I do not have a TikTok account, but now I am tempted to sign up. That’s because I have just read about “deinfluencers,” an increasing number of TikTok-ers who, as opposed to “influencers,” tell their viewers that they really don’t need certain overpriced items, throwing in messages regarding sustainability and carbon footprints. Now this is a gig I could get behind. “Don’t buy it!” “That’s a piece of crap!” “Have you always been such a sucker?” Yeah, that just might be my new side hustle.

Ticket Alert
Presales are up for the “Champagne and Roses” tour featuring Ne-Yo, Robin Thicke and Mario on Friday, September 29, at the Smart Financial Centre, with the general sale starting on Friday. Incidentally, tickets are on sale now for Moneybagg Yo (no relation) at Toyota Center on Sunday, September 10.

Seats still remain for the Pixies / Franz Ferdinand show at the Bayou Music Center on Friday, June 23, but they are going fast. Same story for Fallout Boy at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion on Tuesday, June 27, and for Matchbox 20, also at the CWMP, on Friday, June 30. And don’t forget Nickelback, at the Pavilion on Sunday, July 23, with tickets on sale now.

Concerts This Week
Les Claypool likes to stay busy. Aside from his primary gig with Primus, the bass player extraordinaire has assembled side bands with the likes of Trey Anastasio (Phish) and Stewart Copeland (The Police). This summer, Claypool has resurrected a previous project, Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, this time with Sean Lennon in tow. The band will be at the White Oak Music Hall, performing Pink Floyd’s album Animals in its entirety.
Guitarists Jerry Harrison (Talking Heads) and Adrian Belew (Frank Zappa, David Bowie, King Crimson, occasionally Talking Heads) will open the show with a performance of the Talking Heads album Remain in Light (the one with “Once in a Lifetime”). This trend of performing complete albums just may be getting out of hand. As Pink Floyd might say, “Ha ha, charade you are!”
Though Rodney Crowell has been a Nashville guy for many years now, Houston is always in his heart (see “Telephone Road”). “The Houston Kid” will be back home with a slew of tremendous songs on Friday at the Heights Theater, touring in support of his brand-new release, The Chicago Sessions, a collaboration with Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy. Though stopping off at the fabled Prince’s Drive In for a cheeseburger and a cherry Coke (see “Telephone Road”) is no longer an option, the burger at Harold’s across the street from the Heights Theater is not half bad.
Speaking of Houston musicians, local blues mainstays Allison Fisher and Her Swell Band will be at the Continental Club Friday night. Fisher is a wonderful vocalist and fine guitarist in her own right, but with Teri Greene along to spank the plank, things can get wild in a hurry. And, I ask you, has there ever been a more swell name for a band?
Zebra, a band from New Orleans, was big in the early ‘80s with a sound like Led Zeppelin being fronted by a somewhat more ballsy Jon Anderson. The band’s particular skill was its ability to combine elements from other successful acts into a radio-ready mélange that had folks eating it off a stick for a few years. A bit of Triumph, some Yes, a soupcon of Rush and voila! Zebra (complete with multi-necked guitars) will play Saturday at the House of Blues.