THURS 16
Black Uhuru w/Tribal Style/Badda Skat In April, Rolling Stone named Black Uhuru's 1981 LP as one of the "100 Best Albums of the Eighties," commenting that, "At a moment when the music was in critical need of a strong new voice, Black Uhuru's finest album, Red, shone with all the musical intensity and political fervor of the Rastafarian movement." The Jamaican roots-dub reggae outfit has been through various personnel changes since its inception in 1974. The "definitive" lineup (from the late 1970s through 1985) featured singers Michael Rose, Derrick "Duckie" Simpson, and Sandra "Puma" Jones backed by the lowend assault of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare, aka Sly & Robbie, who eventually left the band and went on to become reggae's most beloved production team. Today, Simpson remains from that era, and his harmonizing partners are Andrew Bees (who joined in 1997) and vocalist Queen Kay. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
Expire Midwestern-brewed post-hardcore with post-rock and prog-heavy tendencies and lots of thick and hard-driving guitars making a range of sounds — distorted riffs, dramatic arpeggios, clean shredding solos — Expire is currently promoting their new Suffer the Cycle 7" on Six Feet Under Records. Minus, Soul Search, Twitching Tongues, Suitcase City, Vices and Weight of the World support. (Transitions Gallery @ Skatepark of Tampa)
Owl City The electro-pop rock project of singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adam Young, Owl City hits Orlando immediately following the release of their third studio full-length, All Things Bright and Beautiful. Orlando is the touring ensemble's single stop in Florida. Mat Kearney and Unwed Sailor support. (House of Blues, Orlando)
Run Forever It's a bittersweet true story of loss and triumph, about a burgeoning indie band from Pittsburgh called Run, Forever and how the unexpected death of a member in the midst of writing their first album impacted the musicians who were left behind. The drummer dropped out, remaining bassist Cassie Staub and guitarist-singer Anthony Heubel took a hiatus to lick their emotional wounds, and eight months later the two re-grouped and recorded The Devil, And Death, And Me, with various friends taking up drum duty until the position was permanently filled by Brandon Knepp. Lyrically, Run, Forever's 2010 debut is colored by their loss, but The Devil carries a bright fist-pumping eruption of rousing joy and passionate release, the vocals of Heubel raw and passionately persistent against fast, upbeat roots-folk rock with a punk insistent punch. Also on the bil: Casey Lee (Fake Problems), Meadow and Y Los Dos Pistoles. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Jermaine Jannus presents a Summer Jam Live Series showcase that spotlights up-and-coming St. Petersburg R&B/hip-hop singer and dancer Jermaine, who'll be backed by a full band and perform a full-blown choreographed show; also featuring Magic, Cloud 9, and Da Unknown Poet. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
Nato Coles & The Blue Diamond Band Coles is a singer, songwriter, guitarist and harmonica jammer who's been a staple of the Midwestern DIY rock scene for several years, most notably with Milwaukee's Modern Machines. He spent some time in Brooklyn, but returned to middle America and settled in Minneapolis, where he now fronts his rockin' and rollin' punk-blues-roots outfit, Blue Diamond Band. Also on the bill: The New McCarthy and 100 Car Pile Up. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
FRI 17
Def Leppard w/Heart British metal heavyweights Def Leppard rolled through town in 2009 with Poison and Cheap Trick, and impressed CL Writer Gabe Echazabal with a rousing 90-minute closing set that "played like a greatest hits jukebox: 'Rocket,' 'Animal,' 'Rock of Ages' and 'Love Bites' served as reminders of Leppard's sturdy grasp of singles and albums charts in the 1980s ..." This tour comes on the heels of their first-ever live release, 2011's WalMart exclusive Mirror Ball (Live & More), a two-disc set that features live versions of hits from their catalog along with three new studio tracks and a bonus DVD of live performances and behind-the-scenes footage. Hard classic rockers Heart, led by Wilson sisters Ann and Nancy, join Leppard on their 2011 U.S. tour. (1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre, Tampa)
d'Visitors Mixing up a percussion-fused dance-inducing brew of Latin, soul, funk, reggae, calypso, ska, jazz and various other genres is d'Visitors, a Tampa sextet that features commanding vocalist/frontwoman Nikki Ferraro, songwriter-guitarist-vibes man Brian Deeds, the two-horn assault of trumpeter Kenny Pullin and sax player Tom Herbort, Jamaica-born bassist Mugabe Tenn (also a member of Tribal Style, among many other local outfits), and rhythm-maker Kenan Hercules. (Ella's Americana Folk Art Café, Tampa)
Tara Tinsley / Jeremy Gloff California's Tara Tinsley — a sweetly drawling throaty-voiced acoustic guitar-wielding artist with flaxen hair and soulful blues eyes — co-heads an eclectic bill of music with Tampa electro-pop singer-songwriter Jeremy Gloff, who released his 17th album, THIS, via Crunks Not Dead Records in May. Also on the bill: The Guilford Blackout, Hell-Bent, Murder Suicide Pact and The Mark Allen Raft Band (Pegasus Lounge, Tampa)
Sons of Hippies w/Alias Punch A pair of Central Florida bands rock New World's standing-room stage. Sons of Hippies is the seething electro psyche-punk trio from Sarasota that features girlish-growling singer-guitarist Katherine Kelley and her male counterpart/collaborator, Jonas Conales, who keeps the propulsive rhythms and adds percussive and synth textures along with deeper-toned vocal outbursts. Alias Punch is an Orlando-based three-piece that also exhibits punk tendencies, but leans more to surf rock and raw acoustic roots, with explosive drumming and cheeky-absurd lyrics like those in the polyrhythmic Talking Heads-inspired "Gorilla, Gorilla," off their 2010 EP, Sly and the Family Stallone. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
SAT 18
Acoustic Alchemy The contemporary instrumental jazz ensemble from the UK has a sound marked by the gentle interplay of three guitars with distinctive tones — acoustic, pedal steel, and electric. Acoustic Alchemy commemorates their 30-year anniversary in 2011 with a new album of smooth sounds, Roseland, due out later this summer. (Largo Cultural Center, Largo)
Bird Street Players w/Green Sunshine/Skull and Bone Band Get your jam dance on when three hot Bay area acts deliver grooves for your moves. Green Sunshine kicks things off with rhyme-slinging and singing against funky reggaefied hip-hop. Next up is Skull and Bone Band, a four-piece that adds dirty Southern grit to their own blend of folk, blues, and heady rock 'n' roll. Bird Street Players close out the evening with their intoxicating island-swaying funk, jazz and soulful-spirited rock. (The Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Halcyon w/The Applebutter Express Even though harmonizing singer-guitarists Deb Hunseder and Steph Callahan have settled down to run live music venue PLAY Ybor, the acoustic folk duo still find time to play the Skipper's stage every month or so and usually draw a healthy crowd of fans. Ukulele-driven boy-girl two-piece Applebutter Express opens this go-round. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
Blood Sweat & Tears BS&T has cycled through more musicians (100+) in their four decades as a band than some people go through underwear. In their defense, they do have a four-piece horn section in addition to a full-on six-piece band — so more chances for change. BS&T is best known for their pleasantly hokey, pop-polished jazz-fused soul rock hits like "Spinning Wheel" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy." Steve Katz is the sole holdover from the original 1967 lineup. (Treasure Island Yacht Club, Treasure Island)
Keith Urban w/Jake Owen The sexy Grammy-winning country star from Australia who snagged Nicole Kidman's heart (and had two children with her) lands in Tampa on night three of his more than 50-date North American "Get Closer 2011 Tour," where he treats fans to newer material off the 2010 gold-selling album his tour is named for, as well as various hits from his other six LPs — "Better Life," "Days Go By" and "Somebody Like You," among others — with a flashy, fully-produced stage show. RCA Nashville recording artist Jake Owen supports. (St. Pete Times Forum)
Five Eight Emo post-punk trio Five Eight has been playing around the Athens, Ga. indie rock scene for the past few decades, never getting as big as everyone thought they would in 2004 when they released their self-titled LP and toured with R.E.M., but still holding it together against all odds (and various band member hardships) to arrive at their ninth studio recording, this year's Your God Is Dead To Me Now, which sees the return of one-time guitarist Sean Dunn. Also on the bill: The Beauvilles and Deadly Fists of Kung Fu. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
Hallucienda: A Family Affair Edition A dance music celebration of the newest releases out via Hallucination Ltd. with live spins headed up by San Francisco DJ Sunshine Jones (Treehouse Muzique), and Tampa/NYC DJ Three. (Don Vicente Inn, Ybor City)
Brutal Summer Bar-B-Q 2011 A local metal showcase presented by Death Metal Dave of WMNF's Psycho Realms Metal Radio and Brutalbroadcast.com; free beer and food (while supplies last), prize drawings for swag from Rock n' Roll Heaven of Clearwater, and a lineup of bands that'll make you pump your devil-horned fists throughout the night: Must...Not...Kill; Black Tides Roll; Sledgegrinder; Fossor Silenti; Catalysis; Ovid's Withering; and Ben Meyer. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Tampa Songs An inaugural day-long music fest celebrating the city of Tampa via performances by the musicians who call it home, from electric violinist Laslow Horvath to twangy folk-blues songstress Maggie Council to the area's own cult roots rock artist Ronny Elliott. Plus: Unpainted Souls; Judy Tampa & Bunko Squad; Dean Johanesen; Charlie Souza; Big Picture; Ray Villadonga; Parson Brown; Blue Island Beer Club with Jayne Kelli; and Franc Robert. Part of the month-long "Cuban Sandwich" arts project put together by Tampa filmmaker David Audet. (Gram's Place, Tampa)
SUN 19
John Lee Hooker, Jr. As the name implies, blues musician John Lee Hooker, Jr. is the son of late Mississippi bluesman John Lee Hooker, who imparted his own Delta wisdom into his son's willing ears. But Jr. strays into different territory with his modern Motown influences, bringing a slicker showman quality to his performances and pouring all his efforts into his powerful vocals. Also on the bill: Beth McKee. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
Willy Porter The modern folkie from Wisconsin adds a dusty Americana and roots-pop feel to his warm songwriting with rusty vocals, fiddle melodies, jaunty horns, rhythmic acoustic guitar strumming and rolling beats. (Hideaway Café, St. Petersburg)
MON 20
Blaze and Boondox Psychopathic Records sponsors a co-headlining tour of hip-hop featuring two of its artists: Blaze and Boondox, white boy gangsta/horrorcore rappers who both wear face paint and headgear (the former a ball cap, the latter a cowboy hat). Not surprising, considering they're both repped by Insane Clown Posse's label and were likely hand-picked by that band. With The Sticks & Headstones (The Local 662, St. Petersburg)
ALSO THIS WEEK
Kill Kurt Reifler Thurs., June 16, Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin
ATUNYAH w/Danger Powarz/Fyah Marshal Fri., June 17, Club Nouveau, Tampa
Miggs Fri., June 17, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Tampa
Josh Lamkin CD Release Fri., June 17, Hideaway Café, St. Petersburg
Rise 2 Brutality w/Fires Of Gomorrah/The Mortuary Society/Ickis/Crow Fri., June 17, Gasoline Alley, Largo
The Human Condition Fri., June 17, Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin
Tickle / Twenty Sided Die / Raguckas Fri., June 17, Brass Mug, Tampa
Summer Slam Fest: In December We Fall/I Am Dreamer/Every Passing Dream/many more Fri., June 17, State Theatre, St. Petersburg
Shaun Hopper w/Next of Kin Fri., June 17, Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa
Matt Cusson Sat., June 18, The Fox Jazz Café, Tampa
Poundsalt/Nation of Wealth Sat., June 18, Pegasus Lounge, Tampa
Bride of Chaotica Sat., June 18, Yeoman's Road Pub, Tampa
We Are The Union w/I Call Fives/HandxGuns/We Still Dream/One Way!/Glendale Lights Sat., June 18, Transitions Gallery @ Skatepark of Tampa