the 941

Ed. note: This post comes courtesy Alex Pickett.

Think there’s a Michael Vick living next door to you? Have you noticed roosters with spikes on their feet coming from your Ybor City neighbor’s house?

Well, the state of Florida now has an animal fighting tip line, and it could net you a handsome reward.

From the Florida Attorney General’s press release:

Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that Floridians can now report animal fighting and be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000 by calling The Humane Society of the United States’ animal fighting tip line at 877-TIP-HSUS (847-4787). The toll-free tip line was first established in Georgia by The HSUS and Atlanta-based corporate security firm Norred & Associates Inc. Because of its success, and with the support of Florida’s Attorney General, the tip line has been expanded to help combat dogfighting and cockfighting in Florida.

(Photo Credit: phooky/flickr)

Bookmark to:

Ed. note: This post comes courtesy Alex Pickett.

Have you ever wondered if your significant other was lying to you over the phone? Or if your parents really did send your Christmas gift in the mail over a month ago? How about figuring out whether that kid across the street really did egg your house on Halloween?

What if there was a way you could carry a polygraph test with you at all times?

You know where this is going.

I present to you the Agile Lie Detector application for iPhone. This software turns your iPhone into a virtual polygraph by using voice stress analysis. And from what some users say, it actually seems to work. For only $7.99!

Get it here.

Bookmark to:

No matter how hard we might try, family gatherings and holiday season don’t always add up to joyous — or even peaceful — experiences. But when the Trucks clan joined forces for their Soul Stew Revival bash at Tampa Theatre on Monday, a near capacity crowd of around 1,400 witnessed domestic bliss at its finest. The jubilant vibe, marked by expert musicianship, permeated the ancient venue. If the rumors are true about the historic movie house being haunted, even the ghosts must have been grinning.

The gnat’s-ass-tight gang of musicians mesmerized with gorgeous executions of the timeworn tension-and-release dynamic. It’s a God-send rooted in the churches of the Deep South, one that was sold with aplomb to the secular world by the likes of Ray Charles, James Brown and Aretha Franklin. The Allman Brothers Band, Derek Trucks’ chief employer, then expanded the sonic presentation with Kind of Blue-indebted jazz elements in the late 1960s. Decades later, the holy tradition thrives, coming together wonderfully Monday night at Tampa Theatre.

Trucks, a 29-year-old slide guitar master, and his band, were joined by his soul singing (and pretty damn good ax player herself) wife Susan Tedeschi for an awesomely old-school R&B revue goosed with jam band touches. A three-man horn section, two drummers (one being Derek’s younger bro Duane), a percussionist, bassist and keyboardist who doubled as a flautist for one number (think Astral Weeks and save the Jethro Tull jokes) filled the stage. The formidable ensemble, which featured members of Tedeschi’s and Trucks’ individual bands, melded terrifically.

Photo of Tedeschi and Trucks, from a previous performance, courtesy of Flickr.

(more…)

Bookmark to:

— Sexual misconduct by a Suncoast priest to be investigated.

— Myakka City’s Royal Lipizzan Stallions ranch stays open, despite the looming threat of foreclosure.

— Parking meters still poised to go up in downtown. Personally, I say the Main Street parking issue is way overblown. Is it really that much of a struggle to find a spot? Maybe you’ve got to walk five minutes to get where you’re going, but come on. Are we really that lazy?

— A report on pedestrian and bike traffic in Sarasota. Guess what: We have a high number of fatalities and injuries.

— County Commissioner Jon Thaxton responds to a link we put up yesterday, about reopening Midnight Pass.

Bookmark to:

After several false starts, virus-laden downloads and out-of-control fan anticipation taken to an email hoax level, the real Merriweather Post Pavilion has finally surfaced on the file-sharing blogs. The much-anticipated eighth studio album of wildly avant-garde rock ensemble Animal Collective leaked this past weekend, and fans that were foaming at the mouth to listen are now foaming at the mouth while listening, soaking it up like a bunch of hipster sponges, IMing their friends about its greatness, about how “catchy” it is compared to their previous efforts and how it’s already the greatest album of ‘09, and has anyone ever thought of using an optical illusion as the cover of their album? How groundbreaking! (”Holy shit, it moves!“)

The buzz surrounding this album has been as big as I’ve seen buzz get, most likely because it took so long to leak in advance of its January 20 release date on Domino.

As a fan of Animal Collective, a music writer who tries to keep track of what’s going on in the music world and the wife of a man who happens to be an inexhaustive explorer of file-sharing music blogs, I snagged a copy and listened to it last night. There was no doubt about who created the album; it was pure Animal Collective, surreal meets out-there. I’m not sure whether or not it’s really catchy, although it is probably more accessible than other stuff I’ve heard by them (less melodic yells and screeches, more straighforward singing). Once I’ve recieved a concrete copy of the album, I’ll report back here with my review. Stay tuned.

Bookmark to:

Ed. note: This post comes courtesy Editorial Intern Bobby Wilsner.

Having graduated a Sarasota high school with no sports, I decided to attend the first round of this year’s Riverview Ram Jam basketball tournament to see which 5′ 9″ pseudo-talented player I could live vicariously through.

But more than that, I felt like I had been missing out on a piece of our town. The Ram Jam Classic has changed names over its 19 years, but the eight-team tournament has always been held in the first few days after Christmas. $5 bought a ticket to four games on Saturday, with the semifinals tipping off at 7:30 and 9 p.m. tonight and the finals at 9 p.m. tomorrow.

I stayed to watch host Riverview take on Miami’s Hialeah Senior High. There was something comical in the scene: It was either that the refs’ exaggerated counting motions mirrored a Nazi salute or that every shot looked like a buzzer beater. Still, somewhere between the sneaker squeaks and Chic-Fil-A product placements, I discovered something about the event: I was having fun.

(more…)

Bookmark to:

Ed. note: This post comes courtesy Wayne Garcia.

The perfect gift for those on the right (who adore her) and those on the left (who will hate the turn of each and every month). It’s the 2009 Sarah Palin Calendar. Hurry! (It’s compliments of Judy Patrick Photography, which points out that each calendar comes “in cellophane packaging.”) It is apparently a big hit in the blogosphere and elsewhere.

Don’t need a paper calendar any more my little Interwebs friends? How about a life-size standup cutout of the Alaska Maverick? Just $34.45 will get you this:

(more…)

Bookmark to:

Ed. note: This post comes courtesy Eric Snider.

Maybe the Bucs and their fans should view it as a merciful ending. This was a team going nowhere, even if the fates had come together and they made the playoffs. They didn’t. The Bucs needed a win at home today against the 4-11 Oakland Raiders … and a win by the Philadelphia Eagles over the Dallas Cowboys, in order to make the postseason. Instead, the scenario was inverted, with the Bucs losing 31-24, thus boosting the morale of the Eagles, who stomped all over the Cowboys. (At least I can take some consolation in the Cowboy’s woes.)

Cadillac Williams blew out his knee

This was the Bucs fourth loss in a row, marking probably the biggest collapse in team history. They went from a plum 9-3 and a shot at homefield advantage in the playoffs, to elimination. On three of the four losses, the vaunted Bucs defense looked woeful — no more so than in the second half today, when Oakland ran repeatedly over right tackle and gashed the punchless and dispirited pewter-and-red defenders.

Everything was on the line, and the Bucs simply could not stop an at best mediocre offense bent on running the same play over and over again. It’s damn near impossible to fathom. I have no theories, really. The timing says that Tampa Bay’s D started to cave when legendary coordinator Monte Kiffin announced he was leaving after the season to join his son Lane on the staff at University of Tennessee.

But that can’t be the reason, can it? Kiffin coached out the season, and surely put everything he had into closing his Bucs career. The players are (supposedly) proud professionals, and at best the announced departure of a beloved coach should’ve caused a bit of angst.

But suddenly the Bucs defenders forgot how to tackle, forgot how to shed blocks, forgot how to get penetration. Truly puzzling.

(more…)

Bookmark to:

There are plenty of albums I listened to incessantly (or not so incessantly but still enjoyed) this past year that didn’t make my top ten, but are still worthy enough of mention. I’ve also included a few I missed all together when they came out and am just now really digging on — there’s just too much music out there, people. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

Erykah Badu, New Amerykah, Part One (4th World War) [Universal Motown]
I only heard Badu’s fourth studio effort for the first time a couple days ago, and kicked my self profusely for not listening sooner. Love it, gives me an automatic head bob, and the only reason I ever avoided it was because I’d heard it was too political. It’s political, all right, but in a blacksploitation film sort of way, all hot funk meets justified rage.

Black Moth Super Rainbow, Drippers EP [The 70's Gymnastics Recording Company]
The five-member experimental ensemble released another album of colorful, synthified, psychedelic fizz – the sort of music you’d expect from the soundtrack to a 1970’s space odyssey. The album includes songs produced over the past year that won’t be on the next album, and each limited edition release comes with one of five scratch n’ sniff scents: fruit punch, campfire, firecracker, tomato and dirt.

Phish, At the Roxy CD Box Set [Jemp]
It’s just not fair to pit a three-night show performed by a band more than 15 years ago against new music, even if said shows do include one of the best versions of “Tweezer” ever known to Phish kind. A truly great box set that anyone who considers themselves a Phan should own.

Panther, 14kt. God [Kill Rock Stars]
Spastic fun rock music with big beats and a Mick Jagger swagger. This album is just a great time.

Beach House, Devotion [Car Park]
The second dream pop album by Baltimore duo Beach House is simple and elegant, each song leisurely, achingly lovely and marked by the soft, sweetly ethereal vocals of singer Victoria Legran. (more…)

Bookmark to:

— 2009 = terrible prospects for banks. Happy New Year!

— A pastor works hard to make Manatee County’s Pride Park neighborhood live up to its name.

— Musician Lane Ruise teaches kids to make some joyful noise (and learn a bit, too.)

— Hannah Wallace recaps her Christmas party. Grapes and wasabi peas ended up in the bathroom, so things couldn’t have gone too badly.

— In an opinion piece arguing against the movement to reopen Midnight Pass, fav local conservative blogger Dr. Richard Swier enthusiastically endorses the Chinese occupation of Tibet. Ah, principles.

Bookmark to: