Yr. Weekend, Pt. 1: Shonen Knife + Jealous Creatures + Hilary Sloan + The Toasters + Vandaveer (MP3!) + More

Alright, y’all, I’m just going to say it: this weekend’s just nuts. Too, too much to do, and that’s just music-wise, not even thinking about all the non-musical Halloween-y stuff that’s going on (which, having two midgets of trick-or-treat age, is mostly what we’ll be doing this weekend). Starting tonight, Friday, October 28th, there’s a crapload of stuff going on all around our fair city.

First, though, I wanted to mention that it looks like the show tomorrow night (Sat., October 29th) over at Warehouse Live has changed from how it was previously scheduled. It’s still happening, but the headliner’s not Galactic, not JJ Grey & Mofro, who’ve had to cancel due to illness.

Plus, while Corey Glover (ex-Living Colour) and Corey Henry were listed as playing, now it’s just a band called Greyhounds; not sure if it’s the AUstin band or what.

A little further out, on Fri., November 4th, at one point The Mink had cool, sunstroked/fuzzed-out Denton psych-rockers Sundress on the schedule, but they’ve since dropped off, unfortunately, and it doesn’t appear that the show’s been picked up anywhere else, so now they’ve got a show up in Fort Worth on that night. Dang…

I’m writing this with somewhat of a heavy heart, btw, because I can’t help but be thinking about the {Houston Press}‘s Chris Gray, who’s reportedly currently in the hospital and in a coma. Fellow HP-er Craig Hlavaty‘ll be dedicating his “Happy Hahlhloween” show this evening up at Leon’s Lounge to Chris, and I’ll definitely be thinking about the guy; more word when I get it. Fuck, man.

Anyway, back to tonight. A lot going on, like I said. First & foremost for me, at least, is the Shonen Knife show over at Stereo Live this evening — SK were one of the first bands I ever got into while DJing at {KTRU}, and I’ve loved ’em ever since, in both their poppier and grittier incarnations. Sure, what they do’s been done plenty of times before, but to me they seriously blazed a trail for women playing loud, in-your-face, Ramones-y punk…which makes their current “Shonen Knife are Osaka Ramones” thing pretty damn appropriate.

Now, for the bad news: while promoter a2zPresents still lists the show, the Stereo Live Website does not, instead listing “SOME Halloween Party.” Uh-oh. Just be warned if you head out to the show, y’all — if they are playing, it’ll be well worth it.

Alternatively, you can head on up to Dean’s to catch two of the best new(-ish) bands ’round town at the moment, {Jealous Creatures} and {A Sundae Drive}. Both are damn impressive, esp. the Creatures, whose new Little Heaven Big Sky is a killer in all its Western-tinged indie-rock glory; mind you, ASD’s You’re Gonna Get Me EP is pretty dang cool, too.

Scoot on over to The Orange Show beforehand, btw, to check out the Gypsy Swamp Showcase, which’ll include not only excellently strange fiddler {Hilary Sloan} but also Jo Bird of {Two Star Symphony}, {Thomas Helton}, & a bunch of other neat-sounding folks. Granted, the cool weather’s not going to lend to the “swamp” vibe, but hell, it’s definitely damp outside…

Over at the House of Blues: Quiet Riot! And Jackyl. Yes, that Jackyl. Um. I can’t think of anything else to say about that one. Moving on…

Fitzgerald’s has a ska bill tonight that makes me nostalgic for my own days of skanking on that rickety, shaky wooden floor, with NY Third-Wave icons The Toasters headlining and cool new-breed H-town ska band {Always Guilty} among the folks beforehand.

On the other floor, tooDown at Rudyard’s, there’s a cool-sounding show with Melissa Ferrick and Vandaveer — I haven’t heard the former, but the latter does a nicely spiritual-sounding, impassioned/sweet folk-soul thing. Check it out here:

Vandaveer – “Dig Down Deep”

It’s pretty cool stuff, I have to say…

There’s a ton more, but I’ll leave y’all to scan down the full list, right here:

Shonen Knife/Shannon and the Clams/Black Pistol Fire @ Stereo Live
Jealous Creatures/A Sundae Drive/The Greatest View/The Sweetsops @ Dean’s Credit Clothing
The Toasters/Red Five Point Star/Always Guilty/PLK @ Fitzgerald’s
Gypsy Swamp Showcase, featuring Hilary Sloan, Y.E. Torres, Jo Bird, Jeremy Nuncio, Thomas Helton, Erin Joyce, Emily Sloan, Ashley MacLean, Jenny Nuzzo, Mandy Trichell, Brittany Wallis, & Jacquelyn Boa @ The Orange Show (7:30PM)
Day of the Dead Rock Stars, featuring Roky Moon & BOLT! @ Cactus Music (6-9PM)
Robbie Fulks/Dan Crump @ McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
Jackyl/Quiet Riot @ House of Blues
Melissa Ferrick/Vandaveer @ Rudyard’s
Happy Hahlhloween, featuring DJ Craig Hlavaty @ Leon’s Lounge
Project Armageddon/Serpent Sun/Made In Vain/Black Hole Caravan @ Acadia Bar & Grill (3939 FM 1960 W)
Ghostland Observatory/DJ Ceeplus Badknives/PRKL8R @ Warehouse Live (sold out)
ESE/Stout City Luchadores/A Spanish Disposition/Hollywood Black/H.R.A. @ Mango’s
Scary Haunted Fright Lair, featuring Stitches in the Corpse, GoREALah Soul, & Rap Muzak @ Super Happy Fun Land
SoHo Metalfest, featuring Warbeast, Epic Death, Fallacy, Legion, Gods of Death Screw, Dethrazor, Ruind, & Weapons of War @ The Flamingo Room
DeadEnd Cowboys/Second Lovers/Howler/TameBlonde @ Fitzgerald’s
Undead Dance Party, featuring Ceeplus Bad Knives, Mr. Castillo, & Bobby DJ @ Boondocks
Kimberly M’Carver @ Anderson Fair
Halloween Bash, featuring Myka Relocate, The Emissary, Exist:Avail, Belle Manoir, She Watched The Sky, Imagine Dreams In Action, Sands, Jonika, & Between The Sea @ Cain’s Ashes (2628 FM 1960 Rd. E)
Reggae Rhythm Revival, featuring D.R.U.M., Bigga Star, Spoonfed Tribe, & Jimmy Lee Deen @ Last Concert Cafe
Discoween, featuring Disco Expressions, Dem Damn Dames, & Little Joe Washington @ The Continental Club
Joe Ely @ Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe (Galveston)