Friday, Jan. 09 Villanova Junction w/Kore/Jett (The Garage Bar, St. Petersburg)
Friday, Jan. 09 Linda Eder w/William Joseph Pop vocalist Eder gained career momentum on Star Search, which for you young’uns was a distant precursor to American Idol. She comes from the Garland/Streisand mold, although her latest album, 2008’s The Other Side of Me, has a pop-country flavor. Pianist William Joseph specializes in quasi-classical and pompous pop. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
Friday, Jan. 09 Karl Denson's Tiny Universe West Coast jazz-funk musician Karl Denson leads two of his own self-monikered ensembles, the Karl Denson Trio (KD3) and his more popular and longer-running Tiny Universe. Denson sings, plays a sexy sax (and flute, too), and is a rather engaging presence (not to mention smokin’ hot). I’ve heard Snider call Tiny Universe “smooth,” but I disagree; Denson’s grooves have a nice bit of booty-moving funkiness and his high-energy shows are like dance parties. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
Friday, Jan. 09 Kosondra Rose (Whistle Stop Grill, Tampa)
Friday, Jan. 09-Sunday, Jan. 11 The Florida Orchestra Presents Petrushka with Puppets (TBPAC, REH)
Friday, Jan. 09 Have Gun, Will Travel After a breakthrough 2008, Matt Burke and company grabbed a little down time at year’s end. Now HGWT is back gigging actively. This year should see a further expansion and refinement of the act’s melodic, emotive America sound. (The Uptown Bar, St. Petersburg)
Saturday, Jan. 10 New Granada Presents Lush Progress w/Morningbell/November Foxtrot Whisky This troika of bands provides indie-rock enthusiasts with a nice smorgasbord of sounds. The rising Lush Progress, of Tampa, melds appealing hooks, languid vocals and intriguing arrangements that showcase imaginative string parts. Morningbell brings its gauzy psychedelic folk down from Gainesville. Haven’t heard much from November Foxtrot Whiskey in awhile, but I’m glad they’re putting their quirky, angular pop back into action. (New World Brewery, Tampa)
Saturday, Jan. 10, Tea Leaf Green San Francisco melodic jammers Tea Leaf Green makes a trio of Florida stops following their gig on JamCruise. (The Social, Orlando)
Saturday, Jan. 10 Cigar City Tattoo Convention w/Unknown Hinson/Red Rocket Deluxe Day two of the tat convo features North Carolina rockabilly troubadour Unknown Hinson (aka Stuart Daniel Baker). This is the third time the freaky solo artist has been to Tampa in less than a year, but folks seem to like his onstage B-horror-movie shtick. (The Cuban Club, Tampa)
Saturday, Jan. 10 Second Annual "A Reason to Rock" Benefit w/Chris McCarty/Soulfound/Radio Reset/The Prospect A young local woman whose father has Parkinson’s disease stages her second annual benefit concert to raise funds for the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. (Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg)
Saturday, Jan. 10 The Ira Sullivan Quartet Tampa Jazz Club welcomes multi-instrumentalist bebopper Ira Sullivan for a 3 p.m. show at the historic Springs Theater. Sullivan is known for his ability to improvise on a wide variety instruments — trumpet, flute, alto, soprano and tenor saxophone — and was a leading artist in the 1950s Chicago hard-bop scene. He’s joined by Michael Royal on piano, Richard Drexler on bass, and drummer Danny Gottlieb (who was the first drummer in the Pat Metheny Group). (The Springs Theater, Tampa)
Saturday, Jan. 10 Fast Taker w/Sins of the Father/Paradigm/Precipice/Kings of Awesome/Shattered Spine (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Saturday, Jan. 10 Josh Riley (Whistle Stop Grill, Safety Harbor)
Saturday, Jan.10 Halcyon w/Hymn For Her The heavenly, harmonizing pop-folk duo of Deb Hunseder and Stephanie Callahan make their monthly stop at Skipper’s. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)