Great music is happening all over town this weekend, and you’re wondering, “What should I choose?” Look no further. Everything you need to know is right here beginning with Thursday. Wanna take a look beyond this weekend? Check out our Upcoming Concerts page.
Friday, November 5
w/Ray LaMontagne and The Pariah Dogs [Pictured right] Rock n’ roll icon and one-time drummer/singer of The Band, Levon Helm has been a solo artist since 1977, though he pretty much stopped producing music from 1981 to 2006, and spent 10 of those years battling throat cancer and recovering from it. In 2007, he re-emerged with a covers LP, Dirt Farmer, and won a 2008 Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album. A follow-up, Electric Dirt, came in 2009 and earned him another Grammy, this one for Best Americana Album (a new 2010 category) and also featuring covers by artists ranging from Muddy Waters to Randy Newman. His touring 10-piece features, among others, ex-Dylan multi-instrumentalist sideman Larry Campbell and daughter/vocalist/mandola player Amy Helm, also players on Helm’s recent studio albums. Joining Helm on eight select dates (including right here in the Bay area) is Ray LaMontagne & The Pariah Dogs. Downhome folk rock troubadour LaMontagne and his current ensemble just dropped God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t Rise, his fourth album overall but his first collabing with other musicians. The album debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200. 7 p.m., Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, $39.50-$69.50.
Joe Buck Yourself w/The Goddamn Gallows/Viva Le Vox/Gonad Rehab/The Bloody jug Band A country punkin’ hillbilly best known for his brief tenure with Th' Legendary Shack Shakers and in Assjack as Hank III’s wicked string-flinging sidekick, Joe Buck is a Kentucky-bred “bona fide evil motherfucking one man band.” He plays a beat-up acoustic guitar and bass drum, and sings songs made for pounding whiskey like “Rage in the South” and “Hillbilly Speedball” in a coarse angry drawl, his drooping Mohawk falling over a stank-eyed stare. A bill of similarly rowdy roots-punk acts provide support. 7 p.m. doors, The Local 662, St. Petersburg, $10 (ages 21 and up).
[Pictured left, photo by Guru Khalsa] The goofy, punk-heavy rockin’ California trio left a long-lasting impression at Tropical Heatwave earlier this year with their high-energy set and the crowd-surfing of electric cellist/lead singer Rushad Eggleston, who wields his instrument like an electric guitar. Tornado Rider – which also includes drummer Scott Manke and bassist Graham Terry – returns to town bearing a recently remastered release of their first studio album, Do You Have Time…?. 9 p.m., Market on 7th, Ybor City, $10.
Solas Founded 14 years ago by musicians Seamus Egan (flute, tenor banjo, mandolin, whistle, guitar, bodhran) and fiddler Winifred Horan, the 14-year-old ensemble purveys traditional and modern Celtic/Irish-American folk music. Rounding out the group is melodious vocalist Máiréad Phelan, Mick McAuley on accordion and concertina, and guitarist/keyboardist Eamon McElholm. 7 p.m. doors, Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg, $22.50-$32.50.
Jayne Kelli CD Release Show The local acoustic rootsy singer-songwriter presents songs from her new album, Wake. This is one of her last few shows before she packs up and moves to the UK for good (or at least, for now). She also performs on Thursday at Hideaway Studios in St. Pete, where the album was originally recorded. 8 p.m., Dunedin House of Beer, Dunedin, free admission.
Wiz Khalifa The Pittsburgh rapper’s April 2010 mixtape, Kush and Orange Juice, became a top trending item on Twitter and Google and eventually got him signed to Atlantic Records. He’s obviously doing something right; this show has been *SOLD OUT* for over a week. 9 p.m., The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City, $22.
This article appears in Nov 4-10, 2010.