FESTIVA: Christian rock! Pat Green! Bone Thugs!

FESTIVA
JULY 24, 2009

TOP STORIES

n THE TWO FACES OF CHRISTIAN ROCK A divide is forming within the Christian music community: Do younger, wilder, more hardcore bands have a responsibility as role models? Or can worshipping Christ through music amount to more than performing in church?

n CONCERT REVIEW: PAT GREEN The Texas country singer made 'em sing loud and laugh hard at his concert Thursday night in Mission.

n CRUZANDO CRUISES AHEAD A Valley-made film will screen at HBO's huge film festival in New York.

n MARTINI'S DRIES UP Stirred-up neighbors claim the life of another North McAllen nightspot.

FREE STUFF

n WIN TICKETS: Rick Treviño

n WIN TICKETS: Emery (*coming Monday) 

n FESTIVA'S INFINITE PLAYLIST Download this free song by hit local Christian artist Gabriel

HEADLINES

n Gay nightlife in McAllen goes upscale

n 'High School Musical' coming to the Valley

n Bone Thugs-N-Harmony bound for McAllen

Grammy-winning and platinum-selling rap group Bone Thugs N Harmony will play a show August 7 at the McAllen Civic Center.

The venue announced the show this week on its Web site, and tickets went on sale last week. They are available at www.ez-tixx.com for $25 a piece.

Bone Thugs N Harmony burst onto the music scene in 1994 with its debut album Creepin Oh Ah Come Up, which went platinum four times. The Cleveland-based group saw its biggest success with 1995’s E. 1999 Eternal, which went platinum six times and featured the groups penultimate hit “The Crossroads.”

The group quieted down in recent years after founding member Flesh-n-Bone, real name Stanley Howse, was jailed on various charges. He was released from prison in July 2008, and the group played a Las Vegas reunion show in November. The group has announced on MySpace that it will record a new album, dubbed Uni-5.

n 17th Street venue inks concert deal with national blues label

Rhythm and Brews has one of the coolest signs on 17th Street, and now they've given music fans and bar customers another reason to look at it.

The blues and classic rock joint has made a deal with California-based music label Blind Pig Records. When any of the label’s artists tour, the 17th Street bar has a chance to book them.

“(Artists) route tours and they pass Texas,” says Rhythm and Brews owner Jose Acosta. “We’re trying to reroute them into Texas and all the way here to McAllen.”

The agreement has already yielded a solid show for the venue. On July 16, Oakland-based bluesman John Németh played there. Not too shabby, considering the rest of his tour takes him through Dallas, Sweeden and Norway. He sounds world-class because he is.

The venue plans more shows in the future.

Stay updated by visiting www.rhythmandbrewsrgv.com or just stare up at their awesome sign Thursday through Saturday: The names will only get bigger.

n Acclaimed Latin rock band will perform in McAllen

Monte Negro, a bilingual rock group from Los Angeles, will play in the Valley Aug. 2 as part of its national tour.

The show happens during the same week the band releases its latest EP. Monte Negro will play at The Kave in Mission, a fantastic intimate venue that specializes in booking Spanish music.

For those unfamiliar with the group, Monte Negro’s music shows major influences from a wide range of genres. You can hear everything from punk to reggae in their tunes. Add that to their bilingual lyrics, and you’ve got a group that sounds a bit like Manu Chao, with less world music influence.

It’s interesting stuff, and they’re a young band on the rise. Listen to the band’s music now at www.myspace.com/montenegrorocks.

n Opera diva to grace South Texas state

An opera singer who has performed at famed venues around the world will appear in the latest production from the South Texas Lyric Opera.

Soprano Carol Vaness will perform in Pietro Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana on Aug. 23 at the McAllen Civic Center. She will play Santuzza, a woman who finds herself in the midst of despair and war in 19th-century Italy.

Vaness, a professor at Indiana University since 2006, debuted at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1984 and since has taken the stage in Milan, Vienna and Paris. She has performed alongside stars like Luciano Pavarotti and Plácido Domingo.

The South Texas Lyric Opera, which is sponsored by local businesses and volunteers, holds performances that average more than 6,000 people per year.

For more information, visit www.stly.org.

PHOTO GALLERIES

n THE WEEK IN CONCERT PHOTOS featuring Sammy Kershaw, Battle of the Bands, The Requested and more

MUSIC

n GRITO GOLD 'Monarchs' of conjunto capture industry's top honor

n CONCERT REVIEW: SAMMY KERSHAW Country crooner kicks it old school at Club Flesh

n CONCERT REVIEW: HEY MONDAY Pop/punk band makes a mess at McAllen Creative Incubator 

FINE ARTS

n DRAWN TO ART Prominent McAllen portraitist Joe Taylor found craft by destiny

n 'THE BICAMERAL FACE' ART EXHIBIT Festiva's art critic Nancy Moyer usually shows us art each week. Now, she's showing us something about ourselves.

n 'UNSTOPPABLE IMAGINATION OF INFORMATION FOR CHANGE' STC art instructor David Freeman brings fresh eyes to folk creations

n LUCKY 13 Former high school drama standouts create own theater troupe

EVENTS

n LIVE MUSIC: REYLI

Reyli, a Mexican singer who has fans throughout the world, will come to McAllen tonight for a charity performance.

The Hermes Music Foundation has brought Reyli to the Valley to play at the Havana Club. Tickets cost $75, $100 or $150, depending on where you want to sit.

Most of the proceeds will go to a special project. The foundation, which is aimed at helping needy children in Mexico and the United States, has started work on building a children’s medical clinic in the Mexican state of Chiapas, said Jay Dominguez, the foundation’s spokesman.

After the show, the organization will also raise money with a silent auction. They plan to offer guitars signed by members of U2, Def Leopard, Linkin Park, Sheryl Crow, Black Eyed Peas, Juanes, Gloria Trevi, Intocable and more. Oil paintings, sculptures and other items will be available.

Groups can purchase tables to accommodate four people at a cost of $300 or $400. The foundation will also sell a special VIP table of 10 for $1,500.

WHERE: Havana Club, 500 Nolana, McAllen
WHEN: 9 p.m. Friday, July 24
BUY TICKETS: 409 S. Broadway Ave., McAllen or at the Havana Club.
COST: $75, $100, $150. Depending on what seats you want.
CALL: 686-8742

n LIVE MUSIC: EMERY

Emery, a heavyweight of the screamo genre, will rip through Mission this week.

The quintet formed in 2000 in South Carolina, and it has released four full-length albums. Emery’s most recent effort, …In Shallow Seas We Sail, came out June 2, and the band is touring in support. Lead single “Cutthroat Collapse” describes a relationship that takes over the protagonist’s life, with terrible results. It’s a powerful track.

Emery, unlike many of its peers, uses a combo of alternating front men. For fans of hardcore and screamo, this marks the best Valley show all summer. The opening bands will impress fans as well.

Maylene and the Sons of Disaster could almost headline its own national tour. For now, however, the group will open for Emery. Like Emery, this band hails from the South, calling Alabama home. Fans might remember Dallas Taylor, who was the lead singer for Underoath before this group formed.

Maylene falls into the same genre as Emery, and it also has Christian themes in its songs. Other openers for the show include Closure in Moscow and Secret and Whisper.

WHERE: Las Palmas Race Park, 7509 N. Taylor Road, Mission
WHEN: 6 p.m. Thursday
BUY TICKETS: www.ez-tixx.com
COST: $14

n LIVE MUSIC: THREAT SIGNAL

‘Bout time for some Canadian metal in the Valley, aye?

For the first time ever, Threat Signal descends from our wintry northern neighbor all the way to Mission. They’ve brought some killer supporting bands too, including The Agonist, which is fronted by a lady. Pretty sweet, am I right fellas?

WHEN: 7 p.m., Friday
WHERE: Smokin’ Aces, 2518 Business 83, Mission
COST: $12
WITH: Autumn Offering, Sybreed and The Agonist 

n LIVE ENTERTAINMENT: TITO SANTANA HOMECOMING

Mission-born wrestling superstar Tito Santana will return home to do battle in the ring. Santana, a World Wrestling Entertainment hall of famer, will take on Sheik Abdul Bashir. There will also be five other bouts, including a ladies tag team match featuring grapplers from the United States and Mexico.

WHEN 8 p.m., Monday
WHERE: Edinburg Stadium, 920 N. Sugar Road, Edinburg
FOR TICKETS: (956) 225-0519
COST: $20 for reserved seats, $15 for general admission, and $5 for children younger than 12 and University of Texas-Pan American students.

n FINE ARTS: PETCASSO

This event is split into two parts, and both aim to help needy pets and animal shelters.

During the day, the event features family-oriented activities such as a dog fashion show, a mobile adoption van from Palm Valley Animal Center and free educational literature. The ticketed, nighttime event will have a silent auction and appetizers donated by local restaurants. Available in the auction will be art by local painters and also the animals. All proceeds go to animal-related charities.

WHEN: 12 to 9 p.m. Saturday
WHERE: Manichaus 1301 N. Main St., McAllen
COST: Free until 5 p.m., with a ticketed event starting at 7 p.m. for $10
FOR TICKETS: (956) 618-5770