Archive - Feb 2010

Thanks to the ever-generous folks at the Granada, we are giving away a pair of tickets to see a night of Texas country at Dallas' best venue: Band of Heathens and Bruce Robison this Saturday, February 27th. Austin's Band of Heathens play roots-rock well enough that Ray Wylie Hubbard signed on and produced their first album. Bruce Robison is perhaps the lesser-known of the Robison brothers, unless you happen to follow songwriters - in which case he's on his way to becoming a legend. Check out videos from both artists below, and enter the ticket contest (winner selected randomly on 02/27/10) by commenting with YOUR NAME and CONTACT INFORMATION in the body of the MESSAGE, EITHER AN EMAIL OR PHONE NUMBER! If you don’t give us a way to contact you, YOU CANNOT WIN.

Band of Heathens - Jackson Station

Bruce Robison - Angry all the Time

Thanks as always to the Granada!!! Stay tuned for future giveaways!

Akron/Family, Warpaint and Buxton at Walter's On Washington
Doors at 8pm; Show at 9pm
Tickets are $10 at the door

On the afternoon before his February 5th gig in Dallas, Eggs and I were fortunate enough to spend a telephonic half hour talking to one of our favorite artists – Keller freakin’ Williams. The conversation touched on his upcoming releases (new Keels record AND a kids' album!!), the String Cheese reunion, and his thoughts on Furthur… among MANY other topics of interest to Keller fans like us. It was quite a thrill to say the least, and was made even better due to a helluva performance that night in Dallas. We hope you enjoy the interview, and you should sound off in the comments section to assure Keller that he’ll pull big crowds at future Houston shows. Read on after the jump, and stay tuned for a full review of the show.

It's been a big week for festival line-up announcements, both inside of our fair town and out. Hell, just scroll down on the front page to see what I'm talking about. This time around it's another Houston event, actually, one of my favorite annual festivals – the Houston International Festival, better know simply as iFest. The four-day multi-stage arts and music festival is set to take place the weekends of April 17-18 and 24-25 with a focus on the island nations of The Caribbean. Never failing to provide entertainment over the course of the event, this years music line-up is topped by funk pioneers George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic who will be gracing the World stage for the second time, as well as LA Latin-based hip-hop, funk and soul group Ozomatli who will be returning to Houston for the first time in a few years. Many of BOT's favorites, both local and international, will also be making it to Houston over the course of the four days including King Sunny Ade & His African Beats, Easy Star All-Stars, Steel Pulse, Rebirth Brass Band, D.R.U.M., Sideshow Tramps and The Wild Moccasins. Once again, iFest has pulled in a nice sampling of local, regional, national and international talent – there's a little bit of something for everyone.

Check out the full iFest schedule after the jump!

Hype. It's what currently is driving record and mp3 sales through the roof. Bands come out of nowhere, then all of the sudden due to a blog-approved track or video, they are pushed into the mainstream. One such example of this is the band Girls, whose name was all but nothing two years ago, but due to Pitchfork labeling them "best new music" and every other blog praising their work, they've blown up something fierce. I usually don't buy into hype before I give the record a listen or see the band live, so when Girls booked a date at Houston's Walter's On Washington, I was curious as to how good they would be.

Read all about the show after the jump

For a long time I wanted to attend a show at Washington State's The Gorge, and I finally did this summer when Bacon, Mrs. Bacon and I traversed the country to see Phish performed two nights at the naturally beautiful venue. It was the best time I've had at a musical event in a long time, and that was predominately because the brilliance that was The Gorge and the amazing vibe that surrounded the camping aspect of the outdoor amphitheater. One festival that had always sparked my interest in year's past was the Sasquatch! Music Festival, mainly because it involved three days of amazing music at the United States' premier outdoor venue. Unfortunately, I never took the journey to the annual Memorial Day event, but this year might be the exception. Announced during a concert last night featuring Surfer Blood and Atlas Sound, the 2010 Sasquatch! Music Festival is set to take place again with performances from some of my favorites including My Morning Jacket, Ween, Vampire Weekend, Band Of Horses, The National, LCD Soundsystem, Broken Social Scene, Public Enemy, The Mountain Goats, Dr. Dog, Caribou and Vetiver. With ROTHBURY gone and Bonnaroo going the weak route, I think this might just be my summer destination festival this year. MMJ is enough to get me anywhere!

Check out the full line-up after the jump!

Great job Free Press. Never figured the FLips would be topping the bill! Plus Girl Talk, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Stars, Ra Ra Riot, Dead Prez, Lucero, Lymbyc Systym and Kid Sister! That's only the National bands - Great local line-up as well! I'm just really pissed that it moved to the first weekend in June, as I am always at Wakarusa during that time. This line-up might keep me at home instead...

Check out the festivals official website for all the information you need to know, and to pick up your $15 weekend passes.

Philadelphia is no stranger to good music. Having produced great artists, such as G. Love, The Roots, Man Man, and the Disco Biscuits gives you street credentials in my mind. With my musical tastes often morphing, I find myself falling in and out of a lot of different bands. Dr. Dog is an exception to that, as I can't seem to get enough of them.

Read all about the show after the jump

With ROTHBURY gone for the year, I had to turn my attention towards other events that would supplement my Fourth of July music fix. One festival that I've always wanted to attend, but never had the chance to make it to, is California's High Sierra Music Festival. I've been told by many that this festival is an experience unlike any other, and with it's lush grounds and relaxed vibe, it should be attended by all music festival fans. Just moments ago, High Sierra announced its initial list of acts that will take the three daytime stages and four nightime venues over the course of July 1st-4th, and so far the list is great! Leading the pack are indie folk grass combo The Avett Brothers, LA-based latin funk/dance/hip-hop big band Ozomatli, heir to the afro-beat throne Femi Kuti & Positive Force and newgrass revivalists Railroad Earth. Many more of BOT's favorites also made the initial cut, including Dr. Dog, The Slip, The New Mastersounds, Blitzen Trapper, Trampled By Turtles and Houston native Carolyn Wonderland. To release this years line-up, the folks behind High Sierra decided to poke a bit of fun at the recent over-televised press conference for the release of Apple's new iPad with their own festival-based version of the newest technology.

You can check out the initial line-up for the 20th anniversary of the High Sierra Music Festival after the jump!

Slowly but surely, the folks over at AC Entertainment and Superfly Productions have been announcing bands via social networking sites MySpace and Twitter. Officially, many great acts have already been announced, but we still have several hours to wait until we see the full top to bottom line-up. So far the bigger acts include Jay Z, Dave Matthews Band, Kings Of Leon, Tenacious D, John Fogerty, Weezer, The Flaming Lips performing Dark Side Of The Moon and Damien Marley & Nas. Several of my favorites have so far made the cut as well, including The Avett Brothers, Dr. Dog, The Black Keys, Jimmy Cliff, Phoenix, The xx, She & Him and The National.

I'll try to do my best to update the line-up as Bonnaroo does, but for now check out the current artist list after the jump