Houston ROCK CITY

Amid concrete sprawl and swampy bayous, Houston abounds in contradictions. America’s fourth-largest city boasts near-equal amounts of cabarets and churches, leafy oaks and tacky strip malls, abandoned lots and gleaming high-rises. Those many facets are reflected in the city’s music, which offers more than sizzurp slurpers like Slim Thug and Paul Wall. Host of the 2008 Latin Grammys, hometown of Beyoncé and alt-country champ Rodney Crowell, and a key ’60s psychedelic outpost, the Bayou City always seems to pull sultry, soulful music from its hot, thick air.

LOCAL HEROES

When big guns like U², Metallica, and Red Hot Chili Peppers come to town, Uncle Charlie (Charlie Hardwick) gets the call to design one of his horror-movie- and Pop Art–inspired posters. A onetime member of local hardcore legends Dresden ⁴⁵, Charlie cut his teeth doing artwork for bygone punk clubs the Axiom and Unicorn. He’s now working on a book-length collection of his finest posters.

When he’s not collaborating or comparing beard length with his pal Rick Rubin in L.A. or out on the road with ZZ Top, proud Houstonian Billy Gibbons is a regular sight tooling around town in his custom hot rods, “the Eliminator” and “CadZZilla.” But more experienced acolytes know to head for the Continental Club, where the guitarist keeps tabs on the competition, as well as some holier hot spots—dude’s an ordained minister.

As the former host of radio shows Genetic Memory and Funhouse, Chuck Roast would deliver weekly lessons in punk, experimental, and sound collages. Then he went out and made appropriately strange music with his noise bands Turmoil in the Toybox and

Disgruntled Fungus. Semi-retired as a DJ, Roast now runs LP lovers’ treasure trove Vinal Edge Records, in the city’s northern suburbs.

Long before Paul Wall and
Chamillionaire went platinum,
J. Prince opened up Houston’s hip-
hop front by founding Rap-A-Lot
Records in ¹⁹⁸⁶. Soon thereafter
he discovered three local kids with
a nightmarish gift for gab—the
Geto Boys. Today, Rap-A-Lot is still
going strong with such artists as
Bun B, Scarface, and Devin the
Dude. A giver, J. Prince recently
financed a new community
center for his native Fifth Ward.

BARS AND CLUBS

Million Year Dance at Notsuoh

Notsuoh

314 MAIN ST., 713-409-4750
Essentially a sitting room with a stage and bar, the cozy Notsuoh (“Houston” spelled
backwards) is a favorite spot for DIY icons and local up-and-comers. Ian MacKaye
played here last year, and sets from bands such as folk-pop sprites the Wild
Moccasins and avant-garde string quartet Two Star Symphony have drawn raves.
Most weekends, you can find after-parties going till dawn in the junk-strewn attic.

Numbers

300 WESTHEIMER ST., 713-526-6551

One of the many infamous tales about
Numbers—a cavelike building near
downtown—is that it’s where Blind
Melon’s Shannon Hoon copped the
drugs that led to his fatal ¹⁹⁹⁵ OD.
The bar’s eerie ambience attracts
Houston’s eyeliner-clad nighthawks,
who line up for periodic visits from
the likes of Siouxsie and the Banshees.

Shoeshine Charley’s
Big Top Lounge
3714 MAIN ST., BIGTOPLOUNGE.COM
Shoeshine Charley retains the
whimsical flavor of its toy-store origins:
elephant-trunk door handles, vintage
toys behind the bar, and a bumper car
on the porch. Regular performers the
Light Rock Express and piano/guitar
duo Peter & James provide smoothly
appealing yacht-rock delectations.

Bohemeo’s
708 TELEPHONE RD., 713-923-4277
Sitting in the industrial East End,
Bohemeo’s attracts artists who’ve
arrived after getting priced out of
hot hoods like Montrose. In addition
to hosting concerts by bands like the
revered psychobillies Vatos Locos, the
pastel-colored room is a focal point
of the city’s Latino arts community.

Lola’s
2327 GRANT ST., 713-528-8342
The only music here comes from a
carefully curated jukebox, but Lola’s
has been influential nonetheless. In the
early ’⁹⁰s, the laid-back vibe and dirt-
cheap drinks inspired a few regulars to
start their own club, Emo’s, which then
moved to Austin and became one of
that city’s leading live music venues.

CLOCK WISE FROM TOP: MARK C. AUS TIN; GEMS/ REDFERNS/RE TNA; COUR TES Y CHUCK ROAS T

KNOW
YOUR
HISTORY

Just off Allen’s Landing—
where John and Augustus
Allen founded Houston in
1836—rests the empty
shell of the Love Street
Light Circus and Feel
Good Machine. In the late
’60s, Love Street was
Texas’ psych central,
hosting the ¹³th Floor
Elevators, the Red
Krayola, and the Moving
Sidewalks, whose leader,
Billy Gibbons, debuted
there with his new band
ZZ Top in July ¹⁹⁶⁹.