Tampa Calling

“Thank you, mom, for my beer,” Tommy Simms (pictured far left) announced from the stage as he raised his cup. The 20something old Clearwater resident’s band, Win Win Winter, had just started an outstanding 40-minute set that took place Fri., Sept. 5, at State Theatre in St. Petersburg as part of this publication’s CL in Concert series. The crowd of about 200 largely included Simms’ fans, friends and family. Tommy’s younger 21-year-old sister, Juliet Simms, and her nationally signed (Sony/Epic) pop punk band, Automatic Loveletter, closed the show with Tommy sitting in on guitar.

Win Win Winter’s performance, which kicked off around 10:15 p.m., met high expectations as the band displayed its mastery of styles ranging from angular indie rock to bouncy keyboard-laden numbers to rustic ballads marked by the lap steel playing of Nate Oliver (pictured far right), who also sat in with Automatic Loveletter and is a member of ace alt-country outfit Have, Gun Will Travel (more on them, and other local music breaking news items, after the jump).

Photo of Win Win Winter by CL Street Team honcho Shawn Alff. Also, check out the pics CL Online Producer Stephen Hammill posted here.

Tommy might not look like your typical frontman (unless your idea is Jack Black) but he works the crowd with a charisma rarely matched on the local scene. His vocal chops — and ability to sell a lyric — are also exceptional.

On Aug. 27, news arrived that Win Win Winter had finished its debut full-length, Viole. The disc “should be out in time for the holiday season on 24 Hour Service Station,” reads the press release. Label owner Marshall Dickson, who was at the gig Friday, recently sent me an “unmixed or mastered” MP3 of the Viole track “Someone Like Me.” Built around a simple, acoustic riff and kissed by Oliver’s weeping lap steel, it’s a gorgeous valentine that finds Tommy gently intoning:

“She’d be better off with someone fancy, to buy her favorite things and take her dancing / The steady 9 to 5 was just not likely, so how’d she fall in love with someone like me?”

• On Saturday, Dickson also confirmed that he’d signed popular St. Pete/Wisconsin-based singer/songwriter Geri X to his label.

• Clearwater garage rock badasses Très Bien also performed Friday, and told me they’ve completed a new CD ready for self-release in at a gig in October. On a sad note, the show will double as a farewell party. “We’re moving to Pennsylvania to further our music career by centralizing in the Northeast,” reads the email they sent me.

• Tampa’s dazzling, genre-subverting electronica/rock duo GreyMarket will celebrate the release of its new disc S.O.W.N.D. with a show Sept. 26, at Orpheum, Ybor City. “[The title] stands for ‘Some Orbits Will Never Decay,’” says percussionist Mike Gargiulo.

• “We have a little mini tour that we’re going on in a couple of weeks, and as it turns out we’ll be playing showcases at the Atlantis Music Conference in Atlanta (Sept. 19) and the Americana Music Festival in Nashville (Sept. 20),” notes Have Gun, Will Travel leader Matt Burke. “Brett Steele (Steele Management) is working with us to get the word out to industry folks in both cities and (WMNF program director) Randy Wynne’s gonna be helping us promote in Nashville. So it should be a productive little trip.” And don’t forget before leaving for the mini-tour, Have Gun, Will Travel performs at CL’s Best of the Bay Loafies awards bash, 7 p.m. Tue., Sept. 16, Tampa Theatre, Tampa.

• St. Pete’s Brett Steele has recently expanded Steele Management, which he formed in 1987, way beyond steering his brother Kevin Steele’s bands Roxx Gang and Mojo Gurus to major label deals. In addition to the Gurus, Brett now reps The Dex Romweber Duo, which just inked a deal with venerable cow-punk imprint Bloodshot, Royal Gents, Van Preston, The Ditchflowers, Blind Buddy Moody, Chris Volpe, Darrin James, Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers and Ronny Elliott. “I’m interested in reviewing artists in all styles of music for representation,” Brett says. “I’m looking for clients for personal management, shopping record and licensing deals, tour booking, radio and press promotion. I also offer career consulting, including image recommendations, multi-media package preparation and merchandising consulting.” Interested? Contact Brett Steele here.

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