Former Tampa homegirl and current Brooklyn hipster heroine Jennifer O'Connor has a unique take on singer-songwriterdom that splits the difference between tradition and a personal, indie-scene-derived aesthetic. Yeah, yeah, I know that can be said about a lot of great underground talents these days. But where most of them have far more in common with classic folk than they'd care to admit to their all-ages fanbase, O'Connor's genuinely edgy style has at least as much to do with original college-rock influences as it does the little strummer boy archetype. Her debut for the über-cool imprint Matador Records — this year's Over The Mountain, Across The Valley and Back to the Stars — is a marvel. Providing support for O'Connor this time 'round are the always darkly beatific Candy Bars and ace bilingual post-folk act Acho Brother.
Jennifer O'Connor w/Candy Bars/Acho Brother, 9 p.m. Fri., Dec. 29 @ New World Brewery, Ybor City, $8. —Scott Harrell
YOU FRONT THE BAND
What's better than having to deal with the party-going Amateur Hour that is New Year's Eve just to get your drink on? Being too hung over to go out at all because you got ripped on the night of the 30th — which, this year, just happens to be a Saturday. And what do you want to do when you get ripped? Why, sing karaoke, that's what. And believe us, we want to watch you do it.
Tampa's blistering, melodic Pseudo Heroes have scheduled another night of Punk Rock Karaoke, that oh-so-rare opportunity for you to stagger up in front of an actual live band and belt out your favorite tunes by Agent Orange, Bad Religion, The Ramones, The Misfits or some other classic combo. (But don't do Descendents' "Clean Sheets" — I've got dibs on that one.) The band's repertoire has grown to nearly 40 songs, so chances are there's something for you to croon, scream, mumble or slur along to; check out the song list and sign up ahead of time at myspace.com/tampapunkrockkaraoke, but remember — once you're in, you're in.
Punk Rock Karaoke Feat. Pseudo Heroes, 9 p.m. Sat., Dec. 30 @ Emerald Bar, St. Petersburg, $3. —SH
THE VAN ROAD TRIP
Up where the Florida panhandle meets the Alabama coastline, there's a big ol' ramshackle tourist trap aptly named the FloriBama Bar. (Well, it's not as big as it used to be, thanks to last year's hurricane season, but it probably will be again before long.) The FloriBama boasts multiple stages, and on weekends, there are generally three or more cover, country, roots and/or acoustic acts playing the boozy labyrinth's various rooms, patios and grottoes. And one time a few years back, during a stroll through the entire complex, I heard no less than four versions of Van Morrison's "Brown-Eyed Girl" in about 20 minutes. While I'm not really a huge fan of "Brown-Eyed Girl" and its cover-bar ubiquity — I'm more of a "Wild Night" guy, as far as the Irish folk-soul icon's bigger hits go — I can't think of a more succinct example of Van Morrison's enduring, nearly universal appeal. 2007 makes it 40 years since "Brown-Eyed Girl" first hit, and Morrison's masterpiece Astral Weeks is nearly as old, but his best songs still hit the listener in all the right, and most important, places.
Van Morrison, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 2 @ Silver Spurs Arena at Osceola Heritage Park, Kissimmee, $75-175. —SH
This article appears in Dec 27, 2006 – Jan 2, 2007.