The Suffers • July 3 • 7:30 PM • Free

THE SUFFERS define their sound as Gulf Coast Soul, a term they define as resulting from the mixture of the different cultures and musical styles present around the Gulf coast and the city of Houston, including Blues, Soul, Country, Cajun, African American, Mexican, Caribbean and hip-hop all of which come together and mix in the port city.

Opener MARY-ELAINE JENKINS is a Brooklyn-based songwriter, singer, and guitarist. A native of the South Carolina Lowcountry, her sound combines manifold influences with a distinctly southern sensibility. After graduating from college in Washington, DC, she spent two years in Madrid, a time that would prove creatively transformative. Upon making her home in NYC, she surrounded herself with a creative network that would eventually include Thom Beemer, who produced and engineered "Hold Still,” her full-length debut. MEJ has been named among “5 Up-And-Coming Women Musicians You Should Know About” (Bust Magazine), described as "standing righteously above other young pretenders" (Glide Magazine), and her voice has been called "a mix of cloves, sage, ash, thorns, and honey” (The Deli NYC). She is a fixture in the New York music scene, has toured Europe, and has supported artists such as Martha Wainwright, Birds of Chicago, and Courtney Marie Andrews. She and Beemer are currently at work on a new record.