Students can choose from several venues
to hear a variety of live bands
By Dino Ramos
THE BATTALION
There are many clubs in College Station that
cater to people who want to go out, get a drink and
dance to club music. Sometimes, students tend to
look for something different, something with more
variety or something more than the mundane club
scene. Before the technological advances of music
and one DJ on two turntables, there was something
that many people enjoyed — live bands.
These days, the great pastime of going out to see
a good, old-fashioned band can get overlooked.
Many college students start their own bands and try
to get their name out by playing at local clubs and
eventually taking the state and perhaps the nation
by storm. There are many local venues that feature
live musical acts that cover famous songs and play
their own original pieces.
Big Pauly’s and Zapato’s are two local restaurants
where college bands have the opportunity to show
case their talent. Both owned by Rick Lemons, the
venues offer a laid-back atmosphere where people
can enjoy a bands’ stylistic sounds. Besides showcas
ing bands, there also is a singer-songwriter night
where the musicians are encouraged to perform
original work for the audience.
k’s really cool to see that places like Zapatos are
offering services to college bands and musicians at
Texas A&M,” said Vicki McNamara, an aspiring
musician and junior wildlife and fisheries sciences
major. “It’s hard enough to get out there to do
something that you really love, and it’s another
thing to get an actual audience to love it as well.”
At Northgate, the Crooked Path Ale House
showcases live bands, but now features two regular
bands four nights of the week. People can enjoy a
drink from the bar while bands play the night away.
The Library, located on the second floor of the
Crooked Path, is for those who want a swankier,
“upper class” atmosphere, where people can sip on a
sophisticated martini and listen to bands.
Besides offering great food, good drinks and
fun games, Fitzwilly’s, a popular student hangout,
also features live bands. Also located at Northgate,
Fitzwilly’s features a wide variety of music, and
bands that play on a regular basis.
With variety, Fitzwilly’s has something
for everyone.
“Not only do 1 enjoy the drink spe-
It’s really cool to see that
places like Zapatos are
offering services to college
bands at Texas A&M.
— Vickie McNamara,
aspiring musician
cials and the food at
Fitzwilly’s, but there’s an
added bonus of a wide
array of bands to listen
to,” said Anthony
Guevara, Class of 1998.
In Bryan, the Third
Floor Cantina also
to know the bands that play at his venue. Not only
that, but he also hopes to open his own recording stu
dio to help local bands produce their own CDs.
There is just something about live music that can
give people a feeling they would not get from a DJ
at a club.
So, if students sitting at home on a Saturday night,
not wanting to go out to one of the local clubs, the
option of going to one of the aforementioned ven
ues to see a good band could be worthwhile.
popular
Spice
NOW OPEN
Bonl Indian Restaurant
Lunch and Dinner Buffet
Monday • Saturday
Visit us for your favorite curries and Tandoori delicacies.
2501 S.Texas Ave. Suite Gill
(979) 764-7288
is a
venue for local
bands. When
the facility was
in danger of
closing down,
local musicians
organized a
music festival to
raise money for
keeping the
Third Floor
Cantina open.
The owner takes
the time to get
. FILE PHOTO* THE BATTALION
Raves sparse but still present in B-CS
By Kevin Burns
THE BATTALION
appearance. To her, appearance does not equal
aouse.
A rave scene at in College Station? Welcome to
planet Mars.
Fhe College Station rave scene is not very large,
hut it is vibrant and growing. College Station local
Pixie Page and her husband Jason are in the know.
Pixie DJs under the name of Lady Karizma and
Jason DJs as TrainSpotter.
They both have been a part of the rave scene for
several years and lament over the decline of avail
able locations.
“As far as being a dance place, there used to be
Charlie’s, but that closed down, Pixie said. “There
used to be 2010, but then there was this big scare
because this 15-year-old girl came in there and told
the cops that [raversl were giving her [ecstasy] and
heroin and all that stuff, so they closed that down. ’
Pixie says it is hard to progress in a conservative
town like College Station but notes some reality
behind rave stereotypes.
“As far as rave scenes, techno clubs here — they
don’t exist,” Pixie said. “Every single time we’ve
tried to do something ... they’ll close it down
because it eventually brings in bad business."
Instead of looking to private businesses to house
their parties, local ravers have the options of travel
ing to larger cities or throwing private parties.
“Normally if we do a party in town, it’s just a
house party,” Jason said. “We just set up some
tables, and whoever wants to spin, spins.”
Students can subscribe to the rave listserv to learn
of raves in College Station and surrounding areas.
Fo get on the rave listserv, email listserv@list-
serv.tamu.edu and in the body of the email type
subscribe cs-raves (your name). ’
Another option is to stop by Disc-Go-Round
and peruse fliers. They frequently promote rave par
ties, sell tickets and have general information about
upcoming events.
Every Friday, Disc-Go-Round offers an open
turntable forum for experienced and aspiring DJs
to spin from Tuesday to Friday, 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Pixie, who will spin at Disc-Go-Round on
Friday, explained the reason behind the forum.
“We want to open up minds,” she said. “People
like us kinda get made fun of around here, so we
want to ... open it up to other people.”
Many people -
associate drug use
with rave parties.
Although Pixie does
not deny drug use
among people at
raves, she thinks it is
an unfair generaliza
tion. She said ravers
often are clustered
as drug users
because of. their
To curtail some of the stigma raves have accrued,
ravers try to limit its’ partygoers to 18 years of age
and older.
“Generally speaking, the majority of the College
Station rave scene is over 18, if not over 21,” Jason
said. “There are still some, for instance in actual
parties we’ve had this year — Element, Stage 1,
Face-Off — there were still high school kids there,
but they were few and far between. Most of the
people that were there were at least 18. Generally
speaking, that’s what I prefer. You would get less of
the criticism from parents.
Pixie said that every town is different when it
comes to raves.
“Every party has its vibe,” she said. “Fve been
to Austin and I've been to really bad parties and
I’ve been to Austin and I’ve been to really good
parties. But as far as being here, you know, know
ing your friends are throwing a party ... it’s going
to be a good vibe. Especially with a group as
tightly knitted as ours.”
Christina Hess, rave party-goer and a junior
international studies major, agrees that the local
scene is tightly knit, but said it has changed
over the years.
“When I first got here, (ravers) were really
accepting,” Hess said. “But the scene has gotten dis
tasteful because the kids
these days don't know what
it’s about.”
Hess said that today it is
more about the clothes,
accessories and pacifiers
and has become more com
mercial.
“It used
to be
about the
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