Houston's best rapper and local indie music champion, Fat Tony, recently unveiled his video for "Nigga U Ain't Fat," the first track off his RABDARGAB LP. As of today, the video is being featured on Pitchfork.com. Houston hipsters, we have arrived! loljk.

The video, directed by Joey Graham, follows iPodAmmo as he hallucinates Fat Tony's disembodied, rapping head and, more disturbingly, body parts that transform into food, like Kit-Kat fingers, spaghetti hair, and a human cupcake. A ravenous Ammo can only hold out so long.

There's also a fantastic performance by Katie Menowsky, a friend of the blog!

And once you've seen Fat Tony's video, be sure to buy his shit at your favorite independent record store, or iTunes if you're lazy.

Last night, while lovers were spending their precious little Hallmark holiday moments together, the people behind Houston's Free Press Summer Fest were treating the fine music loving folks of this fair city to the announcement we've all been waiting for. For the past few weeks, tons of speculation over who would be playing the third-year event clouded the minds of those who have been waiting since The Flaming Lips played their final notes last year. Well, the wait is over. Omar at Free Press and Jagi at Pegstar and the many other people behind Summer Fest have been working diligently to make this year the biggest and best to date, and with a line-up that features the likes of Weezer, MF Doom, Ween and Yeasayer among many others, they have already stepped up their game.

As an avid festival goer, to have something of this magnitude a mile from my doorstep is something else. It's slowly and steadily helping to transform Houston to a destination for music, rather than a place bands avoid. Add to that the many great local bands, like Buxton, Grandfather Child, Robert Ellis and The Wild Moccasins, that are picked to grace the stages of Summer Fest, and I couldn't think of another place I'd rather be that weekend.

To see the full line-up, including the kick-ass poster and a video of last night's unveiling, take the jump.

For the first time in over five years, time and travel tested performer Keller Williams brought his one-man circus to the most appropriate venue I've seen him at in years, Houston's newly revamped hot-spot Fitzgerald's. After a conversation Bacon and I had with Kellerlast year before his gig in Dallas, we learned his absence in Houston was due to many things, but mainly stemmed back to his young children and his propensity to be with them on more of a regular occasion. No worries Keller, we still love you and will welcome you with open arms any time you decide to come back. Hopefully, though, it's sooner than 2016.

Read all about the show after the jump.

In case you weren't aware, St. Patty's day is around the corner. For seven years, the countdown has been kicked off by Flogging Molly with a celebratory Green 17 Tour. And this is no ordinary tour. Standard Flogging Molly shows are intense - but Green 17 lets the band celebrate St. Patty's day each night - resulting in an unprecedented evening of musical chaos.

And strangely enough, Green 17 is kicking off in Dallas on the 8th. We're so Irish. Plus, they're hitting Houston the day after, so we Texans are banking. If that isn't enough - they'll also be debuting material from the new album due out in May. Trifecta.

Swagger (2000) and Drunken Lullabies (2002) remain two of my favorite albums, and Float (2008) rocked us with their ever-evolving sound that remains true to the celtic traditions in which Flogging Molly believes. Each album shows the band growing a little more and the new one is set to include more punk and even delves into blues. Written in Detroit, at the home of Dave King (vocals/guitar) and Bridget Regan (fiddler), it's not surprising the album will center around the recent economy (or lack thereof). Dennis Casey (guitarist), in an interview with AltPress, mentions that "this record definitely has the theme of the struggle of life. The whole element of working for a living, people without jobs, people losing their homes — that is all tied into the narratives of the record."

If, like me, you find it hard to wait till May to hear the new sound, enter your email above to grab a FREE single from the new record; which they recorded in Asheville, NC with Ryan Hewitt (Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Avett Brothers). Then, buy your ticket for next Tuesday the 8th at House of Blues for $40 with fees. Houstonians can click here for Wednesday the 9th. Above is the video for "Punch Drunk Grinning Soul", from Float, to prepare you for a night of epic mayhem.

Fayetteville is home to a great artistic community, proof of that was the Peace From The Hills CD release party at Arsaga's on Wednesday, January 26.

Peace From The Hills is a compilation of music and poetry by local Fayetteville artists intended to help support A Ride Till The End. Continue reading and see more photos after the jump.

On Tuesday, February 1, Tokyo Police Club will grace Dallas and the Granada with their performance pleasure. If you like the awkward musings of Michael Cera, Dan Aykroyd, Seth Rogan, Ellen Page, or any of these other fools, you should go see this band. Not because they know each other, or really have much to do with each other. They’re all Canadian. That is enough for me.

They’ve played a number of festivals, including Coachella, Lollapalooza, and Bonnaroo, and have even toured with Weezer. Moral being, they’re good, have street cred, and if you need more convincing, watch the video above.

Now, what you’ve been waiting for. We, the good people at Breakfast on Tour, have two tickets to giveaway to their show on Tuesday — thanks to the best venue in Dallas, the Granada. All you have to do is make a comment to this post with your email address and/or phone number so we can get in touch with you. The winner will be chosen at random. No worries, we don’t collect any of your information.

Good luck, and hope to see you on Tuesday!

By: Melissa “Sausage” Cox

Words by Melissa "Sausage" Cox. Photos by Jack "Huevos" Stewart.

I knew it was going to be a great night before I even entered The Loft, but more on that later. This particular evening, I went to The Loft to see the headlining band Tame Impala. There were also two solid opening acts that I wanted to catch as well – Stardeath and the White Dwarfs and Kuroma. I would say that all three bands have a psychedelic rock sound, but it’s as if they’re influenced from different decades. Tame Impala would be more of the 60’s/70’s, Stardeath is more modern, and Kuroma would be the 80’s.

Read the rest of the review after the jump.

Waka waka. The initial lineup for one of BoT's favorite festivals has been announced, and it's so good it makes me sad. Sad because it means us Houstonians will probably be forced to skip Houston's premiere local fest, Free Press Summer Fest, to attend. With a lineup that includes My Morning Jacket, Mumford and Sons, Umphrey's McGee, Ben Harper and the Relentless 7, Thievery Corporation, Galactic, Ghostland Observatory, and Langhorne Slim, how could we not? Add in the fact that it's in the most beautiful festival setting I've ever experienced and will be chock full of old friends and Arkansasan family, and I think the decision has been made. If the Free Press lineup can Top That I will bow down at their altar and sacrifice a hippie. Check out the full lineup after the jump.

The first half of the year was jam-packed with musical adventures, and it only got better in the second half. July found us traversing the country to start the month with a pair of Phish shows in Atlanta and continued through September with the re-opening of Fitzgerald's in Houston, and along with it the rebirth of Houston's indie scene.

Check out my favorite shots from the third quarter of the year after the jump.

By Melissa "Sausage" Cox, Photo by Allison V. Smith

Yesterday was a sad day in Dallas music. Frankie Campagna, lead singer of greaser punk band Spector 45, passed away. Frankie, or Frankie 45 as his friends affectionately called him, has been playing music in venues across Dallas for nearly a decade, and his energetic, wild shows had been getting more and more attention. They were named the best Dallas punk band in 2009 and 2010, and their song "Try, Try, Try" was named one of the best local songs of 2010 by the Dallas Observer. I had the privilege of seeing Spector 45 perform at the Dallas Observer Music Awards Showcase, and to call him a friend.

Read more about Frankie after the jump, including my updates about what he meant to me and more details about his Memorial Concert.