From 1 – 4 p.m., Sunday December 16^th the Beck Building Main Street entrance will be fully decorated and all the staples of Spanish culture will be represented. Samples of tapas, wine, bread and other delicacies can be enjoyed while watching flamenco dancers and listening to a Spanish guitarist. These couple hours of Spain are further informed by the presence of local Spanish culture group, La Casa de España.

The MFAH is also giving away free commemorative Portrait of Spain posters, which are special edition posters only available to those getting down at the street party. Because this is the museum of fine arts, free art making projects are available to enjoy. Sunny 99.1 will also be giving away free stuff, for those needing a little more sun wearing sunglasses crap in their life.

This celebration of Spanish culture is in honor of the impressive Prado exhibition at the MFAH. All the big dogs of 15^th – 18^th century Spanish art are represented; Goya, Velazquez, Titian, El Greco, Rubens, Tiepolo, Murillo, Coello and to name a few. These historical masterpieces will are opening to the public with the street festival on the 16^th and will be showing through March 31^st. The cost of the exhibition is $18 for adults, $15 for senior adults, students and youth 6 to 18. Reduced ticket prices on Thursdays.

The creator of this event, artist/Naptist Reverend Emily Sloan, says the Funeral Party is “interactive performance project comprised of the exploration of healing and death rituals to encourage participants towards realizations of the brevity of life and to aid in connecting to the present.” Just in case you were wondering, the Southern Naptist Congregation’s video explains that Naptists are nappers of all faiths, congregating in holy slumber. Eulogy writing services starts at 6 p.m. and the funeral starts at 7 p.m., ending at 9 p.m. This is the second year for the Funeral Party to be held at 14 Pews, 800 Aurora St.
While a funeral might not sound fun, this is a full evening of eulogy writing, public speaking, live music, food and drinking. It’s a fucking party, albeit an odd party. Attendees are encouraged to wear funeral attire and bring food and drinks for a potluck meal. Bring your own musical instrument to get your death celebration group jam on. So get weird, get sad, and then be much happier this new year by going to the Funeral Party.

Photo by Nicole Kibert

By: Ramon Medina

FPH asked folks in the music community for their highlights or thoughts on 2025.  Here’s what they told us:

B.E. Godfrey (listenlisten)

Houston in 2025 was paused, anxiously awaiting its impending doom. Like a nervous child awaiting the inevitable punishment from misdeeds, frantically still, imagining every possible scenario. In such a close proximity to the center of Mayan rule, our fate is sensed in the bones of every emotionally-tuned Houstonian. Deeply aware that we’ll surely receive the first wave of apocalyptic destruction.

Bob Weber (Anarchitex)

There is a migration of bent genius into and through Super Happy Fun Land that no one can keep up with and for that I thank them.  But the real climax of 2025 came late this year.  I helped a bent old man on a cane as he walked down the sidewalk in the direction of Vinal Edge.  A short time later,  Doomsday crashed down and there was Jerry Anomie and Gwen in the store snarling through “Rather See You Dead,” then Nicki Sicki with that crazy grin, and the next night at Walter’s we watched AK-47 grind through Kiss My Machine.  Eventually, the Descendants got up and burned holes in the air.  Holy crap was that a blast!  The Island lived once more!

Brandon Lemons (Treaty Oak Collective)

The rise and fall of the enforcement of the noise ordinance.  I haven’t heard of anyone being fined for months now and a lot of those venues and people that were had their charges dismissed.  Huge win for the Houston scene.

Things seem to be moving in a positive direction on all fronts.  Great new bands emerging; Showers, Hoofprints, Sleuth, Tiny Empires, Holder, etc.  Walter’s continues to get better and better shows and there’s tons of parking now.  Lots of awesome support from the press outlets.  Lots of great records being put out; Weird Party, Indian Jewelry, Omotai, Wiggins, etc.

Chris Wise (Buxton)

It seems like an important time in Houston music! The crucial aspect is for everyone to keep going. It seems as though the Houston Curse is for shit to get going and then stop. Everyone seems very supportive of one another and I’m really grateful for that. Featherface came out of nowhere and are already doing really great things. Hamamatsu Tom and Whatever The Fuck is one of the few things I’m genuinely surprised and inspired by. As long as everyone keeps having fun doing what they’re doing, good things will happen.

Chuck Roast (Vinal Edge Records)

From a personal perspective, moving my shop after some 26+ years to 239 W. 19th Street was the biggest thing for me. We’re trying very hard to create a musical, cultural hub in The Heights and we’ve had LOTS of live events and art displays already.  We have a flyer exhibit of Island Club posters from back in the early Houston punk days that coincided with a Doomsday Massacre/Legionaire’s Disease/Verbal Abuse/Mydolls jam live in the shop. Free Radicals, Bliss Blood, and Grandfather Child performed.  I guess, we’re going to be doing a lot of cool stuff with local and out-of-town musicians now that we have finally HIT TOWN!

David Ensminger (drummer, folklorist)

The Island reunion party at Walter’s proved Houston’s old school punk heritage was stunningly alive and fecund. Frail Jerry Anomie of Legionaire’s Disease launched into “Rather See You Dead” and erupted like a butterfly with napalm wings. Awe-inspiring. The whole place felt Dionysian, feverish, and otherworldly, like time out of time!

Justice Tirapelli-Jamail (The Manichean)

The progression of Houston’s scene has been pretty exciting.  For starters, certain bands that have been hard at work have finally begun to garner national attention, i.e., Robert Ellis, Buxton, Wild Moccasins, and The Tontons. It is well-deserved attention and feels as if it’s been a long time coming.

It’s been sad to see Roky Moon and BOLT! and Female Demand call it quits, but among the fallen have risen new, refreshing acts. I’ve had some great times going to see bands like Featherface, Second Lovers, New York City Queens, and Bang Bangz. I can’t wait to see where each of them take their sound next.

Mlee Marie (Hearts of Animals)

Defining moment: Playing drums for Daniel Johnston!

What comes to mind is enjoying performers who are brave, get up on the stage balls-out, and are like, “Fuck you. I’m just gonna sing blues into this microphone all by myself now and I may or may not invite you to sing along!” (Wiggins), or people who have been around forever and are still playing fucking loud, rocking shows in neighborhood bars (Indian Jewelry/Wiggins), or snarky ukulele one-woman acts like Lindsey Simard and Poopy Lungstuffing, or sweet kids doing awesome cover shows together (The Halloweening was brilliant, Joe Mathlete!).  I’m sad that Art Institute broke up.  I saw a show of theirs and it was pretty amazing and then they broke up.  I would have gone to see them again.  There are some really amazing musicians here in Houston.

By: Erin Dyer

Join Dionisio Winery next Saturday, December 15, from noon until 7pm, for its first Wine Festival! Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online through Eventbrite at the link listed below.

Each entry ticket includes a souvenir glass and 10 taste tickets that will also be entered into a raffle. Alongside the raffle, there will also be a silent auction.

Complimentary bites will be served by Pi Pizza Truck, as well as Buffalo Bayou brews and Dionisio wines. Each additional taste ticket is $1 each.

Music for your listening pleasure will be performed by Nick Gaitan and the Umbrella Man, Ms. Dill & the Fried Pickles, and Jason Bancroft and The Wealthy Beggars.

Go Local while celebrating the start of the holiday season at Dionisio Winery’s 1st Wine Festival– and bring friends!

Dionisio Winery
2110 Jefferson st.
Suite#119

Purchase tickets to Dionisio Winery’s 1st Wine Festival here: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/4937380839/es2/?rank

There are stars, superstars, and then there is Mark Rackley. The person in front of the camera isn’t always the person that you want to see. Why don’t you look behind the camera at the most extreme cameraman in the world. He’s done film work with predatory animal expert, Manny Puig, filmed “Shark Feeding Frenzy” for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week – which has the all time highest rating for any Shark Week special, filmed for Jackass the Movie and for Wildboyz, and more. His death-provoking camera work has led him to be a legend in the nature film industry. You won’t see Mark filming cute, fuzzy creatures – well unless they were bait for man-eating Great White Sharks or bone-crushing alligators. “It’s a passion for him. That’s what life is all about,” says Mark’s brother Chris, who fears for his brother’s life while he’s diving off of boats and onto sharks. Mark is from Southern Florida and FPH wants you to get better acquainted with him because we think he’s a rad dude who is one of the coolest guys you’ll ever meet.

What was the first animal you ever documented and how did that experience help the progression of how you work now such as holding onto Great White Shark dorsal fins while filming?

I started off as a commercial spear fisherman. All these sharks would always come in and it was really exciting because you’re underwater. No one really knew too much about sharks at the time. My brother got me an underwater camera. We decided to film our own adventures that we were doing so that we could go home and watch them. The footage was not for sale nor did we do anything with them, but then it ended up being for sale. With all the sharks coming in, you just could not film it.

Hurricanes VS animals. With animals you can film them in a controlled environment with knowledge of the behavior of the species. With hurricanes they are unpredictable and danger is literally all around. How do you mentally prepare yourself to be in front of a large alligator underwater during their feeding times at night and also for the storms that you shoot with large objects soaring past you at great speeds without protection?

With the storms you are out to get the most destruction. That’s the point of filming storms. You keep looking to see where the eye is moving. You put yourself right in the middle of it where that bomb is going off. The storm draws you right to it once you decide that you are going to do it. The debris comes at you in all directions. There is absolutely no guarantee of safety. I, for sure, could have gotten killed during Hurricane Charley, which had 145 mph winds. As for the animals, just being around dangerous animals is a thrill. It’s very enjoyable. I enjoy my job. I got lucky being in the right spot for doing what I Iove.

This may sound cliche, but I’ve gotta ask. What was your most terrifying moment while filming and how did you react to it?

I’m not sure about terrifying, but there have been times where I’m thinking, “Shit! I can’t believe this is happening!” In Hurricane Charley, these blades were coming by me at 100-something mph and that was gnarly! I’ve had a few situations with Great White Sharks swimming at my face. I was leaning out of the cage because I wasn’t allowed to get out. I was filming for Wildboyz at the time and a shark swam into my head. It could have shot my head off, not by biting me, but just from hitting me.

So, you got the job to film for Wildboyz. You were now able to film all over the world in places you’d never dreamed of. Tell me your experience working with Pontious and SteveO and was there anything you learned from shooting this television program?

Filming with Chris Pontius and Steve O was the most incredible adventure of my life. I did four seasons with those guys. Everyone was incredible. These guys are real stuntmen and I look at myself and I do some things, but these guys are true professionals. Super cool guys. Knoxville is the most ballsiest guy that you’ll ever meet. I’ve learned more about traveling, being in different situations with the other cameramen which was Dimitry (Elyashkevich), and learning to deal with the rain. We filmed it like a set. We had a director and everyone has a job to perform under extreme situations.

So I wanted to share this with you. I’m a big fan of Shark Week and actually have a Shark Week tattoo.

Oh rad! I love Shark Week!

It’s a great conservation program. When I found out that you shot Shark Week’s “Shark Feeding Frenzy” I was not surprised at all. It had Mark Rackley all over it. My father tells me that I am asking for suicide when I am out in the field with alligators and that it’s a pointless study. You’ve made yourself a bigger plate and have become quite successful. How does your family respond to your line of work?

I’ve been doing it for so long and I’m always pushing it. It’s all calculated risk and I know through experience the different behaviors of all these species. I approach these animals in a way where I know what they’ll do. When you get your self in a circle that is engulfed in fire you’ve crossed the fire line where the animal can take you. When an alligator can swing around and take you, you’ve crossed the line of fire and you know that.

Yeah, it’s a pretty great show. I loved it. You know about my relationship with the guys from Jackass and our live stunt shows from the “Don’t Try This At Home” tour, but I also study zoology so when Wildboyz came out I was very upset because this was MY show! But hey, I guess if it’s going to be anyone then I’m glad it’s Pontius and Steve O. I’m very happy for them. This is a great segway for my next question: There is a reason why there are zoom lenses, Mark – so that you don’t have to put yourself in danger. Why put yourself in peril when you can just zoom?

The zoom question! (laughs) I get questioned that a lot. You can’t get that  reaction and when I’m filming I do get that reaction. I’m filming different behavior reactions.

I get it. I knew what you were going to say. That would have been my answer, too but I wanted to hear it from you.

Exactly, you know what’s up. You get in there in that situation.

You’ve had some recent boat deals, eh? Explain that and what kind of boat do you use?

I’ve had a Mercury, a Mercados, a Trophy. They see the value of where I can take them and boom, you get sponsored. It’s just hitting that right note.

Your camera gear must be pretty durable to meet face to face with these bone crushing animals. What kind of gear do you use and how many camera have gone to hell while filming?

Well I can tell you right now that I love using Gates’ housing equipment. They’re indestructible. What about you, what do you shoot on?

We shoot with a Sony VX2000 and luckily I just met a guy that uses a Red so I’m pretty excited to work with him.

Oh wow! You’re getting a Red! You’re making me…

I know I know (laughs) I’m pretty excited about it.We’re using Cannons. I dig Canons. So what have you been shooting lately?

Prior to this I have been working on a spear fishing video. Plus all the boating companies that I’ve been filming, Glastron and Whaler. We were just in Alaska filming Salmon sharks and just got back from Guadeloupe filming Great Whites with another show.

Hammerhead migration season is coming up. How will you be gearing for one of the most epic animal migrations in the world?

You’re not kidding! We’re actually headed to Stuart Cove’s which is in the Bahamas.

Here in Galveston, a hundred or so miles out, we’ve got Flower Garden and that’s a great place to check out the migration as well.

Oh yeah, I know that place, but have never been. You?

I’m actually looking for someone who owns a boat so we can scuba out there.

Well right on! Maybe we should look into that. I’d totally enjoy that – to be out there in clear water.

 That would be amazing! So what’s next for Mark Rackley? How can we put him in more danger than he already gets into?

 I kinda fly by the seat of my pants. What’s next is getting my spear fishing video done, some boat work, sword fish, getting some alligator work this winter. Since cameras are always changing sometimes you gotta get back in. You’ve already done all the hard part so going back in it gets easier and better.

In the past, now, and in the future I doubt anyone will compare to your style and as Manny says, “That’s a fact and I’ll argue it.” What advice do you give to any nature filmmakers out there?

Creativity is just huge and when you think about it you just do it. Right?

Yeah, I agree with ya.

Just go with your guy instinct.

The Official Mark Rackley site: HERE

For Mark’s YouTube channel: HERE

And for his Facebook Fan Page: HERE

WFL starts out as Way is about to jump on his skateboard over a section of the Great Wall of China and then rewinds to explore his life, and what a life it turns out to be, complete with a distraught childhood. Way won competitions as a teen; Way not only excelled on the skateboard but also was an accomplished snowboarder and surfer. Testimonials via talking heads include Travis Pastrana, Laird Hamilton, Rodney Mullen, and others.

We follow Way as he breaks world skateboarding records. On one record setting day Way also bomb jumps out of a helicopter onto a ramp. At one point Way suffers an injury and a doctor tells the camera that it’s career ending. Four months later Way’s back breaking records. On a side note the expense of constructing the huge ramps used in the sport are taken into consideration.

Yes, Waiting For Lightning ends with Way achieving the seemingly impossible feat of leaping over the Great Wall and the footage is breathtaking. But not before a couple of pitfalls threaten to upset the outcome.

– Michael Bergeron

Remember when bands in the late 80s and early 90s had a limitless budget and were able to create elaborate, ridiculous music videos?  With a budget of $4 million and Axl Rose’s genius mind, it is the indisputable truth that “Estranged” by Guns N’ Roses is the greatest music video of all time.  Before your inner dialogue starts and tells you why you’re right and I’m wrong, allow me to present to you a series of exhibits that includes a walkthrough and screenshots to prove it.

Exhibit A: The video opens with an enormous amount of police, ambulances, and S.W.A.T. team members coming to, as I guess we are supposed to assume but never find out, save Axl from something.  Hell, there’s even a fucking helicopter.  He’s just lying in a hiding spot looking like he’s either a) really depressed or b) just pulled off the greatest prank on 911 ever.  Then, for some reason, the cops find this weird dinosaur you can ride in an empty room in the house.

Exhibit B:  After going through a tire swing that is actually a portal to another dimension, we’re taken to an over the top Guns N’ Roses performance.  Complete with double neck guitars, limousines, and a bunch of hot girls watching the show on a bunch of televisions for some reason.  After the show, the band walks backstage to their dressing room where we see Axl lying on a couch, having some sort of introspective moment when he has an out of body experience and goes to where we all would go if we were having that experience – to take a shower.  With his clothes on.  Yeah, even the bandana.  To make it even better, he’s wearing a Charles Manson shirt.

Exhibit C:  Next, we’re taken through a white house, with the band members in white suits, getting into a white car.  Everything is in white, and then we see some random black kids playing on a swing outside.  I feel like there is some deep message that they were trying to convey here, but it gets lost among the more ridiculous aspects of the video.  The group is taken to an airport where a plane awaits and then, I can’t make this shit up, a fucking dolphin swims out of the back of the plane.  We’re given a montage of people watching dolphins on TV because why not?  Dolphins are cool, but they’re even more fucking cool when Axl Rose is smoking a cigarette in front of them.  Axl takes a stroll down Sunset Boulevard where the streets are actually flooded and, you guessed it, there are dolphins swimming the streets.  To really emphasize that the guitar solo is about come, a dolphin swims out of a billboard.

Exhibit D:  When the solo ends and Slash has finished floating down Sunset, Axl is now walking on an aircraft carrier when he decides, what the fuck, I’m gonna jump in the ocean off this thing.  His band members try to save him to no avail and just as he’s about to sink to the bottom of the ocean, the dolphins return to save him and he hitches a ride on the back of one.  Then, one of the greatest moments in rock music videos of all time, Slash rises from the water to play yet another solo and floats on it like a top hat wearing, cigarette smoking Jesus.

Exhibit E:  At the end of the video, the helicopters return to the ocean to rescue Axl and as they’re pulling him out, he loses his coveted signature Converse shoe that we watch sink dramatically to the ocean floor.  Just when you thought it was over and couldn’t get any better, the very last shot is Axl sitting on the couch with a fucking dolphin wearing his flannel shirt, WITH HIS SIGNATURE ON THE SCREEN.

These exhibits prove, without a doubt, that “Estranged” is the greatest music video of all time.  Do not try to argue or dispute the facts – Just watch and enjoy the masterpiece that Axl Rose left us with.

The Station Museum of Contemporary Arts presents: Liminal Space Contemporary Music Ensemble. Liminal Space is presenting a program of works by American expatriate composer Frederic Rzewski, featuring the politically-charged minimalist masterpieces Coming Together and Attica, inspired by found text related to the 1971 Attica State Prison riot.

Liminal Space is:
George Heathco, electric guitar
and
Luke Hubley, marimba and percussion
with
Special Guest Misha Penton, speaker

Liminal Space seeks to develop and present a contemporary alternative within the Houston community, and to serve as a bridge to connect those on the fringe, distanced by the boundaries of genre and style.

The show is completely free so come out on December 12th at 7:30pm and help support Houston artists.

Location:

1502 Alabama St.

Houston, TX 77004

phone: 713.529.6900

This holiday season, you can be philanthropic AND party at the same time. Houston’s Black Sheep Agency is hosting its 3^rd annual Tweet Drive party on December 12^th at 7 p.m., an event that will benefit the children and families of the  Houston Area Women’s Center.

Getting into the party is easy: Bring in a new, unwrapped toy or book. Although the children’s toys are for any age group, we urge you not to forget about the ‘tweens and teens this year, because this drive benefits them, too!

Not sure what to get the kids? That’s what wish lists are for! Check out HAWC’s wish list here, and the Houston Area Women’s Center’s holiday store here. How much easier can being awesomely charitable be?

In the past, the Tweet Drive has benefited organizations such as Neighborhood Centers and Interfaith Ministries. The Drive has donated hundreds of toys and books to children who need the hope and love that they provide each year. This year, the drive will be benefiting the Houston Area Women’s Center, another local organization doing great work for our local community.

The Houston Area Women’s Center has been around since the late 1970′s, and since then they’ve been working hard to eliminate sexual and domestic violence, as well as bring comfort and support to women who are suffering from violence.

The Tweet Drive, which is now known nationally as Social Santa, takes place in cities around the nation. It started off in 2025, and utilizes the social networking site Twitter to help bring together people for a common cause: to do good for the community!

The event is promoted using the hashtag #HouTweetDrive. So far, the drive has seen notable success in past years, and with your help, this year will be a record breaker!

Joelle Eid, an account executive with Black Sheep, said, “We’ve put on these events with a zero dollar budget, and that’s why I love Tweet Drive so much – seeing all these community do-gooders come together to have fun AND give back to our city’s children – that’s what the holiday season should be all about, right?”

The Tweet Drive will be held at Black Sheep’s super cool warehouse space, you’ll be treated to libations and live entertainment provided by some of Houston’s finest.

Come hungry, because Good Dog and Eatsie Boys will be keeping you fed while Beaver’s, Saint Arnold, and Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co. provides some of their tastiest brews, alongside Hay Merchant, Anvil and Jim Beam. A portion of the proceeds from the food trucks will go to the charity as well, so you can eat as much as you like without feeling guilty about it, this time.

If that wasn’t enough to pique you’re interest, there will be dancing and music provided by Mason Lankford and Shellee Coley, and you’ll get to meet some pretty cool people throughout the course of the evening.

In order to account for all of you wonderful people, Black Sheep is asking that you RSVP to the party. You can RSVP here.

This holiday season is about giving back and doing good for your community, so if you are worried about the world ending on December 21^st, now is your chance to score some good karma. 

Pontecorvo broke the mold on war procedural movies with Battle of Algiers (1966), a film that examines France’s war with Algeria in the late ‘50s. A film on urban guerilla war, Battle of Algiers exists as a blank canvas of battle that can be read two ways. In one sense it’s used to prime troops that are about to occupy a foreign country, and on the other hand it shows conclusively that an invading army can never really conquer people entrenched in their own homeland. Everything you heard about Iraq where insurgents used bombs to create terror was going on in Algeria during their war with France (1954-1962). Battle of Algiers documents how a backpack bomb could be used in a crowded coffee shop, or how a superior and heavily armed force could achieve short-term victories against terrorists with torture and attack strategies only to fail in winning the hearts and minds. Eventually France got the hell out and Algeria won their independence. But it’s not like future generations have learned a lesson.

Pontecorvo also helmed the film Burn! (1969), which arguably contains the best performance ever from Marlon Brando, and is a film that also depicts revolution albeit in the 19^th century. Burn like The Battle of Algiers is an Italian made film and the European version has Brando’s voice dubbed. If you get a chance obtain the American version as it contains Brando’s original dialogue. The Battle of Algiers unwinds Friday, December 7 (6 pm.) and Sunday, December 9 (5 pm.).

The Quay Brothers, identical twins Stephen and Timothy, are some of the prime proponents of stop motion animation. Perhaps without realizing it you’ve seen their work pop up in feature films like Frida (the hospital puppet sequence) or the just released Jack and Diane where the Quays supply the animated title sequence.

The Brothers Quay retro features their two feature films, Institute Benjamenta (Thursday, December 6 at 7 pm.) and The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes (Saturday, December 8 at 4 pm.). While the majority of the Quay’s output are short films featuring their unique stop motion technique a couple of short subjects show another side of the Quay Brothers where they present images from museums, a style still steeped in macabre themes. Showing Sunday, December 9 at 1 pm. is the program Through the Weeping Glass and other shorts.

In Through the Weeping Glass (2011) the Quays objectify and fetishize medical anomalies from the Mutter Museum of the College of Physicians in Philadelphia. Some of the items on display include remains of the most famous of Siamese Twins Chang and Eng Bunker, the ossified skeleton of Henry Eastlack and bizarre medical instruments from previous centuries like a device for bloodletting called a scarificator. The Quays penchant for the bizarre and twisted comes full circle as they present mummified feet from the barbaric practice known as Chinese foot binding and a series of skulls where the cause of death is written in black ink on the bone.

– Michael Bergeron