Tampa Calling

A quick breakdown of this weekend’s most worthy concerts beginning with Thursday, ’cause that’s when the weekend really starts, right? For a more comprehensive schedule of concerts, check out our Upcoming Events page.

Thursday, July 23
Nightmare Of You (pictured) w/Plushgun/Brian Bonz/Aushua In Nightmare of You’s single, “I Think I’m Getting Older,” frontman Brandon Reilly laments about aging against jangly guitars and post-punk bounce, and right before it peters to an end, there’s a brief breakdown of lazy, watery dub. Haven’t heard the rest of the Long Island, NY, four-piece quartet’s just-released second album, Infomaniac (Bevonshire), but my curiosity is piqued. Plushgun and Brian Bonz are both Brooklynites; Plushgun does cloying electro-pop (oft-described as “infectious”) while Bonz has a husky vocals and a pleasant ambience to his organic experimental rock. Thurs., July 23, 9 p.m., Crowbar, Ybor City, $10 in advance/$12 dos (18 and up).

Ex-Norwegian w/The Lighthouse and the Whaler /Pemberley While the name may imply far away origins (or an appreciation of Monty Python’s Flying Circus), Ex-Norwegian hails from Miami Beach and their music has the bright and shiny quality you’d expect with hand-claps, acoustic guitar and cheery vocals. Ohio’s Lighthouse and the Whaler make airy folk rock with percussive trimmings and multi-voice harmonizing that give the music a tender, rustic feel. Thurs., July 23, 9 p.m., New World Brewery, Ybor City, $7. Read the rest of this entry »

Around 3 p.m. yesterday, I caught Rec Center and King of Spain at the New Granada showcase at Ginger Man Pub. I grabbed a bite with Flee, Laura, John McNicholas as well as Scott Harrell and Mike Delach from the REAX crew. So awesome that the conference was bookended by Tampa-centric showcases. Maybe we can add a Mohawk Bomb showcase to the roster next year?

Unfortunately, I had to jet before Hankshaw took the stage in order to catch Flatstock by 6 p.m. Flatstock is a quarterly exhibit that features artists, concert posters and prints for sale. I got to meet Jared from Mexican Chocolate. I’m a big fan of this guy’s work for the Mars Volta and I picked up a couple more prints for my collection.

Now here’s where my heart starts beating. I left an hour early to ensure I got a good spot for PJ Harvey and John Parrish’s set at Stubbs. I got there in plenty of time - the Indigo Girls and Third Eye Blind fans had no interest whatsoever, so I was able to wriggle my way down front. The only downside – enduring an entire set by Razorlight. Wow.

PJ Harvey on stage at Stubb’s. Photo courtesy of Carol Copfer.

In a rare US appearance, Polly Jean Harvey took the stage looking like a straight-jacketed geisha, and delivered a set of mostly new material - at turns crying, laughing and screaming - one minute delivering lines like “there’s no more laughter in the garden,” with a tiny, childlike voice and the next, snarling “stick it up your fucking ass,” with an empowered roar. The crowd responded with riotous screams and applause, and she humbly, quietly thanked them each time. When she announced that the next song would be their last, the audience loudly protested, and she tried to explain that everyone was being kept to strict time slots. To the chants of “come back soon,” she had no reply.

Afterward, I ran into John Barker and Jennie from MerchGirl. They were headed down an alleyway to catch the DJ duo L.A. Riots. They asked if I’d like to tag along, but I was still a bit shellshocked from the whole PJ Harvey thing and needed to walk it off in the night air for a bit.

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For session five, Stephen and Joran talk with the foursome about touring, knife play and a newer sound, plus, the band performs three songs: Lips, Pretty in Pale and Whipsering Sin.

Download.

Download the MP3s below the jump:

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Editor’s note: This just in from our man Autopsy IV — see his pic/bio after the jump — via ninebullets.net.

WHO: Black Diamond Heavies, The Mojo Gurus and The Beauvilles

WHAT: Concert

WHERE: Dave’s Aqua Lounge 10820 Gandy Blvd. St. Petersburg (727) 576-1091

WHEN: Tuesday November 18, 2008

DETAILS: Showtime 9:00pm, tickets $7. Doors are at 8PM, Beauvilles 9:00-9:45PM, Black Diamond Heavies 10:15-11:00PM, Mojo Gurus 11:30-12:15PM

This is a ninebullets.net sponsored show. We’re sponsoring this show cause we believe that The Black Diamond Heavies are an unstoppable force and we just wanna get on the fame train. Here’s what I said about these cats when I saw them at The Deep Blues Festival:

I was worried that I might have over-romanticized what actually getting to see the force that is The Black Diamond Heavies was going to be like, but the truth is I sold them short. I’d heard the hype, I believed the hype…I just didn’t understand the hype. Now I’ve witnessed the hype and I am a believer. BDH get down like no others, never miss a chance to see them live. They’ll rock the panties off your granny, believe that.

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