THURSDAY, FEB. 02
DEICIDE One of the most visible acts to climb to the top of Tampa's early '90s death-metal heap (thanks in no small part to stunts like throwing raw meat on the crowd and bandleader Glen Benton burning an inverted cross into his forehead), Deicide has remained a favorite abroad since the genre's decline. Tonight they play a relatively rare home-turf set at the State; expect plenty of whiplash musicianship and unwieldy song titles. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
SCOTT H. BIRAM/BULLNECKS/THE DIVINERS/NOVEMBER FOXTROT WHISKEY Austin's Biram makes a lot of noise for one guy. Of course, he's one guy with a guitar, a left foot hooked up to the PA and a mess of amplifiers and microphones. He specializes in raw, loud, filthy stomp-blues. Tallahassee's Bullnecks features ex-members of boogie-rock faves Syrup and obscure '90s metal outfit Darth Vader's Church, and does some pretty standard (but pretty exciting) old-school garage/hard blues/R&B shit. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
FRIDAY, FEB. 03
BLUEGROUND UNDERGRASS The popular, heavily Aquarium Rescue Unit-indebted (leader Rev. Jeff Mosier actually played briefly with ARU) bluegrass/newgrass/jam combo stops by the Skipperdome. Go buy your tickets now, before you get stoned and forget until the day of the show. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLERS/ANCHORS AWAY/MAKE OR BREAK/BRAIN DAMAGE/DNME/THE HOLY MOUNTAIN New York hardcore supergroup Fearless Vampire Killers boasts members of legitimately legendary scene-starters Cro-Mags, Sick of It All and Bad Brains. You know what you're gonna get: big tough-guy mosh riffs, oodles of old-school vibe and all. Other worthy notables on this big, big bill are rising North Florida thrashcore funboys Anchors Away, and the Bay's own Holy Mountain (actually playing in Pinellas County). (688 Skatepark, Clearwater)
THE MUSIC OF STYX: DENNIS DEYOUNG & ROCK SYMPHONY w/LITTLE RIVER BAND Former magician lookalike and Styx frontman DeYoung reinterprets that classic-rock giant's voluminous back catalog with the help of a five-piece rock ensemble and a full orchestra. "Grand Illusion" never sounded so grand, we bet. You know openers Little River Band from such soft-rock hits as "Lonesome Loser" and "Cool Change." (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
LUNA HALO w/NEED TO BREATHE Tony from No Clubs will not stop raving about this new band Luna Halo. The group hails from Nashville, sounds like The Strokes if The Strokes loved big pop choruses and could actually sound excited about anything, and signed a big-time deal with Warner Brothers in the middle of last year. The material posted at http://myspace.com/lunahalo is impressive, if a bit of a mishmash of every radio-ready band plugged in enough to reference Interpol. Opener Need to Breath showcases a much more Britpop-obsessed sound, but one that's equally as accessible as that of the headliner. (Orpheum, State Theatre)
MARLEY & TOSH TRIBUTE CONCERT An eclectic grab-bag of locals celebrate the music of two of reggae's most influential and enduring figures. The lineup: Boon, Tribal Style, Surreal & Balance, Breakdown, The Rukus, Slopfunkdust, Jacuzzi Fuzz and Burning Tree pay their respects. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
THE WINTER GATHERING Today's the first day of The Winter Gathering, a weekend-long celebration of cutting-edge Christian music out at Brooksville's Sertoma Youth Ranch that features more than 30 bands on three stages. Camp out or make the drive a couple of times; it's all good and proceeds go toward St. Pete ministry The Refuge's ongoing homeless and youth-outreach programs. This weekend's bill includes everything from screamy hardcore (and there'll be a lot of that) to more mature acts like The Psalters and The Glen Clark Family Band. For the full lineup and more information, call 727-278-1547 or check out www.refugestpete.org. The Sertoma Youth Ranch is located at 85 Myers Road in Brooksville. (Sertoma Youth Ranch, Brooksville)
SATURDAY, FEB. 04
MARCIA BALL w/CLAY MCCLINTON Back for her umpteenth Bay-area appearance, singer/pianist Ball brings a sassy, upbeat vibe to the stage. She blends blues, R&B and Cajun sounds into one of the more unique amalgams found in the general blues canon. Singer/songwriter/guitarist Clay McClinton comes from good stock; his dad Delbert is a highly respected roadhouse R&B singer. Clay's Texas-bred sound combines honky tonk country, blues and rock — kinda like the old man. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa) ERIC SNIDER
BAAMO PRESENTS ONE FOR THE ROAD Time for the Bay Area Arts and Music Organization to reveal the bands it's chosen to play at its annual South by Southwest party in Austin, and raise a little gas money for 'em in the process. Singer/songwriter and SXSW vet Ronny Elliott plays host, strumming and bantering between sets by Rebekah Pulley & The Reluctant Prophets, Life of Pi, Sawgrass Flats and — hell yes — Gumbi Ortiz and his Latino Projekt. (Dave's Aqua Lounge, St. Petersburg)
HONG KONG FOOEY The band's first show was a casual affair, with local guitar ace Peter Mongaya Hogsholm and bassist Sam Martinez performing some very inspired sets of funky jazz and jazzy funk with Rocksteady@8 drummer Jonathan Priest and keyboardist John Richardson. The jams were tight, the bodies were moving and the musicians were clearly having a very good time. So good, in fact, that they decided to perform together regularly; tonight's the first official show. (Yeoman's Road Pub, Davis Islands) LEILANI POLK
SUNDAY, FEB. 05
PETER KATER Kater's a lauded, Grammy-nominated composer, producer and instrumentalist whose work in genres from jazz to world music has been heard everywhere from Carnegie Hall to the Olympics. In 1995, his efforts on behalf of various social causes were recognized by the U.N., which made him recipient of its Environmental Leadership Award. He will perform on piano during First Unity Church's 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. worship services. The church is located at 469 45th Ave. N. (First Unity Church, St. Petersburg)
REVENGE FEST Tampa's Top 5 Records teams up with Revenge Clothing to bring you a 15-bands-for-15-bucks punkstravaganza, kicking off at 1 p.m. In addition to a plethora of local talent (including Select Start, No Cash Value, New Bruises, DC North, Lives' Page and more), you'll also get a headlining set from Third World Industries recording artists The Skeptics, who hail from Massachusetts and do an earnest, infectious emo-pop thing reminiscent of mid-era Jimmy Eat World. (Top 5 Records, Tampa)
MONDAY, FEB. 06
ARMOR FOR SLEEP/CHIODOS/BOYS NIGHT OUT/ACTION REACTION All of these up-and-coming, all-ages-friendly post-emo/metalcore-lite acts have made fairly recent appearances in the Bay area. The bill basically runs the gamut from proggy (Chiodos) to chuggy (Boys Night Out) to poppy (Armor For Sleep), but everything here can easily be lumped in under the heading "Stuff Kids Who Like Coheed & Cambria and Hawthorne Heights Will Also Like." (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
TUESDAY, FEB. 07
ERIC TAYLOR Houston singer/songwriter Taylor came of age amid the same music scene from which Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle and Guy Clark emerged. You might not know his name, but Taylor's been a musician's musician for decades, and is often cited as an influence by much more familiar Texas players; he's been covered by Nanci Griffith and Lyle Lovett, and is an in-demand festival attraction overseas. Taylor's latest recorded effort is The Great Divide. In addition to this UU Dome show, he'll also appear at Mitchell's Coffeehouse in Lakeland next Saturday, Feb. 11. (Unitarian Universalist Church of Tampa, Tampa)
THE MYAKKA RIVER PIANO TRIO The Palladium's marvelous Encore Chamber Music Series gears up for another season. This, the second show in the series, features the return of The Myakka River Piano Trio, a violin/cello/piano ensemble made up of members of The Florida Orchestra and The Florida West Coast Symphony. (Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg)
WEDNESDAY, FEB 08
YONDER MOUNTAIN STRING BAND This drummer-free bluegrass quartet has become a jam-scene darling, most likely due to its fast-pickin' prowess, ability to improvise and an aggressive approach to traditional mountain music. The band's joined by multi-instrumentalist roots rocker Tony Furtado. (Tampa Theatre, Tampa) LP
LURA Cape Verde, Africa's Lura has made a lot of waves lately in her quest to bring her homeland's rhythmic, poetry-inspired and culturally conscious batuku style to contemporary audiences worldwide; she was recently featured on CNN, and is the only performer nominated for two Planet Awards by the BBC. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
This article appears in Feb 1-7, 2006.