From the pirate ship to wedding vows, more than music

An insider's guide to the five things you can't miss at iFest

iFest is more than you think it is. You have to go beyond music to find some ofthe can't miss experiences.
Ozomatli provides a one-two iFest punch with Joe Ely.
Joe Ely is one of our insider's picks for the five things you do not want tomiss at iFest.

The Houston International Festival (iFest) kicks off its 40th birthday downtown this weekend with a celebration that spans 16 acres. For live music lovers, iFest offers an embarrassment of riches on eight stages, from reggae to salsa to roots rock to blues and beyond. Here are the five (musical and otherwise) things for the first festival weekend that you do not want to miss.

1). One-Two Punch No. 1: The Joe Ely Band and Ozomatli

Tomorrow, Texas roadhouse rock will meet a fusion of hip-hop, salsa, reggae and funk when the Joe Ely Band and Ozomatli take the stage back to back on the Bud Light World Music Stage.

The Grammy-Award-winning band Ozomatli (8 p.m. Saturday on the World Stage), espouses the mantra that they will “take you around the world by taking you around the city of Los Angeles”. Along the way, these celebrated performers (who are also U.S. State Department Cultural Ambassadors) will dazzle you with a set likely to throw down everything from East LA R&B, hip-hop and New Orleans second line to Jamaican reggae and more.

Expect to get a preview of tracks from Ozo’s latest CD, “Fire Away”, set to drop on Tuesday.

Closer to home and equally compelling, the lead-in to Ozomatli will be the hard-rocking Texas honky-tonk sound of the Joe Ely Band (6 p.m. tomorrow on the World Stage). Joining Ely on stage will be guitar great David Grissom with Davis McLarty on drums and Jimmy Pettit on bass — the band featured on the blazing “Live At Liberty Lunch” that many consider one of the finest live Lone Star albums around.

2.) One-Two Punch No. 2: Mighty Diamonds and Eddie Palmieri

Veteran Jamaican reggae band Mighty Diamonds will capture your attention at 4:30 PM Sunday on the World Stage. Beloved for their soulful harmonies and skillful songwriting with a message, Mighty Diamonds are among the most enduring and popular reggae bands worldwide.

Closing out the iFest lineup on the first weekend will be legendary Latin salsa and jazz bandleader Eddie Palmieri. A nine-time Grammy Award winner, Palmieri has been called “the genius and prophet of Afro-Caribbean jazz” for a career that spans 50 years, with a 36-title discography (6:30 Sunday, World Stage).

3.) Pirate Ship Ahoy: At the heart of the Houston International Festival is an educational mission. Each year iFest sets out to spread the word about one particular country or region through programs that reach up to 900,000 children across Texas. This year the spotlight shines on the Caribbean, and the festival has produced an entire Living Museum (sponsored by Chevron) chock-full of cultural and educational exhibits in Sam Houston Park.

As you enter the Living Museum, you won’t be able to miss the 40-foot long pirate ship (complete with pirates, belly dancers and more) that has sailed into downtown Houston.

4.) Renew Your Vows: Next door in the Living Museum, iFest has recreated the historic Alto Vista chapel from Aruba, one of the oldest churches in the Caribbean. And the chapel is open for business, whether you want to light a candle for a loved one or renew your wedding vows.

This Sunday at 2 p.m, one lucky contest-winning couple will renew their vows at the chapel with Sunny 99.1 radio personality (and ordained minister) Marc Sherman and will then head off on a five-day trip to Aruba, compliments of Aruba Tourism Authority.

The contest winner has already been selected, but even if you didn’t win, you can still renew your own vows with Sherman, who’ll be on-site at the chapel from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday.

5.) Satisfy Your Inner Foodie: It’s easy to work up an appetite when you’re cruising from stage to stage or shopping at the many arts markets onsite at iFest. Thankfully, the festival offers more than 50 restaurants with food and beverages from all around the world (including tropical delicacies from the Caribbean).

The Houston International Festival will take place this weekend and next (April 17-18 and 24-25), from noon until 10 p.m. on both Saturdays and noon until 8 p.m. on both Sundays. Download a complete schedule and festival map here.

Darrow works with the Houston International Festival staff and freely admits she is not exactly impartial. However, she points out she was a fan and dedicated festival-goer long before joining the iFest team.

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Movie review

Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd chase their dreams in music-heavy Power Ballad

Photo by David Cleary for Lionsgate

Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd in Power Ballad.

Writer/director John Carney is one of the great purveyors of movies featuring music (as opposed to musicals) in the 21st century. Starting with Once in 2007 (which was turned into a Broadway musical several years later), he has made music-themed stories like Begin Again, Sing Street, Flora and Son, and now Power Ballad.

Rick Power (Paul Rudd) is a former wannabe rock star who is now the lead singer of “Ireland’s #1 Wedding Band,” The Bride & Grooves. While they mostly play smaller weddings, a gig at a country estate leads to an encounter with Danny Wilson (Nick Jonas), a former boy band member struggling to make it as a solo artist. Rick and Danny wind up bonding in a booze- and pot-filled jam session, sharing various song ideas.

After returning to Los Angeles and desperate for a hit, Danny steals one of Rick’s songs, which miraculously turns into the No. 1 “How to Write a Song (Without You).” Rick, initially overjoyed that something he wrote has become big, is crushed when he finds out Danny didn’t give him credit. His quest to find a way to prove his worth sends him into a spiral, upending the ordinary life he had built.

Co-written by Peter McDonald, the film is a nice exploration of two men trying to hold on to their music dreams. Their individual circumstances could not be more different, but each of them knows the ups and downs of the business as well as the other, as well as the ineffable magic of creating that one great song. While the music scenes are hit-and-miss because of a reliance on lip synching, the scene featuring Rick and Danny trading ideas is electric with creativity.

Oddly, though, the film could have used a bit less music and more of a focus on the two men’s personal lives. Rick wound up living in Ireland after falling in love with his future wife, Rachel (Marcella Plunkett), while on tour with his former American band. He spends a decent amount of time with her and his daughter, Aja (Beth Fallon), but his story needed a few more family scenes to drive the point home. Danny’s personal life is all but nonexistent, giving his arc less impact than it could have had.

Instead of loved ones, Carney and McDonald try to give Rick and Danny more depth through friends and business associates. Rick’s bandmate Sandy (McDonald) is a ride-or-die kind of guy for him, but his presence is only good for a few humorous distractions. Danny’s manager Mac (Jack Reynor) is difficult to parse, as he goes to bat for Danny on multiple occasions, but also seems to keep him at arm’s length.

It’s long been joked that Rudd never ages, and that youthfulness serves him well in this role, in which his character is supposed to be much younger than his actual age of 57. His energy and enthusiasm make his character appealing throughout, even when Rick starts to go off the deep end. Jonas is decent in his role, selling the music side well, but there might be a reason his character doesn’t have many scenes requiring him to show emotions.

While Power Ballad has all the hallmarks of another great Carney music movie, it’s missing a few pieces that could have put it over the top. It’s still a fun film with an insanely catchy song at its center, but it’s not quite as memorable as most of the filmmaker’s previous efforts.

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Power Ballad is now playing in theaters.

movies music film