PUREHONEY 53

Silversun Pickups, Better Nature There is a lot to be said for a band that finds its sound, enjoys some serious success with it, and then continues to forge new, unique ideas far beyond the sound that made them their bones.

At this point it’s safe to say that the Californiabred alt-rockers Silversun Pickups are proper stalwarts of the genre.

The group -- which was founded in 2005 and helped put the current hippest neighborhood in LA’s rock scene, Silver Silversun Pickups | Credit: Claire Marie Vogel Lake, on the map shortly thereafter -- has now outlasted many of its peers. But more importantly, Silversun Pickups have continued to make music that pushes the envelope of what’s expected out of them, somehow without alienating its fans, and on its own terms -- funding its most recent album, Better Nature, with a Pledgemusic campaign.

With the release of the band’s fourth full length, Silversun Pickups appears in more adventurous form than ever. The record is rife with interesting atmospheric touches, deep textural flourishes, and production concepts that shake the expected for alternative rock bands these days, thanks in no small part to the efforts of renowned producer, Jacknife Lee. However, at its core remain the bones of energetic, moody rock ‘n’ roll that hasn’t mellowed too much with age nor gone too far into the depths of experimentation to ruin the energy that we love about this band. Perhaps you’ve lost touch with these former favorites since the late aughts? We implore you to check out the brooding, buffet of distortion that is “Nightlight” off of Better Nature for proof of the band’s continued growth and rock prowess. The track might be compared to what could happen if My Bloody Valentine was interested in making you dance into a sweat rather than melt and sway, replete with a chorus that’ll stick in your head for weeks, and enough sonic layering to keep even your snobby shoegaze fan friends interested. The song serves as a reminder that true rock ‘n’ roll can still have serious hooks without sacrificing its brashness or art-rock sensibilities, and it makes us long for the indie and alt-rock of the mid-aughts that we didn’t even know we missed.

Silversun Pickups will be bringing its high energy live show back to South Florida’s intimate Culture Room on January 8th with indie-rock favorites, Sweet Bronco.

The doors for this show open at 7:30. Admission is $28 per ticket plus fees. The Culture Room is located at 3045 Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale. Call 954-5641074. ~ Von Bader

Next Time You Snap a Photo at a show TAG IT with #FillmoreMB

FillmoreMB.com

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presents

- SAT. JAN 16 Keyboard Wizard

MARCO BENEVENTO Opening set, alt-soul chanteuse

BRIKA

- SAT. JAN 30 Improv laden psychedelic fusion of jazz, rock, drum’n’bass

DRKWAV

- SAT. JAN 23 New Orleans jazz trumpet Stretch Music innovator

CHRISTIAN SCOTT HAILU MERGIA Ethiopian jazzman

Opening set

AARON LEBOS REALITY

MEDESKI - ADAM DEITCH DJ SKERIK Haitian jazz quintet

AROZE TROUBADOU

7275 COLLINS AVENUE, MIAMI BEACH FL 33141

(305) 672-5202

BUY TICKETS: SEASIDESESSIONS.COM

Seaside Sessions A shell by the shore will be the soundbox and the stage for Seaside Sessions, a new concert series in Miami Beach being put on by the musical adventurers of South Beach’s Rhythm Foundation.

The first of three concerts in South Florida’s sweet season takes place on January 16 at the North Beach Bandshell on Collins Avenue with headliner Marco Benevento and special guest Brika. The inaugural series continues on January 23 and 30 at the oceanside amphitheater, which was also the setting for this past year’s edition of Rhythm Foundation’s long-running Heineken TransAtlantic Festival.

Seaside Sesssions is a more relaxed affair, with a less-compressed lineup spread out over consecutive Saturdays — Christian Scott, Hailu Mergia and Aaron Lebos Reality on the 23rd, and DRKWAV with Aroze Troubadou on the 30th. But it’s got the promoter’s hallmark: smart, Marco Benevento eclectic music with wordly flair and an outgoing, social spirit. Rhythm Foundation shows are a far-flung collector’s record crate brought to life on stage.

Benevento, from Brooklyn, kicks off the series on the 16th with a kind of reinvention — of himself. Known as a champion of exploratory, jazz-minded instrumental music, the keyboardist and founder of Benevento/Russo Duo and Garage a Trois has put out a solo album, Dropkick, that finds him singing boyishly over the danceable, indie-pop soundscapes he ventures under his own name.

It is no small thing for a career instrumentalist to suddenly find his singing voice.

Like the lineup of his homegrown record label, Royal Potato Family, Benevento is agreeably tough to classify. He delights in opposites, making music that manages to be heavy and airy all at once.

Brika, from Miami, is a 21st Century chanteuse with a sultry, bending contralto and the skill to adapt it to varied material. On her album, Voice Memos, this pop omnivore sings with a flow whose heart belongs to hip-hop and soul. At almost 1.2 million SoundCloud plays for the Voice Memos track, Expectations, Brika is also making noise well beyond her Miami base.

The Seaside Sessions concerts are January 16, 23 and 30 at North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach. All shows are 7-11pm. Advance tickets are $25 per show. Gate admission is $30. A full series pass is available for $50. Children under 6 are admitted free. Visit http://www.rhythmfoundation. com/series/seaside-sessions/ or call 305.672.5202 ~ Sean Piccoli

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25

BAMBOO ROOM: Boss Project (Bruce Springsteen Trib)

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 26

LITTLE MUNICH: THOMAS FEKETE BENEFIT! Slavve, Hermanos, Problem Child, Now Breathers, Lindsey Mills

SUNDAY, JANUARY 3

BAMBOO ROOM: Fireside Prophets, Spred the Dub, Marijah & The Reggae AllStars

DADA: Basement Jams KILL YOUR IDOL: Glitterbox FUNKY BISCUIT: The New Mastersounds, Aaron Lebos Reality

DADA: Sweet Bronco special covers set of 60s garage psych, 70s art rock, and 80s indie

PROPAGANDA: Weird at First, LFTD LVLS, Mykal Morrison, Sunflowers

FUNKY BISCUIT: Donna The Buffalo CHURCHILL’S PUB: Hair of the Dog Fest ft SunGhosts, Heavy Drag, Dénudés, Palette Town & Milk Spot

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: JL Fulks

MONDAY, JANUARY 4

TUESDAY, JANUARY 5

DADA: Spoken Word Open Mic KILL YOUR IDOL: Acoustic Jam Open Mic

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Think & Drink Trivia DADA: Micah Scott

THURSDAY, JANUARY 7

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Open Mic Night DADA: Sol Republic

RESPECTABLE STREET: Raggy Monster PROPAGANDA: LFTD LVLS

STACHE: Sweet Bronco, Minimalist Blasphemist, Peyote Coyote CHURCHILL’S PUB: Floor, AC Cobra, House of Lightning, Wrong, Mere Quantum Noise

FRIDAY, JANUARY 8

CULTURE ROOM: Silversun Pickups, Sweet Bronco PROPAGANDA: Sunnyvale Theiving Hand

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: This Frontier Needs Heroes DADA: Big Chief KILL YOUR IDOL: Dark Water Rebellion FUNKY BISCUIT: Mingo Fishtrap POORHOUSE: Bleubird, AC Cobra, Party Flag

SATURDAY, JANUARY 9

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 30

ST LUCIE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS: Bryan Jackson Music Festival feat. Abby Owens, Always Wanted War, Beggars, Break The Hero, Catalogues, Church & State, Church Girls, Commonplace, Deal James, Down Coyote, Flint Blade, Flying Sharks, Gallimimus, Gargantua Tarantula, Ghost Cat, Gravel Kings, Hidden Tree Houses, In Motion, Killmama, Lavola, Mindscar, Minus Turmoil, OSF, Pathos, Pathos, Pub Reckers, Ryan & Friends, Sky Coffins, Spicoli, Sweet Bronco, The Humdingers, The Inverted, The Prescription, The Sweet Escape, The Whiskey Wasps, Wake Up plus Neon Paint Party Tour

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Trivia

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: El Dub

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 27

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Roanoke & Ryan Huseman

MONDAY, DECEMBER 28

DADA: Basement Jams Open Mic KILL YOUR IDOL: Glitterbox

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 29

DADA: Comedy Open Mic DADA: Whiskey Wasps

PROPAGANDA: DJ Needlez Presents: Roc The Mic

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 31

BOHEMÏA AG: Lost Arts (Rediscovering the Past) DADA: Mylo Ranger KILL YOUR IDOL: Keep It Deep

BAMBOO ROOM: Eric Steckel Band RESPECTABLE STREET: Astari Nite, Sweet Bronco POORHOUSE: Jasin Todd, Dellacoma Rio, The No.13s special set of 60s Garage Psych, 70s Art Rock & 80s Indie CHURCHILL’S PUB: 1349, Tombs, Full of Hell, Maruta FUNKY BISCUIT: Albert Castiglia & John Ginty

FUNKY BISCUIT: Victor Wainwright & the Wild Roots

PROPAGANDA: Ben & The Wailers, Fireside Prophets, Raggy Monster, Everymen, JT Turret, Peyote Coyote, Lavola, RMNTX, LFTD LVLS, Tony V, Tom Carr, Justin Rosario, Myles Patrick

SUNDAY, JANUARY 10

BAMBOO ROOM: JP Soars & the Red Hots, People Upstairs

FRIDAY, JANUARY 1

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Bias Culture

CHURCHILL’S PUB: Altar Of Profanation, Caveman Cult, Koroidia, Maedusa, Scripture Of Sorrow

DADA: Elastique Band MONDAY, JANUARY 11 PROPAGANDA: Rude Hecklers, Shakers, Sunflowers KILL YOUR IDOL: Glitterbox GRAMPS: Ben Katzman’s Degreaser, Gun Hoes, Viceroi, Bruiser FUNKY BISCUIT: Snarky Puppy, Electric Kif CHURCHILL’S PUB: Red Death, Protester, Pure Disgust & more.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 2

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Mark Telesca DADA: Octo Gato & Roanoke KILL YOUR IDOL: Urban Sombrero

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Think & Drink Trivia DADA: Boris Simonov

THURSDAY, JANUARY 14

PROPAGANDA: LFTD LVLS

RESPECTABLE STREET: Beachhead, MoonRunes BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Open Mic Night

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Subgroove

DADA: Craft Bazaar

CHURCHILL’S PUB: Mothers, Heavy Drag, Deaf Poets, Sound Sleeper FUNKY BISCUIT: Crazy Fingers

FRIDAY, JANUARY 15

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Zack Jones

DADA: Blues Crusaders KILL YOUR IDOL: Nastie PROPAGANDA: Conflict Rhymes FUNKY BISCUIT: The Ben Sparaco Band

SATURDAY, JANUARY 16

FILLMORE MIAMI BEACH: Eliades Ochoa y Barbarito Torres: Stars of Buena Vista Social Club BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Custom Bicycle Show, 747 PROPAGANDA: Jason & the Punknecks, Mylo Ranger

NORTH BEACH BANDSHELL: SEASIDE SESSIONS ft.

Marco Benevento, Brika DADA: Jangle Leg KILL YOUR IDOL: Breaks Yo!

BAMBOO ROOM: Mark Telesca Band

FUNKY BISCUIT: Tab Benoit, Mike Zito & the Wheel

CHURCHILL’S PUB: Sweet Bronco, Mantra Love, Astromaps, Heavy Drag

FRIDAY, JANUARY 22

DADA: Jason Grillo FUNKY BISCUIT: The Livesays

PROPAGANDA: Legends of Rodeo, Remedy Session, Maypop

SATURDAY, JANUARY 23

FILLMORE MIAMI BEACH: Peppa Pig CONCHY JOE’S: Moska Project

NORTH BEACH BANDSHELL: SEASIDE SESSIONS ft.

Christian Scott, Hailu Mergia, Aaron Lebos Reality PROPAGANDA: People

LONGBOARDS: SURF INDUSTRY BLOCK PARTY: CJ Hobgoods Retirement, Whole Wheat Bread, William Kiimball, Surprise Headliner, Skate Demos & More!

DADA: Closer to the Ocean

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Tahiti Band

KREEPY TIKI: METAL TACO FEST 2: Nader Sadek, Paths Of Possesion, Promethean Horde & more

BAMBOO ROOM: Shane Duncan Band

FUNKY BISCUIT: The Wildfire Band CHURCHILL’S PUB: Torche, Jeff Carey, Day Old Man, Armageddon Man

SUNDAY, JANUARY 24

FILLMORE MIAMI BEACH: Bill Maher

CHURCHILL’S PUB: Moon River Cabaret-Burlesque

TUESDAY, JANUARY 26

HOWLEYS: Eat Your Heart Out Art Show CHURCHILL’S PUB: Shannon & the Clams, The Golden Pelicans, Snakehole

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Think & Drink Trivia

DADA: Nigel Egg & Rio Peterson PROPAGANDA: Tard, Mea Culpa, Belligerents & Shehehe FUNKY BISCUIT: Rebirth Brass Band, Bad Apples Brass Band CHURCHILL’S PUB: Jucifer, Holly Hunt

THURSDAY, JANUARY 28

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Artist Opening, Open Mic Night DADA: Future Prezidents RESPECTABLE STREET: The Metropolitan PROPAGANDA: Eternal Sleep, Cross Me

FRIDAY, JANUARY 29

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Vintage Iron Motorcycle Show, Micah Scott

DADA: The Int’l Language KILL YOUR IDOL: Shameless Burlesque CHURCHILL’S PUB: Biohazard, Sworn Enemy, Coldside & more.

PROPAGANDA: Flag On Fire, Castoff, Operative Me

SUNDAY, JANUARY 17

FUNKY BISCUIT: Devon Allman, Albert Castiglia

TUESDAY, JANUARY 19

FILLMORE MIAMI BEACH: Macklemore, Ryan Lewis

JANUARY 20-24

PB CONVENTION CENTER: ART PALM BEACH

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Think & Drink Trivia

DADA: Chloe Domains PROPAGANDA: Mauricio’s Birthday. Age of Aquarius

THURSDAY, JANUARY 21

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Open Mic Night DADA: Kristo

RESPECTABLE STREET: Black Cousins, Denudes

SATURDAY, JANUARY 30

SUNSET COVE AMP: SOUTHERN JAM ft. Kris Kristofferson, Lucinda Williams, John Hiatt, Shawn Colvin NORTH BEACH BANDSHELL: SEASIDE SESSIONS ft. DRKWAV Medeski, Adam Deitch, DJ Skerik, Aroze Troubadou BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Jason Soffer DADA: OLY & Lobo Marino

FILLMORE MIAMI BEACH: La Banda KILL YOUR IDOL: The Wire

RESPECTABLE STREET: Bonnie & Friends PROPAGANDA: Homewrecker CHURCHILL’S PUB: The Independents

SUNDAY, JANUARY 31

BREWHOUSE GALLERY: Lobo Marino FILLMORE MIAMI BEACH: Soul Deep

ArtPalmBeach 2016 It’s hard to discern whether Lee Ann and David Lester were lucky (or insightful) enough to see the future of art in South Florida or if South Floridians are the lucky ones to have had the Lesters pioneer a blooming cultural landscape. The Lesters do seem to have a knack for seeing emerging markets before they emerge. In 1990, the art world was skeptical about South Florida when the Lesters announced the ArtMiami Fair.

Lee Ann remembers, “We were here before anyone else, and people really didn’t believe there was going to be a market here. I remember the New York press writing about us that there was nothing but a beach and cultural wasteland, and maybe a lot of drug dealers.” It’s true that there weren’t many museums in Miami and that there were a lot of drug dealers. There supposedly also weren’t many collectors.

But there were.

Lee Ann, a trained industrial psychologist, and David, an attorney became passionate art collectors early in their careers.They gave it a go with a small Los Angeles gallery soon becoming international art dealers representing artists from Spain, Mexico, and China. It was a serendipitous route they took into the art world as well as to ArtPalmBeach. As the market in China took a downturn, it was a boarding pass with a layover in West Palm Beach that sparked the notion that WPB was the exact market dealers had been hoping for and would be looking for. The largest art event in PBC, The Palm Beach International Art & Antique Fair was founded in 1997. The Lesters took over in 2010. In its current incarnation, the fair is a contemporary art event boasting everything from Picassos that could bring in $9 million to major icons of contemporary art to new emerging artists.

The posters in this month’s PureHoney are also official 2016 ArtPalmBeach posters and part of the emerging artist component of the fair celebrating its nineteenth year. In the first annual contest, students from Palm Beach State College and Dreyfoos School of Arts competed for a first taste at exposure through Palm Beach County’s largest art event. Aren’t we the lucky ones?!

Art Palm Beach emerges January 20 with the First View and Collector’s Invitational at Palm Beach County Convention Center. The fair runs through Sunday, January 24. One day passes are available for $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Multi-day passes are $20 in advance, $25 at the door. See a full list of exhibitors and more information at ArtPalmBeach.com. ~Jessica Chesler

Stars of Buena Vista Social Club When American bottleneck guitar hero/roots music scion Ry Cooder came together with Cuban musician and bandleader Juan de Marcos González to make the Buena Vista Social Club album in 1997, the intentions were undoubtedly less grandiose -- though none-the-less noble -- than the resulting impact that record would have upon the world. In fact, the record was recorded as a means to salvage an entirely different collaborative project featuring the American guitar wizard and Cuban maestro, Eliades Ochoa and Barbarito Torres that had to be scrubbed after the African musicians it intended to feature were snared in visa issues and unable to travel to Cuba from their native Mali. The tale of how the record came to be is a compelling one, indeed; so compelling that Cooder’s longtime friend and famed filmmaker, Wim Wenders, would go on to make an awardwinning documentary telling its story.

The record and documentary both took their name from a popular members’ club that was popular in Cuba prior to the revolution, and the record featured performances by many of the formerly famous musicians that had been mainstays at said club in its heyday -- many of whom had faded into various states of obscurity under communist rule. These charming and talented musicians were finally given the spotlight they so rightly deserved through the record and film, and, perhaps more importantly, the music of Cuba -- one of the most vibrant and unique facets of its culture -- was brought to the masses in a way it had never been before.

While many of the star players of the Buena Vista Social Club have passed on since the film’s release in the late ‘90s, guitarist and singer Eliades Ochoa and laud player Barbarito Torres are still alive and well and will be performing at Miami’s luxurious Fillmore at the Jackie Gleason Theater on January 16th. For those who have already been charmed by the album and film, this is a rare opportunity to enjoy the sonic delights of its stars in the flesh, and for those who have not, this is perhaps the perfect introduction to the realm of the Buena Vista Social Club.

Doors open at 7pm for this performance. Admission ranges from $55-155 per ticket. The Fillmore at the Jackie Gleason Theater is located at 1700 Washington Ave, Miami Beach, Call 305-673-7300 ~ Von Bader

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Mass District Turns One MASS District (Music & Arts South of Sunrise) in Fort Lauderdale celebrates it’s first birthday in January and has big plans to make it a night to remember.

Art, music, DJ’s, an eclectic variety of vendors, food trucks, murals, free trolleys… maybe you’ll even catch sight of a ten foot robot covered in 3,000 LED lights from LUTN, one of the businesses in the district.

Bottom line is this: January’s Art Walk is going to be legendary.

Don’t miss it.

Come see for yourself what everyone is talking about. It’s not every day that what was once a dead part of town blossoms into a hotspot for the arts and celebrates a year of incredible growth and milestones. MASS is a district of creatives and businesses that want community and economic development of Fort Lauderdale through the arts. They support local artists and charities in an abundance of ways and have given the artists of South Florida a voice and a place to call home. Celebrate that!

Breaking into the arts and actually making a living from it is one of the toughest obstacles an artist faces. The creation of the MASS District has literally made it possible for many artists to get started or expand and grow their following so you can imagine how happy the artists of South Florida are to seize this opportunity and be a part of the scene. All fees they collect from the vendors are reinvested in the district and used to promote growth.

Another huge bonus is that it only costs $20 to be a vendor as opposed to some other events where fees are higher and may not be obtainable for the masses. MASS is for the masses. MASS is for us all. Join us in commending the group of 15 galleries and creative businesses that combined forces and created this haven for the arts.

January 30th is the day, the day to celebrate the birth of a new era in the arts in Fort Lauderdale. Come say Happy Birthday to MASS and have a blast!

For more information about MASS District, please go to www.massdistrict.co.

Through their website, you can also sign up to join the district as a business, artist or vendor. Join the action! ~ Jennifer Riaz

Southern Jam at Sunset Cove Americana, known as Roots Country is coming to Boca Raton thanks to Patrick Maraist and his motto of “keeping live music alive.”

Maraist, known locally for his production of Music Jams featuring reggae and rock acts, has now turned his attention to Americana, “this is one of the genres I grew up listening to. This music is the heartbeat and backbone of America even though Americana does not receive much, if any, airplay on the radio stations because most of what you hear these days is crossovers of many genres.”

Hoping to turn the weekend between the final College Football Championship games and the Super Bowl into a yearly tradition is the goal for Maraist, who has long felt and shared the sentiment with legends of Country music that their beloved genre has gone into Kris Kristofferson | Credit: Kate Simon diversified areas and forgotten itself. In order to ensure that this opening salvo firmly establishes this concert as a marquee event for fans of Americana, Maraist has pulled all the stops.

“I personally handpick artists for all of my Music Jams, and the same is true for Southern Jam,” he explains. “My process is to bring in artists that I would personally go to see if I was not the promoter/producer.” Gracing the inaugural stage will be a bevy of Grammy winners with Shawn Colvin and Lucinda Williams, as well as the much underappreciated singer-songwriter John Hiatt. And while this is an impressive lineup for the evening, Southern Jam’s headliner is Country legend Kris Kristofferson, who incidentally narrated PBS’s 2001 multi-part documentary American Roots Music.

In keeping with his self-appointed rule of presenting artists who do not tour through Florida with regularity, Maraist has scored a winner with Kristofferson headlining and ticket sales are reflecting out-of-state as well as international sales.

Southern Jam is also working a guitar raffle to fundraise for the Wounded Warrior Project, Pet Haven Rescue and Hope From Harrison charities; a commitment to local, charitable organizations Maraist is looking to develop as the event grows in future years. Other plans for its development center around expanding the concert to a twoday event with the Saturday remaining Americana/Roots Country and “the second day being something that fits into Southern Jam but with only a slightly different genre.”

Poised to make a big splash and return the genre to its former splendor, Maraist is confident about the event’s success and its future, “any fan of true music will enjoy Southern Jam, and the sales confirm this to be true. It goes to show; commercialism cannot silence true American Roots Country.”

Music Jams Productions Presents: “Southern Jam” with Kris Kristofferson, Lucinda Williams, Shawn Colvin, and John Hiatt & The Combo at 2pm on Saturday, January 30 at the Sunset Cove Amphitheater, Burt Aaronson South County Regional Park, 20405 Amphitheater Circle, Boca Raton. Advance general admission tickets cost $65 plus fees, raffle tickets are $5 each or five for $20. Call 561-846-2899 or visit musicjamproductions.com. – Abel Folgar