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Live Show Reviews and Previews by Penny Robinson

Preview 11/11/03

Eric Johnson Solo Acoustic Tour Fri., Nov 21st. Rockefeller Hall Showtimes: 8pm & 10pm. 3620 Washington Avenue Houston, Texas 713-869-3344 Tickets available @ Star Tickets and at Rockefeller Hall ticket office.

This autumn, Eric Johnson embarks on a solo acoustic tour which offers
audiences the rare opportunity to see him showcase his acoustic guitar and
piano skills. Even though Johnson learned to play the piano before he took
up the guitar, and even though he composes almost all his music on piano,
it's very unusual to see him play piano in front of an audience. And the
simplicity of an acoustic setting gives audiences a chance to connect with
Johnson's modest integrity and spontaneous talent. Whenever he does
acoustic shows the feedback from fans is overwhelming. "It's the best show
I've seen Eric play!" is a frequent response.

This tour will allow Johnson the opportunity to workshop his acoustic
material both new and old and it is expected to supply live recordings
and material for a future recording. "I'm trying to bring out stuff
that's a little bit more personal. I do want to do an entire acoustic
record at some time in the future. There's a challenge to that, because
you are out there by yourself," Johnson says. He has already recorded
acoustic compositions on each of his major releases including Tones, Ah
Via Musicom and Venus Isle. But it is his 2003 release, Souvenir, that is
the inspiration for this tour. Available exclusively on ericjohnson.com,
close to half of this CD features acoustic work and it is already a
favorite with fans. Guitar World Acoustic says, "Souvenir is the first
album that really captures the strength and diversity of (Johnson's)
acoustic playing."

It seems to be the natural time for Johnson to turn in this direction.
This year The Martin Guitar Company introduced the Limited Edition Eric
Johnson Signature Model acoustic guitars. Martin's head of Artist
Relations Dick Boak collaborated on the design of this special instrument.
He says, "It was especially satisfying working with a guitarist of Eric's
caliber. There are very few guitar players that come close to his mastery
of the instrument and for us, providing an optimum tool in support of his
craft is what it's all about. It's also rare that a musician will take
such an active role in the design process. Eric was involved in every
aspect: the feel of the the instrument, the aesthetics, and especially the
tone." Guitar World Acoustic described Johnson as "... living a double
life, developing an acoustic style on both nylon-string and steel-string
guitar as refined and daring as his electric playing."

Eric Johnson is a unique artist. For over twenty years his peers have
viewed his purity of tone and technical brilliance as the stuff of
legend, something that must be experienced live to be believed.

by Susan Griswold, September, 2003

Preview! 10/28/03

CD Baby artists establish TourBaby: A National Tour of the Best Local Music

A new kind of tour is coming through Houston - a concert put on by some of the best independent musicians in the area. Last year, the "TourBaby" crossed 42 cities in four months. This year, the TourBaby's journey begins anew with shows scheduled across the country. Each show will feature top local artists, including bands "tagging" from city to city, instead of a single touring lineup. Why the unique approach? Hundreds of musicians are banding together to raise awareness of independent music: the music you don't hear on mainstream TV or radio. TourBaby aims to highlight the top local bands and artists of all musical styles and genres, and to introduce these musicians to a broader cross-section of the communities. "We're out to call attention to all the great music that's right under your nose in your local community," is how the organizers of TourBaby see it. "TourBaby is an intimate connection between artist and fans," said founding member Dave Mann. "It's a grassroots co-operative effort created entirely by musicians. The local artists in each community organize each TourBaby concert. Most of us met through CD Baby, a popular online record store for independent artists."


TourBaby hits Houston on Saturday, November 8th 2003 at Sidecar Pub. 11202 HUFFMEISTER

The performing artists will be Preston Grey, Dimitri's Rail, Deep Ella and Pilot Radio. "These artists really bring out the true style of what Houston music is all about," says the show's organizer, Bob Wilkinson.

Tickets for this event are only $10.00 at the door. For information, directions, or to hear MP3s of every artist performing, go to http://www.tourbaby.com TourBaby is sponsored by CD Baby.

PUBLICITY: Joan Bujacich - (973) 893-6761
OFFICE: Dave Mann - TourBaby HQ - (407) 461-4230

Houston Promoter: Bob Wilkinson ­ (281) 481-6827

**EARLY WARNING!!** Coming up at Fitzgeralds!

Sept 13th-THURSDAY , Year Of The Rabbit, Death By Stereo

THURSDAY- this band hails from New Brunswick, NJ and has shared the stage with such bands as At the Drive In, Hot Water Music and Boy Sets Fire. Their debut release "Waiting" on NY based Eyeball records garnered the attention of indie label Victory Records, who quickly signed Thursday and put the band in the studio pronto to record their Victory debut "Full Collapse". This band is right on the verge of making it big, so before warned this may be the last opportunity to see the band in an intimate setting such as Fitz.

Thursday

YEAR OF THE RABBIT- I was in Austin recently, specifically to see Year of the Rabbit at Emos. There has been a lot of hype surrounding this band, most of it has to do with comparisons to Ken Andrews former band Failure. I stayed in the background and happened to over hear many of the Failure fans (which made up most of the crowd that stayed for YOTR, a few easily recognized by their Failure t-shirts) either complaining about YOTR not sounding enough or too much like Failure. I heard constructive and not so constructive criticism of every lyric and guitar chord. By the end of the show those that were overly critical were slack-jawed. I could add a few explicitives to state how unbelievable this band is, but I won't. You'll just have to make the show and see for yourself.

Enough with the comparisons.

YOTR is a seriously intense band. Excellent sound and show, and I do mean excellent. The members of the band are a perfect fit as if they were destined to come together and form this band. It's hard to describe a band that is as simplistic and complicated as YOTR is, but that is it in a nutshell. Simply BRILLIANT.

I've heard tales of how Ken has a penchant for over production. Have you seen this mans resume'? Check it out. I've included links to live feeds for YOTR, soundclips of ON and FAILURE. The ON link also contains Ken's resume' and band history, and can be found at the bottom of this page.

If he's guilty of over production, the band can pull off every nuance of the CD and more live. Their debut CD Year Of The Rabbit is incredible, but their live show wayyy surpases any band I've ever seen. If you love the CD, you'll be completely blown away by the live show, I guarantee it.

Guitarist Jeff Garber relocated to Los Angeles in 2001 from Illinois to join the band. He is also in a band called National Skyline the link is the unofficial website. Amusingly enough I was emailing with Emos (Austin) booking agent James Minor, and he informed me he's in NS with Jeff. Check out the clips on the site, I think you'll like 'em. I strongly encourage you to send James an email and harass him. You can find it on Emos website. Tell him I sent you.

Bassist Soloman Snyder is also from Illinois and formerly of cupcakes whose debut album was released on Dreamworks and gained quite a bit of attention. Soloman also did a stint in Replicas back in the late 90's, a Gary Numan tribute band featuring Smashing Pumpkins Billy Corgin, Filter's Brian Liesegang on keyboards and Matt Walker on drums. Honestly I know nothing about Replicas, but with that line up it must have been Bad (meaning great).

Drummer Tim Dow is The Cute One. That is an inside joke that I can't disclose here. Maybe I'll spill the beans if you catch me at Fitz. Tim was a Kansas City native and was formerly of Season to Risk and Shiner. He was also the touring drummer of On Ken's side project. I have On-Shifting Skin and love it. Back to Tim, he uses a really cool red Ludwig Vistalite kit, and IMO is one of the best live drummers I've heard recently. He's a very cordial person and it seems all of the band members are very approachable. Be sure to introduce yourself at the show.

DEATH BY STEREO- This band has shared the stage with such illustrious bands as Sick Of It All, BoySetsFire, and the Hope Conspiracy. They've been on several extensive tours over the US and Canada and are once again blazing a trail through the US supporting the Thursday tour.

Please check all of the bands websites for further information and listen to the soundclips. You can access full YEAR OF THE RABBIT live show feeds here and also look up Ken Andrews resume', side projects and the history of Failure here.

See everyone at Fitz Sept 13th!!

Penny Robinson

**EARLY WARNINGS**

AUG 29th- SUPERNA and ABASIA @ WHISKEY BLUES
Doors open at 7, show starts at 10p.
Check website for location and additional information.

SEPT 6th- ARENA ROX! @ 610 Arena featuring The HUNGER,
PARIS GREEN, PILOT RADIO, OVERSHOT and TIN HENRY. Tickets are $10.00 at the door. Check website for more information. A 1UpEvents Production.

SEPT 19th- SURF CITY TEXAS - Surf Stomp 2003 - Friday Sept 19th @ WHISKEY BLUES featuring DEEP ELLA, FALLENLINE, PARIS GREEN, BERT WILLS, SHARK ATTACK and CHANGO JACKSON. Guest appearances by pro longboarder BELEN KIMBALL-CONNELLY and Texas pro surfer LAYNE HARRISON. $5.00 donations accepted to benefit the Galveston Wave Pool Project. Doors open at 7. All ages show.

SEPT 20th-1st Annual WHISKEY BLUES MUSIC FEST featuring national
recording artists PUSHMONKEY and The HUNGER , with special guests PALE, PASSERBY and The BROADCAST. Tickets are $10.00 for 21+ , 18+ is $12.00, and available at door the day of show. Doors open at 6, show starts at 7:30. The Houston Music Hour and Texas Live will be there shooting videos of the show.

Pushmonkey

**PUSHMONKEY NEWS**

PM is in the studio working on their new album with producer Paul Leary of
Butthole Surfers and Sublime fame. Watch for the upcoming release soon!!
Check the Pushmonkey website for the latest information.

The Hunger

Pale

Passerby

*WARNING* Parking is limited at Whiskey Blues so get there early! Might as well stay on the Island over the weekend...the 19th and 20th shows will be OFF THE HOOK!!

~ Penny Robinson

07-17-03-Houston Press Music Awards Showcase @ Verizon Wireless Theater

Paris Green - Wonderful performance, very energetic set by the guys in PG, especially Matt. It was tough to get a good pic of the man since he is constantly in motion! The band reminds me very much of Incubus, but with a harder edge. Thanks to Jason Price for the stage pass.

30 Foot Fall - Great performance by these melodic punksters. The singer had graffiti scrawled on his chest, and jumped off the stage much to the amusement of the audience. Very entertaining set. Watch for this band at a venue near you.

Paul Wall & Chamillionaire - These underground rapsters put on a hella show. Tight, catchy lyrics, thumping bass lines...those of you who love rap/hip-hop be sure to watch the tour schedule and catch the next show.

FacePlant - These Southside guys are THE party band in Houston. Hilarious props (a few x-rated), signs with lyrics so the crowd can join in. You can bet a FacePlant show is a guaranteed fun time. Sponsored by Jagermeister, the band was part of the Jagermeister tour with acts such as Saliva and Hed Planet Earth, to name a few.

The Hunger - The Hunger is a Houston staple and puts on one of the best stage shows ever. The band is labeled as electro-metal, but I think the sound is more rock/techno. Beautiful performance by the band. They will be at the new 610 Arena Sept 6th, and then at the Whiskey Blues Festival Sept 20th with Pushmonkey, Leaf, Passerby, and The Broadcast. Check tour schedule for times and location.

Blue October - My 1st time to see this band live, and it was an incredible experience. The band was held up a bit due to technical difficulties, and when they hit the stage I couldn't hear anything but the screams of the crowd. This was one of the best shows I've seen to date. After seeing them live, I totally understand why Universal has them under contract. Beautiful arrangements, excellent stage presence....and the violin....breathtaking. This band may have one more tour of club dates, and after that, let's just say you'd better catch them at Numbers Aug 9th while you can and cherish the memory. I think their club days are just about over. They'll be back in Houston in October. How fitting.

My thanks to Mr.Ed, Jason Price, Gina and Ryan Delahoussaye, Justin Furstenfeld (thanks for the candid photos and patience), Dingo, Peron Einkauf, everyone at Clear Channel, Houston Press, and all involved who made this show one of the best to date.

The Houston Press Music Awards ceremony will take place August 6th at the Engine Room. See you there!

Penny Robinson

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