Oct 14, 2022 | ktru
by Max Cunningham
This past weekend marked the second post-pandemic iteration of Austin City Limits. This year’s festival spanned a wide variety of genres, with the headliners coming from country, R&B, rock, pop, and EDM. Without further ado, here is my EDM-free list of highlights from each day of the festival.
Friday:
James Blake showcased his limitless vocal range, instrumental prowess, and attention to detail with a light show that perfectly complemented his music. He mostly spent time playing his most recent album, Friends That Break Your Heart, which celebrated a one year anniversary the day after his performance. However, that didn’t stop him from playing crowd favorites like Mile High, which features notable rapper Travis Scott.
Most concertgoers immediately moved over to Omar Apollo’s set. The major highlight of his set was the live band he brought to accompany him, which featured an excellent guitar player who had plenty of time to do solos during the set.
SZA had one of the most enjoyable sets of the weekend. She was clearly taking in the moment of headlining a music festival for the first; she mentioned it at one point and had tears in her eyes, which made for an especially poignant moment. One notable moment during her set occurred during Doves in the Wind, where the visuals behind her were showing a storm and the dancers acted like they were about to be blown away. The clear attention to detail in the choreography, visuals, and stage design made for a particularly enjoyable performance. This was the highlight of Friday.
The Chicks, who were performing on the other side of Zilker Park, also enjoyed a large, very engaged crowd.
Saturday: This day started with a set by rising artist Samia. Her self proclaimed “depressing music” combined with fun dancing and a great live band was a sight to see. On the other side of the park was rapper Tyla Yaweh, who got the crowd going through various tactics such as crowd surfing and running off stage and around the crowd at one moment.
The major highlights of Saturday occurred later in the day. Lil Nas X electrified the crowd with an elaborate display of costumes, highly skilled choreography, and visuals that perfectly augmented his music. It didn’t hurt that he has also released some of the biggest songs of the last few years, including Old Town Road.
Big Boi held his own during the same time slot, performing a fun mix of new songs from Big Sleepover as well as classics like International Players’ Anthem and Ms. Jackson.
My favorite set of the weekend belongs to Houston native, Tobe Nwigwe. He said it was going to be the best, most elaborate performance he has ever done; he did not disappoint. His stage design largely mirrored the cover of his recent EP, moMINTS. It contained a large piano structure, three singers standing on top of it, elaborate floral garments, a choir, and plenty of green foliage that stoked religious imagery akin to the Garden of Eden. Not only did Nwigwe impeccably rap all of the songs he performed (which went for an extra 15 minutes), but he did so alongside his wife, Fat Nwigwe, and their two children. For lack of a better phrase, this performance was truly special. It is a shame there were not more people in the crowd to enjoy the full-scale production he put on. This was the gold standard of festival performances.
Sunday: The Marías had one of the best performances of the day. Their set consisted of excellent vocal performances by María Zardoya and a great trumpet player who had strong solos when called upon. The visuals were mostly slow shots with a similar theme to the CINEMA album cover.
Following them was 6lack, whose set had some strange dichotomies. He had a DJ come out and hype up the crowd and then proceeded to play deeper cuts to a fairly unengaged crowd. It was strange watching people create mosh pits to his sadder songs, but that is becoming more common at rap/R&B performances.
Marcus Mumford was a welcome surprise right before the headlining sets. His voice is truly exceptional live. His inclusion of Danielle Ponder, who performed earlier in the day, was a great addition as well.
The headliners were both excellent on Sunday. Kacey Musgraves commanded the stage through her laundry list of hits; her set also included a cover of Dreams by Fleetwood Mac that was very well received. On the other hand, Red Hot Chili Peppers gained attention through their excellently refined instrumental skills and trippy, psychedelic visuals. It is hard to make a particular critique on either set; both acts are seasoned veterans of touring and have deep catalogs of music that people love.
Oct 10, 2022 | ktru, Showstoppers
Hadestown North American Tour photo by Kevin Berne
Broadway at the Hobby Center hosted the final show of the 2021-2022 season this week with the long-awaited Tony Award-winning production of Hadestown. Postponed since January 2022 due to Covid, the show was definitely worth the wait and I would argue the rest of the audience would agree with me. From the first moment the cast entered the stage the audience's energy was palpable. Hermes' first entrance was met with over a minute of applause, and many other jokes and show-stopping scenes throughout the show had similar reactions from the house. Anais Mitchell's musical follows the mythological love story of Orpheus and Eurydice in a storytelling format narrated by Hades, the messenger of the Gods. The touring production, introducing many new leading cast members on opening night in Houston, was incredibly talented and kept the audience on the edges of their seats throughout the roller-coaster of a story. Mitchell's musical is entirely "sung-through" with original tracks ranging from chants to ballads to epics. The characters subtly addressed topics such as love, heartbreak, trust, and power, while inviting the audience multiple times to think to themselves about how they would've acted if they were in their shoes.
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Sep 3, 2022 | ktru
By Rachel Bui
This year marked the 4th annual Head in the Clouds (HitC) festival. Started in 2018 in Los Angeles,
the festival has only grown (the festival will also happen in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Manila,
Philippines later this year). Started by 88rising, a music platform and record label primarily for artists
of the Asian Diaspora, this year the festival partnered with Golden Voice, the force behind
Coachella. This partnership so early in such a niche festival’s history establishes that the music
industry is slowly understanding that consumers crave more authenticity without the pandering. This
festival invited the 626 Market as well as other local Asian small businesses (Bopomofo was
especially a significant, started by one of the founders of Wong Fu Productions, Philip Wang. Wong
Fu Productions is an independent production company that highlights Asian short films).
(more…)
Aug 20, 2022 | ktru
Eric Huffman (Damian Hubbard) and the National Touring Company of Mean Girls
Credit: © 2022 Jenny Anderson
It's so "fetch" that the Mean Girls national tour is making a stop in Houston this week. This stage adaptation of Tina Fey's hit movie follows the same story as the film version, however the creative team made an effort to change it enough that it's even better for the theater. Featuring new scenes and new jokes, along with a great soundtrack by Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin, Mean Girls was a hit with everyone in the audience at my rescheduled Friday matinee. Although I did not attend the Wednesday performance, there was still plenty of pink among the audience. The story follows the progression of high school friendships and cliques as they develop and crumble through the fight for power and jealousy. This show is definitely a must-see while it is playing at the Hobby Center.
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Aug 5, 2022 | ktru
By Rachel Bui
As festivals are operating back to normal, KTRU decided to explore more festivals outside of Texas.
Lollapalooza 2022 was KTRU’s first festival outside of the Southern region. This festival was incredibly
well-ran, with chipped wristbands, cardless payment, and few, if any, technical issues on the stages.
Some general tips:
- Do NOT play with your wristband, especially the chip – it will break!
- Treat it like SXSW and pace yourself- it’s a long festival, even if you don’t go the full 4 days
- You’re probably not going to see all the acts you want (this festival spans across Grant Park in
Chicago), so use this time to explore other acts you’ve been curious about - Bring a reusable water bottle and stay cool and hydrated – even in Chicago, heat exhaustion is a
dangerous possibility you want to avoid
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Jul 1, 2022 | ktru
Collin Baja as Sven and F. Michael Haynie as Olaf in Frozen North American Tour. Photo by Deen van Meer.
A cool wind brought the far-off kingdom of Arendelle to Houston as Disney's Frozen arrived as part of Broadway at the Hobby Center's 2021-2022 season. Children of all ages (and the child in all of us) will enjoy this beautiful production of the (now) classic Disney film. In front of a full house with many excited kids singing along, Lauren Nichole Chapman (Anna) and Caroline Bowman (Else) belted out classics such as "Love Is an Open Door" and "Let It Go". If you are looking for an air-conditioned family outing this summer, take your whole family to the Hobby Center for a performance of Frozen before the skies clear and the Scandinavian winter wonderland heads to its next destination. (more…)
Jun 26, 2022 | ktru, navrang
When: 8:00PM, July 09, 2022
Where: MATCH Theater, 3400 Main Street, Houston TX 77002
SPECIAL 10% STUDENT DISCOUNT ON $30 AND $50 TICKETS - Use code IAA10
Andean-Indian…Melodies of Folklore from South America and India. A unique fusion of authentic folk music from both continents.
By: Indo-American Association 501 (3)c non-profit organization
For tickets and more info: Click Here
Andean-Indian will feature renowned Artists from South America - Victor Murillo from Equador, Louis Quintano from Venezuela, Edwardo Cassipia from Bolivia, AND from India - Pt. Indrajit Bannerjee and Gourisankar Karmakar.
About the Artists
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Jun 11, 2022 | ktru
Noir, a world premiere musical by Duncan Sheik and Kyle Jarrow, opened Thursday as the 75th season finale for the Alley Theatre. From the Tony Award-winning creative team to the talented cast, many of which have starred in or originated roles on Broadway, the Alley took no shortcuts when it came to producing this new work. I was fortunate enough to attend opening night and there are three weeks of the run remaining so you can also catch a performance of this great new show. Whether you've been lucky enough to see a Duncan Sheik musical in the past or not, don't miss this opportunity to see his newest groundbreaking work while it is in Houston. For a sneak preview, check out the opening number "Spy in the Shadows" at vimeo.com/711642432.
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Jun 7, 2022 | ktru, Showstoppers
The Hobby Center welcomed the national tour of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical to Houston for a limited 3-day run this weekend, treating audiences to all of their favorite Carole King songs (and more) while telling the story of the famed singer's rise to fame. As someone who came to the show with familiarity of her work, I still learned many things about King's life and heard songs I never knew were written by her.
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Jun 3, 2022 | ktru
by Soleste Starr
On one blisteringly hot afternoon in Austin, Texas on my fifth day at SXSW, I had the absolute honor and pleasure of getting maximally groovy to the waves of Jerry Paper, the musical persona of Lucas Nathan, who officially wins the award for both (1) Best Dressed and (2) Best Dances Moves of any performer of the week. The performance left me absolutely drenched in sweat from half an hour of childlike dance-mania; Jerry Paper absolutely succeeded in their intentions per the SXSW website: “They want you to PLAY around and have some friggin’ fun for once!”
(more…)
Broadway at the Hobby Center hosted the final show of the 2021-2022 season this week with the long-awaited Tony Award-winning production of Hadestown. Postponed since January 2022 due to Covid, the show was definitely worth the wait and I would argue the rest of the audience would agree with me. From the first moment the cast entered the stage the audience's energy was palpable. Hermes' first entrance was met with over a minute of applause, and many other jokes and show-stopping scenes throughout the show had similar reactions from the house. Anais Mitchell's musical follows the mythological love story of Orpheus and Eurydice in a storytelling format narrated by Hades, the messenger of the Gods. The touring production, introducing many new leading cast members on opening night in Houston, was incredibly talented and kept the audience on the edges of their seats throughout the roller-coaster of a story. Mitchell's musical is entirely "sung-through" with original tracks ranging from chants to ballads to epics. The characters subtly addressed topics such as love, heartbreak, trust, and power, while inviting the audience multiple times to think to themselves about how they would've acted if they were in their shoes.
