Houston is the most populous city in Texas, fourth-most populous city in the United States, most populous city in the Southern United States, as well as the sixth-most populous in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in 2020. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the seat and largest city of Harris County and the principal city of the Greater Houston metropolitan area, which is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States and the second-most populous in Texas. Houston is the southeast anchor of the greater megaregion known as the Texas Triangle.
Texas is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by both area and population. Texas shares borders with the states of Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south and southwest; and has a coastline with the Gulf of Mexico to the southeast.
Texas A&M University is a public land-grant research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of Fall 2021, Texas A&M's student body is the largest in the United States. Texas A&M is the only university in Texas to hold simultaneous designations as a land, sea, and space grant institution. In 2001, Texas A&M was inducted as a member of the Association of American Universities. The school's students, alumni and sports teams are known as Aggies. The Texas A&M Aggies athletes compete in eighteen varsity sports as a member of the Southeastern Conference.
The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S. state of Texas in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with portions extending into Harris County. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the township had a population of 114,436 people. In 2021, The Howard Hughes Corporation estimated the population of The Woodlands was 119,000.
The 13th Floor Elevators was an American rock band from Austin, Texas, United States, formed by guitarist and vocalist Roky Erickson, electric jug player Tommy Hall, and guitarist Stacy Sutherland. The band was together from 1965 to 1969, and during that period released four albums and seven singles for the International Artists record label.
NRG Stadium, formerly Reliant Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. It was constructed at a cost of $352 million and has a seating capacity of 72,220. It was the first NFL facility to have a retractable roof.
The Jesus Lizard is an American rock band formed in 1987 in Austin, Texas and based in Chicago, Illinois. They were "a leading noise rock band in the American independent underground…[who] turned out a series of independent records filled with scathing, disembowelling, guitar-driven pseudo-industrial noise, all of which received positive reviews in underground music publications and heavy college-radio play."
Noise rock is a noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, artists indulge in extreme levels of distortion through the use of electric guitars and, less frequently, electronic instrumentation, either to provide percussive sounds or to contribute to the overall arrangement.
Warren Steed Jeffs is the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a polygamous denomination. In 2011, he was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault, for which he is serving a life sentence plus twenty years.
The Marfa lights, also known as the Marfa ghost lights, have been observed near U.S. Route 67 on Mitchell Flat east of Marfa, Texas, in the United States. They have gained some fame as onlookers have attributed them to paranormal phenomena such as ghosts, UFOs, or will-o'-the-wisp. Scientific research suggests that most, if not all, are atmospheric reflections of automobile headlights and campfires.
Paul Michael Slayton, better known by his stage name Paul Wall, is an American rapper and DJ. He has spent much of his career affiliated with Swishahouse Records, and has released several albums under the label and collaborated with numerous other rappers signed to the label. He began his career performing alongside fellow Houston Chamillionaire, with whom he released several albums, including 2002's independently released Get Ya Mind Correct. In 2005, he was signed to Atlantic Records and became successful with his major label debut The Peoples Champ, which was followed up by Get Money, Stay True followed in 2007. He has been nominated for one Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance as a Duo or Group for the song "Grillz", his collaboration with rapper Nelly.
Rayward Powell St. John was an American singer and songwriter, active on the mid-1960s Austin, Texas campus folk/bohemian music scene. He was an occasional member of various Austin rock groups, including The Conqueroo, and wrote some songs for The 13th Floor Elevators, including "You Don't Know ", included on the band's 1966 debut, The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators.
Prairie View A&M University is a public historically black land-grant university in Prairie View, Texas. Founded in 1876, it is one of Texas's two land-grant universities and the second oldest public institution of higher learning in the state. It offers baccalaureate degrees in 50 academic majors, 37 master's degrees and four doctoral degree programs through eight colleges and the School of Architecture. PVAMU is the largest HBCU in the state of Texas and the third largest HBCU in the United States. PVAMU is a member of the Texas A&M University System and Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
Richard Ramirez is an American noise music artist originally from Houston, Texas, recording and performing both as a solo artist and as part of several groups, including Black Leather Jesus, Priest in Shit, An Innocent Young Throat-Cutter, House of the Black Death, Martyr of Sores, Last Rape and the "static noise" solo project Werewolf Jerusalem. He is notable for being one of the earliest American harsh noise artists.
Texas State Penitentiary at Huntsville or Huntsville Unit (HV), nicknamed "Walls Unit", is a Texas state prison located in Huntsville, Texas, United States. The approximately 54.36-acre (22.00 ha) facility, near downtown Huntsville, is operated by the Correctional Institutions Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The facility, the oldest Texas state prison, opened in 1849.
The Jonbenét was an American noise rock outfit from Houston, Texas. The group is named after the murdered child JonBenét Ramsey. The band played their first show as Jonbenét on August 22, 2003. After several self-released EPs and tours in the US and Canada, the band caught the attention of Pluto Records, an independent record label from Texas. The Plot Thickens EP was released on Pluto Records July 22, 2005. It was a re-mastered compilation of material from their self-released EPs and split 7" releases. In January 2006, the band recorded their first full-length entitled Ugly/Heartless, which The Stranger described as a "spastic, angular wall of post[-]hardcore noise". On August 10, 2009 the band announced a string of final shows, insinuating the band will no longer continue. The last show was played December 19, 2009 at Walter's in Houston, Texas.
The African American population in Houston, Texas, has been a significant part of the city's community since its establishment. The Greater Houston area has the largest population of African Americans in Texas and west of the Mississippi River. Black Enterprise has referred to Houston as the next black mecca.
Harsh noise wall, also known as wall noise or HNW, is an extreme subgenre of noise music, described as "a literal consistent, unflinching and enveloping wall of monolithic noise." The movement is spearheaded by French musician Vomir, who described his aesthetic as "no ideas, no change, no development, no entertainment, no remorse".
