Huffington Post Jumps On Our Flavor Trippin’ Bandwagon
Well, alright, maybe it's not our bandwagon, but it's nice to see the efforts of Our Man In Sarasota reflected in the august pages of the Huff.
Beck review
Modern Guilt BECK DGC Beck, one of the most consistently brilliant pop stars of his generation, teams with producer-of-the-moment Danger Mouse (Gnarls Barkley) and sparks the size of mushroom clouds oughta fly, right? Then again, rock history is littered with less than spectacular super groupings and pairings: Velvet Revolver, Audioslave, 90 percent of Willie Nelson’s…
Is the Seminole Heights Starbucks closing?
Pure terror. That's what's on the minds of some Seminole Heights residents about their beloved neighborhood Starbucks and recent news that the coffee giant will close 600 stores this year. Residents fear their coffeeshop on Hillsborough and Central will be one of the unlucky ones. Never have I seen such a love for a single…
Top 10 Florida Acts
The Boston Phoenix recently ran an intriguing, exhaustive piece titled “50 Bands, 50 States,” which names the best acts within every state in three categories. For Florida, the New England alt-weekly dubbed Lynyrd Skynyrd “All-Time Best Band,” Tom Petty “All-Time Best Solo Artist” and the Miami metal outfit Torche “Best New Band.” Pretty cool idea.…
Poker? I Hardly Know Her.
It’s too late for you to cash in on the more than $180 million dollars in prize money handed out by this year’s World Series of Poker, but for anyone who wants to follow the action online or catch the ESPN coverage starting July 22, here’s a primer on the richest event in “sports”. The…
Five Things to Do Today
1. Beck (at right) releases his new album, Modern Guilt, on DGC Records today. Listen to the first three tracks on his MySpace page; then pick up, order, or download a copy from iTunes. 2. The Ybor City Chamber of Commerce presents its biannual Summer Business Expo at the Columbia Restaurant. 3. Tampa Bay Fishing…
Flavor Trippin’
From our man in Sarasota, Justin Richards: Before some friends and I tried flavor tripping for the first time, I’ll admit I had some unrealistic expectations. I thought the newly popularized miracle fruit would make my palate go temporarily insane; olives would taste like licorice, rice would taste like pudding, soap would taste like marmalade.…
Flavor Trippin’
From our man in Sarasota, Justin Richards: Before some friends and I tried flavor tripping for the first time, I’ll admit I had some unrealistic expectations. I thought the newly popularized miracle fruit would make my palate go temporarily insane; olives would taste like licorice, rice would taste like pudding, soap would taste like marmalade.…
Best of the Bay ’08 Exit Poll
Congratulations! You’ve finished voting in the Best of the Bay ‘08 Readers’ Poll! We could give you one of those little “I voted” stickers, but you wouldn’t wear it anyway. So instead we’re giving you one more chance to sit down and be counted: You can participate in CL’s Best of the Bay exit poll.…
R.I.P. Green Swath of Death is finally DEAD!
Well, it is finally over. After more than a year of fighting with local and now regional government officials, the ill-conceived Green Swath of Death, Bypass, Beltway, Sprawlway, and most recently "Freight rail Corridor" that would have cut through rural and preservation lands in Hillsborough bringing with them certain sprawl, is finally dead. TBARTA voted…
OUTED AT ST. PETE PRIDE
After the first round of fruity cocktails the gay jokes flew like rainbow flags. As one of the few non-gay CL staffers marching in the St. Pete Pride Parade, I was the ass of most of their jokes. Byron McMullen told me the bandana trailing from my back pocket (which I had intended for midday…
At Odds Over Dave Matthews
A reader named Ron Michael took serious offense at my preview of this week’s Dave Matthews show (which ran in last week's CL). He sent me an e-mail, but I figured I’d give him a more public say. I applaud his passion, although he’s considerably off base in some of his more personal attacks on…
Water Taxis in Tampa’s Future?
Back in May, I looked at water taxis/ferries as a mode of public transit for Tampa Bay. It's an innovative idea that has been resurrected many times locally, but always fell flat to finances or bureaucracy. Well, we just might see one in the near future. As Times correspondent Alan Snel reports, developer Darren Booth…
Five Things to Do Today
1. An all-new season of Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations premieres tonight at 10 p.m. on the Travel Channel. The culinary adventurer’s first stop? Laos. 2. Rock songstress Pat Benatar (pictured) takes the stage at Ruth Eckerd Hall with hubbie/producer/lead guitarist Neil Giraldo. 3. Tampa Theatre continues screenings of Roman de Gare, a Hitchcockian French film…
Hope you had a happy 4th
In honor of this past weekend, which I would've liked to see last, I don't know, the rest of the summer, here's the greatest song ever about Independence Day bliss.Long live The Boss. "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)," Bruce Springsteen and E Street Band, Hammersmith Odeon, London, 1975
Food & Drink
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Celebrating independence with local rockers
This past doozy of a three-day weekend/bender continued Saturday with five local acts performing at the CL in Concert’s Independence Fest. The bash took place at the State Theatre. I arrived in time to catch emotive math rockers Military Junior turn in a taut, frisky performance that brought me to the lip of the stage.…
Tres Bien bassist downs 16 wieners for the win at Hot Dog Show
Tres Bien bassist Cody Michael Wilson (pictured) won the hot dog eating contest at the Hot Dog Show Friday, July 3 at Crowbar in Ybor City. Much to the crowd's amazement, he threw 16 wieners down the hatch. And then disappeared. People feared the worst. Shortly before his band performed, Wilson puked up the tubed…
Independence Fest tonight at State
OK, folks, the 4th of July bender that began Wednesday night with the Rays game and hit its stride Thursday with the Hot Dog Show (for me, at least) continues this evening with Creative Loafing's Independence Fest. See ya there. Here's the skinny:
July 4 roundup
The Obama smear campaign continues. OK, it's only a wackadoo blog commenter, but isn't this how lies spread in the digital age? Former Sen. Jesse Helms died today at 86. Sweet 16: The Oakland A's sign a 16-year-old from the Dominican Republican for $4.25 million. Big Brother strikes again: Judge orders YouTube to release data…
County to Mayor: Kick it to the curb!
Here's a sneak peak at my news story running in next week's Creative Loafing: Don Kobasky is losing sleep over recycling. The St. Petersburg resident lives across the street from one of the city’s 22 drop-off recycling centers, and from sunrise to well after sunset, he hears the crash of glass. “There’s nothing worse than…
The Parrot
There are many uses for a good solid chair and sex is probably the most fun that you will ever have with one. The trick to chair sex is to look beyond the standard “sit on me” and “bend over” positions. The parrot begins with the woman doing what we have all been told not…
Not-so-big Bertha
We have ourselves some weather action, folks! Tropical Storm Bertha has formed in the Atlantic, approximately 4 gagillion miles away from Florida — but moving west. If the forecast track is to be believed, Massachusetts could be wiped off the map as early as July 20th. For the moment, those of us manning the CL…
Proof that movie critics matter
You read the familiar lament when critics review a surefire blockbuster: "It doesn't matter what I write; people will go see it anyway." That's mostly true for Hollywood's big-budget releases, but as Erik Lundegaard points out in making the case that we need movie critics, these arbiters of taste have a measurable effect on box-office…
Food Party!
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Food Party!
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Chris Rock: Highlights from last night’s show
It’s my considered opinion that Chris Rock is a funny motherfucker. Last night at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center he was definitely a funny motherfucker. OK, there’s my review of the show. What follows is a few of his bits, so consider this a spoiler alert if you’re going to his show tonight. Very…
Jeph Loeb Is Killing The Avengers
It's arguable that Marvel Comics' Ultimates series — a modern re-tool of the classic Avengers team — is the biggest breadwinner the company has seen in years. Not the actual comic books, really, since we know that print comics still don't enjoy mainstream success. These days, the money is all at the movies. First came…
Run, Homosexual, Run!
Tyson Gay, Olympic sprinter, has a problematic last name — at least for the anti-gay American Family Association, whose practice of replacing "gay" with "homosexual" in news reports has led to some big fun. The ramifications of AFA's filter problems are detailed on the Poynter Institute's E-Media Tidbits blog, the Sleuth blog at washingtonpost.com and…
Five Things to Do This Holiday Weekend
1. Museum of Fine Arts unveils Ansel Adams and the American West, which includes more than 60 works by the black-and-white master, his contemporaries, and those who followed in his creative footsteps. (Pictured at right: "Grass in Rain, Glacier Bay National Monument, Alaska,” by Ansel Adams, 1948. ©The Trustees of The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights…
Katy Perry is No. 1
She's the snarky sexpot responsible for the Jill Sobule rip-off “I Kissed a Girl,” which just topped the Billboard Hot 100 again. I'm not a big fan of the girl-on-girl-action tune but do find myself chuckling at Perry's hipster-hating ditty, “Ur So Gay.” It features the chorus, “You’re so gay and you don’t even like…
Will Smith can’t save Hancock
It’s a high-concept premise that must have had studio execs seeing dollar signs: Will Smith stars as a surly, alcoholic superhero. Sad to say, but that concept is all there is to Hancock, a Hollywood product in the worst sense — devoid of a compelling story, relying instead on star power, gimmicky direction and the…
Flameouts: Rock’s Biggest Talent-Squanders
The gutter that runs beside the road of rock history is littered with artists who squandered their talent, who flamed out, washed up, went in the tank. The reasons are many, the most popular being some manner of self-destructiveness. Artists who were real good at that sort of thing — from Hendrix to Cobain —…
Independence Day-related randomness
Wanna wipe your butt with the U.S. Constitution? We suggest U.S. Constitution Toilet Paper, a brand spanking new "product" that you can own for the ultral low price of $8 a roll. Here's the hilarious sales pitch: Don’t just tell people that America’s leaders are wiping their butts with the Constitution, hand them a roll of…
Stop turning left!
If you want to reduce your carbon footprint and save some money in your ever-dwindling fuel budget you may want to stop making those time-consuming and wasteful left turns. This strategy has been implemented by numerous companies, including UPS, FedEX and Home Depot. UPS’s routing software, also used by Home Depot, plans routes for drivers…
Stop turning left!
If you want to reduce your carbon footprint and save some money in your ever-dwindling fuel budget you may want to stop making those time-consuming and wasteful left turns. This strategy has been implemented by numerous companies, including UPS, FedEX and Home Depot. UPS's routing software, also used by Home Depot, plans routes for drivers…
Dead Maids to play New World on July 5
This arrived too late to make it in Music Week, so I'm just going to drop a lazy blog post (hey, I've got an Against Me! cover story to write, folks, and it's due tomorrow and tonight I'm going to the Trop to watch the Rays once again humiliate the BoSox). Anyway, here's the skinny…
Harry and the Potters, Bar Tab, and more in new CL
An interview with the frontman of Harry and the Potters, Bar Tab, Music Week, Spins … Here's what I have running in the new issue of Creative Loafing: Bar Tab: You are what you drink. The men's edition. Harry and the Potters conjure up wizard rock. Celebrate Independence Fest at State Theatre. Fleet Foxes are…
Finally!, Sox Fans Drowned Out
Tampa Bay won twice last night — on the field and in the stands. After years of watching Red Sox fans turn Tropicana Field into their own personal pep rally, I was particularly gratified to be in the midst of a decidedly Rays partisan crowd. Oh, there were Sox backers, for sure, but they were…
Five Things to Do Today
1. Ringo Starr (pictured at right) brings his All-Starr Band to Ruth Eckerd Hall tonight. 2. Ritz Theater presents Bathhouse: The Musical, an all-male musical revue about four archetypal gay men and their misadventures in a bathhouse. The show runs at the Ritz through July 6 – 8 p.m. Wed.-Thurs., and 9:30 p.m. Sat., with special dinner…
Film: Platinum Blonde
Sunday, July 6
Art: Ansel Adams and the American West
Tuesday, July 8
Where there’s Smoke, there’s tasty barbecue
Gordon Davis combines flesh and fire in South Tampa.
Potter for punks
Harry and the Potters conjure up wizard rock.
Baron Von Bear’s lush pop
Orlando indie quintet harks back to Pet Sounds, Sgt. Pepper’s.
Take an All Music Guide through rap and hip-hop
More than 500 reviews from the ’70s to ’90s.
Film: The Little Princess
Saturday, July 5
Mayor Iorio declares her independence
Mayor Pam Iorio sits down for an “Influencers” interview on governing, party politics and the future — her own, as well as Tampa’s.
Don’t Panic
Is the surge in Iraq working?
Theater: Art
Saturday, July 5
Celebrate Independence Fest at State Theatre
Creative Loafing continues its local-music-centric concert series with a post-Fourth-of-July show featuring Tampa Bay acts whose band names hint at taking "independence" to mean terrorism (Car Bomb Driver), arson (Mouse Fire), professional assassin-ism (Have Gun, Will Travel) and militarism (Military Junior) — yes, we are unapologetically "alternative" here at CL. There's not a bad band…
Roman de Gare takes a cue from Hitchcock
Claude Lelouch concocts a tasty, thrilling soufflé.
Laughing at the fire
Surviving life’s flaming forklifts.
Dexy’s Midnight Runners, one-hit wonders with soul
Come back to “Eileen” with Too-Rye-Ay.
High cuisine
"The thought of a top-shelf margarita — served at your seat — available only on a Delta flight … kinda leaves you speechless."—Delta's description of its "Mamma Mia" margarita "Sweet Hawaiian luau bread, piled with shaved turkey-ham, aged cheddar cheese, crisp lettuce and vine-ripened tomatoes, served with fresh red grapes and a packet of mayonnaise."—U.S.…
You are what you drink
The men’s edition.
High fructose anxiety
Corn refiners go on the offensive.
Holiday: Independence Day
Friday, July 4
Red Room Cinema, The Hot Dog Show
Plus Tribal Style
Savage Love
Is drug-induced amnesia causing behavior?
Omali Yeshitela: “I ain’t speaking to City Hall or the police department.”
Who? Omali Yeshitela, founder of the International People's Democratic Uhuru Movement Sphere of influence: Since Yeshitela (formerly Joe Waller) tore down a racist mural in St. Petersburg's City Hall, he has earned the respect (and ire) of St. Petersburg residents both black and white. Though once praised by high-profile politicians, he has distanced himself from…
Steve Garland embraces the actor’s life
Catch this Everyman before he’s gone.
Carole King shows her Tapestry at Ruth Eckerd
Brooklyn-bred Carole King started out as a stalwart of the Brill Building hit machine; with partner (and later husband) Gerry Goffin, she cranked out an astonishing string of hits, starting in 1961 with "Take Good Care of My Baby" (Bobby Vee) and "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" (The Shirelles), both which reached No. 1.…
Concert: Dave Matthews Band
Wednesday, July 9
Fleet Foxes are a breath of sonic fresh air
Fleet Foxes, plus CDs by Dave Douglas & Keystone, and King Khan and the Shrines.
Wine List
Got an upcoming or ongoing wine event? Send information to: The Wine List, 810 N. Howard Ave., Tampa, FL 33606, fax 813-739-4801 or e-mail brian.ries@creativeloafing.com. CL's Best Bets GRILLIN' 'N' CHILLIN' SideBern's is continuing its summer wine and barbecue series, this week with wines from Pepin Distributing, smoked Berkshire pork shoulder and grilled country-style ribs.…
Kidz Connect: This is summer camp?
Teens in Tampa and Amsterdam connect via the Web at TBPAC.
Special Events: GaYbor Days
Thursday, July 3
Will Smith flies into theaters in Hancock
Plus other new and recent releases
A veggie tale for retention ponds
The co-founder of Green Armada tests the waters with a new green idea
Party/Concert: The Hot Dog Show 2
Thursday, July 3
Kit Kittredge separates the boys from the girls
Abigail Breslin shines in this Great Depression period piece.
Five campaigns to watch in Hillsborough and Pinellas
The hell with the presidency; here are the important races.
2 Live Crew, WMNF’s Americana Fest
Plus Brooks & Dunn
Comedy: Louis Ramey
Monday, July 7
Barack, Hillary and Bill
Plus, Mini-Me’s sex tape.
Ask for the cask
The taste may surprise you.
Dave Matthews Band jams at the Amp
By now, I realize it's a waste of effort to point out that Dave Matthews is a substandard talent, especially in proportion to the adoration he receives from his hordes of fans. It's pointless to maintain that Dave Matthews does little more than front a run-of-the-mill jazz-fusion band, that all he contributes besides mediocre songs…
Holiday: P.L.U.S.H Fest 2008
Friday, July 4
