I was kindly invited by Houston rockers The Transco Empire to attend one of their shows at Walter’s this past Wednesday and I want all of you to know, they absolutely killed it. The band’s classic rock and roll sound has echoes of many different artists and are what I would call, widely appealing, no-nonsense rock. If you like Clapton, if you like Tom Petty, or even the Red Hot Chili Peppers, I would point you towards a Transco Empire show. Namely Clapton since they played a jaw-droppingly accurate and soulful cover of Cream’s “Sunshine of your Love” which had me convinced, for moments, that Ginger Baker, Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce were onstage playing along. The vocals provided by Alex Dugan were far more passionate than any I’ve heard in contemporary Houston music and Michael Mann’s guitar playing melted my face clean off of my skull. Overall, the band played an amazing set and were preceded by equally proficient noise rock act Female Demand and rap outfit Guerilla Foco Clan. Walter’s always has lineups that leave me reeling but Wednesay was something special.