THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27
Adam Ant w/Brothers of Brazil Synchronistically, the day before I got an email confirming Adam Ant's canceled February date at Hard Rock in Tampa had been rescheduled for September, I'd been driving around playing Adam and the Ants' Antics in the Forbidden Zone ANT-thology, singing and spazzing out like I was a tween again. As much as I'm not a fan of "greatest hits" reductions, I really love this one, which brings you from lo-fi gems like Adam and the Ants' "Kick" and "Xerox" to the catchy pop sensations of Adam Ant's solo hits "Goody Two Shoes" (which I nixed from my copy) and "Friend or Foe." I always thought Ant was so original with his combination of indigenous tribal music, brassy flair, proto New Wave rock and old-fashioned romantic swish; plus he was sexy, clever and an utterly entertaining showman. I saw him perform for his "Strip" tour at the Bayfront Center during my freshman year of high school and it changed my life. Count me in for Hard Rock's upcoming nostalgia fest. Who knows? Maybe he'll treat us to a cut or two off his forthcoming (release date pending) LP, Adam Ant Is the Blueblack Hussar in Marrying the Gunner's Daughter. (Hard Rock Café, Tampa) —Julie Garisto
Stallone w/Manray/Flying Snakes/Earth Burner Alternative live music space Castle Grayskull has hosted several shows of hard-leaning indie rock since opening its doors to the public in March. This all-ages bill features Georgia-based Stallone, an instrumental metal foursome fronted by Torche former/MonstrO current Juan Montoya. Stallone's dual prog-intricate guitarwork and distortion heavy passages are interspersed with quieter, surprisingly melodic drop-tuned interludes and more straightforward turns at sludgy, stoner rock. (Castle Grayskull, St. Petersburg)
M83 w/Sun Airway It's tough to describe the difference between listening to a recording of M83 and seeing them live. On headphones, their albums have a way of cocooning you from the outside world, flowing seamlessly between tense synthy pop and epic orchestration with a cinematic quality that often feels like a soundtrack as they progress. It's as though the L.A.-French outfit's control of album pace and layers of keyboards create dense insulation that block out everything else. In a live setting, the music is no less enveloping, but in a completely different way. Louder, faster, and more intense, when their songs fill the room the response isn't so much personal as a collective gut reaction. The crowd moves in unison as though songwriter/producer Anthony Gonzales is pulling thousands of puppet strings instead of playing keys. A lot of credit goes to a near perfect setlist; by getting rid of nearly every atmospheric "filler" song, M83 create an anxious energy that seems to peak over and over again throughout their shows. This latest O-town foray should prove no different. (House of Blues, Orlando)—Deborah Ramos
Agent Ribbons w/DieAlps! Guitarist Natalie Gordon and drummer Lauren Hess are the songstresses behind Agent Ribbons, Gordon’s full-bodied cabaret-throaty lead complementing Hess’ higher brighter soprano back-up in colorful black-humored narratives set against minimalist instrumentals. Though the Austin-by-way-of-Sacramento, Calif. duo added string arrangements to 2010 sophomore full-length Chateau Crone for a more baroque-resonant sheen, just-released EP Let Them Talk found Agent Ribbons scaling back to their vintage garage-pop aesthetic in songs like "Family Haircut," which is marked by Spector-stacked girl-group harmonies and psych-percussive textures. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
Wyclef Jean Book Signing Inkwood Books welcomes Haitian-born hip hop artist Wyclef Jean for a book talk and signing of his new memoir, Purpose: An Immigrant's Story. Though it's not a music event, per se, the presentation includes a live interview with St. Pete Times pop music critic Sean Daly, followed by Q&A and signing. According to the release, "there may be music as well." Reserved tickets and copies of the memoir available at Inkwood. (Palma Ceia Presbyterian Church, Tampa)
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
Ketchy Shuby The self-styled "downtown soul" of Miami septet Ketchy Shuby draws on vintage gold psychedelic funk and soul, Afrobeat, reggae, jazz and blues influences, the musicians building heady grooves with clav, organ and bass, adding texture with guitar and percs, infusing brassy bursts or gently rising strains of sax and occasional flute, and each one (save for the drummer) providing backing harmonies to the alternately mellow-melodic or gritty-impassioned singing of frontman Jason Hernandez-Rodriguez. (Ella's Americana Folk Art Café, Tampa)
Blast Friday w/Atlanta Rhythm Section Downtown Clearwater's free monthly street fair and party kicks off a new season of good times and live music on the stage in front of Capitol Theatre with a concert by Atlanta Rhythm Section, the more than four-decades-old soft rock band that put out 1970s hits like "So Into You," "Imaginary Lover" and "Spooky." (Cleveland Street, downtown Clearwater)
Stick Martin Show Flash Drive Release Party The local rock-hop trio led by rhyme-slinging songwriter Stick Martin hosts this new music throwdown, and the $10 admission price includes a specialized Stick Martin Show flash drive with five never-before-released tracks from a live set they performed at WMNF, among other select cuts. (Tampa Bay Pitcher Show, Tampa)
The Tannahill Weavers An evening of traditional Celtic music as presented by Scotland's Tannahill Weavers, a vet quartet with a varied repertoire that spans centuries and encompasses topical songs along with original ballads and lullabies, their rich instrumental framework built with Highland bagpipes, Scottish smallpipes, whistles, flutes, fiddle, cello, viola, bodhran, and guitar. (Tarpon Springs Performing Arts Center, Tarpon Springs)
Geri X w/The Christmas Horse/The Wallies/LushBudget Brooding alt folk rock beauty Geri X has earned multiple Best of the Bay awards over the years (including the 2012 Readers' Choice award for "Best Singer-Songwriter"), and she’s been tirelessly promoting her ninth and latest LP, Work is the Wolf, since its release earlier this year. Also of note on this St. Pete bill: The Wallies from Sarasota, which craft a blend of crunchy garage rock and sleazy post punk with Brit Invasion appeal. (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Brad Paisley w/The Band Perry/Scotty McCreery/Jana Kramer/Love And Theft Kicking off Florida's fall country music concert season in his well-worn Tony Lamas is Brad Paisley, a Nashville rocker who has 27 Top 10 hits (17 of those No. 1's), a few truckloads of awards to his credit (including three Grammys), and is currently on another round of dates supporting his ninth studio LP, This Is Country Music. (1-800-Ask-Gary Amphitheater, Tampa)
The Green w/Stick Figure/Jahguar Although barely three years old, Hawaiian six-piece The Green has already been making themselves known with a heady marriage of ‘70s-era roots reggae, modern space dub, and soulfully melodic pop; 2010 eponymous debut was named as iTunes' "Best Reggae Album of 2010" and 2011 sophomore album Ways & Means spent four weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Reggae charts. New single "Liar" dropped earlier this month via Easy Star Records, and was produced and mixed in part by Christian Mochizuki (Kanye West, Jay-Z). (Orpheum, Ybor City)
The Rocketboys / Bearcat w/Alexander & the Grapes Two indie acts from the South unite for a tour to raise funds and awareness about humanitarian organization Invisible Children; its primary focus is ending the use of children as soldiers in Central and East Africa. The Rocketboys, from Austin, deliver galloping and soaring indie rock as evidenced in "The Best," the most recently-released single off 2012 album, Build Anyway. Orlando's Bearcat is the moniker of soulful chanteuse Renee Yohe, whose silky throaty timbre carries hints of smoky jazz halls while her style of swallowing words brings a unique vulnerability to her nostalgia-shimmery pop. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29
Metric We love our Canadian art rock bands, especially the ones related to the Broken Social Scene family. This particular group resides within a New Wave/post punk aesthetic and features commanding, flaxen-haired singer, keys and synths mistress Emily Haines. Metric is on the road behind recently-released fifth studio album, Synthetica, a compelling mechanical grinding record that’s about, among other things, "what is real versus what is artificial." (The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City)
Tangerine Blues Fest Sean Chambers w/Sterling Magee/Betty Fox/No Money Down Originally started in 2008 to shine a light on the business corridor along 49th Street South in Gulfport, Tangerine Blues Fest has grown into a rather respectable community music event featuring impressive blues-pushing talent. The fifth annual fest is headed up by singer/axeman Sean Chambers, a native who toured with late icon Hubert Sumlin and made a name for himself on the international blues circuit. The free outdoor event is held from 4 to 10 p.m., and local vendors serve food, drink and beer throughout the day. (Tangerine Greenway, 49th Street and Tangerine Avenue, Gulfport)
The Hip Abduction w/d'Visitors Get your brassy worldbeat grooves on when The Hip Abduction brings their Afro-tasty mix of rock, jazz, funk and reggae to the Skipperdome. d'Visitors warm up the stage with a similarly-influenced sound infused with stronger Latin, ska and soul vibes. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
Fiona Apple w/Blake Mills Fiona Apple's fourth and latest studio LP, The Idler Wheel…, leads-off with first single "Every Single Night," which opens with crystalline piano and Fiona's soft and sultry mumbling, then quickly and menacingly veers away from being a simple little lullaby as Fiona doubles her vocals in a tribal wail — an effect she uses often throughout the rest of the album. These overdubbed vocals, piano, drums and a questionable recording of a mob screaming make up the album's dark sonic palette. The piano rock songstress rarely makes her way down to Florida, so regardless of whether or not you think The Idler Wheel… is an excellent follow-up to 2005's Extraordinary Machine, this is a concert you don’t want to miss. (Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater) —Leilani Polk and Shae Krispinsky
Aer w/Yonas/Davis Dallas Boston duo Aer (David von Mering and Carter Schultz) purvey a blend of acoustic pop rock, roots reggae and alt hip-hop, with their melodic sing-song rhyme style and youthful energy (both 19) are on full display in debut full-length, The Bright Side, out this July. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
Sarasota Blues & Music Festival w/Delbert McClinton/The Royal Southern Brotherhood/Ana Popovic/Curtis Salgado/Paul Thorn/Pett Crow The 22nd annual fest features a tidy lineup of well-known music-makers paired with lesser-known but no less talented performers, from Texas blues rocker Delbert McClinton (who is headlining the festivities) and blues singer-songwriter Paul Thorn, to Serbian blues guitar-slinger Ana Popovic. (Ed Smith Stadium, Sarasota)
Electric Powered Windmills w/Sheep!/DJ Vague The Emerald has been a colorful dive bar staple of St. Petersburg since 1950, and was allegedly a favorite hangout of Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac. In honor of the bar’s unique character and its history of welcoming creative folks of all types through its doors, Emerald hosts a show spotlighting our diversity of local talent. Self-described "post-apocalyptic gypsy funk rock" trio Electric Powered Windmills headline. (Emerald Bar, St. Petersburg)
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
Acme Jazz Garage Ease into your Sunday with soul food flavors and a performance by an all-star group of musicians otherwise known as Acme Jazz Garage; low-end maestro Philip Booth (Trio Vibe, Ghetto Love Sugar) and beats maker Tim Diehl make up the grooving rhythm section, guitarist Matt Swenson delivers jazz and blues-informed guitar licks and riffs, and keys man Mike Aloia jams the organ funkiness. (Ella’s Americana Folk Art Café, Tampa)
Bay Buzz Compilation Release Celebration A website run by local musicians and dedicated to the Tampa Bay area music scene, The Bay Buzz (thebaybuzz.org) has recently issued Buzz 2012, a compilation album featuring tracks by a dozen resident bands that also perform live at this release party, among them, Bambooda, Savii, Summersill and Funky Seeds with Steve Arvey. The $10 admission includes a copy of the CD. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
MONDAY, OCTOBER 1
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros w/ Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Indie crunchy psych-folk rock collective Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros' 2012 self-produced sophomore LP, Here, is a bright and breezy follow-up to 2009's well-regarded Up From Below, and it debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. First single "That's What's Up" is a feel good duet set to vintage-warm gospel blues-roots bounce, the raspy masculine-feminine harmonies of visionary frontman Alex Ebert and singer/guitarist Jade Castrinos delivering sincere simple sentiment in lines like "When I was feeling such a mess I thought you'd leave me behind / when I was feeling such a wreck, I thought you'd treat me unkind, then I find / Forever and always, you've got my love to lean on darling." Live shows feature lots of players (10 total), percussive instruments, hand-claps, whistling, dancing, and generally uplifting momentum. Be prepared to get happy. You know you want to. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2
Mac DeMarco/Vacationer w/Bambery Reviving soft rock one cock-eyed, mildly lackadaisical song at a time — "European Vegas," "Baby's Wearin' Blue Jeans," "Rock and Roll Nightclub" — Montreal's Mac DeMarco has a sort of Ween love it or leave it appeal. Vacation is the dreamy, island-vibing beat-driven project of Kenny Vasoli, Philly-based lead singer and bassist of The Starting Line (which recently announced a more permanent return to activity). The swinging and swaying melody-rich vintage rock of Orlando foursome Bambery adds a third interesting dimension to this eclectic Tuesday night bill. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.
This article appears in Sep 27 – Oct 3, 2012.