God created the heavens and the Earth over the course of six days, they say, and on the seventh day, he rested. Somewhere around the 20 millionth day, he created screamo music. And in the year 2005, he created the Grab Your Guns Tour, headlined by the apostles of Christian screamo -- Emery.
For those who haven't visited a shopping mall in a white suburban West Broward neighborhood lately, screamo is a musical subgenre that combines the fawning, overwrought melodicism of emo with the screaming, tortured, disembodied vocals of extreme hardcore. Think Frank Black of the Pixies at his most agitated fronting Dashboard Confessional and you've got the basic sonic idea. Both the bands and the fans in this genre skew very young; the audience for this music is almost exclusively the under-25 set. You might wonder: Without much life experience to draw upon, what is it that these kids have to get so worked up about? Well, when Emery and its labelmates on Tooth and Nail Records are onstage, what they have to get so worked up about is faith. Oodles and oodles of it. You haven't truly experienced a revival until you've participated in a mosh pit for the Lord.
The headliner, South Carolina's Emery, is one of Christian screamo's rising stars. Hardcore kids are gobbling up copies of Emery's new album, The Question, like so many tickets to the Warped Tour. Oh, and speaking of the Warped Tour, Emery is among the blessed to have appeared on the hardcore equivalent of a guest spot on Total Request Live.
Also appearing on the Grab Your Guns Tour are As Cities Burn, Gym Class Heroes (whose bewildering combination of emo and hip-hop is sure to spark some kind of fervor somewhere), and He Is Legend. The Grab Your Guns Tour sounds a clarion call to the righteous at the Culture Room (3045 N. Federal Hwy., Fort Lauderdale) this Friday. Pembroke Pines' Unwanted Superheroes kick things off at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $12 in advance, $14 the day of the show, and are available through Ticketmaster. Call 954-564-1074, or visit www.cultureroom.net. Lewis Goldberg
Roots Revolution
Rusted Root Jams in the Grooves
FRI 10/28
Phish is no longer on the road. Dave Matthews Band is firmly entrenched in the pop mainstream. The FBI is cracking down on head shops and even sent Tommy Chong to jail for distributing "paraphernalia." Plus, Eric Cartman says hippies suck. It's just not good times for patchouli culture. But don't tell that to Rusted Root. The Pittsburgh-based sextet wants you to mellow out and enjoy life. They want you to dance to the music -- and remember why you liked Workingman's Dead so much to begin with. And the Root kicks it with more flair than a body painter at the Burning Man Festival. Take some folk-rock, add a few dollops of international spice and a dash of male/female vocal harmony, and simmer in a comfortably funky groove until it thickens into a heavy jam. That's the Root's basic recipe, and it's kept the band afloat for the past 15 years. So if that makes your mouth water, you're in for a groovy evening this Friday at Revolution (200 W. Broward Blvd., Fort Lauderdale). Tickets to the all-ages show cost $25. Doors open at 7 p.m. Call 954 -727-0950, or visit www.jointherevolution.net. -- Lewis Goldberg
Curry-ouser and Curry-ouser
Mark Curry drops in to the Improv
THU 10/27
You may remember comedian Mark Curry from his role as the Mr. Cooper on the TV series Hangin' with Mr. Cooper. That's if you're the sort of person who would have been home at 9:30 on Friday nights, when it aired between 1992 and 1997. And if you think a black-oriented version of Three's Company is a funny premise. And if you weren't already busy watching reruns of Growing Pains. But we digress. Since Cooper, Curry has appeared mostly in cameos -- like in Armageddon and on Oprah, Conan... Hollywood Squares... and Fat Actress? Ahem. We hear the likable guy can do much, much better -- and that his standup routine lets him play the role he plays best: himself. There might even be some R-rated jokes in his live show, and if we're lucky, he'll dish about losing to Dennis Rodman on Celebrity Mole: Yucatan. Curry performs Thursday through Sunday at the Palm Beach Improv (550 S. Rosemary Ave., Ste. 250, West Palm Beach). Tickets cost $18 to $21.30. Visit www.palmbeachimprov.com. Deirdra Funcheon
Rocky Horror Metal Show
FRI 10/28
October 31 may be the only day of the year most Americans dabble in the occult (or the costume shop equivalent, at least). Metal fans, however, have more than a fair-weather interest in the day of dark celebration. That's why this Friday's metal show at the Scene (2480 Hammondville Rd., Ste. 5, Pompano Beach) is more than your average Halloween event. Billed as "An Evening in the Primordial Black," the show features a costume contest in addition to a full slate of bands. The guy or ghoul with the best costume gets free merch from all the bands (all of 'em!) and a $50 gift certificate to Hot Topic -- and we all know how much you love Hot Topic. Haunting the stage are Synapticide, Osiris Rising, Chapters Unfold, Infernaeon, and Orlando's Persona (pictured), who like their metal with a little prog on the side. The all-ages show starts at 6:30 p.m. Admission costs $8, but if you're a member of the U.S. military, it's free. Call 954-582-0800, or visit www.scenesound.com. Jason Budjinski