Stupid Rabbit
I don’t usually read tbt* because it’s a condensed, dumbed-down version of the St. Pete Times, and who needs to read the same stories twice?But I took a look at today’s edition, wondering if the headline “See Ya, Sami†meant that they were running some snarked-up commentary on the end of the Al-Arian saga.They weren’t;…
Summer of Sami – Epilogue
Well, what would the end of the Sami Al-Arian trial be without one last set of differently slanted headlines in the Tampa Tribune and the St. Petersburg Times? Al-Arian's plea deal, unsealed on Monday, saw the Trib focus on his admission of guilt, while the Times had an extremely sympathetic angle about how the plea…
An end for Sami
Sami Al-Arian formally pleaded guilty to one watered-down count of aiding a terrorist organization this morning in federal court in Tampa. That simple act bought an end to a decade-long saga that – depending on your viewpoint – either demonstrates our government’s vigilance in dealing with terrorism or its inept harassment of an innocent who…
The Devil’s Music?
A little over a week ago, Dallas-based minister and founder of EX Ministries Elder G. Craige Lewis took his message to the families stationed at U.S. Armed Forces bases in the far Pacific. It seems Elder Lewis has a contemporary new twist on that old standard about the kids' music being a tool of Satan…
Storms’ Supporters
Ronda Storms’ first campaign report for her Florida Senate race is in. She raised nearly $88,000 from a variety of interests, most notably real estate, Big Sugar, the Collier family in Southwest Florida and the insurance industry. And if you were wondering whether her champion, Sen. J.D. Alexander of Bartow, would actually come to Ronda's…
Follow the Money, Hillsborough edition
Money doesn’t guarantee a winning campaign. But it is the only tangible indicator of who is ahead in the 2006 elections, and having it is a whole lot better than not having it. So it is interesting to take a look at the Hillsborough County Commission District 1 race, where three Republicans (one, Gary Santti,…
Armory Towers, starting at $350,000
I've seen the city of Tampa's Request for Proposals to redevelop the Fort Homer Hesterly Armory in West Tampa. The bottom line: It's going condo! See my full analysis in this week's Political Whore in the Weekly Planet.
Look Who’s Talking
FYI: There's an interesting conversation in regards to PoHo's post on Brian Blair's HARTline study going on over at the Sticks of Fire blog. Check it out here.
Justice Prevailing?
Even to some in his own Democratic Party, Florida Senate candidate Charlie Justice’s campaign performance has been viewed as pretty abysmal, at least measured by his fundraising results. Justice, now in the House from St. Petersburg, has raised only about $53,000 so far, according to reports released this week. His Republican counterparts, Rep. Kim Berfield…
Winelist
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 winestuff@weeklyplanet.com. WINES FOR EASTER Taste wines designed to make the Easter celebration more festive. $10, includes souvenir glass and hors d'oeuvres. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Fri., April 14. Uncorked, 2706 Fourth St. N.,…
Bad Behavior
A sensation at Sundance and at the Toronto Film Festival (where it spawned a bidding war with two competing studios claiming they'd bought it), Thank You For Smoking doesn't quite live up to the buzz but it's good, nasty fun nonetheless. Aaron Eckhart (The Company of Men) has his moment in the sun as the…
Out of India
DANCE
Dirty Pictures
ART
Don’t call it a comeback
Southern soul isn’t what you think it is
Upcoming Releases
The following releases will be in stores Tues., April 18: Aiden, Our Gang's Dark Oath (Victory Rock) ALO, Fly Between Falls (Brushfire) America, Collectables Classics [Box Set] (Collectables) Avani, Real Thing (Dome) Bananarama, Collectables Classics [Box Set] (Collectables) Adrienne Barbeau, True Companion (Codysmom) Adrian Belew, Side Three (Sanctuary) Chuck Berry, Definitive Collection (Chess) Marshall Chapman,…
Fiddlin’ with tradition
Joe Thompson and the African-American string bands
Keep it Coming
As long as they keep coming, I'll keep calling 'em one of the best live bands in the Southeast. The ATL's Five Eight have been bringing the sweat, rock and personality to Bay area clubs for, what, 15 years now? The group has weathered lineup changes, label woes and the changing tides of indie-rock trends,…
Heads Up
Go for the gospel — but it helps if you’re into hats.
Where’s the Music
Our list of places to catch local acts in the Bay area.
Reasons to believe
Bands to Watch 2006
She can stand the strain
The R&B soul of Ann Peebles
Sacred steel
Twang’s not just for country
Sounds of the New South
Music you oughta know
The perfect Day
Cereal, coffee and community come together in downtown St. Pete.
Snack Attack
A UF landmark heads for Tampa.
J. FRED MUGGS
BUSH LEAKS His new Secret Service name: Deep Dolt. JUDAS REVISITED Old view: traitor to Our Lord. New view: groovy dude just helping a brother out. KATIE COURIC LEAVES TODAY The hell with carping about pro athletes' pay; Couric was offered $20 million a year. MEREDITH VIEIRA JOINS TODAY Only applicant who would agree to…
Allen Toussaint
Soul survivor
The Blotter
BRING DA' NOISE: Neighbors have come to regard "Joe's Stereo," a car audio retailer on Broadway Avenue in Tampa, as a bit of a pariah. Tampa P.D. recorded 47 incidents at the business between October of last year and February, the vast majority of which were noise complaints from residents of the surrounding neighborhood. Finally,…
Swamp thing
A hip-hop subgenre emerges from the heart of Florida
Anatomy of a scene
Tampa Bay’s metalcore
Miami herald
Fitzroy and the tropical funk vanguard
Wrestling for the Armory
Redeveloping the West Tampa landmark just got tougher.
The Notorious C.H.O.
COMEDY
Radio Free NOLA
A WMNF reporter takes community radio to still-ravaged New Orleans.
Mail Bonding
Where faithful readers raise their voices.
Outtakes
New Releases BREAKFAST ON PLUTO (R) A long, strange, trip down the memory lane of 1970s Ireland, Breakfast on Pluto is director Neil Jordan's delightfully curious ode to his homeland, and to the joys of growing up weird in a place that has no use for outsiders. This is a distinctly bittersweet tale told with…
Backspin
Oranges and Lemons XTC Caroline This technicolor blast of post-Beatles power-pop was anathema in the late '80s, with the alternative rock movement beginning to gain traction and the likes of Tears for Fears on the fade. Oranges and Lemons brims with hookmanship, rich vocal harmonies and layered production that stop just short of psychedelic. Check…
Word UP
SPOKEN WORD
Magnificent Obsession
How Two Dudes From San Francisco Have Tapped Into The Deepest Levels Of Americana.
Rising star
The last fife and drum band
Thank You,
Iron-On Resistance carries on the tradition of art-for-everybody.
Letting Go
Sifting through your crap can be a test of your identity.
La Rua
Southern rock en Español
Spins
Show Your Bones YEAH YEAH YEAHS Dress Up/Interscope Coming right when the mainstream was catching on to New York City's early-'00s No Wave-influenced acts (lumping them all together as "garage rock"), Yeah Yeah Yeahs' first proper full-length, Fever to Tell, was naturally a highly anticipated affair. It was also wildly uneven, with Brian Chase's dynamic…
Abstract Is the Word
Prior to beginning on a work like "Shadows in Equilibrium," one of his typically gigantic and explosively colorful abstract paintings, Bassmi Ibrahim meditates, emptying his mind of the world's distractions to arrive at a state of appreciation of the pure "isness" of life. The Egyptian-American, Florida-based artist draws this idea from a quotation by mystic…
Bringing Up Baby
Tsotsi makes a superficial attempt at exploring life in the slums of South Africa.
The Bests of the Fests
From Alabama to Virginia, music festivals abound
Bankhead Body Rock
ATL’s snap music
The Big Eight Oh
FILM
Music Menu
FRIDAY, APRIL 14 ALAN PARSONS LIVE PROJECT In the mid-'70s, with certain folks all agog 'cause he engineered The Beatles' Abbey Road and, even better, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, Alan Parsons got together with songwriter Alan Woolfson and started cranking out tepid, immaculately produced prog-pop (the first album was called Tales of…
