music

Birthday Boy

Veteran H-Town rocker Stephen Wells has much to celebrate with his new project Birthday Club.

Daniel Ortiz
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Letting go of childhood friendships isn’t easy. Just ask musician Stephen Wells, who grew up playing with his middle-school pals in the well known psych-pop band Featherface. The members went their separate ways after five years of making music. “It was scary,” says Wells, whose headful of shoulder-length dyed-blonde curly hair often peeks out from underneath a beanie, of the breakup.

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music

Play On

Helen-Sung-Pianist5_photo by Kat Villacorta

While pianist Helen Sung’s upcoming Houston performance with the Mingus Big Band is billed as a “Jazz Homecoming,” Sung was actually last here in December, when she was inducted by her alma mater into the HSPVA Jazz Hall of Fame. Her parents still live in Houston, and it was her first trip home since Harvey. “It was an emotional visit,” says Sung, who was relieved to see how much of Houston had recovered. “I want to be part of the continuing effort to bring assistance and relief.”

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culture

Cowboy Calling

In 2016, Neil Holmes was bucked off a bull named Rodeo Time, landing lifelessly in the dirt. Some thought he might actually be dead. No stranger to concussions or broken bones, the 32-year-old professional rider — a two-time Professional Bull Riders World Finals qualifier — has spent the months since cultivating physical and mental toughness, and looks forward to proving his strength at this year’s Rodeo Houston. But in addition to healing and training hard, this dad of four has prioritized time to give back: He teamed up with fellow cowboys during Harvey, traveling by boat through North Houston to rescue stranded folks, and is helming a PBR effort to teach inner-city children about rodeo sports and Western culture. Holmes, who stands at just five-foot-six, hopes to show kiddos — including his own — that with faith and confidence, anything is possible. Even bucking death.

Phoebe Rourke
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