Arts & Entertainment
 

Big game brings big shows to town

Big names and rookies with big dreams fill downtown's dance card for five-day festival

By Bridget Brown
The Daily Cougar

This week when the super celebrities roll around town in their super stretch limousines heading to any number of the super parties that you probably can't afford to attend head downtown to the what will be the longest and cheapest bash of them all — a Super Bash, that is. Beginning Wednesday, 50 bands (most of which probably can't afford a ticket to the game) will play in a five-day span downtown at the corner of Texas Avenue and Austin Street.

The festival kicks off at 3 p.m. Wednesday. Lowerlife Form, Bo Jones, Pilot Radio, Rhythm, The Honky Tonk Revival, David Spann Band, Global Village, Praxxis, Craig Gass, F. Co, Will Hoge, Jesse Dayton, Reckless Kelly, Rev. Horton Heat and Dub Tex will perform.

Thursday's concerts start at 11 a.m. with Los Lonely Boys, Fallen Line, Space Guppies, Alexis Moore, Bo Jones, Ingram Hill, Will Hoge, The Gourds, Silverleaf, Very Ultra, Deana Carter, Sammy Hagar and Fondue Monks.

Beginning at 11 a.m. Friday, Bo Jones, Hogleg, Fracus, Overshot, Pilot Radio, New Damage, Sugarhouse, the Burden Brothers, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Sammy Hagar and Goneblind will rock the super crowd.

Check out Passerby, Bad Apples, Asleep at the Wheel, Alexis Moore, Trick Pony, Graham Colton, Eve 6 and Blue October on Saturday. And, just in case you miss him (or you just don't get enough of him during his Thursday and Friday performances) Sammy Hagar will also play.

On the big game day Minority, Dub Tex, Dale Watson, Chocke and Better Than Ezra will be on hand to pump up fans. And don't worry — the large screen TVs will fill you in on the play-by-play.

Keeping in the spirit of Super Bowl XXXVIII, there will be 50 full service bars on hand to make sure fans stay boozed up. Arrive early for happy hour running 5 to 7 p.m. each day.

Tickets are $20 per day or $80 for all five and can be purchased at www.houstonsuperbash.com. A tentative schedule of events for each day has not yet been released.

If you are looking for musical entertainment indoors three days of nationally televised concerts will start Thursday at Verizon Wireless Theater with "Latino Night" featuring Molotov and Inspector as part of the Pepsi Super Bowl Concert Series.

On Friday evening, Cedric the Entertainer will play host to performances by Puddle of Mudd, Nelly Furtado and N.E.R.D. in a concert that will be televised on MTV live at 9 p.m. Ice Cube, Eve and comedians Wanda Sykes and Pete Correale are also scheduled to appear.

Saturday night the country music "Shock N' Y'all" finale will feature Toby Keith, Willy Nelson, Sammy Haggar (again), Darryl MC Daniels of RUN DMC and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and will air at 9 p.m. live on CMT.

Tickets are $50, extremely limited and are available at the Verizon Wireless Theater box office.

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