{"id":323537,"date":"2025-10-22T10:04:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T10:04:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/323537\/"},"modified":"2025-10-22T10:04:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T10:04:13","slug":"houston-concert-watch-10-22-alice-cooper-the-mars-volta-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/323537\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston Concert Watch 10\/22: Alice Cooper, The Mars Volta and More"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have never been one to dwell on death.\u00a0 While it is a fundamental part of life, it is also generally a stone drag.\u00a0 But I must address the passing of Ace Frehley, one of the founding members of Kiss who inspired tens of thousands of kids to pick up a guitar during the \u201870s.\u00a0 These are now the same middle-aged guys you see in Guitar Center on Saturday trying out an instrument, playing too loud, and looking around to see if they impressed anyone with their rendition of \u201cSmoke on the Water.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the years, many people expected that Frehley might die of a drug overdose or some similar fate, due to his wild lifestyle and the fact that, for many years, he was in nonstop party mode.\u00a0 No, the Space Man (who discarded his harmful habits years ago) died as the result of a head injury caused by a fall in his home studio.\u00a0 It is my fervent hope that, when he fell, he had just recorded a blazing solo.<\/p>\n

The original Kiss lineup was split into two factions.\u00a0 Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley were the \u201cstraight\u201d guys, definitely horndogs but eschewing (to quote Keith Richards) \u201cbooze and pills and powders.\u201d\u00a0 Frehley and Peter Criss, on the other hand, made up for their bandmates\u2019 sobriety in spades.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This division was unwittingly put under a microscope when the band appeared on Tom Snyder\u2019s Tomorrow show on Halloween in 1979.\u00a0 Frehley and Criss were ripped and having a great time, while Simmons and Stanley glowered.\u00a0 Frehley in particular hit it off with Snyder.\u00a0 When asked to explain his outlandish outfit, he said, \u201cActually, I\u2019m a plumber!\u201d\u00a0 To which Snyder, who was by then getting into the spirit of things, replied, \u201cListen, I\u2019ve got a little piece of pipe backstage that I\u2019d like you to work on.\u201d\u00a0 You can see the video here<\/a>, with the previous exchange beginning at the 11:53 mark.<\/p>\n

Frehley was always completely genuine, a hardcore rocker through and through.\u00a0 When he plugged his Les Paul into a dimed Marshall amp, you could hear not only his influences \u2013 Zeppelin, Hendrix and Clapton \u2013 but also his own sometimes quirky but always blazing inimitable style.\u00a0 Rest easy, Ace.\u00a0 Thanks for never letting us down.<\/p>\n

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Ticket Alert<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tickets are still available for Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit\u2019s show on Friday, November 7, at the 713 Music Hall<\/a>.\u00a0 Ditto for funk-father George Clinton at the House of Blues<\/a> on Friday, November 28.\u00a0 Clinton\u2019s show is scheduled for the day after Thanksgiving, so, if the family is still sitting around in a turkey \/ tryptophan coma, you can say, \u201cWell, Granny, I have to go. Got to do some serious funkin\u2019,\u201d as you walk out the door.<\/p>\n

Gary P. Nunn will always hold a special place in the heart of Texans, as he is the man who wrote \u201cLondon Homesick Blues,\u201d aka \u201cI Wanna Go Home with the Armadillo.\u201d\u00a0 The progressive country legend will be at the Heights Theater<\/a> on Wednesday, December 10, with a show billed as the \u201c2025 Birthday Bash.\u201d\u00a0 Nunn was born on December 4 \u2013 in Oklahoma! \u2013 but don\u2019t tell anyone that last part.\u00a0 Tickets are on sale now.<\/p>\n

Now that all of the classic rockers are of a certain age, many of their offspring have forged their own careers in the music business.\u00a0 For instance, there\u2019s The Sons of Cream.\u00a0 The band includes Kofi Baker (son of Cream drummer Ginger Baker) on drums, Malcom Bruce (son of Cream bassist Jack Bruce) on bass, and Rob Johnson (nephew of Ginger Baker) on guitar.\u00a0 Their mission is simple: play songs recorded by Cream faithfully but with their own interpretative twists thrown in to keep things interesting.\u00a0 As a bonus, the band also plays some Blind Faith (a band which included Ginger Baker and Cream guitarist Eric Clapton) material too.\u00a0 Tickets are on sale now for the Sons\u2019 show at the Heights Theater <\/a>on Sunday, February 15.<\/p>\n

Concerts This Week<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Texas music fans have long been familiar with guitarists Ian Moore, Jesse Dayton and Johnny Moeller, so there was great anticipation and excitement when it was announced that the three string slingers had formed a new group, the Texas Headhunters.\u00a0 You can read more about the group\u2019s gestation here<\/a> in this week\u2019s Houston Press interview with Moeller.\u00a0 The guys will be spanking the plank on Friday at the Heights Theater<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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The only member of the Fabulous Thunderbirds\u2019 original lineup still in the group is vocalist \/ harmonicist Kim Wilson.\u00a0 But that doesn\u2019t mean it is any less of a band.\u00a0 After a Grammy nomination last year, the T-Birds are on tour with a show that pays particular attention to the Chicago blues which inspired Wilson as a young musician.\u00a0 The Fabulous Thunderbirds will play Main Street Crossing<\/a> on both Saturday and Sunday, so take your pick.<\/p>\n

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Why would someone want to go see Alice Cooper and Judas Priest?\u00a0 Why? Why the hell not?\u00a0 A few months ago, the pioneering shock rocker released an album recorded with the original Alice Cooper band (yes, at one point, \u201cAlice Cooper\u201d was the name of the band, not the lead singer) to positive reviews, which must have put some pep in his step and glide in his stride.\u00a0 Ol\u2019 Black Eyes is back!\u00a0 Also crushing it in old age is Judas Priest, led by Rob Halford, the Metal God.\u00a0 What a double bill.\u00a0 Catch it on Sunday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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For hip-hop fans, Toyota Center<\/a> is the place to be this week.\u00a0 NBA (Never Broke Again) YoungBoy rolls in on Tuesday with the \u201cMasa\u201d tour and a bill that includes Offset,\u00a0NoCap,\u00a0DeeBaby,\u00a0Mellow Rackz,\u00a0Baby Mel,\u00a0Lil Dump and\u00a0k3.\u00a0 If you plan on attending the show, bear in mind that there are street closures due to construction around Toyota Center, so head there early and plan accordingly.<\/p>\n

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Rising from the ashes of At the Drive In during the early noughts, The Mars Volta (please include the definite article) is a musical collective which coalesces around guitarist \/ guiding light Omar Rodr\u00edguez-L\u00f3pez and vocalist \/ lyricist Cedric Bixler-Zavala.\u00a0\u00a0 How to describe the band?\u00a0 Well, Rodr\u00edguez-L\u00f3pez has been quoted as saying, \u201c\u201dProgressive is not a dirty word for people to use about us.\u201d\u00a0 Ok, then, let\u2019s go with prog rock, thought the Volta frequently flashes its psychedelic influences.\u00a0 Get trippy on Tuesday at the 713 Music Hall<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This article appears in Jan 1 \u2013 Dec 31, 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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