Time and date don’t matter: there is always a concert happening somewhere in Corpus. The city boasts a variety of small, intimate venues that provide the perfect outlet for live music and similar crowd-gathering performances.

The latest venue in this long line of spaces is The Artisan by GST, or as it’s more commonly known, The Artisan. Located at 218 North Chaparral Street, one block away from Executive Surf Club, the venue consists of a small alley with a stage, complete with trusses.

My first time going to The Artisan was on March 21, where I saw numerous Coastal Bend bands.

RAZCAT

This four-piece act describes themselves as a “Texas metal band of demons,” and I agree with that description wholeheartedly. I also agree with RAZCAT not being specific about the “metal” label, because I heard a grab bag of versions of metal during their set.

I recall there being quite a bit of rap metal, which occasionally started to feel like nu metal. There was a point where RAZCAT started performing classic metal-sounding songs, where I started appreciated just how diverse this group could be.

Then just when I thought they had touched upon every genre the band could feasibly reach, RAZCAT came out of left field with the most unexpected music possible: a full-throttle cumbia. Suddenly, the thrashing, angry guitars were replaced with clean, smooth guitars melding with extremely active bass work.

 If you’ve ever wanted to see a group of flannel-donning, ride-or-die metal heads start to do a Texas two-step, then RAZCAT are clearly your guys. They know how to keep the party going, and they know how to flip it on its head.

How do they do that, you may ask? By exploring the space, for instance. The frontman seemed to have an issue with standing still, as evidenced by his constant walking and occasional getting in the face of a cheering audience member.

He even went so far as to start climbing the trusses of the stage, becoming Corpus Christi’s equivalent of Eddie Vedder (if Pearl Jam was a metal band, of course). I found his penchant for movement, along with the bandmates’ constant walking on and off stage very engaging.

If you’re looking to have something angry while still maintaining an air of dumb fun, then RAZCAT is the band for you. I definitely recommend this act.

Dreamstereo

Hailing from Victoria, this three-piece band is one of the largest bands in the scene, going off numbers alone. I’ve had the pleasure of sharing concerts with this act, so I already knew what to expect with them: very interesting post-punk.

Not Joy Division’s flavor of post-punk, though. It’s more on the lighter side. The band has also mentioned new wave when describing themselves, and I see It as well.

This set was prototypical Dreamstereo affair. That’s not necessarily a bad thing however, as the band always delivers a quality performance each and every time I’ve seen them play. This was no different.

One interesting part of their set I’ve always noticed is a cover of a Spanish rock song. “De Música Ligera” is a song by famed Argentinian rock/new wave band Soda Stereo. It’s made some waves here in the U.S., and Dreamstereo seems hell-bent on bringing it to Corpus Christi.

I enjoy how they play this song though, so I have absolutely no problems with it coming up in all their sets. If anything, I’m surprised by how full the song sounded this time around. Despite the band being so small, they really filled out the space.

Some Corpus venues have issues getting every piece of the band to shine, but The Artisan is not that place. For both RAZCAT and Dreamstereo, each and every instrument, including the always-difficult vocals. [feels like part of your sentence is missing]

I’m glad they came through here, because I always find myself enjoying hearing Dreamstereo whenever I catch them. Definitely a worthwhile band for those looking for a more energetic version of Smiths-esque post-punk music.

Fallen Fears

Hailing from Alice, I find that the five-piece band Fallen Fears can be best described as 2000s-leaning emo. Think My Chemical Romance with heavier emphasis on the downtrodden and less on the guyliner and theatrics.

Where the last two acts bent the boundaries of their own sound, Fallen Fears leaned more into the emo-screamo binary, occasionally walking the line between the two like a tightrope.

Using both breakdowns and heavy vocals in equal measure, I noticed that Fallen Fears also physically embodied this downtrodden aesthetic as well; movement was very limited. It seemed like the band was more focused on conveying the message, and that was a good touch.

Fallen Fears fit very well into this bill. With RAZCAT employing a wide of style of rather heavy music genres, and Dreamstereo utilizing the more mellow styles while still retaining an earworm or two, Fallen Fears provided the perfect middle ground between the sounds of the last two acts.

For those looking for an excuse to break out the eyeliner and live out your “nobody understands me” fantasy, Fallen Fears might just be the band for you.

I went home satisfied, having gotten to witness both a mixture of bands I had never seen and groups I had met before. I’m still waiting with bated breath for my next concert, and hopefully either RAZCAT, Dreamstereo, or Fallen Fears appears at it.