RIP Brad

Brad Houser, bass player and co-founder of Dallas rock band New Bohemians, dies

Brad Houser, RIP.

Courtesy photo

Brad Houser, a nationally renowned musician from Dallas who was a member of Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, died on July 24; he was 62.

Born John Bradley Houser, he was a founding member of the New Bohemians, later named Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, who rocketed to fame following their 1988 hit "What I Am." He also went on to form other bands such as Critters Buggin and Dead Kenny G’s.

According to a July 19 post by the band, Houser suffered a stroke on July 17, and was in the hospital where he remained in critical condition. A friend of the family confirmed that he was taken off life support on July 24 at 4:44 pm, and he "passed peacefully" at 9:09 pm.

"We want to say thank you to the many friends and family that have reached out in support of Brad and his wife Kiri. We love you all, and we are truly grateful," the post said.

Houser was beloved not only for his music expertise and fluid effortless bassplaying but also for his humility, generosity, sense of humor, deep infectious laugh, and encouraging nature. Friends called him "a rare human with the most beautiful heart and soul," "a team player," and "a musician's musician."

He attended Hillcrest High School and was a member of the high school band, starting out on saxophone before switching to bass, which he played on five albums with the New Bohemians, as well as on several records with his bands Critters Buggin and The Dead Kenny Gs.

He resided in Austin with his wife Kirilola Onokoro, a musician and former bass player for Japanese band Ex-Girl, with whom he also released recordings under the name Diamond Boom.

In addition to playing music, he wrote about music and the bass for Bass Musician magazine, and also collaborated with Reverend Guitars to create a pair of bass guitars, including one called the "Basshouser."

More recently, he worked as an instructor at the New School of Music, an organization in Austin that focuses on jazz instruction but also offers free classes to those who could not afford to pay for lessons, including a program where they lend instruments to underserved students so they can practice at home.

In April 2020, Houser invited friends on Facebook to post a comment recalling how they met: "The last few years have taught me that when it is our time to leave this world no one can stop it. We have one life to live. The material things we invest in are left behind only to be discarded. Memories are important to me. I am joining the 'reunion of friends' challenge. .. If you are reading this message, make a comment using a single word about how we met."

Responses included "music-making," New Bohemians, and "Club Dada" where Edie Brickell and New Bohemians first played.

In 2022, he mused on Austin, stating, "I had the honor of playing Liberty Lunch with Edie Brickell and New Bohemians in '86 and John Doe in '95. Best damn venue ever, well, OK maybe in a dead-even tie with 500 Cafe, Theater Gallery (when you could still go up on the roof!!!!!!) and Club Dada…….. Liberty Lunch was everything good about the Austin that us old(er) MFers still remember."

"Now we are rapidly becoming Dallas with more hills and trees. I’m from Dallas. Austin was always such a magical place, seemingly in a different realm entirely separate from the $money$- driven greed pits found almost everywhere else. These days you’ll find me at the Continental Club gallery on Fri-Sat nights, playing to the absolute best of my ability with some extremely gifted musicians (Josh Perdue & co) and on Sunday afternoons downstairs with Marshall Hood."

Before he died, his fellow New Bohemian band members Kenny Withrow and John Bush came to his hospital room to play music, and also brought Houser's beloved dog Riga to his bedside. He was an animal lover who often advocated on behalf of rescues.

On Monday afternoon, Withrow posted a request on Facebook, saying, "At 4:44 pm if you could, pause for Brad and his journey," to acknowledge his passing.

Brickell posted a remembrance, saying, "Just spent 6 weeks playing and recording with my friends, New Bohemians. It was our final day recording and Brad was about to take off for a gig when I said, 'Aw, come on! One more jam, Brad. You start it.' He nodded and played this great part and I started singing about him to him with the biggest smile on my face just having fun. I was celebrating his generosity to stay and play one last song with me. But I never thought it would be our final song together. Our band's very last jam was a playful song about Brad. I loved him. He taught me a lot."

UPDATE 8-1-2023: A memorial service will be held at All Saints Presbyterian in Austin at 7808 Rialto Blvd. on Tuesday August 1 at 1 pm. The service will also be livestreamed for those who cannot attend.

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Movie Review

Long-awaited Wicked movie adaptation lives up to the hype

Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande-Butera in Wicked.

The musical Wicked is indisputably the biggest Broadway smash of the 21st century, having grossed more $1.6 billion in New York alone and achieving the rare feat of running for over 20 years. All of which is to say that the long-awaited movie adaptation of The Wizard of Oz prequel will most likely be a massive success whether it lives up to what longtime fans envisioned or not.

Part one — yes, this 2 hour and 40 minute film is merely the first act of the musical; part two arrives a year from now — introduces Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), the green-skinned witch who goes on to become Dorothy’s nemesis, and G(a)linda (Ariana Grande-Butera), the pink-garbed “good” witch, as they meet at Shiz University in Oz. Glinda is the ultra-popular one with sycophantic hangers-on, while Elphaba is shunned by almost everyone, sometimes including her disabled sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode), who’s desperate to make her own space away from Elphaba.

Her mistreatment by others leads Elphaba to get angry, which manifests itself in uncontrollable magic. Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) notices this and takes a personal interest in her, giving her one-on-one instruction in hopes of harnessing her power. In the meantime, Elphaba and Glinda attempt to go from forced roommates to actual friends, although Glinda’s entitled personality is more of an obstacle than anything else they encounter.

Directed by Jon M. Chu and written by original book writer Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox, the film does a great job of distinguishing itself from the stage version while still remaining true to what made it so beloved. As Chu showed in his last film, In the Heights, he has an innate feel for how to tap into the essence of the source material while expanding it into something befitting the scope of a blockbuster movie.

In this case, he finds a way to give even greater emphasis to the bigotry that Elphaba faces simply because of her green skin; the fact that she is being played by a Black woman drives home the point even more. The story remains light and fluffy for the most part, but the ostracization/otherness that Elphaba feels is delivered in a powerful way, as is her empathy for talking animals like Dr. Dillamond (voiced by Peter Dinklage), who are facing their own persecution.

Of course, the highlight of the film is Stephen Schwartz’s music, and while not all of the songs are equal in impact, they still make for a cohesive whole. The number of songs and order they appear in the first act is identical to the stage musical, with the standouts remaining “The Wizard and I,” “Popular,” and “Defying Gravity.” While there is some superfluous action and cutaways added to certain numbers, it’s not enough to distract from what makes the songs effective.

Oddly, the progression of the friendship between Elphaba and Glinda works better on stage when the timeline is accelerated, but Erivo and Grande-Butera make up for this slight lack with their fantastic performances. The emotion each brings to their characters fits them almost perfectly, and there’s simply no denying the strength of each of their voices. Bode, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Ethan Slater as Boq, and more make for a solid supporting cast.

The well-known ending of the first act of Wicked is a huge high point that is so good that it almost makes up for the fact that audiences won’t see the second film for a long time. But if part one is any indication, part two should turn out to be another great musical theater adaptation in a decade that has already seen its fair share.

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Wicked opens in theaters on November 22.

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