THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20
ESCAPE THE FATE w/BLESS THE FALL/LOVE HATE HERO/BEFORE THEIR EYES This night of emo/screamo/post-hardcore is headlined by Las Vegas quintet Escape the Fate, which released its debut album Dying Is Your Latest Fashion last year on Epitaph, a label that usually doesn't sign bands this poppy and, well, boring. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
THE HOLY SLOW TRAIN w/THE ALOHA MODEL The latest project of venerable local alt-country vet Will Quinlan (Diviners, Pagan Saints), The Holy Slow Train don't stray far from the bearded troubadour's past endeavors, but it's quality nonetheless. The Aloha Model's website was "undergoing routine maintenance" when I compiled Music Week, so all I can I offer is that it's the solo project of Auto!Automatica!! guitarist Brian Larsen. (Kelly's Pub, Tampa)
APOSABLE SCUM w/BLAST Columbia, S.C., avant-rock quartet Aposable Scum manages to strike a delicate balance between hook and dissonance, crafting songs that are cerebral yet visceral, challenging and catchy. Check out "Crush on Living Sin" on the band's MySpace page. The basic riff sounds borrowed from the Pixies or Nirvana (and then heavily mutated), with heaps of squeaks and crashes thrown on top. The lyrics are hard to decipher, but I'm pretty sure the singer is calling for anarchy. The publicity material notes that "all guitars are in alternate tunings and often played with drumsticks and power drills," which wouldn't mean shit if the finished product didn't rock. In the case of Aposable Scum, it does. Blast are a local punk band with a handle on the abstract noises, unbridled energy and unintelligible screaming — but they lack the sense of melody that draws in music enthusiasts looking for more than the aural equivalent of paint thrown haphazardly against a blank canvas (and no, we're not talking Jackson Pollock here). Aposable Scum and Blast will also perform on Fri., Sept. 21, at Transitions Art Gallery @ Skatepark in Tampa with Waterdigger, Insect Joy, Beardtongue and the space/caps-bar-hating meandmyfriendcoty. (The Emerald, St. Petersburg)
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 21
ANCHORS FOR ARMS w/CROOKED EDGE New Jersey quartet Anchors for Arms offer a hard-charging mix of punk and speed-metal marked by emo-ish vocals, Sabbathian power-chord crunch and Slayer-style shredding. Tampa's Crooked Edge also incorporate elements of emo, punk and metal but minus the guitar exploits that distinguish the headliner. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 22
NEW RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE w/WILDLIFE REFUGEES The New Riders, an offshoot of the Grateful Dead that early on included Jerry Garcia, hit stride in the late '60s, just as psychedelicized country rock was permeating the hippie psyche. The band was essentially a musically adroit aggregation of San Francisco longhairs with a penchant for Merle Haggard, bluegrass and that ilk. Although The New Riders' most famous song is the 1973 paean to pot, "Panama Red," their music was pretty authentic roots country with a real playful feel. None of that tear-in-your-beer shit. The band has incurred various personnel changes over the years, but the latest incarnation, according to info I could pick up online, includes early members David Nelson and Buddy Cage, along with Michael Falzarano, Ronnie Penque and John Markowski. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa) —Eric Snider
MAGADOG w/SKIF DANK/THE BRENTFORD SOUND There's little argument that Magadog was the most revered ska band to ever call Tampa Bay home. (The only argument you might get is from other ska bands.) After a great run in the '90s/early '00s, leader Ed Lowery broke the band up a few years ago, but Magadog re-formed for the recent WMNF birthday bash and for this gig at New World. No other shows are listed on their MySpace site, so these performances could be the long and the short of it. There's little doubt that the reconstituted Magadog will bring the same bounce and fun that it did in years past. The group's approach is more skewed to roots ska and two-tone than punk-influenced permutations. Skif Dank (love the name), out of Daytona Beach, are kindred spirits to Magadog. Same goes for Fort Myers' The Brentford Sound. (New World Brewery, Ybor City) —ES
MISERY SIGNALS w/THE AGONY SCENE/EMMURE/SKY EATS AIRPLANE/BORN OF OSIRIS Wisconsin rockers Misery Signals' mathy-punk-meets-screamo might look interesting on paper, but on the headphones it's just the same doom-metal sound with jarring tempo changes. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
UMOGA ORCHESTRA w/D'VISITORS/ACHO BROTHER/VARIETY WORKSHOP Gainesville ensemble Umoga Orchestra bring the jammy funk but with a more pronounced Afro-beat element that makes their music more geared to fans of Fela Kuti than, say, Dave Matthews Band. Local reggae funksters D'Visitors will add to the Saturday-night party vibe. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
TRACE OF DAY w/RUDE SQUAD/NEW SEASON/JET SET SUNRISE Tampa alternative rock (with shades of emo) five-piece Trace of Day celebrate the release of their new, self-titled CD. (The Garage, St. Petersburg)
GARGAMEL!/SESSO/ENDLESS SUSPENSION Perhaps unsurprisingly for a band named after the evil sorcerer who made himself the lifelong enemy of the Smurfs, Gargamel! bring a more playful touch to the stage than most heavy metal bands. Vocalist Mandaddy — did I just write that? — has a penchant for wizard gear and stalks the stage with demented glee, while the rest of the Orlando band go from quiet to raging at the tap of a hi-hat. (Gallery Billiards, Sarasota) —Cooper Levey-Baker
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 23
BASIC ROCK OUTFIT w/EXPERIMENTAL PILOT One of the Bay's most solid (and popular) bar bands, Basic Rock Outfit split their sets between classic-rock covers like "Rockin' in the Free World" and well-crafted post-grunge originals off their new disc Thank You for the Pain. At least that's what I witnessed a few months back when I visited North Tampa's L.A. Hangout to pen a Bar Tab column. The band recently released a very accomplished, radio-friendly CD (self-titled). Experimental Pilot, an acoustic duo featuring brothers Robert and Stephen Vessenmeyer (former members of Men From Earth, as was BRO's Jeremy Thomas), kick things off with their melodic folk originals. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
CHUCK OWEN & THE JAZZ SURGE w/FRANK FOSTER The Van Wezel gets its '07-'08 season started this week with a blast of throwback swing featuring Frank Foster, who spent 11 years blowing the tenor sax in the Count Basie Orchestra. Jazz Surge are a top-shelf big band led by USF prof Owen. (Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Sarasota) —CLB
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24
THE LOAFIES w/LORNA BRACEWELL/BLAC SOAP/THE DITCHFLOWERS Creative Loafing's first Best of the Bay awards show is, of course, a must-attend event. Comedy, acceptance speeches, red carpet, the whole nine. The gala evening features performances by three of the area's top performers: singer/songwriter Lorna Bracewell, psychedelic hip-hop duo Blac Soap and classic-pop maestros The Ditchflowers. (Tampa Theatre, Tampa)
DROPKICK MURPHYS w/HORRORPOPS/EVERYBODY OUT Without compromising an iota of integrity, Celtic-punk ensemble Dropkick Murphys' name recognition has blown up in recent years thanks to their remake of the Boston Red Sox theme song "Tessie," which has been played at Fenway Park since the team's '04 World Series run, and the prominent inclusion of their song "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" in Martin Scorsese's The Departed. The band is touring in support of the newly released full-length The Meanest of Times. (For more on Dropkick Murphys, go to the music feature.) Danish trio Horrorpops offer sludgy punk buoyed by the bad-girl-next-door vocals of bassist/singer Patricia Day. (Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg)
HENRY ROLLINS He's suggested that he has no idea why people pay to hear him talk. Quite honestly, neither do I. Don't get me wrong. I'm not a Henry basher. I like his music pretty much. And I kinda like what he represents in terms of being an independent thinker, gadfly and punk intellectual (and I like that he really knows and digs jazz). But I've seen some of his spoken-word work on TV and did not find it particularly funny or all that illuminating. If you're one of those folks who thinks Henry parts the seas and you hang on his every word, you surely don't want to miss this performance. If you're not one of these people, Henry can come across as another blowhard. Me? I might show up the next time he brings a band. (Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa) —ES
TAMMERLIN Lee Hunter and Arvid Smith are two of the bright lights on the already-shining Florida folk scene, with a host of state gigs under their belts already and one tonight as guests of the Sarasota Folk Club. Hunter writes the songs and sings, while Smith works up and down the fretboard. The Sarasota Folk Festival doesn't go down until late October; this outdoor gig should prove a handy preview. (Sarasota Sailing Squadron, Sarasota) —CLB
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26
JAKE LA BOTZ The Ink-loving acoustic blues man (and actor) from Chicago brings his tattoo parlor tour to Tampa. (Las Vegas Tattoo Co., Ybor City)
LIVE/COLLECTIVE SOUL By the mid '90s, the rush of excitement spurred by grunge was flagging, and as the dust settled, bands like Live found themselves scoring hits ("Lightning Crashes," "I Alone") under the aegis of alternative rock. The Pennsylvania group brought plenty of bombast and pomposity to its sound, and lots of folks liked it. Some of us, however, saw the rise of a band like Live as a scary portent. Collective Soul's "Shine" belongs in the same discussion, although the Georgia group (led by singer/guitarist Ed Roland) made music that was certainly less pretentious than that of Live. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater) —ES
This article appears in Sep 19-25, 2007.