THURSDAY, JULY 19
The Chop Tops w/Danny B Harvey/The Strikers/Radio Threat Hailing from the town I was born, Santa Cruz, Calif., The Cop Tops formed in 1995 as a pomade-sporting rockabilly three-piece (drums, guitar, upright bass) with crystal-clear psycho, surf and punk tendencies as displayed in the frenetic-paced “Chicks Smicks, Food Smood, Beer Yeah!,” its only lyrics delivered in the shouted call-and-return chorus, or the more traditional Elvis Presley-styled stomp of “Hard Luck,” with wildly drawling vocalist and upright drummer Sinner backed by a rah rah multi-voice chorus. Vet Texas axeman Danny B. Harvey infuses blues and country-jazz into his own vintage sound, The Strikers’ aggro brand of psycho has heavy metal thrust, and Radio Threat adds a little skatepunk to their billyness. (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Ultimate Band Series Semi-Finals The Ritz Ybor’s third annual battle of the bands competition continues with the second round of semi-finals. Winners from each of the three rounds are determined by audience applause and a panel of music savvy judges, and the band who takes home the title stands to earn $5k worth of prizes that includes four guaranteed gigs. Five more bands face-off in this round, with a TBD theme: Khora, Marvlec, Perfect Flaw, SowFlo, and VANE. (The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City)
Man or Astro-Man? A science fiction backstory, space suit-wearing instrumentalists with bizarre aliases (Birdstuff, Star Crunch, Coco the Electronic Monkey Wizard), and a cult of fervently devoted fans drawn to sample-spliced outerspacey surf punk and loud, high-powered performances featuring audio visual displays on Theremin and tesla coil — yes, it’s Man or Astro-Man?, slinging music from Alabama in on-again off-again spurts since their early 1990s inception. Definitely worthy of a Thursday night trip to O-town. (The Social, Orlando)
FRIDAY, JULY 20
Eliot Lipp w/Sir Charles/Soft Rock Renegades Brooklyn-based producer Eliot Lipp uses a mix of laptop sonics, vintage synths and Wurlitzer electric piano to get to his glitch and hip hop-influenced sound, which is marked by grimy shades of dubstep and slinky electro-funk grooves. Lipp signed to Pretty Lights’ label PLM earlier this year to release his latest full-length, Shark Wolf Rabbit Snake. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Toubab Krewe The fluid melodies of guitar and African kora or kamelengoni swirl together in the buoyant instrumental Mali-rooted jam rock of Asheville sextet Toubab Krewe, their upbeat rhythms accompanied by rich percussive textures and thick lowend grooves. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
Paul Oakenfold His career spans more than three decades and encompasses collabs with Madonna along with a few dozen DJ mix albums and hundreds of remixes, though British house music pioneer Paul Oakenfold has only released two proper studio albums. The third, Pop Killer, is currently in the works, features confirmed guest spots by Cee Lo Green and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and is expected out sometime later this year. (The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City)
Jammin’ in Wonderland w/The Roundhouse Social/John Q/Bambooda/Savii There’s no subtlety in the title of this multi-band live art showcase featuring St. Pete talent, like guitar-driven prog-jam rock quartet The Roundhouse Social and heavy, gritty slide-steeped roots and blues makers John Q. (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
311 w/Slightly Stoopid/The Aggrolites Mainstream reggae rockers 311 hit town on the front leg of their “Unity Tour,” an annual multi-band showcase headed up by 311 and originally established in ’06. The quintet hasn’t brought the tour to Tampa since 2008 when they were joined by Snoop Dogg. This time around, they bring an act with a less impressive resume but the same passionate love of cannabis: Slightly Stoopid. The San Diego dub-psych-reggae rock band will release a new album, Top of the World, on August 14. (1-800 Ask-Gary Amphitheatre, Tampa) —Miles Parks
Anders Osborne w/The Lee Boys Black Eye Galaxy, the 2012 ninth studio album by Anders Osborne, opens with the potent guitar-fuzz stomp of “Send Me a Friend,” segues into the slow-burning blues rock of “Mind of a Junkie,” takes a radio-friendly pop rock slant in “When Will I See You Again?,” turns raw, heavy and dark in “Black Tar,” makes a wet psychedelic post-jazz stopover in the meandering, 11-minute title track, and brings a warm countrified sway to the mix with “Tracking My Roots.” The balance of styles adds up to yet another strong Alligator Records release from the shaggy-haired New Orleans singer-songwriter. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
SATURDAY, JULY 21
Bride of Chaotica w/The Wrenchers Tight instrumental three-piece Bride of Chaotica — guitarist/arranger/producer Bill Bechtel, bassist/synths man Robert “Red” Redmond and drummer Tim Tuthill — draw on influences ranging from Mahavishnu Orchestra to Miles Davis in their fusion of progressive rock and psychedelic jazz. This is the next show marking the release of their debut full-length, Bamboo Transistor; the 10-track LP was recorded at Pro Star Studios in St. Pete and features some original material along with a few new takes on old classics like The Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown).” (The Roosevelt 2.0, Ybor City)
Rays Concert Series: Gavin Degraw The latest artist to land at the Trop and play a post-game (Rays-Mariners) concert is blue-eyed soulful pop rocker Gavin Degraw, who’s enjoying some solid Billboard love for the first time since 2006 with the hard-to-let-go single “Not Over You” off 2011’s Sweeter. The track hit No. 1 on the Adult Top 40 charts. (Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg)
Betty Fox and the Dirty Bastards w/Selwyn Birchwood Having made their presence felt on the live scene for the past several months, blues-funk four-piece Betty Fox and the Dirty Bastards have finally produced an album. This Saturday night show celebrates the release of Too Far Gone and offers locals the chance to get acquainted with Fox’s throaty soulful vocals and dynamic live delivery. Guest sit-ins include Mark Cunningham on the Hammond B3 organ and TC Carr on harmonica. Orlando bluesman Selwyn Birchwood opens. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa) —MP
And So I Watch You From Afar w/Zechs Marquise/Auto!Automatic!!/Zulu Wave Aggressive-edged instrumental alt-progressive-math rock trio As I Watch You From Afar, from Belfast, Northern Ireland, hits town supporting their sophomore LP, 2011’s Gangs. They are joined on the road by El Paso, Texas prog quintet Zechs Marquise, which includes brothers Marfred, Marcel and Rikardo Rodriguez-Lopez (siblings of Omar Rodriguez-Lopez from The Mars Volta). They also back a 2011 second album, Getting Paid.M (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Crocodiles w/Eternal Summers The third and latest full-length from Crocodiles, 2012’s Endless Flowers, finds the San Diego noise pop/indie rock outfit evolving from their hazy, acid-washed, feedback-drenched psychedelia, and substituting the lo-fi glaze for more a polished but still fuzzy finish while filtering in elements of sun-kissed retro psych-pop and dark-tinged post punk-garage reminiscent of Velvet Underground. Kanine Records signees Eternal Summers (which drop a sophomore full-length, Correct Behavior, on July 24) brings driving, upbeat punk-flavored rock with indie pop appeal to the bill. For more on Crocodiles, check out Music Editor Leilani Polk’s interview with the band HERE. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
Daymoths w/Benjamin Zero/Therapeutic Chokehold St. Paul, Minn. indie pop-rock two-piece Daymoths produces airy, up-tempo songs imbued with haunting sweetness via the piano and organ melodies and high piping vocals of Emily Dantuma, all carried on the sturdy rhythms of drummer/husband Ollie Dodge. Last year saw the release of their first full-length, Back In Time, and they hit town on the latest round of tour dates in support. (Yeoman’s Road Pub, Tampa)
Set It Off w/Goodnight Neverland/Infinity On High/Beyond Our Vision Tampa-based chamber(ish) pop-rock quintet Set It Off signed to Equal Vision Records last year and after a few national headlining tours and some smaller regional dates, began recording their debut full-length and second release for the label. Set It Off is gearing up for a September 18 street date of Cinematics, and has already dropped the first single “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead.” This show heralds the launch of a new 20-date tour hyping it up. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
All-Star Florida Folk Night: Ronny Elliott/Rebekah Pulley/Gove Scrivenor/Jim Mason/Pete Gallagher/Maggie Council Some big names in the Florida folk circuit come together in support of WMNF. Among the performers at the Florida Folk Night concert are Ronny Elliott, one of the most recognizable names in the Tampa music scene (he’s been playing in the area since the early 1960s), who recently released a new album, I’ve Been Meaning to Write; and Rebekah Pulley, who earned glowing reviews of her last album, 2008’s Back to Boogaloo. (Hideaway Café & recording Studio, St. Petersburg) —MP
SUNDAY, JULY 22
Pomegranates w/Kitten Cincinnati foursome Pomegranates purvey danceable up-tempo space-psych pop with pronounced guitar hooks that shimmer and glide, quirky vocals that are tender or compelling and sometimes hit high notes in a clear falsetto or wild shriek, and a catalog of four full-length albums. The band is currently touring on the heels of the release of their latest, 2012’s Heaven. For fans of Peter Bjorn and John. (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
WMNF Tribute to Levon Helm and the Band w/Thomas Wynn and the True Believers/Gypsy Wind/Ted Lukas and the Tailights/ Steve Connelly and the Lesser Gods/Rich Whiteley Band/Sara Rose Band/The Applebutter Express Another of ’MNF’s fundraising tribute shows hits the Skipperdome barely a week after the last one — surprise! Americana and roots-rock acts from Tampa and its surrounding locales honors the late Levon Helm, an artist best known for his deep-drawling vocals and innovative drumming in The Band, though he earned three Grammys for his more recent solo work. I expect you’ll hear some Band originals (“The Weight,” “Ophelia,” “Up on Cripple Creek”), Band-stamped Dylan tracks (“I Shall Be Released,” “When I Paint My Masterpiece”), and likely a healthy chunk of material performed in The Last Waltz (most of the aforementioned cuts included). (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
MONDAY, JULY 23
Gathr Films Presents: MARLEY The new Bob Marley bio doc from Academy Award-winning director Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland) looks at the reggae legend’s life from his early days through his rise to international superstardom, and was produced with support from the Marley family. One problem: if you want to catch MARLEY on the big screen, you have to make the long haul to New Tampa to the Muvico Starlite, the only theater in town hosting the single-night presentation. Gas up now. (Muvico Theaters Starlight, Tampa)
TUESDAY, JULY 24
Dukes of September The Dukes of September is a rhythm and blues-fused jazz rock supergroup made up of three practiced Grammy-winning singer-songwriters. Donald Fagen and Michael McDonald first worked together in 1970s-era Steely Dan, re-convened in the early 1990s as part of the short lived “New York Rock and Soul Revue” with blue-eyed soul guitarist Boz Scaggs and others, and assembled a new project, “Dukes of September Rhythm Revue,” in 2010. The-revamped 2012 lineup has the three musicians cycling through their respective hits (“Reelin’ in the Years,” “Lowdown,” “Takin’ It to the Streets” and the like) with backing from a band that includes a three-piece horn section, two female back-up singers, and players on guitar, bass, drums and organ. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater)
Static-X w/Davey Suicide/Siege Of Malakand/When The Sky Falls Raging industrial metal outfit Static-X went on indefinite hiatus in 2010 after singer-guitarist-keyboardist frontman Wayne Static (he of the towering head of hair and gut-deep howls) decided to follow solo pursuits and recorded an album, 2011’s Pighammer. When he tried to reunite Static-X this year, the original members had already moved on to play in other bands. So he’s playing as Static-X without them backed by the musicians who joined him on his solo tour. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.
This article appears in Jul 19-25, 2012.