Stageside Blogging: That’s a Wrap!
Boy, that went by fast. The lights are on, nobody’s home (except for us stragglers and bloggers) and everyone has departed to their various after-awards destinations. Me, I’m going to Boondocks. The last awards set was my distinct pleasure to present, and mostly consisted of me calling out UGK (which,…
2008 HPMA Winner List
Well, here it is. Congrats to nominees and winners alike. – Chris Gray Best Local Album: UGK, Underground Kingz Best Local Song: UGK feat. OutKast, “Int’l Player’s Anthem (I Choose You)” Local Musician(s) of the Year: UGK Best Mainstream Hip-Hop: UGK Best Songwriter: John Evans Tontons/photo by Jim Bricker Best…
Stageside Blogging: Karina Nistal Gets Ambitious, Our Hosts Win an Award and Kam Guest-Blogs
To absolutely no one’s surprise, Karina Nistal just won Latin Contemporary. It’s only a stepping stone to bigger and better things. “I’m practicing for my Grammy speech,” she said. “I want to give a shout-out to Katie Stuckey – girl, I should have won your category too.” She really ought…
Stageside Blogging: A Brief Interlude
We’re on a break right now, waiting for Arthur Yoria, and some more awards, but the John Evans Band (above) was all shook up a minute ago. Now it’s Arthur Yoria’s turn (below). I hear a little Coldplay in there, and a lot of harmonica. Beetle just took Tribute Band,…
Stageside Blogging: Bun B, Black Math and More
We’re slightly behind due to some wireless interference, so let’s get to it. Tontons (above) showed a serious Portishead bent during their performance, even though they weren’t all that happy with it. “That sounded terrible,” sighed guitarist Tom Nguyen. “Did you hear all that feedback?” To hear them tell it,…
Stageside Blogging: The Spread
Brett is here with that report from the food table: A local music awards ceremony with a free buffet and a bunch of starving artist types makes this place look like a punk soup kitchen. With a line that wrapped around, spanning wall to wall, locals were gonna get their…
Stageside Blogging: Buxton Catches a Train
Buxton (above) is rocking out right now, powered by some chiming guitar and that one and only chaka-chaka-chaka “train beat.” These people right here (below) are loving it. They’re about to give out some awards. Almost forgot about that part of the evening. Channel 39 anchor Mia Gradney is about…
Stageside Blogging: Snoop Dogg Walks the Line
Orq is closing out with that song from his new CD To the Bone about the woman who “puts the ‘ho’ in ‘Houston'” (hey, we don’t judge), and Brett is off bringing back a “report” from the food table in the back of the room. Meanwhile, we got the lowdown…
Stageside Blogging: Buxton and a Sweet Ride
Buxton: Justin Terrell (of the sweet white shoes), Jason Willis, Chris Wise Orq is playing Prince’s “Kiss” at the moment. Brett and I just stepped out for a smoke, where we ran into three-fourths of La Porte folk-rock upstarts and multiple nominees Buxton. After a recent run of bad luck,…
Stageside Blogging the HPMAs
Chris Gray and Brett Koshkin coming to you live from, well, Warehouse Live, where the Mighty Orq (above) is warming the slowly-arriving crowd with some bluesy guitar pyrotechnics. (Here’s’s Cactus Music’s Quinn Bishop watching attentively.) We’ve got the mobile command center set up at stage right (and even our own…
Victim’s Advocate Won’t be Witnessing Execution
Another of the six men who raped and killed Randy Ertman’s daughter is scheduled to be executed soon. And once again Andy Kahan won’t be allowed to see it. Kahan, the Crime Victim Advocate for the City of Houston, says he should be allowed to stand by the side of…
Tours We’d Rather Not Take
Officials at LBJ Hospital are giving tours of a giant asshole. Officially called “The Colossal Colon,” the “8-foot-tall, 20-foot-long colon is designed to help hospital guests learn about colorectal disease,” according to the Texas Medical Center. Other names for the giant colon include “Dallas Cowboy Fan,” “My Ex-Husband” and “That…
Friends Don’t Let Friends Buy Guns For Friends
Residents in the Rio Grande Valley are about to be hit with some stern lecturing, via the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms and the Southern District’s U.S. Attorney’s Office. “Don’t Lie For The Other Guy” is the catchy slogan for a campaign designed to stop “straw purchases” of guns…
Ron Paul and Barney Frank — Partners For Pot
Alleged bigot and Marshall Applewhite lookalike Ron Paul is co-sponsoring a bill to virtually eliminate federal marijuana possession penalties – a bill that’s getting a lot of play from those stoners over at CNN: The bill, introduced by Democratic Rep. Barney Frank from Massachusetts, would abolish penalties for anyone carrying…
Budweiser — The King of Landfill Biogas
Yes, we all know Budweiser is going to be purchased by some Belgian company. And what do the Belgians know about beer? (Don’t answer.) But good news for Houston Bud drinkers!! If you were tempted to boycott the beer because it’s un-American, think again: Drink it because it’s pro-Earth, or…
When Children’s Festivals Go Very, Very Wrong
Say you’re the organizer of a children’s festival. Say one of your volunteers, um, volunteers that he is a registered sex offender. During the festival. What do you do? If you’re Community and Children’s Impact Center founder Brenda Myers, nothing. “He said he had been in jail before, but it…
Tonight: (Unofficial) HPMA Afterparty with Papermoons, Elaine Greer at Boondocks
Tonight’s HPMA ceremony should be wrapping up around 10 p.m., so don’t forget to check here for a complete winner’s list (provided you’re near a computer, that is). That’ll be just in time to head over to Boondocks for indie-folk duo Papermoons’ – whose recent debut LP New Tales is…
Police Officer Fired For (Approved) Blow Jobs
You’re an undercover cop assigned to get the goods on an alleged prostitution ring. You get approval to have sex in the course of your investigation, approval from your supervisor and your wife, for crying out loud. You do what you’re told. You get blow jobs. You go all the…
Hollywood Destroys Houston: The Top Five
As far as cinematic catastrophes go, Houston gets off pretty light. Other metropolises have a certain quality that invites destruction — New York is full of New Yorkers, for example, and Tokyo sits on an archipelago teeming with monsters — but we in the Paved Swamp seem to escape such…
China Restricts Web Access for International Media, NBC Bows to Benevolent New Overlords
Just how bad is the press censorship in Beijing for the Olympics if even the Cuban journalists are calling it a bit much? The Chinese have gone back on another of the promises made to the International Olympic Committee and are restricting the Internet access of the international media that…
This Just In: Alejandro Escovedo Up Close
Currently leading the pack for Texas Rock Album of the Year, and not that far off the pace of Rock Album of the Year, period, is Alejandro Escovedo’s glam-tastic Real Animal. Produced by David Bowie and T.Rex audio enabler Tony Visconti, Animal is effectively the former Nun and True Believer’s…
This Just In (Sort of): Engine Room Shuts Down
This bit of news got buried (like my social life and so many other things) in the flood of showcase and music award coverage, but for the moment Houston is down another live music venue. The Engine Room (1515 Pease) announced last Saturday on its Myspace blog it has shut…
Art Rock: HPMA Ceremony at Warehouse Live
[Note, especially to the nominees referenced here (commenters), “You’re Invited” does in fact mean you.]…
Turning the Screw: Trae Day, Luke, DMX, Nas, Rick Ross and More
Welcome to Turning the Screw, Rocks Off’s weekly rap/hip-hop post. From here on out, we’ll attempt to bring you new music, news and other tidbits related (at least somewhat) to rap and hip-hop. E-mail tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. Thanks, homies. (Note: Since this is the “rap/hip-hop post,” from heretofore, all commenters…
Rockets Acquire Forward Artest in Deal
Yes! A reason to be excited about Houston Rockets basketball. For those not in the know, last night the Rockets acquired multi-talented Sacramento Kings forward, rapper and noted animal lover Ron Artest. Artest is one of those hard-asses who will bang away under the hoop, has a decent shot and…
Bold New immigration Plan — Give Yourself Up
The San Antonio Express-News is reporting (through a Chron link) that the federal government has a new, exciting plan to deal with undocumented/illegal aliens. Turn yourself in. “Operation Scheduled Departure” will take away all the hassle of getting arrested and deported, says Julie Myers, the head of Immigration and Customs…
Moehler Flirts with Complete Game, Wins At Least One Heart in the Process
You know, last season I wasn’t Brian Moehler’s biggest fan. And I wasn’t exactly happy about him being on this year’s roster, either. To me, he just pointed out how bad the Astros pitching staff was. But damn, was I wrong. Thrown into the starting rotation back in May after…
No Saggy In Baytown
The propriety of young men wearing baggy pants down to the middle of their buttocks has reached the halls of government in Baytown, the refinery town 30 miles east of Houston, where the City Council has been asked by a local radio personality with KWWJ-AM (“Keep Walking With Jesus”) to…
Now Open: Raia’s Italian Kitchen
Luke Raia, formerly of D’Amico’s in the Village, has just opened a new place, Raia’s Italian Market (4500 Washington, 713-861-1042). “We’re a deli, we’re a market and we’re a full-service Italian kitchen. We even have a steam table,” says Raia. “We’ve got lots of imported Italian items as well as…
Gone To Join The Choir Invisible
Read the Houston Chronicle’s death notices long enough, and you’ll realize there are more than 1,000 ways to die. Not physical causes of death, mind you: we’re talking about hundreds and hundreds of manners in which to euphemistically describe the act of dying. While most are said to have simply…
How Mexican Is Mexican Enough?
Half Hispanic, half white, Stephanie Elizondo Griest, has spent most of her life being asked which she was. “I had no answer to this. Both? Neither? Either?” she writes. Griest grew up just south of Corpus Christi speaking very little Spanish, and admits she went from checking “white” on forms…
Yo. You Live in Houston, Not Tennessee.
The Arizona Cardinals have gotten kind of tired of having their stadium invaded by Dallas Cowboy fans whenever the two teams play – not that I can blame them because the only thing worse than a Cowboy fan is a New York Yankee fan. Their solution is simple: if Cowboy…
Texas Road Food: Bellaire
[jump] Vietnamese crawfish joint in Bellaire Chinatown. — Robb Walsh…
Slip Inside This House: MP3s from Yesterday’s Obsession, the Liberty Bell and the Lavender Hour
Yesterday’s Obsession, “The Phycle” A heavy-handed organ chugging along with soft vocals and some really interesting swirling guitars, “The Phycle” is a true psychedelic work of audible art from Houston. Released in 1966, this single 45 stands as the solitary release by yet another one of Huey P. Meaux’s mystery…
Texas’s First (Openly) Gay Lutheran Pastor Speaks Out
Lura Groen wants to tell the good news, not spark a revolution, but she’s doing both as the first openly gay Lutheran pastor in Texas. The Lutheran church normally requires gay and lesbian clergy to take a vow of celibacy, but Groen refused. “I find that it’s a discriminatory policy…
Goodbye, Bellaire Trolley Station
In the continued march to make all of Houston’s thoroughfares uniformly dull and uninteresting, the city of Bellaire demolished the replica trolley station that stood in the median of Bellaire Boulevard for decades. It was the last remnant of Houston’s old city streetcar system, but according to KTRK, Bellaire officials…
Aftermath: Twotenanny at the Mink
The sequel to January’s wildly successful “Hootenanny” cover night, “Twotenanny” is likewise a magnificent concept, but its execution Saturday night revealed a few minor flaws. If you were one of the five people in Houston who didn’t make the sweaty foray, it was ten of the city’s best bands posing…
HPMA Aftermath: It’s Not Over Yet
Hope you enjoyed all our coverage of Sunday’s music award showcase; it takes seven reviewers to even provide an inkling of how hectic and exciting the afternoon was, and we probably could have even used a couple more. I kept thinking, ‘Wow, this is going by fast” and even now…
Always…Patsy Cline…Always
You heard it here first: Always…Patsy Cline, originally slated to run at Stages Repertory Theatre through August, will now run through November 9. In fact, it could go even longer than that. As long as the people keep buying tickets, Stages will continue to mount the show. “We’re set up…
Prominent Houston Lawyer Faces Sexual Allegations
Yikes. Richard Laminack, one of the more well-known mass-torts lawyers in town, is in a bit of legal trouble of his own. Laminack once teamed with the legendary John O’Quinn on huge suits over things like breast implants and Vioxx. Now a former employee is suing him, according to The…
HPMA Aftermath: Small Sounds, Yoko Mono, Katie Stuckey and the Swagger, Espantapajaros, Buxton, Los Skarnales and Thee Armada
Small Sounds is a bit of a misnomer. There were six or seven of them Sunday (I couldn’t figure out the revolving-bass-player thing), and between their strong vocal melodies and great sense of dynamics, their sound was anything but small. I was particularly fond of the mix of Fender Rhodes…
The Elderly Come And Go In TDCJ
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has released its annual report; as always it’s a cornucopia of miscellaneous details describing just how our state is doing in putting people behind bars. Grits for Breakfast will no doubt have the best analysis of the 152,661 guests of the state; the blog…
UH Prof, Mia Farrow Tour Third World
Jody Williams, a professor at UH’s Graduate College of Social Work, is having quite the summer. She’s touring Thailand, Ethiopia, Sudan and Chad (one luxurious resort after the other!) as part of a Nobel Women’s Initiative peace delegation. Thanks to heavy support work by people at UH, the delegation –…
Midway Meat Market, Katy
Midway Meat Market and Barbecue (281-391-3101) is located at 5901 Hwy. 90 in Katy. The first time that I visited the Midway Meat Market and caught a glimpse of the business office there, my jaw dropped. There’s a cape buffalo head, walrus tusks and a set of fossilized mammoth tusks…
Miracle Berry Party at La Strada
There’s been a lot of talk lately about the miracle berry, an African whats-it that, when chewed, knocks out your ability to taste sour for a little bit. Chew on a lime, it tastes like key lime pie. Jenny Wang, the chief foodie and facilitator of the Houston Chowhounds food…
Marvin Zindler, One Year Later
Marvin Zindler died a year ago today. My wife and I happened to catch his final report under very weird circumstances. On a whim, we decided to take our daughter and check into the Hilton Americas downtown – do that tourist in your own hometown thing. (Hey, I Pricelined the…
Houston Still Seeing Job Growth (Thank Christ)
Houston may not be big on that hip, trendy stuff like recycling, but we are kicking ass in a different category — job growth. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has just released its June 2008 report on job growth in the country’s 12 largest metropolitan areas. Houston leads the…
HPMA Aftermath: Flying Fish Sailors, Umbrella Man, Wayside Drive, Born Liars, Poor Dumb Bastards and Young Mammals
Flying Fish Sailors/photos by Brigitte B. Zabak Folk music might be an acquired taste for some, but Flying Fish Sailors have found a way to bring that traditional sound to the masses, with lively melodies and clean, unencumbered harmonies. No subject is too small for the likable quintet, whose songs…
HPMA Aftermath: Two Star Symphony, Literary Greats, Fat Tony, Black Math Experiment, Spain Colored Orange and Sideshow Tramps
Two Star Symphony/photos by Brandon K. Hernsberger Apparently Notsuoh was only expecting large women at Two Star Symphony’s set, because strangely, that was the only size T-shirt available. But all was not lost for the other sized patrons who got to see this hugely symphonic string quartet’s showcase-opening set. Notsuoh…
New York Times: Houston Sucks At Recycling
Just in case everyone here was getting tired of all the hype about Houston avoiding the nation’s economic woes, some of the backlash has begun. The New York Times this morning devotes a large chunk of its newshole to the proposition that Houstonians are greedy, lazy, earth-hating Neanderthals who laugh…
Astros, Reds Ramp Up Epic Battle for Fifth in NL Central
After three innings last night, the Houston Astros were beating the Cincinnati Reds 5-4. Both Roy Oswalt and Reds starter Johnny Cueto were struggling, and since both teams had been abusing their bullpens for the past week or so, it looked as if Oswalt and Cueto would have to just…
$7 at Orient Cafe in Missouri City
Where: Orient Cafe, 3340 FM 1092 in Missouri City, 281-499-3597 What $7 gets you: A good place for a quick refuel on a heavy day of work or weekend errand running Lunch specials, which start at $5.25 and top out at $6.50, are served seven days a week here from…
The Kirby Trees Are Gone
If you drove down Upper Kirby this morning, you might have noticed something was off. Or gone. Like a lot of the trees that line the road, trees that have been the center of controversy as a street-widening project gets into gear. Channel 13 reports the trees “were cut down…
Where Is It?
Perhaps more important: What is it? — Jay Francis…
Tim Tebow Is So Not the Greatest
You may not realize this, but the greatest college football player of this era is Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. At least, the Miami Herald reports, that’s what his coach Urban Meyer told some assembled boosters in Miami recently. Sure Tebow’s won the Heisman, but I have never seen him singlehandedly…
HPMA Aftermath: D.R.U.M., Black Dog, Brian’s Johnson, Mighty Orq, Tontons, Southern Backtones and Sharks and Sailors
D.R.U.M./photos by Jim Bricker D.R.U.M. got things moving at Venue with an explosive world-beat set that steadily drew more people into the stage area; most of those who walked in the doors stuck around for the duration of the show. The group truly took the audience all over the map,…
HPMA Aftermath: L.L. Cooper, Miss Leslie, Scattered Pages, Free Radicals and Hearts of Animals
L.L. Cooper’s Larry Cooper/photos by Nicholas L. Hall Larry Cooper didn’t seem too put out at being shoved off to the far reaches of downtown, nor at the fairly sparse crowd in attendance at his showcase at The Real Sammie’s. As he opened his semi-eponymous band L.L. Cooper’s set with…
Justice, Texas Style — Read About It While You Can
Authorities in Smith County (Tyler) might not be happy to learn that Smith County Justice, a book alleging systemic corruption and unusually harsh sentences in the county that virtually disappeared after its 1985 publication, is now available online. For free. Since the book appeared on Wikileaks earlier this year, it’s…
HPMA Aftermath: Hell City Kings, Fondue Monks, Pale, Arthur Yoria and Bring Back the Guns
Hell City Kings/photos by David A. Cobb Sometimes knowing absolutely nothing about a band is the best way to see them perform for the first time. Judging them solely by their name, I figured I knew what to expect from Hell City Kings; going in, I’d have thought Something Fierce…
Chris Baker In Trouble Again
You might remember Chris Baker, the frothing right-wing KTRH talk-radio host who left town a while back. He landed in Minnesota, and he’s up to his old tricks. The aptly named blog Awful Announcing recently noted that Baker, ever the font of wisdom, had this take on women’s sports: “You…
HPMA Aftermath: Indian Jewelry, Wild Moccasins, Espantapajaros, Poor Dumb Bastards and More
Indian Jewelry/photos by Daniel Kramer Well, as they say in Hollywood, that’s a wrap. And as they say in Houston, “Damn! I can’t believe I ate the whole thing!” We kid, we kid. But reflecting on Sunday’s Houston Press Music Awards Showcase a few hours after the curtain fell, I…
The Trailer For Oliver Stone’s Bush Movie Now Online
Oliver Stone has been speedily rushing production of his new bio W., a look at the life and times of George W. Bush. The first trailer has hit the nets, and Houston is a star! Kind of. But the clips do include scenes of the infamous night when W drunkenly…
Longhorns Party On, Burying Their Sorrows
It’s been difficult for the University of Texas to make the Top Ten in anything significant since Vince Young left, but they have finally accomplished it: They are a Top Ten party school, according to the Princeton Review. It was a close-run thing, though: UT came in eighth, nudging out…
Kyle Janek Gets A Job
Kyle Janek’s resignation from the State Senate earlier this year has caused a big scramble for his seat. Everyone’s gunning for his job. Janek, though, has found a job of his own — he’ll be schmoozing for a health-care company that runs the “blood test of the future.” Biophysical, based…
Joel Osteen Becomes A Better Profile Subject
Unless you’re a multi-millionaire — or a business journalist happy that there’s a new magazine being published — you probably haven’t heard of Portfolio. It’s a glossy, fancy mag put out by Conde Nast, offering in-depth profiles of business giants. This month’s stars: Joel and Victoria Osteen. Osteen gives the…
Metro Gets Picketed
About 30 Metro employees picketed the downtown transit center this morning, demanding that Metro save benefits planned to be cut, and improve other benefits. Members of Transportation Workers Union 260 told the Houston Press that contract negotiations were planned today, and they feared losing benefits like paid vacation (some long-time…
The DA Office’s Exodus: And So It Begins
No matter what happens this fall, big changes are coming to the Harris County District Attorney’s office. For the first time since dinosaurs roamed the Earth, the office will not be headed by a card-carrying member of the good-ol’-boys who have been in charge. (Not counting interim DA Kenneth Magidson,…
HPMA Aftermath: Three from the Rice Lofts
Photos by Daniel Kramer If you haven’t taken a minute to read Dusti Rhodes’ live coverage from last night’s HPMA showcase band party at the Rice Lofts, please do so. (Just look to your right… there’s plenty to choose from.) Here’s a few shots to help fill out that mental…
Round Rock Express Reach Out, Touch Fans
The Houston Astros and their AAA farm team, the Round Rock Express, have a lot in common this year — a nearly identical losing percentage (.462 for the ‘Stros, .459 for RR), with both teams in next-to-last place (Houston is 12.5 games behind; the Express 12.) Still, Round Rock leads…
Monster Burger Invades Downtown Houston
The “Big Adrian Burger” features a one-pound ground beef patty on a toasted bun with lettuce, sliced tomatoes, purple onion, mustard, mayo and pickles. It sells for $6.50 and looks like a meatloaf on a tossed salad with some bread thrown in. You can cut it in half and feed…
Battle station: Kroger’s
There’s four days left to cash in on Kroger’s gift card offer. Buy a gift card for $300 and get $30 worth of free grocery money tacked on at no charge. The promotion has apparently been so successful that Kroger stores have taken down the signs advertising it. But if…
He Tried To Commit ID Theft Against 17,000 Marines
A word to the wise: the next time you try selling the names and Social Security numbers of nearly 17,000 U.S. Marines, make sure the buyer is actually the spy he says he is, and not an undercover FBI agent. Randall Craig, a former military contractor, learned that lesson the…
Chronicle Totally Crushing on Mario Williams
Yesterday, the Chron had a story on the greatness of Mario Williams, a blog post on the greatness of Mario Williams, and a blog post asking why we like Mario Williams so much. Reading all of this stuff on Mario Williams, I had one question: When did teenage girls start…
HPMA Aftermath: Is It Tomorrow Already?
Photo by Daniel Kramer Wow. That was some night. Rocks Off will be posting coverage of last night’s music awards showcase pretty much all day, so be sure to check back here every hour or so or, you know, when the boss isn’t looking. Until then, enjoy this lovely photo…
Astros Win Milwaukee Series, Could Finish July a Glorius 11-13
Color me unimpressed by the debut of Randy Wolf for the Astros on Sunday. Given an 8-4 lead in the fifth inning, he needed Chris Sampson to come bail him out. Wolf in turn gave the Astros just what they needed, another starter who can’t give his team a quality…
“Alien” Astronaut Edgar Mitchell Goes Mainstream
We wrote last week about Apollo astronaut Edgar Mitchell’s latest foray into X-Files territory. Mitchell, who for years has been an advocate of ESP and paranormal stuff, told a British radio program that NASA and the US government have long been covering up the fact that Earth has been visited…
Janet Evanovich Is As Good As Ever
A monkey has escaped from a bedroom and attached itself to the head of a past-her-prime former singing star and proceeds to hump her head, leaving behind a dollop of some substance that probably isn’t hair gel. This is classic Janet Evanovich and however improbable, it’s tough not to laugh…
Houston Press Music Awards — We’ve Got It Covered
We don’t know how your weekend was, but we do know it probably would have been a lot better if you had attended the annual Houston Press music awards showcase. Bands played, people cheered, beverages were consumed, enjoyment was had. You can check out the live-blogging and wrap-ups now, and…
Staying Sharp at the Bayou City Farmers’ Market
Bob Nagode reckons that there have been weeks where he has sharpened upwards of 1,000 knives on the hotel and restaurant circuit. You can find him on Saturdays at the Bayou City Farmers’ Market. His services are a bargain at $0.85 an inch, and he sells knives, too. Knives really…
Texas Road Food: Smith Point
Delivery truck waiting to get loaded with oysters outside of Jeri’s Seafood. — Robb Walsh…
Terrorists Have Won: Andy Giuliani Kicked off Duke Golf Team
The son of Rudy Giuliani, Andrew Giuliani, has decided to sue Duke University over his being kicked off of the school’s golf team. There’s a bunch of stuff in the suit about the coach intimidating his fellow golfers, and about the coach not giving a reason for kicking him off…
Fried Rice: Over and out
The party’s dying down here and it’s about to get shut down – somebody just threw a chair off the balcony. CONTROVERSY! We’re going to pack up and move out before the po-po show up. Make sure you check back tomorrow for a complete HPMA recap with live reviews and…
Fried Rice: This Just In from Levi (Guitar Center)
Levi passed on the rumor that Young Mammals might play one more show with soon-to-move-to-Mexico drummer Iram Guerrero. He says it has something to do with “all ages” and “Roy Mata.” He also wanted us to add that “Lone Star Pornstar is not confirmed.”…
Fried Rice: Poor Dumb Bastards are all talk
This just in via text from Something Fierce’s Steven Garcia: “all hype! nothing but standard pdb fare and “cock bar” chants. granted standard pdb means a lot of byron half naked, rubbing his genitals.”…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Eric C. Hughes from El Orbits, Freddy Steady Five, Allen Oldies Band
Eric says he’s “married with dogs.” HPMA Must-See’s: The Mighty Orq, Miss Leslie, Espantapajaros Your Votes: Lady D for Best Zydeco — never heard of her. Flamin’ Hellcats for Best Roots Rock Earl Gilliam for Best Blues “Most Played” Tunes in Your iPod: Todd Rundgren, Matthew Sweet…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Tomas from Sig’s Lagoon, Clouseaux, El Orbits, The Suspects
Tomas says: “The Suspects are reforming.” Look out! HPMA Must-See’s: Two Star Symphony, Sharks and Sailors, Umbrella Man Your Votes: Molly and the Ringwalds for Best Cover Band -They should call it Molly and the Ringwald Memorial Cover Band Award. Geoffrey Mueller for Best Instrumentalist Pete Gordon for Best Keyboard…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Levi aka Levitcus, The Mayor of Music (read: Guitar Center Hook-up)
HPMA Must-See’s: Small Sounds, Two Star Symphony, Wild Moccasins, Scattered Pages, The Tons Tons, Hearts of Animals, Young Mammals (I love Iram Guerrero) Your Votes: The Tons Tons for Best Local Album, Best New Act, Best Female Singer Eric Bogle for Best Guitarist Andy McWilliams for Best Drummer Melissa Lonchambon…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Ben from Basses Loaded, Tha Fucking Transmissions
HPMA Must-See’s: The Tons Tons (which I saw), Indian Jewelry, Young Mammals, The Blaggards Your Votes: Me for most of these. I’m the Best Keyboard Latin Traditional Player. Not plump. Fat Tony for Best Underground Hip-Hop “Most Played” Tunes in Your Stereo: Yeasayer Candy Statton…
Fried Rice: Bring Back the Guns get picked
We just got the word from Bring Back the Guns drummer Thomas that the band was able to access its practice space. Bassist Shaggy picked the locks and the band was able to get to their gear. (Apparently, somebody didn’t pay the rent and the landlord locked BBTG out.) Take…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Ryan (ADR) from The Skyline Network
HPMA Must-See’s: Born Liars, Buxton, Young Mammals, The Wiggins, Bring Back the Guns, Scattered Pages, Arthur Yoria, Indian Jewelry, Spain Colored Orange, SkyBlue72, Two Star Symphony, Wild Moccasins, Full Release, Hearts of Animals, Black Math Experiment, Sharks and Sailors and Whorehound Your Votes Arthur Yoria for Best Songwriter Full Release…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Debra from Two Star Symphony
HPMA Must-see’s: Scattered Pages, Umbrella Man, Sideshow Tramps and The Tons Tons Your Votes (that aren’t your band): Derrick Donivan for Best Guitarist Geoffrey Mueller for Best Instrumentalist Write-in: Picture Book for Best Tribute Band “Most Played” Tunes in Your Stereo: Right now, I’m obsessed with Depeche Mode, Craig Kinsey’s…
Fried Rice: Young Mammals bid farewell to drummer Iram Guerrero
Something Fierce’s Steven “Baby Face” Garcia reminded us that tonight is the Young Mammal’s last show with drummer Iram Guerrero. If you’re reading this, it means you need to hurry and get down here, but also make sure you check out Guerrero’s farewell performance…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Tyler from Balaclavas
HPMA Must-See’s: The Wiggins, Born Liars, Indian Jewelry, Ceeplus Your Votes (that aren’t your band): Born Liars should win something The Wiggins for Best Experimental Nosaprise for Best Underground Hip Hop “Most Played” Tunes Your iPod: I don’t have one. Most played record on your turntable? Djvorak Symphony #9 The…
Fried Rice: Brian’s Johnson causes some drama
Houston Press Clubs Listings guy Brett Koshkin just stopped in to tell about Brian’s Johnson. He heard from a friend that they heard that somebody else heard (okay, really it was second-hand) that the AC/DC cover band got kicked out of Roc Bar because the singer got on the microphone…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Zahira from Wild Moccasins
HPMA Must-see’s: Definitely Young Mammals, Buxton, Free Radicals Your Votes (that aren’t your band): Arthur Yoria for Best Songwriter The Mathletes for Best Experimental Young Mammals for Indie Rock Free Radicals for Best World Music “Most Played” Tunes Your iPod: B-52s (Hootenanny preparation), Clem Snide, Eastern Sea…
Fried Rice: Craig Kinsey’s take on Vitiman Water drink recipes
The folks from Vitamin Water have put together a couple of product-friendly drink recipes including “The Naked Drummer.” Sideshow Tramps’s Craig Kinsey recommends you order one “without the drummer” (read: it’s just vodka). Things are getting crazy up in here. The VIP room is packed with more musical goodness than…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Chris Ryan from Black Congress, Dead City Sound Studio
Chris says: “This is awesome I’ve never live blogged before!” HPMA Must-See’s: Born Liars, Wild Mocassins (saw them), Sharks and Sailors (He better say that his girlfriend is the bassist.), Hearts of Animals Your Votes (that aren’t your band): Wild Moccasins for Best New Act Sharks and Sailors for Best…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Ben Murphy
Ben Murphy just sat in the Hot Seat and informed us Bring Back the Guns might not be able to make it. “Apparently, they’re having difficulty getting into their practice space.” HPMA Must-see’s: The free drinks in the VIP. Hearts of Animals, Spain Colored Orange, Sharks and Sailors and Scattered…
Fried Rice: In the Hot Seat with Phillip from Sharks and Sailors
HPMA Must-see’s: The Born Liars, Spain Colored Orange Category Favorites (that aren’t your band): The Wild Moccasins for Best Indie Rock Hearts of Animals for Best Experimental Fatal Flying Guilloteens for Best punk “Most Played” Albums in Your iPod: Massive Attack’s Mezzanine and Radiohead’s In Rainbows…
Fried Rice: Updates from the field
Nicholas L. Hall just let us know that Lee Alexander sat in on harmonica with L.L. Cooper at The Real Sammies. If you’re reading this, that probably means you missed it, but you can hear more about it tomorrow …..
Fried Rice: This just in: The Wild Mocassins and more!
We’re only 40 minutes into game and already the VIP lounge is hoppin’ with Showcase stars. Mike and Phillip from Sharks and Sailors are diggin’ some free-drink action along with Jimmy and Bill from Born Liars. Folksy rockers The Wild Moccasins just dropped by for some free eats and were…
Fried Rice: Live-blogging the HPMA VIP Party
Chris Gray and Dusti Rhodes coming to you live from the bar at the Rice Lofts, where Matthew Wettergreen of KTRU’s Revelry Report and the Caroline Collective just stopped in on his way to Two Star Symphony. Staff are still setting up, and it’s pretty quiet at the moment. It…
HPMA Showcase Preview: Videos from dUNETX, Bring Back the Guns, D.R.U.M., Katie Stuckey, Deep Ella and LoneStar PornStar
One more round of videos before this afternoon’s festivities. Here we go… Here’s dUNETX (Best Guitarist, Chris Sacco) doing “Shine On” from its forthcoming album at the Continental Club last year. Love the outfits And Sacco’s rival for Best Guitarist, Erik Bogle, and the rest of Bring Back the Guns,…
Tonight: Journey, Heart and Cheap Trick at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
I’m sorry, but if you’re not going to tonight’s Twotennany at the Mink, there’s really only one other show in town. Make that all of Southeast Texas. And probably Central Texas too. We won’t even get into North or West Texas. Technically, this classic-rock triple play is sold out, but…
Midday MP3s: Twotenanny Edition
Tonight’s Twotenanny at the Mink promises to be an exhilarating, if packed, good time. Co-organizer adr of the Skyline Network advises those under 21 who want to get their covers on to get there right when the doors open at 7, because the club will fill up fast and, you…
HPMA Showcase Preview: Videos from Black Math Experiment, Mighty Orq, eyeagainst, John Evans, Skyblue72 and Wayside Drive
Black Math Experiment are up for Best Local Song for “Everyone Is Gay,” among other awards. Can they match the success of “You Cannot Kill David Arquette”? Multiple nominees (Best Male Vocalist – Mighty Orq; Best Bassist – Westside Johnny) the Mighty Orq shred the “Devil at Your Back” at…
Imperial Sugar Hit Hard By OSHA
The pride of Sugar Land, the Imperial Sugar Co., has just been hit by one of the stiffest fines ever handed out by the feds’ worker-safety agency. OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, said Imperial should be fined $8.7 million for violations at a Georgia plant where an explosion…
Houston Radio Stations on the Selling Block
Some changes are on the way to the Houston radio dial. Earlier today, shareholders of radio giant Clear Channel approved a $17.9 billion buyout by two companies you’ve never heard of. As part of the deal, Clear Channel will have to get rid of two Houston FM stations, including legendary…
Gatemouth Brown Needs a Gravestone
Verve Records One of my favorite blues songs of all time is Blind Lemon Jefferson’s “See That My Grave Is Kept Clean.” Especially these lyrics: Did you ever hear that coffin sound Means another poor boy is under the ground Creepy! Jefferson’s song has been covered by many, many people…
No Shit
Okay, we’re clearly picking up this story in the middle, so please pardon us if we somehow don’t quite get this right. In prison, you see, a common way to protest something (or someone) is to throw your urine or feces on it. Why bother losing a shoe when you…
Five Spot: How Much is 50 Cent Really Worth?
Paris Hilton and 50 Cent: Insert “Lollipop” joke here. Welcome to Five Spot, another new Rocks Off recurrent. Every Friday, we’ll examine a recent bit of music news and list five reasons why it’s either brilliant or dumb-assed. Send tips to introducingliston@gmail.com. So in case you hadn’t heard, rapper 50…
HPMA Showcase Preview: Videos from Wild Moccasins, Miss Leslie, Tontons, Southern Backtones, Hearts of Animals and Born Liars
Only about 48 hours now, so here are a half-dozen more HPMA nominees to tide you over. First, Best New Act and Indie Rock nominees Wild Moccasins speaking “Spanish and Jazz”: Best Country nominee Miss Leslie and her Juke Jointers say “Yes Ma’am,” from none other than Luckenbach, Texas:…
Caleb Campbell Required to Fulfill Army Commitment First
During the last football draft, I was puzzled by the Detroit Lions’ decision to draft defensive back Caleb Campbell from Army. I was puzzled because, well, I figured the guy had this commitment to the military that he had to fulfill – you know, with him being a West Point…
Tough Times At The Gas Station
At the Downtown Tiger Mart on Fannin, just below the I-45 overpass that carries motorists by the Houston skyline, manager Ali Badruddin has just about had it. On Friday, the state served notice to shut down his retail gas business in 30 days due to a laundry list of technical…
Do Unfit Truck Drivers Threaten Houston? Don’t Ask HPD
A study was released this week about truckers and bus drivers maintaining commercial licenses despite being “medically unfit.” The report highlights some extreme cases, like the driver of a tanker truck with a prosthetic leg who is permitted to drive until 2012. Or a bus driver with “life-threatening kidney and…
Tonight: Fitzgerald’s Anniversary, Western Civilization, Two Star Symphony, Foreigner and Bryan Adams
Big slap on the back to venerable Heights venue Fitzgerald’s, celebrating its 31st anniversary tonight. Los Skarnales, seen here doing “Perdida” last month at the club, headlines upstairs over Denton Fitz favorites Brave Combo and locals Sister Sister Y los Misters. Meanwhile, downstairs, it’s San Antonio ska secret agents Spies…
Metro Caves! For Once
It was a rare victory for a neighborhood battling Metro. Last night, Metro officially decided to move the University light-rail line so that trains wouldn’t be rumbling down Wheeler Avenue on their way to and from UH and TSU. Residents had been hopeful of such a move a week or…
Jose de Jesus Ortiz Gives Up on the Astros Season
I never thought that I would see this day happen. The day when Jose de Jesus Ortiz gives up on the season. But yesterday, it happened: “When the Pittsburgh Pirates sweep you to drop you alone into last place only a few days from August, it’s time to realize the…
Halliburton Depositions Could Start Soon in Iraq Case
For the first time since a lawsuit was filed in 2005 against KBR and its parent company Halliburton, plaintiff lawyers will be allowed to take depositions from employees of the two corporations, according to Scott Allen, a Houston-based attorney representing a number of the plaintiffs. Allen says that depositions could…
Lewis Black Hates Dallas, Loves Houston (When the A/C Works)
Lewis Black drops back into Houston Saturday. You might not know this about Black, but he got his start right here in Houston. Black was premiering his play The Czar of Rock and Roll at the Alley Theatre when he left and headed over to the now defunct Spellbinders. This…
How To Pick The Next Top University
Seven Texas universities are pleading with the legislature to become the state’s next “Tier One” school. In case you’re not up on your education-bureaucrat lingo, that means an elite research school. More importantly, it means higher and much more consistent funding than what they receive now, on a par with…
Texas Road Food: Seguin
[jump] Is that mom and dad? — Robb Walsh…
Mad Over Mad Men
Have you ever done that thing where you hear about a television show, think it sounds good but never watch it, only to rent it when it comes out on DVD and watch 25 episodes back to back to back? Oh, you never have? Well then I guess I’m a…
Aftermath: Electric Touch and Phantom Planet at Warehouse Live
Electric Touch’s Shane Lawlor helpfully points the way to the bathroom. Shane Lawlor, lead singer of Austin-based Electric Touch introduced his quartet as “the smoothest rock and roll band in the world,” and they definitely looked the part: tight pants, button-down shirts and vests; guitarist Christopher Messina even wore an…
HPMA Showcase Preview: Videos from Indian Jewelry, Buxton, the Wiggins, Sideshow Tramps, Karina Nistal and Blaggards
Thought I’d throw up a few videos from this year’s crop of HPMA showcasers. More tomorrow. Don’t forget to buy tickets here. See you Sunday! – Chris Gray Indian Jewelry, “Swans” live in NYC: Buxton, “Westward” at this year’s Westheimer Street Fest:…
Welcome to: Tapped-Out Neighborhood Associations
There’s a new city ordinance in the mill that’s getting some neighborhood association folks hot under the collar. Jennifer Woodruff of Shepherd Forest says the city’s public works department is considering charging neighborhood associations $1,000, plus a $100 yearly renewal fee, to put up neighborhood markers and signs on esplanades…
Lawsuit Against HPD Over Alleged Spy’s Death
Earlier today, a Harris County grand jury decided not to indict two Houston Police Department officers involved in the shooting of Roland Carnaby. But to his wife’s lawyer, that’s not necessarily bad news. Speaking in the front hallway of the Harris County criminal court building this afternoon, attorney Randall Kallinen…
Changes In Store For The Laff Stop
Things are changing over at The Laff Stop – again. The fate of Houston’s longest-standing comedy club is now in the hands of Don Learner, owner of The Laff Spot in Willowbrook (note the “Stop” and the “Spt” — they’re two different entities). “I started my stand up career at…
Tonight: Flobots at Meridian
Denver alt-rappers Flobots, whom you only think you’ve never heard of, hits town tonight. If you’ve been anywhere near a radio lately, you’ll recognize Flobots as the group behind that “Handlebars” song, which is in fact called “Handlebars.” Here we go… It’s been an age since a song by a…
Cops vs. Bicyclists, Montgomery County Style
Bicyclists beware. When cruising the roads in Montgomery County, watch out for…stupid cops? That’s at least according to one tri-athlete who was training along FM 149 when he had a run in with an officer from the Constable’s office. He’s also an attorney at a huge law firm, so Montgomery…
HPD Cleared in Death of Alleged CIA Agent
You might remember Roland Carnaby, the mysterious guy who was gunned down by HPD after a chase last April. Carnaby claimed to have been a CIA agent. The CIA has said he did not work for them, but there was enough haziness and plausibility that the Internet lit up with…
Art Rock: Recession Thursdays at Numbers
Tonight’s lineup is the Sweaters, Generation Landslide, Muzak John, Skeptycynic, Mesus the Thesis and Hank Schyma of Southern Backtones…
Semi-Respected Apollo Astronaut Claims Space-Alien Cover-Up
Talk about shocking — an Apollo astronaut, one who walked on the moon, yesterday revealed that the U.S. government has had contact with space aliens in the past, but has covered it up. Stunning, right? Maybe not — the astronaut in question is Edgar Mitchell. And while he does share…
Jay Leno Predicted That Diet-Related Jail Escape
The news pages have been full lately about the jail escape, and subsequent recapture, of the murder suspect who dieted until he was slim enough to slip through an air-conditioning vent. Maybe the incident shouldn’t have been a surprise after all. The escape from the Waller County Jail was predicted…
Houston Officially A Top Terror Target, Again
The Associated Press has gotten a sneak peak at how Homeland Security will be doling out its dough next year. Some cities, like Dallas and St. Louis, will see a sharp drop in funding; some will see a big hike. The “good” news — Houston is one of the biggest…
Wax Museum: Psychedelic Soul Special
From time to time, a beautiful blending of cultures happened in Houston. When soul groups found inspiration in the guitar-driven sounds of rock music, leading to some of the most unique compositions imaginable. If only for a brief moment, a few local groups traded in their blow-out combs for distortion…
Astros-Pirates: Blame It on the Rain, or the Hurricane, or Something
I’m going to blame this on Hurricane Dolly. Otherwise I’ve got no excuse other than my own stupidity for spending a couple of hours on my Astros post last night, only to realize this morning that I forgot to both send it to my editor and to save it on…
County Government’s Ethical Problems Solved
There are some naysayers out there who might claim that Harris County government has a problem with ethics. These carpers will point to a DA and Sheriff who think county e-mail systems are a good place for racist jokes; a longtime revolving-door tradition that sees county employees move on to…
Way Outside The Loop: The Moulton Jamboree
Fancy a trip out of town this weekend? Make your way west for some small-town parade action at the Moulton Jamboree. After viewing the antique tractor show, be sure to grab some homemade pies and some MFC (Moulton fried chicken), which is deep fried in vintage cast iron kettles. –…
Child Protective Services — Not So Good
A federal agency in charge of reviewing the state’s Child Protective Services has released an early look at its 2008 Child and Family Services Review. The Administration for Children and Families found that caseloads in Texas are still too high, and children in the state’s care aren’t visited on a…
Slideshow: Harris County’s Animal Cruelty Investigators
To supplement Randall Patterson’s latest crime story, we’ve uploaded some additional images of Lieutenant Mark L. Timmers and those sad pit bulls. Have a look. — Keith Plocek…
$13 at Dragon Bowl Asian Bistro in the Heights
Where: Dragon Bowl Asian Bistro, 1221 W. 11th Street, 713-426-2750 What $13 gets you: Not being a philistine who asks for spring rolls at a Japanese restaurant. These noodle-bowl places seem to be popping up everywhere, and there’s all pretty similar in terms of both looks and food. The décor:…
Lewis Black
Of all things that irk Lewis Black, Houston isn’t one of them. “People bitch about it,” Black says, going on to score points with every Houstonian ever. “I go, ‘Really? Have you been to Dallas, asshole?’…It’s got no center, and Houston may not have a center, but at least it’s…
Little Women
Mothers and daughters: Your show has arrived. The musical version of Louisa May Alcott’s much loved Little Women comes to Houston thanks to the family-friendly folks at The Masquerade Theatre. The good-hearted March sisters and their beloved Marmee (that’s Alcott speak for Mom) sing and dance their way across a…
Daniel Silva
Gabriel Allon just wants to spend some time with his new wife in a country villa, far from the daily dangers of the international spy game. Then a call comes from a journalist who has something important to say, and only to Allon. It’s a short, simple mission — just…
Robert Crais
Don’t you just hate it when you help a serial killer go free? That’s what happens to P.I. Elvis Cole in Robert Crais’s Chasing Darkness. Three years ago, Cole was hailed as a hero when he helped to free an seemingly innocent man wrongly accused of murder. But now the…
“Tools of the Book Conservator’s Art”
Take a look at the instruments and materials used by the Houston Public Library’s restoration craftsmen in the exhibit “Tools of the Book Conservator’s Art.” See how they painstakingly pry, peel and paste the old, and often rare, books in the library’s collections in an effort to give them new…
Teenage Kicks
“I don’t think we’d ever played for more than 15 minutes at a show,” says Teenage Kicks guitarist Kirk Campbell. “Twenty tops, yeah,” agrees bassist Stewart Anderson. “I don’t know if we did this on purpose or it just seems to work well,” says Campbell. We’re guessing it’s both, judging…
Company
When Stephen Sondheim and George Furth dreamed up their Tony Award–winning musical Company back in 1971, the institutions of marriage and relationships were shifting along with the sexual revolution. As it turns out, that conversation is still going on today, and with a few tweaks the musical has been updated…
Marilyn Logan
Marilyn Logan was marrying the man of her dreams. She had a beautiful wedding planned, the perfect dress and engraved invitations already sent out to a couple hundred people. Then her fiancé called the wedding off. Yes, he still loved Marilyn. Yes, he still wanted to spend the rest of…
11th Annual Festival of Originals
Aspiring playwrights from all over the country send their babies to Theatre Southwest in hopes of watching them grow into full-fledged productions. See the five chosen this year in the 11th Annual Festival of Originals. Each play runs about 20 minutes, and they cover lots of theatrical territory. There’s drama…
Michael Winslow
Michael Winslow is the coolest thing about most B comedies in the ‘80s. You know him as the actor who made all the sweet noises in Spaceballs and the Police Academy series. (He also did the voices for the mogwai and gremlins in the Gremlins series.) Recently, Winslow began easing…
The Lady Vanishes
Alfred Hitchcock set his 1938 film The Lady Vanishes in a train snaking across Europe. Of course, it’s Hitchcock, so his lovely young socialite star, Iris (an understandably flustered Margaret Lockwood), quickly becomes ensnared in a mystery: She befriends a middle-aged English governess who disappears while Iris is briefly unconscious,…
Midget Wrestling Mania
Midget Wrestling Mania is brought to you by the little people behind the Micro Wrestling Federation. And it’ll take more than an outstretched hand on the head to stop names like Lil’ Nasty, Meatball, Bronx Thug, Toad and Pitbull Patterson. And as if a night of pint-size fight pickers weren’t…
“Farouk Hosny: The Energy of Abstraction”
Farouk Hosny has impressively managed to wield his artistic prowess both as a painter and a politician. His work has been shown all over the world, and he’s created many new pieces exclusively for his current exhibition, “Farouk Hosny: The Energy of Abstraction,” at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston…
Two Star Symphony
The members of Two Star Symphony are pretty stoked about their new album. During the mastering sessions for Love and Other Demons, violinist Debra Brown sent a text message to cellist Margaret Lejeune saying, “Our new album kicks so much ass it’s becoming a bully.” The album marks the fourth…
Stand by Me
The 1986 film Stand by Me is based on Stephen King’s novella The Body, which chronicles the summer quest of four 12-year-old boys (played in the film by Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Jerry O’Connell) who find the corpse of a boy their age. Just like mythical heroes,…
SPIN4
Today’s SPIN4 party at the Houston Center for Photography brings Lens Libs, a variation on the word game Mad Libs. To play, photographers snap pictures representing adjectives, nouns, verbs, exclamations, plural nouns and places so that the HCP can put them in a mosaic that forms a story. It’s the…
“Sequence”
Susanne Ackermann and Rossana Martinez know how to keep it within the lines. Both women make works based on repetition and layering, transforming the basic line into something more complex in their joint exhibit “Sequence.” For one untitled piece, Ackermann used colored pencils to draw flowing, curving lines that become…
Concierto: Gracias Houston (Concert: Thank You Houston)
Raul Brindis, from the nationally syndicated Latino radio show “El Show de Raul Brindis y Pepito,” hosts the fourth annual Concierto: Gracias Houston (Concert: Thank You Houston). The concert is a thank-you to faithful listeners for making Brindis and company the No. 1 Spanish-language morning show in town for nine…
Animal House
National Lampoon’s Animal House convinced a whole generation of young boys that college life would be nonstop revelry, complete with keg parties, pot-puffing, prank-pulling and deflowering the dean’s teenage daughter on the 50-yard line. But even if director John Landis’s 1978 comedy masterpiece created unrealistic expectations, it still stands as…
“Joannaversary: Parachutists Are the Loneliest People”
“Joannaversary: Parachutists Are the Loneliest People” is like a re-release with bonus features. The exhibit revisits the first show by Joanna curators Brian Rod and Cody Ledvina, with new artists thrown into the mix. Rod and Ledvina contribute the series of photographs of him walking past the Enron trial paparazzi…
The 400 Blows/Monika
It’s hard to imagine cinema without François Truffaut and Ingmar Bergman, whose paradigm-busting films resisted the mainstream in favor of radical styles and topics. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston screens a film from each today, both starring tortured teenagers. Truffaut’s 1959 feature-film debut Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400…
Aftermath: Cruefest at Toyota Center
Photos by Troy Field We all knew it was coming, and sure enough, after Motley Crue piledrove its way through “Sick Love Song,” rail-thin drummer Tommy Lee crawled out from behind his kit (including the most massive kickdrum I’ve ever seen) and, after greeting a 15-year-old fan in the front…
Capsule Art Reviews: “2008 Houston Area Exhibition,” “Dave Darraugh & Hana Hillerova,” “Designed by Architects: Metalwork from the Margo Grant Walsh Collection,” “Dramas: Real and Imagined” The artists of “Dramas,” “Sterne and Steinberg”
“2008 Houston Area Exhibition” This is the tenth installment of a group exhibit that takes place at Blaffer Gallery every four years, with work by 16 artists. Seth Alverson is showing five paintings that display not only his virtuosity as a painter but the compelling mystery within his work. His…
Black Kids: Partie Traumatic
Last year, Florida quintet Black Kids released a free four-song EP of electro-tinged dance songs addressing themes of incest and gender ambiguity. The girls went wild — well, the bloggers did anyway — and somehow the group got signed to Columbia. BK’s debut, Partie Traumatic, contains the entire EP and…
Bayousphere
Forget about the red cape, this bull is dazzled by the pink socks. And who wouldn’t be? Matador Enrique Delgado, el Cicion de Monterey, uses his iridescent footwear to dazzle a bull, unnamed. The action came in the first bullfight in Houston in 20 years. No blood was spilled —…
Single File
Clipse, “Fast Life” — So it’s official: This hyper-articulate Virginia crack-rap duo can flow sick over non-Neptunes beats. It must be said, though, that Scott Storch’s stuttering-synth track is, like, expert counterfeit 2002 Neptunes or something — to the extent that it took more than a few spins for Clipse’s…
Capsule Stage Reviews: Oklahoma!, Smoke on the Mountain: Homecoming, Snoopy, Yeomen of the Guard
Oklahoma! Ever since its premiere in 1943, the first Broadway collaboration between veteran composer Richard Rodgers and veteran librettist Oscar Hammerstein II has been one of the most beloved musicals. Simple and heartfelt, celebrating America’s homey, rock-ribbed virtues, the love story, which takes place in the Indian territory about to…
The Unexpected Guest Will Keep You Guessing Until the Very End
Murder, an illicit love affair and a blackmailing nurse add up to an unusually exciting Summer Chills production from the Alley Theatre this year. Agatha Christie is often on the seasonal bill, but few of the Alley’s productions of works by the grande dame of whodunits have been as surprising…
Abstinence Education, (Not) Propaganda and Sugar Land
In case you haven’t been paying attention, or somehow don’t have a Web-capable browser on your wristwatch or nose-ring, Hair Balls has been on the Internet, daily, for about two weeks. You really need to click several times each day to keep up with your Minimum Daily Requirement of Hair…
Men Will Be Boys in Step Brothers
I haven’t seen much at the movies in the past two years that has given me as much unbridled comic pleasure as the sight of Will Ferrell as the win-at-any-cost NASCAR driver Ricky Bobby, calling on Jesus, Tom Cruise and Oprah Winfrey to put out the psychosomatic flames engulfing his…
Homeland Security Won’t Let a Former IRA Man Out of Prison
In six hours this past January, all the good that Pól Brennan had ever done came unraveled. The 56-year-old Belfast-born carpenter and his American wife Joanna Volz were in their brand-new Sportsmobile camper van, heading from Volz’s parents’ home on South Padre Island to Austin to visit friends. From Austin,…
Falafels and Poor Boys at Zabak’s Mediterranean Café
The falafel sandwich at Zabak’s is a mouthful of extremes. There’s hot and cold, soft and crunchy, spicy and soothingly bland, with salty and sour thrown in for good measure. To make the sandwich, a couple of spiced ground chickpea patties are fried extremely crispy, then placed inside toasted pita…
Indie Bands Skipping Houston
Passed Over It’s the venues: It’s hard to believe John Nova Lomax, Super Unison and everyone else in the indie music community continue to blame the Two Gallants show as the main reason our music scene flounders [“Skipping Town,” by John Nova Lomax, July 10]. Lomax danced around the issue,…
Flames of Desire at Firehouse Subs
Why did Mike McCown become the franchise owner of the newest location of Firehouse Subs (9359 Katy Fwy., 713-468-7827)? “Simple,” he says, “my first bite. I tasted one and fell in love. We serve a Northeast grinder-style sub with lots of meat that has been steamed, and cheese and bread…
Locals Only
Two Star Symphony gets around. The Houston avant-classical quartet has a couple of interesting collaborations on the books: the “Synesthesia” sound-and-light show with director Matthew Schlief next month at Rice University, and an original version of Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus with the Dominic Walsh Dance Theatre at Hobby Center in October…
The Secret’s Out at Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse
Chef Steve Haug’s Shanghai calamari ($13) at Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse (5061 Westheimer, 713-355-2600) is an insider’s secret for now, since it is an off-the-menu special appetizer. But it’s been so well received by Houston guests, it will soon appear on the menu of Del Frisco’s nationwide. And for good…
Mathletes: #$@% You and Your Cool
Joe Mathlete writes songs the way other people might write an e-mail or grocery list. As such, his output tends to be scattershot, but when he’s on, he’s on, and his new limited-edition LP #$@% You and Your Cool is more hit than miss. Foremost among the keepers is “My…
Two Sworn, Gun-Toting Peace Officers Protect the County’s Animals
A recent Monday found the animal cruelty investigator again behind the wheel of the big, white Chevrolet fitted out like a tank. Beside Lieutenant Mark L. Timmers were a tranquilizer rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun, with a 9-mm pistol mounted to the dash. Timmers himself presented as a short man,…
SPECIAL TORTILLA CONTEST EDITION
Dear Readers, Gracias, merci, obrigado for the many submissions in our contest asking readers to argue in 25 words why corn tortillas are superior to flour, or vice versa. Below are the winners for some of the cities that carry the Mexican; see the full list at www.houstonpress.com. Don’t see…
RocBar: Too Pretty To Rock?
Bayou Place’s in-house rock club, RocBar (520 Texas; it shares an address with techno lounge Mosaic), sees its share of slicksters, but on a recent Saturday night Brendan Jones and Lute Fox took the cake. Cakes aren’t nearly awesome enough to encompass how badass these two were, though — it’s…
An Evening with Thee Armada, Houston’s Next Big Thing
This is a story ’bout some boys from Texas who know how to get down. And you know they’ll be the life of the party, so let’s get this started now. So go the opening lines from Houston quintet Thee Armada’s smash single “Rock, Shock, and Load,” which has springboarded…
THE BIG TOP’S ’57 CHEVY WITH HAWAIIAN PLATES
Dear Reader, The torch of Stirred & Shaken has been passed. I am your new drinks columnist. I hope you enjoy the recipes (and stories). If you have suggestions for cocktails we should try, please e-mail me at stirredandshaken@rocketmail.com. — WH Bad Film Night had not drawn much of a…
Bryan Adams’s 11, 11 Times Through
11 is Bryan Adams’s 11th studio album. It features 11 tracks and is available exclusively at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, where it sells for roughly $11. In accordance with Adams’s current numerical fascination, I will listen to 11, on headphones, 11 times in a row and chronicle my experience. 10:34…
Ottmar Liebert & Luna Negra
German native Ottmar Liebert is one of the few flamenco artists who can sell out midsize rooms, but his Houston fans have a rare opportunity to see Liebert and his band Luna Negra a lot closer up. Liebert began his flamenco career at restaurants around Santa Fe, where he still…
Cross Canadian Ragweed
If this Oklahoma foursome isn’t careful, it could become country music’s Next Big Thing. These latter-day Creedence-style red-dirt rockers turn out tunes loaded with style and lyrical smarts, a musical tightrope act most of CCR’s peers avoid. Lurking just beneath the surface of the radio-ready words, melodies and harmonies is…
The Station Showcases Work “Defending Democracy”
In his demand for true democracy, graphic artist Emory Douglas brandished his pens and markers like weapons, cutting through injustice with each mark he made. With every newspaper, magazine or poster that the former Minister of Culture of the Black Panther Party designed, his full intent was to “project maximum…
Green Jellÿ
Green Jellÿ has been around since 1981, when, with the intention of being “The World’s Worst Band,” it began terrorizing the Buffalo, New York, music scene as Green Jellö. Television smashing, food fights and fake blood were standard parts of the group’s routine, leading it to be banned from almost…
Diminished Expo-tations at E3
For gamers, E3 — the Electronics Entertainment Expo — is Christmas in July, only you don’t have to endure the Family Dinner from Hell while your new toys gather dust under the tree. Translation: It’s geek nirvana. The annual industry gathering, held last week in Los Angeles, isn’t the chaotic,…
Mastodon
Metal bands that transition from the underground to the overground can suffer painful backlashes. Thus far, though, Mastodon has avoided too much harm. Its 2006 disc Blood Mountain, the Atlanta group’s first for Warner Bros., may have been somewhat more accessible than the quartet of albums issued under the auspices…
2008 Houston Press Music Awards Showcase
Even in notoriously conservative Houston, it’s probably safe to say former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld isn’t the most popular cat in the alley. But for the local music scene, Rummy’s infamous December 2004 assertion that “You have to go to war with the army you have” has the distinct, if…
Journey: Revelation
It’s unlikely any band has as thoroughly modern and convoluted a resurgence story as these AOR mainstays pulled back into public consciousness by HBO and YouTube. Since former lead singer Steve Perry’s 1996 departure, Journey has gone through two frontmen, plucking current vocalist Arnel Pineda off the Internet via the…
