Yr. Weekend, Pt. 3: The Western Civilization + Fuzz-A-Rama Beat Stomp + football, etc. + Buxton + Jamestown Revival + Golden Cities + Roosh Williams + FLCON FCKER + More

Alright, folks — it’s Saturday, March 14th now, and I’m writing this while on the road, so I’ll get it up online when I can; no guarantees it’ll be timely, though. There’s a ton going on, by the by, what with early St. Patrick’s Day stuff and festivals and all the rest, so I’m going to have to just skim across the top and keep these short and sweet. Here goesL

For the Community 9, featuring Space Villains*, Mantra Love, Ganesha, Maninkari, Civeta Dei, The Sloths, Lion Among Men, Jordan Page, The Western Civilization, Marissa., Fear Me, King Me, JVS Reel, & Devil Killing Moth @ Last Concert Cafe (2:30PM-2AM)
First up is the latest installment of the For the Community festival series, over at the Last Concert Cafe; I’ve always meant to go & check it out, but the timing just hasn’t worked out, sadly, and it isn’t working out once again…sigh. I’m not real familiar with most of the folks playing, I’ll admit, although I like {Devil Killing Moth} a fair bit and fell pretty hard for {Lion Among Men}‘s friendly jangle-folk the one time I’ve seen ’em live.

The real shining bright spot, though, at least for yours truly, is an all-too-rare appearance by the recently-resurrected indie-folk-pop crew {The Western Civilization}, whom I love dearly — they broke up several years ago, I think because singer/guitarist Reggie O’Farrell moved up to Austin, but they got back together last(?) year, and I’m happy as hell to see it. Their one release so far remains one of my all-time favorite albums, with its warm, indie-rock-tinged, folky pop, their sharp-yet-sensitive lyrics, and the excellent harmonies between O’Farrell, Rachel Hansbro, and Gretchen Schmaltz (who I’m not sure is part of the reunited band, unfortunately).

Fuzz-A-Rama Beat Stomp, featuring Blaire Alise & The Bombshells, Mikey and the Drags, Bubble Puppy, The Dead Barons, King Pelican, Allen Oldies Band, The Phantomatics, Ketchy Shuby, The Ripe, Jimmy Shadeux & The Steel Toe Soul, The Blind Owls, Modfag, The Motion, A Fistful of Soul, Reverberation DJs, Alamo City Soul Club, Topper James, Here Come The Girls, & DJ Klandestino @ The Continental Club/The Big Top
Heading down into Midtown, then, there’s a badass festival put on by Mikey from Mikey and the Drags, which showcases a whole bunch of like-minded garage/mod-type bands. He’s calling it the Fuzz-A-Rama Beat Stomp, and yeah, that seems pretty accurate, because there’s gonna be a whole lot of fuzzed-out garage-rock going on. The aforementioned band, of course, is a high point, as are scrappy, belligerent garage gang {Modfag} and devoted ’60s worshippers {The Motion}, as well. Get on up there and groove down.

football, etc./Japanese Breakfast @ The Summit (3536 Navigation)
And then we’re over into the area east of Downtown (no, I will not call it “EaDo,” because that’s freaking stupid; this isn’t New York, for Christ’s sake), for a great, great helping of awesomely-crafted throwback emo from {football, etc.}. The band’s got an excellent new EP out, Disappear, which sees ’em continue meandering their way along through all those old-school emo sounds I myself fell for back in college. If there’s a band that more carries forward the torch of emo pioneers Mineral, well, I haven’t heard ’em (and they’re probably not as good as football, etc., anyway, so there). Fans of sincere, thoughtfully impassioned, deliberate-sounding indie-rock with intense, slow-moving guitar melodies and rhythms, this band’s for you..

Jamestown Revival/Buxton @ Fitzgerald’s
Then there’s Fitzgerald’s, where ex-Magnolians Jamestown Revival are headlining. They’re pretty good, actually — I like what I’ve heard of their sweet, melodic, Americana-pop — but for me the selling point for this show is absolutely {Buxton}; those local boys just released a stellar new album, Half A Native, that (and I may be nearing blasphemy with this) I’m starting to realize is the best thing they’ve ever done. No lie; it’s freaking great, with the Buxton guys incorporating a whole lot of ’60s rock, pop, and psych influences into their roots-rock stew and expanding quite a bit. Native is a true sign of the band’s deepening maturity, and I swear to Flying Spaghetti Monster I’ll get a review up for it very, very soon. (Honest!) In the meantime, get out and see one of this city’s brightest lights.

Dead Leaf Echo/Empty Shells/Golden Cities @ Rudyard’s
Up at Rudyard’s, there’s another great lineup that mostly makes me excited because of the opener. Don’t get me wrong, I like what I’ve heard of Dead Leaf Echo, and I’ve heard good things about Empty Shells, but what I’m most psyched about is the return of badass spacerockers {Golden Cities}. The band dissolved quietly a few years ago, with drummer Lance Higdon moving away and other members moving on to different bands, but main man Marcus Gausepohl has apparently dragged at least some of the original crew back together, and that’s an awesome, awesome thing. When I saw them last, Golden Cities made music that was loud as fuck without being “heavy,” instead surging skyward like a rocketship aimed at Arcturus — think Explosions in the Sky with more fire, or My Education with more rock, and you’ll be close. Go rejoice in the band’s resurrection, alright?

Skin In The Game, featuring Roosh Williams, FLCON FCKER, BirdMagic, MKE, Guilla, Nikkhoo, Android Genius, Mark Drew, Duro SPLFF, MLCBR, Jon Black, D.Keela, & Jarmzzz @ Avant Garden (free!)
Finally, there’s a cool-ass showcase of up-and-coming rappers and DJ/electronic-type people, over at the Avant Garden, with seriously cool dude Roosh Williams as the headliner and electronics-masher {FLCON FCKER} not long beforehand. I’ve been listening to Williams a fair amount lately, and I’m mightily impressed — he’s definitely somebody you need to be watching.

Runners-Up:
Living Room Sessions, featuring Craig Kinsey & Son of Bitch @ The Argyle League (703 W. Alabama; 8-11PM, free!)
Clory Martin (live recording) @ Khon’s
The Sloths/Spare Bones/Corners/Megafauna/Silver Blueberry @ House of Creeps (807 William)
St. Patrick’s Festival, featuring Craig Kinsey & Spin Cycle with Ash Hendley @ Griff’s
The Districts/Pine Barons/Quel Night @ Fitzgerald’s
M.O.D./Images of Violence/Krullur/Whore of Bethlehem/Annihilist @ Walter’s
The Layback Grinds/The Witherees/Cactus Cats/Sandpaper Sally @ Notsuoh
SXSW Overflow Fest, featuring Civeta Dei, LUCA, SEX//TAPE, Birthday Candles, & Merilette @ Super Happy Fun Land
24th Annual Mariachi Invitational, featuring a bunch of excellent mariachi groups @ Arena Theater
Biz Vicious/Popenqm/Pitter Patter/All People/Pink Eye/Jet Propelled Insectivore @ Black Barbie (3621 Canal)
Mile High Club, featuring The Kracker Nuttz @ House of Blues (Foundation Room)
A New Horizon/Vanilla Sugar/Oceans Ego @ The Scout Bar (Clear Lake)
Texas Salsa Congress, featuring Marlow Rosado & Willy Calderon @ The Westin Oaks Galleria (5011 Westheimer)