Local community-funded radio station WMNF brings a mass of local, national and regional talent to Ybor City every year for a multi-venue genre-crossing music fest, Tropical Heatwave. We're counting down the weeks leading up to the 31st annual event — set to occur on Saturday, May 12, and encompassing 13 stages and more than 60 performers — by featuring our top 10 favorite acts, the ones you can count on to bring the fire to this year's Heatwave.
The countdown draws ever closer to its imminent conclusion as Heatwave approaches, now less than two weeks away. Check out the first eight band's we featured here, then read about the ninth and latest act to get CL's spotlight — The Explorers Club.
The Charleston, S.C. sextet imbues their music with all the nostalgia and warmth of 1970s AM gold with a sound that recalls the softer jazzy side of Steely Dan, lush orchestrations of Burt Bacharach and doo-wop vocals harmonies of the Beach Boys. It definitely crosses the border into cheesy PG-rated pop-land, but in a way that's rather pleasant and delightful.
This article appears in Apr 26 – May 2, 2012.