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Concerts, Oct. 17-23
by Leilani PolkTHURSDAY, OCTOBER 17
Kevin Gates/Don Trip A rising rapper from Baton Rouge, La., Kevin Gates was signed to Atlantic in February and dropped his Stranger Than Fiction studio debut — which features guest spots by Wiz Khalifa and Juicy J among others — this summer. He’s got a gruff-groaning, lower-register vocal timbre and lyrical matter informed by a personal history of poverty, pain and prison sentences that have only helped make him more resilient and motivated to succeed. (Take a listen to his bleak realism in “4:30 a.m.”) (Orpheum, Ybor City)
Matt Nathanson w/Joshua Radin His sonic output belongs in AC pop rock realms but eighth studio album Last of the Great Pretenders is more frank and free of sugar coating than anything Matt Nathanson has released so far, likely because the San Francisco singer-songwriter stepped out of his comfort zone and collabed with new people. Standouts include the self-deprecating awareness of “Earthquake Weather,” the upbeat horn-tooted musings of “Modern Love,” and a groove-bumpin’ crush ditty, “Kinks Shirt.” (The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City)
Larry Mitchell Band Larry Mitchell soaked up a lot of high-quality creative energy growing up around his dad’s Royal Studios in Memphis, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Al Green and Chuck Berry before picking up a guitar in 1969. Today, he’s a much sought-after producer in his own right at Royal (he’s worked with Green, Anthony Hamilton, Solomon Burke and John Mayer among others), a 15-time New Mexico Music Award holder, and an axe-slinging band leader whose instrumental trio wails on a searing blend of blues rock, jazz and funk. This is the first of a Thursday-Friday night stand. (Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin)
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18
An Evening with John McEuen and David Amram Jack Kerouac once said he’d like to be considered “as a jazz poet blowing a long blues in an afternoon jazz session on Sunday.” Though better known for his novels, he was also valued for his free-flowing beat-jazz tendencies and his music-minded side gets some love during a Friday night Palladium program, part of a week’s worth of Kerouac-related events leading up to the 44th anniversary of his death, at St. Anthony’s in St. Pete. (Kerouac was a bonafide ’Burg resident in the 1960s, so his memory gets extra special treatment here.) Two esteemed multi-instrumentalists bring a kitchen sink of instruments to the intimate Side Door stage in honor of the occasion: Americana, country rock and bluegrass extraordinaire, Nitty Gritty Dirty Band’s John McEuen (guitar, mandolin, banjo, fiddle), and symphonic, jazz and world music master David Amram (piano, French horn, percussion). Each plays a solo set (Amram’s will include the title track off 1959 Beat Generation film Pull My Daisy, which features lyrical contributions from Kerouac, Neal Cassady and Allen Ginsberg), then they pool their talents for a finale of combined prowess. (Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg)
In the Round w/Instruments of Change It’s easy to get behind a nonprofit that uses music to impact the lives of at-risk and underprivileged youths. Instruments of Change provide musical instruments, materials, education, instruction and performance opportunities via outreach programs and partnerships with Hillsborough County Schools and the Boys and Girls Club of Tampa Bay. On this night, Hideaway hosts an “In the Round” showcase of six local artists — Shane Anderson, Emily Rose & Eternity, Ken Apperson, Sammi Fousek, Clemons Road and Connor Zwetsch. The show will be streamed live online; proceeds from tickets and sales of the online stream benefit Instruments of Change. (Hideaway Café& Recording Studio, St. Petersburg)
Classical Mystery Tour: The Music of the Beatles Evidently last year’s Classical Mystery Tour program drew a sell-out crowd. This year, The Florida Orchestra kicks off another season of its well-attended wider-serving Rock Concert Series with the aforementioned Beatles presentation. A four-piece band made up of Beatlemania tribute vets not only sings and plays a setlist of 30 hits spanning “Yesterday” to “The Long and Winding Road,” but takes on their mannerisms and executes costume changes all throughout that reflect the most significant creative eras of the Fab Four’s tenure. TFO delivers symphonic backing; guest Martin Herman conducts. (Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg)
Baths w/Groundislava As Baths, Will Wiesenfeld crafts a mix of ethereal, chillwave-ambient odes and mid-tempo glitch-studded electro compositions informed by his musical background in piano, viola, contrabass and guitar. The second Baths LP came after a debilitating case of E. coli that left the singer, musician and producer bedridden, starving, and feeling completely useless. He used his pent-up frustrations to fuel 2013’s Obsidian, its moody confessional lyrics reflective of Wisenfeld’s mindset at the time (Sample: “Where is God when you hate him most?”) For fans of Radiohead and The Album Leaf. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
The Duhks w/Deadstring Brothers Canadian folk-rock outfit The Duhks play a one-off date at the Skipperdome after their performance at this weekend’s Magnolia Fest in Live Oak; their spirited roots music is imbued with elements of world beat, blues and gospel-soul, and marked by fiddle, banjo, and the strong soaring lead vocals of Jesse Havey, who re-joined the group in 2011. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
Dynasty Album Release Party“I’m consistent, run it back if you ever miss it / keep it clean but so hard that it feels explicit,” Dynasty declares in “Stay Shinin’,” which finds the femcee dishing out bravado and optimism with guest verses by esteemed rap artist Talib Kweli. The Queens native is one of Tampa Bay’s most exciting hip-hop talents, and she’s finally received her career due with a recording contract through Germany-based Jakarta Records and international release of her latest full-length, A Star in Life’s Clothing. Partner in sounds DJ Sandman joins Dynasty for a party celebrating its release this Friday. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
Aaron Lewis The alt-metal vocalist has made a most unfortunate detour into country music territory, trading in his pained Staind wailing for a tender drawling solo croon. He has one album out so far. I won’t bore you with the details. (Dallas Bull, Tampa)
DAMN Union w/Geri X/The Dags DAMN stands for the “Doña Ana Music Night,” a weekly musicians forum and open jam that takes place in Las Cruces, N.M. DAMN Union is the live touring group spawned by Music Night members, a rotating lineup of multi-instrumentalists, singers and songwriters plying alternative folk-Americana and soulful roots rock that’s textured with mandolin, cello and lap steel guitar. (The Hub, downtown Tampa) [page]
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19
The Lumineers w/Dr. Dog/Nathaniel Rateliff Exuberant shining stars of the current indie folk rock crossover-into-mainstream-radio trend, The Lumineers hail from Denver, write infectious pop-hooky tunes with rustic log cabin charm, and set the big many-voice boy-girl choruses and strong lead vocals of frontman Wesley Schultz against vigorous percussion, clap-and-stomp-fueled rhythms, and stringed instrumentals given fine roots texture via mando and cello. Lumineers makes good use of nonsense words and sounds in their ballads, ala platinum-selling hit “Ho Hey,” though “Stubborn Love” is a more straightforwardly poignant ode. Both come off their 2012 eponymous debut, which peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Philly’s vintage-hued psych, folk, blues and garage-pop rockers Dr. Dog add even more value to this Saturday night bill. (USF Sun Dome, Tampa)
Club Cirque Dance Music Festival w/Steve Aoki/Waka Flocka Flame/Borgore/AutoErotique/others A fresh stadium-side fall music festival brought to you by Disco Donnie Presents and Sunset Events. Club Cirque sets up two big tops in the South Lot at Raymond James Stadium, and delivers a fusion of pulsing nightclub vibes and circus party ambiance replete with entertainers (contortionists, acrobats, sword and fire swallowers) joining the nearly dozen artists. Good-natured electro-house music delegate and leader/founder of Dim Mak Records, West Coast DJ/producer Steve Aoki, headlines with upbeat unz-unz sounds that dive into electropop, dubstep and synthpunk sonicspheres. Waka Flocka Flame serves hip-hop swag and hits like “Round of Applause,” Borgore offers metallic hard-thrashing dubstep notes, and Toronto-bred duo AutoErotique rounds out the noteworthies with energetic techno and post-discofied house sounds. Show starts at 6 p.m.; ages 18 and up. Official after-party with Carnage, DOCO and Basomatik at Amphitheatre in Ybor City. (Raymond James Stadium, Tampa)
Izzy & The Catastrophics Led by retro guitar slinger Izzy Zaidman (of Wayne “The Train” Hancock fame) and featuring a two-piece horn section of trombone and sax, NYC-based Izzy & The Catastrophics hit town on the heels of issuing a new EP, Lucky Dragon Swing Buffet: Lunch Price. The quintet’s fusion of modern ass-kicking and semi-traditional sound-making draws on rockabilly, surf, honky-tonk, country swing, bebop, and New Orleans jazz and soul aesthetics; the seven-song EP includes Izzy originals and covers like a playful take on the classic “Sheik of Araby.” (The Hub, downtown Tampa)
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20
Dizzy Wright w/Emilio Rojas/NameDROP Up-and-coming Las Vegas rapper Dizzy Wright is signed to Funk Volume, the indie label run by LA rapper Hopsin, and has three recordings out that, while not platinum-sellers, all made it onto Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts; the highest peak came via his digital-only mixtape release in August, which featured guest spots by Joey Bada$$, Wyclef Jean, Logic and Kid Ink among others. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
Loves It! w/The Wholetones A Sunday evening bill of rootsy sounds as headed up by Loves It!, an Austin-based outfit that serves a buoyant blend of folk pop, roots rock and country swing; the throaty yet dulcet vocals of Jenny Parrott (guitar, mandolin, fiddle) are a nice complement to the lower register drawl of best friend/co-band leader Vaughn Walters (guitar, banjo). (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
The Triumphant Return of the Statesmen of Jazz A jazz ensemble formed in 1994 and made up of distinguished jazz players with international cred. On this night, bandleader Chuck Redd (vibes, drums) is joined by Nicki Parrott (bass, vocals), Ehud Asherie (piano) and Adrian Cunningham (sax, clarinet, flute) in a concert dedicated to late Arbors Records/Statesmen of Jazz founder Mat Domber. (Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg) [page]
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22
Bill Kirchen Roots-rockabilly singer-songwriter and Telecaster titan Kirchen hails from Austin and has been flexing his twang music muscles since the late 1960s, when he played with Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen. This date is in support of latest album Stems & Seeds, a collection of re-recorded tracks. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23
Jessie Ware w/Mikky Ekko The British vocalist’s contributions to the SBTRKT album and a gushing “Best New Music” recommendation from Pitchfork.com prompted me to give Jessie Ware’s 2012 debut Devotion a listen, though I expected to blow off its saccharine-sweet pop a few songs in. Surprisingly, within the first 24 hours of owning the album, I played the track “Wildest Moments” 25 times; I never figured it’d end up being just too catchy to stop playing. Ware’s vocals are an instant reminder of early 1990’s Whitney Houston or Jennifer Lopez, but there’s something modern and effortless about it when layered atop R&B-influenced pop-tronica, making it feel like that decade’s influence is finally back in the right way. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg) —Deborah Ramos
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.