THURSDAY, APRIL 18
David Benoit & Brian Culbertson Two very different jazz pianists back one another in an extremely intimate setting, given each’s stature in the jazz world. Benoit is known for a more light and melodic style, while Culbertson’s background as a multi-instrumentalist and R&B lover lends his sound a more powerful and rhythmic signature. It will be interesting to hear what each adds to the other’s catalog — just two players, two pianos and the room. (Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg) —Scott Harrell
Zeds Dead Once you know what “Ratchet” means (slang to describe a skanky, busted, loud and unruly female), it’s hard to hear without smirking. Although, that could be because I learned it from watching Bad Girls Club. “Ratchet” is also the title of the latest track by Toronto EDM duo Zeds Dead, and it has some of the same nasty smirking appeal, from the single sampled hook, “You say no to ratchet pussy” (off Juicy J’s “Bandz A Make Her Dance”), to its grimy whirring and warped synth-sonics, hip-hop beats, and backdrop of blaring alarms, sonic flotsam and spliced vocal burps, ahhs and shouts. Producers DC and Hooks also incorporate elements of reggae, dupstep, glitch, bass music and electro house into their mixes and mash-ups, and jumped onto Diplo’s Mad Decent label last year to release their Hot Sauce EP in January. (Amphitheatre, Ybor City) —Leilani Polk
Jimmies Chicken Shack Though they’ve been recording and touring sporadically since their mid-’90s heyday, JCS hasn’t really maintained the association with the third-wave/ska-punk scene that originally gave the band their nominal and fleeting notoriety. Which is probably nothing more than the clarity of hindsight — sure, they've got some upbeat syncopation going on, but at their core have more in common with the funk-metal of Green Apple Quick Step and Mindfunk, albeit with a bit more twangy soul. (Local 662, St. Petersburg) —SH
FRIDAY, APRIL 19
Rihanna w/A$AP Rocky We know Barbados pop/hip-hop songstress Rihanna from hits like “Umbrella,” “Only Girl (In the World)” and latest, “Diamonds” off 2012’s Unapologetic. But let’s be real here, these days Rihanna’s name has become synonymous with domestic abuse, even more so now that she’s back with former flame Chris Brown, aka the dude who made a mess of her face four years back. I started making a playlist for her, because she’s obviously a masochist, and got four songs deep — “He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss),” “(Hit Me) …Baby, One More Time,” “Fistful of Love” “Kiss with a Fist” — before I realized Rihanna has her own repertoire of tracks referencing her painful tastes, from sexy dance of “S&M” (“Now the pain is my pleasure”), to the bleaker foreshadowing in “Love Without Tragedy / Mother Mary” (“Felt love struck me with a knife / I pray that love don’t strike twice”). Not that Rihanna is making apologies for who she is as the Unapologetic album title maintains. On her “Diamonds World Tour,” she’ll be not-apologizing in glitzy, glamorous glory during a two-hour extravaganza, performing choreography flanked by back-up dancers and executing numerous costume changes that include fab looks by Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci and Raf Simons of Christian Dior along with those of personal designer Adam Selman. (Tampa Bay Times Forum, Tampa) —LP
Warehouse Arts District Block Party w/RedFeather/Auto!Automatic!!/The Mother Machine/Luxury Mane/Jensen Serf Co./Touch the Sky/Early Forms/Alexander & the Grapes/The Happiness Machine/Reina Collins and Sean Hartley Band/The Send Offs/Brazos the Rat/Empire Cinema/The Other Ryan Willis/Serotonic/Bard and Mustache Click here for details and more information. (Zen Glass, U562, Dan's Place, Inside the Gates)
Dick Dale w/Jeff Vitolo & The Quarter Mile Rebels/HoDaddys/The Mother Machine At 75 years old, Dick Dale still has more grit, attitude and chops than all the practicing acolytes and surf-rock aficionados he’s influenced from every generation since 1961’s “Miserlou.” Expect plenty of respect for the master emanating from the stage during every opener’s set. This should be one hell of a shindig, as well as a celebration of the enduring impact Dale has had on rockabilly, Americana, rock ’n’ roll, punk and goth culture for freaking decades now. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg) —SH
Monophonics w/Nervous Turkey Soulful Cali sextet Monophonics has been adding a dash of hypnotic psych-rock to its blend of R&B, jump-blues and crooner-soul for the better part of a decade now. So much more than a novel or nostalgic rehash of the black sounds that so informed rock’s roots, this group does it right, from the eclectic nature of the setlist — rave-ups to slow burners — to the sense of emotional investment. Good, good stuff. It’s saying something that Nervous Turkey, one of the best and most evocative live acts to have ever come out of the Bay area, is almost icing on the cake. Highly recommended. (Crowbar, Ybor City) —SH
NWB Anniversary Party w/SWIMM w/Florida Kilos/Hovering Humanoids Can it really be New World’s 18th anniversary? Holy shit, that’s a lot of beers. And a lot of good times, and a hell of a lot of great music. And tonight’s birthday soiree continues the trend. Hailing from Florida’s east coast and formerly known as Le Blorr, SWIMM mixes old-school Nugget and psych-rock influences with an ambitious and meandering-yet-trancey modern indie aesthetic; the results are quite kick-ass. The Bay area’s own Florida Kilos ply a slightly more concise and accessible sound without sacrificing too much fuzz-toned weirdness, and Tampa’s Hovering Humanoids inject a bit more of a progressive vibe into the proceedings. (New World Brewery, Ybor City) —SH
Merchandise w/Gun Outfit One of the Bay area’s worst kept secrets, Pitchfork.com readers across the country knew more about rising hometown post-punk outfit Merchandise than many hardcore local-music fans. Rather than basking in local-show glory, the noisy, eclectic and intriguing trio made their records and went on tour, building a culty underground national profile and catching many of us by surprise. Equal parts New Wave, No Wave and unapologetically fractured college rock, Merchandise is more than worthy of catching up on. Support for tonight’s show comes courtesy of the equally below-the-radar, equally genre-oblivious and equally worthwhile Gun Outfit. (Mojo Books And Music, Tampa) —SH
SATURDAY, APRIL 20
Taylor Swift w/Ed Sheeran What is there to be said about Taylor Swift that hasn’t already been said by a million Tumblr jokes? Not a lot, really. The once-precocious pop-country ingénue has wiped most of the country from her sound for her latest blockbuster, RED, without sacrificing — or expanding beyond — her comfort zone with regard to subject matter. Boys are trouble! At this point, one can’t help but wonder whether or not the whole dating-as-mining-for-subject-matter thing is costing Swift more fans than it’s winning her, but the hooks are undeniable, if formulaic and increasingly annoying. “Acclaimed” singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran is almost certainly only along primarily to join Swift onstage for RED duet “Everything Has Changed” after his opening set. It’s a business, people. (Tampa Bay Times Forum, Tampa) —SH
Arvel Bird A special Earth Day presentation with Arvel Bird. The classically trained musician and storyteller uses his mixed Southern Paiute and Scottish heritage as inspiration in his modern fusion of Celtic and Native American music. His aesthetic also touches on elements of Appalachian folk, bluegrass and roots rock, while his turns on Native American flute and violin add an exotic melodic allure, one weeping the loneliness of a wind-blown prairie, the other venturing from traditional green highlands territory into wailing space-faring psychedelia. The show starts at 6 p.m.; a portion of proceeds from tickets ($18-$23) benefit Defenders of Wildlife. (Craftsmen House, St. Petersburg) —LP
BoomBox Singer-songwriter Zion Godchaux offers up lead vocals and jams on guitar and bass while BoomBox bandmate, DJ/producer Russ Randolph, builds a pulsing backdrop with keys, sequencers, groove boxes and turntables. Both take turns on drums to create the rhythmic backdrop of their electro-groove rock soundscapes. (Crowbar, Ybor City) —LP
James McMurtry w/Jonny Burke Texas native McMurtry is one of those songwriter’s songwriters, a guy revered by other musicians yet probably completely unknown to Bay area Americana fans who exist outside WMNF’s listenership. The man’s got a great slow-burn vibe about his style, and he can certainly evoke a scene or feeling — often a socially conscious one — with one or two immaculate, deceptively tossed-off lines. Fellow Texan Burke’s got more of a rock edge to his twang, having taken a cue or two from the likes of Townes Van Zandt, Tom Petty and the Flying Burrito Brothers. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa) —SH
Creative Loafing 25th Birthday Bash w/Juliet Simms/Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band/Jeremy Gloff/Zulu Wave/Florida Night Heat/The Dead Popes/Types/Death Starsky/Sons of Hippies/Win Win Winter/many more Click here for details and more information. (The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City)
SweetWater Brewery Presents 420 on 4/20: New Orleans Suspects/Tim Barry/The Collective/Burning Tree/Khora/Roots For Change/Thee Wilt Chamberlain/The Wooly Bushmen/Dysmorpha/Archaic Interest/many more The 600 Block throws a street party sponsored by Atlanta-based Sweetwater Brewery (makers of unpasteurized ales). Local food purveyors and earth-friendly vendors will be set up along the block, and more than 20 bands perform at four venues; $4.20 wristband for entry into all. The big stage at State Theatre boasts an eclectic lineup headlined by the swampy, funky, brass-dancing New Orleans Suspects, made up of bassist Reggie Scanlan (The Radiators), keysman/singer C.R. Gruver (Outformation, Leo Nocentelli), guitarist/singer Jake Eckert (Dirty Dozen Brass Band), sax player Jeff Watkins (James Brown Band, Joss Stone Band) and drummer Willie Green (Neville Bros.); the quintet combines originals with hits and obscurities from the Allen Toussaint and Dr. John songbooks, and favorites from Radiators, Nevilles and Dirty Dozen catalogs. That bill also features a set by punk-folk singer-songwriter Tim Barry. Local 662 boasts reggae-rock grooves as headed up by St. Pete’s own Burning Tree while Octave and Fubar offer variations on the theme of local and Orlando area indie music — garage and surf rock, experimental music, punk, metal, alt-folk, hip-hop and acoustic fare. I imagine Sweetwater 420 Extra Pale Ale will be pouring in endless streams at all venues, so find a DD and get ready to drink up. (600 Block, St. Petersburg) —LP
420 Party w/Tribal Style/The New Rulers/Gwan Hi-Fi/more So far, we’ve failed to discuss the real implications of April 20, the unofficial calendar date that all the haze-faced folks celebrate with a few puffs and a pass, some bong rips, pipe loads, shotguns, blazed blunts, clam bakes, volcano bags, et al. Oh, and some apropos music. Because, you know, smoking weed is illegal here, but listening to good music and celebrating the act and art of smoking weed is not. This bill features reggae, ska-rocksteady and hip-hop from some super dope locals (joined by guests The Rukus and Ras-Bongo) that’ve probably enjoyed plenty of low-lidded nights. Twist one up, find a quiet place to share it with some friends, then hit Ybor. Just don’t bogart that joint. Man. (New World Brewery, Ybor City) —LP
SUNDAY, APRIL 21
Shane Sweeny & Todd May Resonant and raspy-voiced Shane Sweeny, regular bassist of Two Cow Garage, hits town on the latest run of dates backing his raw and heartfelt solo debut as a singer-songwriter, The Finding Time. He’s joined by fellow Columbus, Ohio native Todd May, who has twangy vocals and a more rocking alt-country style that, up until last year, he’d only revealed in bands like Lilybandits and backing artists like Lydia Loveless. He, too, supports his first solo outing, Rickenbacker Girls. (The Hub, downtown Tampa) —LP
Organs for Organs Charity Concert A big assortment of Bay area B3 players gather to play in honor of National Donate Life Month and raise funds for LifeLink Foundation, a 23-year-old community nonprofit organization that facilitates organ and tissue donations for needy patients and supports research and other related services. Solo performances, band-backed presentations and jams featuring up to three keysman at once, among them, Micheal Aloia, John “Dash” Dixon, Gary Doyle, Jack “Funkman” Henriquez, Michael “The Professor” Hensley, Rick Mendoza, and Dave Woodie. Festivities kick off at 5 p.m.; $10 suggested donation. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa) —LP
Curren$y The prolific New Orleans rapper was plying rhymes about muscle cars, women and smoking greens here last June directly on the heels of releasing The Stoned Immaculate. He’s called his latest LP under his Warner Bros. imprint, Jet Life Recordings, his “first real album” because he worked with different producers and took it further than usual by bringing in a boatload of guests, including Pharrell, Smoke DZA, 2 Chainz, Wale, Estelle, Wiz Khalifa, Marsha Ambrosius, Daz Dillinger and Big K.R.I.T. (Amphitheatre, Ybor City) —LP
Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! w/For All Those Sleeping/Upon This Dawning/City Lights The Goonies referential Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! hails from Paris and takes the seemingly disparate elements of pop, punk and hardcore — the snotty punk-emo melodic whiny vocals bumping against deeper gut-growls and roars, aggro breakdowns and down-tuned chugging guitars mixing with driving rhythms and upbeat keys — into a style that’s been dubbed “easycore” and “popcore” by some. Sophomore album Pardon My French drops April 30 via Fearless Records. (Local 662, St. Petersburg) —LP
R5 w/Taylor Matthews/Alex Aiono Not quite the venue you’d expect for triumphant tween-beloved pop rockers, but Palladium Theater holds its fair share of recitals, so why not an early evening R5 bill, too? The young singing, dancing, instrument-wielding Colorado-based Lynch siblings — sis Rydel with bros Rocky, Ross (from Disney Channel’s Austin & Ally) and Riker (a regular on Fox’s Glee) — are rounded out by best friend drummer Ellington Lee Ratliff in R5. They hit town behind 2013 Loud EP, their first Hollywood Records release. (Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg) —LP
Rootz Underground w/Bootleg/Oceanstone Delivering light, breezy reggae music direct from Jamaica is Rootz Underground, a sextet with an organic sound, their posi-vibing messages chanted, trilled and piped in multi-voice harmonies over swaying grooves and lazy-twining guitar melodies in two full-length studio albums, the most recent 2010’s Gravity. This four-date Florida run kicks off their “Western Journey” tour. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg) —LP
RedBull Thre3style Vinyl Edition Showcase w/Peanut Butter Wolf & J.Rocc Hosted by Ol’ Dirty Sundays in partnership with Red Bull as a continuation of the Record Store Day celebration (more about that on p. 77), this all-vinyl showcase features five well-regarded turntable tricksters, twisters and scratchers spinning to three genres of music. Local DJs Blenda, LeSage and Casper join heavy-hitting turntablist leaders on this night’s festivities: hip-hop and funk-soul DJ/producer/Stones Throw Records label founder Peanut Butter Wolf, and JRocc, most memorably of World Famous Beat Junkies and currently repped by Stones Throw. (Crowbar, Ybor City) —LP
SubAp! Swap Meet SuburbanApologist.com stages the third installment of its afternoon swap event featuring CDs, vinyl, T-shirts, books and miscellany goods by the likes of Microgroove, Amy Jean Designs and ADD Records splayed out on the New World patio while a DJ spins tunes for your browsing pleasure. (New World Brewery, Ybor City) —LP
TUESDAY, APRIL 23
Deadstring Brothers If you’re the sort of person for whom label affiliations mean a lot with regard to your choice of music, then you’ll know it’s definitely saying something that Nashville-by-way-of-Detroit twang-soul-stomp outfit Deadstring Brothers’ forthcoming album, Cannery Row, is the group’s fifth with the largely unimpeachable Bloodshot Records. This eclectic and earnest group plies a sound akin to the soundtrack that might back a Depression-era street preacher transported to modern-day urbania, and is rumored to put on a hell of a show as well. Need more cred? How about members of The Cardinals, Willie Nelson’s backing band, and Poco? Yeah, I thought so. Now shut up. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa) —SH
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24
Joe Pug w/Matt Burke/Lauris Vidal Every time a scruffy guy with a dusty voice picks up an acoustic guitar and begins to strum in earnest, he inevitably gets dubbed “The New Dylan.” Among the slew of scions given this dubious distinction, only one comes close in terms of both lyrical quality and quantity: Joe Pug. Born in Maryland, Pug moved to Chicago, dropped out of college and became a carpenter, writing and recording poetically dense acoustic songs at night. Relying on his fans to help build his musical career, Pug releases EPs for free, sells tickets to shows on his website to avoid the high cost of service fees and plays in living rooms in addition to bars and clubs around the country. His stop in Ybor is presented by Ninebullets.net and THX Mgmt. (New World Brewery, Ybor City) —Shae Krispinsky
GWAR “Fate or Chaos Tour” w/Warbeast/Wilson Look: GWAR may or may not have a new album out. I don’t know; I’m too lazy to look, and it doesn’t matter anyway. Because, really, who gives a shit? It was, is and always will be about the show. Which isn’t to say the traveling cavalcade of metal ’n’ envelope-pushing sickness doesn’t have chops; anyone who dismisses the group as a metal version of KISS has gravely underestimated its collective instrumental prowess. But GWAR is a live beast. It always has been, and always will be. And until they go back to hell or Uranus or wherever the fuck they’re from, there will always be a new generation of fans to discover the joys of watching people being shoved into a slimy, tentacled alien vagina onstage while loud-ass thrash is being played. (Beacham Theatre, Orlando) —SH
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.
This article appears in Apr 18-24, 2013.