Houston-area music for the weekend of May 29th – June 1st, 2008 Well, it seems that another weekend is upon us and that means it’s time for another installment of H-Town Rock. This week’s overarching theme: music from bands who reached their apex two or three decades ago! That’s right – this is your chance to enjoy music performed live that you normally have to listen to on your favorite classic rock station! All sarcasm......

Not-so-fresh off the heels of last year's Wild Mountain Nation, Portland's Blitzen Trapper swings by the Bayou City tonight at Walter's on Washington. Even though they're painfully under the Houston musical consciousness' radar, it'll do you some good to check their set out. Released on Sub Pop Records last year, Wild Mountain Nation proved to be one of the strongest releases of 2007, although somewhat overlooked considering the heavyweights that ended up dominating the ridiculous......

Tomorrow night, several 90's R&B hit-makers emerge on Reliant Arena for the Ladies Night Out Tour (this has been a popular theme this week). One of those is Bell Biv DeVoe. Bell Biv Devoe (also known as BBD, not to et confused with other 90's bands like NKOTB) arose from the ashes of New Edition. While Bobby Brown and Ralph Tresvant went solo, the other three members decided to form this group, which had......

A little bit of old school, a little bit of new school on the charts this week. According to Magnetic Fields' mastermind Stephin Merritt, the group's latest album, Distortion, was inspired by The Jesus and Mary Chain. We think the Scottish post-punk thing is a good look for Merritt and Co. -Read an interview with Stephin Merritt at Pop Matters -Stream the entire album on AOL -Magnetic Fields are featured in the latest All Songs......

Local tech news in a compact, digital format. Something's Brewing At WhiteBoard Labs Houston based WhiteBoard Labs is currently beta-testing MotionNotes, a web based app that allows messaging via video and multimedia interfaces such as Flash movies, PowerPoint Presentations and slideshows. MotionNotes is slated for release this fall. WhiteBoard Labs was founded in 1994 and is a recognized leader and pioneer in the development of Rich Internet Applications. PlaceShout It Out Loud There's a......

As the Texans 2007 campaign draws to a close on Sunday against the Jaguars, putting a bow on top of the most improved season in franchise history, we can look back at the highlights and lowlights. Pros: Mario Williams, the rock solid consistency of healthy Andre Johnson, Mario Williams, rookies Fred Bennet and Abomi Okoye, Mario Williams, possible tradebait Sage Rosenfels, Mario Williams, the revived Ron Dayne, Mario Williams, DeMeco Ryans' appearance on the national......

If you're anything like Houstonist, you haven't finished all your holiday shopping yet. In fact, if you're anything like Houstonist, you've barely even started. But don't worry: We're putting our gift lists together and pulling out some of our more inspired ideas to share with y'all. From music to DVDs to T-shirts to wet wipes, we've got you covered — but seriously, you probably won't want to give the wipes as someone's primary gift.......

Unfortunately, November 20th's performance with The Misfits at Fitzgerald's was Captain Mongo Nelson's final outting with Black Math Experiment. Those of you who know, or have seen Captain Mongo with BME, please bid him a fond farewell, as he relocates with his wife to the North. He was the first of Bill Curtner's recruits for the band and has been a constant since joining up. His punk/metal influences have been the rythmic backbone of the......

Filled up on turkey and dressing? Here's some event stuffing fer youse. add event to your Google Calendar view all events on the Houstonist Google Calendar [26 MONDAY]Double Feature: Monday Movies at MFA and Domy BooksMemories of Irving Berlin (last Monday)Bayou City Concert Musicals | doors at 7pm, ensemble Theatre ($20) [27 TUESDAY]Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison: book signing and discussion | 3pm, Barnes & Noble Town & Country (free)Rice Humanities Lecture: An Ordinary, Everyday......

It’s a slow week. So slow in fact, that the big release of the day just might be the Spice Girls' Greatest Hits CD. We'll be rooting for Scary Spice on Dancing with the Stars tonight, but we've decided to highlight some other musical imports for now. Might we suggest the perfect holiday gift for the music nerd in your life? The Brit Box: U.K. Indie, Shoegaze, and Brit Pop Gems of the Last Millennium......

The party is at Rudyard’s tomorrow – you know - THE party. The Black Math Experiment’s CD Release Party for “All You Need is Blood”, at which a couple of other bands will be performing. La Sed will bring some progressive rock courtesy of Puerto Rico and Mk Ultra adds politically-minded psychedelic punk to the mix (political as in the song writing may focus on fighting military culture and the 9/11 conspiracy). This should be......

A few months ago we told you about a nice alternative to your normal cerveza. This week we'd like to add another weapon to your non-standard beer arsenal - El Sombrero. The beauty of El Sombrero is in the simplicity. However, this beverage is not for the faint of heart. This serving option will change more than your latitude if you are not careful. To help bring it home for you, our buddy, T-Bone -......

Last night, Warehouse Live played host to the annual Houston Press Music Awards. Houstonist was there to absorb all of the entertainment and was treated to some of the best local music around. The Dimes (pictured above) walked away as big winners, with three awards – Best New Act, Best Indie Rock, and Song of the Year, for “Delilah,” which they performed on stage midway through the night. Other performers included Million Year Dance......

Free Movie Monday @ Domy Books It's no mystery that we love us some Domy Books. And not in the "we love anything that is next door to Cafe Brasil" kinda way, more like in the way we love perusing the shelves of this quirky book store and entering a world of the weird and unique. And in the fashion of the weird and unique, each Monday night Domy screens off-beat thrillers, cult classics,......

The nicer the weather gets, the busier we get across the Ist-A-Verse. But we like being busy. Here's a peek at what we've been up to since last week! Chicagoist had an interview with Audrey Niffenegger, whose popular book, The Time Traveler's Wife, was based in their fine city. They also had a heated discussion about Rush Limbaugh's controversial Barack Obama parody, talked about whether Uncle Julio's Hacienda is a good place to get......

FactoryPeople Weekend Pop-up Store @ FineSilver Gallery FactoryPeople, Austin’s hub for fashion, music and culture, is hitting the road with everything from designer deals to DJs to create a weekend of shopping at Houston’s FineSilver Gallery. Kicking off on Sat., Jan. 27 (11a – 7p) through Sun., Jan. 28 (11a – 5p), FactoryPeople will showcase its handpicked Spring ’07 collections and end-of-season bargains with 10% of all sales benefiting local non-profit Workshop Houston. On......

It’s been almost three and a half years since The Shins released their last album Chutes Too Narrow. Since that time, their popularity has soared – mainly thanks to Zach Braff for showcasing two songs from 2001’s Oh, Inverted World in the movie and soundtrack Garden State. In that movie, the lead female character explains to Braff that The Shins will "change your life." They may or may not change your life, but they just......

This was not a very happy week for the -ist network as one of our own, Phillyist co-editor Star C. Foster, passed away early in the week. Her wit, intelligence, and good nature shone through the site, making Phillyist an immensely fun read. She was loved by many and will be missed by all. Phillyist paid tribute to her this week with a heartfelt letter to her and an obituary. And now, the awkward......

If you are reading this thinking, "Yeah, who the hell is he and why do I care?", you seriously need to brush up on Houston's music legends! He is none other than Archie Bell of Archie Bell & the Drells who had a huge hit with "Tighten Up", not to mention all of the other great soul music he has released in his lifetime! Archie was first discovered by Skipper Lee Frazer, of KCOH......

The shot from flickr user and Houstonist photo contributor paper by design. It's a holiday, and the kids are going wild. Yesterday, they were making art out of bottles, today they are the art! Props to everyone's favorite paper designer for capturing this entertaining image of youth taking a moment from the revolt to show off a little. Not only does the kid have the right look, but i'm fairly sure the kid in......

Jagshemash! Borat is a hit. It's getting rave reviews, grossing millions, and definitely the most quotable thing we've seen in ages. But Borat seems to have missed most of the -ist cities, and we were all wondering how the film would have been different if he'd made his way around the world on the -ist tour. In Shanghai, Borat would be observing Inane Learnings of Penis Photos for Make Benefit Glorious Flat World of......

Texas has lost a legend in Freddy Fender, who lost his battle with lung cancer this weekend at the age of 69, at his home in Corpus Christi, with his family by his side. Baldemar Huerta, now known to the world as Freddy Fender, was born in 1937 in San Benito, Texas in "The Valley", the son of migrant workers. He made his first radio appearance at the age of 10 in Harlingen. Regionally,......

A recent venture to our closest Cafe Express resulted in our sampling the Bleu Cheese Bacon Burger, to which we added avocado (nice addition and enough to share with our lunch companion). Albeit we are not fond of chains, Cafe Express has never let us down for quality and quantity - it is pricey-ish, however. Falling into our "gucci burger" category, along with Pappa's Burgers, but also worth the price, is this particular specimen.......

The first in our series of Mom & Pop burger joint reviews takes us to Annie's Hamburgers, 10821 S. Post Oak Road. We tried the bacon cheeseburger (dragged through the garden, of course) and an order of onion rings. And we weren't disappointed! The burger was hot, juicy and fresh, cooked over a gas flame — a similar method to some fast-food restaurants. The bacon topping the gently melted American cheese was thick and crispy,......

Brought to you by the producers of another summertime hit (albeit one of a few years ago), VH1's World Series of Pop Culture is a gameshow based on Entertainment Weekly's Pop Culture Quiz, and it's brought to you by the zany folks behind Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Sixteen three-person teams compete in tournament-style gameplay, answering questions in categories covering everything from The Brady Bunch to Buncha Crunch. The show is the first to......

Now, seriously — is there anything more fun than stupid criminals? (The times you used to load up on Pop Rocks and ride the teacups at AstroWorld don't count. Or was that just us?) Today, KPRC brings us the story of a couple of would-be fugitives who apparently didn't read the part of the car-chase manual where it says not to lead the police to your own house. Officials responded to a call about a......

The shot from flickr user and houstonist photo contributor Phototainable! (click his name for more great shots of the fireworks). Props must be given to the photographers who contribute to the Houstonist page for getting on top of current events. Double props for doing so less than 3 hours after it happened. The coloration on this gives it a Pop Art feel and the detail is fantastic and looks great against the silhouette. More......

The Oak Forest neighborhood (just north of the loop near Ella) has a lot of history. The 60 year old subdivision was once the largest subdivision in Houston. It's now known for its affordable small frame homes and retro feel, with many Mom & Pop stores that have been in business since the early days. What it lacks, compared to other old areas like the Heights, is hip, artsy places to hang out. Well,......

A Houstonist reader recently wrote to ask about an art installation along Buffalo Bayou: I heard there was a secret button that caused a bubble in Buffalo Bayou. Where is it? and why? We do know about the bubble, which isn't really a secret — but it is one of the best-hidden pieces of public art in the city. It's called "The Big Bubble," and it's the work of local artist Dean Ruck (half......

A night of improv sounds good, but you'd rather create than watch. Do you own a video camera? Do you want to take a stab at an acting career? Then come over to our house. Then maybe you need to participate in the 48 Hour Film Project. The touring 48HFP group is coming to Houston this weekend and is looking for would be filmmakers. Each team will draw a genre for their film, along with......