Houston Calling

Last night, she said…

April 25th, 2004 · No Comments

Maybe it was the rain that kept a lot of people at home, but yesterday’s Dreamfest at Fat Cat’s & Walter’s on Washington wasn’t teeming with people as I had hoped. There were decent-sized crowds at various times, but those who opted to stay in missed a great evening of music.

I watched Sound Theory, who started the event off around 6:15 at Walter’s. I was going to check them out and just decided to stick at Walter’s for the duration. I am sure I missed a good time across the street at Fat Cat’s, but the music was great from where I was seated so I stuck around.

Sound Theory reminds me of the good independent music out of Boston or maybe the Midwest in the early eighties. A relatively new band, their sound is raw but not punk rock raw. It’s more college radio than that, but is not over-the-top by any stretch. It’s the subtlety of the music that I like best about Sound Theory and I think this band has great potential. The keyboards add a nice touch (again, understated in a way that really works for them), and my only suggestion is that the band add a rhythm guitarist so that lead Theorist Sean Evans can concentrate on what he does best–playing his guitar. The last two songs of their set were powerful enough to make you forget what they had played for 30 minutes before. A minute or two of knob-turning and hunched-over feedback by Evans added great effect to the set–he’s definitely studied at the Jason Pierce school of rock. The bassist is excellent as well, adding improv-style sounds at just the right times.

The Methods were simply incredible. This foursome’s sound is reminiscent of Radiohead at times, but really only in the manner of their spacey guitars. I hope to be able to see these guys play again really soon. They put on an excellent show and the crowd seemed to enjoy it. A great find.

The Chemistry Set, a band from Dallas, played as well. Their music was nice and garnered a great response from the audience (thanks to the Houston crowd for not holding on to the Dallas vs. Houston rivalry). I hope they are able to get more gigs in the Houston area. Their sound is similar to early 90’s space rock, but has a more guitar-based feel. They put on a good show.

Casino played a rocking set–amped-up energetic rock and roll. It was refreshing to see a local act keeping up with the NYC scenesters without coming off as a novelty or rip-off act. Think New York Dolls or The Stooges mixed with The Clash and you get a hint of Casino’s sound. These guys rocked Walter’s and genuinely had fun doing it. A great set.

Mansion played a stellar set as well. I wasn’t as impressed as I was the first time I saw them play but I think they put on a great show regardless. They’re always good to see.

I also spoke with a very pregnant Erica from meoWcifer and was told the band might not fade away from the public eye for long. Drummer Mikey is devoted to The John Sparrow at the moment. The songs meoWcifer recorded late last year in NYC might be released sometime this year–they’re still going over them when they have the time.

Since I mentioned them, click here to download tracks from The John Sparrow. Their album was recorded by Anton Newcombe from The Brian Jonestown Massacre and will be released on BOMP!.

Also, great news for local act Pilot Radio, who recently were asked to open for The Polyphonic Spree and David Bowie at The Woodlands. Congratulations!

And, here’s the week in rock:

Monday, 4.26.04
Mr. Airplane Man @ Rudyard’s

Tuesday, 4.27.04
Etta James @ Verizon Wireless Theater
Bob Guiney and Brian Vander Ark @ The Engine Room
Little Feat @ Houston City Live (800 NW Mall)

Wednesday, 4.28.04
Hands Up Houston presents Blonde Redhead and Secret Machines @ Fat Cat’s
G. Love & Special Sauce @ Numbers
The Offspring play with The (International) Noise Conspiracy and The Start @ Verizon Wireless Theater
Plump, with Tea Leaf Green and Drop Trio @ Rhythm Room
Josh Kelly and Glenn Eliot @ The Engine Room

Thursday, 4.29.04
David Bowie w/ The Polyphonic Spree and Pilot Radio @ The Woodlands
The Hot Tub Set/Violin/Bound for Okinawa/Heist at Hand/Ghost Shark @ Fat Cat’s
Cutthroats w/ 09 and Speedloader @ Rudyard’s
Sugarcult, Mae, Maxeen, and Next Best Thing @ The Engine Room
Criswell Seven @ Super Happy Fun Land
Brent Palmer w/ Kevin Eskowitz, Dan Darrah, and Caulk @ Rhythm Room
Shawn Pander @ Sherlock’s (W. Gray)
Sancho @ Walter’s on Washington
The Cameron Dezen Band @ Cotton Exchange

Friday, 4.30.04
Avenged Sevenfold w/ My Chemical Romance @ Fitzgerald’s
The Beautiful Mistake, Anatomy of a Ghost, Emery, The A.K.A.s, Abasia @ The Engine Room
Two Tons of Steel w/ Sleeping Rubys @ Rhythm Room
Boy George & DJ Redeye @ Rich’s
Shawn Pander, Viewpoint, and The Matt White Band @ Fitzdown
Dead Reign @ Cardi’s
Broken Chains, Fall To None, Fat Luscious, Dawn Over Zero, Demogous, Disclaimer, and Sedicious all play @ Java Jazz Coffeehouse in Spring
k.d. lang @ Jones Hall

Saturday, 5.1.04
Die Young have their CD release show w/ Folsom, Your Mistake, Ten Crowns, Clean Break, and Last Minute Fix @ Walter’s on Washington
Boxcar Satan play with Zombilly and Suicide Drive @ The Axiom
Dr. Eugene Chadbourne, Walter Daniels, and Quantum 4 @ Rudyard’s
Dereistic, Doctura, The Destro, Fallen Line, Deep 6, Deep Above Surface @ The Engine Room
Romeo Dogs and Mave Dathews @ Fitzgerald’s
DJ Fresh, Werm, SDF-3, Brad Slack, and H.Life @ Clark’s (314 Main)
Rodney Carrington @ Verizon Wireless Theater
Warrant (yes, I believe it’s THAT Warrant) play with Excalibur and Drawback @ Westfield’s
Trouble Maker and Wolfeblitzer @ Forgettaboutit (Jones and Grant in NW Houston)
The StoneKings @ The SideCar Pub
Dead Reign @ Cornbreads
Casual Friday, Dead End, Negative Outlook, Seize the Day, TSM, and Undecided play @ Java Jazz Coffeehouse in Spring
k.d. lang @ Jones Hall

Show alert: Local H is coming to town with The Detachment Kit and Houston’s own By the End of Tonight (who recently signed with Portland’s Temporary Residence Records) will be opening at Fat Cat’s on May 7th. Expect interviews from all three bands very soon.

Now Playing in My iPOD: The High Violets44 Down

Tags: Music