The RITZ Ybor has announced that the 70’s Soul Jam featuring The Stylistics (pictured), Chi-Lites and MC Jimmy “JJ” Walker due to take place this Friday, August 7, has been postponed and will not be rescheduled until sometime in 2010 (no date has been confirmed). Refunds are available at the point of purchase; tickets purchased online will be automatically refunded.
All photos by Mike Wilson.
“You guys are bringing it so hard, the power went out,” said lead singer Adam Lazarra of Taking Back Sunday (pictured) when, midway through their set at The Ritz in Ybor City, the power suddenly went out while the crowd continued singing the song to the beat of only the drums.
Needless to say, Taking Back Sunday, Anberlin and Envy on the Coast brought it, and brought it hard. Except for the bass being turned up way too loud, and occasional feedback interfering with a set, this show set the standard for alternative rock shows. (MORE PICS AFTER THE JUMP.)
I’ve been listening to Ratatat on repeat lately and am pretty stoked about their show this upcoming Friday night at The Ritz. The Brooklyn-based duo — made up 
of guitarist Mike Stroud and multi-instrumentalist/producer/synth extrordinaire Evan Mast — produce some top notch rocktronica and have released three solid full-length albums on XL Recordings — Ratatat (2004), Classics (2006) and LP3 (2008).
The duo’s sound is mostly instrumental, save for when they’re remixing someone else’s song (like their sick redux of Bjork’s “Wanderlust”), or when they’re trying to create a mood, like in LP3’s “Flynn,” which has a breezy, tropical feel and ascending, Beach Boys’ style backing vocal samples. Atmospheric layers of sound effects, ethereal guitar solos and warped riffs are scattered throughout, but Ratatat really excels with hip-hoppin’ beats and funkin’ grooves that make you want to bust a move. Even when the music falls into a lazy, melodic, pop-a-Xanax amble, you’ll still find your head bobbing.
Ratatat has earned quite the rep for energetic live shows marked by synchronized lighting and video projections, and if you are a fan of any sort of electronic music, this is a show you don’t want to miss. opening for Ratatat is solo hip-hop artist/rapper Despot and drum-and-bass trio Tussle. Fri., April 10, The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City, $18 in advance/$20 day of show.
Here are the pick of the litter from our Upcoming Concerts pace. To see the complete list, click here.
Friday, April 03
The Zou w/Bang Bang Boom/The Pauses. The Youngstown, Ohio-brewed Zou (pictured) makes progressive alt-meets-art rock with a bluesy grittiness and dark lyrical stylings like “I will feel the same until they lower my pine box.” Fat n’ fuzzy basslines, two guitars alternating between heavy distorted riffs and thin, jagged ribbons of siren-piercing licks, a trill of keys or blast of synths, and a vocalist who alternately sings, rap-chants, and hits powerful, affected high notes ala Serj Tankian of System of a Down. Pretty great stuff. Fri., April 3, 8 p.m., New World Brewery, Ybor City, $7. —LP
Bay Area Beat Maiden Showcase feat. Ronny Elliot/Rebekah Pulley/Blind Buddy Moody. A local showcase presented in celebration of the release of a new local-centric music rag, Bay Area Beat. Fri., April 3, 8 p.m., Pro Star Soundstage, St. Petersburg, $6. —LP
Ben Folds W/Jukebox the Ghost Ben Folds has a knack for producing some of the most catchy-without-being-saccharine, dry-humored piano-driven pop ballads out there, though he has his share of maudlin and 
melancholy moments. He’s released three full-length solo albums since his amicable break from Ben Folds Five in 2000, including last year’s Way to Normal. Funny story about that album – it was leaked a few months before the actual release date on a fan site. All those who heard it thought it to be a legitimate copy, but the joke was on them; Folds revealed in a radio interview a few weeks later that he and the band had recorded fake versions of all the songs from Way to Normal in a single overnight session in Dublin and then “leaked” the fake to the public. (I’ve actually heard debates about whether the fake is better than the real.) Folds is one hell of a dynamic showman – I saw him hold a crowd of 10,000 in thrall at Langerado last year – and he hasn’t stopped in town solo for quite some time, so this is a performance you don’t want to miss. Folds-influenced upbeat indie pop rock trio Jukebox the Ghost opens. Fri., April 3, 8 p.m., The Ritz Ybor, Ybor City, $31.50. —LP Read the rest of this entry »
This review comes courtesy of Cooper Levy-Baker, editor of Creative Loafing Sarasota and contributor to The 941 and Tampa Calling.
Saturday night’s big Ghostface Killah/Raekwon gig at The Ritz Ybor was billed as the Skatepark of Tampa’s “Pro Contest Party,” and, as a party, it was sick. (Photo below not from the show.)
A pleasantly multicultural crowd — skate kids, rap aficionados, hipsters — filled the wide expanse in front of the stage; free PBR flowed for a couple solid hours; some dude wandered through the crowd handing out gratis T-shirts and trucker hats. The fans went appropriately nuts when Raekwon and, later, Ghostface first emerged onstage, throwing their Wu hand-Ws in the air. The beats boomed, Wu classics flew and bodies started moving. A good time was had by all. Read the rest of this entry »
By Cooper Levy-Baker, cross-posted from Creative Loafing Sarasota’s blog, The 941.
You know what I’m effing pumped about? This Saturday night, I’ve got tickets to see Ghostface Killah and Raekwon live at The Ritz Ybor.
Both MCs may be members of the nine-strong Wu-Tang Clan, but they’ve backed each other so consistently over the years we can really think of them as a tight tandem, in the same league with names such as Eric B. & Rakim, Boogie Down Productions and Clipse. Don’t believe me? Raekwon’s debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…, which bills Ghost as a “guest star” on the front, is a drug-rap classic, a touchstone for any contemporary MC who aims to depict the brutal hustle of the cocaine trade. And Ghost’s first album, Ironman, which has Raekwon’s name and visage on the cover, was the first salvo in one of the greatest NY rap careers of the past decade.
So this Saturday’s show? Kind of a big deal. Click here for videos featuring Ghost and Rae’s two all-time best team-ups.
