Free Press Houston » The McKenzies

Music with Jameson & Lone Star: Indie Houston benefit with Harlem, The McKenzies, Paris Falls, & Giant Princess @ Late Night Pie

RamonLP4 — Mon, 08 Sep 2024 11:26:00 +0000

Let’s just start by saying that Indie Houston inaugural event was a raving success. The Bands were phenomenal, the venue was a welcome change of pace, and the evening was gorgeous. It’s as if God looked down and said “YUSSS! About time someone got it right!”

Giant Princess opened a bit earlier than I expected and, when I got there, they were likely about halfway through their set of 60’s garagey pop. The songs were great and the band sounded phenomenal but let me just go on about the band’s secret weapon – their keyboardist and, in particular, his cheap-ass organ. To me, he’s the element that makes this band stand out. It’s a vintage sound that recalls the best of 60s garage and the beautiful thing is I’m not sure the band even recognizes how cool it sounds. As if to seal the deal on my appreciation for the keyboardist, during a short break (the band was forced to stop due to some power issues) the keyboardist walked around playing his little Casio while surrounded by a small swarm of amused attendees including B L A C K I E. Unfortunately, despite the goading, B L A C K I E never gave into the requests to rap over the improvised Casio. Bummer, but the little moment was pretty inspiring nonetheless. That kind of moment captures the anything goes, sure why the hell not spirit of the best of Houston Bands.

Following was Paris Falls who kept preventing me from getting a beer throughout their set. The fellow behind the counter was probably not used to swinging orders like a bartender so ordering a beer took a bit of a wait and, each time he got close to taking my order, Paris Falls would launch into a song like Lucky or Shelter and I’d have to forsake my chance at a beer least I miss an awesome song. The band played great – Jen’s guitar lines were sweet, Ray’s vocals were raspy goodness, and I was really digging Michael’s 70’s style drum fills – but the show was ultimately frustrating because I wanted everyone to hear them like I’d heard them before with a lovely mix. The sad matter of it is, the guitar was too loud and so the interaction between the Hammond and the guitar was lost. That’s a shame because that is the sound that defines this band. This is, after all, the band that made me dust off my copy of Let It Be. Afterwards I was telling Jodie of the McKenzies about how I wished they had gotten a better mix and she simply replied “Dumbass, you should have told them; bands need to know that!” She was right, how stupid of me not to have told them. They are playing Boondocks tonight and that is an intimate environment where they should sound amazing. Head out there tonight if you can.

The Mckenzies followed with an energetic set that went from a tropical disturbance to a hurricane by the end of the evening. While Jodie and Miguel generally take front and center, the rhythm section really deserves some props because they give the songs some heavy duty rhythmic muscle. They stood aside to let Miguel and Jodie duet for a lovely version of This Lonely Heart but, when they came back, the band roared through to it’s finish to everyone’s thrill. Jodie is likely the most engaging member of the band with her stage banter and she easily pulled the sweetest tambourine move ever. “Dude,” I said to the person just to my right, “did she just do a Pete Townsend windmill with her tambourine?!!! YUSSS!” Solid driving pop roaring over a cool Houston night with tambourine windmills? All right! That’s it! I’m done! It can’t get better than that!

You may think I’m kidding about that but I wasn’t, I had completely forgotten that Harlem was closing after the McKenzies. Perhaps it was because I spent the entire day at Galveston running around and getting sunburned but a fourth band just seemed a bit much to me right then and I couldn’t help but wonder how odd it was to close the first Indie Houston show with an Austin band. Still, once Harlem took the stage with a drunken (or fatigued) swagger, I realized why everyone was so excited to see these guys. It was dirty filthy straight up rock and roll garage and the band played with the an energy and a volume that made everyone wonder “How long until the cops shut this down?” Thankfully that never happened and the band packed it up with style.

The show ended a bit before 11PM with everyone in a good mood and pretty happy all the way around. Music, Beer, Pizza – you can’t do much better than that. Sure someone pointed to the MFAH event as a bigger alternative venue event that night. I thought about it and – no ofense to the MFAH series which is great – but there is a huge difference between some corporate sponsored event with millions behind it and a more modest one that was built with sweat and hard work. If I can smell the sweat of DIY, that’s where I want to be and this show stunk of it. Thank goodness! So cheers Indie Houston, let’s do it again!

Giant Princess kicked off the evening in grand style.

A brief power outage forced Giant Pricess to take a break.
This fuzzy photo is of the keyboardist walking around
playing his Casio and trying to get B L A C K I E to rap over it.

Giant Princess’ secret weapon in all its glory!

Paris Falls’ guitar goes to 11.
It’s one thing to play some bad-ass guitar lines.
It’s another thing to do it in high heels.
Paris Falls showing some love for New Jersey’s finest.
John Sears searches for magic nose goblins
while John read (Wiggins) looks on.

Wild Moccasins fan hot-line may I help you?

Jodie of the McKenzies – the Pete Townsend of the tambourine!

The McKenzies head for a frantic coda!

The McKenzies bring it on home!

Indie Houston masterminds Robert De Los Santos (l)
and Frank Soto (r).
Harlem gets all hot and sweaty
and this is just one song into their set.

Ex-Blades (back left) discuss the finer points of Harlem’s set.
Andrew Moccasin takes another call while his bandmates watch the set.
Collin Hedrick (Giant Princess) looks on in fine Mickey Mouse headgear.

Kyle Gionis (Welfare Mothers) raises his beer to Harlem while
Brent (Dull Knife Records) prepares to attack them with his laser vision.

A pretty successful opening round for indie Houston:
Wild Moccasins, Welfare Mothers, Blades, Giant Princess, and others
all representin’ and, hey, look Andrew is finally off the phone!

Links:
More Pictures on My Flickr (Link)

Giant Princess (Link)
Paris Falls (Link)
The McKenzies (Link)
Harlem (Link)

Indie Houston on myspace (Link)
IndieHouston.Org (Link)

Music with Jameson & Lone Star: The McKenzies, The Gold Sounds, and Sad Like Crazy 31 May 2024

RamonLP4 — Tue, 03 Jun 2024 02:46:00 +0000

Saturday night was not all right for fighting or much else. Let’s face it, a full day of non-stop fun with your wee tyke makes for a very tired and grumpy adult when he hears the call of a sofa at the end of the day. The good thing is, if the music is good, fatigue usually fades away – at least for the most part. Sure, it makes for a less over the top evening but the upside is it’s easier on the pocketbook when it’s time for me to pay my tab.

So while fatigued and mlaa was how I felt when I walked into the Mink, it didn’t last long. How could I? The opening band was The McKenzies – local indie popsters that will wake you up better than a case of Red Bull. They have this wonderful amorphous and primordial energy – cute, spunky, and nervous – that suggests a band just figuring out what it can do and thrilled at every step. This night that energy was particularly giddy with the band cutting up, goofing, and jumping about like I’d never seen them before. Miguel and Jodie sang some lovely harmonies but they also basked in silly stage banter with Jodie playing foil to Miguel’s tipsy and giddy commentary. This is exactly the kind of stuff that irks some people as being unprofessional but the room was intimate and friendly so why not kick back and relax – let the music take care of itself. Sure enough the music swung with a youthful energy that was pushed forward by drummer Matt whose neat red shirt and skinny black tie belied the bludgeoning his drums suffered. The music played sweet and at other times raucous but always with that energy of “Isn’t this neat? Isn’t this fun?” to which you can only succumb to their charms and admit “Yes! Yes it is!”

The Gold Sounds – while also being fun – came for one thing and one thing only – to kill. Previewing them on Myspace did nothing to prepare me for what they unleash live. They had to be the most motley yet stylish band I’d seen in quite some time – a drummer with hair right out of a 70s after-school special, a bassist with a polyester shirt that made my seashell shirt pale in comparison, and a guitarist that looked like he just stepped out of some International Artists studio session. Well, they sure looked interesting and as the band tried to get some bass issues resolved I kept looking at my watch furiously. “Well,” I thought, “maybe I can catch one song if they can get it together.” Eventually, with a loaner bass amp, the bass sounded a few dirty notes to everyone’s relief, the drums kicked it, and it was on! That surfer dude drummer may have looked harmless but the second his sticks hit the skins with a Bonham-like Boom you knew they meant business. The bassist took the lead vocals and belted the songs through his Tom Petty teeth like whatever the fuck he was selling was gonna save your life so you’d better listen up. The guitarist meanwhile played with an extremely thin tone suggesting a huge 60s garage fixation and then literally threw himself into the music. By the end of the first song, it was “Oh, maybe one more.” then by the end of the second song it was “Oh, OK, maybe just one more” and so on. Their no holds barred energy was incredible and it took a lot of effort to walk away from with that ragged Frank Davis garage sound. That sound is something you’d never know from their recordings which is why I never understood why the band always described itself as psychedelic and 60’s until I heard them live. And, unlike their EP, where their influences ran roughshod over them, live this band clearly is its own master. Goddamn! Imagine what would happen if they could corral what they do on record. Ah is sold!

So with the midnight hour I apologized to Awake for having to miss their set (second show in a row I’ve missed and they are painfully good) and made my way over to Rudyard’s. Somehow I made it in time as Sad Like Crazy were just getting ready to play. Now, if you were around at the turn of the century you may recall SLC as being somewhat ubiquitous but babies and relocations silenced the band in the early part of this decade. Well, I’m glad to report that Mari, Trey, and Thane still have the same lovely energy they had when they put the band on hold. For me, it was much the same thrill I got as when I saw Kyle Gionis return to the stage with Welfare Mothers last year. Perhaps this is a good trend with the older rock set. Maybe, with the kids being a bit older, parents have a bit more time to devote to music or maybe the kids just make good roadies now. Who knows. Who cares. When the band is as good as SLC it’s just great to see them back at it. And everyone at Rudz was pretty thrilled too. Ben Murphy taunted Thane Pool by demanding he “Try harder!” and other friends teased them by demanding they play “a good song” which of course Mary obliged with a laugh and two extremely sassy middle fingers. That pretty much captured the laid back and jovial mood. Sure there were some sound problems (if you were too close to hear Joe’s mix, Mari’s guitar was being blown away by Trey’s borrowed amp for a time) but, overall, it was a lovely night of sweet indie guitar rock with all it’s born of the college airwaves tropes. For me, the biggest kick is the guitars and how the melodies weave around each other with such grace. Sure, they may not be Warren of Golden Axe but they don’t need to be; they knows how to drop a perfect melodic counter-punch with a six string and that can be quite devastating. Quite devastating indeed.

Viva Los McKenzies
Matt – rocking the kit so hard
that Miguel falls to his knees!

Snappily dressed Guitarist?
Check!
Bassist with a sweet polyester shirt?
Check!
Drummer that looks like he can surf,
drives a van, and can score really good weed?
Check!
THE GOLD SOUNDS ARE GO!

There was a lot of fallin’ to your knees
goin’ down at the Mink

but where is the dude with the cape?

Sad Like Crazy ain’t getting down on their knees!
They rock upright!
Trey Pool
his stance says
Am I trying hard enough for Ben Murphy?
If not, why? Why?

Mari Pool
Her stance says
I came here to rock!
as well as
Die Ben Murphy! Die!

The McKenzies
The Gold Sounds
Sad Like Crazy

More Picks on my Flickr (Link)

Spring 2024 Westheimer Survives Yet Another Block Party

RamonLP4 — Mon, 14 Apr 2024 05:45:00 +0000

No Beer or Jameson fueled review this week folks. This week I’m keepin‘ it straight edge. But even if you weren’t abstaining, I hope you were able to make it out yesterday to the Block Party! I kicked around until 5pm and had to leave due to some other obligations but five hours was still quite the overdose of music. In those five hours I caught 20 acts and the stupid thing is, when I had to leave, I was bummed about having to miss Elaine Greer, The Papermoons, Oh Pioneers, Young Mammals, Rusted Shut and a whole host of other bands. Is that crazy? You’d think I’d have been sick of it all and ready to leave but the day was too beautiful and everywhere you looked you kept running into cool people and cool music. So here are some highlights:

The McKenzies drew me in with their upbeat drums, organ, and poppy melodies. For me, they were my happy pop “discovery” of the day complete with bubble machine. What can I say, I’m a sucker for the well executed pop song. Sadly, no releases yet but they say they are working on it. Highly recommended!

Defenestration Unit were missing a guitarist yet, no offense to Jim Otterson’s skills, you never missed him. The band filled in the gaps beautifully and Charlie Ebersbaker’s work on the Korg was a great addition to the band’s palate.

Come See My Dead Person were a complete surprise. I walked in and there was this big dude with a small-scale acoustic guitar, a mandolin player, and a violinist, atop the usual drums, bass, and guitar. The singer was singing like some gypsy Tom Waits while the whole place was whooping it up. It’s probably the only time I’ve seen a band have this infectious a “drag you in” live performance since the last time I saw the Sideshow Tramps.

Antarctica Starts Here played one of the best sets I saw on Saturday. Oh, this is a band that loves a wash of echo, reverb, and delay ON EVERYTHING. Add the shimmering guitars and their patient buildups leading to some gorgeous crescendos and I’m mainlining.

Sideshow Tramps make it look so easy! I caught a bit of their set and there is the drummer throwing his stick around like some Bennihanna chef, the washboard bassist is taking a solo to hoots and hollers from the audience, the cigar box guitarist is sashaying across the stage like he’s Jimi Page, and the singer is making you buy whatever they are selling. Now, that’s all fine and dandy but I’d gone to see Perseph One and that stage running late so I headed back to Avant Garden then, sure enough, when I get back, the goddamn stage is filled with people dancing and singing along! Goddamn it, I can’t leave those Sideshow Tramps alone for five minutes!

Basses Loaded also fall under the category of bands that make it look easy with their cool bass lines, clever arrangements, and unstoppable skills. Fine cool I can deal with that and the fact that the whole American Sharks thing is also kickin‘ but I didn’t know until later that day that 1/2 of the band was in The Fucking Transmissions. Fuck that! That’s Bullshit! Attention Basses Loaded members, you have exceeded your cool band quota! Cut that shit out!

Buxton is a band I’d been curious to hear live since hearing them on Myspace and they did not disappoint. There’s a lot to like about them, strong songs, engaging vocals etc. but for me the thing that put it over the top was the lead guitarist. Here was one of those bastards that had an insane control over what he was doing – it was enviable. He’d constantly punctuate the songs with these little guitar lines and phrasing that added texture, nuance, and weight to an already heady brew. One of the best performances of the day!

The Fucking Transmissions‘ set was hip hop at it’s most musically witty. Ben (he of too much talent and too many cool bands) played guitar and bass simultaneously while the vocalists played off each other like droll school kids trying to outdo each other. Jovial and sharp, The Fucking Transmissions should quiet any naysayers who claim Houston Hip Hop is all out of tricks.

The Wild Moccasins got everyone in a tizzy. John Sears turned to me and said “Oh Shit they’re the new De Schmog!” We’ll, maybe if De Schmog was a bit more rootsy but, yeah, in terms of being upbeat, fun, and getting the crowd all nutters, they had it in spades.

I closed it off with Austin’s Death Hell Battle Tank upstairs at Avant Garden. The singer (is this the dude from Fuck Emos by the way?) sure had sass. He got on the balcony and began, with his voice running through an octave divider, to taunt the people below to come upstairs all the while addressing the Houston crowd as “Hey Dallas” and telling them how much they sucked. The band – dressed in military headgear, fully in character, and with fog machine in hand – then charged through a really fucked-up version of The Immigrant Song. It was refreshing to see someone just be purely stupid and silly. Now I’ll grant you, the shtick may get old but it was worth rolling this one at least once.

The Punk’s Not Dead Award though for the day has to go to Cop Warmth and Blackie’s guerrilla performance outside the bike shop. If you missed it like I did don’t feel to bad; it was thrown together on a whim after the band’s performance at Numbers . Cop Warmth are like excitable chimps and – fuck stages and set times – it was time to have some fun and fling some poo: get the equipment, set up by the bike shop, play, make some noise with Blackie, and hope it’s all done before the cops shut you down. Just looking at these pictures by Brent (Link) and listening to what people said, Cop Warmth may just have topped everyone else and brought some much needed real chaos to an otherwise orderly event. Amen!

Here are some snapshots:

The McKenzies – awesome pop goodness!

The Defenestration Unit’s Mike Switzer
has come to kick ass and chew bubblegum
and he’s all out of bubblegum!

Generation Landslide
plays an exclusive set for Indian Jewelry

Skyblue72

Team Death Trap

Come See My Dead Person rips up Mango’s
and that’s without their entire line-up.

Swans Will Attack

Antarctica Starts Here lay down shoegazer
shit that makes your hair stand on end!

News On the March

Sideshow Tramps!!
I left for five minutes.
When I get back everyone was on stage.
Typical!

Mistress Green

Ill Advisory – the one man supergroup!

Basses Loaded!
Asses Kicked!
Mission Accomplished!

Lovie

Buxton! Holy shit they are good!

The Fucking Transmissions dropping some cognitive
dissonance on that one dude who writes-off Houston as
“a talentless hip hop sewer of uncreative ass clowns “

The Wild Moccasins
wowing an enthusiastic crown outside Mango’s

Piano Vines you got that one dude dancin‘!!

Death Hell Battle Tank!
Because sometimes you need to get your stupid on!

Cop Warmth & Blackie
proof that punk’s not dead!

And Finally!
Best swag of the day was from Johnathan Welch!
He was dutifully workin‘ it for his spiritual guru,
& handing out the most bad-ass bookmark ever.
(Yes, Johnathan, I linked the pictures to the site.)

Blog Reviews:

Breakfast On Tour review and pictures by Cereal (Link)

Handstamp (Chronicle) review and Pictures (Link), more pictures (Link), and Video (Link) by Sara Cress

Houston Calling Review By David Cobb (Link)

Houston Press review by Chris Gray (with link to a slide show Link)

Impose Magazine review and photos by David deLeon (Link)

Pictures:

My Pictures (Link)

Brent’s Pictures (Link)

Groovehouse’s Pictures (Link)

William Cordray’s Picture’s (Link)

Send me you Flickr and other related links so I can add them, eh?