Out Of Africa - iFest 2008

One of the best things about this time of year in Houston is the festivals start rolling in. You've got Galveston's Mardi Gras in February, the Art Car Parade in May, and one of my favorites in between; the International Festival, kicking off later this month in downtown Houston.

The iFest is one of the best anywhere in my opinion, and has a different musical and cultural focus/theme every year. Last year featured China, Jamaica was the theme in 2006, and India in 2005. We caught performances by George Clinton and the P-Funk All-Stars last year and Stephen Marley the year before. This year's theme is "Out of Africa" and the musical lineup has some real heavy hitters including the Neville Brothers, Buddy Guy, Taj Mahal, and The Wailers, to name a few. The cultural piece is just as impressive, including the National Dance Theater of Ethiopia in their North American debut. I know I sound like an advertisement, so just go here to check out the entire schedule.

A couple of hundred thousand people show up each weekend, so if any of y'all make it down this way during the last two weekends of the month, make sure to holla at us. In the meantime, here's a little bit of Buddy Guy playing in front of a crowd that obviously doesn't appreciate the blues the way they should.