Austin360 blogs > Almost Urban > Archives > 2007 > September
September 2007
Weekend picks: Grupo, Grimy Styles and Blue Ladies
Friday: Ladies Sing The Blues at the Victory Grill. You know what young girls coming up today could use more of? Good old-fashioned grandmotherly wisdom. At 78 years of age, the lovely Miss Lavelle White sings heartfelt blues rich with world-weary understanding. She also can still rock a sparkly dress and drop boogie-woogie rockin’ soul with the best of them. This tribute to “Austin’s grand diva of soul” kicks off with performances from youthful rocker Eve Monsees and seasoned soul songstress LZ Love. Miss Lavelle herself will close out the evening. $10 suggested donation.
Friday: Grimy Styles, Radio La Chusma at Flamingo Cantina. I’ll admit after seeing pictures of the GS cats (full shaggy beards, long white-boy dreds) I had sort of written the group off as another run of the mill hippie jam band. But Houston hip-hop maven Matt Sonzala’s unrelenting proclamations that Grimy Styles is “hands down, my favorite band” persuaded me to give them a serious listen. And it’s good stuff. Without abandoning the traditional roots of dub, a melodic reggae bass line and ample echoing electronics, the group launches off into oddball experimental forays in aural soundscaping (hints of klezmer music?) that work surprisingly well. Fresh off an Eastern tour, Grimy Styles travels to H-town on Saturday for Houston So Real’s “Punky Reggae Party,” but you can catch them Friday night at Flamingo Cantina with El Paso’s Radio La Chusma. Cover unspecified.
Saturday: Soulful Texas Hip-Hop Live at Club 115. Maybe I’m getting old, but I really appreciate the grown and sexy vibe of Club 115. The club’s cool, classy ambience is a good alternative for those of us who have trouble getting psyched about a wild night on Sixth Street. Austin’s premiere mic handler Bavu Blakes and San Antonio’s Mojoe Family will come through each backed by a live band. DJ LL will also be in the mix for the evening. $10 cover.
Saturday: Grupo Fantasma, Brownout and DJ Chicken George at the Mohawk. Though there’s been no shortage of local excitement over the mighty Grupo Fantasma, aka Prince’s favorite band, the group’s instrumental Latin funk side project Brownout has been steadily building a buzz with their critically acclaimed debut CD “Homanaje” that dropped last month. Globe trotting trend setter DJ Chicken George, who dubs his signature sound “jazztronica,” rounds out this stellar bill. As some of the most intriguing tracks off of CG’s Spring release “The Swed.u.s.h Connection 2” include guest appearances from Grupo’s Adrian Quesada I expect the evening will feature many exciting collaborative numbers. Cover unspecified.
Saturday: Swoll with DJ Mel at the Beauty Bar. One of the most popular booty-centric sweaty, body-rocking parties in town. ‘Nuff said. Cover unspecified.
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Live shots: Gotan Project at Stubb’s BBQ
Amazing show. More about it here.
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ACL side parties, Common, M.I.A., Marley, more
No weekend picks this week, as your girl is up to her ears in ACL Fest coverage. But with the mass influx of music/music lovers into our city, a few very worthwhile side parties have emerged.
Sunday: Common at La Zona Rosa. This is obviously the big can’t-miss show (which, unfortunately, I’ll be missing). Touring in support of his new release “Finding Forever,” expect an exceptional evening of soulful hip-hop gems. $30.
As a side note, Common has been added to the actual ACL lineup. He’s playing on the Dell stage at 3:30 p.m. Sunday. Ziggy Marley also plays on the WaMu stage that day at 7 p.m. I mention this, because with the rash of big-name cancellations, we at Camp 360 have noticed a fair amount of ACL passes floating around craigslist below cost.
Saturday: Stephen Marley and Zap Mama at Emo’s. Stephen Marley bears an uncanny resemblence to his father in both appearance and sound. He puts on a great show. I’ve been wanting to catch Zap Mama since her amazing 2000 release “Seven” spent the better part of a summer on repeat play in my car.
Friday: M.I.A. afterparty at the Beauty Bar. Unlike the indie kids, I never drank the Kool-Aid and lost my mind over M.I.A.’s “Arular.” Some of it was cool, some was just “meh.” Which is a little weird because as a Southeast Asian I really wanted to love this daughter of Sri Lankan rebels. From what I’ve heard, her new stuff might be a little more my speed. In any case, I’m certainly curious, and my inside source tells me M.I.A. is actually scheduled to make an appearance at the Beauty Bar.
These are just a couple of the great shows happening this weekend. Here’s the full list.
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Weekend Picks: Brownout, Boombox and Southern rap big shots
Friday: Boombox CD Release at the Parish. This hip-hop/funk big band has been packing the house at the Lucky Lounge (on Tuesdays!?) for over two years now. Anchored by Carlos Sosa’s Grooveline horns, the ensemble drops funky bounce-heavy grooves. Now that Tee Double and beatboxer John Pointer have moved on, mic duties are handled by ATX hip-hop veterans MC Overlord and the grossly undersung Treygod Shakhem, master of rugged raw Wu-Tang style verbal kung fu. $10 adv, $12 door.
Friday: Nueva Cosa at the Belmont. The food at the Belmont has always fallen a little short of my expectations, but I am a sucker for the swanky Rat Pack meets Miami Beach atmosphere up in the spot. (Your girl loves a good outdoor deck.) I also checked out this low-fi, electro-groove jazz outfit’s MySpace page and their ambient swirl of sounds seems ideal for Friday night cocktails and conversation. A good set up for a merry stumble through the Warehouse District. Cover unspecified.
Friday: Concert to Support the Red Cross of Peru at Flamingo. Enrique Rumiche, who used to play with the now-defunct “Classical/ Experimental/ Crunk” crew Balistica, has put together this benefit concert to support victims of the massive earthquake that devastated coastal areas of his native Peru last month. His new group, the loose artists collective La Guerrilla de Lilliput, describes itself as “Electroacoustic/Latin/Alternative” and the sound has a little more indie hipness to it than most acts I recommend in this blog, but the songs are catchy, as evidenced by this YouTube video, and my heart goes out to our Peruvian friends as they struggle to rebuild. $5-$7
Saturday: Brownout CD Release at the Mohawk. Long before local cumbia powerhouse Grupo Fantasma was jet-setting around the world to play on the purple pedestal with the Prince of pop, many of the group’s core members considered themselves primarily funk musicians. Students of the JBs, they began as rowdy teenagers hosting all night jams in their hometown of Laredo. Over time, the border funk specialists migrated north to Austin where they eventually reunited, picking up a several non-Laredoans along the way, and forming the mighty Fantasma. After a few years performing nonstop cumbia on the road, some of the Fantasmites felt a strong inclination to return to their funky roots and thus Brownout was born. The group finally releases their debut album, an instrumental joint that draws inspiration from everything from the classic soul of Curtis Mayfield to the expansive Afrobeat of Fela Kuti. | Listen in SoundCheck
Saturday: Hot 93.3fm Fall Fest at Travis County Expo Center. Yes, sensation of the second, Soulja Boy, is no longer on the lineup for this show, but no doubt the evening’s mixmasters will provide amble opportunities to “Superman that…” throughout the evening. Houston heavy hitters Li’l Flip and Slim Thug are late additions to the bill, and headliner Young Jeezy who burned up the charts last summer with his ubiquitous hit “I Love It” and has steadily occupied the Music Mania charts with his official mixtape “Young Jeezy Presents USDA: Cold Summer” that dropped earlier this year, is sure to be a big draw. Also on the bill are Lil Keke, Lil Boosie with Webbie & Foxx, Gorilla Zoe. Tickets run from $25 for the cheap seats (standing) to $150 for the Sky Lounge backstage pass.
Sunday: Austin Voices for Education and Youth Stand Up Rally at Fiesta Gardens. The kids are alright. Watch them prove it in this celebration of youth music, arts and poetry from 3 to 5 p.m. at Fiesta Gardens. Cover unspecified.
(Pictured, Brownout. Photo by Todd Wolfson.)
