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Concerts, July 18-24.
by Leilani PolkTHURSDAY, JULY 18
The Beach Boys In Brian Wilson’s 1959 high school essay, “My Philosophy,” he wrote, “I don’t want to settle for a mediocre life, but make a name for myself in my life’s work, which I hope will be music.” He’s managed to exceed his teenage aspirations by leaps and bounds, and more than five decades later, he’s still riding the wave of his Beach Boys legacy and is even enjoying a long-overdue reunion with original bandmates Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston and David Marks. Last year the quintet issued a brand new album in honor of their 50th anniversary, That’s Why God Made the Radio, and took it on the road. This year, the iconic surf pop ensemble opened up their archives for a career-spanning boxed set, Made In California. The six-CD collection (which includes a copy of the aforementioned essay) charts the band’s 50-year career via more than 60 previously unreleased songs, demos, alternate takes and mixes, and live recordings of concert, television and radio performances, making for a suitable conclusion to the band’s year of anniversary celebrations. The set drops Aug. 27 via Capitol/Ume. (Hard Rock Café, Tampa)
Archnemesis w/Redstar Videos of Archnemesis find two dudes in baseball caps — sound sculptors Justin Aubuchon and Curt Heiny — bouncing energetically behind a set of laptops and midi controllers, their faces lit by the glowing monitors and multi-colored buttons. Their EDM style is a marriage of original production that touches on glitch, dubstep, ghetto-tech and electro-soul, and clever sampling of source material that includes 1920s blues and jazz LPs along with more modern hip-hop and soul joints. The duo has three recordings out, a Diamonds EP and 2012 full-length Peoples Radio, and both are available for free download at their site, archnemesismusic.com. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
FRIDAY, JULY 19
Black Honkeys Friday night heralds the return of Black Honkeys to the Local 662! Expect feverish ass-shaking and Soul Train-worthy move-busting at every turn, spurred by the ensemble’s funk, soul and R&B revue, which encompasses hits by the likes of Marvin Gaye, Kool & the Gang, Al Green, Three Dog Night, James Brown, The Temptations and others along with some original like-sounding material. (The Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Man or Astro-man? A series of fortunate circumstances find Man or Astro-Man? piloting a surprise landing in the Bay area’s far Holiday reaches, following the launch of their first full-length in a dozen years, Defcon 5…4…3…2…1 (produced in part by Steve Albini). The Alabama-by-way-of-outerspace threesome (Birdstuff, Star Crunch and Coco the Electronic Monkey Wizard) venture beyond sample-spliced surf punk into darker-textured rock territory in Defcon, the result still propulsive but with washes of shoegazey dark wave texture. The fervent fan devotion lifts off in zero minus two days. Hold on to your helmets, folks, it’s going to be a fun and bumpy ride. (Orbit 19, Holiday)
The Aristocrats The Aristocrats were formed in 2011 by accident, or possibly fate, after drummer Marco Minneman and bassist Bryan Beller found themselves bereft of a guitarist after theirs dropped out before they were due to play a spot at a NAAM show. The incomparable Guthrie Govan — whom they’d only met the night before — stepped in to take his place at the last minute and ever since, they’ve been churning out instrumental rock with prog-shredded technicality and influences touching on jazz, funk and even country music. The past few years has seen the trio produce some pretty mind-blowing music, each musician an absolute monster on his chosen instrument, and they’ve earned slots opening for the likes of Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and Steven Wilson among others. As a musician, you might leave their show at Brass Mug (supporting new album Culture Clash) completely inspired, or perhaps you’ll want to put down your instrument all together; either way you’ll leave a changed person. (Brass Mug, Tampa) —Matthew Drozdeck
Swiss Sauce Vol. 1 w/Figure/Candyland/Luminox/Mayhem/Exodus/Matt G A midsummer dance party featuring some emerging artists working dubstep, bass music, drum & bass, trap, house, hip hop-influenced EDM and other unz-womp-release aesthetics made for plenty of lights and lasers. Official after-party with some of the DJ/producers from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. next door at Club Detroit. (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
Jason D. Williams w/Professor Pennygoode’s Mighty Flea Circus/6 Volt Rodeo Fact: Jason D. Williams bears a striking resemblance to piano stomper Jerry Lee Lewis. Williams is a wild keys-banging showman, too, with cowlick-curling hair falling shaggily over his eyes, big swashbuckling moves on baby grand, and husky-twangy vocals that sail above a mix of country blues, boogie-woogie and rockabilly. His hands served as sit-ins for Dennis Quaid’s when he played Lewis in the 1989 biopic Great Balls of Fire. There’s even a long-standing rumor in his Memphis hometown that the mid-50s musician is Mr. Lewis’ illegitimate son, though Williams decided against getting a DNA test and wrote about it in his song, “Like Jerry Lee” (“I could have found out once but I didn’t/I figured either way it’d be more than I could stand”). He doesn’t care to rehash the subject, so steer clear of it if you decide to shake his hand at the end of his Skipperdome-WMNF set this Friday night. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
[page]Deicide w/Paths of Possession/Hate Tank/Arbitration/After Death Perhaps Florida’s heaviest export, the iconic Deicide is led by controversial bassist/singer Glen Benton, and produces the musical equivalent of being dragged through hell while Satan repeatedly pummels your face with a sledgehammer. Benton growls guttural hatred about Christianity, the fingers of guitarists Jack Owen and Kevin Quirion fly up and down the fret at warp speed, and drummer Steve Asheim pounds out brain-scrambling beats. Following a tour that took them through Europe supporting recently released boxed set, The Complete Roadrunner Collection 1990-2001, the band plays this special one-off date in the hometown they helped make the mecca of death metal. Support by fellow Tampa natives Paths of Possession, which features Cannibal Corpse vocalist George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher. (Orpheum, Ybor City) —MD
Cookie Monsta His stage name might evoke nostalgia for a fuzzy blue cookie addict from Sesame Street but the sounds of UK DJ/producer Tony Cook aka Cookie Monsta convey more of a Mortal Kombat vibe, his mixes exploring the skuzzier textures of dubstep and drum n’ bass with zipping, buzz-sawing synths and extra grimy wobble in his bass drops. All of it is suitable for blowing a few subs. (Amphitheatre, Ybor City)
The Wholetones Meeting at a local bluegrass jam in 2007, cellist Alex Dorris and guitarist Taylor Freydberg formed The Wholetones, and soon thereafter added drummer Mayo Coates and upright bassist Russ Depa to the mix. Perfectly describing their style as “folkcore,” the Naples quartet plays an impressive and eclectic blend of jazz, folk, bluegrass and even metal using acoustic instrumentation. (Hideaway Café& Recording Studio, St. Petersburg) —MD
SATURDAY, JULY 20
Beth McKee Band w/Colin Lake Fresh off the heels of finishing up another successful Swamp Sista La La presentation — that one in North Carolina in support of a sustainable local farmers’ market — accordion-sporting swamp blues songstress Beth McKee hits the Skipperdome for a night of grooves; her band is filled out by special guest player Charlie Dechant, the sexy sax behind Hall & Oates. Warm-up by guitarist Colin Lake, from New Orleans. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
Pacific Dub w/Sidereal/Jahguar Youthful SoCal outfit Pacific Dub crafts catchy, dub-and-melody-drenched reggae rock tunes, and already have a few full-length albums to their credit; last year’s Tightrope LP debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes Reggae Charts. For fans of Slightly Stoopid. (The Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Marilyn Manson w/Picture Me Broken What has the prince of provocative darkness been up to lately? Launching his own brand of absinthe (‘Mansinthe’). Recording and releasing Born Villain, a new album of grinding and throbbing alt metal with less industrial electronics and more heavy bass grime. Getting terrible haircuts. Co-headlining the “Masters of Madness Shock Therapy Tour” with Alice Cooper. Still favoring smeared crimson lipstick and runny eyeliner. Brooding. Hitting some Southeastern cities (including St. Pete) on a run of solo dates with his self-named band (Twiggy Ramirez currently the longest-tenured member). Support from post-hardcore-leaning upstarts Picture Me Broken, fronted by high-reaching keener Layla “Brooklyn” Allman (daughter of Gregg). (Jannus Live, St. Petersburg)
Florida For Oklahoma Benefit w/ DJ Eyez On/Reality/Imagiin 360/FLA ALL DAY/Lyricah/Da Mon/Epik Reign/Jermaine Jroc Jones Molphus/GenoLexis/Ozone Zulu A Zulu Nation-Element 5 hip-hop showcase hosted by Paradox and Cotton to raise funds for victims of Oklahoma tornado victims. Admission is $5; show starts at 10 p.m. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
The Fix-Up w/Fowler’s Bluff/Well Wisher What do you get when you join an instrumental prog-groove metal trio and a rhyme-spitting rapper? The Fix-Up, which features Auto!Automatic!! playing funky heavy-driving backup to Ryan “Breakdown” McGown’s vigorous verse-slinging and intermittent shrieks and howls. The result is a seething brew that smells of Rage Against the Machine. Fowler’s Bluff offers more gentle, contemplative keys-strewn rock with moments of harder guitar-riffing, while Well Wisher delivers on crunchy two-guitar alt rock. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
SUNDAY JULY 21
Anamanaguchi w/Kitty Pryde The musicians who make up Anamanaguchi — a chiptune-fueled indie rock quartet disguised as a hacker boy band — make loud music with guitars, bass, drums, and miscellaneous ’80s-era video game hardware, including an NES game system. They were tapped to compose music for the videogame adaptation of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World in 2010, and have since completed a fully self-funded 22-track LP, Endless Summer. The 8-bit sound sculptors also managed to raise $277k on Kickstarter ($227k over their intended goal) to support an ambitious multi-media undertaking, which has Anamanaguchi collaborating with teams of independent developers to make video games based on songs from the album. (Crowbar, Ybor City)
Oceanstone EP Release Party w/Redemption/Roots For Change/BlessEd/Tangled Mangos Direct from Indian Rocks Beach comes Oceanstone, a five-piece that crafts swaying, posi-vibing funkadelic roots reggae marked by multi-part vocal harmonies. This party celebrates the release of a new self-titled EP and comes in the midst of a 10-date Florida tour. Like local acts support. State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
Gumbo Boogie Band Bradenton-based Gumbo Boogie Band dishes out tunes imbued with sax, percussion and airy cruising N’awlins flavor, whether it’s blues rock, soul, Cajun music, zydeco (accordion included), country or soul. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
TUESDAY, JULY 23
311 w/Cypress Hill/G. Love & Special Sauce/Pennywise/Sublime With Rome Nebraska purveyors of reggae, funk, metal and rap-fused alt rock 311 set smooth two-part vocal harmonies and toasty bursts of rhyme against instrumentals varying between upbeat and aggro. The 10th annual edition of the fivesome’s colossal coast-to-coast “Unity Tour” is a celebration of epic proportions as the band brings two newbies and two returnees along for the ride. G. Love & Special Sauce — the Philly alt hip hop/acoustic blues trio led by singer, songwriter, guitarist and harmonica-slinging Garrett Dutton — joined 311 on the inaugural ’03 tour, while Sublime With Rome (the old school reggae rock group with a youthful new singer) reprises a warm-up role first filled in 2011. Cypress Hill makes their Unity debut with Latin-soaked nasally hip-hop anthems like “Insane in the Brain” and “I Ain’t Goin’ Out Like That,” as do first-timers Pennywise, who bring hard California-brewed skate punk to the lineup. (MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre, Tampa)
Sara Rose Band The roots are paid their fine due by way of Sara Rose Band, its drawling frontwoman Sara Hagan crooning in a sweetened drawl through classic country and honky-tonk odes with firm swaying support of a four-piece backing band that includes lead axeman Mark Warren and pedal steel player David Lane. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
CLICK HERE to see a complete rundown of shows taking place this week and in the coming weeks.