Arts & Events: August 2009 Archives

For the Week of August 31st - September 2nd, 2009 It's that time again, Houston. There's not much on the calendar, but we'll make do until the weekend. Let's put some shows in your to-do list.

                 

Last Saturday night, after carefully selecting our ironic-but-not-overly-ironic wardrobe, Houstonist headed out to the Sweatiest Venue In Town to catch The McKenzies final performance. We're not certain that it will be the absolute last time they play [we're holding out hope for the occasional reunion], but we didn't want to miss it. Houstonist, with camera in town, watched them tear through a fantastic, fun-filled set. Tax The Wolf and The Tontons made appearances as well. All photos taken by Marc Brubaker / Click. Wind. Repeat.

It's a hot weekend for the art scene here in Houston. From contemporary to AV, check the events below:

Make plans to head to the Hard Rock Cafe tomorrow evening, August 28th, for a rock benefit for the Texas Children's Hospital Renal Dialysis Program. Local group, Darwins God takes the stage for an hour and half, beginning at 10:30 p.m. and 100% of the $10 cover charge goes directly to TCH! Darwins God plays original rock with a few covers interspersed. Their music style is best defined as classic blues meets southern rock and packs some lyrical depth via "Allman-esque" vocal harmonies. Once you develop an affinity for their original works, please purchase the CD while you're at the gig, 50% of the price will be donated to TCH, as will 33 1/3% of all t-shirt purchases.

For the weekend of August 27th - 30th Good afternoon, fellow Houstonites, and welcome to yet another H-Town Rock. The week may have started off light, but there is plenty afoot in the music scene this weekend, so get out that calendar and mark down some shows.

Thirsty Thursday has never been so high brow. Tonight you have two great options to get your drank on learn about Houston art and literature. Poison Girl continues its Poison Pen Reading Series with U of H alumni Andrew Kozma and Joel Orr. Kozma will read from his latest book of poems and Orr (of Bobbindoctrin Puppet Theatre) will perform a short puppet show. We've been warned that a mysterious third guest may also join the reading.

Two cool film-related blurbs for our 13 gentle readers:

Houstonist can't understand why all these people are shouting at one another over whether or not people should have health care. It's a complicated issue, we know, but it just seems like the yelling further complicates things. How about a nice civil conversation where everyone has a chance to say their piece?

For the Week of August 24th - 26th And we're back! Wow, this week is feather light on the concert rotation. No matter, though, Houstonist will still be out frequenting shows, and so should you. Tonight we can be found at Boondocks for rock duo Morgue City. Tuesday we might head over to Last Concert Cafe to see Cosmic Steel - did you know Shinar plays with six mallets? Crazy talk, we know. Finally, on Wednesday, we'll scooter over to Super Happy Fun Land to take in California's I was a Lover Delorean was a Dealer.

::Mini-Flight Night @ 13 Celsius ::

Hear that sad sound this weekend? Those are the weeps of students who are headed back to school. Here are a few pick-me-ups for them (and you) this weekend.

For the Weekend of August 20th - 23rd

Tonight at Domy Books illustrator Josh Neufeld will discuss his book A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge. The book is a portrait of 7 New Orleanians as they deal with the decision to stay or evacuate their homes in the face of Hurricane Katrina. Through his work, Neufeld is said to capture the frenzy, sorrow, and hope of New Orleans during those troubled days. A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge has gotten rave reviews from Cornell West and Dave Eggers, and we'd listen to those guys 'cause they seem to know what they're talking about.

           

Firefighters? Check.

Dear reader, Houstonist is most certain that you've seen us gushing about Ghost Mountain, our favorite teen duo from Baytown. Rest assured that when we are extolling their musicality via H-Town Rock installments and urging you to attend their performances, the hype is indeed worth it. To evidence that, we bring you the latest iteration in their catalog: the Summer Tapes EP.

::VerbosCity Real Poets Showcase and Houston Poetry Slam::

For August 18th-19th Whoops! Our most sincere apologies for missing yesterday's post, we hope you found something wonderful to attend. We've taken a brief sojourn to Nashville and will return this Thursday, but that doesn't mean we can't give you a few recommendations for tonight and tomorrow.

On Friday, Hawaii, the nation's 50th state and birthplace of our President, will celebrate 50 years of statehood.

:: HSPVA Annual Juried Show ::

As it seems most of the city's indie kids are still debating hipsters vs. hippies from last weekend's Summer Fest, we prepare to guide you into another weekend full of heat, music, art, and of course, f-f-f-fun.

For the Weekend of August 13th - August 16th Welcome back to yet another edition of H-Town Rock, dear reader. We've missed you, so let's get down to business and speak of weekend plans. Fear not, Poppa Houstonist is here to guide your way.

::Literary Greats @ Continental Club::

::The Rock Stars of Wine @ 13 Celsius ::

Days later, this weekend's Free Press Summer Fest is still the talk of the town - and rightfully so. It was a weekend packed with expectation and anticipation as well as music, heat, humidity, excitement, and whatnot. Everybody's doing it, so here's the Houstonist take on our weekend.

                                         

We're back with more coverage from Free Press Summer Fest! Despite some threatening skies and a small smattering of rain, Day Two was an excellent day of music. Here's a selection of our favorite photos from Sunday, all taken by Marc Brubaker/Click. Wind. Repeat.

The Terry Farrell Fund's special commemorative Jim Beam label will be unveiled for the first time in Texas this Friday, August 14th. Named after one of the 343 brothers to perish in the September 11th attacks, the fund provides monetary assistance to firefighters and their families to support educational, equipment and medical needs.

If you ever tried stargazing in Houston you discovered there's more than one kind of "pollution" in the city. Head a mere 40 miles south of downtown and not only is the light pollution less intense, but some one named George put a big telescope out there to enjoy the night sky.

                                          

Free Press Summer Fest: It was hot, the lines were long, and the waits were well worth it. Houston, we are so proud of you today for coming out this weekend and supporting one of the greatest musical endeavors this city has seen in recent history. A fine tip of the hat to our friends over at the Free Press Houston for all the hard work that went into organizing and orchestrating the entire weekend. Here's some of our favorite shots from Day One. All photographs shot by Marc Brubaker/Click. Wind. Repeat.

For the week of August 10th-12th Wow Houston, just wow. You fully rocked it at Free Press Summer Fest this weekend. We are officially exhausted and enthralled, and looking forward to a nice calm week of music.

::Matt Messinger Artist Reception at Block 7 Wine Co.::

The big news this weekend is of course the Free Press Summer Fest, so you can whet your appetite Friday with a free show from Benjamin Wesley tonight.

For the Weekend of August 6th - 9th

Since when did eating equate to feeding others? Since 2003. Houstonians have been filling their stomachs at local restaurants while donating to the Houston Food Bank for the past 6 years through Houston Restaurant Week, founded by Cleverley Stone of “The Cleverley Show” on CNN 650 Radio News.

We're getting old, we just can't hang like we used to. Shows that start at 10 PM on a week night? Unthinkable, unless it's on the magnitude of Johnny Cash rising from the dead for one last performance. The kind folks at Rudyard's feel our pain, and tonight will kick off their Monthly Happy Hour Show. The first Thursday of every month, Rudz will feature a couple of acts starting at 6 PM. They promise to end by 8:30 so we can get our tired old butts to bed at a reasonable hour. The Happy Hour starts at 5:30 with drink specials and a $5 taco bar. Should you need further justification, the proceeds from the $5 cover go to a local charity.

::EL Happy Hour at One Park Place ::

One part hip hop, one part Big Top, UniverSoul Circus is the only African-American owned-and-operated circus traveling the United States, and it comes to Houston for five days starting tonight.

For the Week of August 3rd - August 5th