Good Riddance w/TSOL/Death By Stereo/Nerve Agents Tony and Dave present the punk-rock equivalent of a Bennigan's sampler platter. You know, it's the one with all the various appetizers, none of which are good for you in any way, but all of which are tasty. Melodicore stalwarts Good Riddance deliver fiery, buffalo-style slash and burn. Seminal Orange County legends TSOL, supporting their new full-length Disappear, cover the crusty fried-vegetable angle. Crossover metalcore renegades Death By Stereo ply an eclectic blend of harmonious flavors, much like a black-bean egg roll. (By no means an ethnic slur, mind you, just a food analogy, OK? Jeez.) And old-school screamers Nerve Agents, of course, go great with any one of the zesty dipping sauces. Hmmmm … not a mozzarella stick in the bunch. (Aug. 16, State Theatre)
Circle Jerks w/U.S. Bombs/Murder-Suicide Pact I'd like to tell you all about what Keith Morris has been up to, and why he decided to take L.A.'s most infamous hardcore icons on a cross-country spree, for the first time in years, at this particular juncture. But I can't, because his booking agent's secretary shielded him from my willful and repeated attempts to invade his privacy. On a completely unrelated note, did you know you can airmail dog poo? Duane Peters and his U.S. Bombs are along for the ride as well, and they brought their rowdy singalong punk 'n' roll with 'em. Brandon's on-again, off-again blitzkrieg project Murder-Suicide Pact is on again, at least until 9 p.m. on Friday. (Aug. 17, Jannus Landing)
The Mentors w/Gardy Loo/Kill Allen Wrench Seeing shock-punk degenerates The Mentors without fearless leader/head pervo/dead guy Il Duce is kind of like dismembering a corpse, and not getting to have sex with it — I mean, really, what's the point? The amazing musical prowess? The poignant social commentary? Maybe getting peed on a little bit? Toilet-thrash yucksters Gardy Loo are always worth a look-see, however; you never know what show might be their last, you only know it won't be this one. Or the next one. Or the one after that. (Aug. 17, Brass Mug)
Sugar Ray w/Uncle Kracker/The Start It's a pretty safe bet that at least half of the numbskulls that bitch about The Ramones or AC/DC recording one song over and over own more than one Sugar Ray disc. It's also a pretty safe bet that the irony is completely lost on them. Kid Rock sideman Uncle Kracker is an engaging enough TRL personality, and might actually have some good songs in him somewhere. WARNING: They're not on his solo debut. Give it some time. Radio-pop upstarts The Start fill that engaging, hooky slot that seems to come up for grabs on Star 95.7 every eight months or so. (Aug. 17, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center)
Melissa Ferrick w/Chime Multiple award-winner and Tropical Heatwave favorite Melissa Ferrick returns to Skipper's, bringing her eclectic songwriting and drummer/accompanist Brian Winton. Sarasota's Chime, featuring former members of Flog & Flower, puree influences as disparate as Tori Amos and Rage Against The Machine to bring a message of universal hope with a blend of Celtic, Middle Eastern and rock sounds. Indeed … (Aug. 17, Skipper's Smokehouse)
Thee Imperial Pints/NutraJet/Unrequited Loves/DJ Santo Orlando's Thee Imperial Pints sport former members of Mickeyland greats Naomi's Hair and The Hate Bombs. That alone should be enough for scene veterans, but rookies would do well to envision a rockabilly-damaged Replacements churning out hooks and spectacle on a level that could forever banish a listener from the realm of respectability. Nutrajet, naturally, play it straight and laden with attitude. The Unrequited Loves continue to refurbish a clever, obtuse pop aesthetic sown by the likes of Mission of Burma, and DJ Santo will spin all the rockabilly, dirt-glam and spirit-of-'77 singles you should've long since grown tired of. Not to be missed. (Aug. 18, Orpheum)
Destiny's Child w/Nelly/Eve/Dream/3LW For a lot of girls, this could be the memory-making first real concert of a lifetime. Life was so much easier back when shows of this ilk were staged at the mall. Claim your place in line to be the third member of Destiny's Child while you can — I'm 134, what's your number? (Aug. 18, Ice Palace)
Rollins Band He dons the shredded workout shorts. He sets his feet exactly 42 inches apart (right foot forward, of course). He coils microphone cord around his forearm, as if to symbolically stifle the flow of his catharsis. And only then can Hank begin to shower us with the brutal reality of his expression. It's like my high-school football coach used to say, ya gotta go past the pain. Venting is never pretty, but the visceral experience of a Rollins Band show is almost always worthwhile. Hopefully, the forthcoming disc Nice will repair some of the damage caused by Get Some, Go Again (and possibly bits of every release since The End of Silence); until then, the live set is our only hope. (Aug. 18, Jannus Landing)
Capture the Flag w/Coma Girl/The Chase Theory Detroit's Capture the Flag smelt all of those great guitar-driven heavy genres into one cohesive, melodic whole — they're so tight, audience members have been known to suffer oxygen deprivation. People keep comparing Coma Girl to At the Drive-In, but their loud-ass postpunk explosion is something all it's own. Color them this season's buzzworthy new Bay area indie thing. Fresh off their first tour as a bona fide national act (via OneDaySavior Records), The Chase Theory should be all of that and a wallet-chain. They were good before; playing 18 shows in three weeks has probably made them frightening. (Aug. 20, Orpheum)
DRI w/Sworn Enemy/Flat Stanley The godfathers of crossover make a Mug stop. Sadly, there's no new material yet. Go home, change out of your suits and ties, and then come on out to sing along with Suit and Tie Guy — it's just as meaningful as you remember. (Aug. 22, Brass Mug)
Soulcracker w/Ironic Daze/Coma Girl Bands on the Run runner-up Soulcracker returns, if only to bask in the glory that undoubtedly accompanies the title of Bands on the Run runner-up. Kind of punky, kind of poppy; we can't say exactly what they do onstage, but we think we know exactly what they're like offstage, thank you. Local altrawkers Ironic Daze will provide testicular fortitude. Local sensations Coma Girl will provide edge. (Aug. 22, Frankie's Ybor)
—All entries by Scott Harrell
This article appears in Aug 16-22, 2001.