Florida isn't a pass-through state. Artists tend to skip our peninsula in favor of easier routes across the South.
Fortunately, the Tampa Bay area has plenty of reasons for bands to make a detour: several colleges' worth of students, a prime location in the middle of the state and a generous measure of great venues. This fall's visitors range from big-name talent to random rock-and-rollers to electro experimenters; here are the season's top trends and don't-miss concerts.
Rock/Pop
I love the '80s. Used to be you could hit an '80s dance party nearly every night of the week in Ybor. New Wave, Dark Wave, glam and hair metal, synthpop, pop punk — pretty much any music from that era does well here, and we tend to get some high-caliber performers in addition to the wankers. Influential electro alt rockers Depeche Mode bring the final leg of their U.S. tour to Florida in support of their 12th and latest album, Sounds of the Universe. Frontman Dave Gahan should be in tip-top shape and fully recovered from the tumor removal that forced the band to postpone more than a dozen shows in May and June. (Fri., Sept. 4, Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa). British dance music twosome Pet Shop Boys have sold something like 100 million records worldwide, but will always be remembered in the states for their 1984 hit, "West End Girls." (Thurs., Sept. 10, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center). The Queers' "Go Pop" Tour brings the old school surf-rockin' pop-punkin' threesome to a tiny CBGB-style venue for some sweaty good times (Fri., Sept. 25, Orpheum, Ybor City). And a double-bill of British alt rock features Pretty in Pink soundtrack songsters Psychedelic Furs, recently reunited after more than 15 years apart, and the Happy Mondays (Mon., Sept. 28, The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City).
The big draws. Here they come, get yer tickets now: Longtime barnburners Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (Sat., Sept. 12, Ford Amphitheatre); U2, the first band to play RayJay solo, i.e., not for any Super Bowl festivities (Sat., Oct. 10, Raymond James Stadium, Tampa); and the queen of teenybop pop herself, Miley Cyrus (Tues., Dec. 1, St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa).
Indie love in O-town. THX Management, Aestheticized and even New Granada bring a tidy bunch of indie acts to town. But more often than not, said acts generally opt for the Orlando stop instead — it's close enough to draw folks from Tampa but far enough away to make the bands feel like they're in a big city. The worthiest of the 90-minute trek are Scotland's indie rock foursome Frightened Rabbit, fronted by brothers Scott and Grant Hutchison (Tues., Sept. 29, The Social); chamber rockin' Portland quintet The Decemberists and their "A Short Fazed Hovel" tour (Wed., Sept. 30, Hard Rock Live); another Portland-nite, the folk-meets-Rolling Stoners Blitzen Trapper (Tues., Oct. 06, The Social); the electro-dance punk freakers Ghostland Observatory (Thurs., Oct. 29, House of Blues, FREE courtesy of Southern Comfort); and Grammy-winning New Orleans electro-psyche rockers Mute Math (Thurs., Nov. 05, House of Blues).
Electro elements. Miami's annual Winter Music Conference and its corresponding Ultra Music Fest first drew electronica artists to Florida. But once they discovered audiences ripe and ready to get down rave-style, any time of the year and not just in South Florida, music makers spanning the electro spectrum began appearing in Tampa more and more often. We are fortunate enough to see a virtual who's who of hot talents in the upcoming months. DC's Thievery Corporation — made up of DJ duo Rob Garza, Eric Hilton and their diverse ensemble of performers — produces a lounge-lush fusion of electronica, reggae, acid jazz, psychedelia and the world flavors of India and Brazil. (Sat., Oct. 10, The Ritz Ybor). Tiësto is a famed Dutch DJ and progressive trance producer (Sun., Oct. 18, The Ritz Ybor). Canadian twosome Junior Boys make sexy electro-pop and are pretty hip in the indie scene right now (Fri., Oct. 23, Crowbar, Ybor City). Deadmau5 (pronounced "Dead Mouse") plays progressive and electro house, and is known for wearing a huge grotesquely grinning cartoon mouse head when he performs. (Sun., Nov. 15, The Ritz Ybor). And Paul Van Dyk is only the world's leading electronic music DJ and producer (Fri., Nov. 27, The Ritz Ybor).
RAWK! Four bands known to rock out with their cocks out make pitstops in Tampa. Fuck yeah! The infamously heavy metal rawking Motörhead (Tues., Sept. 15, The Ritz Ybor); the indie hot stuff rock-your-face-offers The Killers (Fri., Oct. 2, USF Sun Dome, Tampa); the onetime-metal-sellouts-now-going-back-to-their-old-school-roots-to-get-back-some-street-cred Metallica (Sat., Oct. 3, St. Pete Times Forum); the horror show comedy monsters, GWAR (Sun., Oct. 4, The Ritz Ybor); and Germany's significant international industrial rock heavy hitters KMFDM (Sat., Oct. 31, Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg). Not so sure how hard Alice Cooper is gonna rock it at Ruth Eckerd Hall for his "Theatre of Death Tour '09," but it could be fun to see him in his bloody stage getup at the classy venue. (Friday, Oct. 2, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater).
Odd man out. In his speech for Leonard Cohen's induction into the American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last year, Lou Reed said Cohen belongs among the "highest and most influential echelon of songwriters." While you may not be hip to Cohen's art, he is one damn talented man; though he's been doing his thing since the mid-1960s, he found new popularity in the last 15 years beginning when three of his songs from The Future — "Waiting for the Miracle," "The Future" and "Anthem" — appeared on the soundtrack for Oliver Stone's 1994 film, Natural Born Killers. A whole new cult audience fell in love with his husky, mournful baritone and evocative lyrics. His early sound was rooted in folk, eventually encompassed pop, cabaret and world music, and more recently incorporating electro embellishments and a sort of Western troubadour feel. Over 2,000 renditions of Cohen's songs have been recorded for a reason, people. Don't miss this show. (Mon., Oct. 19, St. Pete Times Forum).
Classical/Jazz
The Florida Orchestra. Season highlights include the family-friendly Pops in the Park and Holiday Pops performances; an ode to the rock gods with a symphonic salute to Led Zeppelin (Jan. 16); ongoing Coffee Concerts; and guest performers like the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay (Mahler's Symphony No. 3, Oct. 23-25) and the Tampa Bay Steel Orchestra (Oct. 31-Nov. 1). floridaorchestra.org.
Opera Tampa. You don't have to use those tiny binoculars to fall in love with classics like Lucia di Lammermoor (Nov. 20 & 22) or La Rondine (Apr. 23 & 25); an appearance by "the people's diva," Renee Fleming (Jan. 26); or a revue of opera's most beloved Arias & Encores (Mar. 28), all at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. operatampa.org.
Yo-Yo Ma. Perhaps the most famous man to bring bow to strings visits Ruth Eckerd Hall this fall to perform Bach's Six Unaccompanied Cello Suites. One of history's hardest-working musicians — he has 75 albums under his belt, 15 of which are Grammy winners — and a dedicated advocate of music education, he calls his latest collection, Songs of Joy & Peace, a "universal holiday house party of music uniting different forms of joy." Weds., Oct. 28, 8 p.m., Ruth Eckerd Hall, rutheckerdhall.com.
The Flavor of Jazz. A smooth combo of cuisine and music featuring contemporary jazz hits by The Rippingtons with Russ Freeman and ood from 20 eateries, including Café Ponte, the Melting Pot and Backfin Blue. Tues., Oct. 6, 7:30 p.m., Ruth Eckerd Hall, rutheckerdhall.com.
Last Call for Jazz. Best of the Bay-winning singer-actress Emilia Sargent performs standards like "'Deed I Do," "Get Happy" and "Bewitched," backed up by the Tampa Jazz Greats on piano, trumpet and bass. Fri., Oct. 9, 10:30 p.m., Shimberg Playhouse, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, jobsitetheater.org.
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 1, 2009.