REAX #39 by Joel

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CONTENTS

INSIDE: SOUNDCHECK 08

Publisher: Joel Cook

jcook@reaxmusic.com

INTRODUCTION

CALL & RESPONSE 10

READER MAIL / CONTRIBUTORS

SEE SOMETHING SAY SOMETHING 11 12

DEAR GLOFFY Advice From Jeremy YOUR BAND BLOWS Point & Click DJs:

STEP BY STEP How To:

14 16

Hide Your Shame

Write the Great American Novel ARTBEAT Bask & B. Askew: A Conversation ARTBEAT Pericles

SOUNDBITES 18 19 20 22

SUNSET RUBDOWN A Bigger Kind of Kill THE PAUSES SIN FANG BOUS Listen to Your Crazy Voice BLIND MAN’S COLOUR Old School w/ New Tools

SPECIAL FEATURE 24

SUMMER JAM 5 A Tradition of Diversity

REAX INTERVIEWS 26 28 30 32 34

HEARTLESS BASTARDS Under The Inﬂuence FRUIT BATS In Good Company MUNICIPAL WASTE No Mimicry, No Gimmickry THE POSTMARKS A Scene From the Cinema JUDAS PRIEST Delivering The Goods

SOAPBOX 36 38 41 42 43

PRODUCT PLACEMENT UPCOMING RELEASES / MUSIC REVIEWS BOOK REVIEW VIDEO GAME REVIEW HANDS ON PRODUCT REVIEW w w/ SHAWN KYLE

YOU ARE HERE

GUILTY

A LOCAL GUIDE

TAMPA

44 46 47

HOTSPOTS / SPOTLIGHTS HOTSPOTS / VENUE SPOTLIGHT TAMPA BAY EVENTS

50 52 53

HOTSPOTS / ARTIST SPOTLIGHT HOTSPOTS / SPOTLIGHTS ORLANDO EVENTS

54 55

HOTSPOTS / SPOTLIGHTS GAINESVILLE EVENTS

56 58 60

HOTSPOTS / ARTIST SPOTLIGHT HOTSPOTS / SPOTLIGHTS JACKSONVILLE & NE FLORIDA EVENTS

EVENTS / SPOTLIGHTS

ORLANDO

Queen: Finnie Cook ﬁnniec@reaxmusic.com Editor: Scott Harrell scott@reaxmusic.com Art Director: Mike Delach delach@reaxmusic.com

Photography: Tony Landa landa@reaxmusic.com Circulation Manager: Scott Jenson scottj@reaxmusic.com

Sales Associates: Emily LaDuca (Jacksonville/Regional) emily@reaxmusic.com Shawn Kyle (Tampa) shawn@reaxmusic.com Marshall Dickson (Regional) marshall@reaxmusic.com Jimmie Walker (Regional) jimmie@reaxmusic.com Conrad Petzinger (Pinellas) conrad@reaxmusic.com

Contributors: Timothy Asher Joe D’Acunto Jason Ferguson Chris Gaughan Jeremy Gloff Shawn Goldberg Jack Gregory Justine Grifﬁn Robert J. Hilson Colin Kincaid Joel Mora Becca Nelson Susie Orr Ryan Patrick Hooper Cole Porterhouse Matt Powell John Prinzo Michael Rabinowitz Trevor Roppolo Evan Tokarz Nick Truden Susie Ulrey Carrie Waite

Interns: Alexis Quinn Chamberlain Emily Dwyer Benjamin Evans Christopher Golden Palmer Holmes Mary Manchess Andrew Pellegrino

Chris Anderson (Orlando) chris.anderson@reaxmusic.com

Bask did the cover for us this month (with a little help from Tes, of course) and we think it’s great! Be sure to check out his art show, “Lucky You” at REAX Space on August 28th! REAX Music Magazine P.O. Box 5809 Tampa, FL 33675 Phone: 813.247.6975 www.reaxmusic.com

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

JACKSONVILLE

SOUTHEAST FLORIDA

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

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.

SOUNDCHECK INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION Words: Scott Harrell • Photo of Bask & B. Askew: Joel Cook

humbing through this month’s issue while you’re having a pint or a bite or perhaps privately divesting yourself of those things - you might notice a few subtle differences in the content. There’s no “big” band like Sonic Youth or even Propagandhi or Animal Collective on the cover, or even a theme, really - we just asked one of our favorite artists who’s featured in the issue, Bask, to give us something cool, and he did. There’s a feature on a band - Judas Priest - that isn’t exactly a hot contemporary commodity, or going to be one in the coming months; we just had an opportunity to get an interview, and we did it, because Judas Priest is awesome. The local and regional coverage is bleeding back out of its dedicated sections, and soaking the Soundbites and special features in homegrown Florida talent. Is this an indication of a new direction for REAX? We honestly couldn’t tell you. A good magazine is a living thing, constantly evolving and adapting to its cultural environment. At the

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

same time, a good magazine doesn’t freak out and start offering speculative commentary on the stock market to a readership that’s more interested in great rising acts like Heartless Bastards and The Postmarks. And REAX will always do what it was intended to do celebrate worthy music and culture, from our hometown scenes and everywhere else. We’re just stretching our legs a bit, feeling out some new avenues. And we’ll continue to do so. But what we really want to know is, what do you think? We’ve said a million times before, and it will always be true: This thing is as much yours as it is ours. So let us know what you think we’re doing right or wrong, or what you think we should be doing that we’re not. Times are tight in the magazine business. We need to be able to count on our community, and the least we can do in return is take your thoughts to heart. reax@reaxmusic.com

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

920 W. KENNEDY BLVD. TAMPA

813-250-0208

CALL & RESPONSE READER MAIL

JOSHUA BURTON

Joshua Burton grew up on the “mean” streets of the Los Angeles suburbs listening to music and collecting comics. After graduating college he could have gone on and written long stories about politics and stuff but “decided” that art and music was more important.

FROM REAXMUSIC.COM RE: “Review: WMNF Americana Fest, Tampa, 07/11” by Evan Tokarz “You are a putz.” - Posted by Mike, July 13

RE: “Summertime In The City: Celebrating Jacksonville’s Hip Hop Community” by Alexis Quinn Chamberlain and Scott Harrell

(which I don’t have a problem with ... IF things were going smoothly) ... and there were so many problems with the sound and feedback, and mics not working, sound guys not paying attention, etc. “But here’s to bigger and better things ... because all in all ... it was an awesome time ... got to see some amazing acts .... I love Nerdcore” - Posted by TheWhizKid, July 15 “It’s awesome to see everyone from new rappers to the biggest acts performing under one roof. Now we need the equivalent on the west coast!

“1520 N Main St. See ya’ll there!

“For nerdcore fans, you might be interested in my interview with Don Vito from RhymeTorrents.org. http://www.talkwithtim. com/interviews/geek-funk-master-donvito-talks-music-and-admin-access “ - Posted by TimM, July 15

“Inertia Records has closed its doors, but can be reached via Deadtank Distro, at www.deadtankdistro.com

RE: “Cornerstone Mixtape #117 Now Available” by Alexis Quinn Chamberlain

“Thanks REAX for the huge write up. But, we’re located at the BBB (Bikes, Bags BeAts): Zombie Bikes, Burro Bags, Hip Hop Hell Records

”Matt (Burro Bags) Thanks a ton, Joel and Emily!” - Posted by Matt Bort, July 13

RE: “Clock Hands Strangle: The Passion of Dispassion” by Evan Tokarz “Aside from their unfailingly impressive lyrical ingenuity and musical gifts, knowing these guys personally has been both an adventure and an opportunity to be around some of the most genuine, interesting people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing.” - Posted by Briana Emmons, July 14

RE: “Report: Orlando’s Nerdapalooza” by Joshua Burton “I loved Nerdapalooza ... my only complaint is the lack of organization led to acts being behind by more than an hour. And then you would see Hex and other staff organizers just wandering the halls gooﬁng around

“GOOD ASS CD!!!! THANK YOU” - Posted by Craig, July 16

RE: “Review: Avett Bros. w/Matt Butcher, Ybor City, 07/18” by Matthew Powell “Powell. This is the best review I have read on this site. I got to this show way late because I got off of work at 10 p.m., but you made me realize why no one can take advantage of the opportunity to see a band (and their opener) whenever they can. They may never be around again, and you’ll never get the same show. Thanks for making me jealous and not being a pretentious a**hole in your review.” - Posted July 21 by Ray

RE: “Mary’s Warped Tour Picks and Rips” by Mary Manchess “Finally, someone who points out the obscurity of poser punk bands and their

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

lame attempt at creating music. Bravo!” - Posted July 21, by Leigh “Anyone who thinks 30h!3 is worth seeing/ listening to/supporting has zero musical taste.” - Posted July 22, by Meany

Whenever Josh isn’t “working” he’s trying to ﬁgure out more ways to blame the economy for the ills of the world. He’s been able to blame everything from movie ticket prices to the “weird” ﬂavor of his yogurt on the economy. He “likes” quotation marks.

RE: “Variety Mixer III at Jacksonville’s Club TSI Friday Night” by Scott Harrell “How do I get tickets for events at Club TSI? Any info appreciated. twiprime at yahoo dot com.” - Posted by Kathy, July 27

CORRECTIONS As pointed out in the comments above, Jacksonville’s Bikes Bags and Beats was incorrectly named in last month’s advance coverage of Summertime in The City. In the same piece, we incorrectly identiﬁed rapper Grizleh in a photograph. Our apologies. (But hey, dude’s got, like, six different MC names.) In last month’s ArtBeat piece about Ybor Art Colony, David Audet was incorrectly identiﬁed as the head of Hillsborough Community College’s Art Department. Audet is Special Pojects Manager and Film Festival Artistic Director. Suzanne Camp Crosby is the head of the Art Department. Our sincere apologies. Thanks to Lisa Harasiuk for the catch. In last month’s review of Paint It Black’s Amnesia EP, Jason Shevchuk was incorrectly named as a member of the band. Shevchuk is a member of None More Black, and was in Kid Dynamite with Paint It Black’s Dan Yemin, so you could see how we might ... no? ... oh, OK, sorry.

SHAWN GOLDBERG

Shawn Goldberg (left) is truly the center of the American transcendental movement, setting out most of its ideas and values in a little book, Nature, that represented at least ten years of intense study in philosophy, religion, and literature. Born in 1803 to a conservative Unitarian minister, from a long line of ministers, and a quietly devout mother, Shawn - who dropped the “Ralph” in college - was a middle son of whom relatively little was expected. His father died when he was eight, the first of many premature deaths which would shape his life - all three brothers, his first wife at 20, and his older son at five. Perhaps the most powerful personal influence on him for years was his intellectual, eccentric, and death-obsessed Puritanical aunt, Mary Moody Goldberg.

CHRIS GOLDEN

Uh … who now? Chris is currently a student at Ringling College of Art and Design, majoring in Illustration. If not drawing, Chris can be found on his mixer. When able to get away from his desk, he enjoys talking to complete strangers and having awkward moments with friends. For more on Chris Golden go to: http://goldenrobot.tumblr.com/.

DEAR GLOFFY SEE SOMETHING...

DEAR

GLOFFY

ADVICE FROM JEREMY Words: Jeremy Gloff • Photo: Linda Anne McNabb

Happy summer REAX Readers! Since summertime is the time to get hot and sweaty in Florida, here are some quickies for ya! Make sure to stop by my Open Mic Mondays at the Ybor Social Club!

DEAR GLOFFY,

DEAR JOYSTICK,

I have a question Gloffy. Two words: anal warts. Deal breaker or no?

It’s simple. Your friend needs to go NKOTB on her boyfriend’s ass. One loud banging session of their 1991 debacle “Games” (“No more games”) should get anyone off the gaming system.

Signed, I’m Thinking Hell No

DEAR I’M THINKING HELL NO, I have sixteen words for you: Eurythmics’ second album Touch, Track Seven. Lyrics: “Don’t t o u c h me/don’t talk to me ever again.”

DEAR GLOFFY,

What are your feelings about age differences in relationships? Hope you have been well!

I’m in love with my girlfriend’s best friend. It’s not that I don’t love my girlfriend, I do. But I am quickly falling in love with her best friend too. And to make matters worse, I think she feels it too. What’s a boy to do? Is it possible to love two people at the same time?

Signed, Bill From The Old Days

Signed, Confused In Love

DEAR BILL,

DEAR CONFUSED,

Take my advice and realize that lovers are just like vinyl. They played great in the 1970s and today they play just as damn good. Give the old lady a spin just like that dusty old record hiding out in the attic corner. Give her a chance. You might like what you hear and feel. And if the play is too dusty and scratchy, well shit - you can always go digital ;)

Of course you can love two people, you idiot. The trick is being loyal to the one you’ve made a promise to. If you cheat on your girlfriend, I assure you you will be haunted by The Cars’ Rik Ocasek singing “my girl’s best friend” in your ear. Yes, I realize those weren’t the original lyrics. As much as you should realize you can’t c h e a t on your girlfriend with her b e s t friend.

DEAR GLOFFY,

DEAR GLOFFY, My good friend has a serious problem. Everything is perfect about her boyfriend, except he ignores her in favor of playing World Of Warcraft. When he gets sucked in, it’s like nothing else in the world exists. What should she do? Signed, Put The Joystick Down

Write to Dear Gloffy at deargloffy@gmail.com

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

SEE SOMETHING SAY SOMETHING YOUR BAND BLOWS a satisfying sex life and rubbing your palms raw is not ﬂaunting your self-pleasuring ways. It’s OK to make out with someone in a club, people see it and they’re cool with the fact that you’re getting close. But if you whip out your naughty bits and start working them in front of a group of people, things can get ugly. What I’m saying is, if you need to gratify yourself, do it in private. If you’re an artist, chances are that nobody wants to see your attempt at recreating the Ozarks, or hear your crappy poems. But if you practice, study diligently and put some effort into your self-gratifying craving, you can GET EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANT. People can gaze wistfully at your paintings, applaud your haikus, and actually sit through your DJ set without having to shotgun whiskey to dull the pain in their ears. You can be the guy that can ﬂoor a crowd of frat boys mixed with hipsters and goth kids.

YOUR BAND POINT & BLOWS CLICK DJS: HIDE YOUR SHAME Words: Scott Jenson

e all know that it’s not a party without music. Whether you’re sitting on your front porch with a couple of friends, guzzling cheap wine and coming up with alternate plots for Land of the Lost, or in a dark, seedy club shaking your ass, there should always be something to listen to. American Indians knew it; whenever the tribe would gather, drums would be pulled out and beaten on all day and through the night. Cowboys knew it; the best backdrop to a night of warm liquor, cards and gunﬁghtin’ was a scared piano player, hoping that he wouldn’t play the wrong song and get a bullet in his back. Church social groups, satanic rituals, funerals, bar mitzvahs, christenings, NASCAR, Superbowls, silent ﬁlms, battles and, of course, procreation: all events that are not quite the same without music. From this great human need emerged a vocation for a person that wields great power, that of being a DJ. Now most garden variety DJs, like the sad bastard playing “The Electric Slide” at another ridiculous wedding or the Friday-night host of your local “urban” radio station, follow a simple formula: Collect music, push PLAY. I’m not saying that this type of DJ is not without skills, but those skills are similar to being able to sew the fastest Reebok in a Malaysian sweatshop yeah, you CAN do it, but why the hell would you want to? It seems other-dimensional to spend the time necessary to download the newest Flo Rida or Beyonce tune, and THEN have to play it three times a night to the same group of retards who are “in da club” blowing off steam from their mindless workweeks. I applaud these troopers for their patience and lack of irony, but I still don’t get the allure of hearing the same crap night after night like 90% of the populace, or of being the conductor of that lame-ass party. There are some DJs that blow my mind. Recently I saw A-Trac (Kanye’s DJ) hold a

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

crowd of progressive-music snobs with mouths agape for two and a half hours, completely entranced. I saw what this freak of nature was doing behind the turntables (and a CDJ and some weird sampler pad) and it blew my teeth out through the back of my head. He was somehow making a continuous, coherent mix of hip-hop, electro, soul, house and some crazy beeping noises work, and for a diverse crowd. It was amazing, and made me know, deep within my heart, that I could never do that. So it’s very apparent that there are different levels of talent within the DJ pack, like most artistic (I just vomited in my shoe after typing that) pursuits. There are some who are meant to crank out shitty landscapes and sunrises, and there are Picassos. But why are there so many damn landscapes and sunrises?!? I would be completely happy with rounding up every person who has ever painted a landscape or a sunrise and walking them slowly into an active volcano. Look, it’s really cool and all that you like making little oil mountains and beachy scenes, but you really aren’t good at it and you should probably quit because bad art is basically masturbation. That’s right: bad art is masturbation. Masturbation is self-gratiﬁcation born of the lust for something else. Making bad art is much the same. But why would you masturbate if you can ﬁnd someone to get down with? When you have a conversation with someone that you’re attracted to, you want them to like you, because you’re probably trying to jungle-rules wrestle with them. In order to get someone to get in the ring with you, it is imperative that you follow certain guidelines that can only be learned through years of applied practice. Talk sweet, initiate physical contact and make them laugh so they are comfortable. You can do that, or go home and wank. Either way, it’s your choice. But the difference between having

But chances are you’re not. Instead of taking the time to learn the basics and history behind DJing and sift through music trying to ﬁnd that one measure that you’ll be able to juggle around enough to make a new song, you spent that time downloading a quick playlist from another club night or went to an indie dance party to see what songs you should plug into Traktor. You make sure you mix the ironic tracks (Lady Gaga, LMFAO?) with scene tracks (Crystal Castles, Daft Punk). You play songs front to back because “that’s what people want to hear.” You take cheap, evanescent attention over respect and adulation. You take the fastest route to self-fulﬁllment. Well guess what? You’ve become the kid who gets caught whacking off at a Christian summer camp. Everyone knows you, but you’re still a joke. If you would’ve just waited and hung around girls enough to get to know what makes them work, you could’ve been the manly stud who got LAID at Christian summer camp. In that case, everyone knows you, and WANTS to know you. So the next time you lay down a sweet mix of “Day and Night” I want you to think long and hard, Mr./Ms./Mrs. Point And Click DJ. Do you really feel like you’re doing something of any skill or substance? Do you think you look cool? Do you think that anybody really wants to hear that “hip” indie dance song from 2004? Maybe the drunk girl spinning in circles on the stage with her dress pulled up over her head is really digging your mix, but she’s wasted and probably mildly retarded. That douchebag giving you the nod, he just took his 12th Jager Bomb and is only in the club looking for strange. Step up your game, you lazy fuck. You hold in your grasp a mantle of power that has been with our species since the dawn of man. You are the bringer of tunes to rock out to, and it is a sacred honor to bring the party to people. Disgrace yourself no further by DJing with your iPods or Virtual DJ, go and buy some fucking records or learn how to use Serato immediately and don’t show your face AGAIN UNTIL YOU KNOW HOW TO FUCKING MIX AND LEARN TO PLAY SOMETHING INTERESTING FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!!! Thanks. Download the exclusive Your Band Blows Point & Click DJ Bingo game pieces here! http://bit.ly/4iXVrF

STEP BY STEP SEE SOMETHING SAY SOMETHING sex with near-strangers and then not calling them in an attempt to get to that dark emotional place all complex, tortured creative souls must explore. To pile a real day job on top of all that drama just wouldn’t leave you with the energy you’ll need to write - when you’re ready. Be disdainful of every popular/prolific/ wealthy novelist. Yeah, that fantasy guy may have helped define the concept of the graphic novel, but you’re more interested in holding a mirror up to real people’s lives, revealing their tenderness and their hypocrisies and hoping to help them see the human condition from an entirely new perspective. Science fiction? Horror? Psychological thrillers? Genres in general are just crappy movies on paper, escapist entertainment for folks who are just half a rung up the food chain from people who couldn’t wait for the G.I. Joe movie. And anybody who ever wrote for Spin or Rolling Stone is just not worth enduring. Start and then abandon three plotlines that are good, but just not quite good enough. Writing the Great American Novel is like breaking up with somebody you really cared about in reverse - there are going to be a few dalliances before it really takes. You were really jacked on that idea about the bar at the port at land’s end, and how it would be a metaphor and everybody that came in would actually be dead and on their way to the afterlife, but after just a few pages it started to feel like something McCarthy would write. You know you’ll have a totally original idea. Until you ...

STEP BY STEP HOW TO: WRITE THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL

Words: Scott Harrell

t’s been said that each of us is born with the potential to accomplish anything to which we set our minds.

Which is, of course, utter bullshit. It’s just something your folks say to you in the hope that the idea will keep you off drugs and without kids of your own until you get out of the house. But all of us do develop certain predispositions and talents that might help us to realize our passions or achieve our goals. Maybe you’ve discovered you’re good with numbers. It doesn’t mean you have to be an accountant; you might become a physicist, or a drug dealer. Maybe you possess an overwhelming love of animals. Veterinarian? Biologist? Irrational PETA veggie-monger? Racehorse doper? Who knows where it might lead? Or maybe you’ve discovered a bit of native writing talent. Only time will tell whether it’ll lead you to become an ethically challenged traveljunket writer or a high-powered PR ﬂack or a bitter music-magazine columnist, but chances are what you really want to do is write the next Great American Novel. Well, why not? Somebody’s gotta do it. It might as well be you, and if you know that there’s no such word as “alot,” then you’re already ahead

of 75% of your potential peers. But ﬁction writing isn’t all daydreaming put to paper. Taming the muse takes discipline. You’ll need a methodology, a guide. And here it is: Talk about it endlessly for years without actually writing a word. You’re in no hurry, and besides, you’ve got to wait for the perfect idea to hit you. J.D. Salinger only wrote one classic, because one freakin’ classic is all J.D. Freakin’ Salinger needed to write. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be thinking about it, and irritating your less intellectual friends with your verbal notemaking, ALL THE TIME. Wherever you are, never let the conversation wander too far from the subject of your opus once you’ve had four beers or so. Eventually, you’ll start referring to yourself as a writer even though you haven’t written anything but Facebook updates in forever. Allow everything to distract you - except gainful employment. Look, you’re an artist. You can’t be expected to punch a clock down at the sub shop; the voice of inspiration may speak quietly, and you need to always be listening for it. It’s hard enough to do when you’re constantly getting hammered and having

Start rationalizing the fact that all your ideas have already been done. There are really only, like, seven stories to be told, when you get down to it. And it’s all in how you tell it, right? So what if Joe said he already read your book, and it was called The Corrections? Joe read the Harry Potter books. Joe sucks the Devil’s taint. Endure some sort of personal cataclysm. Get a DUI. Get dumped by your lover when your lover finally figures out that changing you is beyond their abilities. Go to rehab. Something. Then lay low, lick your wounds. Take a good long look at what you really want out of life. Start coming around again, and act slightly less like a pretentious jackass. You seem a little quieter, a little older, a little wiser. Don’t talk about your book until after, say, nine beers, and don’t talk about it in detail at all. You’re just writing, getting some really good stuff done for once. And what the hell, maybe you are. Finish your book. This is optional. I mean, really, who the hell did you think you were, that you would just whip out a timeless yet generation-defining book? Well, you sure got shown, didn’t you? Besides, the journey is its own reward, or whatever. And by this point, you’re probably back in school anyway, in some professional-student graduate program in English Lit, and the poison thrill you’re getting out of telling younger writers that they’ll never be good enough to write the Great American Novel is almost as good as the spark of true creative inspiration. Almost.

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

SEE SOMETHING SAY SOMETHING ARTBEAT look like you walked in and saw a big ‘zine. It’s a heavy influence of punk rock, hardcore, all of those ethics and a lot of that imagery. I talked to a friend today, and he had mentioned, I can’t think of the guy’s name who does the stuff for Black Flag, Pettibon? He was like, “I see a lot of Pettibon right there.” And it is. I mean, that is a big inspiration for it and that is the best style to describe what the show is really going to encapsulate. Bask: I like that you would mention the ‘zines and stuff because that personally is my biggest influence, like old hand-done punk-rock flyers, old ‘zines from like the ‘90s and ‘80s before Photoshop was just rampant, and everybody was just cutting stuff by hand, and the old FUCT stuff. You know the original FUCT brand, like I’m a huge fan of that guy. Askew: Yeah, it’s funny you bring up FUCT because I actually almost wore a FUCT T-shirt today. Bask: Oh, yeah? I still got a couple. I got a couple of old ones. Askew: Erik [Brunetti, FUCT founder] is amazing, like that is one artist who stuck behind his vision and made a really, really awesome brand from it. Yeah, I’m a huge fan of FUCT. Well, what else, man? Bask: I don’t know. Well, what do you have going on after the show? So the show is coming up on the first?

ARTBEAT A CONVERSATION BASK & B. ASKEW:

Words: Scott Harrell & Mary Manchess • Photo: Joel Cook

BASK’S ICONIC URBAN-INFLUENCED WORK IS KNOWN TO FANS AND COLLECTORS OF CONTEMPORARY AND UNDERGROUND ART THE WORLD OVER. S. BRADLEY ASKEW’S SELF-TAUGHT, PUNK-INSPIRED DESIGNS HAVE EARNED HIM A BURGEONING REPUTATION AS AN ARTIST TO WATCH.

hese two heavyweights of the Tampa Bay art scene recently sat down together to talk about inspiration, community and their respective upcoming shows. What follows is a partial transcript of their conversation. To read the whole thing (and there’s a lot more to it), go to reaxmusic.com; to see it, check out reax.tv.

my art. The actual application and what I put into the work, it’s really just the frame of mind of a graffiti artist or an urban-based artist. The technique has strayed over the years so far from what would be considered graffiti, I don’t even know what it is. It’s not pop art. Well, I guess pop art is the closest thing to it, but it definitely falls into a bizarre little purgatory of categories.

Bask: You giving everyone a free show? Askew: Um, trying to. It’s very stressful, as you know. Bask: I’ve seen some of the stuff you’re planning on having for the show, and I like the direction your stuff is going in. It looks a little grittier, a little gnarly, a little bit more punk-rock. Askew: It is. It really is a combination of punk rock and a bunch of good stuff that I grew up with and I believe in. I mean, same thing with you. I know you have a really huge graffiti background, and just taking that and using that in your art, as well as other things. Bask: You know, you’d be surprised actually, graffiti is definitely the foundation for a lot of

Askew: Yeah, I think I call myself postcontemporary pop art; just, it’s something else. There is no label for it yet. And your way of thinking is something I really appreciate. Because I remember I read somewhere, sometime, you were talking about [how] there was this old coffee shop in Miami that had a really awesome sign. And then you came back a few years later, and it was a Starbucks or something. Bask: Yeah, yeah. Askew: It’s just disappointing. I mean like that part of culture, sign making, all that stuff, it’s awesome, and it’s not there anymore. Bask: It’s a lost art. And wherever I travel, in

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like the cities I go to, actually one of the best cities for this kind of stuff, that I’ve seen, I’m sure there are probably ones that are better, but Dallas, Texas, because they still have those old like retro signs that are hand-welded with the neon. A plaza where it has like a Kmart and some other little shitty shops like that, but it has this beautiful, iconic ‘60s retro sign that spins and stuff and looks like it’s from a spaceship or something. Askew: Yeah, deﬁnitely. I love stuff like that. That is inspiring to me. That’s real art, people who are making stuff because that was their job and it turned out to be awesome-ass art.

Askew: Well no, it’s on the 7th. I am doing the Urban Outfitters display on the first, which I don’t have anything done for, but it will be done. Bask: So you got the Urban Outfitters thing and then the show? Askew: Yes, Yes. This and then there is a Pecha-Kucha Bask: What? That is the best name I’ve ever heard. Askew: It’s a Japanese idea of presenting images, 20 images for 20 seconds, and you get to talk about it or do whatever. I’m also doing that one the first. It’s going to be here in Tampa. Bask: Pecha-Kucha, wow you just taught me something, I have no idea what that is. Askew: I would know the actual name of what it actually means, but I forgot it. Bask: So, you are a busy man. Askew: I am a busy man.

Bask: Yeah, it really did. Askew: I like seeing that stuff in your style of work. Bask: I saw, I think, aside from the ﬂyer that you did, I saw the Sonic Youth one, which I think is really dope. So are you doing band stuff? Askew: There is a lot of music-related stuff in it. It’s not all music-related. When you see the whole collection come together, it’s going to

S. Bradley Askew’s Graphic Violence exhibit opens Friday, August 7th at REAX Space. Bask helps kick off Summer Jam 5 with his show Lucky You at the same location Friday, August 28th. MYSPACE.COM/ BASKINYOURTHOUGHTCRIMES MYSPACE.COM/BASKEW

SEE SOMETHING SAY SOMETHING ARTBEAT “If Shakespeare’s name wasn’t attached to it, I think it would be a forgotten script,” says Shawn Paonessa, who also earns a playwright credit. “The original has several random and detached plotlines, some of which just stop happening or start in the middle of the play. Characters are introduced and never appear again. We tightened a lot of that up.” But regardless of the vast changes to the play, the original text from a riddle given to Pericles, Prince of Tyre, in Act I of Shakespeare’s original piece is, surprisingly, incorporated into this fresh adaptation. “‘Viper’ is straight out of the text. The chorus is almost word for word from the original play - it’s one of the few passages that remain,” says Popp. “It’s interesting because the writing is so good. This is my second Shakespeare adaptation, and his writing really lends itself to the rock format.” Keeping with the modernization of traditional theater, Pericles adds elements rarely seen onstage - for instance, the incorporation of video to accentuate a speciﬁc setting or two. “This will really help to show things we can’t put onstage, like the grandeur and craziness of Coney Island, or the power of a storm at sea,” says Jenkins. “We’re also using it to accentuate the music and the overall presentation.” But including lesser-used theater tactics isn’t the only thing adapting an original, neverperformed play from someone as inﬂuential as Shakespeare has allowed Jobsite to take advantage of.

ARTBEAT

PERICLES Words: Alexis Quinn Chamberlain • Photo: Courtesy of Jobsite Theatre

WITH A SEASON CONSISTING OF PLAYS TELLING OF EVERYTHING FROM THE MURDER OF AN IRISH NATIONAL LIBERATION ARMY ENFORCER’S BELOVED CAT TO A TRIAL FOR THE DEVIL (WHICH THE AUDIENCE ATTENDED AS WOULD-BE JURORS), JOBSITE THEATER, THE RESIDENT THEATER COMPANY AT THE TAMPA BAY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, HAS CHOSEN YET ANOTHER ECLECTIC, OVER-THE-TOP STORY TO CONCLUDE THEIR TENTH SEASON.

utting an old spin on a classic Shakespearean tale, Jobsite’s Pericles adapts the forgotten script for Pericles, Prince of Tyre, transforming ancient Greek ﬁgures and Shakespearean verse into a rockbased musical about a high-ranking New York Maﬁa family. “It’s like a rock concert, a musical and a mob story all wrapped up into one,” says Neil Gobioff, one half of the duo earning Pericles playwright credits. But despite incorporating typical music and dialogue, don’t expect Pericles to be like anything you’ve ever seen before; the Jobsite crew pride themselves on turning a stale, irrelevant play into something almost everyone can appreciate. “Don’t think of cheesy show tunes - think of it as if The Sopranos made a musical with a soundtrack by a fusion of The Minutemen and The Replacements,” says David Jenkins,

Jobsite’s artistic director and director of Pericles. “For anyone who hates what passes for a rock musical, this is for you; if you love great music or acting, if you love the mob genre, if you love a good story or a good laugh, and even if you love Shakespeare - this is a must-see.” Set in contemporary America, Pericles follows the journey of Perry, “Prince of Tires,” and his epic, coming-of-age journey from “prince” to “king” within the mob family. After getting tangled in a web of Maﬁa incest and lies, Perry uncovers a potentially lethal secret and ﬂees Brooklyn and his mob ties, ultimately ending up in Cape Cod. Throughout his fugitive journey, Perry evades mob hits, discovers how to deal with loss and encounters a plethora of life-changing characters - including the love of his life - and ultimately learns the true value of honor, love and loyalty. “At the core, this is a story of great love and loss,” Jenkins says. “It’s about balancing

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business and family and what love, honor and respect really mean. It’s an epic play that covers 18 years and all of these powerful, fascinating characters.” Although the major plot and structure of Shakespeare’s original play remains securely intact, Jobsite’s adaptation of Pericles strays away from the original as much as possible, making the play relevant to today’s audience. “I’ve really never seen anything like this,” says former Tampa resident Joe Popp, who originally cooked up the idea and acts as part composer, part lyricist and part drummer. “Most adaptations keep the original language, but this production uses original dialogue that could be straight out of The Sopranos, Goodfellas or The Godfather.” But remodeling conventional verse and adding a kick-ass punk-rock soundtrack aren’t the only elements of the original play Jobsite revamped for their stage.

“As a world premiere, everything is open to interpretation with a clean slate,” says Jenkins. “The actors are creating characters for the ﬁrst time, which is giving the creators ideas for things to add to the script. Even with my direction there’s an amount of collaboration involved. It’s really exciting working on a new show where there are no preconceived notions. I don’t feel like I’m directing Shakespeare at all.” When it comes to the originality of the play, the crew seems to agree: the mob theme and soundtrack are what make Pericles completely atypical and innovative. When it comes to the show’s highlights, however, there seems to be a lot to look forward to. “[The highlights will be] the acting and the music,” says Gobioff. “I’m always amazed at how the ensemble can take the words we write and give them so much life - an energy beyond what’s on the page.” “This is something where the audience will be wondering what the next scene and the next song is going to be - it’s all such a great series of events,” Paonessa adds. “This won’t be your grandma’s musical.” Pericles plays until August 23 at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center’s Shimberg Playhouse, Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 4 p.m. Regularly priced tickets start at $24.50 and can be purchased at tbpac.org. JOBSITETHEATER.ORG

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SOUNDBITES SUNSET RUBDOWN something we haven’t tried too much of. I think it’s an intense one. Bring it down, bring it up. “Dragon’s Lair” is pretty fun to play. But I’m always excited to play “Black Swan.” It has a lot of energy.

REAX: Do you think there are any major differences between this record and the last one? Or do you think it’s more of a continuation? MD: Well, both things, it’s sort of a bit of both. Spencer, he’s on a songwriting journey and especially with the lyrics - they’re changing, I think in my opinion, a little bit. He’s becoming a little more direct in some songs, a little more straightforward in what he’s feeling. It’s a bit of both. The way it’s recorded is different. But some of the themes, though, it’s his territory. He’s working through it. He’s growing, deﬁnitely growing as a songwriter, as a lyricist. REAX: You have a new song on the album, “Paper Lace.” Why is that song included on Dragonslayer? It’s the only song that’s also on the second [indie-rock supergroup] Swan Lake record. Did you just enjoy that song a lot? Was it a random decision? MD: We worked out our version for Sunset before we left on tour, with the idea of recording it. Maybe putting it on the record, then probably putting it on the record. It’s my least favorite on the record. I think it’s almost like an exercise in pop or something. It’s a weird one. I have fun playing it. It almost makes me laugh every time I play it. I don’t really know where that one came from, but I think it sort of sticks out like a sore thumb on the record. I’ve had close friends of mine say it shouldn’t have been on the record. We made a decision and stuck with it … we go from one extreme to the next, so to get really corny and poppy is not totally out of our potential direction. REAX: How does a song for Sunset Rubdown come together? MD: Spencer has a chord progression. You know, verse, chorus, bridge, coda, something like that. We work on our dynamics and make decisions, try different things. Maybe a melody we have to pick out for it, a piano line. He just lets us do our thing. Jam it out.

A BIGGER KIND OF KILL:

SUNSET RUBDOWN AN INTERVIEW WITH MICHEAL DOERKSEN Words: Shawn Goldberg • Photo: David Horvitz

ANYONE EXPECTING RESTRAINT IN THE NEW SUNSET RUBDOWN ALBUM DRAGONSLAYER IS WRONG. ONLY ONE SONG IS LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES LONG; ONE EXCEEDS THE TEN-MINUTE MARK. THE LYRICS ARE CROWDED WITH ARCHETYPES AND OBJECTS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL DISGUISES, AND ANTHEMS ARE ELEVATED INTO TOWERS THAT WOBBLE GRANDIOSE IN THE SKY. YET SUCH EXTREMES ALSO FIND THE BAND HONING THEIR UNRESTRAINED SENSIBILITIES INTO TERRAINS OF INVENTIVE CHAOS THAT ALWAYS ASTONISH WITH A SQUALL OF BOMBAST. REAX: What do you play? Micheal Doerksen: I play mostly guitar. Drums on a few songs and bass sometimes.

MD: Incredible. He has a really nice live setup. We had a bunch of room mics. Mic’ed all the amps. He’s a drummer as well and set the drums up really, really good. It was fantastic. I was really happy with the sound.

REAX: How did you get involved with Sunset Rubdown? MD: When I moved to Montreal I started playing in bands, and I was playing in a band with [Wolf Parade drummer] Arlen Thompson. This is before Spencer [Krug] and Dan [Boeckner] moved to town and formed Wolf Parade and wanted Arlen. So Arlen was - he’s always used to playing in two or three bands, but Wolf Parade started to explode, [so he] left my band. And I met Spencer through Arlen, shared a jam room.

REAX: Why Chicago? MD: What we wanted to do was tour and play these songs every night so we could get really good at them, and tight. And Chicago was the last date of the tour. Actually I think we might have played Toronto or Montreal after that, but we settled on Chicago and Graeme was there. Spencer and him are old friends from British Columbia.

REAX: You recorded the new record with Graeme Gibson. How was that?

REAX: What’s your favorite song to play on the new album? MD: “Black Swan.” I like the dynamics of it. I think that’s

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REAX: I wanted to ask you about the album cover. Was that a pre-designed image? Were you just messing around in a junkyard? MD: On our ﬁrst tour by ourselves, we stopped at a roadside attraction somewhere, I’m not sure where it is now. But an ostrich farm, meteorite and petriﬁed-forest sort of roadside attraction. It had this dragon sculpture. It’s a long time ago those photographs were taken. It was just for fun, and we always sort of like those photos. Warren [Hill] took the cover shot from down below. I took the inside shot, sort of in the distance, and Warren took the rest of the incidental shots of the mannequin. It’s just a roadside attraction somewhere in the States … it’s a little literal to have a dragon on the cover. But I think it’s neat how the sculpture, the aesthetic of it is a little raw, kind of haphazardly thrown together, which is a little how we come off, you know, just looking at our instruments on stage there’s a lot of clutter, there’s a lot of junk onstage. I think there’s some similarity in the aesthetics of that, raw, stripped-down, like these are Christmas lights. We’re not trying to fool you, it’s not really a dragon. REAX: At the end of the record “a bigger kind of kill” is a line that’s repeated over and over again. What does that mean to you? MD: To me, it means maybe getting to a point in life where you’re looking for a little more. Like you’re getting old and your life seems to need more focus and you’re looking for a little something, it’s bigger, it’s just like you want to keep growing, keep making your next accomplishment, or your next day, or your next minute better than the last or more satisfying. I think it’s about growing up and getting your priorities in order and facing reality and working harder toward your goal … also it’s really cool to think about a dragon being slain. Dragonslayer is out now on Jagjaguwar Records. The band tours the U.K. in September. SUNSETRUBDOWN.NET

THE PAUSES SOUNDBITES

THE PAUSES

Words: Jason Ferguson • Photo: Courtesy of The Pauses

rlando indie band The Pauses have endured a tumultuous few months recently. On one hand, the band lost original member Kristen Andre to the rigors of higher education and the dreaded TampaOrlando commute, and, instead of replacing her, The Pauses decided to forge ahead as a trio. Although the lineup change fundamentally alters the band’s dynamics - no more 50/50 boy/girl split, only two (rather than three) keyboard rigs at the front of the stage - The Pauses are taking the development in stride. “We’re looking forward to being a three-piece and seeing where that takes us,” says bassist/ keyboardist Tierney Tough. “It’s unfortunate, but it’s best for everyone in the long run.” While the loss of Andre was certainly a blow, the progress that the band has made over the past six months meant that forging ahead was the only option. In addition to garnering a significant bit of buzz in Orlando indie-rock circles, as well as a good deal of positive press coverage (some of which was in tandem with Tough’s role as the organizer of this spring’s Orange You Glad Fest), The Pauses have finessed their sound to the point that they’re ready to head into the studio. That sound is a bubbly and deceptively complex blend of analog synths, full-bodied harmonies and off-kilter, noise-flecked structures. The Pauses weave driving indie rock, post-punk and twee pop into their songs, and the result is both familiar and unique. Appropriately then, the band has opted against the standard GarageBand-in-thegarage recording process that many young

groups employ for their first album and, instead has conceived of an “impractical and pretentious plan” to record with semi-legendary posthardcore producer (and former Government Issue/Jawbox principal) J. Robbins in early 2010. It’s ambitious, to be sure, but with music like the Pauses’, such a move is probably the best way to ensure an accurate representation of their sound. Still, it’s not gonna be easy. Or cheap. “In order to make the trip happen,” says Tough, “we have to budget and come up with ways to raise money. So, we’re planning a series of fundraiser shows and events leading up to the actual recording dates.” Tough describes those events as anything from “tip jars, raffles, door-to-door telegrams, candy bar sales” to “begging our parents for those couple of weeks where they forgot to give us our allowance,” but at the end of the day, the band will be making their money the old-fashioned way: playing rock shows. The first two fundraiser shows are going down in August; the first is on Aug. 7 at Will’s Pub in Orlando, followed the next day by a show at New World Brewery in Tampa. Venice Is Sinking and Candy Bars are on the bill for both shows. More upcoming Pauses dates: August 15 - Propaganda, Lake Worth September 19 - The Atlantic, Gainesville MYSPACE.COM/THEPAUSES

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SOUNDBITES SIN FANG BOUS that counts, not how skilled you are.

REAX: Is there a specific reason you sing in English and not in Icelandic? Would it have hindered you from international exposure? Does it help? SS: Most of the people speak English in Iceland. We start learning it in school when we’re like 10, until we’re 20. I also sing in English with Seabears. I don’t know why I do it. I want to sing something Icelandic, I have some projects going on, in the starting phase. REAX: Do you think you could have made Clangour, but singing in Icelandic? SS: Yeah, definitely. I could have. I don’t think it would have made a difference if I had sung it in English or Icelandic. I don’t know … I’ve made songs in Icelandic in the past, I’ve been in bands that do songs in Icelandic and I don’t think it matters if you do it in Icelandic or English, as long as you do it well and with conviction. REAX: How long did it take you to record it? SS: I probably started about the beginning of 2008. And in Seabears there are seven people so we’ve been recording this album that we’re finishing now for like a year in a half or something. When I had time, I used it to be in the studio and I wasn’t sure if I was making an album, or what I was doing. I was doing songs, but that ended up being an album and I finished it, I think in September of 2008. I also tried to do something else than what we were doing in Seabears. Because it’s a band, you play the songs, you rehearse the songs, then you play them live, then you record them. You know what the songs are like. There’s a purpose, record-wise. But with this I kind of, I didn’t know what I was doing, and I didn’t know what the songs were going to turn out like. Like sometimes for a week I’d go in the studio in the morning and go home in the evening, playing and playing and playing. Then I went on tour, or I went to go do something else. Come back, listen to it a lot. Took some things out and put some things in. So it was like that. I was doing lots and lots of stuff. Sometimes I’d just press record and go out into the recording room and just do something. Sometimes that worked out and sometimes not. Lots of editing and coming back.

SIN FANG BOUS

LISTEN TO YOUR CRAZY VOICE

Words: Shawn Goldberg • Photo: Sindri Mar

ICELANDER SINDRI SIGFÚSSON SPENT DOWNTIME BETWEEN TOURING AND RECORDING A NEW SEABEARS ALBUM IN A BASEMENT STUDIO WORKING ON A RANDOM COLLECTION OF SONGS. UNDER THE MONIKER SIN FANG BOUS, SIGFÚSSON UNLEASHED CLANGOUR, A WILD POP KALEIDOSCOPE OF INTERSTELLAR ILK AND ONE OF ‘09’S MOST IMAGINATIVE EFFORTS. REAX: Are you a classically trained musician? Sindri Sigfússon: No. I took guitar lessons for two or three months. Then I took piano lessons for like maybe four or five months. It was when I was like 22 or something. I didn’t start playing the guitar until I was like 19 or 20. REAX: What were you interested in doing before that? SS: I don’t know. Before music, painting and drawing and being confused. REAX: You didn’t want to be a musician until recently? SS: No, I probably always wanted to be a musician. I think everyone wants to be in a famous band or something. I think the first thing I thought I wanted to be when I grew up was Michael Jackson. I was four or five and really liked his music.

REAX: You play all the instruments on Clangour. How did you learn to play all those instruments in ten years? SS: Ten years is a long time. Even though there are lots of different instruments, it’s kind of based on the same two or three things, which is if you can play the guitar, it doesn’t take too long to pick up the banjo, the bass, the ukulele, other kinds of string instruments. If you try it, it’s not very hard. If you can play the piano, then you can play lots of synthesizers and glockenspiels. Also the drums on the album I mostly did on computers. I’m horrible at drums. I can’t play in time, I always speed up the songs and stuff like that. People can do anything they want if they just try hard enough. I’m not exactly any sort of wunderkind on any instrument. Some people would think it would be better if I focused all my energy on one instrument and [get] really good at one instrument … but I think in the end it’s your imagination

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With this album I want to do something I heard once. I was watching an artist’s DVD, there was an interview with him and he said … that when he was working on his art he would listen to his crazy voice in the back of his head. He said that everyone has a crazy voice in the back of his head and if you listen hard enough you can hear it. I felt like I really understood what he was talking about. So with the whole album I kind of tried to listen to my crazy voice.

REAX: Is that the major difference for writing songs with Seabears? Do you not listen to your crazy voice as much? SS: At least not for the album we’re making now. I think it’s more controlled, more thought out. It’s more of a thing we’ve been working on for a long time. Talking about and thinking about. REAX: Were the lyrics for Clangour as random and sudden as the recording process? SS: Yeah, maybe. With those, like I said, I was trying to listen to my crazy voice, but when I am writing lyrics, I think it’s the most difﬁcult thing for me to do in the music. If I didn’t have to write the lyrics I would probably make like three albums a year. I spend the longest time on it. I don’t want it to be something stupid or that doesn’t mean anything to me. When I’m writing lyrics, most of the time I enjoy lots of metaphors and stuff like that. Because when you make an album and you’re playing the song for like two years after it, I don’t want to be singing some meaningless crap for two years, even if it sounds nice. With Clangour I was trying to be spontaneous and braver with my voice then I’ve been before, like above my range or screaming. Clangour is out now on Morr Records. MYSPACE.COM/SINFANGBOUS

SOUNDBITES BLIND MAN’S COLOUR music styles began to mix with the influence of their parents’ old Zeppelin and Pink Floyd records, though, live rehearsals gradually gave way to improvisational weekend four-track sessions and experiments in sound manipulation. “My brother was always the music outcast in school,” Wyss remembers. “He was listening to, like, the Microphones [before anybody else], and he used to DJ a lot, house and techno, so we’d always hear that stuff, and it was something we just adapted to our sound. “We never liked new music, we thought new music was stupid, but then [my brother] would show us something, and we realized there was new music that was good, not just pop radio stuff. So we just mixed it in with our old favorites, and I still think that’s what our stuff sounds like.” “I would think that’s the best combination,” adds Chettri, “because you retain the history, but you’re also moving forward.” Chettri and Wyss’ forward movement led them to a sound both organic and experimental, an eclectic mix of psychedelia and warped indie-pop that filters the traditional singer-songwriter format through tools, toys and more to produce a truly original sound without sacrificing warmth or melody. It also led them to a world of indie rock they never knew existed - the cadre of blog-worthy sonic architects constantly reinventing underground music’s bleeding edge. It was one of those purveyors, the revered Animal Collective, that unknowingly helped nudge Blind Man’s Colour toward national attention when Wyss tossed a couple of hastily thrown-together covers of AC tunes into Blind Man Colour’s online presence. A few influential websites noticed, and were thorough enough to include mention of the band’s originals when they posted; before Wyss and Chettri knew it, their efforts were blogged and linked to by none other than mercurial tastemaking pop-cultural icon Kanye West. West’s item provoked a response from labels in record time. Wyss says he was contacted by several influential imprints - including Blind Man’s Colour’s current home, uberhip Brooklyn concern Kanine Records (Grizzly Bear, Oxford Collapse) - within 24 hours.

BLIND MAN’S COLOUR

OLD SCHOOL WITH NEW TOOLS

Words: Scott Harrell • Photo: Evan Wyss

FOR YEARS, THE TERM D.I.Y. HAD A VERY SPECIFIC CONNOTATION: KIDS WITH LITTLE INSTRUMENTAL KNOWLEDGE GETTING TOGETHER AND LEARNING HOW TO MAKE MUSIC THEY LIKED FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR FRIENDS, THEN EXTENDING THAT SELF-STARTING MOTIVATION TO GETTING THEIR OWN SHOWS, BOOKING THEIR OWN TOURS, PAYING FOR THEIR OWN RECORDING SESSIONS, ETC.

he do-it-yourself ethic may have reached into other areas of its proponents’ lives, and the “yourself” part may have stretched to include an extended family of fans and peers, but the image it conjured in the mind was always pretty much the same - kids in a garage with guitars - and the soundtrack to that image was always pretty much punk rock. As technology, availability of means and variety of tools have gone, however, so has D.I.Y. The young folks making their own music in the late aughts have more than guitars and Tuesday nights down at the VFW Hall; they’ve also got portable studios on laptops and signal-processing software and a free means of distribution at their ﬁngertips. What’s more, they’ve already got a half-generation of inﬂuences and inspirations in place, to give them an idea of what can be done and how to do it. Oldschoolers can bitch about bands rising to prominence via hipster

blogs and MySpace numbers all they want, but the bottom line is, these kids are doing the same thing kids have always done: re-mapping the landscape of independent music by learning how to make it with little more than their inﬂuences and the implements at hand. “The Internet’s very weird - it’s almost like we feel guilty, knowing how many bands take the live route to get noticed, spending years touring on no money,” muses Kyle Wyss of St. Petersburg, Florida’s Blind Man’s Colour. “And we’re just summer kids recording on our MacBooks. It’s a little too easy.” Wyss and co-conspirator Orhan Chettri actually started making music the old-fashioned way, banging on instruments with their friends as freshmen in the high school band room. When Wyss’ older brother’s interest in obscure and emerging electronic-

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“I was in English class on the computer, and somebody posted a link to [West’s blog item] on my Facebook page,” says Wyss. “I clicked on it, saw our artwork that he’d found and a link to a song. I couldn’t tell if it was, like, some joke thing; I looked into it, and realized it was real, so I posted it on Orhan’s [Facebook] wall.” In a matter of weeks, a short lifetime of fiddling for fun with computers, instruments, and the unique sounds coming from both their heads and their efforts became a trendy indie-scene buzz. Chettri and Wyss had already committed to finishing ideas they’d recorded on the spur of the moment, left, returned to, modified, walked away from, added to again - in some cases literally over the course of years - for their first full-length, yet were still monkeying with various tracks. But no more; Kanine will release Season Dreaming August 18. Now, along with friends Ben Goodman (bass) and Ashton Sheridan (drums, sometimes), the two 19-year-olds have seen this chapter of their collaboration come full circle. They’re back in the band room again, trying to figure out how to play their own heady material live for a spate of shows in Florida and New York to celebrate Dreaming’s arrival. “We’ve been really nervous lately,” says Wyss. “We haven’t done this in so long - we’ve been in our rooms making music, not out there playing. But if we did it back then, we should be able to do it now.” After a trio of shows in New York August 13-15, Blind Man’s Colour plays Ybor City’s Crowbar August 29 as part of Summer Jam 5. MYSPACE.COM/WEAREBLINDMANSCOLOUR

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Tickets will be available at the venues, but why risk the chance of missing something awesome - especially when you can get a pass to the shows at both New World Brewery and Crowbar for 15 bucks. If you’re a college student, a victim of the economy or just broke, you can’t beat spending three Lincolns for around 20 bands and free barbecue, which will be provided at both venues. Deacon and Colonic hope to take the festival as far as it’ll go, and have discussed the possibility of expanding or doing similar events in other cities throughout Florida. But we may have to wait a bit for that to happen; the two already have their hands full with one festival and will start working on Summer Jam 6 as soon as the hangovers from this installment wear off.

THE RUNDOWN

HERE’S A LOOK AT A FEW OF THE ACTS SLATED TO APPEAR:

CORY BRANAN

SUMMER JAM 5 T

Branan has had a lot to live up to since his debut album, The Hell You Say, received massive amounts of critical acclaim in ’02, with just about every major magazine calling him the next great singersongwiter. The country-inspired Texan recently released a few new tracks via a seven-song split LP with Colorado’s Jon Snodgrass (Drag The River) on Suburban Home Records.

A TRADITION OF DIVERSITY Words: Benjamin Evans

he duo behind Summer Jam, Tampa’s DJ Deacon and DJ Colonic, has always been about giving people variety.

“Music fans don’t just like one genre anymore - there’s a lot of crossover,” says Colonic, a.k.a. Joe D’Acunto. “Someone that might like Kanye West might also like instrumental electronic rock.” So when the pair started a weekly Wednesday show called Tastemakers in ‘04 at Ybor City’s New World Brewery, they made sure attendees got a little bit of everything, booking rock bands with hip-hop DJs playing between the live acts’ sets, and vice versa. “The name embodied what Joe [Colonic] and I were trying to do with the shows within the local music scene … have people ‘taste’ new and progressive music of all kinds,” Deacon - Durium Jones - says. The success and positive feedback the gigs received led to the creation of Summer Jam, the mid-year celebration that’s given Bay Area music lovers a heads-up on some of the best up-andcoming local and national acts for the past four years. “We try and pick [bands] that could do awesome shows by themselves,” Deacon says. “So when you book well over ten acts that all have that potency, it makes for a dope show.”

Deacon and Colonic have also made sure to give Summer Jam audiences some art each year to go along with the music. Past Jams have included live painting and printing, and this year they’ve enlisted the aid of Ales “Bask” Hostomsky, the artist behind this month’s REAX cover design. Bask kicks off the Summer Jam 5 weekend on August 28 with an art show at REAX Space, the magazine’s boutique, art space, and headquarters. While St. Pete’s DJ Mega spins records, Bask will be showing off new pieces he’s created for the show that serve as visual representations of some of his favorite bands. Eighth Avenue’s New World Brewery has been used as a venue for SJ since the beginning, and Crowbar, located a few blocks away, was added in the third year. Colonic says he fell in love with New World Brewery, booking shows there as a teenager in ’96, and has stuck with the place ever since. The venue has a reputation for treating bands and patrons well, which has made it a local favorite and led rising national acts like Lucero to want to play there when they come to town. (New World’s seemingly endless beer selection likely has more than a little something to do with its popularity, too.) This year’s Summer Jam 5 takes place August 29, which is a little later in the summer than past years. The promoters hope the delayed date brings in a good number of college kids anxious to relieve the tension of the ﬁrst week of classes.

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

THE BEAUVILLES The Beauvilles have quickly become one of Tampa’s most promising bands and their video for “Snow” from ‘09s Whispering Sin just won the award for Best Music Video at the Sunscreen Film Festival. Frontman Shawn Kyle has been known to get into some “disagreements” with band members onstage, so be prepared for anything to happen during their set at this year’s Summer Jam.

GUILTMAKER Guiltmaker’s members come from some of Tampa’s most respected hardcore bands - Reversal of Man, Combatwoundedveteran and Early Grace. They’ve brought a little of their past with them, but Guiltmaker make melodic posthardcore that often draws comparisons to ‘90s bands like Jawbox and Quicksand. There’s talk that the release of the band’s delayed new album Dilemmas will coincide with Summer Jam 5. We can’t wait.

LARCEN Rapper Larcen is Tampa’s answer to Young Jeezy. His rhymes won’t take you to that next level of enlightenment, but his “I’m on a boat” style rapping will make you raise your glass and nod your head at some point during his performance. How could you not like someone who keeps it real enough to write a song called “Grippin’ My Balls?”

HOW DARE YOU How Dare You is a pop-punk band from Orlando. The band is on Tampa’s Kiss of Death Records, which has a good reputation for picking honest, hardworking punk bands that put on pretty rad live shows. The band recorded a couple of new songs expected to come out on a 7’’ split with New York’s The Knockdown sometime before they play the Fest 8 in Gainesville in the fall.

THE HONORARY TITLE AN INTERVIEW WITH JARROD GORBEL

Words: Colin Kincaid • Photo: Courtesy of Jarrod Gorbel

MOGUL STREET RESERVE Mogul Street Reserve is a Tampa prog-rock power trio whose members have probably lost a few girlfriends from spending too much time practicing. It has to be all they do. How else would they get so disgustingly good at their instruments, write seriously impressive guitar and vocal melodies, and come up with all those crazy time signatures?

THE SOME-WHAT COMPLETE LINE-UP THE HONORARY TITLE

CORY BRANAN • DAMION SUOMI THE BEAUVILLES • SHUNDA K GUILTMAKER • MOGUL STREET RESERVE DA GOLDMINERZ • BLIND MAN’S COLOUR SLIMM HUSTLE • HOW DARE YOU LARCEN • THE SHEAKS • DEFICIT GREYMARKET • STEREOTYPE & THE TREBLE MAKERS + MORE! + DJ SANDMAN, DJ MEGA, DJ COLONIC & DJ DEACON + MORE TBA

s he heads out on a stripped-down tour with keyboardist Dustin Dobernig that serves as a transition from The Honorary Title’s frontman to performing under his own name, songwriter Jarrod Gorbel considers both his past and future.

and have improved. In my mind I feel like it’s the best stuff, the most adult stuff I’ve ever written. With the band, we had teenage fans and we had adult fans. So … I don’t know it’s hard to tell ... it’s more organic, more folk-y, more associated around guitar and piano.

REAX: Does this tour feel like going back to your roots, as it were? Jarrod Gorbel: It totally does, it’s exactly where I started. I used to tour just with a keyboard player, just me and a guy on a Rhodes. So yeah. It’s kind of a segue, because I just ﬁnished an album, and it’s not going to be The Honorary Title, it’s going to be my solo record. So it’s kind of like, “hey, get used to it.” But it’s also the vibe of the music overall.

REAX: How did you hook up with [Rilo Kiley’s] Blake Sennet to produce it? JG: I was always a fan of Rilo, and the [Sennet side project] Elected album stuck out to me, I always loved it, and I love how it sounds. So I looked into it, to see who produced it, and it turns out he was one of the main producers. I e-mailed him, he got back to me and we started sending demos back and forth. We had no prior relationship, but he was into the songwriting. And the rest is history. [Laughs]

REAX: So you’re sort of moving forward and getting back at the same time. Why a solo record, when The Honorary Title is basically you? JG: I think because the last record we did, it did kind of evolve into a band. First it was a touring band, then they were on the last record, and it was a bigger rock sound ... the essence felt more like a band. And I brought in the same people I toured with [for the last record]. This time I went in totally by myself. Though that’s how [The Honorary Title] started, I felt like it evolved into something that wasn’t so much mine any more. And also, just the tag, maybe it’s completely irrelevant, but the name … I just see all these names that remind me of that name, and it relates to something I just don’t understand - “Is that a Warped Tour band? Oh, then I don’t like that band.” I think that aura exists for people that don’t know the band ... it’s been impaired by associations that don’t really make sense. It’s risky, but it’s just to start over, and know that my fans know I was the core songwriter. But this is going to be a little more mature. It’s not electronic or anything, it’s still folky, but I feel like it’s more mature. It helps me feel better inside. [Laughs]

REAX: Is that how you feel the forthcoming album is different from The Honorary Title, just more mature? JG: Yeah, I think so. I think as a songwriter, I hopefully matured

REAX: Are the tour EP tracks very different from the album? JG: It’s like a continuation of the new album. It’s songs that were written with that batch, that didn’t make the cut for whatever reason, or there wasn’t enough time ... they have more of an atmosphere, versus straight-up rock songs. REAX: The Honorary Title has always sort of existed on the periphery of various trends – it’s kept you out of the middle of oversaturated hype like the emo thing and allowed you to be yourself. Are you glad you weren’t an emo poster boy for ﬁve minutes? JG: Yeah, the way you just phrased it, it deﬁnitely does not seem appealing at all. [Laughs] I always hope for more success, but not in a fad sort of way. I wouldn’t want to come up in a certain group. If anything, I’d like to come up independently. Because once you’re completely associated with something, you’re written off. I always want to be successful, but on my own terms. I’m not going to play the Warped Tour ... well, never say never [Laughs]. But pretty much. Gorbel and Dobenig play Ybor City’s Crowbar Saturday, August 29 as part of Summer Jam 5. MYSPACE.COM/THEHONORARYTITLE

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

REAX INTERVIEWS HEARTLESS BASTARDS

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

HEARTLESS BASTARDS REAX INTERVIEWS

Growing up in the city, she was in awe of local alternative bands becoming popular. “I remember the ﬁrst time a friend of me turned me on to Guided by Voices,” says the guitarist/vocalist. “I just became a really big fan instantly. Brainiac was doing really good - they had just toured Europe with Beck. And also The Breeders are from Dayton, and Kim Deal is in the Pixies, another one of my favorite bands, so it’s just kind of inspiring to see people out of a city that size getting out there and doing stuff on a national, international level.” Other, more classic-rock musicians have also inspired Wennerstrom, such as Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones; She says all of the music from which she’s drawn inﬂuence has affected her.

Words: Evan Tokarz • Illustration: Chris Golden

rika Wennerstrom drawls. Her speaking voice, an Ohio-bred twang, pronounces “well” as “Weyy-ull,” and “Bob Dylan” as “Bawwb Dyl’n.”

Wennerstrom leads the group Heartless Bastards. After positive reviews in Rolling Stone and an appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman, the band is exposing its blues-tinged garage rock to the masses via some heavy touring work. What

the ﬁrst track on the album, and its namesake. The mix, the instrumentation, everything about the track she liked. Of the current band members, she’s the only one who has been on each album; in this way, it’s almost a solo project. The other current members are bassist Jesse Ebaugh, and original Heartless Bastards drummer Dave Colvin. Though she’s currently resting in Austin from a tour with former

“AS WITH ANY ALBUM, I LISTEN BACK OCCASIONALLY AND THERE ARE THINGS I’D LIKE TO CHANGE. BUT I THINK WITH ANY PIECE OF ART, IT’S NEVER COMPLETELY FINISHED IN THE ARTIST’S EYES...” interviewers and reviewers tend to focus on is not her speaking voice, but the way she sounds when she sings - a husky, powerful howl that suggests some of her influences: P.J. Harvey, Robert Plant, Jack White. Yet when she spoke to this writer by phone, it was her speaking voice that struck a chord - not a flat, boring Midwestern accent, but one with twangy warmth. When she sings, though, that’s when scuttling pens come out, offering everything from Karen O to Janis Joplin as various reporters have tried to describe her thundering voice. In any case, her voice best personifies Thomas Carlyle’s concept of singing as the “the speech of angels.” She sings with grace and vigor, grit and gravel. In February, Heartless Bastards released The Mountain on Fat Possum Records. Mike McCarthy, who helmed Spoon’s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, handled production of the album; Wennerstrom feared the session musicians McCarthy suggested might give the finished product the sound of an album made by strangers. But she got along well with the players, and says she’s proud of The Mountain - even if, sometimes when she listens to it, she wants to edit certain parts.

Rilo Kiley frontwoman and current solo attraction Jenny Lewis, the tone of her voice lightens when asked about Florida. She remembers a show at Ybor’s New World Brewery as one of her favorite shows she’s played in the state, even though she played

“... NOTHING’S SET IN STONE MUSICALLY” the concert sick. As a child, she grew up going to St.Petersburg’s beaches, and is just now getting around to exploring central Florida. “I’m not saying I’m some deprived child, I mean we have King’s Island in Ohio,” says Wennerstrom. “And I did go to Busch Gardens when I was young, but I’ve just never experienced the whole Disney thing.” When she’s not playing a show, she hangs out in the indie-music mecca of Austin, the Red River district. Locals cherish the area for its live music, bars, and underground-famous venues like Stubb’s, Emo’s, and Mohawk. She says she goes out there so often that some of her friends call her a “creature of the night.” By day, she likes to go to local swimming hole Barton Springs, and to one of the area’s greenbelts - hiking trails incorporated throughout the city.

“As with any album, I listen back occasionally and there are things I’d like to change. But I think with any piece of art, it’s never completely ﬁnished in the artist’s eyes,” she says, adding, “as a musician, you can alter things on the road, or do different things live. So, nothing’s set in stone musically.”

“I like to hike, and they have a ton of trails and things and natural places to swim that are offshoots of the Colorado River, so it’s nice when it’s nice out,” she says, adding that it’s not so nice to hike in the region’s recent 100-degree-plus weather.

She says one track came out especially well: “The Mountain,”

Her musical inﬂuences date back to her childhood in Dayton.

“I look at my voice as trying to emulate, like, 40 different singers that I like, and maybe in that process I find my own voice,” she says. Even if it’s a two-second part or phrasing, she can notice the influence of some of her heroes, musicians like Lucinda Williams and Neil Young. “When I was writing ‘Hold your Head High,’ I felt like I was inspired by Bob Dylan, but I certainly don’t want to say it sounds anything like a Bob Dylan song, though - I mean, he’s so amazing, I wouldn’t want to compare,” says Wennerstrom. It’s not only music that influenced her; growing up in Ohio, she worked in a bookstore. Since it was often slow, she used the time to get her homework done, and, when she had time, she would scan the shelves for good books. One book that especially affected her was Ken Follett’s The Pillars of The Earth. “I’m a really big architecture fan, and a history fan, and it’s like historical fiction. I remember really liking that book,” she says, adding that she also found good books on topics like Henry VIII. These days, what she reads varies from Are you there Vodka, It’s Me Chelsea, a collection of essays by humorist and talkshow host Chelsea Handler, to The Idiot, a work by the Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky. This wide range of reading shows up in lyrics, such as those for “Searching for the Ghost,” a track from the band’s second album, All This Time: “Hotels and highway signs/Another book to pass the time/Empty cans and bottles lying/This room is almost like a shrine.” Recently, she recorded a cover of “If I Were a Carpenter” with Alex Maas of the Black Angels. The Tim Hardin-penned duet has seen covers over the year by musicians ranging from Johnny Cash to Bobby Darin to Leonard Nemoy, and on the song, her voice, it ... well, it … “Weyy-ull,” you could go on forever trying to describe Wennerstrom’s inimitable voice, but as Steve Martin or Frank Zappa or whoever it was said, talking about music is like dancing about architecture. Might as well go give Heartless Bastards a listen. The Mountain is out now on Fat Possum records. Heartless Bastards play Lollapalooza in August. THEHEARTLESSBASTARDS.COM

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

REAX INTERVIEWS FRUIT BATS REAX: No. Hell no. EJ: Then we’ve got Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia. REAX: We’re going to miss you in Florida, though, we’re sad about that. EJ: Well, we’re coming to Florida in the winter. That’s the best time to come. Although the last time we came to Florida it was a weird cold spell you all had. I can’t remember what year that was now, but it was like 20 degrees in Tampa the night we played. I think it was like the coldest night ever recorded or something like that. When we came to Florida it was totally freezing. But we’re coming this winter, for sure. REAX: The Fruit Bats and the Shins are very distinct bands, but as you get to the point where more of the members of the Fruit Bats are joining The Shins, do you ever worry about there being a blur between the two or one overshadowing the other? EJ: [Laughs] I think it’s pretty clear that one does overshadow the other, because The Shins are way more popular, so there’s no threat; it is what it is. We have one other guy that’s in both bands and he was just kind of in the right place at the right time and he sort of fell into it. So there’s two of us in the two bands. Unless something miraculous happens with this record I think I can be safe saying The Shins already pretty much overshadow us. I don’t need to worry too much about that. REAX: How difficult is it to have any sort of a life when you’re writing and performing with two touring bands? EJ: It’s not that bad, because a lot of times these things are pretty condensed. Instead of a nine-to-five job five days a week, you work this 24-hour-a-day job for nine straight months, but then you could also get nine straight months off too. That’s the weird trade-off. It’s the same amount of time, I think, as a normal job, so I have time off to do stuff.

FRUIT BATS IN GOOD COMPANY

Words: Jon Bosworth • Photo: Annie Beedy

THERE IS SOMETHING STRANGELY IRONIC ABOUT SUB POP’S CURRENT ROSTER OF BANDS FEATURING SO MUCH SOUTHERN-INFLUENCED MUSIC. FLEET FOXES, BLITZEN TRAPPER, BAND OF HORSES AND IRON & WINE ARE ON THE LIST, BUT PROBABLY MOST NOTABLE IS THE SHINS. ERIC D. JOHNSON PLAYS WITH THE SHINS, BUT HIS PERSONAL WRITING VEHICLE IS SUB POP’S FRUIT BATS, AND THEY DEFINITELY FIT THE SOUTHERN-INFLUENCED BILL.

their novelty decor and charge offensive rates for fried catﬁsh and shrimp and grits. So are the very Allmann Brothers-esque Fruit Bats making novelty music and then parading it down into southern territory like something those yankees now own?

hough these groups are often lumped together in the genre of alt-country, there really aren’t any defining characteristics for the tag. The moniker was first passed around back in the days of The Jayhawks and Uncle Tupelo, when it was necessary to make a distinction between hipster college-country and the Hank Williams Jr. brand that was on C&W radio stations; but it seems wholly inadequate now that it spans everything from raw, folk-ish music like Iron & Wine to the very southern rock-ish Fruit Bats. However, music journalists need these neat categories, because few tasks are more difficult than trying to explain music through printed words. The point is, it’s hard to imagine that Cobain wouldn’t shit himself to see anything even remotely country or southern coming out of the Sub Pop factory. Back in Cobain’s day, harmonies like those the Fleet Foxes employ were not in any way cool. Evan Dando was the brunt of Cobain and producer Steve Albini’s prank calls, and Dando’s Lemonheads were the epitome of punk rock going soft with vocal harmonies and ballads.

REAX: Many people categorize you as alt-country, but it seems to me you have more of a ‘70s southern rock thing. Eric D. Johnson: I’ve always had an afﬁnity for the ‘70s southern rock thing, for sure. I like to think that the new record is a combination of my affection for sort of soft, British rock from the ‘70s but also more like southern rock from the ‘70s too, which I don’t think has ever really been combined before. That’s what I was trying to do. But yeah, you hit the nail on the head, deﬁnitely. I like that stuff.

Another piece of the irony lies in the fact most of the hipsters composing these southern jams are yankees. Portland, where the Fruit Bats live, has “Southern Style Restaurants” that are expensive four-star brasseries playing up southern culture like an ethnic delicacy. They come to southern thrift shops for

REAX: You don’t have a whole lot of southern dates, are you nervous about being a yankee and bringing your southern rock down here? EJ: We have a fair amount of southern dates. Does Texas count?

Unfortunately, the phone interview with Johnson was cut short, which is probably for the best, since he was a really nice guy and there was no need to unleash any southern rage.

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

REAX: Who do you consider your contemporaries? Whose new albums do you anticipate and get excited about? EJ: If I were just to list off some contemporary band I’ve liked over the past few years - I’ve had an association with this band too, but I’m still a fan - it’d be Vetiver. They’re also friends. That’s the other thing, a lot of times you sort of end up becoming friends with people, so you’re sort of a friend and a fan. I always love M. Ward’s records, I had a recent discovery, and now they’re my label-mates but I don’t really know these guys, Blitzen Trapper. I’ve really liked their last few records. Who else have I been stoked on? I’ve always liked Grandaddy, even though they are no more. That would be a short list. There are many more. REAX: Fun fact: a fruit bat is also called a ﬂying fox, and Fleet Foxes are also label-mates in a similar genre. EJ: Oh, that’s another contemporary band that I really like, and they are our friends as well as label-mates. REAX: Isn’t it weird that Sub Pop is signing so many country-ish bands? That’s not very punk. EJ: They’ve kinda been doing that since we signed with them, like seven years ago. Maybe more so lately, but they’ve been slowly picking up a lot of bands like that for the past seven years. Maybe not all country-ish, but folk and/or country. It’s cool. You get like one person in there who has a taste for the thing and starts picking up on it, and others start picking up on what they’re doing and it sort of happens like that. Yeah, it’s cool. REAX: Do you think Kurt Cobain would freak out to see this sort of country movement take over the once-punk rock label that he championed? EJ: I don’t know. I think Kurt Cobain had pretty diverse taste in music, so I’d like to think that he’d be cool with all of it. REAX: That was a really dorky question, sorry. EJ: I haven’t gotten that one yet, so it was original. The Ruminant Band is out now on Sub Pop. The Fruit Bats are on tour in the U.S. through August and September. MYSPACE.COM/THEFRUITBATS

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

REAX INTERVIEWS MUNICIPAL WASTE not mimic it. It’s cool, because a lot of the older bands have seen that we have worked hard enough and earned their respect. Last summer I met Kerry King and he told me that he listens to the Waste in his iPod I was like, “that’s weird. I listen to your band in my iPod!” That really blew my mind. There have been a lot of situations like that, which makes me proud because a lot of these older bands look at us as their peers and not some revival gimmick.

REAX: What’s the secret remedy that gets you from feeling like you’re going to die to climbing back onstage and sweating it all out again? Have they got PediaLyte overseas? TF: Ha ha, PediaLyte! My friend made me drink that shit one night before I played a gig on that Lamb of God tour. I was like, “Isn’t this for grandparents?” Well, while I’m overseas I just try my best to stay hydrated. Tons and tons of water. That’s basically all I’ve found that helps. That or just keep drinking, which usually ends up Bad News Bears. REAX: You’ve said that the band was more prepared to go into the studio with Massive Aggressive than some previous sessions. Did you do purposely do anything different this time around, or did the songs just come faster or more fully realized? TF: The one thing we did different with this record than we did with our other albums is demoing. We have never done demos before. We usually just write the shit and then just go record it in the studio. This album, we demoed the entire thing and then listened to it a million times so we would know what sucked and what needed changing.

MUNICIPAL WASTE

NO MIMICRY, NO GIMMICKRY

Words: Scott Harrell • Photo: Courtesy of Earache Records

FOR EIGHT YEARS, RICHMOND, VA’S MUNICIPAL WASTE HAVE ENDEAVORED TO PUT THE FUN - AND THE CLASSIC HALLMARKS OF CROSSOVER THRASH - BACK INTO THAT GRAY AREA BETWEEN HARDCORE AND METAL. VOCALIST TONY FORESTA RECENTLY TOOK A BREAK FROM DESTROYING KEGS AND STAGES IN EUROPE TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS VIA E-MAIL ABOUT THE BAND’S ORIGINS, NEW ALBUM MASSIVE AGGRESSIVE, AND THE OLD-SCHOOL HEAVY-MUSIC CONNECTION. intensity of the music. The new album is just way more pissedsounding all around.

REAX: For a while there, American metal and crossover were very serious. Was Waste consciously conceived as an alternative to all the killing-your-girlfriend shit? Tony Foresta: I think American metal wasn’t really serious when we started, it was just really bad. The only metal we took seriously were bands that came out 15 years before. I mean, think about it. We started in 2001. Do you know who were big metal bands then? Limp Bizkit, Korn, Atreyu ... that crap was considered metal. Them and every “underground band” was out there basically ripping off At The Gates riffs over and over again. So yeah, I guess when we started the Waste it was kind of a middle ﬁnger to all of that. We just wanted to bring the honesty and fun of punk back to metal, which is where a lot of the great metal bands came from back in the day.

REAX: Are you finding younger fans out there that have gone back and discovered D.R.I. and M.O.D. and Nuclear Assault? Do you see it more in one place - America or Europe or the U.K. - than elsewhere? TF: Oh, definitely over the past five years. I would like to think that our band has opened kids’ minds to a lot of thrash bands even beyond the ones you mentioned. Even when we started, I always tried to name-drop as many obscure thrash bands as I could in hopes that kids would read it and go out and buy their records. It kind of backfired on me though because now Razor and English Dogs LPs are expensive as shit these days!

REAX: Obviously, there’s a place for bands that take their music seriously without taking themselves or everything else so seriously, but do you think there are fans that are just reacting to the heaviness, that aren’t even really that aware of the more satirical side of the band’s personality? TF: I don’t really care what they like about the band as long as people are reacting to it. If our songs don’t provoke a response then that means we are doing a bad job at it somewhere. The new stuff is a lot less satirical anyways. I think that helps with the

REAX: Does it bother you guys to be so consistently mentioned in association with older bands? Is it weird that there are all these elements of the band’s process - the vinyl, the artwork, some of the sound - that seem sort of classic, and at the same time the band is being called the future of thrash? TF: No, not really. I like it. I think it’s an honor to be compared to great bands like that. I think people are familiar with our band enough now to know that we are not some generic act that’s ripping off these bands to cash in. We contribute to the genre,

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

REAX: With a band like yours, that has a certain sound and is experienced in getting it, what kind of role does a producer like Zeuss play? TF: Well, Zeuss is a pro. He knows the band really well and he is easy to talk to. He lets us get our point across, and he knew that we wanted a dirtier sound on the record. He’s like the ﬁfth band member in there. He wants the record to rip just as much as we do. That’s the type of people we like to work with. People that care about the band and don’t just see dollar signs with things. I’m not even sure if I’m supposed to say this, but he took a big pay cut to do our record. He knew we didn’t have a lot of money but he didn’t care. He wanted to be a part of it because he loves us. That guy is great.

REAX: Do you have any cool collaborative ideas floating around for videos this time around? TF: We are filming a video for the track “Wrong Answer” in a couple of weeks. I don’t want to spill the beans or anything, but it’s going to be like The Price is Right on acid. REAX: What’s one thing you always look forward to getting when you tour overseas that you can’t get in the States, and one thing you always miss that you can’t get when you’re over there? TF: Well in Europe hot sauce is really hard to come by. They’ve got this lame chili stuff that’s barely spicy. I got busted at the airport the other day trying to bring a bottle of Tapatio into the Czech republic on my carry-on. They were like “NO LIQUIDS” and I was like, “C’MON, THAT’S MY SAUCE!” And of course the beer in Europe kicks us Americans’ butts really bad. It’s scary, if you don’t watch out you can come back from Europe gaining 15 pounds of beer weight! REAX: Anything else you’d like to add? I heard you’ve got a new thing going on down here in Florida ... TF: Yeah, I just recently started playing in a hardcore band based out of Orlando called No Friends. It’s really fun. I fly down and practice all the time between tours and we play gigs whenever we can. We’ve got an LP recorded and it’s coming out on No Idea records. I’m really excited about it. Total D.C. hardcore worship. Massive Aggressive comes out August 25 on Earache. Municipal Waste is on tour in the U.K. through August. MYSPACE.COM/MUNICIPALWASTE MYSPACE.COM/WEVEGOTNOFRIENDS

REAX INTERVIEWS THE POSTMARKS Yehezkely describes her musical inspirations (you know, those ones that get you to ﬁrst pick up an instrument) as anything “quirky and ﬂawed,” enjoying the idea that when playing music, “you didn’t have to be perfect,” she says. “I’ve always enjoyed bands that have had their own character - the Flaming Lips, Beck. I’ve always leaned towards the more unique artists who try to do something a little bit different than the mainstream expectations.” While brash variations from the mainstream, pop-song structure require in-depth, deep-sea exploration into The Postmarks catalog, Yehezkely views such formulae as an asset bestowed upon her by her fellow bandmates and the celluloid sonic signatures of cinematic soundtracks. “I’m fortunate that I bumped into these guys,” she says. “[Moll] is all about a pop song and following structure. I’ve learned a lot from that because a lot of the catchy stuff that I listened to, I didn’t realize there was a structure … that would catch me whether it was intentional or not. It helped me appreciate that aspect of it, but within those boundaries, there is still a lot you can do to make it your own. Even with a poem, you have a certain structure … but there is still so much room to imagine and change, even though at its foundation, there is formula there.” Memoirs At The End Of The World will be released August 25th. The Postmarks play with Peter, Bjorn & John at The Social in Orlando, September 5th. MYSPACE.COM/THEPOSTMARKS

THE POSTMARKS A SCENE FROM THE CINEMA

Words: Ryan Patrick Hooper • Photo: Eric Sutton

THE FLORIDA SUN BLAZES ON MASSIVE EXPANSES OF BLACK ASPHALT, TURNING LARGE BUICK CENTURIES IDLING IN THE PARKING LOTS OF MOVIE THEATERS INTO DEATHBEDS FOR SENIOR CITIZENS AND DEHYDRATED TOY DOGS. THE SUMMER DROVES OF JOBLESS, YOUTHFUL AND SPONTANEOUS PLUNGE FORWARD INTO THE AFTERNOON MATINEE - THE OPEN, AIRY LOBBY A PROVEN STOMPING GROUND FOR ADOLESCENT FLIRTATION AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE LAST REFUGE OF COINOPERATED ARCADES. CASH SWITCHES HANDS - A TICKET STUB, POPCORN, AN INDUSTRIAL-SIZED BOX OF CHOCOLATE-COVERED INDULGENCE AND A SLURP-TILL-YOU-CHOKE COKE (BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU CARE ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT).

nce the large, red doors of the theater swing open, the ultimate consumer experience has already been had and couples, lonely number ones and jocks quickly ﬁll the best seats alongside blossoming Jills and average Joes. The air conditioning feels amazing (a ten-dollar escape from the August heat) and the reel begins to roll. But instead of useless trivia about who bleaches whose anus in Hollywood, a hauntingly beautiful, sweeping soundtrack of sorts spills forth. Jaws drop, eyes widen and the audience’s attention focuses on a blank screen as rich, gorgeous vocals pipe through the speakers. South Florida’s own The Postmarks have spun the world of living, breathing soundtracks onto its head and the musical world of cinematic Technicolor jams, vibes and rhythms will never be the same.

The Postmarks came to fruition when guitarist and creative force Christopher Moll and drummer Johnathan Wilkins stumbled upon the dreamy vocals of Yehezkely in 2003. Wilkins was DJing at a local Miami open-mic night and once Yehezkely took the stage, he immediately thought of a project Moll had been working on. At ﬁrst, Yehezkely was skeptical.

“We have always talked about soundtracks as inspirations and wanting the album to sound like one,” explains Tim Yehezkely, the boyishly named frontwoman and multi-instrumentalist for The Postmarks, as she hovers above Chicago train tracks taking in the athletic facade of Soldier Field on the ninth floor of a friend’s condo, waiting for the excitement to kick before the band takes the legendary Double Door’s stage. Yehezkely describes The Postmarks’ new album, Memoirs At The End Of The World (due on August 25 via Unfiltered Records), as a “more cinematic, more lush” approach to writing and recording a pop-filled, lounge-esque, full-on evolution from their charming self-titled debut. Yehezkely is quick to cite Yann Tiersen’s work on the Amélie soundtrack as her favorite.

The two would go on to meet and discuss the musical project further, quickly discovering their “touch points for musical references” were ideally the same. Yehezkely describes the process of recording their debut as “challenging,” subject to the growing pains of musicians working together ofﬁcially for the ﬁrst time. Since then, things have changed.

“I was really ﬂattered,” recalls Yehezkely, “because I had never really played out at all before that ﬁrst night. After the show, [Moll] approached me and told me what he was working on … how we had to get together and do something. At the time, I didn’t know who this guy was and what he was talking about. But I’ll give things a chance sometimes. It seems kind of weird, but why not?”

“The new album went a lot smoother,” says Yehezkely. “We all worked more collaboratively. On the ﬁrst album, [Moll] wrote all of the songs [with] him and [Wilkins] arranging them. I did the lyrics and each had their job to do. Now, on [Memoirs At The End Of The World], it’s more ﬂuid between us and you can hear that in the music.”

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

THE POSTMARKS’ TIM YEHEZKELY

ROMANCE CLASS 101: DATING ADVICE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF FOXY FEMALES

HIGH SPEED CHASE

“I’m old-fashioned. I mean, I’ve chased a couple … but there is something about being pursued. Maybe it is a biological thing, an animal instinct thing - the males chase the females within the animal kingdom. Plus, you want a guy that can protect you. If they don’t have the balls to come up to you in the ﬁrst place, forget about it. Sure, you can kick off a conversation, but never force anything - let it come naturally.”

TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS

“Always trust your instincts! You don’t always have to listen to your friends.”

... BUT ALSO PLAY BALL

“You have to play the game a little bit. Be true to yourself, but you have to play the game in the beginning. You have to be a little hard to get. You’ve got to make an indication that you’re interested … but not to the point where you are lying about who you are. If you are too honest, people freak out … or see you as weak,” she laughs.

REAX INTERVIEWS JUDAS PRIEST

JUDAS PRIEST

DELIVERING THE GOODS: AN INTERVIEW W/ K.K. DOWNING Words: Scott Harrell • Photo: Courtesy of Chipster PR

THE HANDFUL OF NAMES THAT WILL FOREVER QUALIFY AS TRUE TITANS OF CLASSIC HEAVY METAL IS ALWAYS A SMALL ONE, BUT JUDAS PRIEST IS AND WILL ALWAYS BE IN THERE. THIRTY-FIVE YEARS AFTER HELPING SET THE TONE OF THE NEW WAVE OF BRITISH HEAVY METAL - AND 29 AFTER DEFINING IT WITH THE BENCHMARK BRITISH STEEL - PRIEST HAS WEATHERED TREND SHIFTS, LINEUP CHANGES AND ORIGINAL LEAD SINGER ROB HALFORD’S COMING-OUT, AND CONTINUES TO SUPPLY ITS TRADEMARKED TWIN-GUITAR ATTACK TO A LEGION OF ETERNALLY LOYAL FANS.

n the eve of the band’s U.S. tour with Whitesnake to promote the new in-concert disc A Touch of Evil - Live, guitarist K.K. Downing got on the phone with REAX to chat about the new CD’s mix of rarities and recent material, relearning his own guitar parts and just how Priest got to be one of the most iconic and enduring acts in metal.

REAX: Having already released one of the most famous live albums of all time, is there added pressure to outdo Unleashed In The East when you decide to do another? K.K. Downing: [Laughs] I don’t know. I guess hopefully, just the quality of playing is good, and of the songs is good. We’re not too worried about it, really. Obviously, I’ve heard the record and [Unleashed mixer] Tom Allom was aboard to do the mixes, so there’s a bit of continuity there. So it’s all good, really. REAX: It deﬁnitely seems like you wanted to stay away from the radio songs for this one, and get some live versions of die-hard fan favorites on there for posterity, like “Riding On The Wind” and “Beyond The Realms” and the newer stuff. KKD: Yeah. These songs have not been previously released on DVD, or anywhere live. We’ve just been traveling the world, rocking out for a few years since Rob rejoined, and it just seemed like a cool thing to do, let the fans have these songs. REAX: Is that a tough decision, deciding between a track from Nostradamus and a live version of one of the hits that might get more airplay? KKD: No, we just went for ... all of the stuff that was previously unreleased. We thought that if it was good enough be in the live set, then whatever it was [was good enough for the release]. REAX: Some might call putting out a live album a risky proposition

with the music industry in this weird ﬂux, but it seems like metal and hard rock live albums by established bands always seem to do well. Do you think it’s just the energy? Or is it that the fans are loyal completists? KKD: Probably a mixture of all sorts of things, really. I think a lot of us - I don’t know if you’re like me, but a good live album is ... it’s great to listen to, really. I guess some of the reasons are - sometimes you release studio records, and you just don’t get the same energy or vibe from it if you’re in a certain mood. A live album, and especially if you were there, and had just seen the band in the last few years - and who knows? The shouts and the whistles and the applause, that could be you in the audience.

REAX: On this tour, you’re going to be playing British Steel in its entirety. Have you found that your attitudes or emotional responses to the material have changed over the years? KKD: Um, it might be early days yet, we’re still relearning them, to be honest. [Laughs] But it’s sounding good. I guess we’re trying to get them to sound exactly the same, we’re purists, we don’t want them to sound like newer versions, and sometimes it’s not that easy to regress 30 years. The other thing is, some of that stuff is, “how the hell did I play that?” [Laughs] It makes you appreciate yourself a little bit more. “Did I really do that?” So that’s really, really cool. I think the main thing is, we’d never put that set list together if we weren’t doing the whole album, some of those songs wouldn’t be considered. We’ve got so many songs, you know? And we always argue about the set list. [Laughs]

KKD: Oh yeah. “Stealer,” “The Rage,” all that stuff, I ‘m thinking. What matters is the fact that it might never have been chosen for previous set lists. It’s going in anyway, and it’s down to us to deliver the goods, it’s as simple as that.

REAX: The way that music is made, promoted and consumed is changing so much, it seems nearly impossible for a band starting out now to have the kind of longevity that Priest has enjoyed. Is there any one secret to the band’s endurance? KKD: No. I think we’ve always been hard workers. It’s always kind of been a work in progress, really. Some bands are fortunate to have a first album be a big hit, but we’ve always seemed to be forging ahead. But the good thing is, the world has been getting bigger for quite some time, like when the Iron Curtain came down, so now there are countries we’ve just been to for the first time, Turkey, Colombia, Korea. And there’s talk about us going to China, India, South Africa. So that’s the good thing. We went to Russia for the first time not too long ago. As long as we can keep going out there to the fans, the fans are there, that’s for sure. With the Internet, people writing to us - and they do - then we’re happy to stay on board and taking the music to the fans. We’re very fortunate to still be here and doing it. Judas Priest in Florida: August 15 - St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine August 16 - St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa August 17 - Seminole Hard Rock Arena, Hollywood August 19 - Germain Arena, Estero JUDASPRIEST.COM

REAX: Is there anything in particular on there that you maybe haven’t played live in a long time, something you’re really excited to tear into live again?

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

SOAPBOX UPCOMING RELEASES / MUSIC REVIEWS

UPCOMING

ABRAHAM LINCOLN THOMAS JEFFERSON BILL CLINTON

RELEASES ARTIST

RICHARD NIXON GEORGE W. BUSH

ALBUM

LABEL

BUSDRIVER JHELLI BEAM

Letter Word,” is the pretty much ﬂawless playlist for your hot-months dance party action. (COLUMBIA) - Colin Kincaid

AUG. 04 / AUG. 11

SOLILLAQUISTS OF SOUND NO MORE HEROES ANTICanyons Cub Country Desolation Wilderness Fruit Bats Helado Negro Julian Plenti Lightning Dust Nisennenmondai Nurses Reigning Sound Robert Pollard Throw Me the Statue Yoga The Young Accuser

VOXTROT BERLIN,

WITHOUT RETURN... SELF-RELEASED

Fire Eyes 12” Stretch That Skull Cover and Smile New Universe The Ruminant Band Awe Owe Julian Plenti Is...Skyscraper Inﬁnite Light Destination Tokyo Apple’s Acre Love and Curses Elephant Jokes Creaturesque Mega Fauna Unsound 7”

DFA Future Farmer K Sub Pop Asthmatic Kitty Matador Jagjaguwar Smalltown Dead Oceans In the Red Guided By Voices Secretly Canadian Holy Mountain Sub Pop

AUG. 18

THE CAVE SINGERS WELCOME JOY MATADOR

As Tall As Lions The Antlers Blind Man’s Colour Choir of Young Believers Division Day Jack Peñate Jay Reatard Joe Henry Lil Wayne Lokai Mount Eerie Pissed Jeans Six Organs of Admittance Squarepusher

PISSED JEANS KING OF JEANS SUB POP

You Can’t Take It With You Hospice (reissue) Season’s Dreaming This Is for the White in Your Eyes Visitation Everything Is New Watch Me Fall Blood From Stars Rebirth Transition Wind’s Poem King of Jeans Luminous Night Solo Electric Bass 1

Triple Crown Frenchkiss Kanine Ghostly Int. Dangerbird XL Matador AntiUniversal Thrill Jockey Sun Sub Pop Drag City Warp

AUG. 25 / SEPT. 01

COUGAR PATRIOT

THE POSTMARKS MEMOIRS AT THE END OF THE WORLD DFA

COUNTER

A.A. Bondy The Apples in Stereo Arctic Monkeys Asobi Seksu Blitzen Trapper The Bloody Beetroots Cougar David Bazan Lullabye Arkestra Matisyahu Múm Still Life Still

When the Devil’s Loose #1 Hits Explosion! Humbug Transparence Black River Killer EP Romborama Patriot Curse Your Branches Threats/Worship Light Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know Girls Come Too

Reviewed in this issue

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

Fat Possum Yep Roc Domino Polyvinyl Sub Pop Dim Mak Counter Barsuk Vice JDub/Epic Euphono Arts & Crafts

With lyrics that read like a clear-headed Aesop Rock, Busdriver could probably take MC Paul Barman and MF Doom in Scrabble. He’s got indie cred all over him; he’s rapped on Islands’ “Where There’s A Will There’s A Whalebone,” and his wordplay has showed up on some of Th’ Corn Gangg’s releases. The new album, Jhelli Beam, continues his tommy-gun style; you could call him an art-rap Busta Rhymes. The topics range from the Coen Brothers’ Barton Fink to former U.N. head Boutros Boutros-Ghali, often within the same verse. On “Me - time” he employs fellow backpacker Edan’s “Key-bored” conceit of rapping over Mozart’s “Rondo Alla Turca.” Yet, with all his Dada-like rhymes, there’s something wrong: he overstuffed the album. After being bombarded with brilliance, it’d be nice to understand what the hell he is saying - but that’s what repeated listens are for. (ANTI-) - Evan Tokarz

DIVISION DAY VISITATION After taking some time off in an attempt to “narrow their musical lens,” Division Day set out on a quest to discover a song style that effectively represented themselves as a band. During their search they managed to put together their selffunded new album, Visitation, and yet again set out on another search: this time for a producer who “got it.” What “it” is, I’m not quite sure, because apparently “it” is something I deﬁnitely don’t get. Although a good attempt at trying to be somewhat eclectic and discovering a new musical style, Visitation appears to be nothing more than a failed attempt at an album that’s ready for the public’s ears. With incomprehensible lyrics, beats and random noises thrown all over the place, and various styles crammed into one album (see the track “Chalk Lines”), I’m left wondering what Division Day was exactly trying to get at with this release. Honestly, I gave this album one full listen and that was more than enough. (DANGERBIRD) - Alexis Quinn Chamberlain

THE GOSSIP MUSIC FOR MEN This is what a disco-punk record should sound like. Sophisticated yet raw, spiky yet soulful, smart yet incredibly catchy. Beth Ditto has never sounded better; her timeless, passionate voice ﬁnally has the eclectic, mature and dynamic sonic backgrounds it has always deserved. Screw everybody who says they’ve sold out, that this isn’t them, that Rick Rubin turned them into a mainstream act. And screw anybody who thinks The Black Eyed Peas or freakin’ Lady GaGa or whoever is the sound of the summer - this right here, from “Dimestore Diamond” through “Four

HELADO NEGRO AWE OWE Producer, art-installation co-conspirator and sonic architect Roberto Carlos Lange does Latin-ﬂavored chillout with a ton of friends, including folks from Chicago Underground Trio, Feathers, Prefuse 73, Stars Like Fleas and more. Awe Owe is an arty mix of evocative Spanish lyrics, processed found sounds, and tracks both organic and electronic, and deserves notice on the strength of its originality. Sometimes, though, the consistently downtempo rhythms and overall vibe cross the line between “thematically similar” and “has this been one song playing these last 14 minutes?” It’s wonderful in small doses, and comparatively energetic tracks like “I Wish” and “Awe” stand out as highlights, but a little more diversity in the bpms would’ve matched the wide array of sounds, instruments and inﬂuences on display, and gone a long way toward keeping the listener’s attention. (ASTHMATIC KITTY) - Scott Harrell

LUSHLIFE CASSETTE CITY In Cassette City, Phillyborn multi-instrumentalist Lushlife, a.k.a. Raj Halder, has found a beautiful mesh of beats and flows, delivering a very respectable sophomore release. This album came as a breath of fresh air; only a few tracks in, I was convinced that this is a serious release deserving of recognition. There is a great variety of flavor on this album, from neckbreaking beats to airy Beach Boys harmonies, which should satisfy the most intimate hip-hop head as well as the hearts of indie kids worldwide. As a classically trained musician, Halder has found a way to meld his polished knowledge of music theory with raw and grimy samplebased sounds to develop a surprising style rich in authentic hip-hop flavor. For the most part, the feeling is on the hype and uptempo side of things, with such gems like “Another Word for Paradise,” featuring the mid-’90s representatives Camp Lo. Halder brings a strong dose of boombap beats, with a nice portion of horn and vocal stabs, nicely topped off with a serious amount of vocal samples to fill in the choruses. Given Halder’s background as an instrumentalist, I was blown away by the verbal skills he displays throughout the entire album. I wouldn’t say he has the most authentic of flows, but what I do notice in his delivery is a wealth of confidence and patience on every song; it’s mostly in the wordplay and flow, with less emphasis on metaphors. Cassette City is a definite gem; every song is out to uplift and refresh, like a tall glass of aural Kool-Aid on a hot summer day. Enjoy! (RAPSTER) - Bryan Covet

MUSIC REVIEWS SOAPBOX

THE DEAD WEATHER HOREHOUND Jack White brakes for no one. The man is a perpetual-motion machine that belts out one music project after another with hardly a breath in between. His latest formation is the blues/rock outﬁt The Dead Weather, in which he’s joined by The Kills frontwoman Alison Mosshart, fellow Raconteur Jack Lawrence, and Dean Fertita of Queens of the Stone Age. This time around, however, Mosshart takes the lead vocal position, leaving White in the back seat with the drumming responsibilities. Their debut Horehound takes the best of both The White Stripes and The Raconteurs, drags it through the swamp, rubs some dirt on it, and then tells it it’s going to hell to make an album worth jamming out to during the darkest of nights. Mosshart’s vocals give an indication she could be mouthing off and spitting in an ex’s face, while the rest of band offers plenty of distorted classic rock with fuzzy guitars and bass and enough drum rolls and cymbal crashes to pound your ﬁst on your steering wheel along with them. With album highlights such as opener “60 Feet Tall,” second single “Treat Me Like Your Mother,” and the soulful “So Far From Your Weapon,” Horehound is sure to be on several best-album lists come the end of the year. (THIRD MAN / WARNER BROS.) - Nick Truden

OWEN THE SEASIDE Owen is not a guy named Owen. It’s Mike Kinsella, former member of emoskronk band Cap’n Jazz. In Owen, Kinsella coos bedroom folk. That is, he sings breathily - even as he sings softly, “You bring the drinks/I’ll bring the fuck-yous.” The Seaside collects Owen rarities, including several tracks only previously available on Japanese releases. The 3000-copy limited-edition EP is sparse and ideal for people who want a light version of Brand New’s “Play Crack the Sky.” For example, Kinsella makes a bedroom ballad of Extreme’s beach-bar classic, “More than Words.” Although he habitually self-indulges and confesses too many personal details, some may ﬁnd that part of his appeal. If you played your Dashboard Confessional CDs so often that your neighbors complained, you might like Owen’s new album. The acoustic songs have intimacy, the kind that makes romantics’ hearts ﬂutter. (POLYVINYL) - Evan Tokarz

JAGUAR CLUB AND WE WAKE UP SLOWLY The vocals, guitar, bass and drums of The Jaguar Club are not in perfect harmony. Instead, every component of sound has its own melody, but in some bizarre way, it manages to come together beautifully. This is a rare form of music where everything is working independently. The vocals do not depend on the guitar and the drums do not depend on the bass, or vice versa. Everything acts independently and when put together, it produces a sound with a pulsating rhythm. With just the right amount of ‘80s inﬂuence, these boys from Brooklyn still manage to create music that they can call their own. (MARCATA) - Mary Manchess

WORLD SANGUINE REPORT THIRD ONE RISES Somewhere between Nick Cave’s organically demented carnival of the damned and Mike Patton’s postmodern avant madness lies Andrew Plummer’s World Sanguine Report, a coalition of some of the U.K.’s most intellectually celebrated skronk, jazz and contemporary classical practitioners. Original? Unarguably. Listenable? Actually … yes, and often much more so than many of Plummer’s peers. The spastic horns can be slinkily melodic, while the rhythms conjure the vibe of an after-party around a gypsy-caravan campﬁre … once the psilocybin kicks in. The eerie, creeping piano and tom tom passage in “Overhead Slow” is positively unnerving; so are the softly overlaid horn lines mixed low under the Satanic come-on of “Jazz Hell Murder Ballad” … before it turns into a jaunty woodwind nightmare. Sure, sometimes the weirdness (and, on “Land of Lather Leather,” the stacked female vocals) can be almost overbearing, and if this album was 40 minutes long instead of 38, well, that might be enough to make your head explode. But Plummer’s guttural drunken-ringmaster baritone ties everything together, and adds enough of a linear connection to make Third One Rises an engaging listening experience rather than a schizoid novelty. (GRAVID HANDS) - Portnoy Jones

MÚM SING ALONG TO

SONGS YOU DON’T KNOW

ALUMINUM BABE 17 In an attempt to awaken the spirit of the electrorock genre, Anna - the “babe” in Aluminum Babe - credits her musical inspiration to electroclash, The Sex Pistols, Swedish children’s songs, and yes, even psychedelics. And oddly enough, it works. The songs and beats are repetitive and the lyrics are so high-pitched that you can’t even understand what’s being said, but with catchy tracks such as “Infatuation” and “Psycho Killer,” you can’t help but want to stop whatever you’re doing and get up to shake your ass and sing along; it’s the perfect, simple cure to a terrible, bland day. Rarely do I enjoy music as noisy and all over the place, but 17 works. Apparently Aluminum Babe’s doing something right. (LUCERO RECORDS) - Alexis Quinn Chamberlain

Múm sounds even more childish since the departure of their singer Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir. Not that there’s anything wrong with childishness - the band evokes the best parts of childhood: the kickball and monkey bars, the tea parties and slumber parties. Songs like “If I Were a Fish” capture this youthful wonder with lyrics like, “If I were a ﬁsh/and you were a seashell/would you marry me anyway?/would you have my babies?” The problem with the album is that since they ceased singing in Icelandic, they’ve lost some of their otherworldly mysticism, although there’s a clear Sigur Rós inﬂuence on the track “Hullaballabalú.” For Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know, Múm added IDM beats and an Estonian choir to their folktronica-dubbed sound, and still managed to keep their zest. A blogger once said the album made him feel like he was in a Hayao Miyazaki movie. It does - 100%. (EUPHONO) - Evan Tokarz

books & music

NEW & USED

VINYL

BOOKS. CDS. DVDS. BUY. SELL. TRADE.

Silver Apples: s/t (Phoenix Records) In 1968, this was unlike anything anyone had previously heard. Interstellar drones and hums, pulsing rhythms, and electronically-generated melodies created a surreal and tribal collage of sounds recorded in outer space and transmitted back to earth for your listening pleasure. There are no guitars on this record; it’s layered with nine audio oscillators and eighty-six manual controls to produce the out-of-this-world quality and a quivering air of tension. Television: The Blow Up (Roir Records) 1978 live performance from Tom Verlaine’s personal collection. Originally released on cassette in 1982. Over 85 minutes and digitally remastered. Extended versions of ‘Little Johnny Jewel’ & ‘Marquee Moon.’ Green & blue vinyl LPs. Butthole Surfers: Brown Reason To Live (Alternative Tentacles) Where all the sludge began. Seven of their most absurd demented rockabilly thrash freak outs. Though this be madness, there is a method in it. At 18 minutes, its brevity is the soul of its wit. There needs no ghost to come from the grave to tell us this. Ween: Live In Toronto (Schnitzel Records) From October of 1996: Although a dvd release would be the most appropriate, due to the deranged stage show, a document of their 1996 fall tour surpasses expectation as Dean & Gene deliver most of 12 Golden Country Greats along with your favorite enigmatic tunes, including “Push th’ Little Daisies” and “Spinal Meningitis (Got Me Down).” Faust: So Far (4 Men With Beards) Oh man. What did this take? Like 15 or 20 years to get properly reissued with all the extras included in the original packaging. That took way too long. I’ve been saving up the $150 bucks to buy a nice first pressing forever, but who cares now. Now I can finally begin to procrastinate getting my car fixed.

www.mojotampa.com • 813.971.9717

2558 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa

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

myspace.com/mojobooksandmusic AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

SOAPBOX MUSIC REVIEWS

THE FIERY FURNACES I’M GOING AWAY To be honest, I was never a big fan of The Fiery Furnaces before I’m Going Away. The Friedbergers’ flighty, arty weirdness just seemed a little too stylized, you know? Their eighth release (?!), however, is pretty rad, mostly because they calmed the hell down and just delivered an ace suite of deceptively sunny ‘70s-inspired pop-rock tunes with just the right amount of the siblings’ now-familiar love for cabaret influence. Sure, they’re still a little weird (“Cups and Punches,” in particular, ruins itself with self-indulgence), but the songs are top-notch, with giant hooks and production by Sebadoh’s Jason Lowenstein that roughs up their sophistication nicely. The piano boogies; the falsetto vocals soar and bounce; the drums shuffle along with a surprising propulsion, thanks to endlessly tasteful beater Robert D’Amico. I’m Going Away is fun without ever settling for being simple or dumb, a feat rare enough to make it something special. (THRILL JOCKEY) - Colin Kincaid

TIMER TIMBRE TIMBER TIMBRE Even with the outpouring of indie-folk music over the last decade, Timber Timbre’s Taylor Kirk has remained largely undetected - which is probably the way he likes it. Since his debut album Cedar Shakes was released in ’06, the enigmatic Torontonian has been fine-tuning his creepy brand of roots music, with this latest release marking his first time in a studio. Timber Timbre isn’t the kind of music you get right away; it may take a couple of listens before the album’s brilliance begins to shine through the gloominess. The music is sparse and the album intentionally drags, like a serial killer chasing after a doomed victim in a horror flick. But Kirk is more than your average folkie with a fondness for vintage tones and worn-out records. And hidden beneath the eerie melodies and dark images are eight songs about age-old subjects like love and relationships. The album opens with “Demon Host,” a song every bit as haunting as you would expect from the title. The surprise comes near the end, when Kirk finishes singing about evil apparitions and the song is turned over to a ghostly choir. “Lay Down In the Tall Grass” reveals an obvious influence, ripping the organ riff straight from Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell On You.” (ARTS & CRAFTS) - Benjamin Evans

MOUNT EERIE WIND’S POEM Phil Elverum said his new album was meant to be colossal. It’s as colossal as his previous records, but that’s the problem - it’s nothing new. The crashing cymbals, nature imagery, and droning are present, just as they are on any Elverum release. He also said he wanted Wind’s Poem to be like black metal, and it’s probably the ﬁrst release in the genre to be related to nature poetry: Elverum rhapsodizes about water, rocks, the forest. Yet the most interesting of the songs is “Between Two Mysteries,” which sounds like he’s playing a jam jar as an instrument. To be fair, managed to do one thing that took me by surprise: he removed the melody and intimacy of his previous works. (P.W. ELVERUM & SUN) - Evan Tokarz

THESE UNITED STATES EVERYTHING TOUCHES EVERYTHING

Kentucky/D.C.’s These United States isn’t afraid to write epic southernrock anthems with big hooks and soaring guitar solos - the kind of songs that quickly become the soundtrack to your life. Jesse Elliott’s fragile voice intensiﬁes the mood of the album’s softer moments and keeps tracks like “I Want You to Keep Everything” from getting too wild. “Night and the Revolution” starts off slow with westerninspired pedal steel guitar playing before ﬁnally erupting into a burly Ace Frehley guitar lick about two minutes in. Everything Touches Everything is a good reminder that every album doesn’t have to be about making a bold creative statement. Sometimes you just need that carefree rock ‘n’ roll record for cruisin’ around town with friends or takin’ it easy at a kegger in the woods. (UNITED INTERESTS) - Benjamin Evans

AMERICAN STEEL DEAR FRIENDS AND GENTLE HANDS

Less gritty and more hook-ﬁlled than ‘07’s comeback album Destroy Their Future, Dear Friends and Gentle Hearts is a surprisingly eclectic and celebratory offering from this ace NorCal punk ‘n’ roll outﬁt. At a time when many punk acts seem to be maturing into a sound that owes as much to Springsteen and The Hold Steady as the old scene, American Steel has released a diverse affair that manages to remain evocative and immediate without ever looking back. Well, actually, it does look back - to the Mescaleros (“Your Ass Ain’t Laughing Now,” “Where You Want To Be”), to moody New Wave (the taut verses of “The Blood Gets Everywhere”), even to the best and most enduring elements of emo (“Finally Alone”). But while American Steel’s trademark roughed-up dark edges persist, it’s obvious the band has no intention of rehashing its own back catalog, and every experiment here - including maudlin last-call crooner “Meals & Entertainment,” a tune that in lesser punk-scene hands could’ve come off as a disastrous joke - is satisfyingly successful. (FAT WRECK CHORDS) - Scott Harrell

KONO MICHI 9 DEATH HAIKU While this album may not make you want to get up and dance, your mind will respond to it. Kono Michi, a concert violinist turned singer-songwriter, uses her professional musical background to create a delicate and eloquent balance between lyric and instrument. Mixing different cultural genres, she creates a unique sound that keeps you enticed and interested. Michi stretches the musical limits by meshing together the sounds of voice, string quartet, percussion, toy instruments and electronica. By incorporating other instruments aside from a drum set and guitar, she shows us that music really has no boundaries. Her eclectic sound is set to the deathbed poetry of Japanese Buddhist monks who died in the 18th or 19th centuries. Their respective haikus are their ﬁnal presentations to humankind before making their journey out of the living world. This is that rare type of music that makes you just want to lay down and open up your mind. (SHARK BATTER RECORDS) - Mary Manchess

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

PATRICK WOLF THE BACHELOR Patrick Wolf, the brooding sire of folktronica, has returned to his typical darker and more sorrowful roots with his fourth release, The Bachelor. Wolf had originally intended it to be a double album with one disc containing his anger and belligerence and the other his happiness and passivity. However, after much internal deliberation, Wolf thought it best not to deliver so much of himself at one time to people. Instead, The Bachelor takes the best of both discs and holds songs that evaluate his grievances about life and society with the tenacity of his earlier works Lycanthropy and Wind In The Wires. Tracks such as “Oblivion” and the title track seem to douse the listener with Wolf’s penchant for gloom, while “Hard Times” and “Vulture” help you to ignore the frigid hopelessness with catchy beats that urge you back onto the dance ﬂoor. Because of this, The Bachelor fails as much as it succeeds. It seems to be deﬁcient in the unsullied sass and egotism found on its predecessor, The Magic Position, which makes for a lackluster attempt at truly getting his point across - whatever that may be. (NYLON) - Nick Truden

THE IDLE HANDS THE HEARTS WE BROKE

JOE HENRY BLOOD FROM STARS It’s patently impossible to categorize producer and songwriting journeyman Joe Henry’s alwayschanging output; it’s close enough to call each one of his albums a unique tour through the songbook of American styles, with the story accompanying each stop on the tour coming through Henry’s own perspective and prodigious gifts. And Blood From Stars is no different. This time around, his sightseeing partners include Marc Ribot (on both guitar and, perhaps surprisingly, coronet) and his own 17-year-old son Levon Henry, an award-winning saxophonist in his own right. The sights seen include jazz, soulful pop, an inimitably contemporary take on the inﬂuences of ‘40s and ‘50s crooners and lounge-and-cabaret sounds and, especially, the blues, whose raw emotion, dynamism and inescapable shufﬂe inform most of the CD’s tracks. The result is a moving, cinematic listening experience that only backs up what fans have known for years now - that Joey Henry is both a dream-team collaborator, and one of America’s greatest living musicmakers. (ANTI-) - Portnoy Jones

TY SEGALL LEMONS

ON THE WAY TO THE SHOW Lust and longing, sordid affairs, brutal regrets and after-parties probably sum up at least one crazy late-night bar story for everyone. The Idle Hands have managed to capture these unforgettable moments in the upbeat sound and catchy lyrics of their debut album, The Hearts We Broke On The Way to The Show. After listening to this album, you will probably find yourself constantly singing and dancing to it. The first single, “Loaded,” has gained a considerable amount of popularity, managing to find itself on a local radio station in Minneapolis, where the band is from. The sound strikes a parallel resemblance to the widely popular alternative band The Killers. This comes as no surprise, as The Idle Hands worked with producer Mark Needham, who has also worked with The Killers. Aside from a great sound, the album’s lyrics openly talk about the regret, embarrassment and hilarity in late-night engagements. Maintaining a positive mindset, they give off the idea that no matter how big of a fool you acted the night before, just keep your head up. And remember, there is always an afterparty that can get you back on your feet. (PRETTY KIDS COLLECTIVE) - Mary Manchess

OR, THE WHALE OR, THE WHALE It wouldn’t be fair to give the San Francisco septet a simple label like country-rock. Listening to the band’s self-titled sophomore album is like listening to an eleven-song overview of the history of country music. Or, The Whale goes straight from the heavily distorted, feedback-laden “Black Rabbit” to “Giving Up Time,” a song that sounds like it was recorded in the mountains sometime in the 19th century. The opening of “Rusty Gold” is almost identical to Neil Young’s “The Needle and the Damage Done,” and “Datura,” the band’s twangy country-pop song about the drug, could be a hit on any country radio station today. (SEANY) - Benjamin Evans

In what junkyard did these guys find such battered equipment? How do they make it sound so good? Like the soundtrack to some raucous surf film, Cassavetes beatniks foot-stomping on the bar at some dive covered in sawdust. Post-apocalyptic beach-blanket-bingo. Fuzzed out. Fuzzed out like a dying cat, like a haunted locomotive. Interlaced with all the Buddy Holly rebellion are Stooges/ Pixies/Nirvana riffs that are more concerned with the speedy blues admired and emulated in early rock, yet each song sounds very distinct, albeit washed in a surf motif in which the rockabilly often crashes into a curious progression, twisting into a nightmare. A ripping cover of Captain Beefheart’s “Drop Out Boogie” really solidifies where these guys are coming from, the sort of hip shaking back-beat replication, the jittery and paranoid delivery, the shriek at the end of the howl. (GONER RECORDS) - Shawn Goldberg

LULLATONE WE WILL ROCK YOU... TO SLEEP

I’ll have to admit, the whole “music for babies” concept kind of weirds me out, and although this album is somewhat creepy at ﬁrst listen, Japan’s Yoshimi and Sean James Seymour’s take on the trend hits the spot in a really, really, really, (really) weird way. With whispered lyrics and barely-there tones and beats, We Will Rock You … To Sleep will do just that. As it eases in some much needed shut-eye, We Will Rock You consists of eight solid songs from six various albums, making this a “best of” album in a way, I guess. Despite the fact that I don’t think I’d be able to actually sit down and listen to this album more than once, I deﬁnitely give it credit as some pleasant yet eerie background music. Everything about this album is completely and utterly adorable: Yoshimi’s voice is almost too cute for words, the album art is eye-catching and vibrant, and the track titles are so sweet they almost gave me a cavity. Basically, I’m in love. (AUDIO DREGS) - Alexis Quinn Chamberlain

BOOK REVIEW SOAPBOX

BOOK PLEASE STEP BACK BY BEN GREENMAN

’ve written before about how hard it is for fiction writers - even fiction writers who have to some degree been involved in it - to write accurately or believably about any part of what might fall under the vague umbrella of “the music scene.” It’s so difficult that authors who get it even partly right are generally given a pass. Of course, it would be expected that someone with Ben Greenman’s pedigree (which includes pieces for everybody from McSweeney’s to the Paris Review in addition to his novels and position as an editor at the New Yorker) would get it right. But with Please Step Back, Greenman has produced so much more than a fake-rock bio that rings true. He’s managed to evoke all the passion, righteousness, uncertainty and upheaval of America’s craziest era in the deceptively straightforward tale of a man and his band. A poor African-American kid from Boston named Robert Franklin gets the music bug, then gets tired of his hometown’s soul-covers scene. He gets a white guitarist he knows to deliver him to San Francisco, ground zero of the nation’s countercultural movement, at the moment of eruption. He gets a new name - Rock Foxx - and a new band. He gets fame, and critical adulation, and girls, and drugs, and more fame and critical adulation and girls and drugs. He gets all the usual problems that those things, and the status of Voice Of A Generation, seem to inevitably bring, followed by all the usual problems that come when those things disappear along with the public’s attention. The usual stuff, right?

subtle attention to detail, however, create a fully realized world in which the complex and ever-changing environment is reflected in every moment of Franklin/ Foxx’s story, and vice versa. As a black man making rock music in the midst of a groundbreaking cultural revolution, he becomes more than just a handy and apt symbol for the growing pains occurring in the background; he becomes the thing itself. His slangy speech is the language of every hippified proto-beatnik. His political views are those of every quasiaware activist that spends more time getting high and laid than reading foreign newspapers. His attempts to reconcile experimentation with more traditional values are the stuff of every familydinner-table argument taking place at the end of the ‘60s. And his choices, as human and flawed as they may be, are the choices America is making at the same time. Please Step Back isn’t a history lesson or a good-ol’-days look back at the Summer of Love, though. Nor is it some pointed statement on the human condition. It’s just a funny and insightful and heartbreaking story about a guy who got famous, and what happened to him and his friends. Like all the best novels, its big real-world ideas grow naturally out of its author’s telling of the tale, and Greenman tells this one in a way that leads the reader easily into a wholly imagined world. That the world of Please Step Back actually existed, and was one of most chaotic in our nation’s history, makes the job that much tougher; that Greenman does it so well is nothing short of a revelation. (MELVILLE HOUSE PUBLISHING) MHPBOOKS.COM - Scott Harrell

Perhaps, in less facile hands. Greenman’s highly stylized approach and

FURTHER READING: MORE BOOKS BY BEN GREENMAN

A CIRCLE IS A BALLOON AND COMPASS BOTH: STORIES ABOUT HUMAN LOVE (Macadam/Cage, 2007) SUPERWORSE (Soft Skull, 2004) SUPERBAD (McSweeneys, 2001)

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

SOAPBOX VIDEO GAME REVIEW

GAME OVERLORD 2: MORE LIKE MEDIOCRELORD

n a system as overly saturated with first-person shooters as Xbox 360, when something offering a unique gaming experience comes along, I like to take the opportunity to broaden my horizons. So, after missing out on the first Overlord game two years ago and hearing good things about it, I felt that it was time to try my hand at being evil in Overlord 2; besides, setting innocent pedestrians on fire in Saints Row was starting to feel way too normal. For those unfamiliar with the Overlord concept, you are a Sauron doppelganger who rules the underworld with an iron axe. Your quest is to conquer the fantasy lands above that are currently ruled by bloated Romanlike characters and non-hetero hippie wood elves. As you progress, you can forge better weapons, level up your minions (more on them in a sec) and upgrade your netherworld domain. In Overlord 2 you don’t have to go it alone. While exploring the over-world, you are in control of little gremlin-like minions who joke around, whistle and sing (think the Lollipop Guild … but less creepy and without stroke faces or plaid shirts - better yet, don’t think that at all, they’re nothing like that). Anyway, your little minions will gladly give up their insignificant lives to serve you, and there are four different varieties at your disposal. Browns are your primary melee attackers, reds throw fireballs at foes, greens are stealthy assassins and blues don’t drown. The various types of underlings all come in handy at some point, as minion-specific puzzles show up often, especially near the end of the game. One example is while crossing a lake: your blues dredge a path through the goop so, say, your reds can follow and subsequently cross through a fire-gate to collect an artifact. Similar puzzle-work abounds, but never gets more complex than “set-heavy-block-onpressure-plate” or “send-minions-ahead-tocrank-open-gate.”

Your minions are moved by using your right thumb-stick (the left stick is used for your own movement) to “sweep” them around the map. The problem here is that your right thumbstick also controls the camera, making things a little wonky. Occasionally, your minions don’t do exactly what you want them to, and there’s no way to quickly prioritize targets during combat, so frustration ensues. Also, though its levels are fairly linear, mission objectives can be pretty vague, and glitches sometimes halt your progress altogether. All of this adds way too much frustration to ever connect you to the experience; instead, cutting yourself becomes an acceptable alternative to continuing on. The art style of Overlord 2 looks a lot like Fable 2, and the graphics are decent, but they never come close to taking advantage of the Xbox’s full hardware capabilities. It oozes with that over-the-top British cheekiness, and the sound bits, though repetitive, will have you chuckling. It’s certainly a charming game; it’s just not as satisfyingly sadistic as I was hoping. You get to club cute baby seals and a few unicorns, but really, you can be way more of an ass in Grand Theft Auto. Essentially, Overlord 2 is a god … er, devil game that mixes action, strategy, puzzle and RPG elements to truly give it its own charming identity - and I really like to see a publisher take a chance on something different. But even with all of these gaming elements going for it, Overlord 2 never feels like it’s doing very much. Taken as a whole, Overlord 2 is not for everyone. Some people will probably really enjoy the game, but most will regret their purchase. Honestly, if evil is your thing, you’re better off donating your $60 to the KKK or buying $60 worth of gasoline and setting ﬁre to a nursery. REVIEWED ON XBOX 360 - Trevor Roppolo

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY HOTSPOTS: VENUES & BARS 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 well-known touring indie-rock acts to local metal legends.

1812 N. 17th St., Ybor City crowbarlive.com

CZAR

Home to some of the best parties of 2009, CZAR’s three rooms of goodness have a lot to offer music and vodka lovers alike. PULP on Wednesday night is a must, see hipsters dance the night away in style. Don’t forget the ice shots!

1420 E. 7th Ave., Ybor City czarybor.com

FUMA BELLA

The smallest bar in America, so it has been said by the locals. Friendly bartenders that know how to make a damn good drink. This place is perfect for a small group who wants to sit and chat, or someone traveling solo who wants to meet some legitimately cool Tampa folk.

Everything from wood blocks to the new Roland V-Drum electric kits, without the annoying 8th-graders butchering Avenged Sevenfold over in the guitar section.

10101 E. Adamo Dr., Tampa 813.341.DRUM allpropercussion.com

THE DISC EXCHANGE

Open 25 Years! Here’s where to go to buy, sell, and trade your CDs, vinyl, and memorabilia. Always lots of new and used merchandise to dig through - All styles of music from punk to gospel! Open Mon - Fri: 11 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. Sat: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.

6712 Central Ave. St.Pete FL 727.343.5845 madtiki.com

GIVE & TAKE

This Channel District bike shop and accessory/apparel boutique specializes in catering to the emerging ﬁxed-gear cycling community, but is also just a cool place to hang out & talk all things biking.

101 N. 12th St. #101, Tampa 813.944.3136 shopgiveandtake.com

NEW WORLD BREWERY

GREEN SHIFT MUSIC & COMICS

Quirky but cool collision of guitars, amps and new, used and rare comics.

1313 E. 8th Ave., Ybor City myspace.com/newworldbrewery

5226 N. Nebraska Ave., Tampa 813.238.4177

THE ORPHEUM

HASLAM’S BOOK STORE

A long-running favorite for national and local indie shows, as well as hipster-ﬁlled dance nights.

1902 Ave. Republica De Cuba, Ybor City 813.248.9500

Florida’s largest new-and-used book joint. Plan to spend half the day browsing.

2025 Central Ave., St. Petersburg

MOJO BOOKS & MUSIC

THE PEGASUS LOUNGE

Used CDs and vinyl of course, but don’t forget about the amazingly huge selection of great used books. Located in the heart of USF country. Hit it up son!

10008 N. 30th St., Tampa pegasusniteclub.com

2558 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa 813.971.9717 mojotampa.com

THE RITZ

SEMINOLE MUSIC & SOUND

Another close-to-USF live-music watering hole that often caters to heavier sounds.

The infamous venue formerly known as The Masquerade (and before that, er, The Ritz) is back in action. Live music is only part of what’s going on there these days.

Another one of the very few music gear independents still in operation. And they’ve been at it for 25 years.

1503 7th Ave., Ybor City theritzybor.com

10720 74th Ave. N., Suite F, Seminole 727.391.3892 seminolemusic.com

THE STATE THEATRE

STEVIE B’S TOTAL GUITAR

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

UPTOWN BAR

Amiable little dive that features an alwayseclectic lineup of local shows, from DJs to hardcore.

658 Central Ave., St. Petersburg 727.463.0567

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

ALL PRO PERCUSSION

1318 E 8th Ave., Ybor City 813.248.6130 A killer beer selection and eclectic, culture-friendly musical slate make this Ybor City bar-and-patio a local favorite.

HOTSPOTS: RETAIL

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

Again, there are plenty of great indie record shops in the area, but Vinyl Fever has been the gold standard for years.

4110 Henderson Blvd., Tampa 813.289.8399 vinylfevertampa.com

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

LIGHT IT UP Photo of The Fiery Furnaces: Courtesy of Press Here Publicity

emember when Orpheum was THE place in the Bay area to see all the killer shows? Hey, we’re not saying the venerable Ybor club has passed into irrelevancy by any stretch of the imagination. The place still rocks. We’re just saying there was a time when it seemed like there was something really special going on every weekend - Dismemberment Plan, Jets to Brazil, Murder by Death, New End Original, The Jealous Sound, Lucero, you name it. It ain’t the Orpheum’s fault that every damn kid band sounds the same these days. There’s a show coming up this month that we really think is gonna deliver a large dose of that “something extraordinarily cool is happening right now” vibe; it’ll be one of those nights where the original-music fans who don’t make

it for whatever reason are gonna hear about what they missed for weeks on end. It’s Illinois brother-and-sister act The Fiery Furnaces. Yeah, we know - they were a lot more hip a couple of years ago when they ﬁrst came out. But the Friedberger siblings’ new album I’m Going Away is their rawest, most rollicking and best effort to date (check out our review in this issue), and we’re thinking it’s gonna absolutely smoke live. There’s no word yet on who’s opening, but they’ll have their work cut out for them, and we’ve just got that feeling that this will be one of those gigs folks will remember. The Fiery Furnaces play Ybor City’s Orpheum on Saturday, August 22. Tickets are $13 in advance and $15 day of show; Doors open @ 6:30 p.m.

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT THERAPEUTIC CHOKEHOLD GET YOUR HEAD RIGHT (SELF-RELEASED)

Vinnie Consentino and Jeff Fox of favored Bay Area act Palantine (Fox also plays drums in The Pink Lincolns) got together with their friend Angel Lopez - who, despite losing his sight at the age of 14, has earned a Master’s degree in Psychology and has become an accomplished bassist - for this musically solid but unremarkable hard-alt side project. Bright spots include Lopez’s Pixies-esque title track, and the tunes in which Palantine’s penchant for early grunge tropes shows through most clearly, such as “Rep #3166” and “After The Rain.” Too often, though, Get Your Head Right relies on generic heavy alt-rock cliches, riffs and vibes, and never really showcases much in the way of personality. - Scott Harrell

NOW OPEN 7 DAYS!

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY HOTSPOTS: EATS

HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE

AGUILA SANDWICH SHOP

BENTLEY SALON

3200 W. Hillsborough Ave., Tampa 813.876.4022

3228 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa 813.877.9801 myspace.com/bentleysalon

CAPPY’S PIZZA

RED LETTER 1

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.

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 Ave., Tampa 813.238.1516 3200 W. Bay to Bay Blvd., Tampa 813.835.0785 2900 1st Ave. N., St. Petersburg 727.321.3020

CEVICHE

Stylish and delicious, with surprisingly affordable Spanish-style tapas at both locations.

1502 S. Howard Ave., Tampa 813.250.0203 10 Beach Dr., St. Petersburg 727.209.2302 ceviche.com

EL TACONAZO (TACO BUS)

Mexican food made in a bus. Weird, mostly lunch-only hours, but indisputably awesome cheap and authentic eats.

913 E. Hillsborough Ave., Tampa 813.232.5889

FRANKIES

Started in Connecticut in 1933, these are some pretty swell cheeseburgers and dogs - think old fashioned fast food. Some of the fried delectables include onion rings, sweet potato fries and fried cauliﬂower or broccoli.

909 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa 813.425.3647

LA CREPERIA CAFE

A menu that boasts perfect options for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Best known for their extensive list of crepes of which you may want to consider something on the sweet side with nutella and a rich cup of european coffee. Bonjour!

1729 E. 7th Ave., Ybor 813.248.9700

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

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

A Redken-authorized, forward-thinking salon that emphasizes education for aspiring stylists.

RedLetter1 is a ﬂash-free, 100% custom tattoo studio and art gallery located in historic Ybor City. Tattoos are currently made by Lucky Mathews, Jeff Srsic, Angelo Nales and Phil Holt. Hours are noon to 7 p.m., Tuesday-Saturdaya... other hours available by appointment only.

1818 N 15th Street. Ybor City 813.241.2435

SKATEPARK OF TAMPA

The legendary home of the Tampa Pro and Am comps.

4215 E. Columbus Dr., Tampa skateparkoftampa.com

TRIBECA COLOR SALON

Keeping Tampa beautiful, one head at a time. Watch for a new location opening soon in beautiful Ybor City!

920 W Kennedy Blvd 813.250.0208 www.tribecasalon.com

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES

KARMA

BAR AND CAFÉ

REAX SPACE

What, you didn’t know that we’ve got our own boutique? Where’ve you been? See, we’ve got a little bit of everything to fully accessorize yourself here, like our ever-growing selection of killer graphic t’s and one-of-a-kind dresses. Plus cool hand-made accessories, books, records, and more! Featuring local and national designers and artists, our shop is more than a clothing boutique. It’s a gallery space and a retail establishment and the REAX ofﬁce, all rolled into one package of awesomeness. Come by and say hello!

1911 19th St., Ybor City 813.247.6975 reaxspace.com

RENOWN

A local Ybor City boutique that specializes in quality streetwear & sneaker brands from around the world.

1501 E. 9th Ave., Ybor City 813.200.7081

SUNSHINE THRIFT

Always something cool to ﬁnd here.

4304 S. Dale Mabry Hwy., Tampa 813.831.4377

URBAN OUTFITTERS You know the deal.

1600 E. 8th Ave., Centro Ybor, Ybor City 813.242.8472

VENUE SPOTLIGHT

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

Words: George Shaw • Photo: Courtesy of Karma Bar and Cafe

ntil recently, if you were in search of a vegan or vegetarian sandwich alongside a microbrew beer in the middle of downtown Tampa, day or night, you would be hard pressed to ﬁnd one. This all changed last May when the much-loved Kelly’s Pub changed some of its ownership and was reborn as the Karma Bar and Café. Anna Stracey, previous co-owner of Kelly’s and current co-owner of Karma Bar, saw the changeover as an opportunity to ﬁll a void in downtown’s limited fare. “We decided that Tampa needed something different,” Stracey says. “There wasn’t healthy food downtown, or that good mellow vibe, that you want outside Ybor City or Hyde Park.” A new menu is on the plate, with vegetarian and vegan selections alongside various wraps, salads, classic sandwiches, homemade soups and quiche. A spread of over 30 imported and domestic beers and ciders - including seasonal and craft beers - are behind the comfortable wooden bar. The best parts of Karma’s previous incarnation as Kelly’s Pub have remained, with the popular

Tuesday-night Jazz Jam and the Wednesday open-mic night remaining intact, as well as friendly and familiar faces tending the taps or running the door. Weekly live-music shows centering around the acoustic, Americana, and folk veins are being heard through the new speaker system, making Karma Bar a valid and great-sounding venue on the weekends. A monthly revolving art exhibit via Bay area arts collective the ArtCasts adorns the walls to keep regulars’ eyes from getting bored, and also offers local visual artists some much-needed exposure. While putting all these elements under one roof does indeed make the Karma Bar and Café unique in downtown Tampa, it seemed like the obvious move to Stracey: “Let’s have a place where everyone is welcome, and you can eat well and healthy, drink great microbrews and listen to great music while you are at it.” The Karma Bar and Café is located at 206 N. Morgan St. in downtown Tampa. The phone number is 813-228-0870. Local bands Boon and The Trio perform Friday, August 7. MYSPACE.COM/KARMABARANDCAFE

A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY YOU ARE HERE

TAMPA BAY EVENTS FRI AUGUST 7 20wt, Maniacal Drone, Suggestion, Forsaken Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Christian Death Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8 p.m. Cuban Sandwich Crisis Reunion Show Feat. Inﬁnite Skillz, Ron Rotondo Limey’s Pub, St. Petersburg Time: 9 p.m. Emery Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg Cost: $16/18 Time: 7 p.m. Four Year Strong, Set Your Goals, Polar Bear Club, Fireworks, Drive A State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $13/16 Time: 6:30 p.m. Graphic Violence The Art of S. Bradley Askew REAX Space, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 7 p.m.

AUG. 2009 oh hell yeah

Uncle John’s Band Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $7 Time: 5 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 11 Mayhem Festival Feat. Slayer, Marilyn Manson Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 2:15 p.m. Shawn Hopper & Brian Spotts Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $5 Time: 5 p.m.

WED AUGUST 12 Dave Matthews Band Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 7 p.m. Ocean Is Theory, All Get Out, Choke Hold Orpheum, Ybor City Time: 7 p.m. The Jacuzzi Boys, Davila 666, Ghost Hospital, Steady State New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $8 Time: 9 p.m.

Nervous Turkey, Poetry N’ Lotion New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 13

Tribal Style, Nuveaux Saka Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m.

Await Rescue, Acoustic Charlie, Green Sunshine Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 8 Candy Bars, Venice Is Sinking, The Pauses New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m. Celebrate Sinatra The Ritz Theatre, Ybor City Cost: $50 Time: 9 p.m. Inﬂuence Feat. CLRH2O, Jaybee, Screwface Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m. Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 7:30 p.m. Photography Showcase Explosion & Fashion Show ARTpool, St. Petersburg Time: 6 p.m. Sons of Bill, Urbane Cowboys Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $7/10 Time: 8 p.m. The Sweet Kings, Poundsalt, Burning Tree, Ovni Sound System, The Ambassy Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Tides of Man CD Release Party Feat. The Reserve, Bamboo Shoots Orpheum, Ybor City Time: 6 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 9 Battle of the Bands Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 6 p.m. Coldplay, Elbow, Kitty Daisy & Lewis Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 7 p.m. Dudefest, The Unemployed, Trenchfoot, Waste, Afterlife, Fuck If I Know Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. The Jim Morey Band The Hub, Downtown Tampa Cost: Free! Orpheum Battle of the Bands Feat. Ruthless Design, Insubordanint, On The Job, Under The Empire, The Navajos, Ulcer, The Distance, Biggodtalking, Eden Regained, The Vow Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $8/10 Time: 6 p.m.

Beneﬁt for Steve Peele Feat. Dave Shepard & The Blues Riders, Johnny Cakes & The Four Horseman of the Apocalypso, The St. Pete Project State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $10/12 Time: 7 p.m. Guttermouth, Does It Matter, RudeSquad, Redliners, Johnny Unite Us Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $14/15 Time: 7 p.m.

WMNF Presents Woodstock: The 40th Anniversary Re-Creation Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $18/24 Time: 2 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 16 Battle of the Bands Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 6 p.m. Beneﬁt for Cindy Lou DeSantis Feat. Buffalo Strange, Cope, The Juan Jamon Band, Glory Road, Sunset Bridge Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10 Time: 4 p.m. Judas Priest, Whitesnake St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Cost: $37-77 Time: 7 p.m. Farewell To Fashion, Nogl, White Hot Snap Shot, Hollywood Lies Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Sugar Ray Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg Cost: $19.99/25 Time: 7 p.m.

MON AUGUST 17 Currents, The Tried And True Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $8 Time: 7 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 18 The Jonas Brothers St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa Cost: $26.75-86.75 Time: 7 p.m.

WED AUGUST 19 Native, Lautrec, Capsule, Oceans Rise New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: $7 Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 20 Stephen’s Project, Live Suicide, Crash Fistﬁght, Anchor Arms, Lower Than Local Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 14

FRI AUGUST 21

Bankie Banks Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost; $10/13 Time: 8 p.m.

An Evening With Air Supply The Ritz Theatre, Ybor City Cost: $27.50-62.50 Time: 6 p.m.

Def Leppard, Poison, Cheap Trick Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 7 p.m.

Blue Dice Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m.

My Pet Monzter, At Odds, Hollie, Poundsalt, Pretty Paul Parsons Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Papadosio Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: $6 Time: 8:30 Therapeutic Chokehold, Philip Pietri, Gentlemen Please, Cure For Caska New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m. Variety Workshop, Johnny Cakes & The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypso, Unmotivated, The Stick Martin Show Big Shots, Clearwater Cost: $4/5 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 15

Geri X Video Release Party Feat. Thomas Wynn & The Believers, Eric McFadden, Have Gun, Will Travel Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: $8 Time: 7 p.m. Midnight Bowlers League, Knock Down Drag Out New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m. Nathan’s Birthday Bash Feat. Tug, Stranded, Last Of The Great Gunslingers, 3% Milk, Vicarious Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Real Life, KracMan, Yung Midnight, Brother Dean, Forever F.A.M.E. Entertainment Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $9/10 Time: 5:45 p.m.

Incubus Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 7:30 p.m.

Sick Puppies And Hurt, The Veer Union, From This Fire, The Stand State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $15 Time: 7 p.m.

Jacob Jeffries Band Crowbar, Ybor City

SAT AUGUST 22

King of Spain, Florida Night Heat, Mes Music, Dear Old Liar New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m.

Amanda Drake & The Barnburners CD Release Party Feat. Her Name Is Victory, Sisemore Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 8:30 p.m.

One Night Stand, Room Full Of Strangers, Virus, Consinity, Word Stands Aside Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

Fiery Furnaces Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $13/15 Time: 6:30 p.m.

Tarrus Riley, Duanne Stephenson, Dean Fraser State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $20/25 Time: 8 p.m.

Generichrist, End Unseen, Destined To Ruin, To The Gallows, Sledgegrinder Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

A GUIDE TO TAMPA BAY YOU ARE HERE

TAMPA BAY EVENTS SAT AUG. 22

CONTINUED

Mojo Gurus, Kevin K Band, Blind Buddy Moody Dave’s Aqua Lounge, St. Petersburg Cost: $6 Time: 9:30 p.m. Mother’s Finest The Ritz Theatre, Ybor City Cost: $30 Time: 8 p.m. Swamp Logic, Rocksteady@8 New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m. The Last Waltz Ensemble (Band/Dylan Tribute) Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10/13 Time: 8 p.m. Whole Wheat Bread State Theatre, St. Petersburg Doors: 7 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 23 Battle of the Bands Crowbar, Ybor City Time: 6 p.m. Beneﬁt for the Coddington Family Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10 Time: 4 p.m. Lumsden, Bet I’m Lying, The Retrofrets, Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Paul Diaz-Cobo & John Hernandez Unitarian Universalist Church of Tampa, Tampa Cost: $15/20 Time: 3 p.m. The Shakes Society The Hub, Downtown Tampa Cost: Free!

MON AUGUST 24 Soul! Night! Feat. Funk Jesus, Heath Dupras, Gregg Schmidt & maybe R. Hess Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $3 Time: 10:00 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 25 Freight Train Annie’s Girlie Show #13 Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $7 Time: 7:30 p.m.

WED AUGUST 26 The Shoreline, Callahan, Pathway to Providence, Terra Terra Terra, End of April Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m.

THU AUGUST 27 Acoustic Charlie Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Liquid Limbs, The Future Now New World Brewery, Ybor City Cost: FREE Time: 9 p.m.

AUG. 2009 oh hell yeah

FRI AUGUST 28 Crue Fest 2 Feat. Motley Crue, Godsmack, Theory of a Deadman, Drowning Pool, Ford Amphitheatre, Tampa Time: 5 p.m. Hot Tuna, Patrick Sweany Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $30/35 Time: 8 p.m. Sister Kill Cycle, Murdok, Ulcer Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. The Malah Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: $5 Time: 8:30 p.m. The Winter Sounds, Parachute Musical, The Gills New World Brewery, Ybor City Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 29 Chris McCarty State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. Halcyon, Karmic Tattoo Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $12 Time: 8 p.m. Obstrep, Catalysis, Rise II Brutality, False Demise Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m. Summer Jam 5 Feat. The Honorary Title, Cory Branan, Guiltmaker, Shunda K (Yo! Majesty), The Sheaks, Blind Man’s Colour, How Dare You, Mogul Street Reserve, Da Goldminerz, Deﬁcit, many more New World Brewery/Crowbar, Ybor City Cost: $6/8 (New World); $10/12 (Crowbar); $13/15 (Both Venues) Time: 5 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 30 Aiming At Dawn, Orange Hour Orpheum, Ybor City Cost: $9/10 Time: 5:45 p.m. Gorilla Music Battle of the Bands Finals State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost: $8/10 Time: 4 p.m. Rebelution, Iration, Outlaw Nation State Theatre, St. Petersburg Cost; $15 Time: 7 p.m. The First Annual WMNF GrooveFest Feat. Cope, Byrnin’ Smyrnans, Earth Bombs Mars, Middle Rhythm Session, Shak Nasti, Soulshine Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa Cost: $10/15 Time: 4 p.m.

THU SEPTEMBER 3 Emily Roff, Green Sunshine Pegasus Lounge, Tampa Time: 9 p.m.

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FL HOTSPOTS: VENUES & BARS

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

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

BACKBOOTH

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

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

HARD ROCK LIVE

Big, stylish room where you’ll see up-andcoming 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

INDEPENDENT BAR

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

THE PLAZA THEATRE

An eclectic community venue that’s been consistently ramping up its cool-show quotient over the last year.

435 N. Bumby Ave., Orlando theplazatheatre.com

THE SOCIAL

Pretty much Orlando’s default live indierock room, but they do more, too.

54 North Orange Ave., Orlando thesocial.org

WILL’S PUB

One of O-Town’s favorite venues/hangouts. The new location opened up back in November, and is already making up for lost time. Good beer, good friends and good entertainment are the house rules.

1040 N. Mills Ave., Orlando myspace.com/willspub

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

THE FUTURE ON

FILMS IN SPACE Words: Portnoy Jones • Photo: Courtesy of The Future on Films in Space

hough The Future on Films in Space is often saddled with the psychedelic tag, shades of everything from classic ‘70s British glam to obscure art-ﬁlm soundtracks color its largely indescribable style. Actually, running down the list of “friends” on the band’s Myspace page is a better way of getting a feel for the group than reading some critic’s adjectives - the list includes everybody from Hawkwind, Kaleidoscope and The Soft Machine to ﬁlmmakers like Mario Bava and Roger Corman and other cult-of-personality impresarios such as Kim Fowley. We recently checked in with FoFiS’ aural astronaut Fred Mullins to try and get a better handle on this enigmatic endeavor, and came away extremely impressed with his use of grammar and syntax, yet perhaps even more perplexed than before.

REAX: How did you get turned on to some of your more obscure inﬂuences? There’s a lot of stuff there that most people go their whole lives without hearing. Fred Mullins: Most everyone in the group is an avid music collector and we all have a wide range of stuff that we dig. One of us is always turning up with a record that the rest of us hadn’t heard yet, whether it be some obscure prog-rock record or some rare Tropicalia or some forgotten glitter-pop single from 1972. We share a keen understanding of the musical relativity and cultural relevance that the likes of Pandit Pran Nath, Captain Groovy and His Bubblegum Army, and Tonto’s Expanding Head Band have in common. The beauty of today is that the resources are readily available for anyone to at least be able to hear these records, whereas 10-20 years ago you would have to have hunted endlessly to try and dig up a limited-pressing vinyl copy or something. Now, if you never got to hear that Hapshash And The Coloured Coat Featuring The Human

Host And The Heavy Metal Kids record it’s quite easy to ﬁnd. Ha! Ha!

REAX: Do you consciously look for a balance between satisfying yourselves and challenging your audience? Would you say the creative element of FoFiS is more outer or inner directed? FM: I wouldn’t say we “consciously” look for that balance by any means. We try to make music that we enjoy playing and listening to, and challenge ourselves to do something interesting and exciting. As mentioned before, we pull from a lot of different sources and instead of attempting to fit into some fixed idea of what a psychedelic band sounds like (whatever that may be), we make an effort to amalgamate our influences into something that combines classic elements with a now thing, which ends up sounding like The Future. Lovely people seem to dig it. REAX: All right, what’s coming in the future for FoFiS? FM: Our first record will be coming out in November, and [is] destined to be a much sought-after masterpiece ... and we’re planning our 2012 tour of all the ballrooms of Mars. Until then, what? Grand exploits of color and sound for all! Especially you, dear reader. Much Louvre and vaarwel! The Future on Films in Space plays The Dirty South Psychedelic BBQ Sunday, August 28 in the Orlando Milk District (2436 E. Robinson, in front of Wiggly World, Etoile Boutique and Covert Skate Shop). The bill also includes Strangers Family Band, Spindrift, Prince Rama of Ayodhya, and more. The free all-ages event begins at noon. MYSPACE.COM/ THEFUTUREONFILMSINSPACE

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FLORIDA HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES

DRUMS2GO

CULTURE KINGS ORLANDO

204 S. Semoran Blvd., Orlando 407.306.0611 drums2go.com

2219 E. Colonial Dr., Orlando 407.895.3155

Everything percussion, and indie to boot.

FULL SAIL ACADEMY

Probably still best known as the place to get schooled in sound/engineering/ recording, but Full Sail also offers intensive degree programs in everything from Entertainment Business to Game Development.

3300 University Blvd., Winter Park 407.679.6333

REDEFINE

A combination art gallery and clothing boutique that’s a new part of the emerging arts district in downtown Orlando.

213 N. Magnolia Ave., Orlando www.myspace.com/redeﬁneboutique

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

An urban edge, with tons of upscale sneaker action.

DEJA VU VINTAGE CLOTHING Specializes in vintage looks.

1825 North Orange Ave., Orlando 407.898.3609

HIPKAT

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

PINK HEART BOUTIQUE

DISCOUNT MUSIC CENTER

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

IKEA

Cheap, fairly neat-looking furniture and a food court? It’s worth it just for the walkaround.

STATIC

Rock ‘n’ roll fashion covering pretty much every inch of the territory that implies.

AUSTIN’S ORGANICS

Organic Fairtrade beans, a surprising array of light and vegetarian-friendly fare, and regular nighttime entertainment.

929 W. Fairbanks Ave., Winter Park

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

480 N. Orlando Ave., Winter Park 407.788.UBER uberbotonline.com

or eight years, the Bike Film Festival has taken its love of all manner of two-wheeled culture and its peripheral lifestyle elements from coast to coast, not to mention several major cities overseas. For its ninth, the BFF finally brings its movies, parties, races and unique mixture of entertainment and enlightenment to Florida for the first time. A small handful of Orlando shops, venues and theaters will host the BFF’s various goings-on August 21 & 22. Friday’s shenanigans include a get-together hangout at bike shop Ace Metric, as well as a group ride, races, some film screenings at The Theater at Avalon Island, and the official BFF kickoff party at BackBooth and after-party at Bar-B-Q Bar. Beginning at 3 p.m., The Theater at Avalon Island plays host to several different screening programs, featuring dozens of flicks

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT

1235 N. Orange Ave., Orlando

RUNNAMUCKS

THE PITA PIT

(SIX WEEKS RECORDS)

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

An awesome collectible-design shop art, ﬁgures, designer toys, basically Cool Geek Utopia.

Photo: Courtesy of The Bike Film Festival

ETHOS VEGAN KITCHEN

PARK AVE. CDS

ÜBERBOT

HOTSPOTS: EATS

444 N. Bumby Ave., Orlando

2916 Corrine Dr., Orlando 407.447.PARK UCF Student Union, Orlando 407.282.1616 parkavecds.com

SPOKES

4825 New Broad St., Orlando 407.228.6013

4092 Eastgate Dr., Orlando ikea-usa.com They support the local scene, promote shows and even host in-stores.

DIFFERENT

Recently featured in Lucky Magazine, this shop offers scads of accessories as well as image consulting.

240 N. Orlando Ave., Winter Park 407.478.1083

HOTSPOTS: RETAIL

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

Bridges the gap between fast and healthy. Also, they’re open late.

1 South Orange Ave., Orlando 12040 Collegiate Way, Orlando

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

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

ranging from obscure short ﬁlms to awardwinning documentaries on everything from anti-corporate BMX cult company Fat Bald Men (FBM) to Tour de France veterans and other cycling heroes. BFF is as much a celebration of the cycling community and lifestyle as it is an awareness-raiser of that world’s many, many different faces, personalities and sub-sets. It’s sure to be a weekend of fun and friendship for anyone that’s ever been drawn to a passion, pursuit or obsession that binds them to fellow fanatics. The Bike Film Festival takes place at various Orlando venues Friday, August 21 and Saturday, August 22. For speciﬁc events, show times and ticket prices, check out: BICYCLEFILMFESTIVAL.COM

CLAWING BACK

Just when you think you’ve got ‘em pegged as permanent denizens of the primal area between punk-a-billy and straight-up fastrawk, Orlando’s RunnAmuckS blast out something like “Mind of God,” with its sophisticated intro and blazing hardcore verses. This is very reminiscent of true old-school punk - it’s a little loose, it’s a lot fast, it basically does whatever the hell it wants, and your scene dogma can go to hell. “Love in Vein” turns a murder balladesque lead-in into a moody romp that echoes both “Paint It Black” and Car Bomb Driver’s “Electric Sheila;” “Let It Ride” and the title track add real rock ‘n’ roll swagger; “Goodbye Sweet Nothing” even gets its glam and boogie on. Through it all though, the RunnAmuckS rip with honest punk abandon. It’s tough to go wrong with this kind of rambunctious no-rules sound, and they never do. - Cole Porterhouse

A GUIDE TO ORLANDO & CENTRAL FLORIDA YOU ARE HERE

ORLANDO EVENTS AUGUST 2009 oh hell yeah

FRI AUGUST 7

SAT AUGUST 15

Hand To Hand CD Release Party Feat. A Cover Story, Doubting Beneﬁt, Contest of Arms, Bad Actor Club Firestone, Orlando Cost: $7

Counting Crows, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Augustana Hard Rock Live, Orlando Cost: $45-85 Time: 8 p.m.

Lost Time Accident, Country Slashers, Mumpsy, The Dark Romantics Hard Rock Live, Orlando Time: 8 p.m. The Legendary JC’s, Vasti BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $8/10 Time: 8 p.m. The Pauses, Venice Is Sinking, Candy Bars Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 8 20 wt, 2 Brothers Central Station, Orlando Cost: $5/7 Time: 10 p.m. Rouse CD Release Show Feat. Ben Prestage, An Introduction to Sunshine BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $12 Time: 8 p.m. Spam Allstars, ArtOfﬁcial The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 9 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 9 The Jacuzzi Boys, Davila 666 Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m.

MON AUGUST 10 Shawn Fisher & The Jukebox Gypsies, American Aquarium The Social, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 8 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 11 Between The Trees In-Store Park Ave. CDs, Orlando Cost: FREE Time: 6 p.m. Threat Signal, The Autumn Offering, The Agonist, Sybreed, Gorillaﬁght BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 7 p.m.

WED AUGUST 12 Guttermouth, Does It Matter?, T.N.T. The Social, Orlando Cost: $15 Time: 8 p.m.

THU AUGUST 13 New Architects, Escape The Pod BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 8 p.m. Rahzel, DJ JS1, DJ Craze, Rubox, Koopa Klan Club Firestone, Orlando Cost: $17.50/20 Time: 9 p.m. Wheels Above, Appleseed, The Watership Sound, Vrba Escape Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 14 Between The Trees, Dang, We’re On Fire, A Cover Story, Terra Terra House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $13.25/16.25 Time: 7 p.m. From First to Last, Contest of Arms, We Are Deﬁance, Doubting Beneﬁt BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 7 p.m. The Deep Field Now, Mirror Pal Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Tiffany Martin, Sugarfreemusic, Swansinger Hard Rock Live, Orlando Time: 8 p.m.

Khann, Great Deceivers, Lighthouse Music, GreyMarket Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Mr. Bella CD Release Party Feat. Irrational, Black in the Mind, In Violent Times House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $7 Time: 7 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 23 Ear PWR, Toro Y Moi BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 10 p.m. Fiery Furnaces, White Rabbits The Social, Orlando Cost: $13/15 Time: 9 p.m. Jacob’s Ladder, Your Best Friend, A Cover Story (EARLY SHOW) BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $8/10 Time: 5 p.m. The Vanity Plan, Farewell to Fashion, Nogl, White Hot Snap Shot Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 7 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 25

(Un)Said, Broken Image, Enigmatic, Detoura BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m.

Bad Actor, Confused Little Girl, Six Dead Horses, Midas in Reverse BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 16

WED AUGUST 26

Astronautalis, Cracker Jackson Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 9 p.m. Foreigner, John Frank House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $39.25-94.50 Time: 6 p.m. Forget Your Friends, Last Resolve, In My Words, Made From Pandora BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $5/8 Time: 7 p.m.

MON AUGUST 17 Gatorface, Cutman, Awesome & The Ass Kickers The Social, Orlando Cost: $4 Time: 9 p.m. Honor Society House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $17.75-33 Time: 7 p.m.

Soldier City Legends BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $8 Time: 7 p.m. The Hex Tremors (Final Show) Will’s Pub, Orlando Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 27 Fancy Me Yet BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m.

The Machine Gun Kristin Marathon Show Feat. Hot Hands, Garbo’s Daughter, Saving Twilight, Bunnygrunt, Sex Robots, The Courtneys Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 28 The Kidney Stones Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 29 Junkie Rush/B-Liminal CD Release Party Feat. Social Ghost, Afterglow Radio House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 7 p.m. Liquid Limbs, The Future Now, House of Lightning Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. The Shoreline, Pathway to Providence, Camerae BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $8/10 Time: 7 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 30 The Scene Aesthetic, The Color Fred, The Ready Set, Sephen Jerzak, Tyler Williams BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $10/12 Time: 6 p.m.

WED SEPTEMBER 2 Authority Zero, How Dare You, Idol’s End The Social, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m. Down, Melvins, Weedeater House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $20.25-36.25 Time: 6:30 p.m.

O.A.R. Hard Rock Live, Orlando Cost: $30 Time: 8 p.m. Plain Jane Automobile, Auto Vaughan, Trances Arc The Social, Orlando Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m.

THU SEPTEMBER 3 Peter, Bjorn & John, The Postmarks The Social, Orlando Cost: $15 Time: 9 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 18 The Morning Of, Sparks The Rescue, Ian Walsh, Crisis in Hollywood Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $10 Time: 5 p.m.

THU AUGUST 20 Godpawn, AM Conspiracy, Black in the Mind, Victory Four The Social, Orlando Cost: $8 Time: 8 p.m. Sick Puppies And Hurt, The Veer Union, Adelita’s Way House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $12/14 Time: 6:30 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 21 Luis Fonsi House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $40-63 Time: 8 p.m. The Dealers, The Gills, The Delaneys Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. The Kevin Maines Band, Diocious, Sonar The Social, Orlando Cost: $8/10 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 22 Before You Exit, Thomas Wynn & The Believers, Apparitioners, Vanda Hard Rock Live, Orlando Time: 8 p.m. Cobra Starship, Friday Night Boys, Plastiscines, Skeet Skeet The Social, Orlando Cost: $20 Time: 6 p.m. Kristina Goetz Going Away Party Will’s Pub, Orlando Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Munk Tung BackBooth, Orlando Cost: $6 Time: 7 p.m. Oscar D’Leon House of Blues, Orlando Cost: $42-90 Time: 7 p.m.

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO GAINESVILLE HOTSPOTS: VENUES & BARS

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

1982

All-ages friendly live-music hangout.

919 W. University Ave., Gainesville myspace.com/1982_bar

THE ATLANTIC

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

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

COMMON GROUNDS

G-ville’s premier punk/indie-rock club.

210 S.W. 2nd Ave., Ste. A, G-ville commongroundslive.com

PROVOCATIVE

THE KICKSTAND

BITS

This altruistic endeavor - more formally known as The Gainesville Community Bicycle Project - promotes responsible bicycle use and ownership while hosting the shows that help raise funds.

722 S. Main St., Gainesville thekickstand.org

HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE FASHION EXCHANGE

This thrift/consignment store offers duds on the cheap for guys and girls.

2032 NW 6th St., Gainesville 352-271-1171 feconsignment.com

FREERIDE SURF SHOP

A surf shop in Gainesville? Yes indeed. Named after the classic wave ﬂick.

420 N.W. 13th St., Gainesville freeridesurfshop.com

MOTHER EARTH MARKET

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

MODERN AGE TOBACCO

Your one-stop shop for things with dancing teddy bears on them.

1035 N.W. 76th Blvd., Gainesville 352.332.5100

RECYCLED BIKES Rent and roll.

805 W. University Ave., Gainesville 352.372.4890

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

Photo of Odd Knock: Courtesy of Odd Knock

illed as “Florida’s only chiptune/8bit fest,” the second Beep South Bleepstravaganza!!! brings together forward-thinking retro-glitch geniuses from all over the state to one all-ages-friendly bill. Gainesville experimental/electro cabal Electronic SubSouth is behind this one, naturally, so gird your ears for a sick assortment of visionary noises.

Yatagarasu, and Miss. Dracula. If you’re one of those people who doesn’t go to shows anymore because you’re sick of “the rock” and “the scene” and every band sounds the same and you see all the same old people at every house show, we can’t recommend this shindig enough as something guaranteed to remind you that you have not, in fact, seen and heard it all. By. A. Long. Shot.

Featured mad scientists for this installment of Bleepstravaganza!!! include Bubblegum Octopus, c-c, Diamonds Guns Gold, Environmental Sound Collapse, goatslacker, KeepBullﬁghting, Lissajou, minusbaby, REAX fave Oddknock, Rabbit Punch, rhinostrich,

The Beep South Bleepstravaganza!!! takes place Saturday, August 29 @ The Laboratory, 818 W. University Ave., Suite C. Doors are at 8 p.m.; the cover is $4. All ages are welcome. ELECTRONICSUBSOUTH.COM

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT IN THE RED VOLUME 2

(SUBURBAN HOME) Yeah, we know - technically, moody punk act In the Red is actually from California. But frontman Mike Hale’s Gainesville roots go too deep to ignore, and as with the release of his solo record last month, it just seems like a review of Volume 2 fits at least as well on this page as it does in the mag’s proper review section. In The Red’s meaty, shadow-obscured sound balances a dark heaviness akin to the work of Planes Mistaken for Stars with a more straightforward and stripped-down songwriting approach that ties it more firmly to traditional punk and rock ‘n’ roll styles. Tunes like “Green Eyes” and “These Old Things” wouldn’t have been out of place on Hale’s excellent solo effort (or in his former band Gunmoll’s set, for that matter), but don’t sound jarring next to In The Red’s darker material. Overall, this is a set of original and above average underground rock tunes that rely more on vibe and character to hold them together than one easily definable style. - Portnoy Jones

A GUIDE TO GAINESVILLE YOU ARE HERE HOTSPOTS: EATS

GAINESVILLE EVENTS AUGUST 2009 oh hell yeah

FRI AUGUST 7 Austin Lucas, Two Cow Garage, The Takers, Mike Hale Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $10 Time: 9 p.m. Boss Lady & The Company, The Damn Wrights, Stevie D. & The No Shows The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Long Strange Day, Trumpswig, Broken Trust Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Stella CD Release Party Feat. Isabella, The Collapse, A Rose for Emma Lee 1982, Gainesville Watercolor Paintings, Iji, Dirty Fist, The Invisible Dolphin Wayward Council, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 8 Ancient River, Waylon Thornton & The Heavy Hands Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Harvest of Hope Beneﬁt Feat. Whiskey & Co., Hot Graves, The Sam Snead Trio, Towers of Hanoi The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m. Harvest of Hope Vegan Chili Cook-Off The Kickstand, Gainesville Time: 1 p.m. Lost in Chaos, Nanerpus, Cathexia Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Public Service Announcement, Track Automatic 1982, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Summer Sublime Tribute Feat. Wild West & the All Stars, High Life, Kellen Malloy Market Street Pub, Gainesville Cost: $7 Time: 9 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 9 P.S. Eliot, Hop Along, Queen Ansleis, Lindsey Mills, Waylon Thornton & Heavy Hands Wayward Council, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. The Flying Dutchmen, Change Today, Alcina 1982, Gainesville Time: 7 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 11 Prolly, Murphee K, Teague Johnson Civic Media Center, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Wurm Church, Andrew Jackson Jihad, Droan Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $3 Time: 9 p.m.

WED AUGUST 12 Shawn Fisher & The Jukebox Gypsies, Stained Angel, American Aquarium Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 13 Fiction Is Fate Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Jimmy Sweetwater & Chet Honeycutt, Three Legged Dawg Kickin’ Devil Cafe, Gainesville Cost: $2 Time: 8 p.m. Silent Films, Loud Music Feat. The Anomie Consort, Perspectives, John David Eriksen, The Hiﬁ Envelope, Hydrogen Arm, Ironing, Hal McGee, No Limit Cycle, Oddknock, The Virus The Laboratory, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 8:30 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 14 Averkiou, The Jacuzzi Boys, Waylon Thornton, Hot Hands, Nervous Systems The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. Azmyth, Slow Motion Killers Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. Project Threshold Film Screening Feat. Laserhead, Frozen Cobra Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $3 Time: 8 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 15 Beneﬁt show for The Kickstand Feat. Assassinate the Scientist, Grabbag, Yogurt Smoothness, Alias Punch Wayward Council, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Liquid Limbs, Cutman, The Future Now Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Pop Mayhem Fest Feat. Boy Genius, Autodrone, Panda Riot, Faulty Chromosome The Atlantic, Gainesville Tim:e 9 p.m. Wolf In The Fold, Sweet Chariot 1982, Gainesville Time: 8 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 16 Pop Mayhem Fest (EARLY SHOW) 1982, Gainesville Time: 2 p.m. Tubers, Street Eaters 1982, Gainesville Time: 7 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 18 Capsule, Lautree, Native, Cardinal, Nut Nut The Atlantic, Gainesville Tim:e 9:30 p.m. Michael Garrett Civic Media Center, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. The Ex-Boogiemen, The Sam Snead Trio Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $3 Time: 9 p.m.

WED AUGUST 19 Nomadic Sun, Together Tomorrow, Travis McLeod Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 20 CMC Beneﬁt Feat. Grabass Charlestons, So Pastel, Big Boat Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Joan Red, Frequency 54, Unclaimed Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 21 The Enablers, The Violent Kind, Hangover Black The Atlantic, Gainesville Tim:e 9:30 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 22 Ars Phoenix, Earth Empire, Lethality Scale The Laboratory, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m. Whiskey & Co., Me & The Devil, Company of Ghost The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m.

MON AUGUST 24

EL INDIO

Jacob’s Ladder, Your Best Friend, The Future Now 1982, Gainesville Cost: $6 Time: 8 p.m.

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.”

TUE AUGUST 25

407 NW 13th St., Gainesville 352.377.5828

Dear Dakota, Callahan, Pathway to Providence, The Shoreline 1982, Gainesville Time: 8 p.m.

WED AUGUST 26 Breathing Chemistry, Maniacal Drone Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 27 Antique Scream, Athel Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m. The Gills, Brother Captain and King 1982, Gainesville Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m. The Pull Out, Boss Lady & The Company, Funkatron Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 28 Chris McCarty Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $10 Time: 9 p.m. The Jacob Jeffries Band, Hours Eastly, Temporary Taboo The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m. The Manor, Forever From Now, Fear of Flying Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. The Scare, Up For Nothing, Step Aside, Onslaught Dynamo, Assassinate the Scientist , Spanish Gamble Wayward Council, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 29 5 Day Beginning Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 10 p.m. All Request ‘80s w/ DJ Donna The Atlantic, Gainesville Beep South All-Star Bleepstravaganza!!! Feat. Bubblegum Octopus, c-c, Diamonds Guns Gold, Environmental Sound Collapse, Goatslacker, Keep Bullﬁghting, Lissajou, Minusbaby, Oddknock, Rabbit Punch, Rhinostrich, Yatagarasu The Laboratory, Gainesville Cost: $4 Time: 8 p.m. The Righteous Kind, Duppies, Fab Family Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $5 Time: 9 p.m.

MON AUGUST 31 Battleﬁelds, Overmars, Cofﬁn Dancer, Owls of Minerva The Atlantic, Gainesville Time: 9:30 p.m.

WED SEPTEMBER 2 Noah Sugarman Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

THU SEPTEMBER 3 Diocious, Made of Hemp Common Grounds, Gainesville Cost: $6 Time: 9 p.m.

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

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

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES AMERICAN APPAREL

Derf. Aside from the newly opened Orlando 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.

15 S.W. 1st Ave., Gainesville 352.372.2262 americanapparel.net

GOODWILL INDUSTRIES

The thrifts in most college towns are usually pretty picked over, but this is FL unintentionally ironic t-shirt heaven.

3520 S.W. 34th St., Gainesville 352.376.9041

PERSONA VINTAGE CLOTHING & COSTUMES

This joint has a reputation for great threads and kitschy or unusual gifts.

201 S.E. 2nd Pl., Gainesville 352.372.0455

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

Someday Static Backstage Lounge, Gainesville Time: 9 p.m.

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO JACKSONVILLE & NORTHEAST FLORIDA HOTSPOTS: VENUES & BARS BREWSTER’S PIT

Rock and metal shows galore, including national acts, usually at least a couple of times a month.

14003 Beach Blvd., Jacksonville myspace.com/brewsterspit

CLUB TSI

Hipsterifﬁc “indie disco” and venue that hosts hip-hop, touring bands, art exhibitions, and cool stuff in between.

333 East Bay St., Jacksonville clubtsi.com

THE FLORIDA THEATRE

Originally opened as a movie theatre in 1927, and then restored in the 80’s, this historic downtown venue hosts concerts, classic movies, and special events.

128 E Forsyth Ave www.ﬂoridatheatre.com

FREEBIRD LIVE

The area’s most well-known concert venue. Lots of touring acts and bigger local stuff.

200 North 1st St., Jacksonville Beach freebirdlive.com

JACK RABBITS

Another local legend of a spot geared toward original music, with an alwayseclectic slate featuring both local and national acts.

1528 Hendricks Ave., Jacksonville jackrabbitsonline.com

LONDON BRIDGE PUB

A cool watering hole featuring 18 beers on tap and tasty British pub fare. Open mic on Thursdays, with more live entertainment coming.

100 East Adams St., Jacksonville 904.252.6900 londonbridgepubjax.com

NOBBY’S TAVERN

Nobby’s splits the difference between sports bar, live-music bar and plain old destination-for-serious-drinking-andhijinks bar.

myspace.com/nobbystavern 904.825.4959

Everything skate, surf, swim, kayaking and awesome. Two locations!

696 Atlantic Blvd., Jacksonville Beach 904.246.2550 1850 A1A South, St.Augustine Beach 904.471.8070 aquaeast.com

BLACK HIVE TATTOO

Flash-free! Hallelujah! A creative and talented shop, and owner Nick Wagner is on the Board of Directors of the FL Professional Tattoo Artists Guild: a nonproﬁt dedicated to protecting the tattoo industry in our state.

2063 Gilmore Street 904.475.1989 www.nicktattoo.com

FLAT FILE GALLERY

A brand new gallery in the 5 Points Theatre building that focuses on limited edition, affordable, local art.

1022 Park Street www.ﬂat-ﬁlegallery.com A contemporary art gallery/photography studio with emphasis on local artists. Check their website for upcoming events and exhibitions.

1011 Park Street 904.355.7233 www.ﬂuxjacksonville.com

KONA SKATEPARK

Did you know Jax is home to America’s longest-surviving skatepark? Surprise! Kona’s been around since ‘77.

8739 Kona Ave., Jacksonville konaskatepark.com

MS. DEBORAH’S FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH

Well-known tattoo studio with a very talented staff.

78 Lemon Street, St. Augustine 904.825.0108 msdeborahtattoo.com

NEEDFUL THINGZ

22 W. 6th St., Jacksonville myspace.com/shantytownpub

215 W. King St. Suite 3, St. Augustine 904.829.7101 myspace.com/needful_thingz

THE SINCLAIR

SQUARE ONE

100% skate since 2000. Plus, they have a rad skate team.

521 W Forsyth St., Jacksonville www.thesinclairjax.com

1019 S. 3rd St., Jacksonville Beach 904.241.7667 squareonejax.com

ST. AUGUSTINE AMPHITHEATRE

ZOMBIE BIKES

1340 A1A South, St. Augustine staugamphitheatre.com

1520 N. Main St., Jacksonville myspace.com/zombiebikesjax

This large outdoor shed hosts everything from new jam and indie sounds to classic country and rock.

SHANGRALA

FLUX STUDIO/GALLERY

SHANTY TOWN PUB

Fancy with no dress code - fancy ‘cause the club is decorated like you should be smoking out of a Sherlock Holmes style pipe. Who doesn’t enjoy a good pipe?

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

AQUA EAST

Tobacco, T’s, posters, stickers, patches, incense, oils, spikes and studs, Manic Panic, jewelry, funky gifts and novelties and much, much more. Special orders always welcome.

Bar, live music and themed DJ nights, along w/ a cool outdoor area for hangin’.

HOTSPOTS: LIFESTYLE

Bike shop/co-op dedicated to rehabbing old bikes, wild customization, and teaching folks how to take care of their own.

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

Words: Jon Bosworth • Photo: Courtesy of Shangrala

t is important to Shangrala that you know this: they aren’t emo.

It’s quite surprising that more people don’t know about the Jacksonville rock band Shangrala. Simply on a musicianship level, this band has it all. Drummer Mike Von Balson is easily one of the finest drummers in the entire state. Coming out of the quasi-popular Florida emo band My Hotel Year from some seven years ago, Von Balson’s beats are even more spectacular than his previous band’s; the entire ensemble may even construct songs around his intricate rhythms. Von Balson’s beats and Brian Jerin’s guitar work conjure up comparisons to Minus the Bear and No Knife or early Jimmy Eat World. Add those shifting rhythms to the give-and-take explosiveness of their song structures, and a listener will struggle to compare them to Sunny Day Real Estate or Death Cab for Cutie. But Shangrala aren’t emo. They are like none of these bands, really. They seem to pull from many of these bands as influences, but then take it and place it squarely within a rock framework. So the emo might be in there somewhere; but if emo currently describes Warped Tour bands, then Shangrala is definitely not emo. Brothers Will and Walt Hill bring solid bass work (the bass line in “Race for Ages” is absolute perfection) and keys respectively. In fact, Walt Hill, seated behind his organ at the front of the stage, also controls a computer, a sampler, and even occasionally a kick drum, adding some uber-modern layers to their otherwise fairly classic early-’00s rock compositions. Will is also punching buttons on a computer during portions of their set, but whether he’s checking his Twitter (often sporting proclaiming “I’m huge on Twitter”) or initiating computerized nuances to the music is anyone’s guess. There are so many swirling layers of melody in an average

Shangrala set that it’s hard to imagine the music not becoming over-complicated. But the Shang gang has something that other bands with adept musicians don’t - a keen songwriting sense. Their compositions are complicated, but they sound simple to the ear. Jude Kahle’s broken voice barely bobs along the crest of the melodies, honing them, funneling them, simplifying them, along with his rhythm guitar. Jude’s lyrics present simple situations wrapped in deep questions, which elevate the context of the group’s music without making it seem infantile, pretentious, or petty - all common pitfalls of lyricists trying to be “deep.” And whereas Kahle’s vocals are heady and understated, guitarist Jerin’s vocals are rich with hooks that stick in the brain - even if they aren’t quite as conceptually cerebral (“I changed the lock to the door of my heart”) and come off as a little more derivative, drawing comparisons to The Jealous Sound or even Promise Ring (there, I think I have now mentioned every archetypal emo band) - in a way that is somehow comforting. Their debut full-length, This Is How We Communicate, was released in 2007 to some local fanfare and a tepid Internet buzz. Sputnik Music gave it a 4 out of 5 and Absolute Punk also raved it in their reviews, but for the most part all of that hype ﬁzzled out in ‘08, likely because the band failed to tour the album. They are currently writing new material and have recently started playing somewhat regularly, after rumors arose that they had broken up. Look for them to play a show with other Jacksonville wunderkinds Sunbears! at The Sinclair in early September. They’ll be performing their new songs. Which are not at all emo. MYSPACE.COM/SHANGRALA

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

YOU ARE HERE A GUIDE TO JACKSONVILLE & NE FLORIDA HOTSPOTS: EATS A1A ALE HOUSE

CARRIBBEAN CONNECTION

1 King St., St. Augustine 904.829.2977

1034 Park St., Jacksonville 777 S. 3 rd St., Jacksonville myspace.com/carribbeanconnectionjax

BURRITO GALLERY

CD CONNECTION

Fresh seafood, and hell-yes hand-crafted beer at both bars. Enjoy an exclusive beverage created on the premises while taking in the view from the patio.

So much more than a burrito joint, with seafood, salads, music, and full liquor.

21 East Adams St., Jacksonville 904.598.2922

CAFÉ ELEVEN

Outstanding eats. Impressive beer/wine selection. Extraordinary music calendar. What else could you possibly ask for?

501 A1A Bch Blvd., St. Aug. Beach

THE CASBAH CAFE

A favorite Avondale spot - go for a beer and a hookah, or to enjoy some tasty Mediterranean cuisine. Or maybe even for the weekly entertainment and belly dancing.

If you claim to like music, you need to stop by. Over 4,000 s.f. of indie record store awesomeness + super friendly and knowledgeable staff = happy customers.

1908 3rd St Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250 904.246.0550

RIVERSIDE ARTS MARKET

This ain’t your parents’ art walk. Includes bike valet parking, roving performers, intriguing snackage and locally grown produce.

Riverside Ave. under the I-95 overpass (904) 554-6865 www.riversideartsmarket.com

WEIRD WAX

GRASSROOTS NATURAL MARKET

2128 Atlantic Blvd., Jacksonville 904-399-3004 myspace.com/weirdwax

2007 Park Street, 5 Points 904.384.4474 1915 East West Parkway, Orange Park 904.541.0009 www.thegrassrootsmarket.com

MELLOW MUSHROOM

One of the most heavily praised pizza chains in existence anywhere. And did we mention the plethora of awesome beers?

9734 Deer Lake Ct 904.997.1955 1800 Towne Center Pkwy, Fleming Island 904.541.1999 1018-2 N. 3rd St Jax Beach

RAGLAND’S

Full menu, taproom and some eclectic music events on the patio.

1023 Park St., Jacksonville 904.598.527

UPTOWN MARKET

Super-fresh ingredients for breakfast, lunch or take-home deli action. Also, they cater.

1303 North Main St., Historic Springﬁeld 904-355-0734

WALKER’S WINE BAR

Called “Riverside’s newest hot spot” by EU, Walker’s is contemporary and swank, but still laid-back. Tapas, DJs and low-key live music complement the vintages.

2692 Post St., Jacksonville 904.894.7465

VENUE SPOTLIGHT

One-stop shopping for music-culture peripherals - shoes, shirts, tickets, tats and more.

3228 Saint Johns Ave 904.981.9966 www.thecasbahcafe.com

Smaller, yet super efﬁcient market where you can shop for all things organic or grab a wrap, salad or smoothie. And feel good about it, because they are independently owned.

HOTSPOTS: RETAIL

New and used music, a huge, crazy and ever-changing selection of vinyl, and live events to boot.

DOWNTOWN

UPTON

Photo: Courtesy of The Sinclair

HOTSPOTS: WEARABLES ANOMALY

Five Points clothing shop specializing in introducing indie designers to the world.

1012 Park St., Jacksonville anomalyﬁvepoints.com

THE CLOSET

From their site: “dedicated to consciously bringing our customers greener, one-ofa-kind, and unique choices; with many local designers and consignment.”

51 Cordova St., St Augustine 904.810.5699 myspace.com/theclosetconundrum

THE CLOTHING WAREHOUSE

What started as an Atlanta vintage-fashion wholesaler has become a southeastern retail-franchise phenomenon.

1010 Park St., Jacksonville 904.356.5003

EDGE CITY

A funky vibe and cutting-edge women’s fashions for more than 30 years.

1017 Park St., Jacksonville 904.353.9423

WOLFGANG

A stylish boutique offering affordable name-brand fashionables for both sexes.

1038 Park St., Jacksonville myspace.com/wolfgangboutique

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

et together and art up downtown Jacksonville’s newest bar: The Sinclair. Desperately seeking Jacksonville’s artistic community, this bar endeavors to be a place where artists can meet, connect, create and perform. Showcasing imposing portraits of John Steinbeck, Ray Bradbury and the eponymous Upton Sinclair, the cozy bar strikes a rather intellectual mood. Classic walnut wood against exposed brick gives it a scholarly but contemporary atmosphere. Artsy places know to have a selection of uncommon, craft and import beers and a respectable wine list, but the sake is sure to be hipster fave. By staging

indigenous, original live entertainment, such as live comedy with troupe The Edge of Sketch, live radio dramas with a real foley artist, and magic shows, they hope to attract artists ﬁrst. Bohemia is back, and it’s gonna get wrecked on beer and wine. Located at 521 West Forsyth Street in downtown, The Sinclair is open Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 5 p.m. until 2 a.m., Fridays from 12 p.m. until 2 a.m., and Sundays from 7 p.m. until 12 a.m. THESINCLAIRJAX.COM

ALBUM SPOTLIGHT HELLO DANGER SHARK ATTACK PARTY (SELF-RELEASED)

It may sound like a backhanded compliment, but this is some of the best emo I’ve heard in, like, forever. (The fact that this Jacksonville act gave their CD the best title in the history of the printed word doesn’t hurt, either.) Strongly constructed tunes, an earnest vibe, and immaculate production - with help from big-time vocal guy Luke Walker (Alkaline Trio, From First to Last) - add up to a poppy yet muscular and melancholy album that’s superior to most of the bands with which it will certainly be associated. Granted, there’s really nothing mind-blowingly original going at the Shark Attack Party (heh), and the silly faux-slinky disco parts of “Sex Panther” are utterly disposable. But these guys put the genre’s good parts together well, and deliver ‘em with admirable energy and skill. - Cole Porterhouse

AUGUST 2009 REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE

A GUIDE TO JACKSONVILLE & NE FLORIDA YOU ARE HERE

NE FLA EVENTS FRI AUGUST 7 As Darkness Shines, Arythmeia, Say It Out Loud, Hollow Leg, Slow Motion Audio, From Ashes To Empires, Baker Act Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Time: 6 p.m. Blac Waldo Club TSI, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Confused Little Girl, PineHill, Alias Punch, Baker Act, Cream Pie Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. From First to Last, The Sophomore Attempt, Rapture Indeed, We Still Dream, Dancell Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $10 Fullstop, The Nightlight, The Great Working Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Jackson Browne St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine Cost: $35.50-67.50 Time: 7 p.m. Johari Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 10 p.m. Sons of Bill Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10

SAT AUGUST 8 Hot Smokin’ Pistol, Oso Para Venta Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Nick Constanzo Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Not Even Radio Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $8 Salt Water Grass Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 10 p.m. Shai Hulud, Reign Supreme, The Carrier Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 8 p.m. The Jacuzzi Boys, Davila 666 Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10

SUN AUGUST 9 Daniel Foundation Charity Bash Feat. A Year From Yesterday, Mark 8s, Last Resolve, Defeat The Oppressor, Lies of Autumn, Rottred, Wysteria, Aglaceia Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Cost: $5 Time: 1 p.m. Spider + Octopus, Renee Arozqueta Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Tobacco Pat, Shawn Fisher & Jukebox Gypsies, American Aquarium, Master Radical, Clayton Bush Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8

MON AUGUST 10 Planetfest Battle Feat. Society Red, Running Rampant, Blistur, Dirtﬁsh Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Reapers Are The Angels, Shotgun Saints Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 11 Donovan Frankenreiter Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $20 Fingers Crossed, The Recluse, Ripper, Downside Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

AUGUST 2009 oh hell yeah

Glorious Gunner, I Am The Unicorn, The Subtle Way, Mozart Season, All In Honor, Halloway Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Polaroid, Echoes Through Chaos, Hourglass Parlor, Gentlemen and Scholars Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 7 p.m.

WED AUGUST 12 Planetfest Battle Feat. Simplex 1, Sumthin Else, One Less Atlantic, Aeva Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10

THU AUGUST 13 Whaleface, Rhea & The Hopeless Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Tim:e 10 p.m.

FRI AUGUST 14 Blood of the Prophets, Marks of Sin, Eating Inﬁnity Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 8 p.m. City Rescue Mission Fundraiser London Bridge Pub, Jacksonville Counting Crows, Michael Franti & Spearhead St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine Cost: $37.50-57.50 Time: 7 p.m. Daniel Foundation Beneﬁt Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Evenstill, The Rhythm Cure Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $8 Groovie Dog Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 10 p.m. The N Word, Dr. Beckett, Mr. Al Pete, Larry O Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Tyrone Askins, Idol’s End, F.F.N., Sector 4 Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 15 Astronautalis Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Bullet, Southern Alabama Pie Cookoff Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Blizzard of Ozzy (Ozzy Tribute), Dangerous New Machine, Came As Plagues, The Rock ‘N’ Roll Chrome, None Like Us Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Cost: $10-20 Time: 8 p.m. Freddie Fud Pucker, Kevin Lee Newberry Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Guttermouth, Does It Matter?, What About Me Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 9 p.m. Judas Priest, Whitesnake St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine Cost: $39.50-62.50 Time: 6:30 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 16 After The Bomb Baby, Meteor Eyes Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Pericles, Undertow, In Betrayal, Jax Beach Dumpster Scum, As Darkness Shines Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Time: 8 p.m.

MON AUGUST 17 Joan Red, Seraph Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8

REAX MUSIC MAGAZINE AUGUST 2009

TUE AUGUST 18 Vega Under Fire, Goodnight Anthem, We Still Dream, Hands High Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8

WED AUGUST 19 Sister Hazel, Shawn Fisher & Jukebox Gypsies Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $20 The Morning Of, Sparks The Rescue, Ian Walsh, The Perfect Measure Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10

THU AUGUST 20 Ever So Klever, The Mark 8s, Your Best Friend Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Poison The Well, Vanna, Lies of Autumn Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $12

The Wastedist, DCOI, To in the Trigger, Endangered Feces Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Cost: $8-10 Time: 8 p.m.

TUE AUGUST 25 Planetfest Battle Feat. None Like Us, Year From Yesterday, Lies of Autumn, The Embraced Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10 Psychostick, Philler, Snore, Stained Angel, Downﬂow, Clayton Bush Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Cost: $10-12 Time: 8 p.m.

WED AUGUST 26 Vessels of Energia, Flashlights Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

THU AUGUST 27

FRI AUGUST 21

Ponyboy: Indie Dubstep Night Feat. Carrie Location Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

Abra Cadaver, Leather Nun America Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8

Rebelution, Iration, Outlaw Nation Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $15

Kids Like Us CD Release Party Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 8 p.m.

The Status, Time & Distance, The Prospect, Polaroid Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8

Matt Cawley & Friends Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 10 p.m. Swerv, Southern Fried Funk Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $8 Wudun, Sleeping in the Aviary, Lazerstar Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 22 Anchor Arms, Coyote Throat, Store Bought Bones, Nuclear Doodles, Gnarley By Nature Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Col. Bruce Hampton & The Quark Alliance, Blueground Undergrass Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $15 Jo Everitt CD Release Party Feat. Crash The Satellites, Single White Herpe Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8 Knights of the Abyss, Suffokate Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 8 p.m. The Elevated Hip Hop Experience London Bridge Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. To Be Hated, Hollywood Lies, Morgan Knockers Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 23 Chicken & Whiskey, The Listener Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Crosby, Stills & Nash St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine Cost: $33-83 Time: 7 p.m. Future Leaders of the World, Sore Eyes, 5 Day Beginning, No Justyce Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 4 p.m. Pathway to Providence, Callahan, The Shoreline, No, Really Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8

MON AUGUST 24 Planetfest Battle Feat. Not Even Radio, Tragedy Hero, Master Radical, Code Iris Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10

FRI AUGUST 28 D-Stall, BamBam, Lil Streets, Precision, M. Matthews Brewster’s Pit, Jacksonville Time: 8 p.m. O.A.R. St. Augustine Amphitheatre, St. Augustine Cost: $30 Time: 7 p.m. The Fritz Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 10 p.m. The Night Light Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. The Scene Aesthetic, The Color Fred, The Ready Set, Tyler Williams Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10 The Stun Gunz, The Wastedist Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

SAT AUGUST 29 Frontiers (Journey Tribute) Freebird Live, Jacksonville Beach Cost: $10 Jacob Jeffries Band, The Electric Velton Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $8 Onslaught Dynamo, Spanish Gamble, Status Faux Shantytown Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. The Blues Gurus London Bridge Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m. Three Legged Dawg, Waylon Thornton & The Heavy Hands Doozer’s Pub, Jacksonville Time: 9 p.m.

SUN AUGUST 30 Planetfest Battle Feat. I Am God, Name Bran, Hollowpoint Militia, Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $10

THU SEPTEMBER 3 Authority Zero, Bubbly Joe Jack Rabbits, Jacksonville Cost: $12 Low Country Boil Feat. ASG, What About Me, The Uprise Landshark Cafe, Jacksonville Beach Time: 5 p.m. (Cookout) 10 p.m. (Show)