Riffs, Roams and Raves:

A Weekly Column

Riffs, Roams and Raves uncovers the creative, noteworthy and accomplished in the Wimberley Valley and beyond with tips on who to hear, where to go and what to see from managing editor Teresa Kendrick.

The next to the last performance of the Stars over Wimberley concert series took place at the end of September with The Peterson Brothers at the Wimberley Playhouse. Their mostly instrumental performance that combined jazz, funk, blues and soul tunes drew listeners in as the brothers wound out one conversation after another before reeling listeners back in again.

Inspired by classic artists such as The Isley Brothers, Earth, Wind & Fire, The Brothers Johnson and B.B. King, guitarist Glenn Jr. and bassist Alex Peterson were backed by talented drummer Chris Mead who never failed to add his own substantial, inspired chops to their jam-style improvisation.

Younger than many of the performers in the series, the brothers played music from their latest album, “Experience,” released in April 2024, that celebrates the joy of newfound love, spending time with family and the beauty of human connection.

Glenn Jr. connected to the audience with his radiant smile displaying his gratitude for performing beloved music with brother Alex. Throughout the two-part set, the pair communicated the direction of their musical conversation through frequent cues and eye contact as if they shared a twin language all their own.

The brothers hail from Bastrop where they learned to play from records purchased by their mother and grandmother at a garage sale. From there, they graduated to regular performances at Antone’s, The Saxon Pub and other iconic Austin venues. They’ve opened for performers such as Gary Clark Jr., the band, “New Power Generation,” of the performer previously known as Prince, B.B King, Buddy Guy, Willie Nelson and Jimmy Fallon’s band, “The Roots,” among others.

Don’t be surprised if one day, the duo wind up becoming the house band for the next big late night show sensation.

Roam: Ballet Nepantla and “Mistica” in San Marcos My roam this week took me to the auditorium at San Marcos High School to see an unusual fusion of ballet and Mexican Folk Dance from the New York City-based professional dance company, Ballet Nepantla. The dancers were touring the U.S. to perform their two-hour program, “Mística,” a celebration of Día de los Muertos, the affectionate acknowledgement of ancestors, and Hispanic heritage.

The ballet company takes its name from the language of the Nahua, a group of native people from Central Mexico. Spoken since the 7th century AD, Nahuatl was the primary language of the Aztecs who ruled Mexico from the 14th to 16th centuries. Today, about 1.7 million people still speak Nahuatl, mostly in Central Mexico and parts of the U.S.

The word “nepantla” means the state of being in between two things. For the dance company, the concept provided a historical, intellectual and artistic framework through which to explore the “in between” spaces of history and culture.

For anyone who has come from one culture to live in another, the experience can be both exhilarating and isolating. Neither a bonafide resident of either culture, especially in terms of an individual’s worldview, the confusion can be profound. A transformation must take place and where it begins is in the way station of “nepantla,” before both worlds can be fused into something meaningful for the individual.

Artistic Director, Andrea Guajardo, describes this experience through the medium of dance in “Mística.”

As the performance opens, a solo performer dances in the space between things. Her ballet solo morphs into dance vignettes that take the viewer from the ancestral Danza del Venado, or Deer Dance, to relatively newer folk dances. Unwinding on the continuum of history, we witness the death and mourning of the old ways as newer ways are experienced and accepted.

With Mexico’s conquest by Spain, for example, Roman Catholic ideas crowd in and the Deer dancer is killed. Following his death, a figure, dressed in mourning, is visited by a veiled spirit dressed in white. The mourner tries to embrace the spirit but it eludes her grasp. She is only able to embrace it for a short time before it fades away.

That vignette is followed by a dance where a coarse woman wearing a mask with European features shakes her comically large booty to the delight of the other dancers.

After intermission, the stage is populated by supernatural figures whose bones and skulls are the only thing visible to the eye. Performed under black light, their luminous bones shine through glowing sheer suits and skirts above which float skulls painted in the style of Day of the Dead figures. These figures dance popular folk dances adapted by their evolving culture. In time, aided by the saving grace of humor, the transformation takes place.

Raves: Purple Barn’s MADAM RADAR Coming next week to the Cypress Creek Event Center in Woodcreek is the wildly popular band “MADAM RADAR.” Featuring lead guitarist and vocalist Kelly Green, MADAM RADAR is an Americana rock band of explosive harmonies, soaring guitar solos and eclectic original tunes. Check out their videos on YouTube. Made up of family and friends, the four person band is composed of Jace Cadle on rhythm guitar, Kody Lee on drums, and Violet Lea on bass. All of them contribute vocals. Tickets are $30 and available at ticketleap. events/events/the-purple- barn.