A jam-packed weekend of live music. Breakdown below...SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13
Heatstroke Hot Rod Hoedown 11 with The Downshifters, GoToHells, Ober Rivers and his DUIs & more The annual underground music fest has plenty of diversions to keep your Saturday occupied: hot rods, roller derby grrls, food and brews, and nearly a dozen rag-tag Central Florida-area rock bands as headed up by Bradenton punkabilly ball-busters The Downshifters and St. Pete’s own ripping, roaring and grinding staple, Gotohells. Admission is free, though entry to the Friday night kick-off party with The Bloody Jug Band and Ober Rivers and his D.U.I.’s. is $5. More info at facebook.com/Heatstroke2014. (P-Man’s Classic Cycle Paint, Bradenton)
Super Freestyle Explosion with Stevie B., Lisa Lisa, Expose, Debbie Deb, Trinere, Nu Shooz, Connie, Pretty Poison, Nocera The 1980s-era dance pop and urgent schmaltz that was so profuse in skating rinks back in my day gets its own femme-centric billing during this Freestyle hits parade. Here’s a breakdown of the highlights: Stevie B. aka the “King of Freestyle” (“Spring Love,”“Because I Love You (The Postman Song),”“I Wanna Be the One”), Lisa Lisa (“Lost in Emotion,”“Head to Toe,”“All Cried Out”), Expose (“Season’s Change,”“Point of No Return,”“Come Go with Me”), Debbie Deb (“Lookout Weekend,”“When I Hear Music”), Shannon (“Let the Music Play” and “Give Me Tonight”), Nu Shooz (“I Can’t Wait,”“Point of No Return”). (Amelie Arena, downtown Tampa)
Tiger! Tiger! with The Mondellos, Dead Fender Twin “It’s the perfume of despair, you can smell it in the air,” Tiger! Tiger! frontwoman Buffi Aguero croons in sultry-sharp intones over fast-bumpin’ rhythms, menacing organ notes and fast-riffing guitars. The Atlanta band plies a blend of ‘60s big beat, garage rock and R&B, ‘70s post-punk haze, and bourbon-glazed twang. (New World Brewery, Ybor City)
The Love & Light Fall Massive Over the past few decades, the sprawling red brick building off Whiting Street in downtown Tampa has played host to a long line of nightlife ventures, most recently (and now formerly) Club Underground, and way back in the day, the Parthenon. (Bet you haven’t thought about that place in a while, huh?) The three-room space has gotten yet another overhaul and re-opens officially this Saturday night – two weekends after Burning Man – as a new laser-sprayed dance music haven: District 3. Love & Light promotions (est. 1995) presents its Fall Massive in celebration, and welcomes a jam-packed bill of EDM artists to the decks. The main room features bass and electro breaks (Exzakt, Mike Nice, Teck 1, Daveaux, Basslut), and the two side rooms feature house music (Huggy, Brian Busto, Matty, Silverfox, Mike E., Glen Sandoval) and some electro miscellany – those sounds that don’t quite fit into the other two rooms (Jeremy Starks, Popejohn, Nadiasvati, Ohmbass, Estaban). (District 3, Tampa)
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14
Erasure It’s been three years since British New Wave-era songwriting duo Erasure have brought their synth-fueled dance pop to town. Keyboardist Vince Clarke and vocalist Andy Bell return to hype forthcoming full-length The Violet Flame – their 16th overall is due out Sept. 23 – and play new cuts like up-tempo love-high lead single “Elevation” along with belt-worthy U.S.-charting hits like “A Little Respect” and “Chains of Love” (don’t give up). (Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg)
Washed Out with Small Black “Eyes Be Closed” could very well stand as chillwave’s national anthem with its bedroom dreamy momentum and washes of electro-ambient effects and textures. The best known single from Washed Out came off 2011 Billboard charting debut, Within and Without, and have propelled Ernest Greene’s solo synth-fueled indietronic project from his bedroom onto stages worldwide. The singer, songwriter and producer is now two albums deep – sophomore effort Paracosm dropped last year – and he’s upgraded from Crowbar (where he played in 2012) to The Ritz for his current tour. (The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City)
Deniro Farrar with Denzel Curry North Carolina-bred Deniro Farrar has described his self-appointed ‘cult rap’ as “substance music”– basically, his deliberate deep-voiced rhymes deal in real shit that comes from a real place. “So with me, not only am I living the life I’m rapping about but I can give people some real meaningful lessons for their life,” he told the Village Voice earlier this year. Farrar’s 2014 Rebirth EP marks his major label debut (on Vice/Warner Bros.) and this is his first-ever headlining tour; he’s joined by Florida rapper Denzel Curry, who guests on his big crunkin’ single, “Bow Down.” (Local 662, St. Petersburg)
Balance & Composure with Seahaven, Creepoid Balance & Composure marries elements of grungy alt rock , howling emo and propulsive post-hardcore into a relatively non-toxic brew that spans two albums; the last was 2013’s The Things We Think We’re Missing. (Orpheum, Ybor City)
ALSO THIS WEEKEND
Trust For Liars/Sunshine & Bullets/Redlight Stare/ShinraCo Sat., Sept. 13, Local 662, St. Petersburg
Overkill w/Ornimental/Generichrist/Deadlift/Thrash or Die Sat., Sept. 13, Orpheum, Ybor City
Morgan Page Sat., Sept. 13, Amphitheatre, Ybor City
Lions After Dark Sat., Sept. 13, Attic Records, St. Petersburg
Freelow Sat., Sept. 13, Ale and the Witch, St. Petersburg
M3: Matthew Bistok Multi-Genre Music Series w/Burning Tree/Applebutter Express/Roundhouse Social/Dylan Cowles and the Crownees/Fall On Purpose/Car Bomb Driver/Saganaki Bombsquad/Funky Seeds/many more Sat., Sept. 13, Brass Mug, Tampa
Selwyn Birchwood w/Josh Lamkin Band Sat., Sept. 13, Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa
KISS America Ultimate Tribute w/The Benatar Experience Sat., Sept. 13, Jannus Live, St. Petersburg
Second Saturday Orlando Invades w/Amiam/Jorok/Shinobi/Stalin/Myverse/TDP/JK/Mugshot/Kris Haard/Barabbas/Hagan Lee/Fxul Mxwf/Galaxz/Yeti/Mega/Shafiq Sat., Sept. 13, Fubar, St. Petersburg
Big Kettle Drum Sat., Sept. 13, Hideaway Café& Recording Studio, St. Petersburg
Entropy Sat., Sept. 13, Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin
Sara Rose Band w/Dean Johanesen Sun., Sept. 14, Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa
DJ Shadow/Cut Chemist Sun., Sept. 14, House of Blues, Orlando
Underpass w/Cold Waste/egos/Permanent Makeup Sun., Sept. 14, Planet Retro, St. Petersburg
Classic Albums Live: Prince, Purple Rain Sun., Sept. 14, Capitol Theatre, Clearwater
Ol’ Dirty Sundays: Digital Dave Sun., Sept. 14, Crowbar, Ybor City
John Primer Band w/Matthew Skoller Sun., Sept. 14, Market on 7th, Ybor City
Acme Jazz Garage Sun., Sept. 14, Ella’s Americana Folk Art Café, Tampa