REAX #31 by Joel

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CONTENTS ISSUE 31

GUILTY SOUNDCHECK

Publisher Joel Cook jcook@reaxmusic.com

Circulation Manager Scott Jensen scottj@reaxmusic.com

CALL & RESPONSE

Queen Finnie Cook ﬁnniec@reaxmusic.com

Sales Associates Emily LaDuca emily@reaxmusic.com

Editor Scott Harrell scott@reaxmusic.com

Shawn Kyle shawn@reaxmusic.com

08 INTRODUCTION 10

READER MAIL

SEE SOMETHING SAY SOMETHING 11 12 14 14 16

DEAR GLOFFY OPEN MIC YOUR BAND BLOWS STEP BY STEP DRINK OF THE MONTH

SOUNDBITES 17 18 19 20

LOS CAMPESINOS! JAKE ONE SUNBEARS! DEAD CONFEDERATE

Head Writer Michael Rabinowitz miker@reaxmusic.com Columnist Jeremy Gloff deargloffy@gmail.com Art Director Mike Delach delach@cookwaremedia.com Illustration Noah Deledda noah.deledda@gmail.com Photography Tony Landa landa@reaxmusic.com

Interns Amy Beeman abeeman@reaxmusic.com Molly Hays molly@reaxmusic.com Andrew Pellegrino Contributors Justin Lee Amidon Timothy Asher Joe D’Acunto Mike DeLancett Jason Ferguson Jack Gregory Justine Grifﬁn Ryan Patrick Hooper Sean Kantrowitz Becca Nelson Susie Orr Lance Robson Trevor Roppolo Susie Ulrey Carrie Waite

SPECIAL FEATURE

General Manager Marshall Dickson marshall@reaxmusic.com

YOU ARE HERE

Cover photo: Courtesy of 2:30 Publicity

22 REAX HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE LOCAL MUSIC TAMPA BAY

26 HOT SPOTS 28 SPOTLIGHTS 29 UPCOMING EVENTS

ORLANDO + CENTRAL FLA

34 HOT SPOTS 35 SPOTLIGHTS 36 UPCOMING EVENTS

REAX Music Magazine P.O. Box 5809 Tampa, FL 33675

Phone: 813.247.6975 www.reaxmusic.com www.myspace.com/reax

Reax Magazine is published monthly and is available through Florida businesses, music venues, restaurants, independent record stores, outdoor boxes, and F.Y.E. stores. Reax is also available nationally at over 160 record stores. Go to reaxmusic.com for a full list.

GAINESVILLE + NORTH FLA

38 HOT SPOTS 39 SPOTLIGHTS 40 UPCOMING EVENTS

FEATURE 42 OF MONTREAL

REAX INTERVIEWS 44 46 48 50

3OH!3 LES SAVY FAV LUDO OFF WITH THEIR HEADS

SOAPBOX 52 NEW RELEASES PAGE 6 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

Advertisers warrant and represent the descriptions of their products advertised are true in all respects. Reax Magazine assumes no responsibility for claims made by advertisers. All letters and their contents sent to Reax Magazine become the sole property of Cookware Media, LLC. Use or duplication of material used in this publication is prohibited without approved written consent from Cookware Media, LLC.

53 54 55 58 59

BOOK REVIEWS DVD REVIEW MUSIC REVIEWS VIDEO GAME REVIEW HANDS ON PRODUCT REVIEW

SOUNDCHECK INTRODUCTION ISSUE 31

Art by: Brandon Dunlap

GETTING IN ON IT, AND GETTING IT ON

’ve always hated ﬁlling this little space at the beginning of the mag. Should we tie in the season, or talk about what the coming month will bring? Done it to death. Should we talk about the state of “the scene”? It’s already an endless dialogue (or an unwinnable argument, if you’re one of those folks who ﬁrmly believes that every good conversation should turn contentious at some point).

I don’t know if anybody even reads the intro - I usually don’t read ‘em in other mags, unless I’m perusing a new periodical for the ﬁrst time. So on a whim, and probably against some rule of journalism or other, this month we’ll just use this often meaningless little box to remind you, the reader and potential creative artist in your own right, about our PAGE 8 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

Florida-wide contest calling for a readerwrought cover for our next issue.

Find the ad. (Hint: it’s on this page) Read the few guidelines that pass for rules. And send something in. The worst thing that can happen is you don’t win; the best is, your art will grace the cover of a nationally distributed magazine that at least we all believe in passionately. REAX has always been about exposing the reader to cool stuff, and we can’t think of a better way to do that than splashing it right up front. Oh, and while we’re shamelessly selfpromoting, stop by Tampa’s New World Brewery on December 18 for our Reader Appreciation Party, and say hi. We’ll give you your “happy holidays” in person. - Scott Harrell

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 9

CALL & RESPONSE READER MAIL ISSUE 31

CONTRIBUTORS

SEND FEEDBACK TO REAX@REAXMUSIC.COM FROM REAXMUSIC.COM COMMENT ON “ANTI-AMENDMENT 2 RALLIES IN TAMPA/ ST. PETE THIS WEEKEND,” BY SCOTT HARRELL: “Amendment 2, Part II, THE RECKONING! This time it’s personal! Seriously, why are so many religious folk so insecure in their beliefs as to make the rest of us suffer their piety? Ironically, but not surprisingly, proposals like Amendment 2 in Florida were initiated w/ funding from Mormons, who have defended the rights of middle-aged men to keep multiple teenage wives. The Church of Latter Day Saints was ofﬁcially a racist organization until the civil rights movement in this country, and holds that the Garden of Eden was located in western Missouri. So ... that’s a taste of what we’re dealing with.” Harold, November 14 COMMENT ON “BILLY CORGAN INVITES HECKLER ONSTAGE JUST TO RIP HIM,” BY MICHAEL RABINOWITZ: “Billy should have stepped on his distortion pedal and jammed his guitar through the guy’s skull. Then, solo by sliding the dude’s head back and forth on the neck of the guitar.” John, November 18 COMMENT ON “TAMPA BAY HIP HOP AWARDS ARE COMING,” BY SCOTT HARRELL: “Laws can bring it. Caught him while working on my Umbrella Corporation story last year ... when I also attended the Tampa Bay Hip Hop Awards gig. Not great. Not super bad. I pimped it ... probably more than I would have under dif- ... Honesty in journalism, right? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah ... Unhinged

and hammered. Ha. Ha. Ha. LOL and all that BS. Have fun with this one.” Wade Tatangelo, November 18 COMMENT ON “MICHAEL JACKSON UNFAMILIAR WITH TERM ‘QUID PRO QUO,’” BY SCOTT HARRELL: “Does anyone ever read what they post? Your title is fucked up.” Michael, November 20 [Scott responds: “Yeah, a coding error went unnoticed.”] COMMENT ON “REAX WEB EXCLUSIVE: SUNBEARS!”, BY SCOTT HARRELL: “The Sunbears! totally rock my socks. I think everyone should check them out!” Kat, November 26 “Plus they’re wicked hot. It’s win win.” Kat, November 26 (exactly one minute later)

FROM MYSPACE “Thanks for the add guys! Great magazine, one of our favorite music mags! Peace.” The Teague Stefan Band, Nov. 9

“We hope to see you at the Gay Blades show on November 19th at the Orpheum! The last time we went to see them, the lineup got all screwy and we missed them, so they played an acoustic set just for us to make up for it. Bottom line: these are the type of people that deserve a heck of a lot of support. Let’s band together and make them want to come back to Tampa!” The Merry Andrews Show, November 12

PAGE 10 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

“Thanks for the add! Please keep The Totally Awesome in mind for any of your upcoming pomotional t-shirt needs! New specials will be posted soon, so keep checking back! Thanks again for your support!” The Totally Awesome, November 25 “Scott Jenson is my new hero for his column ‘Metallica: Too Little, Too Late.’ Some ‘alternative’ papers around here are claiming Death Magnetic and Chinese Democracy (lol) are the new albums to resurrect rock ‘n’ roll (how can something that hasn’t died be resurrected?). Nice to have a real alternative paper around. Thanks and Happy Poultricide Day!” Josh, November 26 “TATTOOED BRUISE .......... NEEDS A HARD HITTING DRUMMER FOR UPCOMING DEBUT SHOW in JANUARY!!!” TattooedBruise, November 30

CORRECTIONS In last month’s Underoath feature, it was mistakenly reported that former frontman Dallas Taylor left the band in 2006. Taylor and the band parted ways in 2003. In last month’s Matt Butcher article, Scott Harrell wrote that Butcher’s former band The Heathens split up in 2006. The band actually called it quits in March of 2007.

Robert Hilson still goes by “Robbie” even though friends insist nicknames are ill-suited for graduating Poli-Sci majors. He’s into the ﬁre-crackle pops that old vinyl makes, but doesn’t necessarily understand the concept of “warm” sound. Secretly maintains that Pearl Jam is the greatest band ever, but won’t admit this to hipster acquaintances. Guilty pleasures include caffeine, red jeans, and Monster-era R.E.M. In general, is on guard against - as James Murphy put it - losing his edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.

ROBERT J. HILSON

I enjoy ﬁshing and relaxing on Florida’s coastline, dog whisperin’, working out, playing the drums, petting soft things, and making captives in wells apply lotion to ensure my skinsuit is the silkiest in town. I love music like that uncle who hugs too long. Music is important to me, not only from the scholastic perspective of a socio/cultural watermark, but as a fan of a powerful, accessible, contemporary art form. Music journalism allows me to examine and chronicle this “art.” I’m like a caring doctor caressing music’s nut sack and asking it to cough.

JOHN PRINZO

Lance is not known for making the kind of sense anyone can understand, except when composing 80-word sentencelike word structures. A third of the way through the lifespan of an average male, in a privileged society, he still ﬁnds himself asking for assistance from any poor sucker who takes a shine to him. Spoiled as a child and unwilling to accept tutelage or advice, he makes poor life decisions that have, at times, crippled him. Having never felt so defeated that he wasn’t able to continue, Lance has lamely lifted one foot to meet the challenge of being a REAX contributor, while assuring us we have not taken the top spot on his sucker list. Glory or insanity awaits …

LANCE ROBSON

DEAR GLOFFY SEE SOMETHING... ISSUE 31

Words: Jeremy Gloff Photo: Mimi

DEAR GLOFFY,

I’ve fallen desperately in love with a guy with a drinking problem. I have the occasional drink ... but when we go out together, I end up embarrassed at best or carrying him out of the bar at worst. I talked to him about it and he doesn’t think he has a problem. I don’t want to live without him ... but I can’t deny he has a problem. Signed, Tired and Sad

DEAR TIRED,

There’s a certain romance to the addict and his addiction. Perhaps in some circles your boyfriend might be heralded as “rock and roll” for getting carried out of the club by his girlfriend. But long after the romance fades, you will ﬁnd yourself with a slobbering drunk on your hands. You need to realize that if your boyfriend seriously has a problem, he isn’t going to get better unless he wants to. You can’t ﬁx him. You can’t help him. Unless you want a long and painful future with a Keith Richards prototype, I suggest you get the hell out of dodge.

DEAR GLOFFY,

I watched one of your videos online and I’m contacting you because I have a similar problem. I have a friend who has a girlfriend that he said he would never cheat on. Via text message me and this friend ﬂirt with each other a lot. Lately we’ve been exchanging naked pictures. I’m not afraid of us being found out ... that’s the least of my worries. I’m most afraid of falling for a guy I can’t have. What should I do? Signed, Empty Heart, Full Inbox

DEAR EMPTY,

What a horrible thing to do to you! There’s nothing worse than the shopkeeper ﬂashing the merchandise and then saying it’s not for sale. What if you put a can of hairspray in front of Brett Michaels and then said, “uh-uh, hands off!”? What if you put a line of coke in front of Amy Winehouse and said, “oh, sorry honey, that belongs to someone else”? Gloffy has a rule with naked pictures. Don’t show me the brochure unless you’re gonna let me go on the trip. Don’t show me the blueprints unless you are going to let me in the house. And don’t show me the menu unless you are gonna let me enjoy a meal. Stop talking to this guy. He’s leading you on.

WE HAVE COLOR Photos: Brian Adams DOWN TO A SCIENCE Models:The Benz Agency TYRO LEVEL STYLIST CUTS START AT $15

To write to Dear Gloffy go to jeremygloff.com and follow the Dear Gloffy link.

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • PAGE 11

12 OPEN

SEE SOMETHING... OPEN MIC ISSUE 31

MIC

WHY YOU LOVE

BOB SEEGER: AN OPEN LETTER TO

TOURING BANDS

PAGE 12 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • DECEMBER 2008

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC Magazine • PAGE 13

SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING YOUR BAND BLOWS / STEP BY STEP ISSUE 31

STEP DRIVE-THRU BY STEP

USE THE FAST-FOOD

I Ask anyone who thinks that the early ‘80s were a good time for music, culture or anything in general besides conservative politics if they were actually alive during that era, and the answer will without a doubt be “no.” Anyone who remembers the ‘80s remembers it as having created a lot of badly produced, ridiculous music, fashion and visual art. That’s why the recent resurgence of rehashed lo-fi new wave dance-pop really mystifies me. As a dedicated student of history and an ‘80s child I’ve studied as much as possible about the period of time best known for pop art, bad pop, Pop Rocks, soda pop wars, poppers and a drug commonly referred to by the nickname “cola.” As far as I can tell, the majority of people running around during the ‘80s were a bunch of coked-up narcissists fueled by greed and lacking in any aesthetic value whatsoever. Why we, as a society, would want to relive those times through such a powerful medium as music makes no sense. Maybe it’s fitting that a lot of the most buzzed-about music these days sounds derivative of, if not identical to, the new wave movement of the early ‘80s, because I seem to be meeting a lot of coked-up narcissists fueled by greed and … you get the picture. Now that we have a context, let’s talk about Crystal Castles. Packed with enough lo-fi blips and retro dance beats to put any early-’80s band to shame, CC manages to separate themselves from the herd of bands riding this trend (Empire of the Sun, Ladyhawke) by having “vocalist” Alice Glass scream incoherently through heavily effect-laden vocals. The result is something like a rave-mashup nightmare. With no thought given to song structure, melody or even a pervasive use of tone, the majority of Crystal Castles’ music seems accidental, and dependent on AutoTune and bad Casio backing beats. As aurally heinous as the result is, I can’t help but relate it to bands like the Human League and Kajagoogoo; both terrible in their own right, but popular in their time. The only real contribution that any of the aforementioned bands made to music in general was to

have a sound that was slightly off-center, and incorporate some new synth sound that probably took about two minutes to patch up on a Moog. The same applies to Crystal Castles, but what would you expect from a band that took their name from She-Ra, Princess of Power? I do have to give it to Alice Glass though - she’s hot, in that “my parents didn’t hug me enough so I’m going to wear dark eye makeup and dance around like a monkey while gargling gravel” way. It’s interesting to see her crawl around on the hordes of hipster idiots who think that a Crystal Castles show is good performance art. I recently saw them perform, and the entire show consisted of Ethan Kath standing behind a row of electronics making semicomprehensible noise on a black stage while Ms. Glass ran around with a strobe light screaming like her hair was on ﬁre. The amount of thought that they put into their live show is akin to that of a drunk getting a Tasmanian Devil tattoo at 2 a.m. from a seedy parlor with no sterilization; it might have seemed like a good idea at the time, but the next day you’ve got regret, a terrible hangover and hepatitis. In this case, the regret was the 20 bucks you spent to go to the show, the hangover is from all of the acid you had to take to enjoy the performance, and the hepatitis is actually tinnitus from having your ears assaulted with loud, terrible music. Performances in the ‘80s were similar. If you doubt me, pull up some old Kraftwerk live shows and revel in the four guys standing behind rows of electronics making semi-comprehensible noise on a black stage. It’s actually a little more palatable without the screaming monkey woman, and at least the guys in Kraftwerk had a sense of irony. So I guess if you’re one of those people that feels the need to outcool your friends by picking up on the most recent buzz “band,” then I guess you might want to download “Crimewave,” and force everyone to listen to it over and over again while talking about how “original” Crystal Castles is. However, if you have any sense of the cyclical nature of music and culture, you may just want to keep your interest in this band a secret. I don’t know many people that were alive in the ‘80s that are still talking about how innovative Flock of Seagulls were - and chances are, no one will admit to liking Crystal Castles in a few years, let alone a couple of decades.

PAGE 14 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • DECEMBER 2008

f you think that everybody already knows how to use the drive-thru, either you’ve never had lunch on the go at a fast-food joint, or you’re part of the problem, Sparky. Sure, it seems pretty straightforward - you drive up, you order, you drive up some more, you pay, you drive up an extra little bit, you get your food, you pull away.

IN REALITY, THE DRIVE-THRU BREEDS FRUSTRATION AS CONSISTENTLY AS REHEARSAL SPACES BREED SCABIES. Why? I prefer to think it’s because folks haven’t really been taught how to use the drive-thru, rather than assume it’s because every American in the country is one bongtoke away from a developmental disability. So, in the name of charitable assumptions, let’s run it down.

STEP 1 If you must let everybody know you’re going out for a burger, and ask them if they want anything, for God’s sake, make them write it down. If anyone tells you to just get them whatever, spit on them, call them a ﬁlthy dirty liar, and then attempt to re-create the face you saw them make the last four times you got them whatever. This is nonnegotiable - no written order, no grub. Soon you’ll tire of waiting on them, and start telling people you’re just going to the can. And everybody at the drive-thru wins.

STEP 2 Decide what you want on the drive to the restaurant. You know what they have; you’ve been there a million freakin’ times. If you simply must know if there’s a new limited-time offering with a different flavor of cheese on it, go inside. The drive-thru is about efficiency and convenience, not your weird obsession with new fake ingredients. If you wait until you’re there before you know what you’re going to order, there won’t be a line in front of you. There will, however, be one behind you after you take five minutes debating the merits of nuggets versus patties. Dingdingding! You’re a dick.

STEP 3 Since you were smart and decided what you want beforehand, you can use your time waiting in line taking pictures of the license plates in front of you with your cell, to post later at drivethrudicks.com. See?

That could’ve been you.

STEP 4 When you get to the speaker, don’t ask questions. The speaker doesn’t know what the McRib is made of either, and yes, everything has touched meat.

STEP 5 If the meal you want has a number, use it. I promise the shit you’re about to eat won’t be offended.

STEP 6 When you get to the payment window, don’t think you have eight cents. Know it. Have it in your hand, or resign yourself to the fact that you’ll deﬁnitely have eight cents next time.

STEP 7 Finally, don’t check your order right there at the window. If you have to check it, pull forward, and take your dissatisﬁed ass inside if there’s a problem. But I recommend not checking your order at all. It’s a no-win situation - even if everything is right, just the sight of all that crappy almost-food jockeying to stain the inside of that bag clear might be enough to put you off your meal. Just deal with it. Eat your disappointment. That’s what you’re there for, anyway. And that’s it. Not too tough, right? If you forget everything else, though, just remember two things - A) other people exist, and B) every single person who is regularly demanding, obsessive-compulsive or downright idiotic at the drive-thru has eaten somebody else’s phlegm.

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • PAGE 15

SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING DRINK OF THE MONTH ISSUE 31

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN DEDICATED DRINKERS DEDICATE THEMSELVES TO ONE BEVERAGE. ALL NIGHT LONG.* THIS MONTH:

THE NOG-OFF ACCORDING TO SCOTT JENSON

THE NOG-OFF

o, egg nog sucks, right? Old people used to drink it, like, back in the 1950s and ‘70s. Well, we’re not gonna tell you that the nog is back. In fact, when it was brought up as the subject of this issue’s Drink of the Month, groans were heard all around. In fact, the only way we could get the usually up-fordrinkage staffers and hangers-out even mildly interested was by positioning it as a recipe contest: The Great REAX Nog-Off. A secluded party room on the outskirts of Ybor City was selected as the location. Our two Scotts, Harrell and Jenson, put their respective nogs up for judgment - Harrell’s a mellow store-bought base spiced up with Jack Daniel’s and cinnamon, Jenson’s a

potent from-scratch ﬁre hazard made with the usual eggs, sugar, milk and heavy cream, plus Maker’s Mark, Meyer’s dark rum and E&J XO brandy. (Emily was psyched to enter a coconut-highlighted recipe, but wussed out after an exhausting weekend spent in a luxurious hotel room in the Keys.) Nutmeg was ground. Friends were alerted. And it was on. Over the course of an appropriately chilly Monday evening, we discovered that, if you can get past the fact that you’re drinking something with raw eggs in it, the nog is actually a pretty tasty social beverage. Creepily creamy and ﬁlling as hell, yes, but tasty. As the night wore on, comments about how weird and thick it was (heh heh) faded into the sounds of folks partying, and returning constantly to the fridge for another glass. Shawn found out nutmeg in its pre-ground form is, well, a nut. Some guy named John careened in like a drunken hurricane, threw some beers about, and generally acted like a high-school asshole. When the nog-tubs ran dry, a ruling was made allowing folks to turn to whatever alcoholic ingredients were left - since technically, it was still at least part of the nog - and eventually a bunch of people ended up at Orpheum’s Soul! Night with little idea how they got there. So whose nog won? Honestly, it’s tough to remember. They both had their pros and cons. But more than one person remarked that the best nog of all was the one they made by mixing ‘em together, so we’ll call this one a draw.

Mr. Beauville takes a break from noggin’ off to help the janitorial staff clean up an unexpected mess.

This is a monthly event. Duh. Email us at drinkofthemonth@reaxmusic.com with your suggestions, comments or complaints. And subscribe to the brand new DOTM emailer!

PAGE 16 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • DECEMBER 2008

Look at that nog-eating grin... Maybe this wasn’t the best choice for Drink of the Month... Ouch!

REAX NOG RECIPE FOR THE EGGNOG:

12 large eggs 2 cups granulated sugar 1 cup heavy cream 1 quart whole milk 1 liter Makers Mark Bourbon 1 cup Myers Dark Rum 1 cup E&J XO Brandy pinch of kosher salt 1 whole nutmeg

FOR SERVING:

10 egg whites 1½ cups heavy cream

INSTRUCTIONS

For the eggnog: Separate egg yolks and whites. Combine yolks and sugar in a large mixing bowl and whisk until well blended and creamy. Add cream, milk, bourbon, rum, brandy and salt, then stir. Bottle it right away and refrigerate it until it’s ready. This mixture can set for up to a year as long as it is bottled properly. I use an empty gallon jug covered in aluminum foil, shiny side out. For best results, allow the mixture to set for at least 2 weeks.

FOR SERVING:

You can serve the aged nog on the rocks as made above or in the traditional manner. For traditional nog… Pour the aged nog into a punch bowl. In separate bowls, whip 10 egg whites and 1 1/2 cups heavy cream to soft peaks and fold them into the nog mixture. Serve garnished with freshly grated nutmeg.

8:OOpm Harrell’s nog tastes the way a good nog should. It’s creamy, spicy and not too boozy. My concoction tastes like whiskey and cream. 8:30pm Stealing a second glass. 8:45pm Stuff is going down pretty smooth at this point. Drinking more of my nog so I can keep the buzz/ fullness ratio about even...must drink faster. 9:57pm 7th glass. I’m full and wasted. Jon is breaking things and throwing full beers at people. I’ve come to the conclusion that eggnog should be more nog and less egg, I feel like an out of control blimp. 10:30pm Harrell bails and we are almost out of nog. In the spirit of the game, we decide to relax the rules. I dig into a little whiskey. 11:30pm Holly says I’m wasted but I’m not dancing around or ﬁghting anyone so I must not be that bad off. 11:45pm Remember, must learn to breakdance. %*&#am? Choose a sturdy girlfriend, the waif-y ones aren’t good at carrying you home. 9:00am I feel as though I’ve been stabbed in the stomach. Holly reminds me that I managed to eat a half a pizza the night before and I go back to bed knowing that it’s probably just grease and cheese. 10:00am Wake up again, refreshed with no hangover. Apparently nog does a body good.

* Drink of the Month™ participants are always 21 years of age or older, and designated drivers are a mandatory requirement for participation.

SOUNDBITES ISSUE 31

LOS CAMPESINOS! THE SPEED OF SOUND

Words: Colin Kincaid Photo: Sarah Wilmer

THINGS MOVE QUICKLY THESE DAYS. IT CERTAINLY SEEMS LIKE THE WORLD IS MOVING FASTER, WHAT WITH OUR SUPERFAST VIRTUAL-INFORMATION DELIVERY PIPES AND OUR INSTANTLY GRATIFYING TALK-ANYWHERE TELEPHONIC MACHINES AND WHATNOT.

ut none of it is an excuse for failing to take the time to enjoy the good stuff. Just ask the members of spastic Welsh rock act Los Campesinos!, who won’t let even the hypersonic pace of a two-and-a-halfyear rise that’s already yielded several tours, an EP and two, count ‘em, two fulllengths, keep them from enjoying the fruits of their labors.

we’ve learned to go with the ﬂow more than anything else, and not read too much into anything or expect to much, just take pleasure in it while it lasts.”

“Initially, it felt like it came out of nowhere, because it did,” says Aleksandra, who sings and plays keyboard and horns for the United Kingdom septet. “And that ﬁrst period, when we had interest and people getting in touch on Myspace every day ... that came as a complete shock. We never set out with this massive agenda to conquer the world ... when things started happening and people started coming in with offers of management and recording contracts, it felt like it was maybe something beyond our control, because we’d never planned for it.

A little over two years ago, the ﬂedgling seven-piece scored the local-support slot for a Broken Social Scene show. Their unique sound, inventive instrumentation and unbridled energy caught the attention of the headliner, not to mention the throng of concertgoers; it wasn’t too long after that the group, already signed to homeland imprint Wichita, found themselves in the studio recording an EP with BSS producer David Newfeld for cred-heavy Canadian label Arts & Crafts. The six-song Sticking Fingers Into Sockets quickly made waves on this side of the Atlantic, and Los Campesinos! made their American debut at no less a gig than last year’s Lollapalooza shindig in Chicago. The full-length Hold On Now, Youngster appeared in April, and another U.S. tour commenced.

“But luckily, we were aware of that, and we didn’t rush into anything that might have been detrimental. I think now, we’re just kind of taking things as they come. It’s great, and still kind of unexpected on so many levels, but at the same time

April, 2008. Seven months ago. That should’ve suggested a timetable that might see the still heavily buzzed act releasing a sophomore effort sometime around fall of next year, right? Wrong. Immediately following the tour, Los Campesinos!

steamed into a Seattle studio and banged out We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed, an evocative and vibrantly quirky set of ten new tunes. Not re-arrangements, not odds ‘n’ sods from some early U.K.-only singles. New tunes. And it’s available now, as a limited-edition digipak that comes with a self-produced documentary DVD and guaranteed collector’s-item status. “Some of the songs were older - two of them have been around since last year - but lyrically especially, and with a lot of the arrangements, the songs only came together when we were in the studio,” Aleksandra says. “So even though we had the musical ideas, and the basic skeletons of the songs earlier this year, it was kind of a very gradual process - there were all these different parts that came together much later.” Yeah, much later. Like a whole year. Which may seem like a whole career’s time for some mainstream act banking on one hit-and-run single before the tastes of the masses turn over, but damn, Los Campesinos! have managed to pack more into 2008 than many of their blog-friendly indie peers will ever have a chance to experience. And the fact that there’s seven

HAIKU REVIEW Los Campesinos!

We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed “Frothy Rhythms Jar Like An Indie Kid Seizing Damn Fine Energy” of them making this crazy, infectious and emotionally charged music makes it hard to believe they get anything done at all, much less two full-lengths in one year, in between tours. “Primarily, we were just friends messing around, coming to band practice every Wednesday,” explains Aleksandra. “It wasn’t anything that was a professional pursuit. We were friends ﬁrst, and that’s what’s always been really great.” Los Campesinos! play Jack Rabbits in Jacksonville January 19, The Orpheum in Tampa January 20, Tallahassee’s Club Downunder January 21.

MYSPACE.COM/LOSCAMPESINOS

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • PAGE 17

SOUNDBITES ISSUE 31

Some of the producers who directly inﬂuenced Jake One’s uniquely timeless and crossover-ready style are:

WILLIE HUTCH

A songwriter and performer in his own right, Hutch’s production work during the early ‘70s included albums by Michael Jackson and Smokey Robinson, as well as composing the soundtrack for classic ‘73 blaxploitation ﬂick The Mack.

LEON WARE

Another Motown-associated ﬁgure during the ‘60s and ‘70s, Ware worked on songs for Michael Jackson, The Jackson 5 and Average White Band, and co-wrote and produced Marvin Gaye’s I Want You.

MARLEY MARL

JAKE ONE

This icon from hip-hop’s early days founded Cold Chillin’ Records and pioneered early sampling techniques. In the late ‘80s alone, he worked on records by Heavy D., Eric B. and Rakim, Biz Markie, MC Lyte, Big Daddy Kane, Chaka Kahn and more.

LATE ‘8Os BABY: JAKE ONE’S WHITE VAN MUSIC

PETE ROCK

“IT’S A PRODUCER’S ALBUM IN THE SENSE THAT THERE IS ONE PRODUCER DOING IT AND THERE IS A CERTAIN SOUND, BUT I THINK THAT WHAT A LOT OF PEOPLE THINK OF IS SIMPLY A COMPILATION.”

n a world awash in moronically simplistic singles and disparate compilations, White Van Music offers a tastefully concise group of songs featuring a deli spread of lyricists. Jake One’s production style is, lacking a more succinct and less meaningless description, underground. Whether or not the artists he is working with are underground doesn’t matter to him. Meaty, seemingly uncomplicated beats, textural samples, moody orchestra hits, delaydrenched vocal snippets, and “In Serch Of”-type synths are crafted into tight jams leaving plenty of breathing room for MCs, as well as good taste. “There weren’t many songs that I made particularly for anybody on the record. For the most part I don’t do that at all. I would say more than anything that once I had their vocals, I would try to direct them to a certain beat. “ It’s no great secret of hip-hop that a great lyricist is at a loss without a proper backing track. Finding worthwhile & challenging collaborations seemingly hasn’t been an issue for Jake One; over the years, he’s worked with the likes of De La Soul, MF Doom, Nas, 50 Cent, Casual, E-40, Mad Sklillz, and Ras Kass, along with a grocery list of lesser & lesser-known accomplices. While many producers’ styles change to

fit the trends, it seems Jake One’s style has remained consistent to this point. The producer asserts he simply does what he does, and if a chance arises for his music to reach exponentially more listeners, odds are that he’ll give it a go. A humble beatmaker by nature, Jake is enjoying his most recent accomplishment. “… For 6-7000 people to buy [White Van Music] in a month feels better than when 50 Cent did 700,000 in the first week [with the album Curtis]. I mean, I had two songs on that … this is just a different sort of sense of accomplishment. “ The track “White Van,” perhaps the album’s greatest homage to both east and west coast rap, mixes the pitch-changed “Ain’t the Devil Happy” voiceovers of Jeru’s debut with Above The Law’s “Flow ON” keyboard line, along with MCs Alchemist, Evidence, & Prodigy, to make something sounding like Straight Outta Compton meets the Jungle Brothers. “Scared” is a hip-hop oddity, in that the narrative follows the writer’s experience of being simultaneously terrified by a home invasion and perplexed by the hard-to-get nature of the woman he’s visiting - who proceeds to kill all of the invading thugs. The tandem of Young buck’s “Dead Wrong” and Bishop Lamont & Busta Rhymes’ “Kissin’ The Curb” complimentary dis tracks on the same album - strikes this listener as a nice touch.

PAGE 18 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • DECEMBER 2008

A hip-hop jack of all trades, Rock was an early collaborator and champion of New Millennium artists like Talib Kweli, Dead Prez and Pharoahe Monch.

Without knowing or caring about the details of the drama I still ﬁnd it easy to crown the track “Kissin’ The Curb” winner of the feud’s current round. Underground fave MF Doom is featured on two tracks, which are both quality, but somehow seem to be among the least extraordinary cuts on the album.

DJ PREMIER

Jake One’s debut album plays as a cohesive whole even though the sum of its parts is as similar as they are different, like the difference between standard and metric tool kits. Could the young Jacob Dutton have been very different from the “superstar producer” the world now knows as Jake One?

JAKE ONE

“I was telling my wife about this the other day. I don’t think I’m really any different. I pretty much have the same interests that I had when I was 13-14 years old. I just get paid for it now. It’s a kid’s dream come true.” If the dream that spawned White Van Music can continue to breathe inspiration into MCs like his past work has, Jake One will continue to live one of the dreams many of us had as a youths - and that some of us are still pursuing into adulthood. Jake One’s White Van Music is out now on Rhymesayers.

MYSPACE.COM/JAKEONE

One half of the legendary Gang Starr, a leader in the area of DJ-hosted compilations and one of the most respected hip-hop producers of all time.

JAKE ONE PRESENTS: WHITE VAN MUSIC RHYMESAYERS Fluid Seattle beatmaker Jake One has kept a foot in both the underground and mainstream hemispheres of hip-hop since he broke through on either side of the fence working with MF Doom and Fitty’s G-Unit, respectively. And while he may never have to choose - his ﬂowing, vaguely old-school style sounds great just about anywhere - fans are gonna ﬁnd this star-studded compilation a mixed bag, simply due to their tastes. For instance, I love the backpack-y shit, so MF Doom’s appearances here on “Trap Door” and “Get ‘Er Done” are my faves, along with Posdnuos and Slug showing up on “Oh Really.” And I can’t listen to Young Buck’s generic thug-boast “Dead Wrong” or the M.O.P.-assisted “Gangsta Boy,” because the lyrics alone are enough to put me off. - Scott Harrell

SOUNDBITES ISSUE 31

of the bill. However, ha ha, sometimes the crowds are just weird. You know, SUNBEARS! just did a tour with Dredg, and some people might figure that we wouldn’t fit on that bill, especially considering the crowds that show up to Dredg shows typically nu-metal kids. On this tour, the bill was SUNBEARS!, Judgment Day - a speed/math-metal band with cello and violin - and Dredg. We knew that it was a little bit of a gamble to take this tour, considering all the bands’ differences. But we were amazed by the response. From a lot of kids wearing black with spiked-up gel hair, to bro-dudes from the local frat house, people were happy with what they heard and saw. Several of the responses were, “when you first started playing, I didn’t want to like what you were doing at all, all the colors, confetti, smoke, lights, and straightup over-the-top pop songs. But by the time the second song kicked in, I couldn’t stop paying attention.”

The 3rd Annual REAX New Year’s Eve Party W/ Pauly Crush & The Basiqs at Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: FREE! Time: 8 p.m.

SUNBEARS! BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND

Words: Scott Harrell Photo: Jeremy Coverdale

AS SUNBEARS!, TWO GUYS - JONATHAN AND JARED - MAKE A HELL OF A RACKET, ONE THAT’S AT ONCE JOYFUL AND MELANCHOLY, CATCHY AND EXPERIMENTAL, PSYCHEDELIC AND FIRMLY GROUNDED IN POP TRADITION. THE PAIR ABSOLUTELY KILLED IT A FEW WEEKS AGO WITH THEIR TAMPA BAY DEBUT, TRANSPORTING A THICK CROWD AT YBOR CITY’S NEW WORLD BREWERY WITH THE COMBINED POWER OF THEIR BEATS, MELODIES AND MESMERIZING VISUALS.

o much so, in fact, that REAX immediately invited ‘em back to take part in our New Year’s Eve extravafreakinganza at Crowbar. But before the festivities commence, we wanted to get to know the latest Florida band to inspire rabid overnight scenesterbuzz a little better. REAX: How did you and Jared come to be making music together? Jonathan Berlin: Jared and I have been playing music together for about eight years. We’ve played in several different incarnations, of basically the same band, but with different members and different songs. I suppose that I originally met Jared through his older brother, at a church some time ago. REAX: There seem to be so many diverse

influences in your music - do you guys ever have the “too many options” problem? Is it tough to mold your ideas, or whittle them down, into something that’s definitely SUNBEARS!? JB: I think that SUNBEARS! has changed even since it was instated a little over a year ago. The songs sort of reflect where we are as people in our lives right now. For instance, on our first EP, FOR EVERYONE!, I really wanted to do something happy and different; something blatantly electronic and over the top, but something still accessible. That is what I set out to do with the songwriting side of things, but I just don’t think that I had it inside of me, to write that album. So what came out was something a little more melodramatic, and a little more subdued than I had originally intended. But to specifically answer your question, I think that options

are a great thing. Sure, we probably do have too many options on occasion, but it’s a pretty simple process: either the options work or they don’t. That’s usually ﬁgured out pretty fast. Most of the songs on the new record, DREAM HAPPY DREAMS!, were written and recorded pretty quickly. Each song took around a day to write, you know, compose all the parts, strings, horns, etc ... if something doesn’t work, it’s pretty obvious, and we toss it. REAX: It would seem like your style would allow you to play with just about anybody in electronic, indie-rock or the lands between. Are there certain types of bills you prefer to play? Has SUNBEARS! ever been seriously, crazily out of place at a show that you remember? JB: I can honestly say that we’ve never played a show that felt awkward because

REAX: When you’re composing, do you give any thought to how you’ll be able to recreate the songs live? JB: Oh, no ... never. Ha. I try to treat the studio and the stage completely differently. If we can’t recreate something that we did in the studio live, then so be it. But I must say, that hasn’t happened yet. REAX: How important are the visuals live, when it comes to setting a mood, capturing the audience’s attention or complementing the music as appropriately as possible? JB: SUNBEARS! tries to cover as much sensuous ground as possible. From what you hear, smell, see, touch ... you get the idea. I think visuals are very important. Some people make accusations about us using visuals and stage antics as a crutch for the music, but I don’t agree. When people come to a show to see SUNBEARS!, and they’ve previously heard the music, I want to give them more than the songs, I want to put on a show. If they want to just hear the tunes and not see them, smell them, feel them, and taste them, they can listen to the record alone in their bedroom and never go out to a show, for all I care. It’s about experiences, and that’s what life is all about anyway. REAX: Do you think it’s more hasslefraught touring with three other guys and a couple of guitars and tube amps, or with one other guy and a bunch of fragile equipment? JB: Well, I guess that all depends on what you’re touring in. But really, gear is gear. And either your gear is road-ready or it isn’t. That also goes for people too. Some people just aren’t made to be on the road. So I don’t think there’s a straight-up answer. I’ve done both. I guess it’s all the same, really. However, one is a little bit lonelier than the other.

MYSPACE.COM/SUNBEARSMUSIC

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • PAGE 19

SOUNDBITES ISSUE 31

drinking margaritas and mimosas, go to the pool all day, drink a bunch of beer and have some dinner,” Morris remembers. “By the third day, [the reps] couldn’t do it anymore and couldn’t keep up with us. But it’s not us, man - it’s where we are from! That’s what we do in the summertime here, man.” Dead Confederate’s sound has been packaged with words like “dark” and “serious,” and while Morris went through his own Nirvana stage (as we all did), his lighthearted, humorous demeanor and Southern charm are anything but brooding. When he was 12, his mother - an artist and musician in her own right - passed on a vinyl copy of Neil Young’s Harvest to the young Morris. His love affair with music exploded with rich colors and melodies like a midnight sky on the Fourth of July, and after that, a guitar was rarely seen far from his reach. But after a brief inquisition into the negative experiences that wrap around his lyrics and down-tempo jams, Morris quickly sets the record straight.

DEAD CONFEDERATE

“It’s not that I’m setting out to create this negative vibe,” he says. “But if something affects me enough to write about it, chances are it’s going to be negative. If something good happens to me, I’m going to grab a beer and share it with a friend. You can’t just share [a negative experience] straight up. You have to mask it, and what better way to do that then through music?”

the road, but we’ve kind of realized that if we are playing every day, we have to choose our battles a little more wisely than we have in the past.”

“Our music is really dark, and I’m not much of a dancer unless I’m completely ripped at three in the morning and I don’t know what I’m doing ... I just hope our music translates the sort of honesty we put into it.”

This past summer, as Dead Confederate kicked back in Athens, two representatives from their record label showed up to hang with the guys at a four-day festival in their hometown. The record label reps only made it to day three.

Dead Confederate plays Orlando’s Social December 17, Tampa’s Orpheum December 18, and Jacksonville’s Jack Rabbits December 19. The band’s latest CD, Wrecking Ball, is out now on The Artists Organization.

“We would get up in the morning, start

MYSPACE.COM/DEADCONFEDERATE

BEYOND THE SOUND OF THE SOUTH

IT’S REFRESHING THAT SOMEONE IS BEING COMPARED TO NIRVANA THESE DAYS. FOR A WHILE, THE PUBLIC WAS MORE PRONE TO POKE AND PROBE AT COURTNEY LOVE’S GAPING AND ALL-DEVOURING BLACK HOLE OF A CAREER INSTEAD OF REMINISCING AND REITERATING FREQUENT SIMILARITIES BETWEEN NIRVANA AND FORMER UP-ANDCOMING ACTS LIKE THE VINES (CHOPPED AND DICED SOMEWHERE IN AUSTRALIA WITH BONG IN HAND) AND NOW ATHENS, GA’S OWN DEAD CONFEDERATE. AS INVIGORATING AS IT IS FOR DEAD CONFEDERATE TO DRAW SUCH AN ASSESSMENT, HOWEVER, IT’S SIMPLY UNWARRANTED.

he sedated, psychedelic, angst-ridden near-sludge jams these Southern boys have cultivated are sonically in their own league. Within that league is a tagalong drawl that stitches the whole sound together at the seams, grabbing Dead Confederate another bag full of media nods for their unintentional efforts to represent a Mason-Dixon culture in all the fun, nonracist ways conceivably possible, and helping to resurrect a relatively forgotten sound. Of course, skipping out on waving

Confederate ﬂags only leaves heavy drinking, and that’s something these boys do quite well. “It happens quite a bit,” says Hardy Morris, who handles both lead vocals and guitar for Dead Confederate, as he does some laundry on his ﬁrst trip to Portland, OR before hitting up some record stores. He assures me that he almost has his “socks on lock” before divulging the secrets kept private between the band and the bottle. “There used to be a lot more drinking on

The majority of Morris’s “negative and serious” energy ends up being channeled through his artistic outlets instead of becoming a characteristic of his personality - lesson number one in capturing some of that Southern charm of his.

HARDY MORRIS’ TOP 5 MOST OVERRATED MUSICIANS

DAVE NAVARRO

EDDIE VAN HALEN

ERIC CLAPTON

“He wears

“I just don’t like Eddie - mostly because of the white Reeboks.”

“Do you know what Eric Clapton and coffee have in common? They both suck without cream. He’s just watered down, man. It’s pathetic.”

mesh shirts and he’s a total cheese dick. He was ﬁne with Jane’s Addiction, but he turned into a Gucci ad.”

PAGE 20 • REAX MUSIC MAgAzInE • DECEMBER 2008

WHITE STRIPES “Jack White’s overrated, but he does have impeccable tone. Let’s split the difference and call Meg an overrated drummer because all anybody’s looking at is her boobs. When do you think she’ll realize that she’s only 0.0001% of why her band is interesting?”

ALEX VAN HALEN “Let’s get both the Van Halens. I know that fucking motorcycle drumbeat is sampled!”

30 WAYS TO MAKE PEOPLE LOVE YOU BUY LOCAL IF YOU CAN!

FASHION

LIFESTYLE

TECH

SOUND

READ/SEE

We’ve included web addresses for these most giveable of gift ideas, but by all means, spend your hardearned money at your local independent businesses when and where you can. Florida residents can check out the Retail and Lifestyle Hot Spots in our You Are Here section - and, of course, our awesome, awesome advertisers - to ﬁnd some homegrown emporiums to support.

SKULLCANDY HEADPHONES The preferred custom ‘phones of many extreme athletes, countless aural enthusiasts, and, apparently, Metallica. (They’ve got their own Skullcandy model for sale.) Skullcandy headphones come in a bevy of styles from earbuds to overthe-ear cans to two-way communication units for gamers, and all are covered by the company’s generous if-it-breaks-whileyou’re-falling-off-the-mountain warranty.

(PICTURED: HESH MODEL, $49.95) SKULLCANDY.COM

ION USB TURNTABLE It’s really cool that geeks have been jerryrigging their PC sound cards to rip their vinyl to MP3 for years, but it’s really easy to go buy a hundred-dollar turntable that ﬁnally sounds good and rips fast enough to make the procedure brainless. The jury’s still out on whether or not it’s cool to put your platters on and listen to ‘em through your computer’s speakers, but one thing’s for sure - if you use the available option to strip your vinyl treasures of their scratches and pops, you’re a tool.

$100, THINKGEEK.COM

LA GRAND DENIM JACKET It’s tough to come up with a good new take on a classic, but Volcom’s done a helluva job for the ladies with this stylish update on the denim jacket. (READ: Everybody needs a comfy-ass denim jacket, and gender be damned.) Roomy and peacoat-esque but still deﬁnitely feminine.

AROUND $75, VOLCOM.COM

PANASONIC BLU-RAY PLAYER Seriously, it’s time to make the jump. High-quality Blu-Ray players are starting to come down in price, and this unit - featuring 1080p upconversion, SD memory card slot, HD-broadcast-supporting HDMI output, and home-network connectivity - is a pretty perfect example of the bang you’re getting for your buck these days. And yes, it’ll play your regular DVDs.

$400, BESTBUY.COM

WII MUSIC Assuming you know someone who either already has a Wii or was able to ﬁnd one on eBay in time for the gift-giving season, this new game is both a great little toy and an impressive way to goose the ol’ inspirational juices. Instead of just mastering the timing of Guitar Hero’s candy-strewn virtual keyboards, why not create your own tunes, videos and even bands?

$49.99, FYE.COM

TERRY THE SWEARING TURTLE Nothing helps alleviate awkward silences and those weird between-subject caesuras in comfortable conversations quite like a plastic turtle that, apropos of nothing, tends to suddenly move his head and arms and say stuff like “big sweaty balls!” No, really, he does that. Terry can be motion activated, or set to just shout “cock!” whenever.

AROUND $28 OR SO, PLAY.COM

TASCAM DIGITAL POCKETSTUDIO This little beauty blends the convenience of digital recording and data storage with actual knobs, like from back when you had to mix your own four-track shit on the ﬂy. BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE: use the built-in stereo condenser mic to record rehearsals, shows, and acoustic-guitar dickaroundings, or plug in real instruments and be a little more careful about your sound, ya damn hippie. Mix it down to a master track, then transfer via USB to your computer for more mixing, CD burnage, etc.

$200, TASCAM.COM

LOITER APPAREL Formerly Lucky Threadz, Loiter is a community-based graphics-art company that allows designers to submit their own ideas to be produced and sold worldwide. They’ve got tons of great designs at their site, from pop-culture-referential to ﬁne art, and they do decals and accessories as well as clothing - though we highly recommend a killer hoodie to see you through the coming months.

VARIOUS PRICES, LOITERINK.COM

BLUE SNOWFLAKE MICROPHONE The sound of your quickie ﬁeld recording, onthe-ﬂy podcast take or live-to-laptop acoustic session doesn’t have to suck. Blue, maker of some of the world’s most popular studio microphones, rolled out this inexpensive plugand-play USB mic this year to raves about its design, functionality and sound quality.

$69.99, GUITARCENTER.COM

BLINDE LAST LAUGH SHADES An oversized, smoothed-out take that balances elements of the classic Wayfarer and cat’s eye designs. Harrell once borrowed a pair of Blindes from a guy who worked for the company in NYC (bowl with pool coping in the ofﬁce!), and they survived a four-day assault on CMJ with nary a scratch; apparently, Spatafora still has ‘em.

$198, EYEDOCSHOPPE.COM

THE JOHN HUGHES HIGH SCHOOL FLASHBACK COLLECTION If you’re a young adult who’s having trouble relating to friends, bosses or co-workers who are only a couple of years older than you, here’s the perfect icebreaker: a collection of some of the movies that deﬁned reality for most of the folks who are now in their 30s. This Hughes collection features The Breakfast Club, Weird Science and Sixteen Candles, and serves to explain why everybody who was tremendously uncool in high school during the late ‘80s and early ‘90s is now looked upon as some sort of cultural hero.

$30, AMAZON.COM

THE BIG BOOK OF APPLE HACKS Know somebody who thinks they know everything about Mac shortcuts, mods and cleanups? Of course you do - you know how all those Apple compu-snobs think they know more about tech than anybody else just because they spent $1500 on a laptop. Well screw you, iGuy, because this book’s got more inside info on knowing your gear than you ever imagined. (By the way REAX now owns the copyright for the term “iGuy.”)

$34.99, MAKERSHED.COM

ALMOST DECKS WITH IMPACT SUPPORT

CLADDAGH PENDANT BY KIT HEATH

Blah blah composite Carbon Fiber something something reinforced discs yadda yadda yadda super strong but ultra light bzzzz skronk. Translation: new tech, still great pop, harder to break. Comes in delicious ﬂavors like Mullen, Daewon and Haslam.

A classically Celtic symbol of friendship or commitment, rendered simply and originally. Dudes are totally gonna come up and ask you about it when they’re not sure what bands to start talking about. Sterling silver with green agate.

AROUND $43, SKATEPARKOFTAMPA.COM

$15.90, JUNKYJEWELRY.COM

KODAK ZI6 HD POCKET VIDEO CAMERA

VADER TOASTER Why settle for a random image that maybe looks a little like the Blessed Virgin or maybe Barack Obama when you squint, when you can have the distinct visage of the dark lord of the Sith, or whoever the hell Darth Vader turned out to be in those crappy prequels? Really, though, why?

The Zi6 represents the latest iteration of affordable Flip-style one-handed video with its HD format, built-in USB, included editing software (PC only) and potential for lots of disc memory - up to 32 GB. The big draws, of course, are its Blackberry size and comparatively low price; everybody’s gonna want to have one in their glove box to capture any spur-of-the-moment YouTubeage.

$180, KODAK.COM

$54.99, SHOP.STARWARS.COM

“VINTAGE VINYL” CD PACKAGING KIT Everything old is new again. Well, not really, but if you’re still burning stuff to CDs instead of just handing out ﬂash drives emblazoned with your business contact info, why not turn something that’s just-now-obsolete retro into so-old-it’s-cool-again retro with this set of labels, sleeves and stickers.

$15.95, SHOPPLASTICLAND.COM

THE SIMPSONS THE COMPLETE ELEVENTH SEASON Because someone you know already has seasons one through ten, and is doomed/ blessed to receive Simpsons stuff every holiday season, forever and ever, amen. No, but the groundbreaking animated satire was still fairly potent back in ‘99, and this collection includes killer episodes like “Brother’s Little Helper” (in which Bart is diagnosed with ADD and put on Focusin), “E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)” (the infamous “Tomacco episode”), and “Missionary: Impossible” (“Save me, Jeebus!”).

$29.99, AMAZON.COM

CONVERSE BLACK SABBATH CHUCKS The go-to cool shoe for generations of athletes, aesthetes, greasers, hipsters, skaters and rockers celebrates the band that deﬁned the term “heavy metal.” Three different designs, all dated enough to make even the most casual fan seem like he or she has been following the group since the Ozzy days.

$49.99, CONVERSE.COM

MOTOWN: THE COMPLETE #1 COLLECTOR’S EDITION Don’t think, just buy. Admit to yourself that nobody else is going to spend this much money on some of the best and most inﬂuential music ever made on you. Think of a friend who actually knows and is passionate about music, suck it up, and order this staggeringly awesome 10-CD set of R&B, soul, proto-rock, and girl-group goodness. Lay down the cash. Because, remember: having invested in such a great gift, you have automatically reserved the right to rip it for your own collection.

$126, AMAZON.COM

DNA MINI PORTRAITS It’s a cool, futuristic one-of-a-kind piece of art - a visual rendering of your own DNA. The company, DNA11, sends you a collection kit. You swab your cheek, send it back to ‘em, and they create one of their math-y yet somehow organic 8”x10” portraits.

STARTING AT $169, DNA11.COM

VENTURE BROS. MONARCH T-SHIRT One of the coolest shows in Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim lineup hath wrought one of the coolest merchie-bits on sale at the sort-of-not-really-either-a-program-ora-channel’s website. It’s simple and stylish, and people who know nothing of Venture Bros. will probably think you like some really neat new local band whose drummer is also an above-average graphic designer.

$18, ADULTSWIM.COM

MIXTAPE MEMORY STICK This little retro piece of geekological kitsch is the perfect way to say I love you in the hipsterriﬁc aughts. Throw together the mix of his or her dreams on its up to 64 megs, then scrawl out the song list on its cassette-aping case.

$15.99, THINKGEEK.COM

COFFEE CUP POWER INVERTER Things that do things are great, but you know what’s even better? Things that do things, but look like things that have nothing to do with the things the thing in question actually does! Get it? No? Here, look, this converts your car’s DC power into regular old prongy-thing electricity and it also resembles a cup of coffee. Get it now? Right on.

THE SOPRANOS: THE COMPLETE SERIES Only time will tell if The Sopranos will live on to become a new generation’s Scarface, or just settle into a niche as the occasionally remembered HBO series that used to be really cool, but ended with a clunky, unsatisfying fade to black. For the time being, however, the pot dealer who has the entire series on DVD remains the pot dealer who has the hardest time kicking people with barely enough money for a nickel bag out of his or her house.

$258, BUY.COM

$29.99, THINKGEEK.COM

THE B LIST:

THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF FILM CRITICS ON THE LOW-BUDGET BEAUTIES, GENRE-BENDING MAVERICKS, AND CULT CLASSICS WE LOVE Everybody’s got a film-snob friend, and everybody’s got a film-snob friend whose tastes run to, well, stuff that everybody else thinks is crap. This comprehensive love letter to one man’s trash works as both reference material and, you know, an interesting book about filmdom’s roads less traveled that’s actually fun to read.

$11, AMAZON.COM

FIZZ SAVER DISPENSER Yeah, most of us can drink a 2-liter of soda before that shit can even think about starting to go ﬂat. But this inexpensive beer-tap-for-a-Cokebottle just looks cool. Also, it’ll freak out your friends’ stoner buddies when they head to the fridge to cure their cottonmouth.

$12.98, SHOPTOGETORGANIZED.COM

ITUNES GIFT CERTIFICATES FOR THE IPHONE APP STORE Downloading tunes from Apple’s iTunes interface will probably never go out of style, but since the introduction of the second-generation iPhone, iTunes’ App Store has gotten a lot of attention from folks who’ve bought into the notion that your cell phone will totally be able to do your laundry for you someday. Give those friends who wouldn’t ever spend their own hard-earned money on something as frivolous as a digital restaurant guide or game for their phone a little mad-money excuse to browse.

VARIOUS PRICES, ITUNES.COM

FENDER T-BUCKET ACOUSTIC GUITARS One of the unimpeachable names in guitars updates its acoustic line to include seriously contemporary looks and features. Raved about by Guitar Player Magazine, the T-Bucket line features acoustics and acoustic-electrics in a variety of price ranges, and graphics by noted hot-rod artist Vince Ray.

$250 AND UP, UP, UP, MUSICIANSFRIEND.COM

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY ISSUE 31

A LOCAL GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY HOTSPOTS: VENUES ARTPOOL ORPHEUM A unique take on the gallery space that includes a boutique along with regular shows and events with which the entire community can get involved. 919 1st Ave. N., St. Petersburg 727-324-3878 artpoolrules.com

THE BRASS MUG

Where just about every band in town cut its teeth, this North Tampa stripmall bar is near USF, and specializes in punk and metal. 1441 E. Fletcher Ave. #101, Tampa myspace.com/brassmug

CROWBAR

A live room with excellent sound and a fully stocked beer garden stand out amid Ybor’s dance clubs and hipster retail, attracting everything from wellknown touring indie-rock acts to local metal legends. 1812 N. 17th St., Ybor City crowbarlive.com

EMERALD BAR

A long-running favorite for national and local indie shows, as well as hipsterﬁlled dance nights. 1902 Avenida Republica De Cuba (14th Street), Ybor City 813-248-9500

THE GARAGE

Formerly heavy on the metal and industrial, this medium-sized venue is gaining new respect amid the scene for everything from movie nights to a wider variety of shows and its Skateboard Industry Night parties. 662 Central Ave., St. Petersburg myspace.com/garagepromotions

THE PEGASUS LOUNGE

Another close-to-USF live-music watering hole that often caters to heavier sounds. 10008 N. 30th St., Tampa 813-971-1679 pegasusniteclub.com

THE RITZ

Cross the bay to St. Pete and visit the local music scene’s favorite dive, where original art adorns the walls and any sort of band or DJ imaginable might take the non-stage. 550 Central Ave., St. Petersburg myspace.com/emeraldbar

The venue formerly known as The Masquerade (and before that, er, The Ritz) is back in action. And live music is only part of what’s going on there these days. 1503 Seventh Ave., Ybor City 813-247-2555 theritzybor.com

JANNUS LANDING

THE STATE THEATRE

Consistently voted one of the best places in the Bay area to see a show, it’s an open-air concert hall housed within an historic city block. 16 2nd St. N., St. Petersburg jannuslandingconcerts.com

KELLY’S PUB

A comparatively new hangout that helps legendary Tampa bar The Hub keep downtown Tampa happening after dark. 206 N. Morgan St., Tampa myspace.com/kellyspubtampa

NEW WORLD BREWERY

A killer beer selection and eclectic, culture-friendly musical slate make this Ybor City bar-and-patio a local-scene favorite. 1313 E. 8th Ave., Ybor City myspace.com/newworldbrewery

A longtime tour stop for rising punk, rock and alt-country bands, you can catch acts as disparate as Shooter Jennings and The Hush Sound in this converted movie palace. 687 Central Ave., St. Petersburg statetheatreconcerts.com

TRANSITIONS ART GALLERY

It’s the Skatepark of Tampa’s edgy, extremely all-ages-friendly exhibition and performance space. 4215 E. Columbus Dr., Tampa 813-382-3477 transitionsartgallery.com

UPTOWN BAR

Amiable little dive that features an always-eclectic lineup of local shows, from DJs to hardcore. 658 Central Ave., St. Petersburg 727-463-0567

PAGE 26 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

HOTSPOTS: EATS AGUILA SANDWICH SHOP EL TACONAZO (TACO BUS) We’re not gonna get into any beefs by calling it the best Cuban sandwich in town - but it might be the best Cuban sandwich in town. 3200 W. Hillsborough Ave. 813-876-4022

BURRITO BOARDER

Healthy burritos, ﬁsh tacos and other Cali-Mex fusionables with a skaterfriendly vibe. 17 3rd St. North, St. Petersburg 727-209-0202 burritoboarder.com

CAPPY’S PIZZA

Arguably the best pizza on either side of the bay. Casual, and as cheap as a lot of the delivery chains to boot. 4910 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa 813-238-1516 3200 W. Bay to Bay Blvd., Tampa 813-835-0785 2900 1st Ave. N., St. Petersburg 727-321-3020 cappyspizzaonline.com

DAVE’S

Where the St. Pete scene meets the morning after for big, cheap breakfasts. Cash only. 2339 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. N., St. Petersburg 727-895-6057

Weird, mostly lunch-only hours, but indisputably awesome cheap and authentic eats. 913 E. Hillsborough Ave. 813-232-5889

GLOBE COFFEE LOUNGE

Shows, local art, coffee and some of proprietor JoEllen’s famous recipes for healthy entrees and tasty desserts. 532 First Ave. N., St. Petersburg 727-898-5282

GRASSROOT ORGANIC

Reviewers call its vegan- and vegetarian-friendly menu “creative” and “tasty.” 2702 N. Florida Ave., Tampa 813-221-7668

MELLOW MUSHROOM

One of the most heavily praised pizza chains in existence anywhere. And did we mention the plethora of awesome beers? 11955 Sheldon Road, Tampa 813-926-3600 10959 Causeway Blvd., Brandon 813-685-1122 mellowmushroom.com

NICKO’S

The last classic steel-exterior diner in the area, with the classic eclectic breakfast, lunch and dinner menu to match 4603 N. Florida Ave., Tampa 813-234-9301

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES IF & ONLY IF

SUNSHINE THRIFT

SQUARESVILLE

URBAN OUTFITTERS

This hip St. Pete boutique has some cool/quirky/vintage fashions, particularly for the ladies. 4336 4th St. N., St. Petersburg 727-528-9490

A longtime local favorite for vintage clothes, not to mention kitschy home furnishings. 508 S. Howard Ave., Tampa 813-259-9944

You can generally always ﬁnd something cool here, even when the other thrifts in the area are picked clean. 4304 S. Dale Mabry Hwy., Tampa 813-831-4377

You know the deal. 1600 E. 8th Ave., Centro Ybor, Ybor 813-242-8472 urbanoutﬁtters.com

A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY YOU ARE HERE ISSUE 31

HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE MAD PADDLERS 688 SKATEPARK KAYAK & SURF SHOP Nice, big indoor park on the Pinellas side of things. 6140 Ulmerton Rd., Clearwater 727-523-0785

BENTLEY SALON

Redken-authorized, forward-thinking salon that emphasizes education for aspiring stylists. 3228 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa 813-877-9801 myspace.com/bentleysalon

ATOMIC TATTOOS

There are, seriously, too many great tattoo shops (including Monique’s and Mean Machine, to name a couple more) and artists in the area to list, but Atomic has long been reputable in the area, and has locations in just about every Tampa Bay neighborhood, so there you go. atomictattoos.com

FLYING FISH BIKES

A full-service shop for both recreational and serious riders. 2409 S. MacDill Ave., Tampa 813-839-0410

Equipment and lessons for beginners and die-hards alike. 8808 Rocky Creek Dr., Tampa 813-243-5737 ospreybay.com

SHARP HAIR

Think you can’t get a hip coif north of Central Avenue or, um, west of SoHo? Think again. 3701 State Road 580, Suite G, Oldsmar 813-855-2422

SKATEPARK OF TAMPA

The legendary home of the Tampa Pro and Am comps. 4215 E. Columbus Dr., Tampa 813-382-3477 skateparkoftampa.com

WATTS TUBE AUDIO

Musicians, stereo hobbyists and do-ityourself ampliﬁer builders will all ﬁnd something interesting. 2323 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. N., St. Petersburg 727-388-3309 wattstubeaudio.com

HOTSPOTS: RETAIL ALL PRO PERCUSSION SEMINOLE MUSIC & SOUND Everything from wood blocks to the new Roland V-Drum electric kits, without the annoying eighth graders butchering Avenged Sevenfold over in the guitar section. 10101 E. Adamo Dr., Tampa 813-341-DRUM allpropercussion.com

HASLAM’S BOOK STORE

Florida’s largest new-and-used book joint. Make the drive, and plan to spend at least half the day browsing. 2025 Central Ave., St. Petersburg 727-822-8616 haslams.com

MOJO BOOKS & MUSIC

This place has it all when it comes to music retail. Used CDs and Vinyl of course, but don’t forget about the huge selection of used books. Located in the heart of USF country. Hit it up son. 2558 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa 813-971-9717 mojotampa.com

Another one of the few music-gear independents still in operation. And they’ve been at it for 25 years. 10720 74th Ave. N., Suite F, Seminole 727-391-3892 seminolemusic.com

STEVIE B’S TOTAL GUITAR

Let’s just say they know their shit, from vintage instruments to the latest tech. 650 Central Ave., St. Petersburg 727-822-3304 30111 U.S. HWY 19 N., Clearwater 727-785-9106

VINYL FEVER

NOW OPEN 7 DAYS!

Again, there are plenty of great indie record/CD shops in the area, but Vinyl Fever has been the gold standard for years. 4110 Henderson Blvd., Tampa 813-289-8399 vinylfevertampa.com

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 27

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY ISSUE 31

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT: THE BEAUVILLES WHISPERING SIN (SELF RELEASED)

THE STICK

MARTIN SHOW

The Beauvilles are probably one of the best live acts, who originate from the Central Florida area, that I have seen. Part of the reason is the group’s musical agility, ranging from Led Zep power chords to Bowie glam (via lead singer Shawn Kyle’s croon). The group’s latest, Whispering Sin, is an effort that should make anyone who follows the Tampa local scene (or the Florida regional scene for that matter) stand up and notice. “Snow” is a classic ‘70s rock burner with a kickstart bass strong enough to get an octagerian’s ass moving, and I cannot get enough of “Coming Apart,” which builds in a rhythmic crescendo worthy of an arenasized setting. Paired with a visceral live performance - a feat the Beauvilles specialize in - Sin is a gem of an accomplishment. - Michael Rabinowitz

Words: Colin Kincaid

tick Martin and his cohorts are not too cool to play that place down the street that usually does cover bands. As a result, their mash-up of hip-hop, country twang and catchy bar rock - usually served with a large side of ironic humor has reached more general-public ears than most “scene bands” ever will. REAX: What was it like growing up in rural Frogballs, Mississippi? Stick Martin: No, no. You’re mistaken. I grew up in Bumfuck, Pennsyltucky. There wasn’t much to do aside from smoke pot and play guitar. It really wasn’t too bad, except we always had to drive like two or three hours to NYC or Philly to see a concert. REAX: What made you decide to relocate to the Bay area from NYC? SM: I came down here twice when I was a kid on vacation with my family, and we went to a zoo in Tarpon Springs where they only had monkeys and apes. So I wanted to see the monkey zoo again. Also, I heard there was a lot of work for a musician down here. And now I’m with an awesome girl, so I can never leave. REAX: What are the Show’s top ﬁve nonmusical inﬂuences? SM: Simspons for humor, Goodwill for fashion, Carnies for their business sense, Playboy for the articles, and Satan. REAX: Describe the Show’s sound using a food analogy. SM: Our music is like spicy brown mustard; tasty, but it can also make your eyes water. REAX: Given all the different elements that make up the Show’s style, I imagine your crowd is pretty diverse. Is there such a thing as a typical Stick Martin Show fan? SM: We seem to go over pretty well with the hippie-type crowd, but we also get a lot of blue-collar guys in their 40s and 50s.

Also, because of the hip-hop stuff we’ve been doing lately, we get a lot of w*gg*rs. So, I guess, no, there isn’t like a typical fan. It’s pretty mixed. REAX: A lot of folks who do original music assume that the people who go to the usual non-scene bars aren’t interested in their stuff. Do you pick up new fans of your originals and sell CDs and all that good shit when you do shows at places like The Green Iguana or Two Buks? SM: Sure, we pick up fans and sell discs at those bars. (Some more than others, of course.) We still play places like The Garage in St. Pete and The Pegasus Lounge in Tampa once in a while, but at those places we usually only get an hour set, and we like to play for at least three or four hours. Plus, the non-scene bars usually pay us a lot more. REAX: What’s the weirdest gig the Show has ever played? SM: We played a biker bar in New Port Richey once. No one gave a shit about us no matter what we played. Just one of those gigs where you couldn’t get anyone’s attention even if you set yourself on ﬁre. Anyway, this old biker chick comes up and starts dancing in front of the band. She was missing a lot of teeth and looked pretty wore out. She’s giving the guys in the band, like, this come-get-with-me look, and out of nowhere just starts pissing her pants. But she never stopped dancing. That weird old lady didn’t miss a beat. The worst part was we were hired back for the next night, so we knew it was gonna be another rough evening. After that, though, we never played there again. The Stick Martin Show’s latest disc is the largely hip-hop ﬂavored Thrilla. You can check ‘em out somewhere just about every weekend.

MYSPACE.COM/THESTICKMARTINSHOW

PAGE 28 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

SPOTLIGHT

NOT TO BE

WAUMISSED

nce upon a time, Clarque Blomquist was a fixture of the artier end of the Tampa/St. Pete original-music scene, playing in bands like Mosley and Gossamer and promoting other bands’ shows on the side. Like many others, he eventually headed north to seek his fortune, and ended up in North Carolina, playing with severely cool ‘n’ twangy Chapel Hill artpop outfit The Kingsbury Manx. On December 23, Clarque will return to the Bay area, with his lovely wife Caroline and new experimental outfit Waumiss in tow. They’ll be pimping Waumiss’ exceedingly interesting new self-titled CD of found sounds, groove snippets, live instruments and voices (out on the Blomquist’s own Little Ramona Records); they’ll also be joined by a cadre of old friends, including

the guys from Ima, Dumbwaiters, Leels, etc. who went on to form St. Pete’s Flexxehawk, The Lake Audition, and Impossible Arms. It’s like a party for everybody who ever went to a Home show and decided to start a band! Plus, we hear several folks who used to/still do pledge allegiance to the Screw Music Forever family will be ﬁlling out Waumiss’ ranks. This one’s a must-see for fans of melodic music psychedelic, whimsical or just plain askew. Waumiss, Flexxehawk, The Lake Audition, and Impossible Arms play the Emerald Bar (550 Central Ave., St. Petersburg) on Tuesday, December 23.

LITTLERAMONARECORDS.COM MYSPACE.COM/WAUMISS

A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY YOU ARE HERE ISSUE 31

TAMPA BAY EVENTS FRI DECEMBER 05 A Deeper Down CD Release Feat. Damascus Road, White Knuckle Drive, Saint Tone Boomerz, Seminole Time: 9 p.m. Cafe Hey One-Year Anniversary Feat. DJ Fuego, Hooker & The Cheap Hotels, Bob Hope was a Pedophile, Bill Johnston Cafe Hey, Tampa James McMurtry, Ronny Elliott Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $17/20 Time: 8 p.m.

Jars of Clay, Leeland, Sixpence None The Richer, Sara Groves Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater Cost: $20-30 Time: 7:30 p.m. Jesse Morris Acoustic Showcase Mellow Mushroom, Tampa Time: 6 p.m. Toubab Krewe Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10/13 Time: 5 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 08 Of Montreal, The Fiery Furnaces The Ritz, Ybor City Cost: $18/20 Time: 6:30 p.m.

Haste The Day, Sky Eats Airplane, Emarosa, Inhale Exhale Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $15 Time: 6 p.m. Naughty or Nice Fetish Show The Garage, St. Petersburg Time: 8 p.m. Nervous Turkey New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $7 Time: 9 p.m. ohGr State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $16/19 Time: 7 p.m. Pale Horse Gallery Presents: “DOBRE DEN” Paintings, Prints & Installations by BASK Time: 8pm-11pm Scott H. Biram Pastimes Pub, Sarasota Cost: $10 Time: 9 p.m.

Marc Broussard, The Alternate Routes State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $16/18 Time: 7 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 09

Matt Butcher CD Release Feat. Bombadil, Will Quinlan/The Diviners New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $7 Time: 9 p.m.

Faster Faster, Stages And Stereos, The Shootout, Set It Off Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m.

Season’s Beatings 2008 Feat. Lunatic Candy Kreep, End of The Rope, Gorilla Fight, A Broken Machine, Unsaid Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 7 p.m.

John Nemeth Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m.

The Best Yard Sale Ever ARTpool, St. Petersburg Time: 12 p.m.

The Dive Bar Stalkers Slim & Chubby’s, Holiday The Medic Droid, Hyper Crush, Chronic Future Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $8/10 Time: 6 p.m. The Misﬁts Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg Cost: $18/22 Time: 7 p.m. The Pursuit, Wina Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. The Transcendental Culture Clash Show Feat. The Beauvilles, DJ Von Garden, DJ Spon Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 06 AC/DC Pre-Party Feat. Highway to Hell The Garage, St. Petersburg Cost: $10/12 Time: 8 p.m. Architect, Rose Funeral, Ambush, Dance With A Victim, Tower Of Silence, End It, A Hand To The Fallen Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $12 Time: 6 p.m. Blondes Not Bombs, Telfair, Me In Fireworks, Thrillhoes, Nothing in the Dark, Arm The Poor Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Dukes of Hillsborough, Flat Stanley Kelly’s Pub, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Psychostick, Retard-O-Bot, Primitive Astronauts, LDP, Yoshi Gish and Ring of Scars State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $12/15 Time: 7 p.m. Skatepark of Tampa 16-Year Anniversary Feat. Les Savy Fav, No Age, How Dare You Czar, Ybor City Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. Someday Souvenir, Ambertone, Weszt, Mr. Bella Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m. Suncoast Blues Society/Vizztone Records Revue Feat. Matt Stubbsterry Hanck, “Sax” Gordon Beadle, Gary Brown Blues Band Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $12/15 Time: 8 p.m. The Woodwork, Claiborne, T13C!, Junior Doctor, First Crush Kid The Brass Mug, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 6 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 07 97X Presents The Next Big Thing Feat. Avenged Sevenfold, Atreyu, Flogging Molly, Shinedown, Flobots, Shiny Toy Guns, Saving Abel, Anberlin, 3OH!3, Framing Hanley, Ludo Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Cost: $32.10-69.75 Time: 10 a.m.

Snowden Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 10 Wax On Wednesdays Feat. DJ Craig, Conscious Sound System Cost: FREE Time: 8 p.m.

THU DECEMBER 11 Primer 55, A Broken Machine, Dreadful Memories State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $10 Time: 6 p.m.

The Prodigals, Have Gun, Will Travel Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10/15 Time: 8 p.m. Toys For Tots Beneﬁt Feat. Sins of the Father, DSC Project, Mogul Street Reserve, Falling Awake, Autotrain Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 14 Halcyon, Adrianne, Ella Jet Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $12 Time: 5 p.m.

Scott H. Biram The Garage, St. Petersburg Cost: $10 Time: 8:30 p.m.

Her & Kings County, Thomas Wynn & The Believers State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m.

Tailgunner Joe & The Earls of Slander Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m.

Jesse Morris Acoustic Showcase Mellow Mushroom, Tampa Time: 6 p.m.

Uncle John’s Band, Pickford Sundries Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $7 Time: 8 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 12 Brian Chris Band, Her Revenge, D-15 Boomerz, Seminole Time: 9 p.m. Carrie Underwood, Little Big Town St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Cost: $35-55 Time: 7:30 p.m. Dr. Acula, ABACABB, Stab The Sky, The Midnight Life, Set The Sights Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m. Elysium, Routine Scheme, Stray Bomb Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Laura Reed & Deep Pocket, Christie Lenee Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m. Soul 2 Earth, Thomas Wynn & The Believers Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m. The DSC Project, Sugaroot Kelly’s Pub, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. The Foundation Show ARTpool, St. Petersburg Time: 8 p.m. T-Model Ford, Nervous Turkey Dave’s Aqua Lounge, St. Petersburg Cost: $10 Time: 8:30 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 13 DJ Fader Welcome Home Party (Early Event) Feat. The Basiqs, Surreal, The Villanz, Laws, Dynasty Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 1 p.m.

Plague of the Hour, Wake Up Dead, Set The Sights, Haunt The Moor Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Summerbirds in The Cellar, The Beauvilles, Auto!Automatic!!, DJs Soft Rock Renegades Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m. Seth Walker New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $7 Time: 7 p.m. The Scenic, Settings, Broadway, In Passing, Cassady Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 6 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 15 Steve Howe, Chris Squire and Alan White Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater Time: 8 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 16 John Blackwell Drum Clinic Seminole Music & Sound, Seminole Cost: FREE Time: 7 p.m. Off With Their Heads Star Booty, St. Petersburg Time: 8 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 17 Off With Their Heads, Dear Landlord, New Bruises, Rest Of Us, Criminal Culture Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $7 Time: 8 p.m. Wax On Wednesdays Feat. DJ Craig, Conscious Sound System Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 8 p.m.

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 29

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY ISSUE 31

TAMPA BAY EVENTS THU DECEMBER 18 Lower Deﬁnition, In Fear And Faith, I Am Abomination, Broadway, Of Angeline, Patriarchs, Dearborn Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m. Manchester Orchestra, Dead Confederate, Kevin Devine, All Get Out Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $11/13 Time: 7 p.m. Nickole The Nihilist CD Release Party Feat. Down with Paul Reiser & The Renegade Thugs Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. REAX Reader Appreciation Party Feat. 4 Surprise Bands New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 9 p.m. Seven Mary Three Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg Cost: FREE Time: 7 p.m. Spyder Entertainment Presents Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 19 Holiday Soul Jam Feat. DJs Business Casual New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 9 p.m. Obituary, S.W.W.A.A.T.S. Blood By Dawn, Unkempt Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m. Ronny Elliott, Rebekah Pulley, Blind Buddy Moody Kelly’s Pub, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Tab Benoit, Mike Zito Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $15/18 Time: 8 p.m. The Human Condition, Stephanie Anderson Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin Cost: FREE Time: 9:30 p.m. The Taj Motel Trio, Paranoia Dance Party!, Skuff’d Shoes, Funked Up Ska Machine, The Long Johns Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m. Urban Disturbance, Envy, Ascending to Avalon Boomerz, Seminole Time: 9 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 20 Beachwood Sparks, The Hummingbirds Kelly’s Pub, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Bird Street Players, Brother Bean Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Time: 8 p.m. Holiday Rock Fest Feat. James Rivera’s SJS State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $12 Time: 3 p.m. Los Hijos De Ismael Fly Bar, Tampa Neither Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Skatepark of Tampa & REAX’s Ghetto Xmas Party Feat. Full Fledged Unit, Crate Bros., DJ Mega Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: FREE/$5 18-21 Time: 9 p.m. Soulidium, Consinity, Mena Brinno, Paradigm The Garage, St. Petersburg Cost: $8/10 Time: 8 p.m. Petrograd in Transit, Joon, North Via, Marian New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m. The Boozers, Rude Squad, The Duppies, Spirits Down, Spankin’ Fresh* Emerald Bar, St. Petersburg Time: 9 p.m.

The Human Condition Limey’s Pub, St. Petersburg Cost: FREE Time: 10 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 21 AC/DC St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Cost: $89.50 Time: 7:30 p.m. Beneﬁt for NRBQ’s Steve Ferguson Feat. Ronny Elliott, Vodkanauts, Jon Puhl & The Treblemakers, Sack o’ Woe Blues BAnd, Swankyhank, Freight Train Annie, Tailgunner Joe & The Earls of Slander Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10 Time: 5 p.m. Jesse Morris Acoustic Showcase Mellow Mushroom, Tampa Time: 6 p.m. Kinder, Gentler Sundays Feat. Original Acoustic Music Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 3 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 23 Nervous Turkey, Poetry N’ Lotion Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $7 Time: 8 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 24 Wax On Wednesdays Feat. DJ Craig, Conscious Sound System & Special Christmas Eve Guests Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 8 p.m.

THU DECEMBER 25 Green Sunshine Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 28 Jesse Morris Acoustic Showcase Mellow Mushroom, Tampa Time: 6 p.m. Sevendust, Taproot, American Devil, Mr. Bella The Ritz, Ybor City Cost: $23 Time: 7 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 30 Freight Train Annie’s Girlie Show Feat. The Marys, Lorna Bracewell, Stephanie Carpenter Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $7 Time: 8 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 31 Jason Ricci & New Blood, Tucci Ace’s, Bradenton Cost: $20/25 Time: 8:45 p.m. New Year’s Pornaoke Pegasus Lounge, Tampa The 3rd Annual REAX New Year’s Eve Party Feat. Pauly Crush, SUNBEARS!, The Basiqs Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: FREE! Time: 8 p.m. Vodkanauts Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa Cost: $49 (dinner & party)/39 (party only) Time: 9:30 p.m. WMNF Presents Rewind: Music and Songs of 1968 Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $25/30 Time: 8 p.m.

FRI JANUARY 02 The Dive Bar Stalkers, The Rocketz The Garage, St. Petersburg Time: 8 p.m.

New Granada Presents Hankshaw, Jarvik 7, Davey von Bohlen, King of Spain New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $8 Time: 9 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 26 Earth Bombs Mars Kelly’s Pub, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Geri X, Rec Center, The Automatics, Sons of Hippies New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m. Magadog, Tribal Style, Johnny Cakes & The Four Horsemen of The Apocalypso Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Time: 8 p.m. There for Tomorrow, Hey Monday, Biggest Lights, My Getaway Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $8/10 Time: 6 p.m. Trenchbox Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 27 Blue Dice Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m. Dirty D’s Birthday Bash Feat. Ship High in Transit, Johnny Cakes & The Four Horsemen of The Apocalypso, Mega Smegma, AA Dropouts Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. DJs Business Casual Kelly’s Pub, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. One Night Crush Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m. Radon, Lemuria, Grabass Charlestons, VaginaSore Jr, Safety Transitions Art Gallery, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m.

PAGE 30 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

Sherry’s

VINTAGE CLOTHING & ANTIQUES ...WHERE VINTAGE STILL MEANS ONE OF A KIND!

TUES - SAT: 11AM TO 6PM SUNDAY: 12 NOON TO 6PM

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FLORIDA ISSUE 31

A LOCAL GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FL HOTSPOTS: VENUES BACKBOOTH INDEPENDENT BAR Great room and beer selection, a favorite scene hangout with an eclectic lineup of local and touring acts. 37 West Pine St., Orlando backbooth.com

BAR-B-Q BAR

Not really a venue, per se, but it’s a great bar and it’s jammed between The Social and the Independent, so you’re gonna end up taking your business out in the old-school photo booth at some point. 64 N. Orange Ave., Orlando

BLACK BOX COLLECTIVE

It’s like a community center for cool kids, activists, anarchists and free thinkers - live music, workshops, art shows, etc. 630 W. Central Blvd., Orlando myspace.com/ theblackboxcollective

CLUB FIRESTONE

It’s actually a converted Firestone building. Great club, heavy on DJ/ dance stuff but hosts trendy-cool touring bands as well. 578 North Orange Ave., Orlando clubﬁrestone.com

COPPER ROCKET PUB

Out toward Maitland, a cool little beerand-wine bar that hosts a lot of roots, singer-songwriter and rock/punk-abilly shows. 106 Lake Ave., Orlando copperrocketpub.com

HARD ROCK LIVE

Big, stylish room where you’ll see up-and-coming nationals for the last time before they hit arenas opening for someone even bigger, and the area’s top-drawing regional acts. 6050 Universal Blvd., Orlando hardrock.com

HOUSE OF BLUES

Lots of perennially cool nationals and big local draws. 1490 East Buena Vista Dr., Orlando hob.com

All sorts of hipsteriﬁc DJ and dance nights - Wave Pop Wednesdays seem to be a particular favorite - and occasional shows in the downtown space that used to house Barbarella. 70 N. Orange Ave., Orlando independentbar.com

REDLIGHT REDLIGHT

The favored killer-beer purveyor is now open at its new location. 745 Bennett Rd., Winter Park myspace.com/theredlightredlight

THE AKA LOUNGE

A nightlife chameleon, where hip-hop, funk DJs and ‘80s nights rage alongside local-band lineups. 68 East Pine St., Orlando myspace.com/akalounge

THE DUNGEON

Often unknown to out-of-towners, this warehouse space caters to the extreme metal underground. 6440 North Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando myspace.com/dungeonorlando

THE HAVEN

Another Winter Park destination, this one specializing in metal and the heavier end of the alternative spectrum. 6700 Aloma Ave., Winter Park 407-673-2712 thehavenrocks.com

THE PEACOCK ROOM

HOTSPOTS: EATS AUSTIN’S ORGANICS JAX 5TH AVE. DELI & ALE Organic Fairtrade beans, a surprising array of light and/or vegetarianfriendly fare, and regular nighttime entertainment. 929 W. Fairbanks Ave., Winter Park 407-975-3364

DRUNKEN MONKEY COFFEE

Emily sez “free wi-ﬁ, homemade soups, Panini, wraps, quiche, vegan & vegetarian available, live art on Mondays, movie night on Sunday, music movie night on Tues.” Whew 444 N. Bumby Ave., Orlando

ETHOS VEGAN KITCHEN

Orlando Weekly’s Best Vegan Restaurant of ‘08 sports an insanely deep menu, including pizza and brunch offerings. 1235 N. Orange Ave., Orlando

FIDDLER’S GREEN

One of Winter Park’s favorite hangouts, with traditional Irish pub fare and live entertainment to match. 544 W. Fairbanks Ave., Winter Park

FALAFEL CAFE

Relatively inexpensive Mediterranean radness. 12140 Collegiate Way, Orlando

Deja Vu Vintage Clothing Specializes in vintage looks. 1825 North Orange Ave., Orlando 407-898-3609

THE SOCIAL

HIPKAT

WILL’S PUB

Well, is it open yet or not? 1040 N. Mills Ave., Orlando 407-898-5070 myspace.com/willspub

PAGE 34 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

LAZY MOON PIZZA

Pizza by the slice. Cold beer. Cheap combinations of cold beer and pizza by the slice. 12269 University Blvd., Orlando 407-658-2396

STARDUST VIDEO & COFFEE

So much more than a coffee shop. Full menu for vegetarians and carnivores alike. 1842 E. Winter Park Rd., Orlando 407-623-3393

TASTE

Healthy, fusion-y California-style tapas and sometimes live music in College Pk. 717 W. Smith St., Orlando 407-835-0646

THE PITA PIT

Bridges the gap between fast and healthy. Also, they’re open late. 1 South Orange Ave., Orlando 12040 Collegiate Way, Orlando

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES DEJA VU VINTAGE CLOTHING PINK HEART BOUTIQUE

Downtown party spot that does a lot of DJ stuff as well as live bands. 1321 North Mills Avenue, Orlando thepeacockroom.com

Pretty much Orlando’s default live indie-rock room, but they do more, too. 54 North Orange Ave., Orlando thesocial.org

Most older patrons are here for the beer selection, but the sandwiches are hard to beat, too. 3400 Edgewater Dr., Orlando 407-999-8934

This boutique carries some hard-to-ﬁnd brands, and wholeheartedly supports local music. Check their Myspace page for deals and discounts. Orlando Fashion Square Mall 3201 E. Colonial Dr., Orlando 407-897-7035 myspace.com/hipkatapparel

Recently featured in Lucky Magazine, this shop offers scads of accessories as well as image consulting. 4825 New Broad St., Orlando 407-228-6013 pinkheartboutique.com

STATIC

Rock ‘n’ roll fashion covering pretty much every inch of the territory that implies. 240 N. Orlando Ave., Winter Park 407-478-1083 myspace.com/staticwinterpark

A GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FLORIDA YOU ARE HERE ISSUE 31

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT: MATT BUTCHER ME AND MY FRIENDS (SELF RELEASED)

THE LITTLE

DEBBIES

A lot of bands and solo artists in Florida are doing something that arguably falls under the extremely large umbrella of Americana right now - and a lot of them are doing it well. But, with the help of some seriously talented players, Orlando singer-songwriter Matt Butcher has carved out his own immediately recognizable niche, a dewy-prairie mix of wistfulness and confession executed with a deceptively light touch that only barely suggests the material’s true substance. It’s only when one is more than halfway through this extraordinary collection of twangy reminiscences and interior dialogues that one realizes it has begun to color and shape the listener’s own thoughts. And it only gets better with repeated listens. - Scott Harrell

SPOTLIGHT

Words: Colin Kincaid

he idea of four women decked out to rock-fashion nines hitting the stage to grind out a rough-edged combination of rock, rockabilly, punk, garage and surf sounds is pretty ... sexy. Sorry, that’s reality. For guys, it’s tough to put that image away, and just concentrate on the music. And for jaded music fans and hipster snobs alike, it’s also tough to ignore the suspicion that such a thing might be a little, erm, shall we say ... prefabricated? But drummer Tina “Teen Laqueefa” Ferrell, bassist Erin “The Black Mamba” Nolan, and guitarists/vocalists Michele “Nobody You Know” Lane and Milka “Khan Yi” Ramos came together to form Orlando’s Little Debbies out of the purest intentions - they just wanted to tear it up. “We all played in different bands over the years,” says Nolan. “We all knew each other from hanging around, seeing each other’s bands play, supporting each other. And we just decided to get together and jam. Instantly, the ﬁrst day we got together, it was like ‘ooh, this could be really good.’ And ever since, we’ve just been in love with each other.” After a few months of rehearsals, The Little Debbies started playing local clubs this past July, and quickly became something of a sensation around the Orlando originalmusic scene. Certainly, some of the attention came due to the fact that they were four outgoing ladies playing loud-ass music together - it may suck that there are fewer enough women playing rock

music than men to make an all-girl group something of an exotic anomaly, but it’s also true. “There are so many women that have been playing that don’t get close to the recognition they deserve,” Nolan counters. “And that’s something we all understand - we don’t agree with it, but unfortunately, that’s the reality we live with.” Scenesters who look deeper will find The Little Debbies’ uniquely eclectic sound. Seemingly composed of equal parts of just about every edgy rock style to come along since the white folks stole R&B, it’s an unpredictable style, one that might stand in direct contrast to the narrow targetmarketing employed by trend-savvy bands these days, but one that’s infinitely more interesting. “I like to play what feels good and sounds good,” says Nolan. “We call our music ‘mutt rock’ because we’re a bunch of mutts, all from different ethnicities - we look like a Benetton ad. And we play what we like, and we like a little bit of everything. It’s cool if other bands wanna call themselves punk or emo or whatever, but we try to encompass a little of all of it, and hopefully it’ll come across to an audience that will appreciate it as well.” The LIttle Debbies open for the Misfits at Orlando’s Club Firestone on Saturday, December 6. They’ll also be at The Peacock Room in Orlando on January 9.

MYSPACE.COM/THELITTLEDEBBIESSNACKS

THE SUPERVILLAINS DO

SUPER X-MAS Photo: Daniel Sadick

uring the approximately four minutes they get to spend at home between their last road jaunt and January’s Law Records Tour (featuring Pepper and Passaﬁre), veteran Orlando punk-reggae pot-hounds The Supervillains are taking the time to show some hometown love with their “A Very Villains Christmas Party” at Club Firestone December 20. This ain’t your average local show. In addition to inviting along fellow Orlando ska/reggae/punk act Fifty Food Ordinance and Central Florida “dirty south dub rock” unit Hor!zen, The ‘villains have invited

Santa himself, along with those inebriated little helpers, the Jagermeister elves. Drummer Dom promises that everyone will have a chance to get their photo taken with Kris Kringle before, during or after the show, and it’s a safe assumption that you’ll get all the excitement, dancing and hemp references we all expect from a Supervillains shindig. The Supervillains’ “A Very Villains Christmas Party” goes down December 20 at Orlando’s Club Firestone.

MYSPACE.COM/THEREALSUPERVILLAINS

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 35

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FLORIDA ISSUE 31

HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE BOOM-ART BY ROGERS STUDIO RON JON SURF SHOP Custom pop illustrations that are simultaneously modern and nostalgic; yes, they’ll paint anything - a chair, a door, a bench, whatever. 1821 North Orange Ave., Orlando 407-895-0280 rainfall.com/crafts/boom-art/

DRUMS2GO

Everything percussion, and indie to boot. 204 S. Semoran Blvd., Orlando 407-306-0611 drums2go.com

GALACTIC G SKATE SHOP

This downtown skate shop has been around for nearly 12 years, and boasts one of the biggest inventories of gear and peripherals around. 334 E. Harvard St., Orlando 407-895-0410 myspace.com/galacticg

REDEFINE

Sure, the original location long ago graduated from surf touchstone to tourist trap. But at least you know where to get stuff to send to your friends back home. 5160 International Dr., Orlando 407-481-2555 ronjons.com

THE F.I.R.S.T. SCHOOL

The Florida Institute of Recording, Sound and Technology. There you go: educations in recording, ﬁlm/video, digital media. 3315 Maggie Blvd., Suite 100, Orlando 407-316-8310

VANS SKATEPARK

A sick concrete bowl, along with all the vert, mini-ramps and street-course obstacles you’d expect. 5220 International Dr., Orlando 407-351-3881 vans.com/vans/skateparks

A combination art gallery/clothing boutique that’s a new part of the emerging arts district on downtown Magnolia Ave.

IKEA

Yes, those of us over on the west coast are dying of jealousy. Cheap, neat-looking furniture and a food court? It’s worth it just for the walkaround. 4092 Eastgate Dr., Orlando ikea-usa.com

PARK AVE. CDS

They support the local scene, promote shows and even host in-stores. 2916 Corrine Dr., Orlando 407-447-PARK UCF Student Union, Orlando 407-282-1616 parkavecds.com

FRI DECEMBER 05 Substance, Watch Me Disappear, Shampoo Tears Copper Rocket, Orlando Time: 9 p.m. The Slackers, The Duppies, DJ MissinDread The Social, Orlando Cost: $12/14 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 06 X.O.X.O., History, Kitty Party, Andy Matchett & The Monorail, TV Club Copper Rocket, Orlando Time: 7 p.m. Matt Butcher CD Release Feat. Thomas Wynn & The Believers, Jeff Ilgenfritz The Social, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Poverty Branch CD Release Feat. Bombadil, So Help Me Riﬂe, The Lonely Heroes Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 7 p.m. The Misﬁts, The Little Debbies Club Firestone, Orlando Cost: $19.99 Time: 8 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 07 Hawthorne Heights (Early Show) The Social, Orlando Cost: $16 Time: 3 p.m. James McMurtry The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. Mix 105.1 Holiday Soiree Feat. Sara Bareilles, Matt Nathanson House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $20-22 Time: 6 p.m. Vedera, Balien Grey Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $7 Time: 7 p.m.

HOTSPOTS: RETAIL DISCOUNT MUSIC CENTER ROCK ‘N’ ROLL HEAVEN DMC continues to hold off the big-box music-store chains, maybe because it’s so big its damn self. 3301 Gardenia Ave., Orlando 407-423-4171 discountmusic.com

ORLANDO EVENTS

Your place for vinyl - the round kind that makes noises. 1814 North Orange Ave., Orlando 407-896-1952 rock-n-rollheaven.com

THE GUITAR DEN

This place specializes in used and vintage guitars, amps and replacement parts. An impersonal bigbox retailer it ain’t; just check out the info and disclaimers on their website, and you’ll know they’re on it. 5515 S. Orange Ave., Orlando 407-855-1333

UBERBOT

An awesome collectible-design shop - art, ﬁgures, designer toys, basically Cool Geek Utopia. 480 N. Orlando Ave., Winter Park 407-788-UBER uberbotonline.com

PAGE 36 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

MON DECEMBER 08 T-Model Ford The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 09 Burn This City, Tigerstyle Mason Dixon, The Rookies Black Box Collective, Orlando Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m. Of Montreal, The Fiery Furnaces House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $17.50-32 Time: 7:30

WED DECEMBER 10 Amish Electric Chair Black Box Collective, Orlando Time: 8 p.m. Scott H. Biram, The Nine Volts The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. Snowden, Twin Tigers, Mirrorpal Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 8 p.m. The Ultimate Tribute Series Feat. Back in Black, Appetite for Destruction House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $13.25-15.75 Time: 7 p.m.

THU DECEMBER 11 Cethkyn CD Release Feat. Oliver, Yellow Day Union, Kaiharik, Almost Winter AKA Lounge, Orlando Time: 9 p.m. Chris Rae’s 28th Annual Birthday Boneroo Feat. Summerbirds In The Cellar, Dish, Mumpsy The Social, Orlando Cost: $7 Time: 9 p.m.

Skindred, Another Black Day, Dharmata House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $17.25-32 Time: 6 p.m. Sparky’s Flaw, Jr. Dr. Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 12 Big 10-4 The Social, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 9 p.m. The Pauses, The Great Deceivers, Language Arts Copper Rocket, Orlando Time: 9 p.m. XL 106.7’s XL’lent Electric Xmas Feat. Fall Out Boy, The Academy Is ... , We The Kings House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $35.75-38.75 Time: 6 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 13 DJ Eddie Baez Club Firestone, Orlando Learn Nothing 7” Release Feat. Big Rats, Guilt Parade, Meantime Time: 7 p.m. Orlando Music Awards Nominee Showcase Copper Rocket, Orlando Time: 9 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 14 Haste The Day, Sky Eats Airplane, Emarosa, Inhale Exhale The Social, Orlando Cost: $13/15 Time: 6 p.m. Steve Howe, Chris Squire & Alan White Hard Rock Live, Orlando Cost: $45-100 Time: 8 p.m. XL 106.7’s XL’lent Acoustic Xmas Feat. Colbie Caillat, Natasha Bedingﬁeld, Flyleaf, Gavin DeGraw House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $48-51 Time: 5 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 15 Her & Kings County The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 16 Bruteforce, Meantime, Guilt Parade Black Box Collective, Orlando Time: 7 p.m. Phat N Jazzy Presents Rob Swift, DJ SPS, DJ BMF The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 10 p.m. The Year Ends in Arson, Contest of Arms, Uptown Terminal, Cities Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 17 Manchester Orchestra, Dead Confederate, Kevin Devine, All Get Out The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m. Western Ninja AKA Lounge, Orlando Time: 9 p.m.

THU DECEMBER 18 Pop Off! Feat. Rocksteady Soundsystem, Fishdicks & Hardersauce The Social, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Stephen Pearcy, Britny Fox AKA Lounge, Orlando Cost: $15 adv.

A GUIDE TO ORLANDO... YOU ARE HERE ISSUE 31

FRI DECEMBER 19

TUE DECEMBER 23

Disco Biscuit, Preacher Bill & The Prophets, The Rondos Copper Rocket, Orlando Time: 9 p.m.

Helldistort, The Angst Black Box Collective, Orlando Time: 8 p.m.

Junkie Rush The Social, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 9 p.m. Uncle Lou’s Orlando Punk Fest I Feat. Time to Die, Tigerstyle, Suburban Lockdown, Larf, Runnamucks, Monikers, Grabbag, Pop Suicide, Desperate Living, Broken War Machines Uncle Lou’s Entertainment Hall, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 5 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 20 A Very Villains Christmas Feat. The Supervillains, Hor!zen, Fifty Food Ordinance Club Firestone, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m. Junkie Rush The Social, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 9 p.m. Mudvayne, 10 Years House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $26.25-44.25 Time: 7 p.m. Savi Fernandez Band, Hor!zen, Fifty Foot Ordinance, Alex Baugh & The Crazy Carls Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 7 p.m. Uncle Lou’s Orlando Punk Fest I Feat. The Angst, A New Threat, Republicorpse, Tooth & The Enamels, Cerephesis, Big City Bombers, TV Generation, Nothing Lost, BTH, Bearlake, Idols End Uncle Lou’s Entertainment Hall, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 4 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 21 Gorilla Music Battle of the Bands Feat. Ocean Giants, December’s Shadow, The Chaos We Breathe, Under Pressure, Maitland, Junior Doctor, Ashes of Decay, Handicap Blue, Beating A Horse To Death, Through His Eyes The Social, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 4 p.m. Michael Andrew & Swingerhead: A Beneﬁt for Give Kids The World House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $35 Time: 6 p.m. The Nightmare Before Christmas Feat. Hydrosonic Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $5/7 Time: 7 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 22 Ours, Plain Jane Automobile The Social, Orlando Cost: $15 Time: 8 p.m.

Phat N Jazzy Presents DJ Moni, DJ BMF, Slack The Social, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 10 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 26 Black Tide House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $10-15 Time: 6:30 p.m. The Legendary JC’s The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 27 Hot Water Music, Naked Raygun, Ninja Gun House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $16 Time: 7:30 p.m. Madison Fadeout Copper Rocket, Orlando 10 p.m.

SUN DECEMBER 28 Afterglow Radio, Black Ship Sky, Sugar Free Music, Lost Time Accident The Social, Orlando Cost: $7/8 Time: 7 p.m. Corey Smith, John Frank House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $15 Time: 7 p.m. There for Tomorrow, Hey Monday, The Bigger Lights, My Getaway Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 6:30 p.m. Tiesto Hard Rock Live, Orlando Cost: $40-100 Time: 8 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 31 New Year’s Eve Party Feat. The Legendary JC’s Back Booth, Orlando Cost: $15 Time: 9 p.m. WJRR’s Big Friggin’ Eve Feat. Sevendust, Taproot, American Devils, Rising Up Angry House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $35 Time: 8:30 p.m.

THU JANUARY 01 Canon Law, BTH, Larf, Bogart Black Box Collective, Orlando Time: 8 p.m.

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 37

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO GAINESVILLE & NORTHEAST FLORIDA ISSUE 31

A LOCAL GUIDE TO GAINESVILLE & NORTH FL HOTSPOTS: VENUES 1982 COMMON GROUNDS All-ages friendly live-music hangout. 919 W. University Ave., Gainesville myspace.com/1982_bar

G-ville’s premier punk/indie-rock club. 210 S.W. 2nd Ave., Ste. A, G-ville commongroundslive.com

THE ATLANTIC

FREEBIRD LIVE

Cozy, eclectic bar and performance space that usually does live music four nights a week. 15 N. Main St., Gainesville myspace.com/atlanticnights

BACKSTAGE LOUNGE

Formerly Eddie C’s, the Backstage caters to more mainstream rock and alt-rock tastes than some of the area’s more indie-centric nightspots. 1315 S. Main St., Gainesville myspace.com/backstagelounge

EL INDIO

We think yelp.com commenter Kasey S. says all that needs to be said about this G-ville standby: “Burritos are good, food is cheap, sauce is a must.” 407 NW 13th St., Gainesville 352-377-5828

FLACO’S CUBAN BAKERY

More of a diner than bakery. Popular with vegetarians, and drunk folks who really want a meaty sandwich after hitting the bars. 200 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-371-2000

LEONARDO’S 706

This meeting-and-eating spot is well known for its gourmet pizzas and Sunday brunch. 706 W. University Ave., Gainesville (352) 378-2001 leonardos706.com

Derf. Until this hipster favorite opens its Orlando outlet store, Gainesville is the only place in Florida north of the Miami area to get all the stuff you’ve seen on all the cool kids lately.

A bit of a drive, but it hosts many touring shows that don’t hit G-ville. 200 N. 1st St., Jacksonville Beach freebirdlive.com

Last minute update: The Orlando store is now open! 15 S.W. 1st Ave., Gainesville 352-372-2262 americanapparel.net

THE KICKSTAND

GOODWILL INDUSTRIES

This altruistic endeavor - more formally known as The Gainesville Community Bicycle Project - promotes responsible bicycle use and ownership when not hosting the shows that help raise operating funds. 722 S. Main St., Gainesville thekickstand.org

HOTSPOTS: EATS DRAGONFLY SUSHI MAUDE’S CLASSIC CAFE Award-winning sushi. Their website alone looks good enough to eat. 201 SE 2nd Ave., Gainesville 352-371-3359 dragonﬂysushi.com

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES PERSONA VINTAGE AMERICAN APPAREL CLOTHING & COSTUMES

Opinions vary wildly, but if you want to see/overhear what the hippies and hipsters in town are wearing/doing, this is the place. 101 S.E. 2nd Pl., Gainesville 352-336-9646

REGGAE SHACK

Yup, just what you’d expect everything from jerk chicken and beef patties to curry, Caribbean salads and hell-yes passion fruit smoothies. 619 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-377-5464

SAIGON LEGEND

Casual atmosphere, fairly cheap Asian food. People rave about their pho, a Vietnamese soup/staple. 1228 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-374-0934

THE TOP

It’s been called the best restaurant in town. Folks are critical of the service, but the full bar seems to help. Another hot brunch spot, as well. 30 N. Main St., Gainesville 352-337-1188

PAGE 38 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

The thrifts in most college towns are usually pretty well picked over, but this is Florida - unintentionally ironic t-shirt heaven. 3520 S.W. 34th St., Gainesville 352-376-9041

This joint has a reputation for great threads and kitschy or unusual gifts. 201 S.E. 2nd Pl., Gainesville 352-372-0455

STORE 101

Clothes. Art. Books. Comics. Cool. 101 N. Main St., Gainesville 352-377-7044 store101.net

WOLFGANG

A more upscale place that carries the kinds of designers not usually found outside of bigger cities. 1127 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-505-8123

HOTSPOTS: RETAIL RECYCLED BIKES HEAR AGAIN CDS AND DVDS Rent and roll. 805 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-372-4890

The sign says “Gainesville’s largest home of music and movies,” and that sounds about right. 818 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-373-1800

HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE BODYTECH TATTOO MOTHER EARTH MARKET One of Gainesville’s biggest and most community-conscious body-art enterprises for a decade. 306 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352-376-4090 bodytechtattoo.com

Organic groceries, holistic supplements, and a schedule of events and lectures held right on the premises. 521 N.W. 13th St., Gainesville 352-378-5244

FREERIDE SURF SHOP

MODERN AGE TOBACCO & GIFT SHOP

Named after the classic wave ﬂick. 420 N.W. 13th St., Gainesville 352-373-SURF freeridesurfshop.com

Your one-stop shop for things with dancing teddy bears on them. 1035 N.W. 76th Blvd., Gainesville 352-332-5100

A GUIDE TO GAINESVILLE & NORTHEAST FLORIDA YOU ARE HERE ISSUE 31

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT: ANCHOR ARMS COLD BLOODED (FAILSAFE RECORDS)

OH, FORTUNA

Words: Molly Hays

h, Fortuna are unashamed of their gimmicks. They’re their livelihood. For the Gainesville-based band, playing their self-described brand of “celebratory pop” and “joytronica” may just be impossible without looking like “Miami grease perverts.” Synth controller Nick Lamberth says that it’s one thing to be a gimmick band known for one ploy, another to be the gimmick band with a full bag of tricks. And Oh, Fortuna’s bag of tricks is deep indeed; on stage, the band employs instruments like the violin, keyboard, and horns, and enhances their sets with a wide variety of costumes and dancers. “Just go for broke, it’s all part of making a festival,” says Lamberth. Their last show packed 11 people on stage - the band’s five “official” members, plus a cavalcade of supporting musicians. The members of Oh, Fortuna are inspired by characters like Michael J. Fox’s Marty McFly from Back to the Future, and musical artists like The Arcade Fire and the Flaming Lips. Their diversity of influences and eclectic musical tastes feed a playground warfare of insults when the band sits down to pen new material. “We all take a song idea and really just insult each other, tear each other down until we come to a compromise of the song,” Lamberth explains. Costume brain-storming sessions are an 180-degree turn away from writing songs. Basically whatever idea makes them laugh the most wins. A recent winner of one of these contests of the absurd is “Miami grease perverts,” a theme implemented with super-short cutoff jeans and attitudeladen t-shirts with sayings like “Loserville - Population: You” and “I’m friends with

your boyfriend on MySpace.” And bronzer. Except on the eyes, of course - Miami grease perverts have raccoon-eye tan lines.

Nine songs in 23 minutes is pretty impressive. What’s more impressive is the amount of fun Anchor Arms cram into that short amount of time. Sure, it’s the now-overused term “the Gainesville Sound” (jagged vocals over melodic hardcore), but while Anchor Arms have paid attention to their forebears, they don’t rip them off. Cold Blooded isn’t as melodic as Hot Water Music, nor does it pack the punch of Gunmoll, but it does manage to create the feeling of an interactive live show on CD. You can hear the crowd calling back the chorus of “We’re at worst (no worse for wear lately)” from “Cocaine Cowboys” just as easily as you can see the unbridled joy the band must play when ripping though “Girl and A Glacier.” It’s not new or inventive, but it is every fun pit you’ve ever been in. - Timothy Asher

SPOTLIGHT

“The whole point was to be a lot of fun to look at and laugh with,” says Lamberth. “We use our crazy sense of humor to help put people’s guards down, so they’re a lot more open to actually enjoying the music.” The band members are all enrolled in school, as reflected in their reference to time periods as “semesters” and their lack of live shows. Lamberth says school has hindered their availability, and the painstaking, time-consuming recording process has temporarily turned them into a studio band. Plans to make a full-length album have been sacrificed to focus on six or seven tracks for a total of an estimated half hour’s worth of music. The band is eyeing an ideal release time of early 2009 for the EP, which will be available for free in the digital format, and cheaply in a packaged version. Despite their current sequestered-inthe-studio status, Oh, Fortuna strive for audience participation. “The most effective thing has been when we throw a bunch of balloons out to the crowd,” Lamberth marvels. “It’s amazing how a bunch of balloons can turn everyone into a bunch of kids.” For Lamberth, Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips personifies this ideal. Coyne once said in an interview that good music comes from the sense that we’re all in this together, and Oh, Fortuna are building on that sense of community. According to Lamberth, they “do it for the people that might fall in love with you.”

MYSPACE.COM/OHFORTUNAISLOVE

THE GIFT OF

ALTERNATIVES S

ure, college towns are often bastions of open-mindedness. But they can also be home to elitism, hypocrisy and barely disguised reactionary values - or just located in a region (like, say, the South) still holding on a little too tightly to its long-held stereotypes. Gainesville’s Wild Iris Books offers a respite from the negativity, stress and competition of college life - or hell, life in general - with a positive, empowering environment and message. It doesn’t matter if you’re gay, or just somebody who thinks people should be able to live the life they choose in peace.

The vibe here is equality, along with an acceptance of the things not everybody understands or even believes in. Plus, if you’re looking for a unique Christmas gift to impress a liberal or royally piss off a conservative, Wild Iris has it, from Tarot and Astrology readings to an Annual Membership which names the recipient as a patron of “Florida’s Only New Age Feminist Bookstore.” Wild Iris Books is located at 802 W. University Ave. in Gainesville.

WILDIRISBOOKS.COM

LET US KNOW WHAT WE SHOULD SPOTLIGHT IN YOUR HOMETOWN! REAX@REAXMUSIC.COM DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 39

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO GAINESVILLE & NORTHEAST FLORIDA ISSUE 31

GAINESVILLE / NE FL EVENTS FRI DECEMBER 05

WED DECEMBER 10

THU DECEMBER 18

Bang Bang Boom, The Bluebird Suitcase, The Dead Songwriters The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m.

Primer 55, Lynch The Martyr, 44down Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

The Early Twenties, Diana Catherine & The Thursty Tweeters, Sarah Burton Backstage Lounge, Orlando Time: 9 p.m.

Crisis in Hollywood, Exit City, Pine Hill Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Name: Bran, Hollowpoint Militia, Hill Valley Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $8/10 Time: 8 p.m. Of Montreal, The Fiery Furnaces, Fire Zuave The Venue, Gainesville The Matches, Vega Under Fire, Jacob’s Ladder University of Florida Rion Ballroom, Gainesville Toubab Krewe, Burnin’ Smyrnans Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $10/12 Time: 9 p.m. Vedera, HotChelleRae, The Early Twenties, Victory Blvd. 1982, Gainesville Time: 8 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 06 Cruxshadows, Ayria, Iscintilla, Earth Empire Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $12/15 Time: 8 p.m. Medic Droid, Chronic Future Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8/10 Time: 8 p.m. Play It Cool, Hotshot!, Nixie Boon, Jacob’s Ladder, Allie Wetzel, Badge 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. The Pull Out, Shawn Fisher & The Jukebox Gypsies, Alex Perrin, John Frank Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Umoja Orchestra, The Shoddy Beatles Common Grounds, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Zoroaster, Dead Bird, Chill Wizard The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m.

Rock & Roll Music Camp for Girls Feat. Sweet City Action, Joey’s Feral Cats 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

THU DECEMBER 11 Coming Undone, Forsythe Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Devon Allman’s Honeytribe Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. Stages & Stereos, Faster Faster, The Shootout, Eric Throne 1982, Gainesville Time: 8 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 12 Bobby Lee Rodgers & The Codetalkers Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. CMC Beneﬁt Feat. Charles Ray & The Righteous Kind, The Rochevanies, Stevie D & The No Shows 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Happy Hour Chili Jam & Potluck Feat. Cutman, So Pastel, Worry Ship Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $2 Time: 5 p.m. Off With Their Heads, Dear Landlord, Apeshit The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. The Manor, In My Words, The Butterﬂy Theory, Pellets on Target Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 13 Anchor Arms, Cutman, How Dare You, Lost Resolve, Onslaught Dynamo The Kickstand, Gainesville

SUN DECEMBER 07

Deimos, Dopamean, Impurity, Forever Dawn Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m.

Mayday Parade, There for Tomorrow, T13C Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $14 Time: 6 p.m.

Gavin DeGraw Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $20/25 Time: 8 p.m.

The Slackers, Greenhouse Lounge Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $12/15 Time: 8 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 08 Assassinate The Scientist, Dirty Money, The Last Resolve, Sobriety Starts Tomorrow 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Marc Broussard, Alternate Routes, Josh Hoge Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $15/20 Time: 7:30 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 09 Dear Dakota, Shut Up And Dance, Solo 67, Stella 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk Inca Maya Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $12/15 Time: 8 p.m. Matt & Kim, The Cool Kids Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

PAGE 40 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

Ninja Gun, Averkiou, The Enablers The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Tanks in Series, Sarcastic, The Butterﬂy Theory 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. WGOT Beneﬁt Feat. D.P. with J-Mag, Bean$, Neu Breed & C. Scott Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 15 Gym Class Heroes Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $15/20 Time: 7 p.m. Haste The Day, Sky Eats Airplane, Emarosa, Inhale Exhale Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $12/15 Time: 7 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 17 Trump’s Wig, Breaking Past, The Big Send Out Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 19 Manchester Orchestra, Dead Confederate, Kevin Devine, All Get Out Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $11/13 Time: 8 p.m. Pilly Wete, Ghost of Gloria, Lost Around Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. The Duppies, Fatter Than Albert, Assassinate The Scientist, The Neighbourhood Watch 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Worlds, Mehkago N.T., Dead Friends, Divisions, Sloane Peterson The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 20 Blacksnake, Bullet, Time Killers, Rojo Diablo Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Lauris Vidal & His Warm Guns, Matt Butcher Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Paint Me Irrational, Call It Conﬂict (ex-Seward’s Folly), Allie Wetzel 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. The Takers, Austin Lucas & Jon Gaunt The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 24 Deﬁnition of an IZUM Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

FRI DECEMBER 26 The Deaf Children Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m.

SAT DECEMBER 27 Soulcry Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m.

MON DECEMBER 29 There for Tomorrow, Hey Monday, The Bigger Lights, My Getaway, Hands High Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m.

TUE DECEMBER 30 JJ Grey & Mofro Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $20/25 Time: 8 p.m.

WED DECEMBER 31 Ball-Droppin’ New Year’s Dance Night Feat. DJ Cam, Spin Tom The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. JJ Grey & Mofro Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $35/40 Time: 8 p.m. UDTV Presents A Rockin’ Smokin’ Hot New Year’s Eve Party Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

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REAX FEATURE

PAGE 42 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

evin Barnes does not want you to see him as Ward Cleaver, Cliff Huxtable, or even Homer Simpson. Yes, he is 34 years old, with a wife, a daughter, and a house; maybe even a dog and a white picket fence. (I can’t say for sure. I didn’t ask.) But Barnes wants to be a viewed as a sexually amorphous nymph, an avant garde artist railing against the chains of mediocrity, a “vessel” for the alternate personality of a black transsexual former R&B singer, anything but your standard operating procedural dad. “I don’t think of myself as ‘34, married with a kid,’” he bemoans. “That creates a different image. You know ... middle-aged man, with a wife and child. Just seems boring.” “I don’t want to think of myself like that,” he adds with a laugh. “I think of myself as having unlimited potential, and I can be anything. My identity is fluid. I don’t have to be what my human vessel tells the world that I am. I have a very active internal life experience that is separate from the external one. I am still developing, still growing and changing. I haven’t gotten into this rut that a lot of people get into.” As this fluid identity grows (almost daily), Barnes, the sole songwriter and creative force behind Athens, Georgia art-pop ensemble Of Montreal, continues to garner attention as much for his extremely personal lyrical admissions as much as his ability to craft an addictive pop track. Part of the original Elephant 6 Collective (Neutral Milk Hotel, Apples in Stereo), Of Montreal has taken off on the flight of Barnes’ sexual lyrical outbursts, outlandish and often nudity-punctuated (mostly Barnes’ junk) live shows, paragraph-length song titles (“We Were Born the Mutants Again With Leafling”), and, of course, the licensing of a song to Outback Steakhouse - an occurrence that forever changed how the American public views Mother’s Day. The Outback commercial, which bastardizes a version of “Wraith Pinned To The Mist And Other Games,” sticks in the craw of most critics as a brazen form of selling out. It also forced Barnes, never a shrinking violet, to pen an essay to music blog Stereogum railing against the “sanctimonious indie fascists” who look down their noses at musicians that dare to make a living. It seems that the whole “Wraith Pinned” experience would make Barnes run away from any form of commercializing or commoditization of his art, but not so. Skeletal Lamping, Of Montreal’s latest LP, comes in seven packaging formats: CD, LP, T-shirt, tote bag, paper lamp, button set, and the ever-popular wall decal set. It

would seem Of Montreal is wholeheartedly embracing commercialism as art. While Barnes denies this marketing of Lamping as product placement was a tongue-in-cheek response to the Outbacklash (“we thought it would be fun to make as many art objects as possible”), the sound of the new album is sure to deter any request from the Aussie steakhouse for future licensing. For Barnes, the cacophonous result of Lamping - a type of nocturnal hunting where a bright lamp is shined upon the game, a metaphor for the “hunting” of Barnes’ darkest emotions - derives from an attempt to shatter the conformities of pop-music structure, much like his efforts to shatter the conformities of the American dad. “There are a lot of tricks that every songwriter knows and so many songwriters use, but to me it seems like laziness,” he lectures. “There is no real reason for everyone to do that, or for everyone to feel that they have to do it to make their songs solid. So I broke free from the pop song template and just went wild and had fun, to let myself be super-creative.” Lamping is beyond “super-creative.” The piece is a disjointed, quasi-neo-soul improvisation that Barnes refers to as “organic,” though nothing organically grown is as jarring. There is barely room to get comfortable, or a semblance of preternatural elegance. Just as the listener gets into a beat or a harmony, Barnes jerks the needle away, to another rhythm or even another song. Then there is the bacchanalian nature of the words: “I wanna turn you on/I wanna make you come two hundred times a day.” Subtle! “I basically just experimented with the work,” he says. “I didn’t really labor over anything. I just let things happen in an organic way. If it was working, I would take it where it wanted to go. If it wasn’t working, I’d change my direction, try something new. Just put together the pieces. When I was done [with one song], sometimes I would use it as motivation for the next piece. Sometimes I would just put them on the shelf with the other ones and make something else. Eventually, I would have all of these sections of songs. What I wanted to do was create a fragmented, somewhat schizophrenic collection of music sections, and piece them together in an exciting, unconventional way.” Maybe the reason for the schizophrenic results is Barnes’ channeling of another “personality” named Georgie Fruit, a black transsexual who was once in a funk-rock band called Arousal back in the ‘70s. Georgie does not exist, of course, except

in the recesses of Barnes’ mind - he’s a construct that allows Barnes’ inhibitions to peel away, with a Prince falsetto voice. Considering Of Montreal’s live performances consist of extreme body paint, a healthy amount of shaving cream (mostly applied to the body), and various poses of bare-ass nakedness, an alter ego can be a helpful proxy. But even Georgie Fruit sometimes needs to be reined in. “I try to create a balance,” Barnes admits. “The stuff that is in Georgie’s world sometimes, in my mind, seems a bit cheesy. Sometimes you get some R&B lyrics that make you cringe. You go, ‘aww, man. That’s a silly thing to say.’ I was writing things like that that I had to say, ‘No, I am not going to say that, I am going to say something a bit more abstract.’ That was the only clash when I was collaborating with him.” The live performance, the costumes, the effects, the nudity already garner so much attention. When paired that with an album that is freeform to the point of inaccessibility, one might wonder if Barnes worries that the spectacle of the show will overshadow his music? Or, if maybe that’s the point? “I never really think about the music at all when we are putting on a show,” he states, matter-of-factly. “OK, we are going on stage, we are going to play the music, we are going to play the music well. That goes without saying - what else are [we] going to do? Let’s make it a really interesting production. Let’s make it totally over the top, overstimulating, and full of surprises. Not just for the audience but for ourselves. When you go on tour, for weeks or months at a time, it’s always at risk of becoming a bit mundane, even if you are playing in front of big crowds. The nature of how our minds work, we get easily bored. The more craziness going on in the show, the less likely that you will get bored anytime soon. You have so many roles to play; I am always running around changing costumes and interacting with performance artists. It’s a physical workout for me. I never stop moving.” Of Montreal in Florida, with openers Fiery Furnaces: Dec. 5 - The Venue, Gainesville Dec. 6 - Revolution Live, Ft. Lauderdale Dec. 8 - The Ritz, Ybor City Dec. 9 - House of Blues, Orlando

MYSPACE.COM/OFMONTREAL

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 43

REAX INTERVIEWS

3OH!3 THE HIP AND THE HYPE

e live in the age of the buzz band. Every single month, the music-magazine world has a new slew of bands that “you absolutely should know” “or you need to download NOW!”, and about 90% of these bands the average music consumer can take or leave. Over time, it creates a rare cynicism in music listeners the kind that is more usually found in wine snobs and English Literature Professors. Obviously, a lot of bands get lost in the shufﬂe along the way. And only a few of those bands that make it past stage one of “project buzz” actually survive the battle that was caused by the confusion that was brought on by words like “buzz” and “hype.” One of these few bands that has managed to survive this battle, and come out at the winning end of the good old war that is the contemporary music scene, is 3OH!3.

you’ve deﬁnitely heard 3OH!3; as of late, the community’s modern-rock station 97X has been playing the Boulder, Colorado native sons’ new single “Don’t Trust Me” on constant rotation, in promotion of them playing at this year’s 97X’s Next Big Thing.

released their eponymous debut. 3OH!3 featured the hip-hop-infused single “Holler Til You Pass Out;” the video, which was shot at Mesa Elementary and Fairview High Schools in Boulder, had a short life on MTV’s TRL.

“We have gotten a lot of attention as of late, which is cool,” says Nathan Motte, one half of the quirky synth-rock/hip-hop duo. “We have fun doing it. We’re just trying to make music as fun, creative and progressive as we can. There is a lot of hype that surrounds our band. But what are you gonna do?”

3OH!3 has had it easier then most hip-hop acts coming up in a scene that was largely controlled by jam bands.

If you happened to purchase a Warped Tour ticket this year, you more than likely caught a glimpse 3OH!3, whose set would almost always end in an onstage dance party of sorts with their fellow Warped Tour mates partying along. Or maybe you caught them when they opened up for Snoop Dog. At this point, chances are that you have heard or seen the band somewhere, unless you’ve been living underneath a rock somewhere with Osama Bin Laden or hibernating with Black Bears in Montana. If your home base is in the Tampa Bay area,

Well, if you ask Motte, the answer is yes, 3OH!3 is all hype.

What can you do? Nothing, really. It begs the question, however: is 3OH!3 all hype? Have they managed to fool the modern-day music listener-turned-stoker of the buzz ﬁres?

“I totally agree with them,” he says of the critics who have lobbed such allegations at the act. Motte wasn’t always a part of the hype machine. He was once a clean-cut college kid attending the University of Colorado, where he ﬁrst met his co-conspirator Sean Foreman in a physics class. They later formed 3OH!3 in 2004, and in ‘07 self-

PAGE 44 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

“We didn’t really ﬁt in,” concedes Motte. “I mean, here we are doing hip-hop, while everyone else is doing the jam band thing. But we had it pretty easy. We had a lot of friends in bands who chaperoned us around and got us shows, and that [built] enough hype or buzz to get us going on our own.” Foreman and Motte haven’t forgotten about the little man along the way, either. They often bring out local bands from Boulder on tour with them. “Holler Til You Pass Out” may have gotten the ball rolling, but it’s their latest single “Don’t Trust Me” that has kept the attention on the boys from the Centennial State. “Don’t Trust Me” is the polar opposite of “Holler,” with electronic loops and a popridden bridge. With the poppy nature of “Don’t Trust Me,” it isn’t a wonder that a radio station like 97X - one of the ﬁrst to play and champion other buzzy acts like My

Chemical Romance - has put them on the bill for their annual concert. After talking with Motte, it’s hard to conceive that 3OH!3 isn’t anything but hype. The term “buzz band” is a title that has been attached to such bands as Kings of Leon, Death Cab For Cutie, Modest Mouse and The Shins, to name only a few eminently worthy artists. You have to admit that‘s not a bad list of alumni to be associated with. Plus, who can argue with a band that has penned such a contagious chorus as that of “Don‘t Trust Me”? Hearing it, one can’t help but see themselves coming closer and closer to the dark side as they sing along, “Shush girl/shut your lips/and do the Helen Keller and talk with your hips ... ” When asked exactly what that is supposed to mean, Motte laughs. “You know ... to talk with your hips ... you know ... like, dance,” he says, suggestively. When it’s pointed out that Helen Keller isn’t exactly widely known to have been a dancer, he laughs again. “I don’t know, then. Sean wrote it and I had to sing it.” 3OH!3 is currently on tour in the U.S. They appear at 97X’s annual Next Big Thing mini-festival at Tampa, Florida’s Ford Amphitheatre on December 7.

MYSPACE.COM/3OH3

REAX INTERVIEWS

PAGE 46 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

LES SAVY FAV’S SETH JABOUR ON THE WILLIAMSBURG THING Words: Ryan Patrick Hooper • Photo: Courtesy of Frenchkiss Records

ince the dawn of the millennium, Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood has served as a thriving, artistic community that resembles an early ‘90s Seattle with more lush layers and diversity, spitting out more promising artists and bands in the past six years than most major metropolises. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Grizzly Bear, MGMT, TV On The Radio, Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra and Battles all call this artistic haven home, with plenty more to ﬁll out the list. It’s been discussed to great excess, both before and after the alternative (read: put this in your blog and smoke it) and mainstream media decided to strangle the Williamsburg explosion to near death. When an interview with Les Savy Fav guitarist Seth Jabour (another group of guys from the Williamsburg sector who have been avowedly “missing out on cashing in for the last ten years”) fell into my lap, I was excited to get a non-convoluted perspective on the transformation and growth of the ‘burg. With the blossoming of artistic communities and musical initiatives that prosper into an array of local venues also come the challenges of commercial retail, “plop and drop” housing developments and massive increases in what was, at one point, extremely cheap rent in a seedy warehouse district. Jabour touched on it all, and in order to offer a clean and truthful perspective into the matter, we’ve kept things simple with a delicious and straightforward questionand-answer session with a driving force behind one of the most aggressive and phenomenal live acts you’ll ever witness. REAX: What is the cause of Brooklyn’s Williamsburg becoming such an epicenter for interesting and talented musicians to congregate and produce within a collective community? Seth Jabour: It’s slowly been happening for years and years, but I don’t know what the initial attraction was. It’s not like someone hit a switch and made this place happen. I mean, what brought all the hippies to San Francisco? What brought

anybody from any walk of life to a major metropolis to pursue something that was going on there? [Les Savy Fav] came here in the late ‘90s because we could live in New York City in a neighborhood that supported artists and musicians that was also really cheap. You want to be able to live somewhere with a lot of room to do your thing and not be bled dry while doing it. If you were in a band and wanted to live in New York, you’re going to find people like yourself with clubs to go to, places to hang out and parties to be seen at. Williamsburg is hip, hence the term hipster, which gets used too gratuitously around here sometimes, but the shoe does fit. Really, the ultimate advantage of being a band in a place like Williamsburg is that you’re going to find a shitload of people to play with. Maybe there was only one dude in your neighborhood who knows how to play the drums. You move here, and now you know a dozen drummers who are anxious to start a band. REAX: How have the residents of Williamsburg handled the media attention? SJ: A lot of the older people have been somewhat displaced, you know what I mean? There are probably some people who have been living here since the ‘80s that could answer your question better than I could about living through this whole flux and change it’s gone through … REAX: There’s definitely been a revitalization of infrastructure and increase of safety within the neighborhood. The idea of musical and artistic communities has elevated a neighborhood that was once considered rough by most standards to a thriving safe haven of arts, friends and culture. SJ: One of the main drawbacks is that it starts to feel a little superficial sometimes. If you wanted to be cynical, you could claim that all of these people are posers. But when you weed through it, the majority of the people that come to this neighborhood are there to support what the neighborhood has attempted to do with post-industrialization. God bless ‘em, right?

Who can deny someone who is picking up a guitar and making music while starting a new band, or renting a painting studio so they can pursue fine arts? That’s extremely commendable. But there’s going to be a point where all of a sudden, all these cool, indie hipsters are displaced by yuppies and stock traders who are making outrageous salaries and coming here to have 3,000 square feet that overlook the East River. People start to say, “You know what? I can’t even afford to live in my own damn neighborhood anymore! I’ve got to move!” My first apartment in Williamsburg was 400 dollars a month for my room in ‘97. By today’s standards, that is absolutely unheard of. REAX: That’s one of the threatening factors - the idea of superficial people moving in and not bringing with them the same sort of principles that originally cultivated what the neighborhood is today. SJ: It cheapens the whole experience, and has a tendency to alienate the people who were there to help establish something in the first place. You see it all the time. It’s really not anything new conceptually. I could be totally delusional though. Maybe it was never a neighborhood with so much integrity. Maybe it just seemed like that because I was in my twenties. Maybe the older I got, I started looking at myself ten years ago and thinking, “What a jackass!” We are really no different. But I do know what you mean. It would be a shame if Williamsburg became this sort of strip mallmeets-Starbucks world. REAX: I do like the idea of independent stores and commercial stores working together through a non-threatening relationship. In a perfect world, exclusive side street boutiques would not feel a nagging push from the corporate world. As Williamsburg continues to change, do you think it has the potential to embrace this sort of concept? SJ: It’s funny - a Starbucks just opened in Greenpoint [the neighboring community where Jabour resides] on a bustling section of Manhattan Avenue. This is the first

Starbucks to open up in the WilliamsburgGreenpoint area, but Williamsburg proper has resisted this sort of change for years. They don’t care if you want to go in there and open a crab cake factory, but they don’t want that sort of big, greedy, corporate venture in their neighborhood. They want the businesses to be by people from the neighborhood, for people from the neighborhood. At least then, you can check your quality and integrity while keeping things interesting. REAX: How do you think the idea of celebrity is handled in Williamsburg? SJ: There are some high-profile celebrity types moving into this neighborhood because of all the development, but what attracts them to come here is that they want to live in the cool, artistic, hip part of Brooklyn. But with celebrity in Williamsburg, I would imagine that kids are just so jaded that they don’t even care. You’ve got to be doing more with your craft for someone to give you an ounce of respect. Just being famous won’t cut it in Williamsburg. I don’t care if you’re James Franco or Jessica Simpson. If I don’t respect what you do then I don’t give a shit who you are. You’ll find more people in Williamsburg who are excited to run into someone like Kyp [Malone] from TV On The Radio. Not only is he one of their own, but he’s also in this band that almost everyone loves. In the kind of world that we are living in and the type of information that we are privy to, the notion of celebrity is starting to break down. In every cool neighborhood, there will always be the hipsterati. We all find ourselves hanging out at the same places, so at the end of the day, it’s just truly absurd. Les Savy Fav will headline a show in honor of the Skatepark of Tampa’s annual Tampa Am contest (and 16th anniversary!) on December 6 at Ybor City’s Czar. Seriously, if you haven’t seen ‘em, treat yourself they’re one of the best live bands around.

MYSPACE.COM/LESSAVYFAV

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 47

REAX INTERVIEWS effort as that’s just what comes out when we get together. Sometimes it’s crazy weird characters, and sometimes it’s more of a challenge to just write a really good pop song. It’ll be interesting when we sit down next time, to see if we’re more conscious of that. But overall, I’d say not really, we didn’t try to balance it out. REAX: Tell me a little bit about your YouTube channel and video series, The Ludo Video Thing. TC: It started as a way to document the making of the record, and we ended up with a camera on us all the time, but a lot of things didn’t get edited. More than anything else, there was just all this stuff we were doing, and we thought we should tape it, because we’re idiots, and we’re funny. And we had more fun with them as we went. It’s just more ideas to make cheap music videos, and skits and character stuff. We created this sort of other outlet. REAX: How important is it that bands utilize all the means possible of reaching, entertaining and communicating with fans? TC: It’s different for every band, and it depends what a band wants, you know? For us, it’s always been about crafting this sort of community, this Ludo culture. We enjoy our fans, and because we started from nothing, completely by ourselves, we know the value of each fan, and that we wouldn’t be able to do it if it weren’t for these people. So it’s always been a real natural thing for us. It’s always been part of being in a band for us, interacting, providing fans with stuff, and listening to them too, whether it’s ‘come play in my town’ or ‘play this song’ or ‘I don’t like this.’

GIVE IT A MINUTE: AN INTERVIEW WITH

LUDO Words: Scott Harrell • Photo: Courtesy of Michael J. Media

ou know ‘em as the guys behind the smarmy show tune gone wrong “Love Me Dead,” or maybe from the Warped Tour. But St. Louis’ Ludo have been crafting an intriguing mix of inside jokes, skewed characters and catchy pop-rock for more than half a decade now, and being a little (or a lot) different than the average allages Next Big Thing has always been on their agenda. REAX recently spoke to keyboardist/vocalist Tim Convy about maintaining that individuality in the face of the band’s up-and-comer status. REAX: There are a lot of tunes that have these insular little stories and characters, almost like inside jokes - do you guys ever worry whether or not some of that stuff is too speciﬁc to resonate with a wide audience? Tim Convy: Yeah, it’s something we think about a little bit. But from the day we started, it’s been something that takes a minute, you know? People kind of scratch

their heads and have to wait to see what’s going on. It’s sort of made it difﬁcult careerwise, because someone could hear a song on the radio and not quite get it, but when they take the time, there’s more there, and they hold on to the band a little tighter, and as a result we’ve got some really serious fans. REAX: Do you ever hear the band being compared to another current act and think, ‘that’s retarded, we don’t sound anything like them?’ TC: That stuff used to bother us a lot more than it does now. It’s pretty obvious that if someone takes a little bit of time, they’re gonna see what we do is pretty far away from what the Plain White Ts do, or whatever. At the same time, it’s young, Midwestern bands, and people tend to group things together. And because there’s humor in what we do, people lump us in with some of those funny pop-punk bands, I won’t name ‘em, but we think what we do is a little more intelligent or original.

PAGE 48 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

REAX: Do you find yourselves looking around at the contemporary pop/rock/ Warped Tour environment, and asking what you can do differently, as far as the music goes? TC: I think we already do so much that’s different. We take pride in being different, you take a little more ownership. On Warped Tour, we probably tried to take things a step further in that direction, just to stand apart - pick the songs that were more unique, instead of the ones that would blend in more. REAX: Is it difficult to balance the more ambitious stuff with the more straightforward stuff? Like, for You’re Awful, was it like, wow, we’ve got a bunch of the crazier stuff here, we need another “Mutiny Below” or “Scream, Scream, Scream”? TC: No. From the beginning, we’ve always been about both those things. And for this album, we tried to fit a lot of different things in. Some worked well, some didn’t so much. I don’t think it’s so much a conscious

REAX: Do you think the younger fans who grew up with iPods and high-speed Internet expect it by now? TC: Yeah, I guess so. Whatever the new technology is, people will demand that we start doing it. ‘My Chemical Romance has a Twitter page, why don’t you?’ I never thought about it, but I guess they do. REAX: What’s the deal with your annual hometown show, A Very Ludo Christmas? TC: All kinds of stuff. This is our fourth or ﬁfth year doing it. It’s pretty insane. There’s a candy cane archway, inﬂatable snowmen, big costumes we rent for friends and family to dress up, Rudolph, Frosty, kids as elves. People run around in the crowd, we serve cookies and hot chocolate. You can have your picture taken with Santa Claus. There’s also some new surprises for this year, it’s a big production. All the bands that play get involved, and Santa comes out to get the show started. It’s always a great way to end our year. Ludo plays this year’s installment of the 97X Next Big Thing show at Tampa’s Ford Amphitheatre on December 7. You’re Awful, I Love You is out now on Island Records.

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REAX INTERVIEWS

finished, and a couple on the back burner. But we’re hoping to demo that stuff at Christmas. REAX: How was the European tour? RY: It ruined me on touring in the U.S. to be honest, they treat you so well. They feed you, you don’t even need money. Then you get back here, and some college kid gives you 30 bucks and tells you to fuck off. No, but it was great, almost every single show there were at least five or ten people that knew the words, so that was pretty cool. REAX: When people started writing and talking about Off With Their Heads, were you surprised that they would always mention how the music offset the lyrics, and that the whole thing ends up being more motivating than depressing? RY: Was I surprised? REAX: Yeah, did you always intend to have that balance? RY: No, it wasn’t something I intended ... I don’t know. Our really really old stuff, it’s more suited to the lyrics. But I realized it was too hard to come up with those difficult songs. Off With Their Heads really came out of a joke, we just thought it was funny to sing songs like that, and have the music be that poppy. But it sort of worked, it was a happy accident I guess.

OFF WITH

THEIR HEADS Words: Colin Kincaid • Photo: Courtesy of No Idea Records

itting the road from Minneapolis in an attempt to escape the bleak, inactive winters that inspired so much of its regaeaholic catharsis, Off With Their Heads melds overtly nihilistic lyrical ventage to meaty yet catchy riffwork. Over the course of half a dozen EPs and split seven-inches, guitarist/singer Ryan Young’s rants have lent Off With Their Heads a persona and reputation all its own; the group’s latest, From The Bottom, is among the fastest-selling full lengths legendary Gainesville imprint No Idea has ever released. REAX: How did you nearly kill one large fish while recording From The Bottom? Ryan Young: There was a giant oscar in the aquarium in the mixing room, and I was trying to clean the tank ‘cause I was bored. I got the fish stuck in the net, and I couldn’t get it out, so I had to pretty much surgically remove it. The fish floated on

top of the water for about a day and a half, then kicked back to life. I actually felt kind of bad. REAX: Was writing something like “Terrorist Attack?” [about the Minneapolis bridge collapse] any different for you than the ﬁrst-person stuff? Did you feel like you were stepping out of your comfort zone at all? RY: It kind of was. It was really weird to me to actually be doing something about something like that. But in the same sense, it actually did affect me on the same level, so it’s sort of the same thing. Pissed me off, made me angry. So it was a comfortable step outside my boundaries. [Laughs] REAX: So do you still have the same lineup that recorded the album? RY: It varies, we still play with everybody, but for these long tours our drummer Justin [Francis] doesn’t do all of it, he ﬂies in when he can and we have other people

PAGE 50 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

fill in the gaps. And we have a new bass player, who’s played with us before, who just swithced over to full-time touring. Nate [Ganglehoff], who played bass on the record, is also in Banner Pilot, and has a real job where he only gets a couple of weeks off for touring, and he uses it for his main band. REAX: Do you and Justin have a secret poll about how long certain people are gonna last? RY: I think we probably both separately do, but we’ve never talked about it. [Laughs] This thing we’ve got going now actually seems to work. It took a while to find the right people. REAX: Did you get the next album finished before you guys left for Europe? RY: No. That’s the rumor I keep hearing, and a lot of interviews I did over there asked that. But that’s not even close to being true. We’ve got about four songs

REAX: Does living in Minneapolis influence the lyrics and the music? RY: Oh, yeah. That town is kind of a miserable place to be for some people, like me. [Laughs] Other people like it a lot. The only thing to do there is go to bars, and see the same people, be cold and have a miserable, generally low paying job. I guess that’s something every town could relate to, I just don’t like it there, I’m more based in Chicago now. REAX: That’s become one of my favorite places in the world. RY: Yeah. It’s still new to me, and Chicago’s so huge it’s just a whole new world to discover. You can find any kind of food, find anything funny or dumb to do. Good people, too. I’ve discovered I had a lot more friends from there than I thought. REAX: Is Off With Their Heads therapeutic for you? RY: Absolutely. I told the guys if we break up, I’m going to lose my mind. Maybe that’s why we haven’t over 15 members. It’s definitely been more of an outlet than I realized it would be when I started. Off With Their Heads in Florida: December 11 - Nobby’s, St. Augustine December 12 - The Atlantic, Gainesville December 13 - House of Pain, Miami December 14 - The Zoo Bar, Ft. Lauderdale December 15 - House Show, Orlando December 16 - Star Booty, St. Petersburg December 17 - Transitions Art Gallery at Skatepark of Tampa, Tampa

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SOAPBOX NEW RELEASES ISSUE 31

DEC 02

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THE DECEMBERISTS ALWAYS THE BRIDESMAID - VOL. 3 JEALOUS BUTCHER

DEC 09

Akon R. Stevie Moore ...Trail of Dead

GENGHIS TRON

BOARD UP THE HOUSE REMIXES - VOL. 4

ANTICON.

Black Lips

JAN 06

LIVE IN CHICAGO FUELED BY RAMEN

Universal Park The Van Richter Scale

VAMPIRE WEEKEND THE KIDS DON’T STAND A CHANCE XL RECORDINGS

We Did Not Know The Forest Spirit Made The Flowers (Green Vinyl) Dark End of the Street EP Universal Mind Control So, Who’s Paranoid? Curtain Speeches LA EP (2x12”) Four Minute Mile (vinyl reissue) Dirtbox 12” Remixes

Bomp! Records Matador Geffen English Channel Asthmatic Kitty Warp Doghouse Warp Polyvinyl

Welcome To Scotland Live at the Showbox DVD The Finally EP BBC/ Peel Sessions Weller at the BBC Brighten The Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition Live LP Year of Explorers Welcome To The Welcome Wagon

Soledad Brothers The Magniﬁcents Welcome Wagon

JOY DIVISION IN THE STUDIO... (LP)

OZIT/CARGO UK

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JAN 13/20

PANIC AT THE DISCO

Freedom Special Needs Festival Thyme (single)

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SABERTOOTH OLD DAYS & THE ISLAND ARENA ROCK

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DOMINO

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PAGE 52 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

LABEL

Get Guilty The Crying Light Skin of Evil Blood Bank EP You and I Major General Vacilando Territory Blues The Blood of Life Fantasy Black Channel Light Poles and Pines Mirror Eye Immolate Yourself All of Us In Our Night Cheerleader

One Little Indian Yep Roc Bomp/Alive Ozit/ Cargo UK Yep Roc Empyrean Arena Rock

MATT & KIM GRAND FADER

Matador Secretly Canadian Soft Abuse Jagjaguwar Frenchkiss Fistolo Records Western Vinyl Fire Astralwerks Seany The Social Registry Bpitch Control Modern Skirts Second Motion

BOOK REVIEWS SOAPBOX ISSUE 31

BOOK REVIEW

BY NEIL GAIMAN

BY DEREK HESS & KENT SMITH

THE GRAVEYARD BOOK

espite all the marketing hoopla letting fans know that the new book by the creator of Sandman, American Gods and many other titles is for younger readers, the only real indications in the book itself are the web addresses for publisher Harper Collins’ children’s division and Gaiman’s own kid-centric mousecircus.com. And that’s a good thing, because, like the Harry Potter series and Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book - to which Gaiman’s latest serves as something of an homage - The Graveyard Book is really for anyone who still retains a bit of the child in their imagination. Also, how many children’s books open on a dark, strange man creeping through a house late at night, with a bloody knife in his hand? The Graveyard Book is the story of a baby who fortuitously happens to pick the night his family is murdered to climb out of his crib, through the open front door and up the street to the centuries-old cemetery that’s devolved into something more akin to the neighborhood park. He is taken in by the ghosts that haunt the graveyard - and an enigmatic father ﬁgure with one foot in the world of the living and one in the world of the dead - and given the unlikely name of Nobody, or Bod for short. The spooks become the proverbial village it takes to raise the child, and the cemetery becomes his world, at least until he’s old enough for test runs into the “real world” for school and food, and to satisfy his growing senses of curiosity and confusion about where he belongs. Eventually, it becomes obvious that Bod is meant for the land of the living - right about the time the dark, strange man rediscovers the trail for which he never stopped searching, forcing a climactic confrontation.

It’s a wonderful, and wonderfully imagined, story, one enhanced by two of Gaiman’s most impressive talents. The first is his knack for casually making the impossible seem perfectly normal; the second is his the way he deftly touches on life’s Big Themes - friendship, love, responsibility, morality - without over using them to beat the reader over the head. The details are so inspired and interesting, the characters so resonantly human (even when they’re, you know, not human), you never get the feeling they’re just window dressing for The Point. And Dave McKean’s sketchy, semi-impressionist and somehow dreamlike illustrations provide equally alluring visual accompaniment. Of course, the lack of sex and graphically detailed violence give away the author’s intended audience. But the tale is so engaging, so simultaneously unique and familiar, that older readers who don’t read specifically for that stuff won’t miss it. The Graveyard Book is a darkly tinged legend that will satisfy fans of everything from fantasy and horror to classic lit like Lord of the Flies and the aforementioned Kipling - of all ages, and kid-specific web addresses be damned. (HARPER COLLINS)

PLEASE GOD SAVE US

ven those music fans who’ve never heard the name Derek Hess have probably seen some of the Cleveland-based artist’s work before, if only in passing while perusing the local indie record store Hess has created poster art and CD covers for bands like Pantera, Pearl Jam, Sepultura, Unearth and Motion City Soundtrack, and his savage, multi-stroked pen and ink style is instantly recognizable. Its visceral nature often evokes ... not violence, exactly, but certainly a harshness, a sense of seething, of frustration in danger of boiling over. And in Please God Save Us, it perfectly expresses the book’s outrage at the Bush administration, religious hypocrisy and oppressive conservatism in general. Yeah, I know - Bush-bashing isn’t exactly an untapped well when it comes to fodder for creative expression. But Please God Save Us captures for posterity the material from a 2006 Hess show titled Please God Save Us From Your Followers, back when hating on the president was, if not cutting-edge, then at least timely. Here, the savvy and ultramodern art - mostly combinations of pen and ink, acrylics and repurposed found items like religious tracts - is collected, and paired with a series of essays by writer, educator and City Democratic Leader for Euclid, Ohio Kent Smith. The images of Hess’ artwork are arresting and wildly provocative. Crosses become swastikas. Fossilized ﬁsh devour the Christian symbol that resembles them. The heads of decapitated “red elephants” (Hess’ depiction of hawkish neocon war proﬁteers) settle on pikes in front of the White House. The words of the religious right damning rock ‘n’ roll and the unfaithful are twisted to betray their own. Angels and demons

hover above troops and aborted fetuses. This is not something you’ll be wanting to give as a Christmas gift to anyone who’s bummed about McCain losing. The pieces are beautiful, in their own raw way, and you have to marvel at the facility of Hess’ imagination. And there are plenty of them to pore over - many pages feature several evolving takes on the same idea, and each new page brings fresh, powerful outrage. The book’s only major drawback - assuming the reader is on the same political page, of course - is Smith’s writing. He’s got a clean, clear style, and he knows his facts, but there’s little passion. What the essays boil down to are the same statistics, uncovered lies, Fox News garroting and strong lefty opinions we’ve been reading in alternative weeklies and on the web for the last eight years. Wasn’t it fucked up when Bush stood on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln in March 2003 in front of a banner that said “Mission Accomplished”? Isn’t it fucked up that Halliburton is making billions off the war? Doesn’t it suck when selfrighteous assholes try to force their own beliefs on everybody? Yes, yes and yes, but it’s difﬁcult to conceive of a well-informed liberal who isn’t at least a little sick of the same old talking points. The writing doesn’t detract from Hess’ visuals, though, and that is more that worth the price of admission to Please God Save Us, whether you’d like your righteous indignation stoked, or just like to look at some killer art. (STRHESS PRESS)

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 53

SOAPBOX DVD REVIEW ISSUE 31

SMASHING PUMPKINS: IF ALL GOES WRONG In the summer of 2007, the Smashing Pumpkins made their return to the United States. Instead of a traditional tour to support the release of Zeitgeist, original members Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain opted for a progressive approach. In an effort to gel the band and stimulate the musical process, they chose to do two residencies, a nine-night stint in Asheville, North Carolina and another eight-night stand (which eventually grew to eleven shows) at the historic Filmore in San Francisco. The purpose of these shows was unique. It put both the band and fans in the same bubble, trapping the energies, both good and bad, and transferring them between fan, band, venue and town. For a $20 ticket fans were allowed in during the day to hear soundchecks, and treated to threehour-plus shows nearly nightly. These performances saw the band playing hits, b-sides, lost favorites, reworked classics, new music, and songs written throughout the engagement and even the day of the show. If All goes Wrong examines these residencies, watching the band evolve through the contrasting experiences of Asheville and San Francisco. More importantly, it gives an inside glimpse into their songwriting process. Asheville welcomes the band warmly. Shots of fans and the town are intercut with live performances and the band speaking frankly about their return. A good portion of footage features Corgan secluded in his room at the Biltmore Estate, eating raw veggies and working tirelessly on songs while donning some sort of Victorian nightgown. One song, “The Leaving Lament,” is an open letter to Asheville, regretting the band’s departure. The giddy excitement of North Carolina turns into stunning disbelief in San Francisco as their first shows lose the audience. After walking backstage for the first encore Chamberlain gasps, “Three hours of fucking quiet misery;” compared to Asheville, the proverbial wheels fall off in Cali. The songwriting and drama continue as the band battles back throughout the residency. This is a strong point of the film, a vivid, unflinching look at a band in peril, showing the adversity and using it as a point of development.

PAGE 54 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

The song “Peace and Love” is born of the Filmore experience. An ironic jab at a city supposedly built on peace that is now filled with “aggro homeless hippies with trust funds.” Some 15 songs were written during the Filmore stint, each reflecting different parts of the experience. (A handful of these songs later appear on their American Gothic EP.) The movie also looks at the group of hired musicians being molded into a band. Jeff Schroeder, Ginger Reyes, and Lisa Harriton are thrown headlong into the experience. Four hours of rehearsal, soundchecks, and three-hour shows have the band playing over eight hours a day. The group has to learn nearly 60 songs to keep up with the set lists Billy writes minutes before the shows. There is a moment when new guitarist Schroeder unravels under a series of sound issues and loses it backstage; this breakdown is seen as a milestone in their evolution as a band. When SP debuts “Superchrist” halfway through the San Fran shows, it’s a highlight, an over-the-top guitar and drum assault which seems to lash out at critics and a tepid audience. The documentary uses this as a turning point, a place where the Pumpkins earn back the respect of the city through sheer force of rock. We see the chords and phrasing for “The Rose March” coming to Corgan in a flash. The next day is spent flushing out the song, with shots of Corgan working on the song appearing in split-screen, culminating in the song being performed that very night. Watching “99 Floors” go from concept to full-band arrangement is another high point, as the viewer watches it transform from a fly-on-the-wall perspective. The DVD also includes Voices of the Ghost Children, a vignette featuring fans in and around the shows lending their interpretations of the band. There is also an interview with Pete Townshend, tying in The Who’s attempts at a residency in 1971. Disc 2 features 15 songs from the Filmore shows, with solid performances of “Starla” and the free-form epic “Gossamer,” that are worth the price alone, as well as a rehearsal featuring five of the songs written during this period. Love or hate the Pumpkins, If All Goes Wrong lends unique perspective to the rock documentary. It shows a storied band unapologetically surging forward, on their terms, for the sake of art. (COMING HOME MEDIA) - John Prinzo

MUSIC REVIEWS SOAPBOX ISSUE 31

DELICIOUS PRETTY GOOD OK AT BEST UGH INEDIBLE

TOBACCO

FUCKED UP FRIENDS The infamous Tom Fec is frontman for Black Moth Super Rainbow, and goes by the alias Tobacco. Fucked Up Friends, Tobacco’s latest batch of largely instrumental jams, mixes a variety of synths, live & sampled drums and a ‘70s video game aesthetic to produce a seriously kooky collection. All kinds of images spring to mind: Super Mario running along throwing fireballs; shifting gears & accelerating past Formula One cars in Pole Position; a montage of video highlights from the X Games. On the track “Dirt,” Aesop Rock announces “Honey Bunches of Oats is the greatest cereal created by man” before delivering adequate raps on a track that wouldn’t seem out of place on a Def Jux album. “Dirt” could actually be the track that misleads listeners into buying Fucked Up Friends, only to find it is the only track with proper vocals. “Side 8” is part Konami Castlevania game music meets Spectre, or some other WordSound minimal hip-hop. “Yum yum cult” is make-out music for some terrible Troma film - hilariously tender and quietly odd. I can’t imagine Fucked Up Friends as anything more than a kind of DJ tool something to scratch and layer sounds over - but its saving grace is the buried yet everpresent sense of humor. At times I find it easy to imagine I am listening to Broken Social Scene’s attempt at a Casino Vs Japan record, but … if only. In spite of all the Casio-esque corn, Goblin/Argento moodiness and tacky Nintendo flavors, Tobacco has produced an album of heavily filtered savoriness. For fans of the Moog, Carpark and EL-P instrumentals. (ANTICON.) - Lance Robson

GRAMPALL JOOKABOX ROPECHAIN

For his second album - reportedly conceived and written in the bare space of a week - David “Grampall Jookabox” Adamson has assembled an above-average collection of junk-shop tunes incorporating guitars, beats, found sounds, and a whole lot of faux white soul that would be cheesy, were it not so engaging. Generally, this sort of post-Beck song-building is novel at best, but Adamson’s unique blend of grit, wit and whimsy transcends momentary diversion to create stuff you’ll actually want to listen to again a few Cool New Things down the road. (ASTHMATIC KITTY) - Scott Harrell

SAOSIN

THE GREY EP I have a soft spot in my heart for bands that know their role. While it’s always a pleasure to hear something sublimely unique, I’ve found that too many bands feel the need to expand drastically from the sound that initially made them popular and end up creating music that no longer creates that special bond with listeners. On Saosin’s new tour- and hurley.com-exclusive EP The Grey, the Newport Beach five-piece sticks to the formula that got them where they are today by crafting melodic, energized posthardcore songs with anthemic choruses and emotional lyrics. The two acoustic songs featured on the EP are a bit meandering and lacking in the structure needed to pull off a stripped-down arrangement (the redux “Come Close” comes off as especially lacking after hearing it as a full, electrified production), but the three new offerings are great examples of what made Saosin Saosin. This EP probably won’t grab the ears of many new listeners if the band’s self-titled full length didn’t draw them in, but it is a fine bridge to keep interested fans in the loop until the next album drops in ‘09. Saosin obviously knows what their role is, and they fill it well. (HURLEY) - Scott Jenson

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THE SUPERVILLAINS MASSIVE

Long-running Orlando ska-punk/ reggae act The Supervillians are back with their second release for Law records, Massive. It’s chock full of amazing grooves, at times mellow, at others rocking in the vein of Destruction By Deﬁnition-era Suicide Machines. There’s also some Latin inﬂuence, and the band isn’t afraid to mine the Third Wave heyday of Moon Records bands. Musically, it’s great. Lyrically, however, is another story. It’s very clear this is an album by stoners for stoners. As such, the lyrics are sophomoric at best, and at their worst make Trace Adkins (you know, the guy who wrote “Honkey Tonk Ba-Donk-A-Donk”) come off like Shakespeare. Plus, a recorded bit of a guy too stoned to talk and over 18 minutes of the band thanking people at the end? Awesome. Still, that’s part of their appeal. The Supervillians don’t seem to take it all too seriously, and really, isn’t that what you want from a party band? (LAW RECORDS) - Timothy Asher

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 55

SOAPBOX REVIEWS ISSUE 31

THE SOUNDS OF ANIMALS FIGHTING

THE OCEAN AND THE SUN Hell yeah! Portishead meets John Zorn at a Mr. Bungle show - the sounds of waking the dead and inviting them to dance to this eclectic set of sexy, murderous, and brainy grooves. A young girl reciting a monologue in a foreign tongue serves as the red carpet to insanity, as well as the introduction to this brilliantly produced and executed work of mysteriously heavy art. The Ocean and the Sun provokes all of the scattered emotions of metal, mixed with the introspective heartbreak of Joe Jackson. This is not the ﬁrst rodeo for these enigmatic, dark-art-powered maestros; in fact, it’s their third release. If you are a fan of anyone I have mentioned, get your wood screws out and allow The Sound of Animals Fighting to blow your doors clean off. (EPITAPH) - Jack Gregory

RAPHAEL SAADIQ THE WAY I SEE IT

Temptations disciple Raphael Saadiq just beat out 007 and ice cubes in a cool contest. His throwback style has more soul than a shoe factory. Soda fountains think this guy has retro down pat … you get the point. The man is fly, and on The Way I See It, he channels a radiant, doo-wop-era rhythm and blues that tips a suede top hat to Berry Gordy and Phil Spector. “Keep Marchin’” reconnects with the effortless groove of early Motown classics, exuding a lighthearted confidence laced in tambourine percussion and backing falsetto. “Just One Kiss” pops with orchestral flourishes and female harmonies, but neither element matches the zeal of the showstopping lead vocal. How does one account for Saadiq’s silky delivery? Like satin pajamas and the other side of the pillow, some things are naturally smooth. (COLUMBIA) - Robert J. Hilson

SHEARWATER

THE SNOW LEOPARD Fans of Shearwater, an Okkervil River/ Kingﬁsher offshoot, can add this eighttrack EP to their Christmas wish list. These songs are stuffed to the gills with aching and moodiness - further augmented by the semitheatrical, Jeff Buckley-ish vocal stylings of Jonathan Meiburg. Close your eyes when you listen to the soaring title track, and you will see a gray sky on a cold morning and a ﬁeld of dead winter grass. Dig in a little deeper for

a few more somber ballads and a handful of live tracks (including one that clocks in at nine minutes 47 seconds). Call me weird, but the 3rd track “North Col” has echoes of a roving renaissance fair feel. Eclectic, that’s for sure. (MATADOR) - Susie Ulrey

PUNCHLINE

JUST SAY YES It would be easy to dismiss Punchline’s Just Say Yes as the latest in a long line of diabetes–inducing, hook-laden pop rock, but unlike current radio wunderkinds My Chemical Romance or Fall Out Boy it doesn’t come off as pretentious or calculated. “Get Off My Train” is an almost perfectly crafted single; if life were fair, you’d be hearing this on the airwaves instead of the current dreck. “Ghostie” is sure to coin a new catchphrase for your withdrawn signiﬁcant other, and the title track has Minus the Bear undertones, bringing a welcome, surreal moment. On the downside, while the hooks go on for miles, like the Texas landscape, they are remarkably similar. Still, for unabashed pop rock, it’s far and above the standard fare. (MODERN SHORT STORIES) - Timothy Asher

OHGR

DEVILS IN MY DETAILS There was a time when just mentioning the name Skinny Puppy would seem to evoke dread and disgust in those who had heard their records or seen them live. That was another time, though; this reviewer was not much of a fan of Skinny Puppy or industrial, but the band and the genre did, and I suppose still do, have their place. Industrial music’s past or current status in the collective consciousness probably had nothing to do with Nivok Ogre & Mark Walk choosing to release Devils In My Details, but it is nonetheless of passing interest to suppose about. This is all-new material, although the thin mix, loud drum machine, and sparse instrumentation are surprisingly close to oldschool Wax Trax recordings, and novices might ﬁnd it difﬁcult to identify this as a 2008 release. In spite of referencing the tried and true template, Devils all but fails to conjure up any of the sanguine lyrics and disgusting tones that made Skinny Puppy moving, whether you liked them or not. Granted, this is not unexpected, since Nivok Ogre’s post-Skinny Puppy output has dabbled with electro-pop and trip-hop styles. The best of the material on Devils In My Details includes “Timebomb” and “Whitevan,” which have kind of a demented Gary Numan quality to them. “Feelin’ Chicken” is just bizarre, in a Silence of the Lambs meets Monty Python kind of way. Am I missing something? Recommended for fans of Skinny Puppy, Alice Cooper and vampire novels. (SPV/SYNTHETIC SYMPHONY) - Lance Robson

PAGE 56 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

JAPANTHER

TUT TUT NOW SHAKE YA BUTT Yet another response to what the punk rock kids do when they get bored - too much talking and not enough rocking. When Japanther rocks they tear that shit up, straight up soul-doubt, I-hate-my-mom-anddad style suburban punk rock, fucking brilliant. Where I fell asleep was the nearly 20 minutes (which I was counting) of two awful tracks ﬁlled with senseless short stories and little to no music. The only thing worse than someone trying to be avante garde is that same person telling you that they are. Maybe I am getting old and don’t know where the groove is anymore, or maybe the youth have ﬁnally lost their taste in music, or maybe, just maybe, Japanther are as clever as they think they are. (WANTAGE) - Jack Gregory

LITTLE JOY LITTLE JOY

Ever wondered what would happen if the Girl from Ipanema bumped into one of The Strokes in a Tiki bar in Waikiki? Meet Little Joy. A happenstance collaboration between Fabrizio Moretti and Los Hermanos crooner Rodrigo Amarante, the debut album from the prince of New York and his new Brazilian bud taps into a wistful, pre-rock ‘n roll sound brimming with bossa nova charm and Rat Pack cool. Chock full of ukulele, staccato guitar, and Love-styled horns, these woozily delicate lounge-pop songs - especially melodic standouts “Keep Me in Mind” and “Brand New Start,” - carve out a singular niche: irony-free indie for hipsters who dig hula and Frank Sinatra. This might well be a come-and-go one-off, so here’s hoping LJ’s aloha means hello, not goodbye. (ROUGH TRADE) - Robert J. Hilson

LENKA LENKA

Here’s the list that marketing execs at Epic records made sure to check twice before Lenka’s self-titled debut hit the shelves, ensuring lucrative television licensing deals and high-proﬁle attention: 1. One-word name (Duffy, Adele, Feist, etc). 2. Sing-song hummable lead track/single. (if it’s malleable enough to be reworded for a guest spot on Sesame Street, even better!) 3. Lyrics should include obvious realizations clearly enunciated in order to accommodate cue edits (for when principal characters are breaking down, breaking up, making out or making up). 4. The

singer in question should have teased hair and a coy countenance. If you want her stylist to get crazy and slap some winged eyeliner and fake lashes on, no one’s stopping you. 5. Load up the album with harmless, shiny, catchy songs delivered with a wink and a smile. Congratulations, Lenka! You are ﬁve for ﬁve. What have you won? A full page spread in Entertainment Weekly, along with the ears of Grey’s Anatomy and 90210 fans. And you get to help hock Old Navy clothes made by child laborers in Malaysia. Lucky you. (EPIC) - Susie Ulrey

TWO COW GARAGE

SPEAKING IN CURSIVE The fourth album by Columbus, Ohio’s most raucous and underappreciated altcountry-associated rockers tones down the volume, but sacriﬁces little in terms of impact. Sure, the production could’ve been a lot louder; the punk- and drunk-ass end of the fan spectrum certainly expected it. But with some of Two Cow’s best songs to date particularly the marvelous three-fer of “Brass Ring,” “Folksinger’s Heart” and “Bastards and Bridesmaids” - and a spotlight trained on the group’s formerly overlooked penchant for details and dynamics (here expanded on expertly by new full-time keyboardist Andy Schell), Speaking in Cursive succeeds as more than a hammered ‘n’ heartbroken good time. It signals a bid for serious consideration for inclusion in the canon of revered, rocking contemporary singer-songwriter groups like Will Johnson’s Cento-Matic and Ryan Adams’ Cardinals, and, more often than not, it delivers the goods. (SUBURBAN HOME) - Colin Kincaid

I SET MY FRIENDS ON FIRE

YOU CAN’T SPELL SLAUGHTER WITHOUT LAUGHTER Let’s get the rhinoceros out of the corner: yes, the main reason people know of this band is because of their grindcore version of Soulja Boy’s “Crank That.” Here’s the thing, though - don’t hold it against them. Miami duo Nabil Moo and Matt Mihana have managed to do something interesting with the rest of the album, namely go from brutal grindcore into the sweetest of pop while stopping by screamo and electronica on the way. Most of the lyrics are unintelligible screams/growls, so they might be talking about unicorns and puppies, but who cares? The schizophrenic nature of You Can’t Spell Slaughter Without Laughter almost compels you to keep listening. Yes, it’s obnoxious there’s the underlying feeling throughout that an elaborate joke is being played, one you’re not in on. Whether the joke is on you or the industry as a whole remains to be seen. (EPITAPH) - Timothy Asher

REVIEWS SOAPBOX ISSUE 31

THE MORNING LIGHT THE MORNING LIGHT

These cleancut, good-lookin’ nor’easters are bringing 11 tracks of California sunshine all the way from the steely city of Pittsburgh. The high points of this album come in the form of Beach Boys-style harmonies. Lyrically, it’s just a collection of over-strummed heart strings - “I once knew a girl,” “how do I tell you I love you,” “she got away,” etc. - the dribble pours out and covers the entire record. I can appreciate the upbeat, wistful mood that The Morning Light is in, but unfortunately I just can’t bear the sugar madness. The playing, however, is top-notch, with clever note choices and radiant melodies. I did ﬁnd a few toe-tappers in the bunch, like the opener “Wake Up!”, but I just can’t jibe with the happy/moronically sad vibe. (FEARLESS) - Jack Gregory

MIDATLANTIC

THE LONGEST SILENCE Do you love chimey tunes that remind you what guitardriven New Wave sounded like before U2 deﬁned its defaults? If you go crazy for heavily chorus’ed, high-onthe-neck guitar parts and bass melodies that actually move around while simultaneously setting a groove, so much so that you’re completely willing to overlook some seriously mundane lyric writing, then Dublin/Boston retro-modern rock act Midatlantic is your new favorite band. This act is adept at melding those features to huge, tidal choruses without sounding too cheesy or overproduced. At the same time, Midatlantic doesn’t shoot for Interpol-esque cred - this is poppy, unabashedly ear-friendly stuff that knows more about Rock Kills Kid than it does Gang of Four or Wire. Having said that, however, this is unarguably familiar, and those of us that still have our Church and Cult albums may ﬁnd ourselves asking why we need an update. (UNDERGROUND SUN) - Colin Kincaid

DEAD TO ME

LITTLE BROTHER Like American Steel and The Gaslight Anthem, Dead To Me are bringing melodic pop-punk back to the masses. The dueling vocals of Jack Dalrymple (One Man Army, Swingin’ Utters) and Chicken (Western Addiction) complement each other well, while Nathan Grice’s guitar work is outstanding. Of the only ﬁve songs here, the standout track is the reggae-tinged “Little Brother.” Reminiscent of the Sandinista! era of The Clash, it laments

how our consumer-driven culture is part of the problem, while “cathode rays entertain the wage slaves.” An overlying theme seems to be fear; not the cowardly, hide-in-the-corner-andcry fear, but the nervousness of interpersonal relationships (“Arrhythmic Palpitations”) and uncertainty of the days ahead (“What’s Wrong”). And while some bands ﬁnd it once again en vogue to stand and preach at you, Dead To Me seem more content to point out a few things and let you mull it over. (FAT WRECK CHORDS) - Timothy Asher

BRING ME THE HORIZON

SUICIDE SEASON Now this is more like it. Not content to ape the screamo/ pop-thrash acts of three Warped Tours ago, this British metalcore unit aims to take your face off with a spastic combination of violent angst, Dillinger Escape Plan-esque chaos, furious blast beats and, well, yeah, okay, a little of that familiar Gothmetal-punk melody. But God, Suicide Season is so much better than most of the records by most of the bands to which they’ll be endlessly compared, because it’s brutal, the kind of disc that’s actually capable of raising your heart rate a bit as it ﬂies by. Most CDs with pictures of ﬁve kids with backwards-ass hair on their reverse sides aren’t worth a second listen; with Suicide Season, repeated listens are mandatory, if only to try to understand what the shit just happened. (VISIBLE NOISE/EPITAPH) - Colin Kincaid

MONKEY

JOURNEY TO THE WEST

www.mojotampa.com | 813.971.9717

2558 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa

Located next theStadium University Mall, in the The Clash: Liveto At Shea same plaza as Chipotle Mexican Grill & Quiznos Epic Records Culled from a 1982 performance opening for The Who, the boos and heckmyspace.com/mojobooksandmusic les, bellowed from a stadium of listeners unaccustomed to early punk, are

eliminated when the seminal band blazes through ﬁfty minutes of their most revered songs. Includes my friend’s favorite Clash tracks “Guns of Brixton” and “Clampdown.” Stereolab: Peng & Space Age Bachelor Music (reissues) (Too Pure) I like krautrock, lounge music, and laser sounds, and if those concepts sprouted into exotic corporeal beings and consummated their impulsive love, the children, when reared on heavy doses of French bop vocals, would most likely be disturbed to discover that a British band from the early 90s abducted their character and designed antiphonal thrushes similar to those in their skulls.

Damon Albarn obviously has an afﬁnity for primates. In his new incarnation as Monkey, the Gorillaz mastermind combines his love of hairy apes and the Far East in Journey to the West, an ambient document that completely rationalizes stiﬂing imagination at a young age. It’s creative if nothing else, melding Oriental instrumentation, electronic beats and the lyrical musings of geishas and dragon kings. “Monkey Bee,” a hypnotic, synthesized rocker, arrives about 20 tracks too late, and proves one of the few passages here to translate cleverness into actual appeal. The spastic chalk-board screech “Battle in Heaven,” on the other hand, is payback enough for years of tainted crayons and chemically activated toys. As the opera progresses, though, the cultural connections emerge. You hit a great wall halfway through. The rest is like watertorture. (XL RECORDINGS) - Robert J. Hilson

www.mojotampa.com | 813.971.9717

MORE REVIEWS AT REAXMUSIC.COM

Located next to the University Mall, in the same plaza as Chipotle Mexican Grill & Quiznos

Malcolm X: His Wit and Wisom Get Back Records Why celebrate Christmas with old standards by Bing Crosby or tales of Rudolph and Frosty, when this spoken word album, documenting Malcolm X’s activity with the Nation Of Islam and his later dissent with founder Elijah Muhammad that brought him to create his own Muslim Mosque, explores an internal voyage toward peace and happiness. Lou Reed: Berlin: Live at St. Ann’s Warehouse Matador Records Haunting chorus and orchestration swirl about Reed’s 2006 live rendition of his 1973 rock opera. Dive through the depressing circumstances of how love and heroin addiction intersect and restrain control upon the heartbreaking relationship of the protagonists. Includes three additional songs not on the original Berlin release: “Sweet Jane,” “Rock Minuet,” and “Candy Says.” Brian Jonestown Massacre: Spacegirl And Other Favorites (reissue) A Records Come and convalesce your eggnog hangover... Will ‘09 be a year of emotional rehabilitation, mental ascension, sluggish stagnation, or a hodgepodge of high/ low circumstances like all the others? Vacation in the mind of Anton and his shoegazing gang of merry pranksters on their very ﬁrst album, reissued on vinyl for the ﬁrst time since its initial release in 1995.

2558 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa

myspace.com/mojobooksandmusic

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 57

SOAPBOX VIDEO GAME REVIEWS ISSUE 31

GAME REVIEW GEARS OF WAR 2:

HIT AND MISS AND KILL, KILL, KILL!

n order to ﬁll the oversized metal boots of the ﬁrst Gears of War, you need a game like, well, Gears of War 2. You’ve downloaded all of the trailers. You’ve taken the bigger, better, and more badass mantra spewed from lead designer Cliff Bleszinski to heart. And the excitement for this highly anticipated sequel in line at the game store around midnight was palpable. How could this game possibly disappoint?

modes - in particular “Horde,” which lets you and four friends ﬁght wave after wave of increasingly difﬁcult foes. Moments in “Horde” become tense and exciting, and really rub in your face the kind of action that the campaign is missing. Whatever you do, though, don’t take all of this naysay to mean that Gears 2 is a bad game. It’s far from it. The graphics and sound are amazing, and chainsawing a locust in half is still the most visceral and rewarding thing ever. And although the campaign is never as immersive as that of its predecessor, Gears of War 2 remains familiar and, frankly, is still one of the very best games that the Xbox 360 has to offer.

In preparation for their sophomore offering, Epic Games seems to have borrowed Halo’s modus operandi. While there are certainly worse formulas to follow, it feels that Microsoft’s influence has led to a more soulless version of the REVIEWED ON game I loved so much back in 2006. The -Trevor Roppolo new weapons, the vehicle sequences and even parts of the story are humorously reminiscent of Bungie’s own opus. At one point you even discover that the locusts are fighting another enemy besides the humans - flood-like monsters that have escaped from a lab - exactly like in Halo. Gears 2’s five-act campaign takes you through some truly beautiful locales, and at times can be a lot of fun. The problem is that in many scenarios the “action” feels like a theme-park haunted house ride where things are just popping out at you as you go by. The pacing seems all wrong; you rarely get too entrenched in the action, and when you do, they bail you out or toss in a cut scene. Boss battles are weak, and usually amount to memorizing the gimmick, like dodging falling spikes or shooting blinking eyes - just as you’ve done in every game since the ‘80s. And then some acts are just plain bad. One act actually has you traversing through the belly of a giant worm until you sever its arteries with your lancer. While inside the worm, the game strangely morphs in to a platformer where you’re dodging chewing teeth and shooting at things that can only be described as giant buttholes - why, Epic, why? The game’s saving grace is in its online

PAGE 58 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • DECEMBER 2008

XBOX 360

HANDS ON PRODUCT REVIEW SOAPBOX ISSUE 31

Last month I viciously gouged the allegorical eyes out of Tech 21’s new series of guitar effects pedals for being redundant and generally awful. This month I will sing the praises of the Sansamp GT2, a musical instrument pedal so necessary that every guitarist, bassist and recording studio should have one. What happens if your amp breaks on a gig? If you have this you can run direct and still sound good. Guitar amp sounds cheesy and cold, or your bass has no balls? Plug into the GT2. It saved a show on my last tour when the ON switch broke off my amp and electrocuted me. Had I not had the GT2 I would have been doomed. If you are on tour, in the studio, or just want to sound better, you need a GT2.

This has got to be one of the greatest and weirdest things on the web. A free web page of want ads, personals, chat boards, and usually unintentional comedy and inspiration, all organized by speciﬁc categories and cities. I have gained much from this website. I bought a red ‘70s Jaguar sports car that almost killed me, and was able to sell it again immediately, and went right back out with the money and got a red ‘70s Honda motorcycle instead to ﬁnish off the job. I located a black baby goat to rent for a music video on short notice. Sit some stuff out on your curb that you don’t want, post a picture of it and it magically disappears! And if you ever feel bad about your life, one perusal of the personal ads on here can make you feel assured that there will always be desperate, insane and depraved people out there that make you look like a celebrity and saint by comparison. www.craigslist.org

www.Tech21.com

Until last week I thought these were supposed to be used for origami. www.job-paper.com

Know what a ﬂash mob is? No? OK, well, it’s basically when you get together a large group of people (50-1000) and do a particular pre-arranged performance art act, like everyone shows up in the town roundabout during rush hour and a few hundred people all start blowing up red balloons. Why? Who the hell cares why? It’s a spectacle. Since it’s the holidays, nothing is more subversive than attaching some sacred image - like Santa Claus - to some mass public act. We can worry about the “motivation” or “point we are trying to make” later. So, I am going to go out and get a Santa costume. You do the same. We will all meet next Thursday. You know the place. See you then, and bring a friend. www.mysantasuit.com

I admit it. I like egg nog, and the Melvins record of the same name is decent too. But whatever you do, under no circumstances should you ever have more than two tall glasses of egg nog in one sitting, particularly if that egg nog is made by Scott Jenson, the distribution manager and street team rabble-rouser for REAX. If you do, you are saying that you are OK about the police or local security getting involved with you in some way. Seriously though, have a designated driver this holiday season. Death by drunkeness and automobile, while something of a rock ‘n’ roll tradition, is not a good thing - just ask Razzle from Hanoi Rocks. www.melvins.com

DECEMBER 2008 • REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE • PAGE 59

thxmgmt

www.thxmgmtlive.com

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12.13.08

* DJ Fader Welcome Home Party & BBQ 1pm - 6pm | $5 | All Ages!

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12.27.08

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