THURSDAY, MARCH 22
Lyle Lovett / John Hiatt Two veteran comrades-in-arms who've toured together periodically since 1989 reunite for another run of co-headlining dates. Four-time Grammy-winner Lyle Lovett backs a brand new collection of originals and covers, Release Me, imbued with his trademark blend of Texas swing, gospel, bluegrass, folk, and country. John Hiatt’s latest, 2011's Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns, finds Hiatt's home-themed lyrics set against his usual frills-free oldtime-bluesy rock n' roll. The singer-songwriters take turns playing solo acoustic sets of material from their respective repertoires. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
FRIDAY, MARCH 23
Police Unity Tour Benefit Concert w/Greg Billings Band/Pitbull Toddler/Robin Zander Officers who've died in the line of duty are honored in the awareness-raising Police Unity Tour. A dozen members of the St. Petersburg Police Department are due to ride in the 12th annual 2012 edition this May in remembrance of Tom Baitinger, Jeffrey Yaslowitz and David Crawford, the St. Pete policemen who lost their lives last year. First, however, they need to raise at least $22k to cover travel expenses. Classic rocking Greg Billings Band headlines this charity concert, with Pitbull Toddler (featuring Cowhead from The Bone-102.5 FM) warming up the crowd. Special guest Robin Zander (lead singer of Cheap Trick) debuts songs from his upcoming country album and joins Billings for a few tunes. Admission is free; proceeds from beverage sales and concessions to benefit the traveling cops. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
Wilson Phillips If every group known to music history is reuniting and recording new material, why not Wilson Phillips, too? The female vocal trio — formed by sisters Carnie and Wendy Wilson (daughters of Beach Boy Brian) with longtime friend Chynna Phillips (daughter of The Mamas & the Papas band members John and Michelle) — made a chart-topping splash in 1990 with "Hold On," and found their way back to the collective consciousness when the song was used to comedic effect in Bridesmaids last year. They are currently working on material for a new (non-holiday) album, their first since 2004's California. (Capitol Theatre, Clearwater)
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band w/ Jo Dee Messina "Hold tight to your anger / And don't fall to your fears" Springsteen councils in the title track off his 17th studio album, Wrecking Ball, his husky croons and howls waxing righteously on a broken America amid the lushly arranged horn-blasted heartland rock his fans have come to love. However, it's the stage where The Boss (with generous support from his fine E Street Band) really shines. Gabe Echazabal described him best in his review of Springsteen's 2009 amphitheater show: "All the myths and the legends surrounding his reputation as a live performer are true. He does change his set list from night to night. He does change his mind about what song to perform next at the drop of a hat (evidenced by his yelling out a song title to the band that just popped in his head). He does play a lot longer than most performers out there do. No, he's not a God … he's a regular guy who is still hell-bent on delivering a great show and inviting thousands to join his celebration of rock n' roll. Night after night. And his followers like it best that way." (Tampa Bay Times Forum, Tampa)
Gramatik / Break Science w/Paul Basic Gramatik infuses his music with hip hop production values, heavy staggering rhythms, spliced and diced vocal samples and fuzz-blip glitches. Electronic duo Break Science (producers Adam Deitch and Borahm Lee) inhabit the dubstep-drama realm, though they've had much experience working with hip hop artists like The Fugees, Wu Tang Clan, and Talib Kweli. Gramatik and Break Science recorded a single together, "Boogie Down," the hook delivered by deep synthesized robo-vocals commanding that you boogie down, down down… (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Tony Bennett In conjunction with his 85th birthday last September, smooth singing icon Tony Bennett released a new record, Duets II: The Great Performances, a tradition he began five years before for his 80th with Duets. The 2011 record of pop songs, jazz standards and show tunes features duets with a start-studded list of artists, like Amy Winehouse in "Body and Soul," the last recording she made prior to her death. The album and song nabbed Bennett his 16th and 17th Grammy award wins. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
Little Big Town This country music quartet received rave reviews for their fourth studio album, 2010's The Reason Why, which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Country charts and generated Little Big Town's second-highest charting hit, "Little White Church." (Dallas Bull, Tampa)
Bobby Lee Rodgers w/Beebs and Her Money Makers Rodgers hits town on a regular basis fronting various lineups of musicians on lead guitar, brassy resonant vocals, and occasionally banjo, though I haven't seen him break that baby out in a while, likely because his recent songwriting is darker, guitar-driven roots rock. Rodgers is first and foremost a student of jazz, however, and that comes out in his playing, too. His current trio includes consummate local bassist Jon Shea, of Infinite Groove Orchestra. (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Michael Burks The electric Delta blues and smoky-soulful rock purveyor earned the nickname “Iron Man” for his powerhouse axe chops, fiery intensity, extended (hours-long) performances, and blue collar road ethic, which has him clocking thousands of miles a year. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
SPoT Tampa Pro Party: Black Lips w/The People's Temple Skatepark of Tampa hosts its 19th annual Tampa Pro and SPoT's most bombastic party occurs on the night before the professional skateboarding competition begins in earnest. This year's indie rock headliner is Atlanta's grungy cheeky garage-psyche foursome Black Lips; their sixth album, last year's Arabia Mountain, was produced in part by Mark Ronson. Warm up set by raucous like-act The People's Temple, from Lansing, Mich. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
SATURDAY, MARCH 24
Andy McKee / Antoine Dufour A night of acoustic guitar prowess by Kansas fingerstyle whiz McKee, who plays baritone and harp guitar in addition to standard six-string; and Dufour, a French-Canadian guitarist with a percussive technique that incorporates slap harmonics. (Largo Cultural Center, Largo)
Country Mice w/Lauris Vidal/The Rosewoods Last year saw the release of Country Mice's debut LP, Twister, which took the Brooklyn-by-way-of-the Midwest quartet on their first-ever tour of the U.S. The record earned high marks from Spin for its earnest indie roots rock melodies, their style spanning from coarse and strident to soothing and sweet. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
SBTRKT w/Spies on Bikes/Sidedraft British musician, producer and ceremonial mask collector SBTRKT ("subtract" for those of you who can't work out the stylized abbreviation; real name Aaron Jerome) made it onto Pitchfork's "Top 50 albums of 2011" list with his self-titled debut full-length of down-tempo post-dubstep, R&B-fused electronica. Various well-suited guests make appearances, the most noteworthy Little Dragon's Yukimi Nagano in "Wildfire," her sweetly soulful croon set against a fatty, rhythm-setting synth groove. For his current tour, SBTRKT is joined onstage by frequent keyboardist/collaborator Sampha. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
SUNDAY, MARCH 25
Hot Chelle Rae w/Electric Touch/Cady Groves "Tonight Tonight" is the super peppy pop rock anthem that went double-platinum and propelled Nashville foursome Hot Chelle Rae into the national spotlight; second single and platinum follow-up “I Like It Like That” with New Boyz was picked up by Radio Disney and Kidz Bop, exposing them to a whole new batch of tweenie fans. This tour supports Whatever, the 2011 sophomore full-length home to both tracks. Also of note: Electric Touch, an Austin five-piece fronted by British vocalist, keyboardist and guitarist Shane Lawlor. Story here. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
Zeds Dead w/Omar LinX In addition to splicing and dicing their own bass-dropping electro-dubstep tracks, reputable Toronto producers DC and Hooks have remixed everyone from Radiohead to the Moody Blues as Zeds Dead. Hometown rapper Omar LinX — who's worked with the duo on several releases — supports them on their current "Living Dead Tour" and joins the duo for tracks like the bumpin' and grindin' "Out for Blood." (Amphitheatre, Ybor City)
Neil Sedaka A singer who has written or co-written upwards of 500 songs in his 55-year career, including chart-toppers like "Breaking Up is Hard To Do" and "Love Will Keep Us Together," made famous by The Captain & Tennille. His star has waxed and waned over the years, but he experienced a sort of comeback spurred by multiple appearances on American Idol. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
David Benoit & Brian Culbertson Two esteemed contemporary jazz keyboardists — tenured LA composer/producer David Benoit and prolific producer/showman Brian Culbertson — perform side by side on a pair of acoustic grand pianos in their "Piano 2 Piano" program. Each displays his own distinctive style, Benoit's smooth phrasing versus Culbertson's funky touch. (Capitol Theatre, Clearwater)
Tea Leaf Green w/The Groves A fantastic San Francisco jam-groove rock outfit with a sound marked by the '70s warm vocals and keyboard melodies of ostensible frontman Trevor Garrod. Ex-Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey bassist Reed Mathis joined the ranks in 2007 and new fifth member Cochrane McMillan has brought percussion and aux beats to the mix since last year. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Sisters Singing For Sisters Some of the Bay area's finest songstresses and femme-led groups perform at this charity concert in support of Crescendo, The Tampa Bay Women's Chorus, among them, June Bustamante, Betty Fox, Juniper, and Maggie Council. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
Storyhill The 2012 Independent Music Concert Series carries on with a performance by Story Hill, an acoustic folk duo from Montana comprised of earnest storytelling singer-songwriters Chris Cunningham and John Hermanson. Admission includes a light buffet from Sofia Forte before the 8 p.m. concert. (The Studio@620, St. Petersburg)
MONDAY, MARCH 26
Bomb the Music Industry! Jeff Rosenstock is the driving force behind the rotating collective of musicians who make up Bomb the Music Industry!. He writes punk songs with heavy ska and roots influences, upholds DIY ideals to spread them around, and offers all BtMI!'s albums on a pay-what-you-can basis, a trend that began in 2005 with their debut. This tour backs 2011's loose optimistic Vacationer, which Rosenstock wrote during a free vacation in Belize. (Transitions Gallery @ Skatepark of Tampa)
TUESDAY, MARCH 27
Southern Express Bluegrass Band w/Beaumont The Central Florida band formerly known "Southern Star Bluegrass" includes guitarist Larry Jackson, Jr. (son of three-time Florida State Banjo Champion Larry Sr.), fiddler Steve Drrwachter, bassist Rick Honson, mandolin player Bryce Hall and banjo man Ron Rimmer. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28
Diana Krall Canadian jazz pianist and sultry contralto Diana Krall draws on a catalog of originals along with jazz and pop standards ranging from Cole Porter's "Everytime We Say Goodbye" to "The Girl from Ipanema" (her version changed to 'boy'). The three-time Grammy winner is one of the best-selling female jazz artists of all time with seven multi-platinum, three platinum and a few gold ones albums to her credit. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
Tornado Rider Although I haven't experienced the balls-out punk-world explosion that is a Tornado Rider show, the Oakland, Calif. trio has earned my respect by way of the people I know who have and not only raved about it afterwards, awestruck as they described the high-octane antics of Peter Pan hat-sporting cello-wielding singer Rushad Eggleston, but were ready to see it again, stat. (Market on 7th, Ybor City)
The Naked and Famous w/Vacationer/Now, Now The seething razor-edged rock of "Frayed," the triumphant New Wave dance pop of charting single "Young Blood," the electro-trip hop Radiohead-inspired grooves of "The Sun" — all reveal a wide sonic palette of influences called upon by rising young New Zealand group The Naked and Famous, their sound rounded out by overlapping femme-masculine harmonies of keyboardist Alisa Xayalith and guitarist Thom Powers, hers a sweet breathy coo against his lower register murmur. First full-length Passive Me, Aggressive You was released in the U.S. last year. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
Chuck Brodsky A mild-mannered folk music troubadour from Philly who's known for his brassy nasally vocals and humorous narratives on topics ranging from baseball (a favorite) to technology to being Jewish on Christmas. Brodsky stops in town for two performances, at 6 and 8:30 p.m. (Craftsman House Gallery, St. Petersburg)
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.
This article appears in Mar 22-28, 2012.