The enthusiasm was palpable at Travis Scott’s second annual Astroworld festival in NRG Park this past weekend—energy which prompted many to leap over the fallen barricades before the gates even officially opened, shown swarming and leaping over puddles on a video via Scott’s Instagram. “EVERYONE HAVE FUN,” Travis advises in the comments, along with the more cautionary “BE SAFE RAGE HARD.” The unconventional mix of carnival rides, winding lines for merch, and varied performances from both hometown heroes and up-and-coming artists serves both as a nod to Houston and long-departed Six Flags AstroWorld. Over 50,000 people showed up to the festival-amusement park mashup to revel in the energy of the carefully curated lineup and enjoy the attractions of Scott’s homage to the AstroWorld theme park, both the namesake for his most popular album and the festival itself.
Stephen Christopher Anthony as 'Evan Hansen' and the North American touring company of DEAR EVAN HANSEN. Photo by Matthew Murphy, 2019.
By: Harrison Lorenzen
It is not often you can find such an elegant balance between comedy, love, and a heart-wrenching story of a community grieving in the aftermath of suicide. Dear Evan Hansen, stopping in Houston along its 50-city national tour, opened Tuesday to a sold-out house at the Hobby Center. The cast, working with quite intense subject matter, brought such emotion to the stage that they held the attention of the entire audience throughout the performance. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul wrote beautiful songs to accentuate the emotions of the characters throughout, and the book by Steven Levenson helped to alleviate the sadness with expertly placed comedy. The actors delivered this constantly shifting material with ease and flair. The set is minimal, with a variety of pieces being brought on and off to create the spaces, but the possibilities are endless with the assortment of projections and screens utilized throughout. (more…)
Tyler’s set began with IGOR’s overture tack, “IGOR’S THEME.” The performance was introduced by the characteristic ear-piercing bass synths found in every track throughout IGOR. The bass fueled the crowd while Tyler faced his fans, frozen in the center of the stage, entirely emotionless. Then, the beat dropped, and the IGOR TOOR fun began, all while Tyler stared directly at the crowd, unmoving.
Following his introduction, Tyler began getting loose and into the performance with his following performance of “I THINK”. The hard-hitting, however groovy and rhythmic track, led to intricate mix of mosh-pits and dance circles, and allowed fans to release all of their pent-up energy.
Tyler’s performance could be broken down into several acts, each separated by the drop of the curtain providing the backdrop for his set. Each set was distinguishable, with the first being his energizing tracks from IGOR, followed by some of his melodic, slower tracks, then a section of classic throwbacks from GOBLIN, WOLF, and Flower Boy, before returning to crowd sing-a-longs like “See You Again”, and “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?”
As the concert continued, and Tyler danced his heart out on stage, played the piano, and joked with the crowd, all while donning a fluffy blonde wig, retro sunglasses, and a full teal suit, it’s clear that Tyler is able to stick to his authentic self without selling out for a mainstream audience. This is even clear in his performance techniques, as other hip-hop artists of the current generation use classic concert gimmicks of yelling at the crowd to open up a mosh pit, using restraint-and- 3, 2, 1 release techniques to get fans excited, and throwing water bottles into the crowd; none of these were present for the IGOR TOOR. It was refreshing to witness a hip-hop concert performed in a unique manner with an artistic performance vision, and resultantly see fans react to the beauty and complexity of Tyler’s music, rather than gimmicks. Building on this, Tyler also performed without any backing vocal tracks, facing up to the challenges that come with performing entirely live, and letting fans enjoy his uniquely deep voice. The concert, for Tyler, was a stage that he treated as intimately as if it were one back at home where he was by himself and just immersing himself in the music. Here, we could be there with him, feel how much Tyler cared for his artistry, and let his love embrace us. The stage design was simple, using the same elements theatrical scene elements seen throughout Tyler’s various music videos and album visuals, allowing the majority of the attention to remain on the artist. However in the latter part of the concert, various sections of the backdrop were used to display eccentric visuals, some which showed his hair growing and shrinking into his head and another which cut up a projection of Tyler into various distorted pieces. Tyler’s Instagram bio often summarized the vibe of the concert perfectly, as an “indie movie with a budget.”
As this was the last stop on the tour, and the end of Tyler’s IGOR era, Tyler ended the concert with an emotional and tear-filled thank you to his fans and commented on how he made it this far by simply being weird. This weirdness provided for a captivating and one-of-a-kind hip-hop performance, truly raising the bar for other performers within the genre.
1 - atm - inglewood tapes vol. 1 - radical documents 2 - blockhead - bells and whistles - ninja tune 3 - kitamura, emerson - the countryside is great - em 4 - greg cote & the real life friends - better now - close quarters coalition 5 - morricone youth - danger: diabolik - country club 6 - durand jones & the indicators - american love call - dead oceans 7 - ex hex - it's real - merge 8 - karen o & dangermouse - lux prima - lux prima 9 - lake minnetonka - melbourneapolis - two and four 10 - pedestrian deposit - dyers' hands - monorail trespassing 11 - karyyn - the quanta series - antevasin 12 - weyes blood - titanic rising - sub pop 13 - kohei amada, sugai ken - kyogokuryu-sokyoku "shinshunfu" - em 14 - lucille furs - another land - rput 15 - bells atlas - the mystic - tender loving empire 16 - drone butch blues - your heart breaks - sofaburn 17 - efrim manuel menuck and kevin doria - are sing sinck, sing - constellation 18 - hansard, glen - this wild willing - plateau 19 - mountain goats, the - in league with dragons - merge 20 - bleu nuit - le jardin des memoires - michel 21 - tacocat - this mess is a place - sub pop 22 - charly bliss - young enough - barsuk 23 - drahla - useless coordinates - captured tracks 24 - hecker, tim - anoyo - kranky 25 - pup - morbid stuff - rise 26 - woods, jamila - legacy! legacy! - jagjaguwar 27 - lahey, alex - the best of luck club - dead oceans 28 - national, the - i am easy to find - 4ad 29 - queue queue - fang and claw - s/r 30 - local natives - violet street - loma vista 31 - kishi bashi - omoiyari - joyful noise 32 - mattson 2, the - paradise - company 33 - palehound - black friday - polyvinyl 34 - spiegel, laurie - unseen worlds - unseen worlds
Can anyone say cold front? Weekend two of Austin City Limits (ACL) began with chilly temperatures and cloudy skies that threatened Texas natives to stay inside. Good thing they didn’t because ACL 2019 came to show off and she truly did! There were many notable moments during the festival, Tame Impala’s closing set, fireworks during Childish Gambino, Billie Eillish losing an earring while performing, but let’s focus on a few Texas stars who stole the show!
The North American Tour Company of CATS. Photo by Matthew Murphy. 2019
By Harrison Lorenzen
One of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s best-known musicals, CATS, returns to Houston for one week only, wowing audiences with its elaborate dancing, stunning lighting, and most of all, its cats. Opening last night to a nearly full house, featuring patrons of all ages dressed in cheetah print and/or cat ears, CATS had audience members captivated throughout the show. Creeping in and out of oversized junk like ovens and tires while dressed in colorful, striped (or tabby) leotards, the cast led an excellent portrayal of the feline lifestyle. Opting to be at the theater instead of watching the Astros game, guests were not let down with this ensemble’s performance.
One of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s best-known musicals, CATS, returns to Houston for one week only, wowing audiences with its elaborate dancing, stunning lighting, and most of all, its cats. Opening last night to a nearly full house, featuring patrons of all ages dressed in cheetah print and/or cat ears, CATS had audience members captivated throughout the show. Creeping in and out of oversized junk like ovens and tires while dressed in colorful, striped (or tabby) leotards, the cast led an excellent portrayal of the feline lifestyle. Opting to be at the theater instead of watching the Astros game, guests were not let down with this ensemble’s performance.