with the fourth year of the houston festival underway in just a little over two weeks, the folks at free press have released the lineup ahead of time, to prevent any time inconsistencies and clashes. font too small? head to the official site for the big ‘un.
free press summerfest official schedule
-grizzly
Despite the sudden departure of Claudia Deheza, vocalist and twin sister to
Alejandra Deheza, School of Seven Bells persevered and released their grandest, most lush album to date, Ghostory. The crippling blow of the absence of the dream pop band’s sibling harmonies was an afterthought to the ramped-up production and spectral arrangements of the band’s other member, Ben Curtis, formerly of Secret Machines, on the LP. Newly invigorated, School of Seven Bells brought their new sprawling new sound to Houston’s Fitzgerald’s last night.
Hit the jump for the full recap.
- sunbear
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photo credit: weworemasks
Donald Glover had to postpone the first three weeks of the Camp Gambino tour due to a broken foot, pushing the start date all the way to the Texas run, which included a stop at Houston’s House of Blues. Having not seen any proper reviews for the tour, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Was he going to possess the same energy and livelihood of his narcissistic, but fantastic IAMDONALD tour? (He did.) Would having an opener hinder his creativity? (It didn’t.) Would Camp go over well live? (It did.) Will his broken foot affect his performance? (It didn’t.)
Recap after the jump.
-grizzly
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Kyle Hubbard is an up and coming emcee in Houston, TX. I know, I know, but what’s the selling point? Well, being that I’m not a huge proponent of Houston rap that sounds like Houston rap, I’m not necessarily that thrilled either. But that’s where Hubbard comes in an provides a little jolt to the scene around these parts. Carrying the influences of Atmosphere on his back, he set out to release a personal album that isn’t a snafu of wood grain and syrup. Kyle’s a storyteller, and because that drives his albums, I’m on board. Here’s an album he’s been working on for a while, to follow up his 2010 EP, Tomorrow in Retrospect. Download it below and hit the jump for a “get to know you” of sorts, as well as the album’s tracklisting.
download:
Kyle Hubbard – You’re Not That Special [FREE ALBUM]
-grizzly
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photo credit: sasha ramos
Last Saturday marked the third stop for Radiohead, on a tour in support of their highly divisive eighth album that was less a bang and more a whimper upon its hushed release. A featherlight slight in comparison to their previous works, The King of Limbs was an icy, insular affair, submerged in the electronic rhythmic and percussive auras frontiered by Kid A. Expectations for the band’s live show was that of an ambient atmosphere, anchored by chilling synths and pre-programmed beats. What the seasoned English band delivered was a fiery, eruptive experience that breathed warm life into The King of Limbs, inducting it into the menagerie of Radiohead classics.
Hit the jump for the full recap.
- sunbear
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apt name for one of houston’s most beloved hometown rappers. assuming the title is a theme, it’s a good assumption to guess what this tape will be about and how it’ll sound. let thugga take you to our city for a few.
download:
-grizzly
photo credit: weworemasks
Fair warning: This review will hardly be objective. It’s hard not to bask in the glow of two of my favorite emcees of all time. And all of you know the pedestal Yeezy gets around these bear parts. But in all seriousness, this was a historic tour. A mentor and a mentee, both of whom collaborated on a huge record and have worked together plenty of times in the past, were touring together. Nevermind the fact that the tickets were costly and the tours grossed around $1 million a night – this was the Karate Kid of hip-hop tours. And you know how badass Karate Kid is.
Review after the jump.
-grizzly
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When Zach Condon first oom-pah-pah‘ed his Balkan way into the indie consciousness, he found himself a warm home, snuggled in between the baroque pop of The Decemberists and the sonic parade of Neutral Milk Hotel, comfortably nested into a scene where the Rhineland reigned supreme. Hailed for his muli-instrument prowess, firm grasp on Balkan folk and Gypsy music, and especially his age (the wunderkind was a mere nineteen at the release of his highly praised Gulag Orkestar), Condon’s band Beirut were as cutting edge as they were ethnographically eclectic. Now three albums into their career, Beirut have expanded beyond their niche musical stylings and with an exercised sense of restraint on The Rip Tide, they’ve created an album that’s more focused on flexing Condon’s songwriting muscle and less on geo-tagging musical genres. In support of that album, Beirut brought horns a plenty to Houston’s Warehouse Live this past Halloween night, their first return visit since their momentous performance at the grand Free Press Summerfest music festival. Hit the jump for the full recap.
- sunbear
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this past weekend, i had the pleasure of watching houston’s very own new york city queens play a show at the hipster-hideaway the backroom, and what a turnout it was. i counted the presence of four other established local acts cheering on as the five-piece performed songs off their debut album somewhere different, something new. the multifaceted band played everything from jangly surf riffs, to complex, modular rock all the while keeping dreamy harmonies between their three vocalists.
new york city queens are set to continue a streak of shows, dates of which can be viewed here.
catch the video for the album’s title track “somewhere different, something new” up above and the studio clip for “hello again” here.
- sunbear
The third annual Free Press Summerfest once again took over Houston’s Eleanor Tinsley Park, boasting one of its most diverse, if not unusual lineup to date. Soul-revival met with electric revival, heavy metal battled with Japanese garage rock, hippies and hipsters shared barbecue and beer, etc, all underneath the blistering Texas sun on a cloudless day. weworemasks was on hand, as always, to take part in the festivities, enjoy an act or two, and get down and dirty (and sweaty) with all of our lovely Houstonian brethren.
Hit the jump for a full recap with some awesome photos, more of which can be seen in our Summerfest Photo Gallery, here.
- sunbear + grizzly
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the creme de la creme series is back for the second week in a row at the bronze peacock room at the HOB. donnis was initially slated to headline, but for any number of reasons, decided to cancel. houston’s killa kyleon stepped up in his place and will be headlining the event with opening sets from my man hollywood floss and blackie. rsvp at the link below and hit up this totally free show tonight.
-grizzly
friendly reminder from the bears. the fine folks at dubfrequency have been hosting some solid events at the house of blues/foundation room/bronze peacock as of late, and tomorrow night’s (thursday, june 2nd) treasure fingers set should be no doozy. as always, you can get in free if you’re 21 and rsvp to the event, and only $5 if you’re 18+. if you’re younger than that, go to sleep – it’s past your bedtime!
more details here.
-grizzly
local emcee and member of rap clique t.h.e.m. hashbrown is getting ready to release a brand new EP this summer, which will soon be followed by an LP. in the mean time, here’s the first single off of the as of now untitled EP, “crazy,” which is produced by hash himself.
download:
-grizzly
photo credit: pooneh ghana
It’s been said time and time again so I’ll say it this one, and final time: SLEIGH BELLS ARE FUCKING LOUD. I wondered to myself if Warehouse Live’s speakers could actually explode, and if and when they do, would it be entirely impudent of me to dive behind a fat kid? As if the wall of towering marshall stacks barricaded upon the stage wasn’t intimidating enough, the sounds erupting from them would be one of the notoriously noisiest bands in recent memory. Thank god I grabbed some ear-plugs beforehand.
Hit the jump for the recap.
- sunbear
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now, i’m kinda sour about missing this show, but i couldn’t find a way in without having to pay, and i’m way too spoiled for that. either way, my dude from hdshootsphotos.com was in the building to take a few clips of video footage. props to him for sending it our way. “country shit” with the trill OG up top, and below the cut, you can find “returnof4eva” and “time machine” with chamilitary man.
-grizzly