05.13.08

Trial by Fire

Posted in JD spazzes, hot live action, random - May 13th, 2008 at 5:31 pm by JD

So, hi there, this is Mimi. No, I am NOT dead. I just moved to LA. For now, you can read my mad ramblings here, but soon we’re going to have a huge shake up at HCT. More on that later, but for the time being, meet our latest addition to the wacky world of HCT: our buddy JD. Oh, yeah, so I’ve moved to LA. That’s where I am, not dead (I heard the rumors, trust me), just far, far away from Tennessee (cue a Lucero track). JD’s my gal in CA, and she loves tequila (dear god), Texas-flag regalia, [The throw pillows were a GIFT, I swear! -- JD] and avocados. Say hey to her and settle in for the reconstruction you’ll see around here very soon!

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Hi, I’m JD and I’m from Texas. [Got practice with that particular style at the AA meetings before you fell off the wagon, right? -- Mimi] As some of you probably know, they’ve got some music there worth listening to. In this, my cherry-poppin’ post here at HCT, I thought I’d tell y’all a little bit about some of it. So I sat down, fired up the computer, and stared at a blank screen for a very long time. [How I loathe that term, cherry-popping, as can be witnessed in our podcast promoting the Brew City Tour last year when I get lippy when Cory Branan uses it.--Mimi]

See, there’s A LOT of music in Texas, shocking right? Google ‘Texas music’…see? A LOT of music. To do some sort of general “Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, blah blah blah…” rambling just doesn’t cover it. Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Nashville, and other hot spots as well all have their scenes that those of us who love music sit around blogging about as we wait for the next big thing to break in one of them. But in eclectic eccentric Texas, the land of cattle ranching, puffy tacos, and David Koresh, the scene manages to take care of itself. It’s the only place I know that consistently generates talent that never needs to play too far outside the state lines to make a buck selling songs, and likes it that way.

Which, two hoots and a holler for us there going to Floore’s, the Saxon Pub or The Fairmount any given night, but for the rest of you, it’s damned unfortunate. So here’s a few acts (old, new, and somewhere in the middle) that you probably won’t catch anywhere but between the Red River and the Rio Grande. Warning, this is boot scootin’ bar music. Leave your chucks at the door. [If I can wear my chucks to Fan Fair, I think I can wear them to your honky-tonk, darling.--Mimi]

Hayes Carll - Well, look there. Just out of the gate and I pick a guy touring both coasts this summer, with the Old 97s no less. Shows what I know. It cracks me up how many country-type acts I find, love, and wait to come out West only to see their tour lineup go from San Francisco straight to San Diego or vice versa. How can SanFran, the most pretentious city I’ve ever had the misery to step foot in, book country acts at the Filmore while transplanted Angelinos like myself have to drive to the heart of Hollywood to get a six pack of Lone Star for $10 at the BevMo? That ain’t right. Don’t let the steel guitar scare you, LA. It’s good for your soul. Be sure to check out the tracks “She Left me for Jesus” and “Willing to Love Again.”

Ray Wylie Hubbard - Yes, this is your dad’s outlaw music, with a dash of Zappa Sr. Notice the bat wings in his MySpace pic. “Up Against the Wall Redneck Mother” may have been made famous by Jerry Jeff, but guess who wrote it? That’s right. Ray holds court in Austin now, sharing his wisdom with young Texas troubadours, but he’s touring quite a bit this summer with shows at the Best in Texas Music Festival and Willie’s Picnic. Side note: the song “Snake Farm,” while ridiculously corny, has actual Texas context. Since 1967, this place has been the biggest road-side attraction on the narrow stretch of I-35 between New Braunfels and San Antonio. When I was a kid, they had rattle snakes in there 30 feet long with heads the size of softballs behind cages made out of chicken wire and two-by-fours. Family fun for everyone! It’s far more Disney-fied now days with a petting zoo and other animals, but the giant hand-painted SNAKE FARM sign right off the highway exit hasn’t changed since I was knee-high to a duck’s behind. Mimi doesn’t know it yet, but we may be making a detour this summer in our travels. Film at 11. [You really went there w/ the snake farm song? My lollerskates are carrying me out the door here. No effin' way on the snake farm visit.--Mimi]

Two Tons of Steel - Kevin and Dennis have been bringing their brand of swingbilly to the Texas Hill Country for over 15 years now. Originally named the Dead Cricketts (Buddy Holly’s people didn’t take too kindly to that somewhere in the late 90s, and the name was changed in tribute to Kevin’s ‘57 Chevy that you can catch him driving around San Antone) Two Tons are a South Texas Saturday night staple. The Cibolo Creek Country Club and Gruene Hall are their main haunts, but they can be caught just about anywhere south of Waco. Don’t miss them. Do you know any other band in the world that does a cover of “I Wanna Be Sedated” that you can two-step to? That alone is worth the $10 cover. [Ok, I'm down. Let's hit this one this summer. Check back in folks for the story of how we got arrested in San Antonio.--Mimi]

Mitch Webb and the Swindles - If one were to call Two Tons the Beatles of the Hill Country, then Mitch Webb and the Swindles are the Rolling Stones. Gritty, sexy, trashy, and all Texan, the Swindles are the band I see every time I fly home. Their MySpace is a little sparse with info and songs right now, but look them up next month. Uncle Mitchy’s spent the past year or so recording the Swindle’s first album in 5 years, due out June 13th. The album release party at Casbeers should be the stuff of legends.

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