All reviews by Scott Harrell except where otherwise noted.
Social Studies
BREAKDOWN
Breakdown's impeccable flow — smart, clear, deliberate lines that simultaneously recall Gang Starr's Guru and the Native Tongue scene's more straightforward MCs — is immediately gratifying to anybody who grew up listening to the emergent alt-rap styles of the early '90s. Here, his liquid low-end lines mesh seamlessly with some top-notch production from several gifted Bay area producers. Surreal, Dutch Massive and Ranmecca helm the best and most appropriate foundations for Breakdown's largely positive and often smoothly funny rhymes on Social Studies. "The Path Set Before Me," "The Spot" and "The Turning Point" are standouts, but everything here is unbelievably good, with Slopfunkdust, Marco Polo and the rapper himself turning in above-average beats. (www.criticalbreakdown.com) 4.5 stars
Feeder Bands
D'VISITORS
Constantly evolving Tampa groove/world act d'Visitors' first proper full-length offers a host of festive rhythms, though it's primarily rooted in Caribbean foundations, in particular its own upbeat, engaging take on reggae-influenced beats. Elements of the material occasionally veer within hailing distance of cruise-ship white funk — and vocalist Nikki Ferraro, while undeniably gifted, can sound overly Caucasian against these styles — but the punchy horns, eclectic instrumentation and overall superior musicianship always win the day. Highlights include "Bryan's Sambas" and especially "Never Feel The Ground," with its rubbery bass intro and infectious energy. (www.dvisitors.com) 3 stars
Yo EP
YO MAJESTY
Snider thinks I'm crazy, but I love this mix of simple drum-machine beats, extremely lo-fi funk and disco, and filthy, filthy girl-rap. These three ladies clock in somewhere between Peaches, 2 Live Crew and early Le Tigre, nasty and proud. I'm afraid of 'em, but they rule, too — c'mon, they've got a track called "Kryptonite Pussy," and another one that creatively renames a certain part of the female anatomy "The Monkey." The remix of "Feline IBD" is unnecessary, and a full album's worth of their shtick would probably be too much, but I'm taking these seven tunes everywhere I go for the next couple of months, just in case an impromptu dance party breaks out. (www.outthererecordings.com) 4 stars
The Bruised & The Broken
THE HERO DIES
You can't get much more obviously emo'ed out than this band's name and CD title, and the Tampa trio delivers with a hooky, angst-filled two-singer sound that sits comfortably (and predictably) between nu-punk and the heavier, more metallic screamo style. The tunes are more original than your usual fare, with good musicianship and some especially clever riffs in "Garden State Song" and "Next in Line," and the production passes muster. In fact, the only problem with The Bruised & The Broken is the same problem most above-average emo outfits face: The presence of the same old genre hallmarks — from the singing guy/screaming guy vocal format to the laying of familiar major-key pop-music chord changes into big, cut-time grooves — tends to steal focus from the elements that make the group different. (www.theherodies.com) 3 stars
Tropical Blue Moon
KOKO RAY & THE SOUL PROVIDERS
Koko and band are one of the Suncoast's most venerable and ubiquitous live acts. There can't be more than a handful of area bars they haven't played. Bar bands don't always thrive in the studio, though, and while Tropical Blue Moon is frankly a lot better than I expected, you pretty much know what you're in for: blues-rock grooves, solos galore, lots of lyrics about having a good time. I have to compliment the record's sonics, though. It's got a rich, muscular sound that your average local disc doesn't approach. (www.kokoray.com) 2.5 stars —Cooper Levey-Baker
Gorilla Blows Grits
BIG PICTURE
This disc from veteran covers-and-originals family affair Big Picture is steeped in the folk, rock and psychedelic sounds — and sentiments — of the '60s. While the group's no-frills approach and palpable enjoyment are endearing, these aspects are overwhelmed by the material's endless clichés (tracks like "Down Home Lovin'," "Rock 'n' Roll Love" and "Rain Forest" feature lyrics as banal as their titles) and amateurish production. Big Picture may be a hippified good time in a live setting, but on Gorilla Blows Grits the band comes off as dated and out of its depth in the studio. 1.5 stars
Conflict of Conscience
EYEZNPOWA
The guy we picked as the best MC in the Bay area last year finally came through with this studio full-length in '06 (and yeah, it came out a while back and we're finally coming through with a review). Eyeznpowa's 14-track opus largely delivers. There's a trio of mainstream-courting cuts at the center of Conscience — "Motor Cycle Fetish," "Thug Tonite" and the sophomoric sketch "Infomercial" — that sell Eyezn's skills short. Everything else on this aptly titled release, however, finds the rapper at his intimately reflective best, balancing self-doubt with bravado in his strong voice and inimitably off-kilter flow over everything from the standard ominous synths to flamenco guitar. (www.eyeznpowa.com) 4 stars
Little Box of Tissues
CARIE PIGEON
There are plenty of girls with acoustic guitars out there; hell, there are plenty of talented girls with acoustic guitars. But singer-songwriter Pigeon is up there with the local best. Her evocative voice — a viscous combination of grit and warble that recalls both Melissa Etheridge and Alanis Morissette, yet remains unique — just delivers her tales of love, heartbreak and empowerment perfectly and compellingly. There's nothing startlingly original here, and the jaded may be tempted to write Pigeon off as just another in a crowded field. Those who listen, though, will find that songs like the slow-burner "I Walk Away" and the aching "About You" (which features fellow local singer-songwriter Lorna Bracewell on bongos) are great examples of this genre one about as well as possible. (www.cariepigeon.com) 3.5 stars
February, May, and June
AARON ZARZUTZKI
Zarzutzki is a one-man sampler, fond of attaching contact microphones to whatever's handy and running his discoveries through a delay pedal to create otherworldly sounds that are often beautiful and just as often cacophonous. February, May, and June is a homemade, hand-painted disc that documents a brief tour from earlier this year, with eight tracks of avant-garde madness to melt your brain. The "songs" here are ambient, lo-fi and definitely not for those who think that high-pitched static can't be music. (www.myspace.com/aaronzarzutzki) 3.5 stars —CLB
For The Sake of Trying
SOULFOUND
The third release from this popular Pinellas unit finds it moving away from the muscular pop-rock that made its bones, into trendier emo territory. The hooks, musicianship and visceral compulsion remain intact, and Ivan Pena is still one of the best singers in Tampa Bay music; what's new are the more jagged grooves, cut-time choruses and call-and-response vocals that are all pat hallmarks of the hundreds of young acts currently aping Taking Back Sunday. All in all, Soulfound's new aural clothes fit it well. This is mostly a great-sounding EP. The galloping "Fire!" and huge "Prove Me Wrong" are highlights, and only on the opener "Under This Silent Spell" do the aforementioned elements feel somewhat forced. Still, some of the band's sonic individuality has been diluted. (www.soulfound.com) 3.5 stars
Now's the right time to feel good
JEREMY GLOFF
Tampa's most prolific melancholy-pop specialist returns with his 14th (!) album, an 18-song opus. Now's the right time is Gloff's most lush, eclectic and uneven effort in a while. We get more than enough of his piano-driven, intensely personal vignettes; shades of hope, heartbreak and self-realization are delivered with loads of emotional melody, and lyrics that should sound hokey ("Spent years worried I was losing my hair/ I didn't care that I've been losing my mind") but somehow don't in Gloff's earnest, reaching tenor. There are plenty of great tunes (and guest appearances by local peers) here, but this time I've gotta agree with those who say Gloff tries to pack too many songs and ideas into his releases. (www.jeremygloff.com) 3 stars
Signal Seventy Six
SIGNAL SEVENTY SIX
This long-running Bradenton outfit adeptly blurs the line between emo and modern rock. The usual all-ages elements are here, but they're less defining — weighty classic-rock influences, textural acoustic guitar tracks and singer/guitarist Danny Wampole's confident, mature vocals hold as much sway as the expected Warped Tour trademarks. The band's individual take on up-to-date melodic rock works in its favor; on the other hand, a distinct lack of immediately grabby hooks and a penchant for cliché-ridden lyrics don't. Signal Seventy Six deserves kudos for its energy, and for hoeing a fairly original row in some already massively over-tilled musical soil, but the trio's songwriting still needs some refining. (www.signal76.com) 2.5 stars
This article appears in Sep 6-12, 2006.