Andrew Kenny of American Analog Set returns to Houston with his new band, The Wooden Birds. Other Lives from Oklahoma and local band News on the March open the show.

Cover is only $8 at the door. More information at www.superunison.com.

Cast your vote and make plans to attend the Houston Press Music Awards showcases on Sunday, July 26th, in downtown Houston.

View the HPMA line-up here.

Don’t forget to get your tickets for the Texas Heat Music & Arts Festival, which is this Saturday and Sunday in Jones Plaza in downtown Houston.

Among the acts scheduled to perform: The Rapture (dj set), 2020 Soundsystem, RJD2, Felix Cartal, People Under The Stairs, Ceeplus Bad Knives, Electric Attitude, The Sour Notes, Springfield Riots, Tax The Wolf, Bejamin Wesley, Satin Hooks, Factory Party, American Sharks, Sad Gorilla, Glasnost, and The Gold Sounds.

The show starts at noon each day and runs until 10pm. You can check the line-up and schedule at www.texasheatmusicfest.com.

Photo by Brandon Holley (brandonholley.com)

Earlier this year, I received an EP from American Fangs, a local band I had never heard before. The pop-punk genre has been wearing thin on me for a while now, however, within just a few minutes of listening to the band’s energetic songs, I was sold. “Le Kick” [see video here] is among the best songs to come out of the Houston area in years, so how had I not heard of these guys before? As it turns out, the band–singer Gabriel “Gus” Cavazos, guitarists Shelby Hohl and Kenyon Puntenny, bassist Kyle Shimek, and drummer Micah Miller–practiced until its sound was honed enough where the members felt comfortable enough to take the show on the road.

And it worked. In 2009, American Fangs has managed to drum up support enough for its first release to play gigs in Austin during SXSW, score an article in a recent issue of Alternative Press, and also to play shows in Los Angeles, New York, Summerfest in Milwaukee, and points in between. Gus and Shelby recently answered some questions for Houston Calling.

Houston Calling: How did American Fangs get started as a band?

Gus: We’ve all known each other for quite sometime, in and out of bands, jails, shitty relationships, shitty jobs, etc.–the usual mess. As cool as it would have been to have had some genius formula for how to jump start our career in music it was fairly basic: we had no name, barely had any gear, we just wanted to have fun, and not care about how we were going to jump start anything but our own creative fires between each other. Don’t get me wrong, through trial and error we had an idea of what it might take to make something happen but it all began with songs that we enjoyed and a timeline that was non-existent.

HC: The band seemed to come out of nowhere with a really accomplished sound. I’m used to watching bands develop over time, yet you guys sound already ready for the “big time”. Have you guys been holing up in a garage somewhere or what? To what do you attribute your polished (for lack of a better word) sound?

Gus: You have to sink to swim. We’ve all drowned in our own ambitions at times but we tend to come up with a better way to execute what needs to make our songs punch, and sound professional with out compromising the integrity of the song or its energy. Also, for the two years or so we were on-and-off as a band we had been planning how we could go about getting some really killer recordings completed before we played out. I’m far from patient and a lot of us tend to be trigger happy so it was humbling to sit on songs, and once we had our track listing we hooked up with one of our great friends, Jerry Nettles (producer), and he came through and gave us an outsiders point of view on how to go about recording these tracks. Again he’s a great friend, producer, and perfect wallflower to what we’re doing. We tend to write some gross shit with a pop sensibility and he managed to capture that perfectly.

Shelby: Don’t really know how to answer that…these days, it seems, that having a terribly unpolished “shitty” sound is something that musicians are going for. That being said, I would believe that the actual notes and tones you’re writing with are second tier to your energy, enthusiasm, and overall passion for whatever the project. Our secret weapon is really only objective song-writing criteria for accessibility and loving each other and our community.

HC: “Le Kick” is this year’s summer anthem, as far as I’m concerned. It’s a song that has “hit” written all over it. Has the band been getting good feedback on the EP? What are you doing to capitalize on the momentum?

Gus: We recorded that song in our bass player’s house without vocals two years ago, had it online, and played it live a few times. The response was so-so. some people got it right off the back and some people thought we were crap. Once the song was recorded at City Hall Studios with Jerry Nettles it definitely came to life and after a year and a half of not having any tunes up, we bust out with an Ep that we felt was well crafted and prepared. The response has been great and since then we’ve had some excellent opportunities alongside Steve Hutton, our manager at UpperCut management, SXSW, the fellows at Afropunk, The Daily Chorus, our article in the may issue of AP magazine, and most importantly the people that attend our shows. We’re lighting a fire under them and they’re doing the same for us. The biggest way we’re capitalizing on all of this is by sticking to our guns and not giving ourselves limits just because people in the industry are watching.

[Read more →]

Benjamin Wesley
Geschichte
Self-released

The multi-instrumentalist behind some of Houston’s best-known underground bands, Wesley is no stranger to creating unique, original music. On his solo debut, the musician creates a wildly inventive set of songs that implements beats with acoustic guitar, keyboards, and other instruments–all by his lonesome, and often all at once. Musically, Wesley does his best to capture the essence of his live sets (for those who have seen his performances, you know; for those who haven’t, check Vimeo). However, what separates Geschichte from the live experience is his lyrics–it’s much easier to focus on what he’s singing about when you’re not standing in awe of what’s happening onstage.

“Have You Ever Died?,” a strangely tribal, danceable romp that ends in a singalong, and “Beat Bloody Battles Axes”–two of Geschichte’s highlights–both display Wesley’s talent as musician and astute lyricist (”Some dreams make me wail with love and creatures scale my skin”). However, nowhere is this more evident than on “Geschichte,” on which he sings: “And the bombs they go off in the distance / From all around and you hear the sound / And you’re hiding under an overpass and you take my hand to higher ground / From up above the concrete crumbles and we both get crushed or swallowed up / And when you awoke and you were still alive you greeted time with a smile.” It’s this combination of apocalyptic heartbreak and hopefulness, along with Wesley’s musicianship, that makes Geschichte–and Benjamin Wesley–one of a kind.

Advance warning: Benjamin Wesley plays an in-store performance at Cactus Music on Saturday, 7.11.09, at 3pm. Mark your calendars.

Check back soon for an interview with Wesley.

Local rapper B L A C K I E is about to embark on a tour and starts with a kick-off show at Mango’s this Thursday (6.25.09).

sIngs, I Am Mesmer, and Cop Warmth are also on the bill.

As you can read about here and here, Texas psychedelic music legend Roky Erickson plays in Houston at The Continental Club tonight (Wednesday, 6.23.09). This is one for the books, so be sure to check it out. A small amount of tickets are still available.

More information at The Continental Club’s website.

This Saturday (6.27.09), Indian Jewelry returns to Houston for a show at The Mink’s Backroom with Flowers to Hide and Wicked Poseur.

This will be a great show.

On Saturday and Sunday, July 4th and 5th, Jones Plaza (downtown Houston) plays host to the Texas Heat Music & Arts Festival, which features an impressive line-up of electronic and indie bands, and DJs.

In addition to locals Factory Party, The Mathletes, Satin Hooks, Glasnost, American Sharks, Benjamin Wesley, The Gold Sounds, Tax the Wolf, Ceeplus Bad Knives, Damon Allen, Grrrl parts, and many more, the concert features a DJ set by members of The Rapture, 2020 Soundsystem, Drop The Lime, Hot Pink Delorean, RJD2, People Under The Stairs, Felix Cartal, and Bird Peterson.

Doors open at noon and the fun goes until 10pm.

Visit www.texasheatmusicfest.com for the full schedule and to buy tickets. VIP packages are available.

Check it:

Also, There Are No Answers is available on vinyl via Dirtnap Records.