Spot The Local Music Curmudgeon - November 29th Edition

-A weekly blog where I highlight one show I definitely expect to attend (see *) and throw in a few more that I'd like to and might see given the money and the time.-

Recap

Last week was all about friendship. I'm talking the band. If you went to Notsuoh last Thursday you were treated to manic chaos in the form of an 11 minute set by Friendship. Blades performed beautifully and Basses Loaded (left) proved that they are much more than a gimmick - they have great songs! For those who missed it, at the bottom of this blog is some really crappy video of the madness. Yeah, it's poorly lit and yeah the audio at times distorts to a screech but, so what, I still have confetti in my hair and a bruise on my arm from that show.


This Week's Double Spotlight: S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT!

*Saturday, December 1
Sickish Fest 2: Holiday Hell
A Pink Cloud, VAARG, Balaclavas, John Muzak, MFK Kunst, TENSE
@ The Proletariat

*Saturday, December 1
Pong, The Mathletes
@ Rudyard's
Geez, does anyone have one of those Hermione Granger Time Turners? That or a Tardis. I don't know about you but I'm planning on club hoppin' this Saturday. First of you have Sickish fest II at the Prolee. A Pink Cloud always puts on an amazing show of textures and sound. Who will be playing with Domokos? Well see. VAARG is the black metal alter ego of Mlee (Hearts of Animals) and I believe Amye (Wols). If you are not scrrred you should be. Expect corpse paint and lots of screaming. Balackavas will be spotlighted in January for a damn good reason - they are doing amazing stuff. Not to make them sound derivative but to give you a ballpark I'd say their moody sound falls somewhere between Bauhaus and early Sonic Youth. John Muzak is well it's freaking John Muzak!! and two other bands I'd say something about except that myspace is blocked at work.

Meanwhile at Rudz (see poster) we have The Mathletes in full 10 piece glory. Their recent show at Dean's was pretty fun but I have to admit without Gie Gie the Mathletes lose something. To me she's the perfect foil to head honcho Joe Mathlete and for better or worse she's made "Animals" her song. So since she's performing that automatically makes it a must see. As if that isn't happy happy joy joy enough Austin's Pong will bring their crazy dancey music and lightshow extravaganza to everyone's favorite little bar. Oh kill me!


Also This Week

Thursday, November 29
Melt Banana, Dizzy Pilot, Cop Warmth
@ Walter's on Washington
Oh Melt Banana is always a kick. They are loud stupid jumpy nutters from Japan who make some of the most articulate chaos. Dizzy Pilot always puts on a solid show and they have a new EP out which I'm pretty psyched to hear. And Cop Warmth are a perfect opening act given their antics.


Friday, November 30 -
Two Star Symphony
@ Jones Hall (Univ. of St. Thomas campus)
I have to admit I've always loved the intimacy of a chamber music and Two Star has been doing some wonderful stuff. Friday's show at St. Thomas just stinks of coolness. They will be performing all of their compositions in a wonderful hall. Hey, I know you ain't got 20 bucks. Just go ask yr mom for the $20. I'm sure she'll give it to you happily when she finds out you aren't spending your Friday night in some beer soaked bar with all those low life friends of yours.

Saturday December 1
Secret Saturday Show
@ The Shady Tavern
Who is playing? I dunno. So far the lineups have been solid and it's free so quit yr. complaining!

Sunday, December 2
Satin Hooks,Ringo Deathstar, La Snacks
@ Rudyard's
I'm recommending this solely based on Satin Hooks. I'm not going to repeat myself. They are amazing live. End of discussion.


Monday, December 3
Balaclavas, Waterbabies, Cave, Triangle, Ceeplus, Perkol8r
@ Notsuoh
This looks to be a solid bill with spin masters Ceeplus and Perkol8r but I'm a bit confused. Lesse Balaclavas is playing Saturday and Cave is playing on Tuesday. Both good acts but twice in one week? Well I guess if you can't make the other two shows this would be a good way to not miss out.


Tuesday, December 4
Stevie Wonder
@ Toyota Center
Jeez it's Stevie Wonder. How can I not mention it. Don't play cool. You know you love the dude.


Tuesday, December 4
Clipd Beaks, Yip Yip, Indian Jewelry, Cave
@ The Proletariat
Attention promoters my band rehearses on Tuesday. Don't kill me with bills like this!!! Clipped Beaks, Cave and locals Indian Jewelry all promise to make your Wednesday morning hangover worthwhile.

The Afore Mentioned Friendship performance (part 1 of 2)

Dean Becker's GOP YouTube Debate Submission

KPFT Radio Host and sometimes Free Press contributor has submitted a great video for consideration for tomorrow night's Republican YouTube debate. Blaze that shit and watch the video.

David Addickes Lecture this Wednesday at Notsuoh promises to be quite interesting.

Just saw this on HUH and as a forwarded e-mail. Looks very interesting indeed:

Notsuoh this Wednesday 7:30
(314 Main Street).

The lecture series this Wednesday at 7:30 is with David Addickes who founded the first psychedelic bar in Houston (Love Street Light Circus and Feel Good Machine) in 1968....he will talk about the hippie acid days of Houston circa 1968-1972.

He is also the sculptor who did the70 ft high Sam Houston near Huntsville.

Go ask Alice when she's 10 ft tall.

Drop in!

Penny Royal, Southern Backtones, Two Star Symphony @ Numbers this Saturday

Penny Royal always puts on an intense show. If you have not caught this local phenom before, this will be a grand opportunity as they will be accompanied by outlandish models, a vivid visual aesthetic, and supported by faves Two Star Symphony and Southern Backtones. The show is at Numbers and doors open at 9.

photo by Anthony Rathbun

Spot The Local Music Curmudgeon - November 22nd Edition

-A weekly blog where I highlight one show I definitely expect to attend (see *) and throw in a few more that I'd like to and might see given the money and the time.-

Recap
Damn, it's been nutters this week. Let's see there was the Theresa K. exhibit. I missed the bands but it was still pretty cool. Let's just say her Huey Lewis story is pretty funny. Ummm, let's see, oh yes, and I'm still nursing a hangover from last night's Rudz show. Black Black Gold were pretty good but the mix just wasn't happening (Joe where are you?!!), Welfare Mothers was swell (especially seeing Kyle back on guitar), Monocles stirred up the pot, and Born Liars (pictured left) done went and tumped it over. Quite brilliant all the way around even if I did have to walk off the booze before I could drive back home.

This Week's Spotlight

Friday November 23 - Balaclavas (CDEP release) / Rusted Shut / Laws (tape release) / The Freed @ Notsuoh

Balaclavas 's music kicks an ominous ambiance with a post-punk sensibility. Listen to their myspace tracks and tell me they just don't spit passion. Tonight they have a new LTD Ed. CD which you are advised to purchase. Rusted Shut meanwhile are like your mean old crazy uncle except with guitars, amps, and his name is Don Walsh. How long until Notsuoh bans them? Who knows but soon enough so catch them now while you can. LAWS meanwhile is 3/4th of Gay Marriage a band whose brilliance and importance I can never understate. LAWS is all in-your-face aggressive fury with a brutal rhythm section and blood pouring the lungs vocals - not to be missed and hell they too have a release (tape) which you are advised to pick up as well. Thee Freed returns with it's all star line-up Will, Mlee, Jeff and a bunch of effects pedals.


Also This Week

*Thursday November 22
Blades, Basses Loaded, Friendship!!!
@NOTSUOH!
Yeah this is my kind of thanksgiving. Blades will bring the proggy math rock you so crave. Basses loaded was described to me once as "a hella lot of low end and a hella lot of testosterone!" OK!! Works for me. And friendship will guarantee that every hipster hater will be hatin' on this show. Let 'em, it's gonna kick ass.

Thursday November 22
5th Annual Veggie Thanksgiving Potluck, featuring
Acoustic?,Suspenderman , Poopy, & Flakey
@ Super Happy Fun Land (bring veggie dish)
Sick of turkey and the folks. Well yr. in luck SHFL bring your veggie dishes and a feast of great music. John Musak brings his more folksy offering - Acoustic?. Suspenderman will serve up your brain on a platter. Poopy and Flakey will bring on the reality twisting aperitifs. Eat up!

Saturday November 24
Hearts of Animals, Oculous Sinister, Wicked Poseur
@ Rudyard's
I'm going to be bummed about missing this one. First off you have HOA which will be featured in December's Free Press. I had a debate as to whether describing her song Underwater Staggie as masterful was a bit much. I figured after much debate that that would be an understatement; HOA is easily one of the best things going on in Houston right now! Oculous Sinister meanwhile is a band put together by Mlee to spotlight the work of her friend Mark Richardson. Given her enthusiasm I'd venture to say it's worth your time to catch them. Wicked Poseur is all poppy dance happy music so bring your dancin' shoes!

Saturday November 24
El Desmadre, Pig Skewer, Dissent, Hasbeens, Hypo-Christians, Insecticide
@ Southmore House III
What you say Southmore House lives again at the old Bill Hicks Resurrection?!! Hell yes! You can't keep a good scene down! Celebrate the return of all things Hard and Core. It will be loud, fast, and crushing like all good things on this Earth.

Sunday November 25
Mia Kat Empire Showcase, featuring
Hollywood Black, Buxton, The Ride Home & Oui
@ Walter's on Washington
Ya gotta admire Mia Kat's spunk and kicking out its mix of poppy alterna-pop music. Of these, I like the acoustic Buxton bestest but I'm sure you have your favorite too. ;)

Monday November 26
Psychedelic Horseshit, Pink Reason
@ Sound Exchange
(8PM; free, but donations to bands encouraged)
Fuck your Protools!!!! Siltbreeze recording artists Psychedelic Horseshit play pop with a decidedly low-fi recording that sounds like analog never died. Pink Reason meanwhile...holy crap they have a cover of Freebird??!! Well, you know what to shout during their set!

*Tuesday November 27
Charalambides, Alasdair Roberts
@ The Orange Show
Charalambides are one of Houston's most respected bands even if it's been a while since they lived here [Tom and Christina now live on opposite coasts nowadays]. Yes, I actually got (I shit you not) an e-mail from Artforum magazine asking to look at some photos I took of them at Rudyard's last year. Yes that's right Art Forum is doing a piece on Charalambides. Of course forging an internationally respected career over more than a decade may not make Charalambides worthy of some local paper's top 100 but it sure as hell makes mine! My band is moving even rehearsal just to catch them. Oh yes and Alasdair Roberts is a Scottish folk musician whose work is also quite worthy of your time too.

HPD to use Unmanned Drones in Houston

In addition to the the prying eyes of cameras at stop lights, we will soon be under the watch of unmanned drones that will ostensibly flying around our fair city doing everything from busting speeders, peeping into our homes, and continuing to erode our civil liberties from even an aerial iew. While watching the video, make note of the fact that HPD says they will "tackle the privacy issues lateer." Oh, that is really comforting.

Read the whole shits...

December 22nd = Awesomest Warehouse Party Ever!

OH DAMN!

YOU KNOW(!!) THIS IS GOING TO BE THE SHIT!

Thieves Suck. Another Stolen Gear Alert.

Are you sick of Houston Musicians being the target of thieves? Me too! Sadly, Melissa Lonchambon of Sharks and Sailors posted this on Hands Up. Please pass the word around. Thanks.


Fender Jazz Bass - Sunburst - 1962 Reissue

Serial number: V097058

Swiped from Franciso's Studios downtown in between Tuesday and Thursday this week. Police report's been filed.

There is a Reward for this puppy. If you are the gear shopping type - pawn shops, GC, craigslist, ebay, etc., please please help me keep an eye peeled for my bass! Thanks!

goddammnit!

Also, a $150 external sound card was unplugged from our recording PC and taken at the same time. I don't know what brand it was.

Batoni at the MFAH

Visually exciting if not also heart stoppingly beautiful are 65 paintings by Pompeo Batoni (1708 ­ 1787): Prince of Painters in Eighteenth-Century Rome, over half of which have never been displayed in America. This exhibit is on display at the MFAH until late January. Many of the paintings feature Salvator Rosa style frames. Several of the items are portraits including one of David Garrick considered the foremost Shakespeare actor of his day. His wry countenance shows the at once clever and perhaps condescending glare of an actor. Another highlight is The Choice of Hercules, which posits the man of strength between two women, one virtue and one vice. Closer inspection reveals the dog at the gate of Hell barking in the background while a baby cherub holds a thick wooden club at Hercules¹ feet. The painting Virgin and Child is as close to religious holiday fetish imagery as anything you¹re likely to see between now and Christmas.

Chemtrails over Houston?

Shitpieces! Has anyone else noticed the literally dozens of 'contrails' or 'chemtrails' over our skies the last several days? I counted 12 in one sitting directly above me at Westheimer at Montrose this afternoon. many of them criss-crossed each other and were much more 'bountiful' than your standard jet engine residue. Either way, there is some kinda exercise going on or we are being cropdusted. Now, I am no conspiracy theorist, but this could very well be a depopulation method used by the reptilian conspiracy that seeks to dominate our planet and use my girl's body as a host for the chosen one. Man- I am starting to feel woozy. Maybe I will go see Tool tonight at Toyota Center and share this story with some disaffected youth. Either way, we are fucked.

dan le sac VS scroobius pip "Thou Shalt always Kill"

Spot The Local Music Curmudgeon - November 15th Edition

-A weekly blog where I highlight one show I definitely expect to attend (see *) and throw in a few more that I'd like to and might see given the money and the time.-

Recap

I had a show this weekend that kicked ass but being directly involved makes for a conflict of interest. This is not the place for me to hype any show in which I'm involved. And dude I can't believe I forgot to hype the Evens show at Notsuoh last night. WEAK! Let's just move on.

This Week's Spotlight - Sound Exchange (Friday & Saturday)

Friday November 16
Iron Lung, Agents of Abhorrence, Insect Warfare
@ Sound Exchange
(8PM; free)
Oh man, is your head on your shoulders right now? Well, after this show, expect it to be nothing but a bloody heap as this lineup will utterly make your head explode. Local bad-asses Insect Warfare put out one of the best, loudest, fastest, and most crushing albums to have been released in the US in 2007. If you don't have a turntable, it's your loss [get with the times CDs are for posers and Vinyl will outlive those overpriced coasters]. If that isn't enough, Seattle's Iron lung and Australia's Agents of Abhorrence will be also playing. Expect the small record store to be packed, sweaty, and loud. Best of all it's free!!!! Be there or forever be branded a poser. It's free but you'd get some love if you donate some cash when they pass the hat.


*Saturday November 17
Unguarded Moments: Photos from the golden Age of Punk Rock
by Theresa K.
with LAWS, Sporatics, and Welfare Mothers (debut)
(7PM; free)

Wow, is Sound Ex turning into a venue? Well, you'd almost think it given this second evening of music. First off, this is an travelling exhibit by legendary photographer Theresa K. who photographed many an iconic image of the early LA punk rock scene. And keeping it punk rock, she will be selling prints cheap where anyone can afford them. Bonus for us is she's going to do our photo shoot for December's Hearts of Animals feature! (SCORE!) If that's not enough there's live music: the Will Boone fronted LAWS has proven to be one of the most insane acts around, the Sporatics always kick out some fun spastic shows, and fans of Sugar Shack will be as thrilled as I that Welfare Mothers features the return of Kyle Gionis (sp?) on guitar! Goddamn and it's free? Yeah, it's free too but, again, you'd get some love if you donate some cash when they pass the hat. Be there!


Also this Week

Sat., November 17 -

Bowel, The Dead See, Rustler

@ Walter's on Washington
Heavy stuff going down at Walters. Bowel's bassist alone should crush you. Have you seen his rig? It's huge - even Paul Bunyan would look tiny in front of it. Bad ass I say! Rustler (featured last week) as you know kicks it heavy, proggy and metal and always put on a good show. Don't know much about Lubbock's Dead See but sure why no, eh?

*Sun., November 18

The Mathletes, !Alarma!, Giant Princess

@ Dean's Credit Clothing (free)

Hot Damn. The Mathletes just put on a great show where they were so awesome that one audience member left the club at 2 a.m. so pumped up that she drove to Galveston in happy road trip mode. That is how great the Mathletes are!!!! Alarma makes sloppy classy and put on a fun show! I don't know diddly about Giant Princess but, sure, I'm there! Holmes, it's free!!!!

Sun., November 18

The Dwarves, 13th Victim, Whorehound

@ Rudyard's
Yeah yeah, we featured Whorehound last week but hey they kick-it good! Plus, there is this band called the Dwarves - you may have heard of them.

Tues., November 20 -
Circle Takes The Square, Faithealer, By the End of Tonight, B.

@ Walter's on Washington
By The End Of Tonight put on a crazy over-the-top show where after a while you just lose track of how many riff they just threw your way. B. is a little more restrained but their precise and expert proggy style is really worth a showing up early for. I plead ignorance on the other bands.

Wed., November 21 -

Turbojugend Humpday featuring Born Liars, Welfare Mothers, The Monocles, & Black Black Gold

@ Rudyard's

If you sucked and missed the Welfare Mother's debut here's your second chance! With the Monacles and Born Liars, Rudyard's bring-on the garage rock in style; there is no way this show cannot be on your to-do list.

Fri., November 16 -

My Milky Way Arms, Stove Blow, Seraphim, Wood & Felt

@ Super Happy Fun Land

This is the wildcard for the week. My Milky Way Arms seem to have some amusing potential and they describe their sound as jellyfish swimming in milk - yeah I can see that. Opener Wood and Felt's spacey layers of sound also look promising. Isn't this why we love Super Happy? It's the place to try something new.

Only Consentual Ball Smashing

By Tyler Barber



This misinformed gamer was pleasantly surprised last night when I noticed that Rockstar games was not promoting Manhunt 2, but the much friendlier Table Tennis.

What transpired was a back patio party with two Wiis set-up for all night ping-pong. Omar Al-Bochi, (the sexy Omar) loosely organized a tournament of several guys and a handful of deceptively-good hipster chicks. The winner was my hometown hommie Luis Grimaldo who shut-out Penny Royal drummer Evan Dunavan in what a gentleman would call a good game, but in reality it was more like a step-child abuse-fest. GALENA PARK REPRESENT!

Manhunt 2 party at Avant Garden, Tonight!

By Tyler Barber



Tonight, Tuesday Nov. 13th, Rockstar Games is going to promote "murder simulator" Manhunt 2 for the Nintendo Wii at Avant Garden (formerly Helios). It should be a treat as Manhunt 2 has been surrounded by controversy for the past six months being banned in several countries, slapped with an A/O (Adults Only) rating and is the personal enemy of Neo-Con Florida lawyer Jack Thompson. But what has been met with so much controversy, Manhunt 2's review scores have been showing a game that is just "meh."

Although, if you're into gore-porn like the Saw or Hostile movies, Manhunt 2 is probably just the right fit for your gimp suit. Some argue that the most compelling feature of the first Manhunt, released for the PS2, was the headset functionality that picks-up any sound you make (breathing, talking, munching) and alerts nearby enemies to your position.

Still, Manhunt 2 doesn't go limp on the features for the Wii. Using unique motion-controls, Manhunt 2 sports small gameplay segments that have the player mimicking the murder motions. Of coarse, this is also the focal-point of it's controversy: that pantomiming the homicidal-optometry on screen is somehow more detrimental than just watching someone get their eyes gouged out.

It all starts tonight at 9, and you'll wanna get there early for the free keg and pizza. See, reading the full articles does pay off.

Avant Garden is located at 411 Westheimer Rd.

Rock Star Games Preview @ AvantGarden Tuesday Night!

Rockstar Games, creators of Grand Theft Auto, will be previewing their latest game at AvantGarden tonight (Tuesday) at 9PM. Come Sneak preview the games on a massive screen along with free pizza and some libations.
This is a last minute deal but will be some clutch ass shit. So be there or wish you had.

Brought to you by Free Press Houston, Rock Star Games, and Owl-Wise.com

411 Westheimer

Rick Smith Wake @ Catbird's (wed, 11/14)

Found on the Catbird's Calendar:

Wednesday Nov. 14th
R.I.P.
Rick Smith
you're leaving too early, the show's not over

FYI if you don't know, Catbird's is at 1336 Westheimer. Bartender shift change is at 8:00....which would probably be a good time to show up.

RIP Rix Myth

One of the more enduring and seminal figures of The Montrose and the Houston Music scene is no more.

Rick Smith, AKA Rix Myth, AKA many other names and personae, died at home last night. Rick was on the short list of contributors to Public News and, Houstion's Other and Free Press Houston. He produced innovative and distinctive radio programming for KPFT, Montrose Radio, and Earthwire.net. He was a comedy writer, graphic designer, a film maker, friend to many and adversary to none. More details will be posted as they emerge. The one thing that is known for certain at this writing is that he will be sorely missed.

Spot The Local Music Curmudgeon - November 8th Edition

-A weekly blog where I highlight one show I definitely expect to attend (see *) and throw in a few more that I'd like to and might see given the money and the time.-

Recap

Damn, I didn't do shit last week. I was frikkin' sick! In fact, I'm still on the tail end of my cold. So let's just move on shall we.

This Week's Spotlight

Friday November 9th
Whorehound, New Disaster, Rustler
@ Rudyard's
First off you have Whorehound which is a pretty bad ass power trio. Trevi Biles has been one of Houston's great bassists with a distinctive fat and dirty bass that crushes all posers. He's also an award winning hot sauce king. His gritty dirge juxtaposed with John Black's fluid metal guitar work and Corey Jackson's relentless drumming make for a great show that should not be missed.

But that's only half of it. Rustler have been making a big ass stink with their proggy metal live shows. Seriously it's great stuff where the band has a great ability to make you think it's going one way and they throws you for a loop. The band plays like one of those Japanese giant robots that connect together then break apart for further ass whoopin'. It's pretty awesome!!! There's a third band but they are not my thing, sorry.

Also this week

Thursday November 8
Old Time Relijun, Satin Hooks, Southern Belugosi
@ The Proletariat
(happy hour show)
Satin Hooks are one of those live acts that show you how it's done. Kerry, Lucas, and Nick are just so goddamn good! They play each show like they are going to just drop dead right after the set! See them and weep! Bonus, local chanteuse Southern Bellugosi plays some charming folk songs that have come very heavily recommended live from very reliable sources. Oh yeah, Old Time Relijun are from Portland. I hear Portland is really a nice city and that they might be worth seeing.

Friday November 9th
The Jonx
@ Valhalla (Rice Univ. campus)
What you are telling me that you didn't get a copy of one of the best goddamn records released in these United States in 2007? Yeah it's called No Turn Jonx Red by yes a local band! Just listen to the three tracks on their myspace and see if it doesn't make you quiver! It's fucking brilliant stuff from a band where each member is amazing! Listen and learn! If you've never seen them, go!

Friday November 9th
The Ugly Beats, Black Black Gold, and Sabra Laval
@ the Jet Lounge
Damn you Jet Lounge! If you are going to have good shows, would you at least bother advertising them? If Ron hadn't posted this on HUH, I'd have never know it existed, jeez!!!! Austin's The Ugly Beats play the 60's garage pop thing beautifully and make for a fun lively show. Black Black Gold is kind of a wildcard; they have some cute demos up on their myspace but it's hard to judge beyond just a simple "it's got potential" so if you go report back to me - I'm curious. Sabra Laval may be opening but is not to be missed. If you are a regular reader of Skyline Network (and why aren't you?) you'll note that ADR has been ceaselessly praising her moody bathed-in-echo folk work. Damn, that's good enough for me!

Tuesday November 13th
Ash Reiter, The Endangered Sea Lions
@ Superhappy Funland
I gotta give some props to San Francisco's Ash Reiter - her pairing of a lovely vocal style and simple guitar work is intimate, playful, and charming. This should prove to be a really worthwhile show. Take a listen some of the songs on her myspace (Stumble and Fall, for example, I think is very charming) and see if you don't think if this is worth chillin' out late at SHFL on a weeknight.

Super Happy Funland prepares to bid farewell to it's lovely home and relocate to an as yet undertermined location.

Crap, here I am on my way to my day job when I get the usual show update list from Superhappy except there is some sad news attached. Read on in sadness for the old building and in hope for the second coming of SHFL:

Howdy folks! Big news here at Super Happy Fun Land! We have been informed that the building that houses SHFL has been sold, and that this old shack will be replaced by sparkling new condominiums! So we are looking for another place right now (they say we will probably be out of here by the end of January), we have been thinking about moving to a larger location for awhile now so it is actually a good thing the gentrificators lit a fire under our lazy butts. Anyway, we can use all the help with this we can get, so let us know if you have any ideas for a new location, if you can help us move, or if we can borrow twenty thousand bucks from you (we will pay it back real soon, really, we promise!), any help of that nature would be great! At any rate we are committed to making the Super Happy Relocation Experience as fun and as exciting for you as it will be for us, so check out some of the events we have planned.

I hope the relocation works. Best of luck guys and thanks for all you've done for Houston over the years in that little house.

For a current show listing see: Superhappy Funland

Light Rail, Heavy Burden

"People confuse rail with transit."

by Alex Wukman

The ballroom at the Greenway Holiday Inn is packed with engineers, business owners and community members. The occasion? An “Open House”. The board of Greater Houston's Metropolitan Transit Authority has just released the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for it's controversial University Corridor light-rail project, and it's time to start selling it to the public. The DEIS is a federally required survey of the effect the construction of light rail will have on Richmond and the surrounding area. Weighing in at over 300 very dense pages, hardly anyone is actually going to read the thing....a fact that Metro is counting on.

The crowd here, in contrast to the early and contentious public meetings, is pretty solidly pro-rail. Two middle aged men in suits flip through the DEIS. Nearby, a couple of Galleria area business owners trace their fingers over a table long map showing proposed light rail routes. An elderly man who identifies himself as a Memorial area home owner studies the poster size charts showing the summaries of which properties might need to be acquired for right of way when an engineer from Turner, Collie and Braden walks up and asks if he needs any help.

Read the whole story.....

No Oscar for monster films

Pay little to no attention to Oscar hype. Just as sure as the sun sets daily the weeks will pass with a new film heaped with accocades accordinly. So when you hear talk of Oscars for actors like Meryl Streep in Lions For Lambs or Josh Brolin in No Country For Old Men, just hold your breath. Because then the talk with center on The Kite Runner or Atonement for Best Picture. Only to give way to similar talk about Sweeney Todd or There Will Be Blood the following week. One thing is certain: Alien versus Predator the sequel due out in December will garner no Oscars.

Hot Times Halloween

By Tyler Barber



Hello Houston, I just wanted to post some pics of me and my lady on the Halloween Pub Crawl sponsored by the Free Press Houston.

I wanted to go as the "Master Chef," (no I didn't spell it wrong) but I couldn't find a Master Chief Helmet. Instead, I went with my sexy lady as the Captain of the Oceanic Flight 815 (the guy that got ate by the monster-cloud-thing).

Metro is killing the scene!!!

I've said before that if the Proletariat and Rudyards shut their doors that will be the final nail in the Montrose's coffin. Well, one half of that appears to be coming soon. If you read Skyline this morning, you'll know that the Proletariat is looking towards its inevitable end. Very sad as this has been a great incubator for local bands over the years and a fun place to hang out but the good news is that Denise does plan on moving the venue and I'm hoping she can pull it off. So tonight when you go out make sure to raise a glass for the Proletariat.

See full article on Skyline:
ITS OFFICIAL: THE PROLETARIAT HAS A DATE WITH METRO'S BULLDOZERS

Spot The Local Music Curmudgeon - November 1st Edition

-A weekly blog where I highlight one show I definitely expect to attend (see *) and throw in a few more that I'd like to and might see given the money and the time.-

Recap


The Legendary Southmore House Shuts Down!!
Bummer! Southmore House on the east end finally lost it's fight against the new townhome owners. Having been hassled to the point where all shows were ending at 11pm, the kids at last Friday's show were hassled by Cops at about 10:30pm. Now I have seen cops have to handle noise complaints and when they are polite and apologetic it's impossible to get mad at them for doing their job. Unfortunately, word on the street was that the cops came in, shut it down, and declared that everyone leave and that in twenty minutes they would return with paddy wagons for any stragglers. Not a very polite or professional way to handle a bunch of kids but some cops are assholes and like to push their weight around to everyone's detriment. That unfortunately was the final straw and the club that housed so much of the hardcore and grindcore scene is no more. All shows have been moved to the Bill Hicks Resurrection Laboratory. R.I.P.

And then there were three
Last night's Sharks and Sailors performance was pretty interesting stuff. With the departure of Allen Hendrix on second guitar, you had a band that would be missing some of the space and texture afforded from his work as a guitarist. The Sharks somehow pulled it off by sacrificing delicacy and texture for pure muscle. Drummer Phil Woodward gets a lot of the credit for pushing the music forward by sheer force. Phil along with Melissa Lonchambon brought the heavy backdrop leaving guitarist Mike Rollin in the unenviable position filling in all the color. Most songs worked with the leaner more straight-ahead arrangements yet there were parts where the missing textures were sorely missed. It's an interesting stage for this band. A band who perfected a great sound and now finds itself having to approach their material and interaction in a new manner. I'm going to argue that it's not there yet; it's just a bit too early and you can sense that the band is still working at how to get what's in their head out and into a live performance. Which is not to suggest the performance was anything less than stellar just that this is a band that's changing into something new. It should be fun watching where this evolution leads them. The important thing is, despite my fears, they didn't fuck up my favorite band.

PS Thanks to the Meridian for the ticket giveaway. :)

OK onto this week's shows. This week you'll note that there is not a single asterisk. Yes, I'm, out of necessity, staying in this week. Nevertheless, unless you also have the Sonics interrupting your schedule, you should check out some of these shows:

This Week's Spotlight


Saturday 03 November 2007
Don Caballero, Blades, Animal
@ The Proletariat
Yes, I'm missing out on this one which is a bummer. Whoever booked the Don Cab with Blades deserves a medal! I can't imagine a better night of proggy instrumental math rock than this one - Pittsburg's finest meets Pasadena's baddest in a no holds barred cage match. Yes, maybe it's not a fair match as Don Cab's only original member is drummer Damon Che which arguably makes the moniker a bit of a stretch but the new cab is certainly a respectable outfit. If you read our October issue you'd know a bit of what to expect from the Blades kids. They still have all their original members and have no qualms about kicking ass. So if you see an empty pack of bubble gum - run! Animal? Well his days with the Electric Mayhem were incredible but lets face it his Keith Moon persona has grown stale over the years. We all know the backstory - the drugs, the women, the sex video... Oh wait oh it's a band? Oh shit! Sorry. OK, my bad. I have no idea who Animals are but Blades says they are worth catching so don't show up late.

Also this week...

Wednesday 07 November 2007
King Kahn and BBQ, Born Liars, Fourth Year Freshman
@ Rudyards
This is where you want to be next Wednesday. KK&BBQ put on some of the most entertaining garage rock ever and local boys Born Liars kick it with vim and vigour. A fun night is guaranteed and worthy of a hangover the next day. (PS this was the Runner-up for this week's spotlight)

Thursday 01 November
Party Garbage, Cop Warmth, Das Kapital, The Takes
@ The Proletariat
(early starts at 6pm)
I'm recommending this one solely on Cop Warmth's lunacy. I don't know anything about the other bands but if birds of a feather hang together then this should be a good use of a fiver and get you home by a reasonable bedtime.

Thursday 01 November 2007
Spoon, New Pornographers,Emma Pollack
@ Warehouse Live
Here's a big show. I had kind of mixed feeling on the new Spoon (it was good but hardly groundbreaking), and I've still yet to pick up the New New Pornographers album (though their streak of ugly album art is still holding up). Both good bands and a good use of your Thursday night.

Friday 02 November 2007
Sideshow Tramps & Clouseaux
@ The Continental Club
Sideshow Tramps always put on a good show. Their show may have moved away from the more depression-era folky thing and more towards a bluesy sound but it's still a solid show.

For more shows I recommend Space City Rock