Texas has unleashed a lot of shit on the rest of the country, Like Karl Rove, Jessica Simpson, and Anna Nicole Smith?there's an unholy trio for you. But it's impossible to overlook the great musical artists who've also come out of there?Janis Joplin, Roy Orbison, Buddy Holly, and Beyoncé, to name just a few. That legacy was celebrated in April when the Tractor Tavern hosted an evening called Messin' With Texas: Seattle Bands Sing Songs of the Lone Star State. Members of Visqueen, the Long Winters, the Maldives, and several other Seattle bands showed up to pay homage to the great art of Texas songwriting. The Tractor holds a lot of benefit shows (proceeds from this one went to MusiCares), but this one had the strongest concept. Erin K. Thompson