Yr. Weekend, Pt. 2: Houston Open Air + Jealous Creatures + Alabama Shakes + Finnegan + Getter + Oktoberfest Houston + More

Okey-dokey — back on this horse, sort of, and since I’ve already been running later than I’d like to be, I’m now at least trying to get ahead. It is one hell of a busy weekend, music-wise, and some of it we’ve already talked about, but there’s plenty more we’d recommend, particularly tomorrow, Saturday, September 24th. Here goes:

Houston Open Air, featuring Alice in Chains, Slayer, The Cult, Ministry, Anthrax, Alter Bridge, Chevy Metal, Buckcherry, Sevendust, letlive., Sick Puppies, Max & Igor Cavalera Return to Roots, Jim Breuer & The Loud & Rowdy, Gemini Syndrome, Texas Hippie Coalition, Sons of Texas, The Word Alive, & Dinosaur Pile-Up @ NRG Park
Odds are very, very good that you’ve already heard about the Houston Open Air festival — and if you’re a metalhead and have some disposable income, odds are also pretty good that you’re already planning on being there tomorrow. Why? Oh, I dunno, maybe because it’s the single biggest pile of badass metal dudes of all varieties and ages that’s been through this city in a very long time.

This weekend’s my son’s birthday, so I’m out, sadly. Otherwise, I’d be all over this. Even now, I count myself a huge fan of Anthrax — they were the first thrash band I ever truly got into, even before Metallica — and Alice in Chains hit that ’90s Nostalgia button in just the right place. The Cult is a bit of a surprising choice, to me, since I don’t really think of them as being “metal” in any way, but hey, the classic-rock-isms of “Fire Woman” definitely dwell in the hard rock realm. Then, on the more recent side, there’s the awesome Sevendust, and I like what I’ve heard of Dinosaur Pile-Up so far…

Now for a little heresy: I’m not a Slayer fan. Apologies to those I’ve hurt with that statement, but they’re just not a band I’ve ever gotten into. That said, I respect the shit out of ’em for their staying power and for being some of the absolute progenitors of metal as we know it, and seeing them up there with Anthrax would be pretty damn sweet. Go get caught in a mosh, motherfuckers.

Jealous Creatures/Jay Satellite/SkyAcre/Jeremy Carswell @ Rudyard’s
Those {Jealous Creatures} folks have been on my mind a lot lately, not least of all because, well, I saw them play at Yes, Indeed! just this past weekend. And yes, it was good. Seriously, seriously good. The band has always been a machine, musically, just cranking along without a hiccup, and their Y,I! set was no different, with Sarah Hirsch, Ian Hlavacek, Josh Barry, and Meghan Anderson effortlessly transforming their little corner of Ahh, Coffee! into a dark, murky highway through the desert somewhere, with trouble back the way they’d come and nothing certain up ahead.

If you’ve yet to hear this band, do it now; trust me on this. They take elements of The Cowboy Junkies, The Pixies, Patsy Cline, Neil Young, and the Foo Fighters, and they distill them all down and pour ’em into a battered old whiskey flash, which then goes out on that aforementioned road. Join ’em on the journey.

Alabama Shakes/Corinne Bailey Rae @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Oh, yes. I was fortunate to catch Alabama Shakes a few years ago at FPSF, and was blown away. Frontwoman Brittany Howard is a real-live powerhouse, a Bessie Smith-esque blues belter who can also croon and howl while ripping down-and-dirty soul/blues riffs out of her guitar. They were raw, they were loud, they were sincere, and they were very, very obviously putting everything they had into every goddamn note. That’s the kind of band I can get behind.

Concert Benefiting the Mission of Yahweh Homeless Shelter for Women & Children, featuring Finnegan, Western Bling, & Stone Free @ Ladybirds (5519 Allen; 4PM-12AM)
Whoa. Talk about a twofer: a too-rare show with the genuinely amazing {Finnegan}, who’re one of those bands I force onto friends when I want them to realize just how dang cool the Houston music scene is these days, not to mention one of my favorite roots-rock/Americana bands ever, and it’s a benefit concert for the Mission of Yahweh Homeless Shelter. The latter, by the way, is a shelter where homeless women and children can find a place to stay, get something to eat, and get help getting back on their feet again. I don’t know of many worthier causes than that.

Now, I have one request: Finnegan folks, now that you’re kinda-sorta back around, can we please-please-please finally get a followup to What Happened to Jacqueline? I will owe you forever, I swear, with that debt to be repaid in the form of free beer. Please?

Getter/Yultron/Nick Colletti @ Stereo Live
Alright, I’ll come clean and own up this: I didn’t put Getter on this list for myself, but because my pre-teen daughter freaking loves the guy. I honestly hadn’t heard anything off Getter’s new EP, Wat The Frick, until today…although now that I have, yeah, I kinda get it. He’s like Skrillex with fewer robot-sex sounds and a much goofier, more wide-open sense of humor; the tracks are playful, halfway like he’s fully immersed in the dubstep scene and halfway like he’s (gently) poking fun at it.

Oktoberfest Houston 2016, featuring Eurofest, Auf Geht’s, DJ Big Reeks, Texas Renaissance Festival German Court, & German Folk Dancers @ Buffalo Bayou Water Works (105 Sabine; 12:30-6:30PM)
For this last one, I have to shamefacedly admit that while I’ve been to quite a few Houston festivals over the years, I’ve never, ever been to the Oktoberfest Houston festival. Which is pretty lame, personally, because I spent a decent chunk of my childhood living in Germany (at age 9, I could swear like a sailor in German; unfortunately, I’ve forgotten every last bit of that…), and then moved from there to San Antonio, where I have fond memories of that city’s Oktoberfest, as well. And yet, after two decades here, I’ve never been to this one.

Now, I know it might be viewed as cheesy or campy, but fuck it; you’ve got to own that shit. So dig out those lederhosen, put your Alpine hat on, and get ready to drink and eat lots of sausage and schnitzel while dancing and watching other people dance. If you can’t find the fun in that, you suck at Human.

Runners-Up:
Steamboat Amps and Guitars Open House, featuring Whit, Chase Hamblin, A Tribute to the Sun, Trippy Cholo, Pitter Patter, & Sam Turner and the Cactus Cats @ Steamboat Ampworks (1505 Gano; 12-9PM, free!)
BLASTMAT/Razorwire/Khobretti/Idiot City @ Satellite Bar
Z-Ro/K.O. aka Mr. U Can’t Handle Me/Tex-T/K-Dog/DJ T-Boyd @ The Scout Bar (Clear Lake)
Uncle Lucius @ McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
Building Temples From Death TXDM Assembly, featuring Cattle Decapitation, Severance, Desecrate the Faith, Flesh Hoarder, Seraphic Enthronement, Blast Perversion, Perceptions of Torment, Primordious, Diminished, Cheese Grater Masterbation, Human Chunks, Orchiectomy, I Am Destruction, Aegis, & Avaris @ 18th St. Pier Bar & Grill (San Leon)