[Han Bennink disciplines his drum kit] This weekend was all about the Jazz and less so about whiskey and beer. Friday I hit Brazil – a land where the beer and wine may flow but not so much the harder stuff. No worries, this was more of a pit stop in my evening on my way to some more serious boozing. The reason for the stop was I’d been jonesin’ to see The Defenestration Unit (which has quite a few members with whom I’ve played music over the years) and Brazil’s intimate space is a perfect venue for the ensemble. ... Read More »

My obsession for this last week has been the song Lazy Bones - a teaser Papermoons posted for their upcoming album on their Myspace. If there have been cries of 2008 being a rough year for Houston music (Proletariat’s closing, the ongoing travails of SHFL, etc. ), let me just say that Papermoons are prepared to clean the slate and raise the bar. Papermoons show how you can accomplish more with understatement and simplicity than any overdriven Marshall, screaming rawk vocalist, or histrionic Xiu Xiu emoting song could ever dream of. There are no gimmicks in this song. In fact, ... Read More »

OK let me just say how much is sucks when I have to try to finish this up during lunch at work! Blogger loves to autosave and somehow my work disappeared and before I could navigate away Blogger autosaved. So I’m going to have to make this brief. This Week’s spotlightFree Jazz Dudes from Holland and Germany! Sun., April 27 -Peter Brotzmann/Han Bennink@ DiverseWorks ($13, 8PM)See Nameless Sound for more Information (Link) Oh man this is gonna rock! Bennink is just this powerhouse player. He’s got lungs of steel and his shows have the musical force of a hardcore show. ... Read More »

Now I’m gonna fess up and say that my interest in Friday’s show was somewhat nominal. I had gone up to Rudyard’s to go meet some friends and spent most of Deadbolt’s set engaged in drunken chatter by the bar instead of dutiful rocking. So, you probably could have dropped a bomb in that room and I wouldn’t have noticed. That being said Trian Woodburns opened with good set of garagey Rock and Roll. While I can’t say I was particularly swayed one way or the other by the electric guitar stuff, it was quite a different matter when the ... Read More »

This week we open with free verse from the great man of letters ADR. I just blatantly picked my nose at my desk and it felt great. By ADR DudePick your noseIt’s awesomeI had totally forgotten theperverse pleasure in itTotally bad assI am gonna do it more Yes, and you are right! I sure as hell don’t know what the hell that has to do with shows this week! This week’s spotlight is onIndian Jewelry’s Tour Kick Off Friday April 18Indian Jewelry (tour kickoff) / Balaclavas / Wicked Poseur / A Thousand Cranes@ The Backroom (The Mink) I’m not a ... Read More »

No Beer or Jameson fueled review this week folks. This week I’m keepin‘ it straight edge. But even if you weren’t abstaining, I hope you were able to make it out yesterday to the Block Party! I kicked around until 5pm and had to leave due to some other obligations but five hours was still quite the overdose of music. In those five hours I caught 20 acts and the stupid thing is, when I had to leave, I was bummed about having to miss Elaine Greer, The Papermoons, Oh Pioneers, Young Mammals, Rusted Shut and a whole host of ... Read More »

THIS WEEK’S SPOTLIGHT IS ON OUR OWN DAMN PARTY Sat., April 12 – Westheimer Block Party (More), featuring …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, Health, Spain Colored Orange, Young Mammals (Frmly – the Dimes), By the End of Tonight @ Numbers (Doors at 7:30) Sabra Laval,Elaine Greer, Oh Pioneers!!!, Papermoons, Free Radicals, Sideshow Tramps, Piano Vines, Buxton, The Watermarks, News on the March, The Defenestration Unit, Guy Schwartz (Avant Garden – Oustide) Boo Town Presents, The Gold Sounds, Micah Omega, Econo, Midnight Pilots, Dead Roses, The Electricks, Death Hell Battle Tank, Cop Warmth, Finnegan, Dunnock’s Ill ... Read More »

Sunday was just one of those nights where you had two very good choices from which to choose. On the one hand you had the International Noise Conference over at the Jet Lounge while The Mink Backroom had Casiotone and HOA. I’d actually considered trying to catch both but then realized how club hooping is generally a recipe for disaster and simply staked my claim with the show at the Backroom. Opening was Hearts of Animals who I’ve seen so many times that it would generally seem pointless and redundant to catch yet another performance but everyonce in a while ... Read More »

The Punk rock Starbucks show this afternoon was a hoot even if it was short. Yeah, you loser, I know you missed it so I posted a few pictures for you. But don’t take my word for it, check out my little video at the bottom with bonus six-year-old commentary: Be My Doppelganger Dude, is that a Starbucks across the street? A beautiful day and good music. What could possibly go wrong? Something Fierce Cheese it! It’s the cops! The Man makes his move!Niki “Dude! We’re so gonna get shut down!” And now the video: More pics at my flickr Read More »

THIS WEEK’S SPOTLIGHT This week we’re spotlighting that annoying thing that happens when there are two good shows on the same night. Sunday, April 6 - International Noise Conference: anti-curators Domokos & Rotten PieceFeaturing Laundry Room Squelchers / Last Rape / Murex / Future Blondes / Meat Glove / A Thousand Cranes / Shithead / The Wiggins /How I Quit Crack / Muzak John / Have a Nice Day@ Jet LoungeHere is an interesting idea The International Noise Conference draws bands from around the world to its Miami home. Nice, but what if the tables were flipped and the INC ... Read More »