News

Editor's local music picks for this week

By JULIE GARISTO
Published August 10, 2007

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Ben Kweller

With Tim Fite

FRIDAY 8 p.m. Crowbar, 1812 N 17th St., Ybor City. $15. (813) 241-8600.

Once in a blue moon a performer comes along who defies time and zeitgeist. Ben Kweller is this, the perpetual young man who fell to Earth. The doughy-cheeked singer-songwriter takes folk, 1960s pop, rock and new wave and pares it all down with purity and uncanny wisdom. His piano ballads might be pretty, but his stuff's not altogether wimpy. Kweller can go from mournful to rocking, screaming, "Show me all the rules. I just want to get them wrong," while bringing to mind artists who span the generations: Weezer, Jonathan Richman, Marshall Crenshaw and Bob Dylan. At 26, he's already spent more than a decade as an established rocker. He began with a band called Radish in his teens and parlayed a record deal before voting age. He's known by many as one-third of the Bens, a side venture with Folds and Lee. Many might know him from his MTV hit Wasted and Ready, but there are many more gems to be admired. Opener Tim Fite manipulates hip-hop, stream-of-conscious weirdness and keyboard sounds to spooky and catchy effect.

Knowing Stu

With Chumley's Toy, Malayne, Nous Rapport, Anareta

FRIDAY 8 p.m. Boomerz, 6990 Seminole Blvd., Seminole. 18 and older. $5, $7. (727) 329-9299.

An evening of excellent, non-hipster rock in the heart of Pinellas. Knowing Stu, fronted by sexy rock diva Tina Louise, has a timeless appeal. If you like Pat Benatar and Joan Jett, you'll dig KS. Though the rest of the bands on the bill are worth catching, we must give a slightly louder shout out to Malayne. The emotive, tight and lushly atmospheric St. Pete band is radio-ready, but unlike current pop's passel of emo posers.

Chamillionaire

With Red Carpet, St. Pete Mafia, Stylish Family, Young Money and DJ Strizzo

FRIDAY 7 p.m. Jannus Landing, 16 Second St. N, St. Petersburg. $19.95-$24.95. (727) 896-2276.

When we interviewed local rapper Black Reign, he name-checked the headliner as his major influence. The lyricist and entrepreneur won a Grammy for Ridin', his No. 1 single with Krayzie Bone. Dubbing himself the "mixtape messiah," he has bucked trends and dispelled stereotypes of what a dirty south rapper should sound like. He's also done the obligatory beef thing with rapper Mike Jones.

BLAST

With Otolathe and Waterdigger

FRIDAY 10 p.m. Pegasus Lounge, 10008 N 30th St., Tampa. 18 and older. $5, $7. (813) 971-1679.

There's such a thing as pushing the envelope. These acts make origami out of it. Headliner BLAST hits you with an aggro spasm of guitar-bass might, much like those obscure Sonic Youth B-sides you bust out when you're in a certain mood. Waterdigger is Danny McGuire's project and involves demented storytelling, vocal distortions and sundry pop, country and rock backdrops. Otolathe is more weirdness on the electronic, geek-toy side of things.

Soulfound

SATURDAY 9 p.m. Garage, 662 Central Ave., in St. Petersburg. $5. (727) 898-6054.

Soulfound is the workaholic and stylistic multitasker of the local music scene. Ivan Pena, founder and sole original member, founded the band in Gainesville in 1999. Ivan and Co. derive influences from all over the place - At the Drive-in, Pearl Jam, Rush, the Police and Led Zeppelin. Come celebrate the premiere of their video for the new single Fire. You can see a preview at www.youtube.com/soulfound9.

Can't Do It!

With the Brentford Sound and the Pants

SATURDAY 6-10 p.m. Globe Coffee Lounge, 532 First Ave. N, St. Petersburg. Free. (727) 898-5282.

Energetic and ironically named ska outfit Can't Do It throws a shindig to celebrate its new CD. What makes the party all the more special and nostalgic is that it's at singer Josh Sullivan's former place of employment. Joining in the ska-nanigans are first wave-inspired Brentford Sound. Globe proprietor JoEllen Schilke compares the Fort Myers band to the Skatalites. The Pants put their rock-steady grooves on one pop-punk leg at a time.

DJ DRM

With DJs Paul Digs and Positive Response

SUNDAY 9 p.m. New World Brewery, 1313 E Eighth Ave., Ybor City. (813) 248-4969.

Aaron Schultz, who performs under the moniker DRM, left the bay area for Brooklyn about five years ago and formed the Bastard Jazz label with like-minded DJs, a couple of whom share this bill. Of his turntable style, DRM says he's "firmly rooted in dub but branching out into the spectrum of Latin sounds, afrobeats, downtempo, breakbeats and all around dance floor madness."

Macy Gray

With the Brand New Heavies

THURSDAY 7:30 p.m. Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa. $37.50-$67.50. (813) 229-7827.

The afro'd Ms. Gray wowed the world with her offbeat but gorgeous vocal stylings on the 1999 soul hit I Try, which earned her the Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. She also received nominations for Song of the Year and Record of the Year. Now Gray is back after almost four years, with the album Big. Though she might be deemed a one-hit wonder, we don't doubt that she's still a wonder live. Rounding out an evening of sophisticated soul is jazzy-funky Brit ensemble the Brand New Heavies, which hit big in the '90s with Dream on Dreamer.

Also Playing

Geri X Fri. With Scott Harrell, Geoff's Evil Twin (Geoff from Spot Lucy), Sean Lightfoot, & Colton McKenna. 9 p.m. Globe Coffee Lounge, St. Petersburg. $3. (727) 898-5282.

Evergreen Terrace Fri. With August Burns Red, the Warriors and Casey Jones. 7 p.m. State Theatre, St. Petersburg. $10, $12. (727) 895-3045.

Infinite Groove Orchestra Fri. 5-8 p.m. Dali Museum, St. Petersburg. Half-price admission: $7.50. (727) 823-3767.

Cerephesis Fri. 8 p.m. With the Dead Popes, Degenerate Elite, and Horseshoes and Hand Grenades. Transitions Art Gallery at the Skatepark of Tampa. $6. (813) 382-3477.

Tribal Style Tues. With DJ Cor. 9 p.m. Kelly's Pub, Tampa. Free. (813) 228-0870.

[Last modified August 9, 2007, 13:29:05]

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