Yr. Weekend, Pt. 3: Man Or Astro-Man?, Knights of the Fire Kingdom, Caddywhompus, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Shellee Coley, + More

Yep, it’s Sunday, April 28th, and I hope everybody out there survived yesterday’s deluge; we took in a couple whose SUV got swamped while they were headed to their engagement party, and that ended up being our primary excitement of the evening. But hey, the weather’s holding off so far, so get on out into the mucky heat tonight, because there’s still some cool stuff happening:

Man Or Astro-Man?/Knights of the Fire Kingdom @ Fitzgerald’s
I know the guys in awesome rawk band {Knights of the Fire Kingdom} are excited as hell to be opening this show, and I can’t say I blame ’em. I’ve loved Man Or Astro-Man? since college, having discovered them at that perfect juncture when I was seriously into surf music and MST3K right at the same time; they seemed tailor-made for me, right there.

I saw them once, many, many moons ago at Fitzgerald’s, and holy fuck, was it one hell of a show. The band’s energetic as hell, spazzing out and careening all over the stage, which was littered with quasi-scientific doodads and props (and yes, a badass theremin), and all the while that manic, campy, surfy, space-headed rock was exploding out of the speakers. I’m pretty sure I just stood there with my mouth wide open for the first 20 minutes or so of their set. No guarantees that tonight will match up, but hey, it’s bound to be good either way.

Best of all, the band’s apparently got a new album coming out soon, Defcon 5…4…3…2…1; you can listen to one of the tracks right here:

Go early for the Knights, by the by — they may not have the wacky costumes and props, no, but they burn hot like Rocket From The Crypt or Drive Like Jehu in their prime, and the songs I’ve heard from ’em so far have been pretty damn incredible.

Caddywhompus/Moths/Innards/Saya @ The Doctor’s Office (1301 Nance; $5)
Rarely have I been as bummed to hear that a band’s leaving town as I did when Caddywhompus, the duo of Sean Hart and Chris Rehm, basically decided to stay in New Orleans post-graduation. sigh. I’d really, really hoped those guys would make the shift back here eventually, but as the years wear on, that seems less and less likely; these days, they’re pretty well rooted in the N.O. scene.

So us Houstonians will just have to make do with the band’s sporadic appearances back here in their home city. Which sucks for us, frankly, but hell, I’ll take what we can get, because they’re truly a cool, cool pair of musicians and songwriters, crafting these sideways prog-pop-noise tunes that seem like they should go This Way but go That Way, instead…only 30 seconds further on, you realize that, actually, the song was meant to go That Way all along. If that makes any sense. See ’em while you can, and you’ll get it.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club/Bass Drum of Death/Plowboy @ Warehouse Live
Probably the biggest-name show going tonight, and also one that makes me smile because, hey, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. The long sideburns-having San Francisco band has probably done more than anybody to grab that whole hazy/woozy quasi-psych sound from the UK back in the ’90s and drag it forward to today, and for that I am eternally grateful. Fans of The Jesus & Mary Chain and The Verve, in particular, should rejoice every time these guys put out a new album. The world needs music like this, and BRMC will never let it fade away; high-five for that.

And hey, to prove how great they are, here’s the video for “Weapon Of Choice”:

Get there in time to see Mississippi garage-burners Bass Drum of Death, too, because their Ramones-gone-Southern stomp is great all on its own. Here’s “Shattered Me,” as proof:

James McCartney/Shellee Coley @ McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
Yes, this is the James McCartney, the son of that “McCartney” — just look at the guy, for crying out loud. Sadly, I’m not at all familiar with his work, but I’ve heard good things about the guy’s most recent album… I do know opener {Shellee Coley} a little bit, at least, and was mightily impressed with last year’s Where It Began; it’s a gentle, warm, friendly folk-pop record, with elements of both Aimee Mann and Patsy Cline floating through at different points, and it’s well worth checking out.

Runners-Up:
43rd Annual Houston International Festival, featuring Aaron Neville, Casa Samba Brazilian Extravaganza, Sergent Garcia, SambaDa, Rob Curto & Forro Matuto, Grupo Fantasma, Andre Thierry & Zydeco Magic, Jovino Santos Neto, Suns of Orpheus, Samba Soul, Morena Flor Dancers, & more @ Downtown Houston
The Black Crowes @ House of Blues
2013 Houston Celtic Festival and Highland Games, featuring Brian McNeill, Jiggernaut, Ed Miller, Clandestine, Jil Chambless & Scooter Muse, Celtic Voyage, Simply Scottish, Dene Foye, The Celtic Chorus of Houston, Earl Grey in the Morning, The Jig Is Up, Flashpoint, The Pride O’ Bedlam, Kilderkin International Dancers, The Tomfooligans, Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, The Travelling Murphy, Sia LaBelle Beaton, Wyndnwyre, Ricket Pittman, & Willow and Her Giant @ The Houston Farm and Ranch Club (1 Abercrombie; 10AM-7PM)
Texas Crawfish & Music Festival, featuring Randy Rogers Band, Will Hoge, Bri Bagwell, Dale Watson, Will Courtney, & Horseshoes & Hand Grenades @ Old Town Spring (Spring)