellaire High that the USSR is an enemy devoted to selling us the rope with which we’ll hang oursel — wait, what? The Berlin War fell? We won the Cold War? It must not have made TMZ.com, because we don’t remember…
Recovery Has Exorcised Lucky Luciano’s Demons. This Rapper Is Clean.
In the January 5th edition of the Houston Press, you read about a small piece of Lucky Luciano’s life – his addiction to drugs and alcohol and life of pimping strippers. What you didn’t hear about is how he escaped death on Houston’s freeways several times. You didn’t hear about…
Sampler Plate: This Week In Food Blogs
Each week, we put together a sampler plate of the most interesting links from both local and national food blogs. Know a blog we should be paying particular attention to? Leave the address in the comments section below. Houston Wok: David checks out the grand opening of the new Kim…
The Medium Will Be In Houston, Making Connections
If you have a dead relative or loved one you’ve been meaning to talk to, you might want to drop $95 for clairvoyant Allison Dubois’s Family Connections Tour, which hits Houston February 17.Perhaps best known as the basis for the TV show Medium, in which she’s portrayed by Patricia Arquette, DuBois has…
Inquiring Minds: An Hour With The Red Krayola Mastermind Mayo Thompson
Last Friday, Rocks Off had the distinct pleasure of talking to Mayo Thompson, the man behind psychedelic (or not) art-rockers The Red Krayola, whose career spans the early days of Houston label International Artists, the art worlds of New York and Europe in the ’70s, a stint working as a…
Yelapa’s Almuerzo Expresso
The braised lamb taco is one of the best choices on the quick lunch menu at Yelapa Playa Mexicana on Richmond, the subject of this week’s Café review. The “Express Lunch” offers three courses for $12.95. It starts with your choice of a garden salad with mango and chile vinaigrette…
Where The Hou-Dats Will Be For The Super Bowl: Ragin’ Cajun, Big Woodrows Or I-10
There are a ton of New Orleans Saints fans in Houston, and the number grew after Katrina rocked Louisiana.They call themselves “Hou-Dats,” and they are making big plans for Sunday. The two biggest HQs in town for Saints fans: the Ragin’ Cajun on Richmond and the Big Woodrow’s on Chimney…
Artist of the Week: Independent Women and Boss Chicks the Gutta Mamis
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 sheaserrano@gmail.com. Know this: There has never been one female…
Health Dept. Report: 77000-77010 Edition
We like to be systematic around here, to work by the numbers. With that in mind, what follows are the recent highlights (lowlights?) from city health inspections in zip codes 77000-77010. In 77006, Wednesday’s pre-opening inspection at Brennan’s (300 Smith St.) found much fault with, oddly, the re-opening restaurant’s walls…
Get Out Your Hankies For TUTS’ Miss Saigon
Director Bruce Lumpkin is a Houston native bringing Miss Saigon back here for a five-week run with Theatre Under the Stars, after his first successful tour here in 1991. He says some people consider it an anti-war show, but it is that and more. “It’s anti-war but it’s also a…
Great Moments With Mr. Rockefeller: Ray Price, Bobby “Blue” Bland and the Kansas City All-Stars
[Ed. Note: To help spread the word about next Friday’s benefit for the Houston International Festival’s education programs at Rockefeller Hall, featuring Texas Johnny Brown and Marcia Ball, Rocks Off asked iFest director of performing arts and former Houston Chronicle music critic Rick Mitchell to reminisce about the most memorable…
RIP, Sweethearts
This Valentine’s Day, you won’t find the nostalgic Sweethearts of elementary school crushes past. Instead, you’ll find a new, fruitier version of these classic American icons. After 145 years, NECCO has decided to “upgrade” the flavors of its conversation hearts. Here is a list of the new flavors: green apple,…
Lord Save Us: Houston A Finalist For The 2012 GOP Convention
Hotline is reporting that the Republican National Committee has picked four finalists for the 2012 GOP convention, and Houston is one of them.We have to assume that they mean Houston, Texas, so be prepared to face horror.The other finalists are Salt Lake City, Tampa and Phoenix, according to party sources…
Jose Gonsales, 29, Bayou Body Count No. 26
Sure we all like to think of the cops as kind of gullible, but it’s nice to see they didn’t fall for the ol’ “Trust me officers, I didn’t do it, it was the three guys in masks” routine.Police on Tuesday arrested 30-year-old Maria Rangel Garcia De La Paz on…
Lonesome Onry and Mean: Memories of Hank Sr.’s “Kaw-Liga” and “The Old Grey Goose Is Dead”
There is some dispute in LOM’s family about what our first favorite song was, but as best we can determine and agree, it was “Kaw-liga” by Hank Williams. That Native American drumbeat just put my young head on the warpath, and the tempo shift on the chorus always made me…
Five Things To Remember This National Signing Day (Six, If You’re A UT Fan)
Today is the most important off-season day in college football, a momentous and staggeringly significant event that is known as National Signing Day.Today 18-year-olds declare where they will accept scholarships to play football. No other thing that happens today, barring an alien invasion, will be as newsworthy.Five things to remember…
Hot Hungarian Gyulai Kolbasz
An Eastern European friend gave me some Gyulai salami recently. My kids won’t eat it, and neither will my dog. But I love the stuff. It is the hottest salami I have ever encountered. The one I tried is made by Bende Meats, a company just outside of Chicago that…
Idol Beat: How Low Can the Mile High City Go?
Honestly, I found it hard to concentrate on American Idol knowing I was just an hour away from the return of Lost. Admittedly, sometimes it’s hard to concentrate on the show under ordinary circumstances, so this was doubly trying. But I did my best, and I did it for you…
American Idol: How Low Can the Mile High City Go?
Honestly, I found it hard to concentrate on American Idol knowing I was just an hour away from the return of Lost. Admittedly, sometimes it’s hard to concentrate on the show under ordinary circumstances, so this was doubly trying. But I did my best, and I did it for you…
Coogs Hoping For Big Things From Kendrick Washington
One of the main reasons the Cougars have been floundering on the court has been the lack of a consistent, dominating inside presence. When there’s no inside game, it’s not possible for the Cougars to play their preferred fastbreak type of offense.That’s why the recent emergence of freshman Kendrick Washington…
Get Lit: I Am Ozzy by John Michael Osbourne
In the long line of rock and roller autobiographies, there is a tried and true formula. You must always recall your humble troubled beginnings, like Anthony Kiedis did with 2004’s heroin-addled tome Scar Tissue. Or you single-handedly re-write your own already decadent folklore like Motley Crue did (with Neil Strauss’…
Stirred and Shaken: Taps House of Beer’s Pear Pleasure
Certain Washington Avenue bars achieve a state of near-tolerability around the middle of the week, but I still managed to encounter some weekend conduct on a Tuesday trip to Taps House of Beer (5120 Washington Ave., 281-701-4248). I was getting the bartender’s recipe for the vodka-based Pear Pleasure shot he…
I Wanna Be Your Dog (Or Cat): Oh, For A Muse Of Fire (Hydrants)
Animals wind up at the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care for all sorts of reasons. Regular readers know all too well of the existence of douchey owners who surrender cats and dogs for idiotic reasons. But today’s dirty half-dozen are all stray. They’ve been out there in that cruel world…
Insurance Employees Plead Guilty To Living The High Life
Two employees of The Hartford, which the rest of us call The Hartford Insurance Company, pleaded guilty today to charges that they let a Houston attorney entertain the hell out of them in return for helping him make a mint off lawsuits.Rachel Rossow and Frederick Prestage pleaded guilty to conspiracy…
Recipe: Steak Fajita Tortas
On a recent trip to Arandas Bakery, we found ourselves drawn to the large slot in the wall at the back of the store. Out of this wondrous slot pours loaf after loaf of piping hot bolillos. Unable to control ourselves, we loaded up our tray with these 35 cent…
Which Other Local Musical Landmarks Deserve Historical Markers?
Monday’s announcement that the Texas Historical Commission has approved Eric Davis’ proposal for an official state historical marker honoring Sam “Lightnin'” Hopkins is wonderful news, but it’s also only the tip of the iceberg. Plenty of other spots around town, it could be argued, deserve similar recognition. Rocks Off came…
The “Circus Superstar” With The Foul-Smelling Menagerie, Part 1
While Caroline Wedding has only been running the Marion County Humane Society for about three years, she has already been on plenty of animal-cruelty raids, and has helped find better homes for hundreds of dogs, cats and exotic birds. Still, she thinks it’s unlikely she will ever come across something…
Lackluster Lunch at El Mariachi Loco
We’ve been making regular drives lately to the Humble/Kingwood area and have been excited to start chipping away at the local restaurant offerings. In the neighborhood at lunchtime last week, we unfortunately picked a lackluster place to start. El Mariachi Loco in downtown Humble, within sight of U.S. 59 and…
Super H Mart Banchan
Kim chee cucumbers, Korean seaweed salad with sesame oil, and crunchy kim chee radishes are three of my favorite banchan items. Banchan are those little plates of food you get at a Korean restaurant. All three items are available in the extensive banchan refrigerator case at the deluxe Korean supermarket…
Road Trip, Anyone? If You Want To See Nouvelle Vague, You’ll Have To
One more sign that Houston don’t count for jack: Nouvelle Vague is playing Dallas (Feb. 12) and Austin (13th), but no Houston date. Hmmm…where have I heard this story before? NV have been wildly popular in Europe since their eponymous 2004 debut. We first stumbled upon them when we heard…
Man, That Was Going To Be One Laid-Back Jail Stint
If you’re going to be stuck in jail for a while because of a hit-and-run charge, you ought to enjoy the experience, right? That’s certainly the philosophy Anna Sporleder of Friendswood follows. The 30-year-old woman was arrested on the old “failure to stop and give information” charge and was taken…
Wine of the Week: Super Bowl Wines
In honor of Super Bowl Sunday this weekend, we’re continuing to bring you the latest and greatest in Super Bowl-ready wine. Odd Pair has featured Buffalo wings with red wine and nachos with white. Today, Wine of the Week has found two easygoing red wines to pair with just about…
Game Time: Gary Kubiak’s Contract Extension — Move Along, There’s Nothing To See Here
A couple of years in, I’m finally starting to get the hang of this sports talk radio thing. Basically, what you do is you fill four hours a day making issues in the sports world seem as though the fate of mankind rests on the outcome, choose the side which…
SXSW News: Adds Include DEATH, Voivod, Neon Indian, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, Trae Tha Truth and Chamillionaire & Paul Wall, Together Again
This past week a few Houston musicians began getting their dreaded SXSW rejection notices; most notably we heard that Robert Ellis’ entry was not accepted. That’s a tough bullet to take, considering how well his band does on Wednesday night at Mango’s and the quality of his solo album. Either…
Beer and Marijuana Pairing: This Bud’s for You
Reading through a thread at marijuana.com on the subject of pairing marijuana and beverages, I was shocked at the lack of research. Aside from some advice about pairing blunts with malt liquor, and a pretty good shaken margarita recipe that was recommended with “spicy buds,” there was little evidence of…
How To Solve Walden’s Deer Problem: Music Hath Charms To Soothe That Savage Beast
The Montgomery County town of Walden is having a deer problem, the Houston Chronicle reports.And before you get all logical and say “Well, if you’re going to build homes in a forest full of deer, you’re going to have deer problems,” just remember that deer don’t worry too much about…
No, We Didn’t Realize There Were This Many Songs About Groundhog Day, Either
Today is Groundhog Day, and it’s easy to forget – after listening to your co-workers droning “Phil? Phil Connors!?” all day – the reason for this special season. After all, isn’t this day supposed to be about the groundhogs? Trouble is, there’s not a lot of musical material out there…
An Unlikely Winner at the Mushroom Throwdown
The big guns were brought out last night for the fourth — and largest to date — throwdown organized by Jenny Wang and the Houston Chowhounds: the Mushroom Throwdown at Vic & Anthony’s. From the judging panel, which featured Texas Monthly food editor Patricia Sharpe and Houston Chronicle food editor…
DVD Releases: Wanda Sykes Flirts With TMI; Zombies And Jennifer Aniston
Wanda’s Sykes I’ma be Me comedy special hits the shelves today. The performance was filmed after the Emmy Award-winning actress/comedian/ author/talk show host appeared at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner, where she raised a few eyebrows when she cracked on Rush Limbaugh. The conservative commentator had previously said he hoped…
Magnolia City Mixtape: Houston’s Grammy Haul, A Brown Dog Affair, New York Times Lauds Houston Symphony, And A Bunch of New Music
Once we realized what she was singing, Rocks Off was hoping Beyonce would include the “Would she go down on you in a theater?” line when the six-time winner sang Alanis Morrissette’s “You Oughta Know” at Sunday night’s Grammys. She didn’t, and she didn’t drop the f-bomb either (though she…
Your Big Chance To Go All Post-Apocalyptic And Be On TV
Are you yearning to live in a post-apocalyptic world? Live the cheerful, happy-go-lucky life portrayed in The Road?You’re getting your chance. Houston is one of a handful of cities where the producers of the Discovery Channel reality show The Colony are holding open tryouts. They say: A group of eleven…
The Shameless Chef: Barbecue Cheeseburger Pizza
So the Super Bowl is coming up, and unless you live outside the borders of the United States, that’s a pretty big deal. Even people who don’t care anything for football will watch the Super Bowl, and this is the perfect opportunity for you to try out the brand-new Asp…
Ask A Rapper: Candi Redd Discusses Possible Ways to Help Haiti
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 to ask…
Galveston’s Tremont House Survives Ike, Only To Be Flooded By Allegedly Drunk Guests
Can the Tremont House catch a break?The charming hotel down on Galveston’s Strand made it though Ike, if not unscathed at least with its head held high.But its flooding problems weren’t over. An allegedly drunk and disorderly customer at the bar decided to provide a little storm surge of his…
Mochi Ice Cream Balls
I tried some chocolate mochi ice cream at Mikawaya ice cream shop in L.A.’s Japantown. The frozen dessert balls are wrapped in glutinous sweet rice — they taste like ice cream wrapped in chewing gum until the wrapper starts to melt in your mouth. It’s a curious taste sensation, but…
Aeros’ Wade Dubielewicz Is A Travellin’ Man
Houston Aeros goalie Wade Dubielewicz has been all over the place recently. He’s been traveling with the Aeros as they criss-cross the country. He’s been to Minnesota and California with the parent club Minnesota Wild. Saturday night he backed-up the Wild in San Jose, then hopped a flight back to…
Great Moments in Douchebaggotry: Michael Jackson Takes Paul McCartney’s Advice… In the Douchiest Way Possible
Great Moments in Douchebaggery is brought to you by Rocks Off’s upcoming Washington Shore party, Thursday, February 11, at the Washington Avenue Drinkery. All types of douchebags are encouraged to attend. In the early ’80s, Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson were good friends. They recorded two successful duets together, “Say…
Texas Traveler: The South Rim and Emory Peak
Ed. Note: This is the fifth part of a series on traveling to Big Bend National Park. Click back to read posts 1, 2, 3 and 4. Saturday morning we wake up with a thin layer of frost on our tents. Texas Traveler’s Christmas gift to herself was a mummy-style…
Chef Chat, Part 2: Morgan Weber
Yesterday we talked to Morgan Weber about the launch of his Revival Meats company. Today we find out where in town he likes to eat cured meats. Eating Our Words: You talked about how charcuterie is a good way to taste the nuances in pork. Where are good examples of…
Distant Early Warning: The Dead Weather, Frightened Rabbit, Hockey, Jeff Beck, Moe Bandy, Michael Buble, etc.
Dave Matthews Band, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears: Fri., Sept. 10. Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. The Dead Weather: Sat., May 1. House of Blues. Dillinger Escape Plan, Darkest Hour, Iwrestledabearonce, Animals As Leaders: Sun., March 21, 6:30 p.m. Meridian. Dollyrockers, Mooseknuckle, Dead End Cowboys: Fri., Feb. 26. Mango’s. Evergreen…
The EPA Might Actually Listen To People At Today’s Hearing On Ozone Levels
The Environmental Protection Agency is in the midst of deciding exactly how low it is going to decrease the national smog pollution limit, otherwise known as ozone, and clean-air advocates want you to do your part to help ensure a cleaner, healthier Houston.All day today, the EPA is hosting a…
Where Are We Drinking?
There’s nothing wrong with a little day-drinking, especially when the weather is cool and a sun-drenched room or patio is calling your name. Think you know where we’re drinking this week? Leave your best guess in the comments section below…
Aftermath: Off Night for Girls Is Neither, for Openers or Audience
Girls first came to Aftermath’s attention this fall when we watched the raunchy cut of their video for the song “Lust for Life.” No, not that “Lust for Life,” and the video is extremely NSFW unless you work at a place where one dude uses another dude’s wang as a…
Mayor Annise Parker On Worldwide Reaction To Her Win, A Dynamo Stadium & Ziggy’s
Hair Balls had a sit-down yesterday with Mayor Annise Parker — come on, it’s already one month into her term and there’s still traffic at rush hour!!!!A lot of the talk was dedicated to future items we’re working on here at the Press, but there were some other scattered stuff…
Pop Rocks: Win A Couples Retreat DVD, And Discover The Five Best Paradise-Gone-Bad Movies
A tropical retreat sounds pretty good right about now, as Houston begins yet another in a seemingly unending series of cold (well, relatively), rainy weeks. Unfortunately, in this economy the odds are slim that any of you can afford to just drop everything and jet off to Antigua for a…
It’s Really Happening: Lightnin’ Hopkims Historical Marker On The Way
Yes, you read that headline correctly. Today the Texas Historical Commission announced that Eric Davis’ petition to honor Houston blues icon Sam “Lightnin'” Hopkins with an official state historical marker has been approved. Along with 243 others. Took them long enough. “I am completely thrilled,” says Davis. “I felt really…
Former Houston Press Writer Appears on Kitchen Nightmares
Brian McManus used to write about food and music for the Houston Press. And just about every time he wrote something for us, he got a reaction. Once, he received a bouquet of black roses, wrapped up with a package of assorted fried foods. It was from the people at…
Toyota And Unintended Acceleration: A Lawsuit And A Car Show
Toyota has announced during the last several months a series of recalls to fix the problem of its cars accelerating out of control. Last week, in perhaps the most dramatic move, the company said it would stop selling eight models of cars and trucks. Each of those fixes involved floor…
Memo to Huffington Post: Please Stop Ripping Us Off, Douchebags
[UPDATE UPDATE: Our original article has now been attributed and linked on both Huffington Post and headbutler.com.] As anyone with a television knows, the new Jeff Bridges movie Crazy Heart is all the rage. In fact, it is such a rage that even the pseudo-hipsters at Huffington Post are aware…
Machacado con Huevos
The Northern Mexican dish, machacado con huevos, is one of my favorite breakfasts. Chacho’s Tacos on Westheimer serves it on a taco, and it makes an awesome breakfast. “Machacado” mean “shredded” in Spanish. The name refers to the fact that the traditional carne seca (dried beef) of Monterrey is pulverized…
East Texan Has Car Stolen While Being Chased By Police
Last Thursday night was not a good one for East Texan Robert Leinyuy Yangeh. First, the 23-year-old former college basketball player got in to some kind of run-in with the police. Just what happened is not specified, but perhaps the po-po’s were intrigued by his tough talk on his Myspace…
HISD’s Terry Grier: Agent Provocateur
Prediction: In a year, Superintendent Terry Grier will either be a celebrated hero, or the scapegoat for pretty much of everything that goes wrong in the Houston Independent School District.As Hair Balls said before, there doesn’t seem to be a go-slow switch in Grier’s arsenal. This past weekend at the…
Coast and Stunta Wreck the Mike at Jet, After Zilla Gets Us Drunk At Toc and We Stupidly Stand Up Carolyn Rodriguez
Screw Washington Avenue clubs and their selective admittance. We’d rather hit up downtown and get felt up for guns or knives and listen to some hard-core hip-hop. 11:15 p.m., Saturday: We met up with V-Zilla at Toc-Bar because his studio, or as he puts it, “the dungeon,” is nestled underneath…
Crawfish Season? Yes and No
Several people have asked me if crawfish season has started. There are signs popping up all over town advertising crawfish, so I guess the answer is “yes.” At Baja, the new oyster bar and seafood restaurant on Westheimer where Tommy’s Steakhouse used to be, crawfish were recently selling for more…
Game Time: Matt Schaub Gets The Coolest Participation Ribbon Ever
Let me preface the next several hundred words with this — I am a Matt Schaub fan. I think the guy had a phenomenal 2009 season and deserved to be at the Pro Bowl this weekend long before Tom Brady and Phillip Rivers pulled out of the game with injuries…
A Sweet Showdown
The third annual Saint Arnold One Pot Showdown took place at the brewery’s brand-new location on Sunday afternoon, a day which closely resembled last year’s Showdown in cold weather and cheerful competitiveness but not in food. While many of last year’s competitors entered chilis, stews and gumbos — all pretty…
It’s Really Happening: Lightnin’ Hopkins Historical Marker on the Way
Yes, you read that headline correctly. Today the Texas Historical Commission announced that Eric Davis’ petition to honor Houston blues icon Sam “Lightnin'” Hopkins with an official state historical marker has been approved. Along with 243 others. Took them long enough. “I am completely thrilled,” says Davis. “I felt really…
“iPad”? Really, Steve? Here We Go Again
Steve, Steve, Steve, Sigh. Stevie – darling, sugar, baby! We hate to say it, but we’ve had this conversation with you before. Remember your pussy fetish and the resulting “Snow Leopard” fiasco? Cluck, cluck, cluck. So do we. And now you’ve pushed your perverted agenda with the female reproductive system…
Yates Vs. Lee, The Rematch: Generals Stay Within 100
The Lee High School “cheering section” sat in the smallest little section of stands, in the lowest corner of the east side of the bleachers at Delmar Field House, during Saturday’s rematch between the Lee and Yates High School boys basketball teams. These were the true Lee fans, a group…
$7 at Canary Café and Grill
Where: Canary Cafe and Grill, 3511 Elgin St., 77004, 713-658-0088 What $7 gets you: A pretty hefty Greek salad with gyro meat or a sandwich combo (falafel, kabobs, shawarma, or gyros) with fries and a drink. The first time we tried Canary Café and Grill, it was at the end…
We’ve Got Surfer Blood, The xx and Superchunk for Our SXSW Party This Year, Y’all
Village Voice Media, the Houston Press’ daddy company, has announced the line-up for this year’s SXSW day party at La Zona Rosa, set for March 19 at noon. The show hasn’t disappointed since Rocks Off has been aboard, with 2008 bringing the Black Keys, HEALTH and …Trail Of Dead and…
World’s Worst Counterfeiter Nabbed, (No Doubt) Laughed At
The mind of a teen-aged boy: It is a wondrous, mysterious thing.The brain of a 17-year-old male can conduct an analysis that determines that it’s entirely possible to scan two sides of a five-dollar bill, glue them together and then go get something at the local fast-food restaurant.We’re assuming –…
Student Culinary Competition: “When Flipping Burgers Just Isn’t Enough”
Students armed with knives are set to meet at Westside High School on February 20. Local school districts know all about it and are doing absolutely nothing to stop it. At issue: Knife skills: who can chop, slice and dice vegetables at the precise direction of a professional chef Cooking…
Aftermath: Hour After Hour at the Sprite Step Off With Lupe Fiasco, Brooke Valentine, Letoya Luckett, Trae and Sheila Jackson Lee
8:20 p.m.: Somehow, without checking in as media or anything, we’ve found our way backstage. That was a bit too easy; like, “Make You Feel A Little Uncomfortable About The Security Level At This Event” uneasy. 8:24: Yipes. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee just walked out onto the stage between performances,…
More Bad Benzene Numbers, And They’re Probably Worse Than They Sound
Oil and gas make the world go ’round, but refining the stuff can be deadly business. And according to a new report, the cancer-causing chemical known as benzene is on the rise.Earlier today, the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Environmental Integrity Project released a study showing that benzene emissions from U.S. refineries…
Black Alfajores at Rustika
Take two cookies, stick them together with a thick dulce de leche filling, and you have an alfajor,a much beloved sweet in South America and Mexico. I got some black alfajores at Rustika bakery the other day and took them to a friend’s house. They were suitably impressed. The caramel…
The Lottery Is A Tax On Idiots, Except For These Very, Very Smart People
State-run lotteries, as many have pointed out, are pretty much a tax on the mathematically impaired. You pays your money, you takes your (infinitesimal) chances at winning big.Unless you’re a phone technician from Katy, in which case you won a $144 million jackpot over the weekend.The owner of the ticket…
Great Moments With Mr. Rockefeller: Billy Harper, Garth Brooks and Sonny Rollins
[Ed. Note: To help spread the word about next Friday’s benefit for the Houston International Festival’s education programs at Rockefeller Hall, featuring Texas Johnny Brown and Marcia Ball, Rocks Off asked iFest director of performing arts and former Houston Chronicle music critic Rick Mitchell to reminisce about the most memorable…
That Right-Wing Guy Who Tried To Mess With A Senator’s Phones? Rep. Pete Olson Loves Him
James O’Keefe became a right-wing icon when he exposed some idiots at ACORN via undercover video. (No telling how many ACORN offices he visited with his schtick before he found a victim, of course.)His hero image was tarnished a bit last week when he was arrested for entering the offices…
Odd Pair: Nachos and Verget Macon Villages
Last week, we paired Buffalo wings with a spicy red wine in honor of Super Bowl Sunday. And now Odd Pair is featuring another go-to game-day munchy – gooey nachos. We’ve paired them with a crisp white wine. Super Bowl isn’t just for beer drinkers anymore. We’ve had plenty of…
As A Big Student-Loan Deadline Looms, Be Sure You’re Using The Right Web Site
Do you enjoy wasting hours when you’re trying to meet a tight deadline to get federal aid for a college loan? Just log on to www.fafsa.com, and sign up for an ID, then spend hours getting material to answer all their questions. Ignore the many times an ad pops up,…
Turning The Screw: Chamillionaire, Bun, Trae, Mystikal, Swizz Beats, The Game, Tila Tequila, Maury Povich, Jay Electronica and More
Welcome back to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off’s weekly rap post. It probably won’t rhyme, at least most of the time. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. Single of the Week: “Creepin’,” Chamillionaire feat. Ludacris Wire To Wire Cham’s Major Pain tape is supposed to be released Tuesday. Wonder what…
The Week In TV: Jay Leno’s Flag Pin And, For Some Ungodly Reason, An Animated Joe Dirt
Winter’s back, the sun is gone, and Fox just put another Joss Whedon show out to pasture. This was the week in TV Land:• So, Jay Leno went on Oprah’s show last week to talk about his side of the whole late-night debacle. (Out of every weird thing about the…
Chef Chat, Part 1: Morgan Weber
Urban farmer Morgan Weber is launching Revival Meats this month. He also discusses the way we look at our food through his blog. We caught up with him to chat about his upcoming plans to market, well, the market. Eating Our Words: Tell us what Revival Meats is all about…
Aftermath: The Fiery Furnaces’ Indie-Rock Orobouros Is Nearly Too Meta for Walter’s
[Ed. Note: An orobouros is the mythological image of a snake eating its own tail. Look it up.] The narrative arc of the meta – yes, the meta has a narrative arc; wanna fight? – has officially been fucked with, and the audience it once had is now like; seriously,…
Coogs Stay Alive, Beating Marshall
The Houston Cougars were coming off a two-game losing streak, and they were playing the Marshall Thundering Herd, one of the surprise teams of C-USA (but also coming off a two-game losing streak). With the losing streak, the Cougars were falling out of contention in C-USA, and as such, were…
Montrose Commons is a Dangerous Place and Not Only for Myrna Ical
Neighborhood association First Montrose Commons is changing the format of its usual monthly meeting, following the death of Myrna Ical, whose body was found January 18 near the southeast corner of First Montrose Commons.As Jason Ginsburg, president and director of membership for the association, wrote in an e-mail, the group…
Where Are We Eating?
A warm, fresh sandwich on a cool, drizzly day. Yeah, it sounded good to us too. So we went and picked one up at this restaurant. Does it look familiar to you? Think you can guess where we’re eating this week? Leave your best guess in the comments section below…
Where Are We Blasting Rails Peeing?
We were just as confused by this weird windowless windowpane as anyone else would be when we dodged the 30K millionaires to relieve ourselves at this Washington Avenue hotspot. If we were immature we would make a remark about the ledge being for illicit powdery substance intake, but we won’t…
HISD Brings in A&M Analyst to Look at CEP
Dr. Roger Goddard, principal investigator and director of the Education Leadership Research Center at Texas A&M, will be assessing whether the two alternative school campuses run by Community Education Partners for the Houston ISD are a good or bad thing for the district.Superintendent Terry Grier, speaking Saturday during a break…
Artopia Preview: Y.E. Torres Balances Art And Belly-Dancing
The Houston Press Artopia Party is Saturday, and Hair Balls is previewing a different participating artist each day this week. Artopia will feature 27 artists, as well as live art and music performances, fashion shows, and a presentation of the Press’s MasterMind awards. For more details and ticket information, click…
This Week in Deliciousness
Welcome back to the weekly roundup here at Eating Our Words, where they can have our melted cheese dispenser guns when they pry them from our sticky dead hands. Big news this week was last Sunday’s successful Cupcake Smackdown, in which many cupcakes were indeed smacked down and pastries in…
Three Men Hospitalized, One Woman Arrested In Vidor Trailer Park Rampage
Crystal Gail Carnahan, 23, is apparently one tough East Texas cookie. Almost exactly one year ago, she was indicted on charges of feloniously assaulting a police officer. And now she stands accused of stabbing two people in a fracas outside a Vidor trailer home that sent a total of three…
Whataburger Little League Team Reunion
If you eat a lot of Whataburgers (No. 2 with jalapeños, please), you have probably seen this old black-and-white photo from the 1950s. It’s one of the vintage photos from Whataburger’s early days in Corpus Christi that hangs on the wall of almost every location. It’s a photo of the…
Guaranteed: You Will Not See an Acceptance Speech This Cool at Sunday’s Grammys
Rocks Off has been holding onto this little nugget of mind-blowing YouTube brilliance all week, waiting for the proper opportunity to use it. If you haven’t seen it, underneath all that makeup is Karen Dreijer Andersson, lead singer of Swedish electro minimalists the Knife, accepting – if you can call…
Anti-American Gadget Bashing
When Katharine Shilcutt took on useless kitchen appliances, I responded with my own list of useful kitchen appliances that foodies make fun of. Then she came up with a list of useless kitchen gadgets. Not surprisingly, I have almost every one of them. One of the useless gadgets she mentioned…
Nuggets Player Learns Not To Mess With Rusty Hardin
J.R. Smith, a guard for the Denver Nuggets, is not exactly having a great year. You know things are going bad when there are headlines like “Denver Nuggets Won’t Suspend Guard J.R. Smith For Sulking On Bench.”Or when the headlines are about how you’re going to get served with a…
Game Time: The Oden, The Aftermath
When you toil daily at this whole blogging thing like I do, there are certain unspoken goals that you have. Up until now, my defining moment in my brief three month or so career at HoustonPress.com has been getting an actual comment from an In N Out Burger headquarters employee…
Listology: Something Fierce’s Favorite Unsung Garage-Punk Bands, Including the Wipers
It’s quite possible that Something Fierce is the last visible punk band of its kind standing in Houston at the moment. Sunday night at the Mink, the trio flexes their collective garage-punk muscle at the release party for their new seven-inch on Houston’s own Action Town Records, “Where You Goin’…
Openings and Closings
Of course, no upscale mixed-use center would be complete without a wine bar, so Cru will be moving in (you can check out the concept for yourself in The Woodlands, where Cru has been anchoring the Market Street development for a few years). And another Houston outpost of seafood restaurant…
First-Ever Extradition From El Salvador Involves Local Man Who Had Sex With His Daughter
Today marked a first. For better or worse, it was a first involving a dude who had sex with his 14-year-old daughter, but still, it’s a first.The first extradition from El Salvador to the U.S. happened, and it involved a Brazoria County man.Jose Marvin Martinez was convicted of one count…
Congressman Battles For Medicare To Cover “CyberKnife” Cancer Treatment, For One Reason Or Another
Some Texas cancer patients and their physicians are up in arms over a regional Medicare contractor’s denial of coverage for a non-invasive radiation therapy conducted via a device with the William Gibson-esque moniker “CyberKnife.”Trailblazer Health, the Medicare contractor for Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and New Mexico, says there simply hasn’t been…
Aftermath: Yo La Tengo’s Introspection, Mayhem and Perfection at Warehouse Live
Shortly after Aftermath’s arrival at Warehouse Live, and the procurement of a few $4 Shiners, Times New Viking mounted the stage and reminded us that they sound like a punky version of a 1950s girl-group swathed in dreamy sheets of lo-fi noise. As the band launched into its first number,…
Food Fight: Battle DIY Salad
At the beginning of the month, Ruthie Johnson posted a very helpful guide to the best salads in Houston. The Big Salad at Paulie’s, the even bigger salads at Barnaby’s, the Tex-Mex-inspired salads at Mission Burrito and the spicy Thai salads at Asia Market: all delicious, but sometimes you just…
More Bad News Involving KBR, Iraq And Sexual Assault
If it’s KBR in the headline, it’s unwanted sex in an Iraq barracks. Or at least that’s how it seems these days.We told you earlier about a former KBR employee suing the company, saying she was raped while working in Iraq; now comes news of a prison sentence for another…
Steve Radack’s Hurricane-Prevention System: Pray
We know that Pat Robertson thinks you can pray away a hurricane. And KHOU’s Neil Frank told a Christian website that he thinks it’s possible, too. (Click here, second item.)Now Harris County commissioner Steve Radack is apparently on the “No Science Allowed” bandwagon.The Houston Chronicle reports that Radack went on…
Remembering Rockefeller’s With iFest’s Rick Mitchell
With the Houston International Festival practically right around the corner, and the “Mardi Gras Party” benefit for iFest’s education programs – including the teacher’s curriculum guide to the Caribbean the festival is sending to 1,500 area schools – two weeks from today at Rockefeller Hall with Marcia Ball and Texas…
Happy Hour Scene: Mezzanine Lounge
The Mezzanine Lounge hosts Texas Hold ‘Em poker three days a week, and when we got there last night, the bar was just setting up for the first round of games.Along with the daily happy hour prices at the Mezzanine, the Thursday all-day special is $3.50 Jagermeister and Tuaca shots…
Mormons Forcibly Exposed To Houston’s Claim To Fame; Grumbling, Conspiracy Theories Ensue
Along with Bob Hope’s stated belief that the view south from his Warwick Hotel penthouse suite was the prettiest sight he had ever seen, the fact that “Houston” was the first word uttered on the moon ranks as one of our fair city’s boosters most-bruited-about factoids.It’s easy to believe that…
Secret Agent: Pomegranate Molasses
Ever since juice companies everywhere started marketing the outrageous health benefits of pomegranate juice (and selling them in those cool-shaped bottles), we’ve had an explosion of recipes that use the product. Our favorite iteration is perhaps the simplest: pomegranate molasses. Pomegranate molasses is a traditional ingredient in Lebanese and Mediterranean…
Back to the Future: How Fiery Furnaces Came to Pass
Brooklyn indie-rock duo the Fiery Furnaces comes to Walter’s on Washington tonight behind last year’s I’m Going Away and it’s quasi-remix album Take Me Round Again. The brother and sister team of Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger come from a long lineage of likeminded indie skronkers. Being a related twosome doesn’t…
San Antonio Fighting To Get Out Of Expanding Bay City Nuke Plant
The South Texas nuclear plant in Bay City, which has been providing electricity for more than 20 years through two reactors, wants to double its size.The plant is owned by the city of Austin, the city of San Antonio (through an entity called CPS Energy) and a company called NRG…
More Institutional Hip-Hop, This Time From Metro
Everybody’s getting in the rap game! Hot on the heels of this UH street paean to a new parking garage comes “the Transit Boyz,” Metro’s rappin’ kidz. Some years back, we enumerated ten of the most, um, revealing moments in white hip-hop history. While Metro’s effort is not quite up…
How to Make the Perfect: Cream Cheese Icing
We’ve all taken the easy cake-baking route. Buy the box cake mix. Bake it. Then, frost it with the goopy icing from a jar. Not exactly fresh from the bakery, but it does the trick. Well, we’ve found the secret for making everyone think you slaved for hours in the…
Alfonso Cook is Rasheed, the “Texas Chainsaw.” And Rasheed is a “WetBlack.”
We told Rasheed ourselves that for a long time we didn’t know he was Black. He laughed. It wasn’t the first time he’s heard it. His huge following in Mexico probably doesn’t know either, and they keep requesting him to go to Monterrey, Mexico to do a show. A bit…
Another KBR Employee Sues, Saying She Was Raped In Iraq
Another woman who has testified before the U.S. Congress that she was raped in Iraq while working for KBR and that the company did nothing about it has decided to sue.Dawn Leamon of Illinois filed a lawsuit in Houston federal court on Wednesday against KBR, Halliburton, and a former KBR…
Zaatar Bread, at the Bagel Shop?
You won’t find Middle Eastern specialties like zaatar bread or Armenian flatbread at your average bagel bakery. But Arnold’s Bagels, a new business located in the same Westheimer shopping center as Phoenicia, is not your average bagel store. That’s because Arnold, the half-Armenian and half-Jewish baker, is from Iran. He…
Houston Symphony Brings “The Planets” To New York; Times Notices
The Houston Symphony has been in New York, putting on a special presentation of Gustav Holst’s suite “The Planets” (you know, “Mars, Bringer of War” and all that), a presentation that features dazzling new images from NASA’s various probes and satellites.The film that accompanies the symphony has been put together…
Great Moments In Douchebaggotry: Scott Stapp vs. 311 In “Douchlemania 2005”
Great Moments in Douchebaggotry is brought to you by Rocks Off’s upcoming Washington Shore party, Thursday, February 11 at the Washington Avenue Drinkery. All types of douchebags are encouraged to attend. Imagine for a moment your two least favorite bands. Got ’em? Now imagine they get into a fight, and…
Bill Maher On Houston’s Contributions To Society: A Gay Mayor, Strip Clubs & Ecstasy
Tomorrow night comedian and political pundit Bill Maher descends on the Cullen Performance Hall for a night of stand-up. The Real Time With Bill Maher host and former star of the influential late-night roundtable show Politically Incorrect is currently on tour in between tapings of new episodes of Real Time.There…
Gaga for Fufu
Fufu Café (9889 Bellaire Blvd) recently expanded, opening a new place in the same center as its previous location. On our first visit to the new locale, we noticed 32 more seats than the previous café, which means it can hold two-and-a-half times more people than before. The layout is…
Five Spot: Step Up or Step Off With Lupe Fiasco at TSU
Welcome back to Five Spot. Every Friday, we’ll examine a bit of a recent bit of news and, albeit sometimes awkwardly, somehow tie it to Houston rap. It’s occasional cussing and five videos. Lupe Fiasco is in town this weekend performing as part of the Sprite Step Off competition at…
The Week In Photos
At January’s end, winter is beginning to look bleaker and colder than Houston is accustomed to. Despite this, the talented photographers in our Flickr pool find the brightest, most colorful and most interesting spots in our city. For more information about a picture, including its subject and photographer, simply click…
This Is Why They Call Them “Gentlemen’s Clubs”
We’ve all been there: you’re hankerin’ to see some boobs, so you and a friend hop in the Isuzu Rodeo owned by the used-car lot where you work and cruise over to the gentlemen’s lounge to scout the talent. At some point, you and your bro-heem decide to get a…
Recipe: Potstickers
Potstickers, or dumplings, are easy to make. You can fill them with anything, and they will freeze for several months. This is a simple chicken version, filled with all sort of seasonal vegetables that were recent, but verging on wilting, farmer’s market purchases. We were taught how to make these…
Friday Night Noise: A Loud Farewell With Merzbow, Richard Ramirez and Kylie Minoise
[Ed. Note: Rocks Off would like to thank Ray Cummings for abusing our eardrums with all this delicious noise these past few months. He has decided to move on to other things and we wish him well.] Merzbow & Richard Ramirez, “Nails as an Enema, Pt. 2” Back in late…
We Beg You, Cougars: Don’t Rap About Your New Parking Garage
UH has opened a new parking garage. The Houston Chronicle’s Lisa Gray calls it a “parking pep rally” for its apparent Coog spirit.Leave it to Swamplot to go one better, and dig up this raperino-hippity-hopper song extolling the garage’s greatness.We’ll give you the lyrics, but you have to listen to…
Artopia Preview: Paul Easterwood And Pablo
The Houston Press Artopia party is Saturday, and Hair Balls is previewing a different participating artist each day this week. Artopia will feature 27 artists, as well as live art and music performances, fashion shows, and a presentation of the Press’s MasterMind awards. For more details and ticket information, click…
Frito Pie with Venison Chili and Goat Cheese
We made dinner for a crowd last night, and it went over pretty well. I used eight pounds of venison I had out in the freezer to make venison chili using Hattie Stillwell’s recipe from the foreword of Frank X. Tolbert’s masterpiece, A Bowl of Red. I added a few…
Obama Scrapping NASA’s Manned Mission To The Moon, $9 Billion Later
The Associated Press is reporting that White House officials have good news and bad for NASA in the upcoming budget: Good news, they’re getting a $6 billion budget increase; bad, they ain’t going to the moon. Some of that [$6 billion] will be used to extend the life of the…
He Said She Said: Songs To Help Us Get Through the School Day, Part 2
He Said’s partner in bloggotry, She Said, is currently enrolled in college. Lately she has been embroiled in school work, a topic which feeds ever so nicely into what we two do here at HSSS. We take events and emotions from our lives and slam them back out into the…
Corkscrews and More
There’s a lot more to wine than just drinking it, although that’s the most fun part. What’s the best tool for opening wine? How do you preserve wine? What are the best glasses for wine? These are just a few of the many questions that face wine lovers. This week’s…
Hey, That’s No Badge!!
Investigators from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office are looking for a dude who looks something like the sketch to the right. If you see him, whatever you do, don’t ask to see his badge.Christina Garza of the HCSO says the man is wanted in connection with exposing himself to two…
John Cornyn Can Predict The Future!!
Senator John Cornyn is famous for a lot of things, and not just fightin’ heathens and hellions and all kinds of crime.But just when you thought he had exhausted his skill set, a new superpower emerges. Now, it turns out, Cornyn can see into the future.The Senator sent out a…
The Strangest, and Creepiest, Way to Promote a Super Bowl Halftime Show We’ve Ever Seen
Even if you’re not excited by what could perhaps be the highest-scoring, most exciting Super Bowl in years – or at least amused by all the bickering between thin-skinned Colts and Saints fans – The Who’s halftime show should be worth tuning in for. Earlier this week, guitarist Pete Townhend…
Liverwurst und Braunschweiger, Bitte
When I mentioned liverwurst recently, a reader named Victoria commented: “I’m interested in finding good liverwurst in town, if you feel like sharing your source.” I am happy to reveal that I am buying my liverwurst at Phoenicia supermarket on Westheimer lately. It carries lots of varieties, but I am…
Allen Stanford’s Daughter Gives Up Her River Oaks Condo
If you’re in the market for a 2,800-square-foot condo in River Oaks and have an extra $1.3 million lying around, today’s your day.Unless that money came from an alleged Ponzi scheme, in which case you probably should remain in your one-bedroom Westbury apartment.Randi Stanford, daughter of Galactic Commodore Allen Stanford…
He Said She Said: Songs To Help Us Get Through the School Day
Seven years after getting her journalism degree (and in the midst of a shit economy) She Said decided to reinvest in her future by going back to school. August marked the start of Her first semester at the University of Houston (uh, go Coogs?). And when she’s not silently seething…
Not Eating Sushi at Soma Sushi
Chef Jason Hauck would kindly like for you to disabuse yourself of the notion that Soma Sushi only serves sushi. Sure, it’s a sushi restaurant. Sure, the word “sushi” is in its name. But as we discovered at a chef’s tasting dinner on Tuesday night, there’s much more than raw…
Game Time: Defending Greg Oden’s Magic Johnson
I find it highly ironic in a week where David Stern banned two Washington Wizards for the rest of the season for not only bringing their guns into the Wizards locker room, but threatening to deploy them on each other, that Portland Trailblazer center Greg Oden unveiled perhaps the deadliest…
Selena Co-Authors New Book… From Beyond the Grave
Selena Quintanilla Perez, as most Texans know, was gunned down by her former fan-club president Yolanda Saldivar in a Corpus Christi motel in March 1995, just as the Tejano superstar was crossing over into English-language pop with her album Dreaming of You and its title-track single. She remains one of…
Face-Off: Veggie Crumbles Versus Ground Beef
The Smith’s Meat Is Murder album caused us, like so many impressionable teens, to go vegetarian for a brief period of time. However, our cravings for a Taco Bell Crunchy Supreme soon swayed us back over to the dark side, and we once again found ourselves singing the praises of…
R.I.P., The Reclusive J.D. Salinger: Five Things Of His Not Named Catcher In The Rye You Should Read
Media outlets are reporting that author J.D. Salinger, the Howard Hughes of authors, has died at 91.Salinger is, of course, a fascinating figure; there are rumors or roomfuls of unpublished writings that he’s stored since his last public work 45 years ago.He’s famous for Catcher in the Rye, but to…
In the Land of Meyer, a Young Bluesman Searches for a Fanbase
In the back corner of Fioza Café, self-proclaimed “folksy-bluesy-rock” artist Nathan Quick belts his heart out to a group of barely 20 people, not all of whom are listening. Quick’s raspy moan echoes through the mostly empty shop and all but drowns out the espresso machines and milk steamers. “Pretty…
Army Officer Soldier Shouldn’t Have Taken Those Iraq Bribes, But Dammit, She Needed The Plastic Surgery
The Department of Justice announced today that Theresa Russell, a former staff sergeant, pleaded guilty money laundering while stationed in Iraq. It wasn’t all that much of a surprise, since two years ago the guy who gave her the bribes pleaded guilty to doing so.Russell, 40, was at Camp Anaconda…
Health Dept. Roundup: Bakery Edition
In honor of last weekend’s National Pie Day, welcome to the bakery edition of Health Department Roundup. Le Petit Paris Bakery (7536 FM 1960 W.) had a busy inspection visit on January 25, notching six violations. Among them: The city found the bakery was using shipping containers, milk or produce…
Unidentified Male, 43, Bayou Body Count No. 25
It’s said that revenge is a dish best served cold.Well, we’re not sure about the revenge part, but someone served up a body Tuesday night outside of Danny’s Food Mart on Collingsworth in northeast Houston. This was the second murder outside of a convenience store in a week.Police got a…
The H-Town Countdown, No. 1: Mike Jones’ Who Is Mike Jones?
Roughly 84,000 rap albums have been released in Houston since 1989. We’re 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. Mike Jones Who Is Mike Jones? (Asylum, 2005) Before you fire off some…
Today In Interesting Resumes: Denver Bronco, School Principal, School Board Trustee, Alleged Child-Porn Freak
Larry Cox played three seasons for the Denver Broncos, back when they sucked in the `60s. After that, he was all about the kids — teaching, coaching and eventually becoming a principal in the La Porte school system; then getting elected to the school board.As we say, all about the…
Ekko’s Greek American Grill and Deli
Any restaurant inside a gas station is always going to get our attention. Near the Galleria lies some of the best Greek fast food around. Step in line at Ekko’s (5216 Richmond) and order off of the 45-item menu — there’s dolmades, burgers, hot dogs, gyros, kabobs, you name it…
Here’s One Vote Against A New Dynamo Stadium
So the Houston Dynamo are upset that Harris County hasn’t yet given them money for their planned pleasure palace. Well cry me a river.I’m not sure if the Dynamo have noticed, but there’s a rather severe recession going on in the country right now. And though the Dynamo are only…
Inquiring Minds: A Lengthy Chat With Yo La Tengo Bassist James McNew
[Ed. Note: Nicholas L. Hall asked Rocks Off if we wouldn’t mind publishing the entire transcript of his recent interview with Yo La Tengo bassist James McNew, the raw material of this week’s print music feature. We’re only too happy to oblige.] Rocks Off: When last I spoke with your…
Kinkaid Brouhaha Has A Second Act
Kinkaid School, the pricey enclave of private education, is riling up the blogosphere again.A while back it was a stormy, silly letter from a Wall Street banker and Kinkaid dad criticizing the uber-PC ways of the school that became a cause celebre.Today it’s the fact that the letter-writer Skip McGee…
Sustainable Salmon: Pink Turns Green
Sustainability has become a vital part of the vernacular in the Yukon River Valley, whose Yup’ik Eskimo residents rely on salmon not only as a means of income, but also as their majority source of food. Strapping Alaskans smile as they detail their favorite ways to eat the fish: raw,…
Idol Beat: Goin’ Through the Big D, and Don’t Mean Dallas
Last night’s American Idol took the auditions to Dallas (or, more accurately, Arlington) for the sixth open-call episode of the season to date. The show seemed to be hold Dallas in high regard: It’s where Kelly Clarkson was discovered in the first season back in 2002, so there’s a sense…
American Idol: The “Big D” Stands For Dull
Last night’s American Idol took the auditions to Dallas (or, more accurately, Arlington) for the sixth open-call episode of the season to date. The show seemed to be hold Dallas in high regard: It’s where Kelly Clarkson was discovered in the first season back in 2002, so there’s a sense…
Urban Outpost’s Fifth Ward Farm
Last Organic Outpost took a vacant tract of land in the Fifth Ward and turned it into an urban farm. But don’t believe me, go check it out at 711 North Emile St. And if you are interested in gardening or eating organic, this would be a good weekend for…
Wine Me Up: Houston’s Top 5 Cougar Dens
There are few things in this life that young Rocks Off loves more than a gang of cougars on the town spilling wine on the ground and trying to light the wrong end of a borrowed cigarette whilst slurring in our direction that she likes our tattoos before drunkenly pawing…
Beef Vs. Chicken Battle Turns Violent In Valley Cafe
When he sat down at his table at downtown Brownsville’s El Rancho Alegre Café last Saturday night, all Esequiel Silva wanted was a plate of chicken milanesa enchiladas. Little did he know how just how much the Happy Ranch Cafe would fail to live up to its name.After taking a…
Pop Rocks: John Travolta, Humanitarian
The tragedy of the earthquake in Haiti has, as expected, brought out both the best and worst of humanity. As an example of the former, we’ve seen the nations of the world send supplies and relief workers to help the stricken Caribbean nation. As for the latter, well, the comments…
Bold and Fresh Tour: O’Reilly and Beck LIVE
It might be the most anticipated tour by a conservative duo to hit the stage outside of a Ted Nugent/Toby Keith concert. Fox News kingpins Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck are combining their right-wing superpowers for the Bold and Fresh Tour: O’Reilly and Beck LIVE speaking tour. Houston audiences will…
“Allan Rodewald: Three Styles, One Artist”
The “Allan Rodewald: Three Styles, One Artist” exhibit includes art from three different series of works – Fabric, Plexi-Canvas and Dream. The Plexi-Canvas cycle came about when Rodewald, who was included in “The Big Show” at Lawndale Art Center in 2008, was experimenting with painting in reverse on Plexiglas. “One…
The Cunning Little Vixen
Though it sounds like the title of a movie a traveling businessman would order in a hotel, The Cunning Little Vixen reflects a wholly different kind of animalistic behavior. The 1924 opera by Czech composer Leos Janacek is the seemingly LSD-generated circle-of-life story involving a human forester, a vixen female…
Doomsday Wrestling: Free Cake!
Doomsday Wrestling announcer Tex Lonestar is itching to throw down his microphone…and get into the ring. At the don’t-tell-them-we-called-it-a-comedy wrestling troupe’s 14th bout, called Free Cake!, Tex will surprise his daughter Charlene (Doomsday’s current champ) with a birthday celebration fit for a titleholder (and yes, there will be free cake)…
Capsule Stage Reviews: Rent, Thunder Rock
Rent Paper globe moon, graffiti-covered brick wall, chain-link fence, industrial pipes, corner phone booth: There’s only one great show with all these elements, Jonathan Larson’s hip, evergreen cultural phenomenon from 1996. Winner of the Tony, Drama Desk, Obie and a Pulitzer Prize, Rent is so full of life and such…
Rehearsal for Murder
Playwright Alex Dennison has a plan in Rehearsal for Murder. It’s the anniversary of his fiancée’s supposed suicide, and he’s gathered all the actors from her only performance for a staged reading of his new play. But there’s a twist to the ending: It reveals his fiancée’s murderer. “Unusual form,…
“Tuff Enuff”
Buying a family car to chauffeur her two young children around town made Jenny Schlief think about cars on the other end of the practicality scale. “Like the pimped-out, drop-top Houston ride complete with rims,” she tells us. Rims became the focus for her new show at the Box 13…
“A Sense of Place: Selections from the Bobbie and John Nau Collection of Texas Art”
The Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts has mounted “A Sense of Place: Selections from the Bobbie and John Nau Collection of Texas Art.” The exhibit includes more than 30 works that examine the people, places and history of Texas from the 1850s to the 1990s. Artists represented are among…
Houston Arboretum at Night: Family Owl Prowl
Get a look at nocturnal wildlife at its busiest during the Houston Arboretum at Night: Family Owl Prowl. Among the creatures families might see are flying squirrels, owls and other nighttime-loving animals. Don’t let a cloudy sky keep you home on the night of the Prowl – organizers say the…
LehrerDance
Jazz dancing is often thought of as flamboyant and even a bit cheesy – thanks largely to those infamous jazz hands. But when done properly, it’s a powerful, ultra-athletic form of movement – and Buffalo-based choreographer Jon Lehrer is a master of it. For the impressive dancers in his LehrerDance…
Poison Pen Reading Series with Paul Otremba and Andrew Porter
Poet Paul Otremba, who’s appearing at today’s installment of the Poison Pen Reading Series, is changing his tone. “Not to say I want to take it lighter, but I want to have tone varieties that reflect the range of experience that I have…that a human being has,” says the Academy…
A Picasso
Pablo Picasso had a reputation as a womanizer, but A Picasso, making its regional premiere here, imagines the legendary artist meeting the one woman who perhaps can resist his charms. Stages Repertory Theatre’s Producing Artistic Director Kenn McLaughlin says the play “chronicles a fascinating mystery that is layered with passion,…
One Wolf
Lubbock’s One Wolf makes razor-sharp jangle-pop nuggets using the best parts of Wilco and the parts of the Shins we don’t utterly detest. With Jon Brion-nicking tracks like “Haunted” and “Down And Out,” One Wolf could easily be Texas’ answer to Death Cab For Cutie circa We Have The Facts…
Steel Pier
Stratford High School swept the Tommy Tune Awards last year, taking home Best Musical, Best Direction, Best Leading Actor, Best Leading Actress and Best Featured Performer for its production of Barnum. Even though they’re still teens, the group grabs the attention of local theater lovers with their polished, poised performances…
James W. Hall and Bob Morris
Two of today’s best mystery writers, James W. Hall and Bob Morris, are getting together to discuss and sign their newest releases. In his book Silencer, Hall has his recurring character Thorn trapped in a sinkhole with just one chance at escape. And Edgar Award-nominated writer Bob Morris continues his…
“Drawn from Taiwan”
The exhibit “Drawn from Taiwan,” made up of line drawings by six artists who post photos of their work on Flickr, came about from one simple idea: Talented people usually surround themselves with other talented people. “One of the great things about Flickr is its inherent interconnectedness,” says show curator…
Un ballo in maschera
Giuseppe Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera has been controversial since its inception. Loosely based on the assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden, who was killed at a ball in the late 1700s, the opera made European royalty pretty nervous. Verdi had to rewrite the tale several times before he…
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf
A woman who can’t get a cab. A woman who abdicates responsibility for her lover’s happiness. A woman who watches as her baby is dropped out of a high-rise window. You’ll meet these and many more characters in Ntozake Shange’s choreopoem For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the…
Fiery Furnaces
For the past several releases, it seems that the mad-scientist half of Fiery Furnaces has been winning, lending a strikingly experimental edge to the band’s usual grab bag of pop parlor tricks. If Fiery Furnaces needed proof that it hasn’t gone too far afield, last summer’s I’m Going Away is…
Serenity
Hands down, the television wunderkind with the most devoted following is Joss Whedon. He won legions of fans with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, but devotees of his Space Western series Firefly are especially hardcore. The 2005 feature-length film Serenity, screening today, continued the story of the spaceship’s ensemble…
Houston Press Artopia 2010
It’s a little difficult to describe the Houston Press Artopia 2010. Is it a concert? An art exhibit? Tasting party? Awards ceremony? It’s all those things and a little more. Think of it as a huge bash celebrating the arts and culture in Houston. Performers include the Dominic Walsh Dance…
Soldier’s Girl
Nothing is black or white in the film Soldier’s Girl, directed by Frank Pierson. There’s only a dazzling array of grays. Based on a true story, the film follows Barry (Troy Garity), a soldier who suffers at the hands of his own squad members for having a transgendered girlfriend. The…
Monte Montgomery
Austin is full of monster guitarists. Eric Johnson, David Grissom, Charlie Sexton, David Holt and Redd Volkaert are generally acknowledged to be some of the most innovative six-string stylists in popular music, but Monte Montgomery doesn’t take a back seat to any of them. Montgomery may not be the best-known…
A Little Day Music
Jazz Times magazine called bassist Ben Allison a “visionary composer,” an “adventurous improviser” and “a rising star over the past decade.” You can see some of that brilliance during today’s A Little Day Music noontime concert. Allison, who appears with jazz violinist Jenny Scheinman, has nine albums of intelligent and…
Bill Maher
Though he’s best known for pissing off political conservatives on his HBO talk show, Bill Maher is also adept at angering meat-eaters, Christians, married people (with and without children), and those who believe Obama is The One…which altogether just about covers every person in America. But it’s admirable that the…
Mrs. Mannerly
Jeffrey Hatcher’s stage comedy Mrs. Mannerly is anything but polite. Tony Award nominee Josie de Guzman is Mrs. Mannerly, an etiquette teacher who prides herself on the fact that no student has ever earned a perfect score in the 36 years she’s been teaching. Alley Theatre associate director and longtime…
“El Anatsui: New Installation”
El Anatsui’s work is about as trashy as it comes. For years, the African artist and professor worked in a variety of mediums, but it was only a decade ago that he gained international acclaim for his intricate sculptures comprised of, as he’s put it, “whatever the environment throws up.”…
Salome
Oscar Wilde knew how to cause a ruckus. The great Victorian playwright, who wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Earnest, among others, became infamous for his relationship with a young wealthy lord and for penning the phrase “The love that dare not speak its name.”…
The Turn of the Screw
Seeing a live opera is supposed to be an emotional experience, but terror is rarely the emotion the cast is going for. The Turn of the Screw, presented by the Houston Grand Opera as part of a series of works by composer Benjamin Britten, is one such show. Based on…
“Birth of the Cool”
Anyone interested in the urban – and the urbane – will find a lot to like in the artwork of Barkley L. Hendricks, on view at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. Visitors will see immediately that the exhibition’s title, “Birth of the Cool,” is appropriate: Many of the realistic, life-size…
“Absolution: Photographs from Eastern Europe”
Everyone from California hippies to devout Eastern European Christians has sacred places. That’s the theory behind California-based, Poland-born artist Roman Loran’s photographic work, which is on display in “Absolution: Photographs from Eastern Europe” at the De Santos Gallery. Loran, who spends much of his time shooting ancient trees and wide-open…
Elizabeth Gilbert
Elizabeth Gilbert’s memoir/phenomenon Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia may have finally hit the proverbial wall with the recent release of the parody Drink, Play, F@#k: One Man’s Search for Anything Across Ireland, Las Vegas, and Thailand. Still, there are millions of Gilbert…
Enter at Your Own Risk
The Alley Theatre’s production of Wonderland, the latest musical from Frank Wildhorn, is billed as a world premiere. But the official opening was last November in Tampa Bay, Florida, at the Straz Center, where Wildhorn sometimes showcases his new work. The run at the Alley is “to continue development,” which…
Enemies of the State
Set to Die Online readers respond to “True Confessions?” by Mike Giglio, January 14: Doubts emerge: You did great coverage on this story. This does create a doubt if Charles Raby actually did it alone. I think maybe Eric Benge might have more insight than he is sharing. Sally Valencia…
Argentina Café
Andres Perekalski and his family moved to Houston a couple of years ago from Florida, and to Florida from Buenos Aires, where Andres’s parents owned a deli and coffee shop. His surname is not particularly Argentinean — in fact, the roots of the family are Russian and Polish. They all…
Brain Tacos or Cheesy Migas?
The “Trump Taco” at Chacho’s Tacos on Westheimer in the Galleria was overloaded with grilled sirloin, mushrooms and cheese. The spinach-and-mushroom quesadilla was so full of cheese, it was almost an inch thick. My dining companion couldn’t finish half of it. The borracho beans on the chicken fajita plate were…
Mamma Mia
Chefs like to pay tribute to people by naming dishes after them. And as a general rule, the better the dish, the more important the person. Arturo Boada, the chef and owner of Arturo’s (1180-1 Uptown Park Blvd., 713-621-1180), named Sonia’s Ravioli Stuffed with Chicken and Mushrooms and Topped with…
Fiery Furnaces
For the past several releases, it seems that the mad-scientist half of Fiery Furnaces has been winning, lending a strikingly experimental edge to the band’s usual grab bag of pop parlor tricks. If Fiery Furnaces needed proof that it hasn’t gone too far afield, last summer’s I’m Going Away is…
Capsule Art Reviews: “Body in Fragments”, “Cy Twombly: Treatise on the Veil”, “Martin Zet: Necessity”, “Recent Accessions in Design”, “Your Bright Future: Twelve Contemporary Artists from Korea”
“Body in Fragments” The Menil is always great at creating little mini exhibits from its vast collection, grouping together and juxtaposing modern and contemporary works with primitive art. “Body in Fragments” is no exception. The title says it all — every piece on display contains an element of body fragmentation,…
Girls
Bay Area rockers Girls have found a suitable moniker for their mushily emotional sunshine-pop, which chimes brightly enough to make you forget how damn fey the lyrics can be. The ultimate vibe is uplifting and breathless, even though many of the band’s efforts seem like they must have been written…
SPECIAL TACO BELL EDITION
Dear Mexican, Why do so many Mexicans work for Taco Bell and El Pollo Loco? Don’t they know they only add a false credence to the belief that this is Mexican cuisine? The bastardizing of the truly great and diverse food of Mexico by the money-hungry corporations of the U.S.,…
AVANT GARDEN’S STRAWBERRY-FIG GIN AND TONIC
Centuries of belly dancing tradition have culminated in an effective way to make me feel uncomfortable. I have no idea how I’m supposed to react to it, as I found out last Tuesday at Avant Garden (411 Westheimer, 713-526-4648). When a costumed woman is twirling and gyrating for a small…
Inside the MasterMinds
Last year, we decided to spread a little good karma (and a little cash), and recognize some locals on the cutting edge Houston’s arts scene. It’s not like we’re the Houston Endowment, and there were no foundation-imposed hoops through which potential candidates were required to jump; no grant writers needed…
Jonathan Richman
To simply call Jonathan Richman “quirky” is to simply call the late Tiny Tim “weird.” Once described as the “Godfather of Punk” primarily for his band the Modern Lovers’ song “Roadrunner” (director Richard Linklater once called it the first punk song), Richman’s 30-plus-year career has seen him careen wildly between…
Back From the Edge?
“Did you shoot my daughtah?” is the question posed, in flat-voweled Bostonian, in the trailer for Edge of Darkness. And Mel Gibson, much-bereaved and much-vengeful, from Hamlet to Ransom to Revolutionary America, sets out to settle another score. Gibson is Thomas Craven: veteran, homicide detective, lonesome widower. His daughter, a…
Artopia
Aside from our hard-hitting investigative reporting, on-the-spot blogging and tireless tweeting, the Houston Press also knows how to throw one hell of a party; with Artopia 2010, we’ve done it again. The event spotlights local artists and designers we have chosen as innovators, and this year’s musical entertainment is no…
History Repeats
The White Ribbon is Michael Haneke’s first German-language film since the original Funny Games (1997) and, addressing what used to be called “the German problem” while dodging the filmmaker’s own likability issues, it’s his best ever. A period piece set on the eve of World War I in an echt…
Anatomy of a Diss
Clothing designer and hip-hop entrepreneur Marc Ecko’s Complex magazine recently compiled a list of Jay-Z’s greatest lyrical put-downs, including swipes at Mase (“Check your own videos, you’ll always be No. 2,” from “Ride or Die”) and Lil Wayne’s crew (“You niggas ain’t gangsta, you gum,” from “Trouble), on its Web…
More Tats = More Deviance?
WHATEVER More Tats, More Deviance Texas Tech studies body ink By John Nova Lomax Texas Tech’s school of sociology will soon publish a study claiming a link between the number of tattoos a college student has and their level of social deviance, which is defined in the study as proclivities…
Beyond Fake
Yo La Tengo is easily one of the most critically acclaimed, fanatically popular and longest-lived groups of indie-rock’s first age. Long known as a quintessential critic’s band, Yo La Tengo is also a band comprised of unabashed music fans, likely more so than most other groups. Throughout its career, Yo…
What About Bob?
Twenty years after the death of her friend and former lover, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, punk-rock pioneer Patti Smith has released Just Kids (Ecco, $27), a memoir that dates back to the couple’s bohemian, barely-fed days in late-’60s New York City. In a recent interview with Houston Press sister paper Seattle…
Houston 2020: The Future Is Unwritten
As you probably know by now, it’s possible to find just about anything on the Internet. Nevertheless, Noise was shocked — shocked, we tell you — to run across the following article while we were looking for some Drive-By Truckers demos during our daily browsings not long ago. We found…
