DJ SS w/MC WARREN G/Twisted Individual/Bamboo/CLRH2O/ Dingo/Screwface One of UK's finest DJ and MC combos, SS and Warren G, combine lyrical punches with rough beats in a jungle drum 'n' bass style that ranges from ragga to hard step. DJ SS has been at the forefront of D&B's development since the style's inception, responsible for several of the genre's groundbreaking anthems, such as Lighter. Twisted Individual, a.k.a. Lee Greenaway, a talented South London producer, shares the bill's headline on the Brits' first ever tour stop in Florida. Expect SS's newer tracks, a progressive combination of hard-rolling basslines and breakbeats, to engender some serious hard-stepping from the crowd. (July 19, Rain Lounge) —Cooper Cruz
Got Skills? 4 Calling all bathroom-mirror MC's, closet B-boys and drunken shotgun-seat rhyme-spittaz. You think you dope? Prove it. Here's your chance to win a hundred bucks, the respect of your peers and all the hoochies 15 minutes of local fame can rake in. Of course, there's always the chance that you'll be the guy everyone recalls with rolled eyes and guffaws at Got Skills 5. In order to avoid that unfortunate possibility, we suggest packing the crowd with your crew, because the audience determines the winner. (July 20, Orpheum)
Welt w/Pseudo Heroes/TBA Underrated road warriors Welt have hit the Bay area about 125,000 times over the last three years or so, always at the bottom of a nice package. Which means most of the Epitaph/Fat Wreck aficionados have forgone seeing 'em in favor of busting beer bottles against the back wall of the State. The foursome plies an excellent, dirty style that weighs in somewhere between Social Distortion's rough-and-tumble rock and the compelling punk of Face To Face, and is well worth witnessing. Locals Pseudo Heroes just released Betraying Angry Thoughts, a downright jaw-dropper of a melodic fastrawk gem. See them. Now. (July 20, State Theatre)
Georgia Satellites w/Sean Chambers New Port Richey's Bourbon Street has been weighing in with some fairly intriguing live music options of late. This time it's twang-core upstarts Georgia Satellites (kids, ask your older siblings, or attend the nearest karaoke night for a memory-jogging version of Keep Your Hands To Yourself). The current lineup, sans former leader Dan Baird, consists of guitarist/vocalist Rick Richards, bassist/vocalist Rick Price and drummer Billly Pitts. Sean Chambers is a talented resident bluesman — those passing by the bar may well be tempted to wonder if the ghost of Stevie Ray Vaughan is inside. (July 20, Bourbon Street)
Niladri Kumar/Vijay Ghate USF's Indian Classical Music Society presents youthful sitar player Niladri Kumar, accompanied by Vijay Ghate on the tabla; Ghate is a protege of maestro Pandit Suresh Telwalkar. Try to keep the beach balls away from the stage, OK? (July 20, University Lecture Hall, USF)
G3 2001 featuring Joe Satriani/Steve Vai/John Petrucci Shred isn't dead. It just got a stylish haircut and schmoozed its way into respectable performance venues. Guru Satriani is tasteful, textural and song-oriented. Vai, an alumnus of Zappa, David Lee Roth and Whitesnake, is flamboyant, feisty and unrestrained. Dream Theatre ax-man Petrucci displays a pronounced classical bent. An intriguing array of masterful styles, if you're into that sort of thing. Bitter former hair-metal frontmen yelling drunkenly for more vocals in the PA will be asked to leave the premises. (July 20, Ruth Eckerd Hall)
Retard-O-Bot 2000/Puddin' Hogs/Gargamel!/Module One This is Retard-O-Bot's CD release party and, in all honesty, while I enjoy their dumb-ass live shenanigans as much as anybody, you've got to wonder exactly what the point of an ears-only experience might be. But then again, who cares? They'll be performing at the show. Pinellas groovecore ensemble Puddin' Hogs manages to avoid most rap-core cliches with a super-heavy blitzkrieg style; they're no slouches onstage either. Orlando's Gargamel! is a band every fan of heavy music should see — a Bungle-esque combination of ability and dark buffoonery that singlehandedly obliterates every cynical, negative connotation of the term local band. (July 21, State Theatre)
Aaron Carter w/A*Teens Seriously, how young is too young, when it comes to subjecting kids to the rigors and expectations of pop celebrity? Current industry skinny has that dancing baby from Ally McBeal releasing a disc of urban tunes in time for Christmas; Beyonce from Destiny's Child is on the single. Backstreet Boy Nick Carter's younger brother Aaron is hosting the party for now, and can the forces which control this hapless, talent-less little bundle of blonde hair, teeth and dimples really believe he's gonna sell out the Sun Dome? If he does, citizens of our fair district might consider altering their commuter routes in order to avoid any and all clock towers. (July 21, Sun Dome)
Monstrosity w/Deeds of Flesh/Pyoemia/Odious Sanction/Sabbatic Feast UUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH! The Mug presents an evening of bands that beg the question, Is that a death metal band's logo, or just a tribal tattoo design? The words will all be big, the blast beats will all be blasting, and the songs will all be entitled. Monstrosity is still huge in Europe and Brandon, so don't be surprised if you run into every guy who sold you pot and asked you to be in his band in '91. (July 21, Brass Mug)
The Lyndsay Diaries/Johnny/Justin D An evening of stripped-down acoustica, courtesy of The Refuge. The Lyndsay Diaries are affiliated with Militia Group The Record Label; Johnny used to be in the marvelous Pilots vs. Aeroplanes; and Justin D plays with local garage-rock fashion-boys The Fizz. (July 22, The Refuge)
Reel Big Fish/Goldfinger w/Zebrahead/Homegrown Nobody got around to telling RBF that third-wave ska-punk is now about as vital as George Romero's extras. Goldfinger got the message, and, with characteristic originality, went back to putting out the simple, fast and poppy stuff, not that they're bad at it. Major-label tragedy Zebrahead (anyone moved enough by their performance to want a CD can find about a thousand of 'em in the Bay area's various Used bins) and perennial opener Homegrown round things out. (July 22, Jannus Landing)
Oksana Kolesnikova Russian piano prodigy Oksana Kolesnikova performs a benefit for the Safety Harbor Neighborhood Family Center's literacy and learning programs for children. Kolesnikova graduates this summer from FSU's School of Music. As this concert falls on her first anniversary, the pianist will perform an original composition, The Voice of Life, which she wrote for the wedding ceremony. (July 22, Safety Harbor Resort & Spa)
Dave Matthews Band w/Junior Brown While the Dave Matthews Band's collaboration with pop-svengali Glen Ballard might've irked some of their more granola-fied fans, the group continues to be one of music's top draws. And their new videos are so pretty! Besides, you know the live show's gonna be one big, jammy love-fest. Opener Junior Brown, who also makes a one-off appearance at Frankie's Patio on July 22, simply rocks — in a twangy, steel-guitar kind of way. (July 23, Ice Palace)
—All entries by Scott Harrell unless otherwise indicated
This article appears in Jul 19-25, 2001.