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These are the 7 best concerts to catch in Houston this week

Before the shows of the week, congratulations are in order for Houston's very own soul act, The Suffers, who celebrated a No. 8 placement on the Billboard R&B charts for the band's new album, Everything Here, in its debut week, before heading off to play a scorching set at the famed Newport Folk Festival. That's a fine way to represent the 713.

This week, we have another big-time Houston performer celebrating an anniversary, big shows from alt-rockers, some New Wave legends, and a buzzworthy act to catch. Here are the biggest and best shows of the week.

CultureMap recommends: Caroline Says
Formed by singer-songwriter Caroline Sallee in Austin in 2014, Caroline Says takes its band name from a Lou Reed song. The group sounds much like that inspiration, with dreamy alt-rock songs, off-kilter rhythms, sumptuous harmonies, and simplistic melodies combining into one infectious brew. The group’s latest, No Fool Like an Old Fool also incorporates elements of acoustic-picked folk that recall Elliot Smith at his finest. Few bands come into town with as much critical acclaim as Caroline Says, including mentions on NPR, Pitchfork, and Stereogum. Find out what all the fuss is about.

Caroline Says plays the Continental Club, located at 3700 S. Main St., on Thursday, August 2. Jessica Risker, Velveteen Echo, and Astragal open. Tickets are $10 at the door. Show starts at 9:30 pm.

Slim Thug celebrates 20 years
One of the major players of the Houston "chopped and screwed" Southern rap renaissance of the late-'90s, Slim Thug went on to commercial success in the mid-2000s, finding fame on the Houston anthem, the independent and platinum-selling single and forever bangin', "Still Tippin'." He's released albums on the massive Interscope label (Dr. Dre runs it now), even appearing on a No. 1 hit for Beyoncé. His height came in 2005, when Already Platinum, hit No. 2 on the Billboard charts. But he got his start putting out mixtapes in the late-'90s, often appearing with other Houston rap stars, Mike Jones and Paul Wall. Thug will commemorate those exciting times in Houston with a 20th anniversary party at White Oak this weekend. No word on if his old cohorts will make an appearance, but don't be surprised if it turns into a guest-filled throwdown.

Slim Thug hits White Oak Music Hall, located at 2915 N. Main St., on Friday, August 3. Tickets start at $44 plus a $15.60 service charge. Doors open at 7 pm.

Panic! at the Disco
Back with their sixth album, Pray for the Wicked, emo-rock survivors Panic! at the Disco (and their grammatically incorrect exclamation point) are currently on an arena tour, seemingly bigger than ever. If you like pomp and circumstance, Panic! has got you covered, with their latest record, including single "Saturday Night," expanding the sound way past their more humble beginnings. But one thing that remains consistent is lead singer Brandon Urie's penchant for over-the-top vocals and professional-grade showmanship.

Panic! at the Disco headline the Toyota Center, located at 1510 Polk St., on Friday, August 3. Arizona and Hayley Kiyoko open. Tickets start at $30.75 plus service charges. Doors open at 6 pm.

Houston International Jazz Festival
The Houston International Jazz Festival celebrates its 28th year, with all proceeds benefiting Jazz Education Inc., which provides "training and educational activities for school age youth in the field of music, using concepts and subjects not fully covered by private and/or public school systems," according to its website. The three-day event features a wide variety of touring talent. Events start in Friday, August 3 at the Kick Off Party and Hot Jazz Night at Sugar's in Missouri City featuring the Summer Jazz All-Stars. Saturday night is the Ladies of Horn and Song at House of Blues with saxophonist Mindy Abair and the Boneshakers, flautist Althea Rene, and vocalist Ashleigh Smith. Sunday is Mayor Sylvester Turner's Scholarship Brunch at the Hobby Center. All proceeds go to a good cause.

The 28th Houston International Jazz Festival runs Friday, August 3 through on Sunday, August 4. Tickets prices vary per day. More information available at the Jazz Fest website.

Imagine Dragons plays another sold out Houston show
For better or worse, Imagine Dragons love Houston and Houston loves Imagine Dragons. It seems like the band bred for shilling stuff plays here every year, selling out bigger venues with each successive performance. This time around, it's Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion hosting the Las Vegas natives, with lawn tickets head-scratchingly going for as high as $145 on the resale market as they promote their latest monster album, Evolve. Be sure to show up early, as the charming, America's Got Talent wunderkind, Grace VanderWaal, starts the proceedings — she quite possibly has more talent than the headliner.

Imagine Dragons headline Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, located at 2005 Lake Robbins Dr. in The Woodlands, on Saturday, August 4. Grace VanderWaal opens. Tickets start at $145 plus service fees via the resale market. Gates open at 6 pm.

CultureMap show of the week: New Wave heroes Erasure
It's hard to overstate the importance of Erasure. Not only were they huge in the New Wave/synth-pop world, but the sexuality of lead singer Andy Bell made them icons on the LGBTQ scene, something revolutionary in the '80s, where being open and gay often was seen as a disastrous business decision. Thankfully, Bell was backed up by Vince Clarke, one of the co-founders of Depeche Mode, and writer of some of that band's early and still great hits, including "Just Can't Get Enough." Clarke brought his airtight pop sensibilities to the monstrous singles, "Chains of Love," "A Little Respect," and "Love to Hate You." This show will be one helluva party.

Erasure shares their storied catalog at the Smart Financial Center at Sugar Land, located at 18111 Lexington Blvd., on Sunday, August 5. Tickets start at $39 plus service charges. Show starts at 7:30 pm.

Pretty fly: The Offspring and 311
There was a time — ahem, the late-'90s — when it was nearly impossible to turn on rock radio and not hear either The Offspring or 311. One was the California punk band that we all thought was the harder version of Green Day; the other was a bunch of bros with a penchant for reggae-inflected rap-rock. The fact is, both bands put out some decent (for the time) singles that still are played on rock radio which treats anything produced before 1998 as the crowning era of all music. And to be completely fair, The Offspring's debut, Smash, was pretty great for a spell with singles, "Come Out and Play" and "Self-Esteem," perfectly channeling teen angst in suburbs everywhere before the band turned into a jokey singles act (see the still awful "Pretty Fly"). As for 311, they have that one tune, "Down." They'll both relive the high points at Cynthia Woods this weekend.

The Offspring and 311 co-headline the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, located at 2005 Lake Robbins Dr. in The Woodlands, on Sunday, August 5. Tickets start at $27.50 plus service fees. Gates open at 6 pm.

Panic! at the Disco bring their emo-rock pomp to the Houston Toyota Center on Friday, August 3.

Photo by Jimmy Fontaine

Panic! at the Disco bring their emo-rock pomp to the Houston Toyota Center on Friday, August 3.

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Movie Review

Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is technically stunning but lacks emotion

Photo by Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures

Matt Damon in The Odyssey.

For a story that is 3,000 years old and has been referenced innumerable times since the advent of the moving picture, it’s striking that The Odyssey has not been adapted into a film more often. Christopher Nolan’s new film is, depending on your definition, just the fourth time in film history that someone has attempted to tell the original story (oddly, the third film — The Return — came out just two years ago).

Matt Damon stars as Odysseus, who has been gone from his home of Ithaca for over 20 years. Waiting at home for him is his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) and son Telemachus (Tom Holland), as well as a hall full of suitors — most notably Antinous (Robert Pattinson) — who are hoping that Penelope will finally believe that Odysseus is dead and choose to marry one of them.

In typical Nolan fashion, the film goes back-and-forth in time often to show what has happened to Odysseus in the past two decades. His sea voyages with his crew have him attacking Troy using the legendary Trojan Horse; taking on the cyclops Polyphemus (Bill Irwin); trying to escape the clutches of the witch Circe (Samantha Morton); living with the nymph Calypso (Charlize Theron); communing with the vision of Athena (Zendaya); and more.

Nolan, who wrote and directed the epic film, has a clear reverence for the material and, perhaps more than any current filmmaker, has the chops to make the sprawling story feel coherent. With a plethora of characters who have names that take some time to understand for those not familiar with the ancient tale, it’s extremely tough to wrangle everything and everyone together, and Nolan and his team make that trick seem relatively easy.

However, there’s a difference between making the story comprehensible and making it compelling, and Nolan is not as successful on this front. As portrayed in this film, it’s difficult to care whether Odysseus ever finds his way home. His connection with Penelope and Telemachus is tenuous, at best, and his status as a hero is called into question on multiple occasions. Complicated protagonists are nothing new, but in a story where the hero’s journey is the whole point, Nolan fails to make the quest all encompassing.

That’s not to say that there aren’t some standout moments along the way. The sequence in Polyphemus’ cave is tremendous, as are a few other scenes in which Nolan’s reported reliance on practical effects make you wonder how the crew accomplished what they did. Damon has said this is the hardest movie he’s ever made, and that effort shows up in every scene, especially those on the water.

At 56 years old, Damon is getting close to elder statesman status in Hollywood, and he ably embodies the role of the respected and feared leader. Hathaway, Holland, and Pattinson get the next most screentime, and each makes their character interesting if not mesmerizing. The murderer’s row of the supporting cast — Theron, Lupita Nyong'o, Zendaya, Elliot Page, Morton, Jon Bernthal, John Leguizamo, and more — give each scene a nice sheen whether or not their individual arc makes sense.

While the technical achievements of Nolan and his team in The Odyssey are admirable and occasionally awe-inspiring, the story he lays out is not quite as overwhelming. The structure he chose to use doesn’t allow the story to overcome the episodic nature of Odysseus’ brutal journey, keeping big emotions mostly at bay.

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The Odyssey opens in theaters on July 17.

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