It's Friday, rejoice! Live music breakdown for tonight below...MarchFourth Marching Band Hailing from Portland, MarchFourth Marching Band (M4 for short) delivers a kaleidoscopic explosion of circus and vaudevillian-style theatrics paired with indisputable musical chops and a Mardi Gras party atmosphere. M4 has been hawking high-spirited fun since 2003, their sound mixing funk, jazz, Eastern European gypsy music and rock n’ roll into an intoxicating brew made even more colorful by way of the 20-odd members (eight horn players, a five-piece percussion corps and a bassist along with dancers, stilt walkers and acrobats) delivering it live from stage, replete with choreography and costumes. (State Theatre, St. Petersburg)
The Heavy Pets South Florida’s favored jammy sons do the usual genre-jumping in their rock n’ rolling – drawing on elements of R&B, funk, reggae, jazz and even some disco – and deliver it live with plenty of improvisation. Solid. The quintet also plays Dunedin Brewery on Saturday. (Ringside Café, St. Petersburg)
Andy McKee with Mark Kroos At only 35 years old, Internet sensation Andy McKee is already counted among the world’s best acoustic fingerstyle guitarists. In fact, his most famous composition, “Drifting,” has earned 50.5 million YouTube views since it debuted and exposed his percussive, melody-rich style to audiences far beyond his Kansas home. On this tour, he backs a new Mythmaker EP, his first release on his own newly-formed label and follow-up to 2010’s Joyland. (Largo Cultural Center, Largo)
American Authors with The Mowgli's, Oh Honey The success of sticky hooting double-platinum hit “Best Day of My Life” helped catapult American Authors into the national spotlight, not to mention landing the Brooklyn folk-pop quartet their first headlining gig on the “Honda Civic Tour.” A few other high-quality like acts support: rootsy rockers The Mowgli’s (you likely know their anthemic feel-good radio single, “San Francisco”) and shimmering-pretty boy-girl duo Oh Honey. (Jannus Live. St. Petersburg)
Skalloween with The Apes FLA, Duppies, The New Rulers, Askultura, Control This, UNRB, Stop The Presses Florida SKA Events and THX Management have teamed up to present Skalloween this two-stage showcase of some of the state’s best ska bands throwing down in honor of the spooky holiday. From the more traditional ska-rocksteady sounds of Dunedin’s sharply-dressed New Rulers, to the femme-led surf-punk infused sounds of Miami-bred Stop the Presses to Tampa’s own soulful vintage and 2 Tone ska purveyors The Apes FLA, all styles are represented. Discounted admission to anyone who comes in costume, with prizes awarded for the best one. (Crowbar and New World Brewery, Ybor City)
Freaker's Ball: Where The Wild Things Are with Trae Pierce & T Stone Band Things get even freakier than usual at the Skipperdome when the Tampa venue hosts its annual Halloween party. I imagine the 35th edition – with its Where the Wild Things Are theme – will be no different. Talk-box and bass-banging Trae Pierce and his band bring funk n’ soul to this year’s festivities, which, as per usual, include a multi-category costume contest and plenty of prizes for the winners. (Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa)
Pieces of a Dream Get your smooth R&B-jazz grooves on when Philadelphia group Pieces of a Dream – currently made up of keyboardist James Lloyd and drummer Curtis Harmon – hits Palladium as part of the ‘Mahaffey on the Move’ series. Active for three decades and originally discovered and produced by late sax legend Grover Washington Jr., Pieces of a Dream has maintained a relevant presence with 16 LPs and a live show that, according to Lloyd, “has always been intense and energetic … We’re liable to just bust out into anything. We feed off each other and we feed off the audience.” (Palladium Theater, St. Petersburg)
ALSO TONIGHT
John Frinzi, Sunny Jim & Jim Morris Hideaway Café& Recording Studio, St. Petersburg
COPE Ale and the Witch, St. Petersburg
The Music of ABBA Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg
Broadway on the Bayou: A Benefit Concert for TarponArts Tarpon Springs Heritage Museum, Tarpon Springs
Displace/The Royal Noise Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin
VICE The DrYnk, Tampa
Grey Ghost Party w/Mark Castle/Young Egypt/Wolf Pussy The Venture Compound, St. Petersburg
War of Thrones/Traitors Gate/Forged With Blood/Into the Grave Brass Mug, Tampa
Dani Lehman w/Brian Busto Hyde Park Café, Tampa
Troy Ave Orpheum, Ybor City
The Real Clash/G2P/Rising Down Fubar, St. Petersburg
Rebekah Pulley Florida Ave Brewing Co., Tampa