dUNETX Rocks Houston’s Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo has joined the ranks of many overblown alcohol-soaked occasions such as New Year’s Eve and St. Paddy’s Day, however, with Houston’s monumental diversity and huge Latino population, it may be a little more than just an excuse to drink. On May 5th White Oak street was ground zero for the partying as people arrived in droves to eat, drink, and rock n’ roll! Some of Houston’s finest including The Flamin’ Hellcats, We Were Wolves, and the featured band of this article, dUNETX shook the parking lot of El Cantina across from the legendary venue, Fitzgeralds.
The event was free and despite ominous skies and sparse rain, hundreds of people still crowded around the stage for a dose of awesome, local music. Every act could easily be lumped into the punk rock category yet all embody a sense of hometown, cultural awareness in their sound. The Flamin’ Hellcats describe themselves as “101% Texas Vato-Billy”. Equipped with a standup bass and all, these guys have been pumping la gente up for years. We Were Wolves also rocked the small Karbach stage with their brand of aggressive, heavy-riff driven music that contains an undeniable essence of southern rock. DUNETX, veterans of 20 years, can fit in at any event. They effortlessly blend punk, pop, indie, and blues into a seemingly endless cache of songs and styles making them the perfect candidates for any festivity.
As dUNETX took the stage, frontman, Chris Sacco launched into their ultra-cool act with an onslaught of psychedelic sound manipulation employing an army of guitar effects and their “box of weird” or theremin as it’s more commonly known as. The Rhythm section which consists of bassist, Rusty Guess, and drummer, Kevin Tate accompanies Sacco with a thunderous fury that provides solid foundations for solos and occasional Sonic Youth-like obscurities. “GO”, a real ripper, and opening track off their last, full- length release, “Golden Arm“ immediately followed the ear caching introduction. From then on, Dune pumped out a diverse, but consistent set that often resembles the likes Dinosaur Jr, Nirvana, MC5 and so many more. Some have referred to dUNETX as garage rock, pop punk, and grunge, but many of this Native Texas band’s riffs and even entire songs have strong blues roots. Their presence is very laid back at times because of how effortlessly they work together, but they do not shy away from intentionally showing off and almost taunting listeners with flashy maneuvers and straight up, in your face, rocking! These guys know what they are doing! Their stage antics stop brief onlookers in their tracks to witness the spectacle almost as if dUNETX has a knack for sniffing out and inviting new fans to the party. A party is exactly what you get when you turn out to a dUNETX show. The Guys closed out this fiesta with a fast-paced number, “Santa Cruzin” that’s rife with energy and wrapped it all up with an arena rock quality ending that once again tailspins into a frenzy of whammy bar abuse and box of weird utilization. The eccentric climax leaves one anticipating a guitar being stabbed through an amplifier or a plummet into the drum set, but dUNETX does not have to resort to such gimmicks to still thoroughly fixate a crowd.
Keep your eyes out and ears open for new dUNETX releases as they have impressively cranked out approximately 50 new songs since they unleashed Golden Arm which exemplifies an undeniable Built to Spill influence particularly in Sacco’s voice. The wait should be drawing to a close as the boys intend on releasing a new EP very soon and have some large Festival shows on the horizon. Stay tuned to By the Barricade for news on some of the hottest acts in the nation and keep on Rocking!
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