This week’s introduction takes the form of a Choose Your Own Adventure story. Did you have a good election night? Proceed to letter A. Did you have a bad election night? Proceed to letter B.
A: Congratulations! Your fellow Texans went to the poll and you came out on top. That’s great, but it’s important to remember that while voting is a big deal, it’s not the only deal. Talk to your neighbors. Attend a protest. File a petition. Get out there and fight for what you believe in. Just don’t fight online; things online are awful. Except for this list, which is very good.
B: Sorry to hear that. Your fellow Texans went to the poll and things didn’t go the way you hoped. That’s a bummer, but it’s important to remember that while voting is a big deal, it’s not the only deal. Talk to your neighbors. Attend a protest. File a petition. Get out there and fight for what you believe in. Just don’t fight online; things online are awful. Except for this list, which is very good.
Pick of the Week: Billy Gibbons
11/9 – Revention Music Center
Never turn down the chance to hear that sweet, sweet “Sharp Dressed Man” riff live. Touring behind his most recent solo effort, The Big Bad Blues, Gibbons returns to his hometown, as he has some many times before, for a night of big riffs and sick licks. If recent setlists are to be trusted, there’s plenty of ZZ Top on tap, in addition to other covers he’s sure to kill. However you’re feeling today, it’s a show that’ll take you higher.
The Best of the Rest
The Beans
11/9 – Rockefellers
Today, there is a band known as The Beans. Come Saturday, that statement will no longer be true. The Beans are releasing new music and calling it a day on the same night because sometimes the only way to celebrate is to celebrate for the last time. It’s a free show, it’s a final show, it’s a new music show; it is many things, so it’s very much a show that you should be at. Not everyone gives you a gift on the way out the door.
Smoking Popes
11/11 – The Secret Group
Some singers have a voice that captures your attention with its very sound. Josh Caterer has one of those voices. The riffs might be similar, but no pop-punk or emo band quite sounds like The Smoking Popes do. If all you know of the band is their soundtrack appearances, dip into the back catalog for a band that never quite got the full attention they should have. And that voice that you won’t soon forget.
Death from Above
11/12 – Warehouse Live
While I’m sure opening for other acts in outdoor venues pays well, I’ll confess that I’m glad to see DfA playing somewhere that has walls as that should make their already noisy shows even more joyfully chaotic. The opening act for this tour is Le Butcherettes, who’ve been one of the top 5 live acts in the world for the past few years. This one-two punch of a show should be wild, so make sure you hydrate and stretch before heading up front.
Good Charlotte
11/12 – House of Blues
Is it time yet for us to do a critical reevaluation of Good Charlotte? It feels like it might nearly be time. For a while, it seemed like GD was poised to become the pop-punk band that truly crossed over the way that Green Day and Blink 182 had before; instead, they’re playing House of Blues and Fall Out Boy is big enough to play the Rodeo. But hey, if you’re rather wax nostalgic than critical, this is going to be a pretty good night to do so.
Bonus Roadtrip Pick: Mitski
11/10 – Austin
Another buzz artist not making her way to Houston on this round of touring, Mitski’s Be the Cowboy is one of the more solid listens of 2018. If you just can’t wait for her to eventually make her way back to town (and don’t mind the horror of Austin traffic), it’s not a bad way to enjoy the cooler weather this weekend.
Related Stories
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2018.
