THURSDAY, MARCH 27

BREAKDOWN w/MR. SMITH/EFFEX/CHAMPION SUN/DJ SANDMAN/DJ DEACON Breakdown, an MC who alternates between provocative meditations and humorous asides over spare, heavy bass lines and throwback funk, headlines this lineup of local hip-hop luminaries. (Push Ultra Lounge, St. Petersburg)

TIME AGAIN w/DEAD POETS/WHISKEY ROMANCE/WHARF RATS Los Angeles-based punk revivalists Time Again excel at deceptive simplicity, the quartet's freshly minted sophomore album, Darker Days, (Hellcat) proving to be an agreeable exercise in mature hardcore spiced with hints of power-pop. (Orpheum, Ybor City)

MOODY BLUES These purveyors of generally dreadful art-pop sold this show out more than a week in advance, so obviously someone likes 'em. The band scored such gauzy hits as "Nights in White Satin," "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)" and "Your Wildest Dreams," but for my money the only Moody Blues song worth a damn is their first hit: the British Invasion-esque "Go Now," from 1965, and that's because the song sounds not at all like the Moody Blues music that came later. (Ruth Eckerd Hall) —Eric Snider

RUN RUN RUN w/RADIO RESET/NOVEMBER FOXTROT WHISKEY L.A. four-piece Run Run Run's atmospheric, Americana-tinged power-pop adroitly straddles the line between indie subtlety and modern-rock explicitness. (Crowbar, Ybor City)

GUILTMAKER w/GIDDY-UP, HELICOPTER/ROUSTABOUT Tampa's Guiltmaker trade in contemplative indie-rock marked by angular, layered guitar parts that sink and swell around the emotive vocals of Shaun Drees and Dan Radde. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)

SUWANNE SPRINGFEST: DAVID GRISMAN QUINTET/PETER ROWAN/DONNA THE BUFFALO/RAILROAD EARTH/GUY CLARK/COMMANDER CODY/JIM LAUDERDALE/CLAIRE LYNCH/HOT BUTTERED RUM/AMY LAVERE/THE LEE BOYS/OTHERS Bring your camping gear for this mostly acoustic fest featuring bluegrass great/mandolin virtuoso David Grisman, whose resume includes touring and recording with Jerry Garcia. The event takes place today through March 30. For more info see magmusic.com. (Spirit of Suwannee Music Park, Live Oak)

ORLEANS The soft-rockers responsible for the 1976 smash "Still the One" perform today through March 30 at the theme park's Stanleyville Theater. (Busch Gardens, Tampa)

FRIDAY, MARCH 28

WINTER MUSIC CONFERENCE'S ULTRA MUSIC FESTIVAL: UNDERWORLD/TIESTO/PAUL VAN DYKE/JUSTICE/CARL COX/MOBY

One of the nation's most acclaimed and longest running electronica fests returns with headliner Underworld. Perhaps best known for its grimy anthem "Born Slippy," it's a standout track on the excellent Trainspotting soundtrack that came out in '96. This 14-stage event takes place today and tomorrow. For more info and complete list of acts, see ultramusicfestival.com. (Bicentennial Park, Miami)

CHUCK WICKS After participating in the quickly cancelled Fox reality TV show Nashville, Wicks bounced back with his debut album, Starting Now, which came out in January. It reached No. 24 on the Billboard 200 pop chart and No. 7 on the publication's Top Country Albums survey thanks to the poppy hit single "Stealing Cinderella." (Dallas Bull, Tampa)

ZOROASTER w/MINSK/DARK CASTLE/MOUNTAIN OV DAWN/KHANN Atlanta's Zoroaster picks up the early Sabbath vibe and takes it into sludgier terrain with Grim Reaper riffs and hell's gate vocals. (Brass Mug, Tampa)

SICK PUPPIES w/DROPPING DAYLIGHT/SAVING ABEL Originally from Sydney, Australia, the Sick Puppies' brand of high-polish, lovesick modern rock landed the band a pair of hit singles last year: "All the Same" and "My World." (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)

LEFT IN ASHES w/MY EVIL SIDE/TUG/CULBREATH Tampa death-metal outfit Left in Ashes pulverize listeners with fast, heavy guitar exploits, ill drumming and demonic vocals that should send ice up the spines of the uninitiated. (Crowbar, Ybor City)

CHRIS MCCARTY BAND w/MIGGS Gainesville's Chris McCarty has built a loyal following at the Skipperdome via regular appearances and his Jack Johnson/Ben Harper brand of student-friendly strum-soul, which includes plenty of sunny odes to "one love." (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)

EMILY SMITH BAND The Scottish singer/songwriter's angelic voice and airy, melodic folk originals recall the works early Dolly Parton and Alison Krauss. (Tarpon Springs Performing Arts Center, tarpon Springs)

YO MAJESTY w/BLAQUE POP/LORD DIAK/JERZY/GHETTO C/NEW BREED Tampa's internationally acclaimed hardcore feminist rap trio Yo Majesty return home after bicoastal and European touring to delight and enlighten attendees with clever, stereotype-busting titles like "Club Action" and "Kryptonite Pussy." (Orpheum, Ybor City)

CHARLIE VEGAS AND THE NEW BLUES COMBO This local outfit capably entertains roots enthusiasts with a good-times presentation of jump-blues, rockabilly and swing. (Dave's Aqua Lounge, St. Petersburg)

TENSPOKE INDIES w/SURLY/NESSIE A troika of Bay area acts heads south for a refreshing, largely punk-less night of alt-rock. The bands are uniformly good, and on the same, circa-'90s page (Talk about common ground: Guys from two bands on the bill used to play with locals Red Skyline). Check out the tight Tampa four-piece Tenspoke Indies; garage-emo-popsters Nessie; and the Fight Club-referencing ("His Name is Robert Paulson") gentlemen in Surly. Tenspoke Indies will also performs on March 29 at Crowbar in Ybor City. (Rasher Tierney's Backroom, Bradenton) —Amanda Schurr

SATURDAY, MARCH 29

CANDY BARS w/SPY FOR HIRE/JAMES SALTER Following an extended hiatus, local duo the Candy Bars are back on area stages with their stirring indie-pop originals, which are buoyed by the highly literate, gripping lyrics of singer/guitarist Daniel Martinez; he delivers his ruminations in a hypnotic whisper. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)

TONY BENNETT Talk about a life well lived. Tony Bennett, now 81, travels the world singing for adoring crowds in upscale halls; he paints, and people pay him a lot of money for his artwork; the old-timer just oozes energy and positive vibes. (I've had cocktails with him — actually I had cocktails and he had coffee — and he's as genuine as he seems on television.) His voice, a little frayed now, is still expressive and welcoming. (Ruth Eckerd Hall) —ES

HALCYON w/BITCH AND THE EXCITING CONCLUSION The women from beloved Tampa acoustic duo Halcyon return to their favorite stomping grounds with special guest Bitch, formerly of the outlandish female act Bitch and Animal, which issued their 2003 album, Sour Juice and Rhyme, on Ani DiFranco's Righteous Babe label. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)

NATHAN TRUEBLOOD BENEFIT: CHAOS ARCADE/LO/BLACK IN THE MIND/ADRIFT/CLENCHFIST/BURN THEORY New Port Richey's Chaos Arcade will unleash its prog-leaning screamo for this hometown benefit gig. (Bourbon St. Nightclub, New Port Richey)

KELLY RICHIE Touring in support of forthcoming release Carry the Light, Cincinnati-based Richie more than holds her own with the boys, meriting all those comparisons to SRV and Jeff Beck, not to mention Janis and Bonnie Raitt. The sounds are straight-forward Southern blues-rock, but audiences can count on an extended jam or five. Richie's fierce guitar and fantastic, rich vocals set her apart from her contemporaries, male or female. (Ace's Lounge, Bradenton) —AS

NEUROTICA W/THE D.O.O.D./BAD SARA The Sarasota metal legends reunite for another ball-busting performance. After an Ozzfest stint, Rolling Stone nod, years of record label turnover and coming this close to fronting Velvet Revolver, Kelly Shaefer and fellow original members Shawn Bowen, G.J. Gosman and Migwell Przybyl, along with guitarist Louis Polito, are back in their hometown. Lending support are The Distinguished Order of Disobedience and Bad Sara, hyped as "the hardest rocking 13-14 year olds you have ever heard." (Gallery Billiards, Sarasota) —AS

SUNDAY, MARCH 30

DAVID DONDERO w/HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL/KING OF SPAIN/BRAHM BONES It's a pleasure catching ace North Carolina troubadour David Dondero just to hear his poignant Florida travelogue "South of the South," in which he devotes a verse to a misadventure in Ybor City. Bradenton's Have Gun, Will Travel are fresh off a Southern tour, which brought them to the locally sponsored Bandango showcase that took place in Austin, Texas, on the eve of the much ballyhooed SXSW conference. The alt-country ensemble has its highly anticipated debut full-length in the can and plans to release the disc next month. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)

WMNF BLUES BLAST: DAMON FOWLER/SARASOTA SLIM/AL "COFFEE" MCDANIEL/JULIE BLACK/WALKER SMITH GROUP/SANDY ATKINSON AND THE MODEANS WMNF's first annual Blues Blast features a cadre of local talent led by Skipperdome fave and national touring act Damon Fowler, a versatile guitarist and capable singer who fronts a potent power trio. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)

ACCESSORY w/CYANIDE REGIME/DJ GOGGLES German electro-rock duo Accessory's incessant beats have a Goth bent that should transport club kids back to the decadent, Ecstasy-fueled days of the early '90s. (Orpheum, Ybor City)

WIN WIN WINTER w/MOUSE FIRE/AUTO!AUTOMATIC!/MUMPSY An indie-rock band with an ear for irresistible hooks and an endearing flair for the dramatic, Tampa's Win Win Winter perform in celebration of its new EP, A Brief History of Win Win Winter. (Crowbar, Ybor City)

This article appears in Mar 26 – Apr 1, 2008.