Article and Photos by: Ommar Ortuvia
Houston, TX — Houston is known for many things – space exploration, the world’s largest indoor rodeo, oil and gas industries and their accompanying greed, way more restaurants than needed, no zoning laws… but nothing really stands out in the rock and indie music sphere. In fact, Houston is known as being a “sometimes market” for musicians – this means that many touring artists tend to favor other cities in the area and sometimes skip over the Bayou city. But lately there has been a renewed fostering of home-grown rock bands, and among those Houston-bred native bands poised to turn things around for the city is Hold On Hollywood, who is currently supporting Candlebox in their 2022 Wolves Tour.
Within the House of Blues the band kicked things off with “For You” off their 2016 EP Save Me, which is a powerful track that was perfect for riling the crowd up. Singer and guitarist Ian Dartez gave the perfect mix of emotion and amusement with the lyrics, reminding everyone that Hold On Hollywood is a band that can be both seriously felt in the heart, or just fun to sing along with in both the concert stage or the car stereo. Afterwards things slowed down a bit with “All Night,” to then move onto a cover of Eddie Money’s “Take Me Home Tonight,” with bassist Corey Morgan’s energy infecting everybody. At this point the crowd were unable to resist singing along with this rock anthem and began gathering closer to the stage, showing much love to the hometown band.
Next was “Fading Out,” a ballad to give the crowd a rest from rocking out and allowing couples to hug each other and sway to the music. Things picked up a bit with “Movies,” a melodic jam from their 2020 EP Love Stories. The set was brought to a close that night with “The Chase,” with its characteristic guitar intro from Nick Dees, and paired with Devin Holden’s tight drumming it created the perfect backbone for the catchy riffs and infectious hooks that gave this song considerable airplay on local rock stations.
As an opener, Hold On Hollywood played a short but powerful set which did not disappoint. The thirty-minute show did not produce a dull moment, with their catchy songs making the crowd bob their heads to the beat, with the band interacting with the crowd between songs, giving them little tidbits of what was coming next or just thanking them for being there. Also multiple shout-outs to Candlebox for their support by taking them on the road once again, and of course, props to H-Town. Afterwards, the band members hung around the general admission area, mingling with fans and allowing them to take pictures with them, demonstrating that Hold On Hollywood may act like seasoned rock stars on stage, but show a humble side off the stage.