Hey look — you made it to Thursday! The week is almost over. Start celebrating early with some live music — here's a breakdown of what's happening on this first day of October.
Victor Wooten The supersonic bass maestro who regularly lays down grooves with Béla Fleck & The Flecktones has a rather extensive solo catalog in addition to his output with the Flecktones and projects like recent collab with Stanley Clarke and Marcus Miller, SMV, and the orchestral piece he co-composed with fellow Tennessee denizen, violinist Conni Ellisor, The Bass Whisperer: Concerto for Electric Bass and Orchestra. He’s also a voracious lowend educator; he recently launched an interactive Bass Guru lesson series app and this live date with his band falls the day after a clinic at Sam Ash. (Largo Cultural Center, Largo)
Holiday, Invisible Circle, Tellavision Bends owner Matt Kaye has hailed Ricky Seelbach, aka Holiday, as an early supporter of the St. Pete bar and also among his favorites, asserting Holiday’s first performance there as proof to Kaye that there was amazing, forward-thinking music in St. Pete. “He blew me the fuck away.” The rather reclusive electro-punk music maker has some stealthy new robo sounds to share on this night, so get ready for a dance party rager. Two out-of-towners also perform: Invisible Circle, crafting ambient-exotic techno pyschedelia via NYC; and Tellavision, from Germany, their sound femme-driven lo-fi pop weirdness. (The Bends, St. Petersburg)
People’s Blues of Richmond with Stokeswood, Oxford Noland A few return champs that have little in common as far as sound goes team up on this night. If you haven’t experienced the carnival-vibing psych-blues and dark-hued rock-blasting mayhem that is People’s Blues of Richmond, you’ve been missing out. Stokeswood has an airier, indietronic style with washes of ‘80s-hued synths and a fresh new LP, 2075, that’s earned some decent press. (Consequence of Sound hailed the Atlanta outfit’s saccharine appeal, commenting “their sugar is good in moderation and in all likelihood will have them prepped for EDM festivals galore.”) (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Orchestra Fuego With “fire” in its bilingual handle, this ensemble brings the vibrant salsa burn as led by two elder statesman of the genre, musical director and pianist Marcus Hernandez, and lead vocalist Luis “Torpedo” Aponte, who’d performed together in NYC in the late 1970s and ‘80s when salsa was at its peak, and reunited in 2013 to form Orchestra Fuego after both had settled in Central Florida. The 10-piece (percs, brass, vocalists, bass and keys) delivers traditional salsa sounds brightened by Afro-Cuban rhythms and Nuyorican flavor, and also touch on merengue, bolero, cha-cha, and bachata. (Studio@620, St. Petersburg)
Three Days Grace with We Are Harlot Canadian alt metal/post-grunge outfit Three Days Grace parted ways with longtime lead vocalist Adam Gontier in 2013, and fifth studio full-length Human marks the first release since his exit and the entrance of current raspy-toned howler Matt Walst. Though it’s been met with mixed responses, fans don’t seem to have an issue; the album has charted rather well, as has its two No. 1 Mainstream Rock charters, “Painkiller” and “I Am Machine.” (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
The Wailers It almost feels like, it’s barely been six months since the last Wailers appearance. Oh, wait – that was “The Original Wailers” with one-time Marley guitarist/songwriter Al Anderson. This Wailers is led by bassist Aston “Family Man” Barrett, who has more long-term cred leading and arranging music in Marley’s backing band (11 years). He’s the only original Wailer in the current lineup. (Capitol Theatre, Clearwater)
ALSO HAPPENING TONIGHT
Rock The Park w/Dropin Pickup/Synergy In A Cup/Brandon Barnett Curtis Hixon Park, Tampa
Sly Bar Lip Sync Battle Sly Bar, St. Petersburg
Brian Scolaro Through Sat., Oct. 3, Snappers, Palm Harbor
Oktobeerfest Through Sun., Oct. 4, Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin
