For Inner-Loopers, BFE is certainly true to its name. (Those unfamiliar with the acronym should consult Urban Dictionary.) For residents of Houston's northwest fringes, though, BFE is a rock haven. This smoky bar boasts a stage and sound system big enough to melt faces while maintaining the intimate vibe of a smaller music venue. On Wednesdays, budding arena hopefuls take the stage for open-mike night, with stadium drums and delayed vocals prevailing over crowd noise. Pool tables in the back provide entertainment on non-show nights, and a photo wall displays regulars' faces. Don't skip out on the suggestively-named Sexy Kitchen, which serves up an array of grilled and fried delights, including a fried Honey Bun.
“Chaotic” and “anti-melodic” are the ways that Slug in the Sun describes itself as a band, and they are pretty on-point terms. Those who seek the red end of the volume both aurally and emotionally will find a lot to love in their album Memoirs of Misfortune. It’s a high-octane...
SANTIGOLD House of Blues, March 21 Santigold’s contemporary sound tends to mask what a veteran she is. By the time of her 2007 breakout single, “L.E.S. Artistes,” the 39-year-old Philadelphia native (nee Santi White) had already worked in Epic Records’ A&R department, sang lead for the Philly punk band Stiffed,...
October’s pink has now shaded into more traditional fall colors, but that doesn’t mean the scourge of cancer has fallen away like so many brown leaves from a tree. Any of us who have seen it ravage a loved one — which is practically all of us — know cancer...
Do we all know someone who is excited to take their kids trick-or-treating in a neighborhood other than their own this weekend? If you stupidly ask why, you’ll be informed that the preferred neighborhood has the good stuff. You know, M&M’s, Butterfinger and Fun Dip. At home, the neighbors might...
Sam Smith Toyota Center, August 14 There’s not even that much debate over whether Sam Smith is the most gifted soul singer to come along in a generation; a voice like his is so pure it almost defies the laws of nature. The 23-year-old London native’s trajectory from obscurity to...
Many of us frequent the happening bars and clubs inside Loop 610, but have you ventured out to the suburbs and nearby cities to check out the nightlife scenes out there? With rents in popular Houston neighborhoods like Montrose and The Heights continuing to increase, many young people just starting out...
Mana Toyota Center, July 7 The AllMusic Guide has a nicely succinct one-sentence description of Mana: “Highly successful Mexican band known as the U2 of rock en espanol.” That’s not an understatement considering the Guadalajara-formed quartet once sold out L.A.’s Staples Center for seven nights straight, owing to their passionate...
Feufollet Continental Club, June 5 Lafayette's Feufollet mixes in plenty of honky-tonk and Americana with vintage Cajun music and zydeco, and experienced a second wind on this year's Two Universes, their first album since the arrival of new singer and fiddle player Kelli Jones-Savoy. Now the group founded a decade...
From Indian Lakes House of Blues, November 21 With all apologies to Relient K and Blondfire, can we take a moment to talk about great the new From Indian Lakes record is? Absent Sounds is one of the best records to come out this year, and "Sleeping Limbs" is one...