Never Settle: The Best of The Week
Jeezy. Photo: Uncredited/ICM Partners
Now that SXSW is over, we’ll get a bit of a slowdown as far as what’s happening around this city. Of course, that doesn’t mean that this week is slim as performances from Jeezy, Flogging Molly, and Louie Anderson will give you plenty to do while locals like Days N Daze, Astragal and more will make deciding what to do more difficult. Houston, here’s how to navigate the upcoming week.
On Wednesday you can get going with the punk infused Celtic rock of LA’s Flogging Molly at House of Blues. While it’s been fifteen years since these guys hit it big, they’re definitely due for a new album, and their live shows are always worth making it out for. Their 2024 single “The Hand Of John L. Sullivan” is hopefully a sign that a new album is on the way. The punkish folk of British six-piece Skinny Lister will be on as direct support and openers for the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $35 and $55.
If you’re up for a laugh, then you could head to the first of three shows from the always hilarious Dave Chappelle at Revention Center. It’s been over a decade since Chappelle’s Show ended, but that doesn’t mean that the comic hasn’t been gearing up for a strong return. With a newly released special Deep In The Heart of Texas: Dave Chappelle Live at Austin City Limits, these shows should be worth it. There’s no word of feature act for the all ages shows with doors at 7 pm, 10 pm, or Thursday at 7 pm all with tickets for $69.50.
The Show Ponies. Photo: Daley Hake/Red Boot PR
At Walter’s you can catch the beauty of indie rock folk mixture of The Show Ponies. This five-piece makes music that’s like old time country folk with hints of indie rock flavor, and they’re so diverse that you can’t even pin them down to where they came from. Their latest releases are both from this year, including the beautifully crafted full length How It All Goes Down, and the band’s live release Jam In The Van. The straight forward rock of Houston’s Alex Riddle will be support and opener on the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets between $7 and $10.
Thursday you should consider heading to the big room at White Oak Music Hall when the crusty sounds of Houston’s Days N Daze host their album release and tour kickoff show. These guys have toured the globe, they have a pretty rabid fan base, and their last album, Rogue Taxidermy, should be enough reason to see what they’re up to this time. The thrash punk of San Antonio’s So Unloved will provide direct support while the skate ska punk of Houston’s FUSKA will go on prior. The Ballistics will also be on hand to bring their crazed punk to life and The Real McCoys will open the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $10 and $12.
Mucky Duck will host back to back sets from Austin’s Bob Schneider. Schneider has been a Texas staple for a good while now, he always seems to bring something new to each show, and his latest release Best of Frunk 2024 is definitely the singer songwriter stretching his legs, The 21 & up shows are at 7 pm and 9:30 pm with tickets between $28 and $30.
If you’d rather get your noise music fix, then you could go to Sound Exchange to catch the Exchange of Noiz show. Hosted by Spike The Percussionist, the show will have sets from Painful Vigil, Astrogenic Hallucinating, Kai/Ros, The PackRat Show, SquareCircleSquare, In The Pouring Rain, and The Rotation of An Object In Relation To Itself. The all ages show is 100% FREE and it gets going around 7:30 pm.
King Woman. Photo: Uncredited/Hexagram Booking
At Walter’s you can get scared by the black metal of Belgium’s Oathbreaker. This four-piece makes the kind of music that sounds like dying bodies falling from a burning plane, they’re rumored to be insane live, and last year’s Rheia is pretty intense to say the least. San Francisco’s King Woman will bring their doom drone metal on as direct support while the somber and engaging punk of Kentucky’s Jaye Jayle will open the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets between $12 and $14.
Out in The Woodlands you could catch a super intimate living room set from JPKS. Also known as Justin Peter Kinkel-Schuster of The Water Liars, the Arkansas singer songwriter plays tunes that are a road weary chill kind of vibe, and his latest Constant Stranger from last year is pretty solid. Adam Torres will open the show with doors at 8 pm and tickets for $20 with more information available here.
If you can, you’d do yourself a service by heading to Leon’s Lounge to catch an intimate set from Houston hip hop duo Dirty & Nasty. While it’s definitely time for these two to drop a new album, their live shows and album Sons of The Queen are both worth experiencing. The chopped and screwed instrumental hip hop of Houston’s Purple Bastard will open the 21 & up show with doors at 9 pm for the 100% FREE show.
Friday you should head to Bohemeo’s for the Counter Coven Open Mic and Art Market. I’ve been to one of these and I’d be lying if I said that there wasn’t always something surprising in store. The all female lead event will feature a guest speaker talk from Ann Christensen, as well as open mic sets from Vicki Tippit of Black Kite, Bevin, and Dallas’ Lauren Belmore. The all ages event gets going around 5 pm and it’s 100% FREE with more information here.
Louie Anderson. Photo: Uncredited/Courtesy of Artist
Over at Warehouse Live in the ballroom you can catch one of the greatest comics of all time when Louie Anderson swings by to perform. Anderson of course is now known more for his hit show Baskets, but you should know that the Midwest comic has also been in films like Coming To America, he’s authored three bestselling books, and he’s been on pretty much every late night talk show around. His last album, LIVE from 2024, is a true riot and he rarely performs in venues like this, so the show is a real treat. There’s no word of feature act or host, but the seated all ages show has doors at 7 pm and tickets between $30 and $34.
If you like the sultrier side of things then you could go to the studio at Warehouse Live for another edition of Kiki Maroon’s Burly Q Lounge. The monthly vaudeville based show features burlesque, comedy, music and more, and is definitely worth making it out for. The 18 & up show has doors at 7 pm, it’s seated, with tickets for $25.
Satellite Bar will host the pop punk of LA’s The Dollyrots. While the band has sweetly tinged group and dual vocals on most songs, their punky riffs are also super catchy and their latest release Family Vacation: Live in Los Angeles is pretty solid. The garage punk of LA duo The Two Tens will be on as direct support while the bluesy sounds of Austin’s The Coattails will open the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and a $10 cover.
Astragal. Photo: Uncredited/Courtesy of Artist/Facebook
Rudayrd’s has the indie rock meets guitar rock sounds of Houston’s Golden Sombrero over for their album release party. Aside from a strong live show, these guys just dropped their sophomore release Defensive Indifference, and boy is it a doozy. Complete with plenty of hooky riffs, they’re an up and coming band everyone needs to see sooner than later. Houston’s sultans of catchy guitar rock, Brand New Hearts, will also be on hand while the dream pop indie rock of Astragal will open the 21 & up show. Seriously, Astragal could be your next favorite band as they have hints of post punk and new wave in their music, and they’re like if Bauhaus made a Wire album. The show has doors at 9 pm and an $8 cover.
At Numbers you can get a chance to be in the documentary Friday, I’m In Love: Numbers Nightclub Documentary when the legendary club and the filmmakers will host an evening to catch dancefloor footage. Of course, this is “Classic Numbers” night so you’ll have the ability to dance the night away while helping the filmmakers and having a blast. Normal cover applies and it gets going around 9 pm.
On Saturday at Love Park you can spend the day with the Heights Kids’ Day of Music. The all day family friendly affair features up close and personal embraces with instruments, two stages of local music, the Opera in The Heights singing station, and much more. The FREE to attend event has more information here, and runs from 10 am to 2 pm.
Comrades. Photo: Uncredited/Facedown Records
Downstairs at White Oak Music Hall you can get your metalcore fix when Georgia’s Norma Jean brings their popular screamy sounds to town. While these guys weren’t really my thing, their latest album, Polar Similar from last year, is pretty legit. Mixing metal riffs with scream heavy vocals, their crazy live set should be worth catching. The post hardcore of North Carolina’s He Is Legend is on as direct support and the punk infused sounds of San Diego’s Capsize will go on beforehand. The intensity of Colorado’s Comrades will open the all ages show with doors at 6 pm and tickets between $18 and $22.
Walter’s will host the pop punk of Massachusetts’ Four Year Strong. Mixing emo, screamo, and pop punk, these guys have been making fans since they started in 2024. They’re here in support of an upcoming album, and they dropped a new holiday track last year called “Somewhere in my Memory” that was pretty solid as far as holiday songs go. The hardcore meets pop punk of San Francisco’s Set Your Goals will be on as direct support while New Jersey five-piece, Can’t Swim will go on beforehand. The crazed energy of Ohio’s Light Years will also be on hand where Chicago’s Sleep On It will open the all ages show with doors at 6 pm and tickets between $20 and $22.
At The Secret Group you can celebrate the 100th edition of Bootown’s Grownup Storytime with a special event. The all ages evening gets going with a special pre-show featuring members of the LA and Boston Grownup Storytime lead by JJ Johnston. This is followed by two sets of the show at 7 pm and 9 pm, as well as an after party dance session. The show has doors at 6:30 pm and 9 pm and tickets are between $20 and $40, the latter being a VIP option.
TAME, the Aspiring Me. Photo: AF The Naysayer
Over on Center Street, you can get turnt up with the hip hop of TAME, the Aspiring Me at the fourth Bounce and Turn party. While he’s the son of Houston rap legend Big Mello, TAME has been grinding since 2024 and his latest drop from this year 98 Briargate & 11 Almeda is pretty fire. NOLA-born turned Houston transplant Retrokash will be on beforehand as well as DJ sets and more for the warehouse event with doors at 8 pm and a $5 cover.
Upstairs at White Oak Music Hall you can get down when Houston’s Tax The Wolf returns to perform. One of the more intriguing local acts from about seven years ago, these guys were known for energetic live shows and their 2024 album Hold the Sun still holds up. The chill rock of Houston’s Vodi will be on hand as direct support while the funky good time jams of Handsomebeast will open the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and a $3 cover.
Sunday you can start at the Red Alert: Walk of Shame Brunch at El Big Bad. DJ sets from Mills McCoin, Mattew Dunn, Cirque Noir and more will be on hand. Your ticket, found here, gets you a mimosa and a ton of tacos for the 21 & up event starting at 11 am and ending at 4 pm.
Later on you might head to Continental Club for their Reggae On The Rail event. The early evening affair features a DJ set from Kool Emdee who will spin your favorite dub, dancehall, and reggae classics. Things run from 5 pm to 9 pm and it’s only $5.
MOTHS. Photo: Uncredited/Courtesy of Artist
Satellite Bar will host the interesting alt rock sounds of Philly’s The Spirit of The Beehive. These guys kind of sound like Sonic Youth meets Dinosaur Jr, and their latest album Pleasure Suck should sound great in person. The experimental thrash math core of Houston’s MOTHS will crazily be on as direct support while Fight Me will go one beforehand. The post punk of Austin’s GLYDE will also be on the show and the psych punk sounds of Houston’s Bernie Pink will open the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and a $10 cover.
At House of Blues you can get your hip hop fix when Jeezy swings by to drop a set. Now that he’s dropped the “Young” from his name and grown up, Jeezy should bring plenty of swag to his set and his 2024 release Trap Or Die 3 definitely proves he can up his game. There’s no word of support or opener, but that could change on the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $45 and $69.50.
Tuesday you can catch the legendary mind of Dick Gregory over at Improv. Gregory is easily one of the most important cultural figures in comedy. Breaking the color barrier in comedy, Gregory is a civil rights activist who’s still crazy funny and not to be missed. The St Louis comic is an act everyone should experience, and the 18 & up show has doors at 7 pm and tickets between $30 and $40.
If you’d rather catch another set of legends, you could swing by Mucky Duck to see two sets on the same bill from Al Staley and John Staley. Members of the classic rock band Spirit, these two will perform the broad range of tracks from their storied careers. The second set will feature a backing band to rock the house. Houston’s Evelyn Rubio will open the 21 & up show with doors at 7:30 pm and tickets between $20 and $22.
That’s about all that’s happening around this week. No matter what you decide to do, remember that getting home safe is in everyone’s best interest, so please, drink like an adult.
