Local Indie Artists Showcase at the House of J in Houston

Written by Cole Wilbur on November 29, 2021

This music-filled Saturday kicked off with an impressive performance from local Houston guitarist and singer-songwriter Jacob Hutto at the House of J in East Downtown. Hutto was almost a last-second addition to the Astralace and Oh, Hooray lineup presented on the ticket.

Still, Jacob Hutto was an impressive musician. I was particularly impressed with Hutto’s ability to use negative space within his music. A one-man band often finds it hard to perform for a decently sized crowd, but Hutto looked particularly experienced in using just his voice and his hollow-bodied electric guitar to elicit quite a positive response from the audience.

The Gamma Wave guitarist showed his expertise using practical guitar effects to accompany his impressive vocal performance along with his skillful instrumentation. For just one man and his guitar, Jacob Hutto knew how to set the tone for the evening to come.

Jacob Hutto shows his impressive guitar and songwriter abilities (courtesy of Brandon Smith).

Jacob Hutto performing his set. (Courtesy of Keylee Paz)

Following Jacob Hutto was the impressive Houston indie trio known as Astralace (formerly known as Lovelace). The indie trio featured the impressive songwriting of keyboardist and singer Ashley Lacy along with bassist Zach and drummer and harmonizer Lauren.

Astralace continued the chill evening vibes at the House of J with their performance. Astralace’s music followed a minimalist style, using simplicity and emotion to its strongest potential. It was clear that the indie trio understood each other and their recorded material on all streaming services reflect that.

Astralace frontwoman Ashley Lacy and drummer Lauren. (Courtesy of Brandon Smith)

Astralace performing their set. (Courtesy of Keylee Paz)

Lastly, art pop band called Oh, Hooray took the stage. The group was only formed this year 2021, but gained quick acknowledgment when they were featured on NPR’s “Best 2021 Tiny Desk Contest Entries We Saw This Week.” With members Jamie M. Mcdonald, Ashley Lacy, Zachery Lacy, Lauren Poland, Allen Vinson, and Adam P, each member playing a few different instruments switching through the set.

At this point of the show more people sat down to listen to another mellow band for the night. The band started playing through their songs that ranged from melancholy songs to their more thrilling tunes. In between their set, Jamie told us a little back story behind the frames around their set that had painted “sad,” which became the band’s mantra. As they continued their set the people could not take their eyes off them, as if everyone was under the band’s trance. To end their set, the band played a cover song of “Lithium” by Nirvana. Everyone was singing along and was a great wrap to a wonderful show. Overall, the band held a great performance after hard work of rehearsing for their upcoming full-length LP.