Fall Festival Guide

6 hottest fall music festivals in Houston and beyond

UPDATE: Sound on Sound Fest, scheduled for November 10-12 in McDade, Texas, has been canceled. The story has been updated.

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Feel that? It’s the waning days of summer. Admittedly, our fall weather isn’t as glorious as that of our friends in the northern U.S., but cooler temperatures sure do have us feeling a lot more like being outside. Especially when it involves music. In Houston and beyond, here are our picks for seven fabulous fall music fests.

Utopia Fest
Utopia, September 22-24
Now in its ninth year, Utopia Fest has managed to retain the magic of its first year. With a cap on attendees, BYOB policy, cool artisan market, late-night acoustic events at after-hours stage Tank Good Times, and a lineup that spans from Dr. John to Suzanna Choffel, it’s no wonder that this festival inspires cult-like devotion. Limited tickets are still available. Note: This is the final year it will be held at Four Sisters Ranch.

Trans-Pecos Festival of Music + Love
Marfa, September 28-October 1
Trans-Pecos Festival of Music + Love is an amalgamation of music, camping, art, and magical mystery under the big stars of Marfa. It all happens at desert lodge El Cosmico and reflects the bohemian nature of the place — think Burning Man meets the Wild West. Attend workshops, score free Topo Chico, and take advantage the opportunity to stay in a yurt while listening to the likes of Jenny Lewis, Roger Ellis, and Lee Ann Womack.

Gruene Music & Wine Festival
Gruene, October 5-8
Gruene is a small town with mass appeal. It’s just the kind of place to stroll around while listening to music, glass in hand, at The Gruene Music & Wine Festival. The lineup includes Americana and Texas country by Ray Benson, Cory Morrow, Walt Wilkins, Jack Ingram, and a host of other similar artists. You can buy into the whole weekend or pick a day. Wine lovers will want to hit up the Tastings and Tunes event on Saturday, while ice-cold brew aficionados will prefer the Craft Beer Tasting on Sunday. Proceeds benefit the United Way and Hurricane Harvey victims.

Austin City Limits
Austin, October 6-8 and October 13-15
ACL boasts two jam-packed weekends with multiple stages, artists, and vendors, plus fare from Austin food trailers and tons of booze. You can also expect a lot of out-of-town visitors. Because who wouldn’t want to descend upon our Zilker Park to laze about in the sun and listen to some sweet jams? Approximately 450,000 folks attend the festival each year, and the headliners just keep getting bigger. This year, Jay-Z, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The Killers close out both weekends.

Houston Open Air
Houston, October 14-15
Sister fest to Chicago Open Air, the recently debuted Houston Open Air is every metalhead's dream. Held at at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, the fest showcases high-profilers like Avenged Sevenfold, Mastodon, Five Finger Death Punch, Prophets of Rage, Marilyn Manson, and lots more headbanging heavy rockers.

Mala Luna Music Festival
San Antonio, October 28-29
Mala Luna Music Festival in San Antonio presents a Halloween weekend of rap and EDM tunes at Nelson Wolff Stadium. Only in its second year, Mala Luna attracts big acts like Future, Lil Wayne, and Wiz Khalifa. There's also multiple food vendors and art installations. As you might expect, attendees get creative with costumes, especially those inspired by Dia de Los Muertos. A portion of the proceeds benefits the Network for Young Artists (NYA.)

Sound on Sound Fest
McDade, November 10-12
Enjoy three full days of music and camping at The Lost Pines Forest, a medieval-style village located 35 miles from Austin, via popular new fest Sound on Sound. All genres take the stage, from indie to punk to hip-hop to metal and to dance, along with comedians, podcasts, and panel discussions. Notable names this year are Grizzly Bear, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Iggy Pop, and The Shins. In order to get the full experience, pop up a tent, rent a glamping spot, or bring your RV. Campgrounds have hot showers, water refill stations, and late-night performances.

The recently debuted Houston Open Air is every metalhead's dream.

Houston Open Air Music Fest, September 2017

Courtesy of Houston Open Air/Facebook

The recently debuted Houston Open Air is every metalhead's dream.

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Movie Review

Sheriff Bob Odenkirk is back in over-the-top new action movie 'Normal'

Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

Bob Odenkirk in Normal.

Screenwriter Derek Kolstad, who wrote the first three John Wick movies, has essentially had a blank check to do what he wants in the movie landscape since 2014. In recent years that has meant writing the action series Nobody for Bob Odenkirk, who has turned from a comedian into an unlikely action star in his sixties. Kolstad and Odenkirk are teaming up again in Normal.

A film that tries to evoke Fargo in multiple ways, Normal finds Ulysses Richardson (Odenkirk) serving as a temporary sheriff for the small town of Normal, Minnesota after the previous sheriff died. Knowing he’s just a steward until a new sheriff is elected, Ulysses takes a live-and-let-live approach to the job, letting the deputies (Ryan Allen and Billy MacLellan) do the grunt work and trying to stay out of everyone’s way, including Mayor Kibner (Henry Winkler).

A bank robbery attempt by two non-citizens upsets his best-laid plans in more ways than he can imagine. Not only is he forced to confront a crime not often seen in a town like Normal, but the robbery uncovers secrets that turn the film into an all-out bloodbath. Soon, almost everyone in town becomes involved in what comes to resemble a war, along with — you guessed it — Yakuza henchmen from Japan.

Directed by Ben Wheatley and written by Kolstad, the film is a slight twist on the everyman-turned-hero character Odenkirk played in the two Nobody films. While Ulysses is in law enforcement, he prefers to use words instead of weapons, and it’s only when he’s pushed to the brink that he crosses that line. Naturally, his skills are beyond what anyone would expect of him, allowing him to match up well with people half his age.

The film is not a comedy in the traditional sense, but instead aims for laughs by catching the audience off-guard with its ultraviolence. Some characters are dispatched in shockingly unexpected ways, with one of the only natural reactions to the jarring nature of their deaths being laughter. That’s not necessarily the case for other killings, which range from blasé to sadistic, and the only reason they count as entertainment is because the filmmakers have primed the audience to accept them as such.

After a relatively solid setup, where Wheatley and Kolstad seem to take their time getting to know the main characters, the second half of the film is pure action that dispenses with good storytelling. Like many action movies, there are double crosses, surprise revelations, and more, but the filmmakers don’t seem to care about making sense of any character arcs. All they care about is delivering mayhem, and they succeed on that front.

Odenkirk has perfected the mild-yet-intimidating nature of his action characters, and it is satisfying to see him get the better of those who have done him wrong. He doesn’t run or jump like fellow 63-year-old Tom Cruise, but — with the help of fast-paced editing — he still makes for a credible action hero. The only other actors of any note in the film are Winkler, who’s a nice presence with his sardonic personality, and Lena Headey, whose small role doesn't match up with her experience.

You have to have a certain mindset to enjoy a film like Normal, but if you can abide its over-the-top bloodiness, it’s a serviceable action film. Few would have expected Odenkirk to take on these kinds of roles at this late stage of his career, but he’s making the most of his opportunities.

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Normal opens in theaters on April 17.

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