When I’m 64: A Steve Connelly Birthday Bash w/The Headlights/The Lesser Gods/Mercy McCoy/GreyMarket/more Legendary genius. There’s probably not a better way to describe longtime Bay area musician and record producer Steve Connelly, who has put his golden touch on countless recordings while also making a name for himself a guitarist and as a member of his band, the Headlights (who were signed to a national deal and even opened for the Grateful Dead at the old Tampa Stadium). Members of Headlights and Connelly’s other band, the Lesser Gods, are set to be at this 64th birthday bash, which feels extra celebratory considering the fact that Connelly was awaiting a liver transplant just over two years ago (hepatitis-C was the culprit, which he once attributed to “the decadence of the punk rock era” ). Get there early to see locals GreyMarket and Mercy McCoy open the show. (Side Door at The Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg) INFO
New Kids on the Block w/Boyz II Men/Paula Abdul Don’t even try to fit into your high school Wranglers, but do round up every one of your friends for an insane night of pop music nostalgia that finds Paula Abdul returning to the stage alongside old-school heartthrobs New Kids on the Block and Babyface-reared R&B crooners Boyz II Men. (Amalie Arena, Tampa) INFO
\\
Washed Out w/Dega If you’ve ever wanted to just vibe out with Ernest Greene, then this is your chance. The man behind chillwave-pioneering act Washed Out has kind of put his songwriter-hat on the rack for a new Stones Throw Records release, Mister Mellow, which dropped just two weeks ago. The effort is the 34-year-old’s first bit of new music in almost half a decade, and the self-described “visual album” — complete with laid-back samples plus a little bit of soul and jazz — is exactly the kind of Xanax-munching, kick-back record, this sweaty-ass summer calls for. Greene brings a fellow Peach State act — indie-pop duo Dega — along to open the show. (Orpheum, Ybor City) INFO
Crash Bash w/Crash Mitchell Quartet/The Tim Version/Abortion Twins/Buck Sands Punk rock songwriter Crash Mitchell has been bringing his love of the Sunshine State to microphones since ‘93, but his appearances have been rare since a minor heart attack (coupled with influenza and pneumonia) earned him a ten-week hospital stay and permanent mental anguish (Mitchell, now 47-years-old, had already been in two major car accidents prior to all of this). In honor of an upcoming birthday (July 17 if you’re rounding up gifts), Mitchell and his quartet — which includes Lakeland Ledger entertainment reporter Paul Catala — are doing something of a reunion show alongside some of the Bay area’s most beloved rock and rollers. (New World Brewery, Ybor City) INFO
DBMK w/Sleeptalk/Brightside It stands for “Denim Blue & Miclain Keith,” and DBMK songs like “Pills” sound like a lot of the electro punk-pop you hear tearing up alternative rock radio these days. The difference is that it’s being made right here in Tampa Bay, and this show at Lucky You is kind of like a welcome home for the band, which is returning from a short run in the Midwest. Joining DBMK on this bill is Southern California pop-punk group Sleeptalk, touring in support of a 2015 EP Pure. (Lucky You Tattoo, St. Petersburg) INFO
Johnny Thunder Birthday Bash w/Kevin K/Gino and the Goons/Radarmen? You can’t put your arms around a memory, but you can embrace this free show which leans hard on old-school New York punk rock (Kevin K) while also inviting some local boys (rock and roll boys Gino and the Goons, post-punk trio Radarmen?) to help say happy birthday to late, great New York Dolls guitarist Johnny Thunders, who was born on July 15, 1952. (Planet Retro Records, St. Petersburg) INFO
21 Savage Saint Laurent Don — aka 21 Savage, real name Shayaa Bin Abraham-Joseph — is in town supporting Issa, a brand new LP of trap-ready Atlanta hip-hop born out of the 24-year-old emcees time trying to survive in the roughest of DeKalb County’s neighborhoods. Mr. Savage’s rhymes about life on the streets ring far more authentic than many of his less-believable contemporaries (maybe it has something to do with the “Death Before Dishonor” tattoo on his forehead), and you can count on fans knowing every word when they pack the Jannus courtyard. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg) INFO
Betty Fox Band w/AB+Positive Community radio station WMNF 88.5 FM is teaming up with one of the biggest, bluesiest voices in the south to help raise money for the station and Town ‘N Country organic farm, Sweetwater, where Fox made her live debut almost a decade ago. AB+Positive, a young duo which played WMNF’s recent Paul McCartney tribute, opens the show. (Sweetwater Organic Community Farm, Tampa) INFO
ALSO PLAYING
Funk/World/Jam
Brass Roots (Shephard’s Beach Resort, Clearwater Beach) INFO
Hightest (Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin) INFO
Rock the Yacht w/Orquestra Urbana (Yacht StarShip, Tampa) INFO
Singer-songwriter/Folk
Kaleigh Baker w/Heather Lee/Jordan Wynn (Hideaway Café, St. Petersburg) INFO
Live & Local w/Angie Rey (David A. Straz Center for Performing Arts, Tampa) INFO
Nowicki, Nuffer, and Miller (Above the Salt Cafe, Tampa) INFO
Rock
Between Bluffs (The Ale & the Witch, St. Petersburg) INFO
Throne Of Botis w/Degradations/Condor/Led By Serpents/Garroted (Fubar, St. Petesburg) INFO
He Is Legend w/To Speak Of Wolves/Bad Seed Rising (Crowbar, Ybor City) INFO
TBTB w/Kore Rozzik/more (Brass Mug, Tampa) INFO
Summer Music Series w/Big Chill Band (Bok Tower Gardens, Lake Wales) INFO
Polar Summer CD Release (State Theatre, St. Petersburg) INFO
Summer Jam w/Berry Oakley’s Jive Ass Review/Kettle Of Fish/Ship of Fools (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa) INFO
Hip-hop/DJ/EDM
Ignite the Night w/Tone Kapone/DJ Spaceship (Pegasus Lounge, Tampa) INFO
Valentino Khan (The Ritz, Ybor City) INFO
Vinyl Sounds on Patrol w/DJ Shafiq (Mermaid Tavern, Tampa) INFO
Jazz
O Som Do Jazz (SubCentral at Iberian Rooster, St. Petersburg) INFO
This article appears in Jul 13-20, 2017.
