Todd Rundgren's Utopia The prog-rock group fronted by Rundgren and known for its drawn-out, intricate compositions was originally active from 1973 to '86. Original members Kevin Ellman, Moody Lingman, Ralph Schuckett, Josh Siegler and Kasim Sulton join Rundgren for a short 12-date run. (Capitol Theatre, Clearwater)
Sarasota Blues Fest w/Los Lobos/Ryan Shaw/Shaun Murphy/Lightnin' Malcom/more The long-running Sarasota fest was recently acquired by 30-year-old Texas-based ticketing, marketing and talent booking behemoth ExtremeTix, which won't be changing much in the near future, but could offer the potential of an expanded budget for bigger name talent in the future. Either way, this year's 21st annual event looks pretty solid, with Latin rockers Los Lobos heading things up and Ryan Shaw bringing a soulful pop-blues appeal to the day-long bill. (Ed Smith Stadium, Sarasota)
Wednesday 13 w/Vampires Everywhere/Polkadot Cadaver/Soulidium Funeral Dazies/Crash Fist Fight Wednesday 13 is the performing moniker of singer-musician Joseph Poole, who's best known as the frontman of Murderdolls but has released four LPs as Wednesday 13 that mix horror punk and heavy metal in morbidly droll songs like "I Wanna Be Cremated," "Ghoul Of My Dreams" and "Candle For The Devil," all tracks off his 2011 LP, Calling All Corpses. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
Titans of the Throne Drum Festival A performance-based drum fest that spotlights prominent heavy music skin-pounders, among them, Donald Tardy (Obituary, Andrew W.K.), Tony Laureano (Nile, Black Dahlia, All That Remains) and Steve Asheim (Deicide, Order of Ennead). (Brass Mug, Tampa)
Archnemesis w/J2K/Sounduo With their self-coined "intelligent electro-crunk," Archnemesis aims to make you dance — and I'm talking full-body bump and grind. The two-person project of Curt Heiny and Justin Aubuchon (Telepath, MO Theory) draws on elements of dubstep, trip hop and break-beat, and throws in samples ranging from early 1920s jazz to current soul and hip-hop to keep things interesting. (The Local 662, St. Petersburg)
An Acoustic Evening with Chris Cornell Confession: back in my high school days, I had a major crush on rock icon Chris Cornell. Yes, I was a fan of Soundgarden, but it was his dark intensity and piercing wails kept me coming back for more. By the time Audioslave came around, my ardor had faded, but I still appreciate his skills (and sex appeal), and this sort of intimate show — just Cornell, an acoustic guitar and microphone — has me intrigued. I expect he'll draw from his solo catalog as well as music he's written with both of the aforementioned bands. (Tampa Theatre, Tampa)
Music Fest for ALS w/Damon Fowler Group/Gregg Billings Band/Amanda Drake and the Barn Burners/Josh Lamkin and Automatic Heat/Adam Nicholas/Matt Winter Singer-guitarist Fowler headlines this day-long awareness and fund-raising fest of blues and roots rock that's organized by all-volunteer organization Winning the Fight, with all profits committed to its mission of finding treatment options and making a difference for the more than 30,000 people suffering from the incurable degenerative motor neuron disease known as ALS (or Lou Gehrig's Disease). Get tickets at MusicFestForALS.com. (Town Square Plaza Park, Pinellas Park)
Car Bomb Driver w/The Wankers/The Ruckus A raucous rock concert benefit in honor of late Wankers bassist Tracy Cooley, who passed away in July and left behind a one-year-old daughter. All proceeds will be donated directly to the family. (Dave's Aqua Lounge, St. Petersburg)
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6
Half Man, Half Wit-Stock: Benefit for Harry Hayward w/Ronny Elliott & The Nationals/Dirty Spoons & Trash Revue/Chroma/Florida Mountain Boys/The Crash Mitchell Five/The Roger Sullins Band A local music scene vet, Harry Hayward is the long-running drummer for Ronny Elliott and the Nationals; he's is also a current player with Judy Tampa and Bunko Squad, and local supergroup of sorts, Dirty Spoons and Trash with Tampa and Natty Moss Bond. Hayward is confronting some serious medical issues (and the rising costs that go with them), and this concert has been organized to help him out. For more info or to donate, visit helphayward.com. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
Jinx Album Release Party As a special addition to Ol' Dirty Sundays, Tampa native hip-hop artist Jinx celebrates the release of his freshly-pressed album, New Growth; the rapper and singer has a sort of drawn-out rhyming style, and reflects on topics ranging from personal experiences to social and political issues. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8
Tommy Castro Delivering a searing mix of soulful R&B, Chicago blues and Southern rock is Tommy Castro, who's been awarded multiple honors from The Blues Foundation, including two wins as the "B.B. King Entertainer of the Year." His latest Alligator Records release, Tommy Castro presents The Legendary Rhythm & Blues Revue Live!, was issued earlier this year. (Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa)
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9
Saves the Day / Bayside w/I Am the Avalanche/Transit With the September release of Daybreak, Saves The Day reaches the conclusion of a discographic trilogy and the end of a personal journey for frontman Chris Conley (2006's Sound the Alarm marked the beginning of Conley's therapeutic revelation while 2007's Underneath the Boards is about reflection and remorse). The band is co-headlining their current tour with Bayside, whose lead vocalist Anthony Raneri, had his own trials to pen. "Mona Lisa" and "Sick, Sick, Sick," from their latest album, Killing Time, are inspired by Raneri's divorce; Gil Norton (Dashboard Confessional, Foo Fighters) produced. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg) —Lindsay Collette
OK Sweetheart The rich vocal stylings of Erin Austin are reminiscent of Billie Holiday with a lighter and sweeter appeal, her music in OK Sweetheart charming piano-driven indie folk pop with a little vintage '60s flavor and '70s AM warmth that pervades through songs like the pretty heartbreak of "You Let Me Down" and "All We Have." She self-released her debut full-length, Home, earlier this year and is currently touring as a three-piece with Bradley Waller (drums, guitar, vocals) and Alán De León Uribe (bass, piano, vocals). (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
Melt Banana w/Devout Sometimes there's just too much noise on a record. That may be someone's first thought when he or she initially presses play on any one of Melt Banana's LPs, but hearts, minds and eardrums get converted after spending a little more time with the sonic offerings of this Japanese punk outfit, which has opened up for Tool, The Melvins and Jim O' Rourke over the course of their nearly 20-year existence. It's 2005's Charlie, however, that has me reeling. With 14 tracks clocking in at just over 30 minutes, the album is a pleasurably manic blend of electro, thrash, punk, and cacophony that is off-kilter, unnerving, and irresistible at the same time. If you thought that Peelander Z's WMNF Heatwave set was insane, then get ready to have your face melted. (Crowbar, Ybor City) —Ray Roa
Kaki King An Atlanta artist highly regarded for her ax mastery, Kaki King has a percussive and jazz-influenced style that includes picking, fret-tapping and slap-bass techniques. She uses multiple tunings on acoustic and lap steel guitar as well as looping and layering to get to her textured indie rock sound, which also delves into roots rock, post rock, shoegaze and even punk, as evidenced on her fifth and latest album, 2010's Junior. The current tour finds King returning to her solo acoustic roots. (Capitol Theatre, Clearwater)
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.
