Courthouse Nights all-inclusive again
By Kyle Mooty
LPR Editor
Per usual, Rach & Rhodes Presents, creators of Courthouse Nights, will reach several genres of music with its 2025 lineup.
Rachel Lingvai and Will Rhodes founded the free concert series in downtown Lockhart in 2020. Lingvai plans for its fifth season – the third Friday evening of each month from April through August — to be a “special one.”
The 2025 lineup:
April 18 – Ellis Bullard
May 16 – The Point
June 20 – Lost Bayou Ramblers
July 18 – Los Juanos
Aug. 15 – Magnifico
DJ Island Time (Rhodes) will entertain crowds gathering on the south side of the Caldwell County Courthouse on the Lockhart square from 7-8:30 pm. The featured performers will take
Ellis Bullard, who Rhodes said was Waylon-Jennings-like, will play “a lot of 70s outlaw country music.”
“One of the reasons we wanted to go with him is because he is so well-rounded,” Rhodes said. “Everybody will like him.”
Bullard comes out of the Austin music scene.
The Point is a hot new band Rhodes classified as more psychedelic. They too are out of the Austin music scene.
“The Point is killing it all over,” Rhodes said. “They have a feel of a Vietnamese rock. They should draw a great younger group. “They are absolutely terrific.”
The Point won Austin Chronicle’s Best New and of the Year for 2024.
The all-French singing Lost Bayou Ramblers are from Lafayette, Louisiana.
“Lost Bayou Ramblers are one of the biggest bands we have ever brought here,” Rhodes said. “Commerce Gallery is doing some type of Cajun specialty for that evening. They have won two Grammy awards. They’re the real, real deal. They have performed with the Louisiana Philharmonic and have taken Cajun music and modernized it.”
Los Juanos will highlight this year’s Hispanic Night at Courthouse Nights. The San Antonio band has been invited to this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW)
“Los Juanos is gonna be big,” Rhodes said. “We will be feeling lucky we ever had them here.”
The final concert of the season will be the Queen tribute band Magnifico.
Below are brief biographs on each act for the upcoming Courthouse Nights season:
Ellis Bullard:
In the wake of 2024’s “Honky Tonk Ain’t Noise Pollution,” Bullard has left no doubt that
country music is still yearning for the true-blue honky-tonk experience he brings to the stage and studio. Bullard’s music is akin to listening to a life of barnstorming, hard living, and layers of musical influences.
“I’m just a person, just a guy out there having a good time and trying to make sure other people
are too,” Bullard said. “I give my time to people, and I think that means a lot to them. I’m genuinely trying to forge relationships and have meaningful interactions with all the fans I meet
on the road.”
After sharing the stage with Texas mainstays like Shinyribs, Reckless Kelly, Randy Rogers and
Cody Jinks, Bullard has come into his own, and these days finds himself headlining clubs and
dance halls from coast to coast. He said he is enjoying the ride.
The Point:
The Point is a genre-blending musical trio that infuses many different cultures’ folk musics with eclectic influences ranging from Ethiopian jazz, Saharan guitar music, dub, Thai Morlam, and the avant-garde. Formed in 2017 by then classmates Jack Montesinos and Joe Roddy, the two best friends added Toulousain ex-pat drummer Nico Léophonte to join the creative journey. This small but mighty sonic ensemble symbolizes the vibrant and experimental voyage of psychedelic beat music from abroad with a western “jam” approach.
The Lost Bayou Ramblers:
The two-time Grammy award winning Lost Bayou Ramblers’ evolution as a progressive Louisiana French band rooted in Cajun traditions continues to excite, challenge, and redefine both genre expectations, as well as cultural preconceptions. Founded in 1999 by brothers Andre and Louis Michot, the years have brought LBR a feature on Jack White’s American Epic, score contributions to the Oscar nominated film Beasts of the Southern Wild, Grammy wins for “Live: Orpheum Theater NOLA,” their 2023 album with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, and for their 2017 studio album “Kalenda.
As the band continues to explore collaborations with artists worldwide both on stage and in the studio, the Ramblers have collaborated with Dr. John, Scarlett Johansson, Leyla McCalla, Nora Arnezeder, Gordon Gano, Spider Stacy, Rickie Lee Jones, Ani DiFranco, to name a few.
Lost Bayou Ramblers were named Big Easy Awards’ Entertainers of the Year in 2019, and 2021 brought features in Rolling Stone magazine, National Geographic, and The New Yorker.
Lost Bayou Ramblers stands at the crosscurrents of Louisiana culture by inhabiting the gray area between Cajun and Creole, convention and innovation, mystery and a revelation, experimenting and growing the show to what it’s become today: an eclectic mix of modern sounds and rhythms with ancient Cajun melodies and lyrics.
Los Juanos:
Los Juanos is carving an unprecedented path with its Indie/Alternative-Regional Mexicano.
The group takes equally from old and new, from Mexican and American traditions. Liberally interweaving Conjunto, Corrido, and Cumbia Norteña with elements of Dream Pop, Psychedelic, Punk and more, Los Juanos echoes the pioneers of the Tejano movement, characterized by an unfiltered creativity and an even more daring disregard for the cultural barriers.
Magnifico:
Magnifico is the king of all Queen bands. The group has been rocking audiences with their celebrated tribute for over a decade. Featuring veterans of Austin’s renowned live music scene, Magnifico plays the hits and deep cuts of Queen with a charisma and intensity “guaranteed to blow your mind.” Magnifico has shared the stage with Weird Al Yankovic, Reggie Watts, and has appeared at the Long Center, SXSW, and Fusebox Festival.
