Go ahead and argue, but MOFRO is hands down the best rock band to come out of Florida since Skynyrd. You can keep your whiney emo brats and poseurific rap-metal numbskulls — Jacksonville natives J.J. Grey and Daryl Hance have them beat with an easy and true Deep South soul…
Despite the locale in their name, the North Mississippi Allstars are actually Tennessee royalty. The Dickinson brothers, drummer Cody and guitarist Luther, are the sons of legendary Memphis producer Jim Dickinson, who recorded the Replacements and Spiritualized, among others. Dad used to take the boys on the road, where they…
Most underground rappers have a hard time staying underground — if they’re talented, eventually they draw the spotlight. Somehow, Fatlip hasn’t had that problem. Once a member of acclaimed West Coast quartet the Pharcyde, the Angeleno’s hilarious, insane genius disappeared into obscurity and rumors of crack addiction. His brazen honesty…
In a world where it seems like the angriest rock bands win, the often-forgotten genre of folk music sits on the sidelines, patiently strumming along as it has for generations. Today’s folk music scene is vital and inclusive, encompassing bluegrass, country, and all aspects of “singer-songwriter-ness.” The South Florida Folk…
Local underground label Audio Thrift Shop Records might be South Florida’s last bastion of bling-free, un-crunk hip-hop. ATS crews like the Leftoverz and Secondhand Outfit rock dense, dark breaks and spit intelligent, world-weary rhymes that speak far more directly to reality in these parts (shitty jobs, bitter girlfriends, suburban angst)…
A dozen years ago, I went on Crazy Fingers tour. The band worked the South Florida circuit, and my friends and I hit almost every show between West Palm and Miami during the summer of ’92. Back then, they were strictly a Grateful Dead cover band, playing dead-on (pun intended)…
If the jam scene has a supergroup, it’s Garaj Mahal. Guitar virtuoso Fareed Haque has accompanied icons like Dizzy Gillespie, Dave Holland, and Sting. Keys master Eric Levy learned music theory from Haque while studying music at Northern Illinois University. Bassist Kai Eckhardt graduated from the Berklee College of Music…
Check out the collective résumé of the Enablers and you’ll find yourself exclaiming “Whoa!” in that oh-so-charming “Joey from Blossom” manner. Members include Rob Coe (formerly of Fay Wray and Cell 63), Dan Bonebrake (formerly of Dashboard Confessional), and his brother Darryl Bonebrake (formerly of the Vacant Andys, among others)…
Compare and contrast: My lovable, irascible grandma, just turned 80 years old, whom I worry about whenever she gets behind the wheel; B.B. King, soon to turn 80 years old, who still works his guitar like his reputation depended on it. I’m not quite sure what I’m getting at, but…
I’m hoping none of you needs an introduction to the Atomic Dog, a.k.a. Dr. Funkenstein, a.k.a. Uncle Jam. You should know George Clinton’s influence on pop, rock, and hip-hop is far too profound to detail here. You might also have realized his music is as scathingly political as it is…
Making like a flock of Northeastern snowbirds, local fave Hashbrown is taking wing to our shores over the holidays. But unlike the rest of the Massholes and Connecticunts, these former Fort Lauderdale freakonauts are more than welcome to return whenever they need a dose of sunshine. If you’ve never had…
When it comes to music, booze is the muse. Rockers love their whiskey, ravers get hopped up on Red Bull and vodka, and broken-hearted country boys shed tears in their beers. But what do jug band fans guzzle while slapping their knees? Tuesday at the Bamboo Room, the answer is…
It’s amazing to see the singer/songwriter genre garnering indie-rock cred. Kids who listened to punk and alternative rock have grown up into adults who understand that turning down and looking inward can be just as powerful as their “loud and fast” roots. Take, for instance, Summer Blanket, a band led…
Fancy your snotty, ska-influenced punk rock with a heaping side of hyper-political rhetoric? Want your anti-establishment booster shot with a spoonful of spiky green mohawk? Against All Authority brings its status-quo-wrecking road show to the Factory on December 26 to kick off a five-day Florida tour. If you’re cranky about…
With tours supporting Interpol and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, it didn’t take long for the Stills to get noticed and eventually signed with much hype and fanfare to Vice magazine’s record label. The Montreal, Canada-based quartet’s album, Logic Will Break Your Heart, was recorded in two weeks at a Brooklyn…
A quick survey: Mos Def — quick-lipped conscious MC or headbanging rap-rock drill instructor? Intellectual thespian or slick cover boy? Brooklyn hipster or Tinseltown glitteratus? Don’t look to his recent album The New Danger for clues — this uneven opus veers more wildly than Michael Phelps on a weekend joyride,…
The world’s ugliest, most popular interplanetary purveyors of satirical thrash metal return for what seems like their monthly visit to South Florida. Yes, friends, GWAR (God What an Awful Racket, for the uninitiated) has landed yet again, ready to feed the wretched masses another bodily fluid-filled, bone-crushing metal feast. Led…
Just imagine the chops it takes to be voted the funkiest act in the world’s funkiest town. Out of the sweat-drenched, hard-partying, all-night mayhem of New Orleans comes Papa Grows Funk, winners of Downbeat magazine’s Funkiest Band award for two years running. All the requisite ingredients for an ear-tickling musical…
As Respectable Street Café celebrates 17 years of existence this month, those of you who were there in the beginning are probably feeling the strains of adulthood and are grateful for the club’s forgiving darkness. One positive thing about age is developing an ear for good music, and Friday you’ll…
Cuba is best-known for its beautiful beaches, extravagant cigars, and bearded despots. It also happens to be the birthplace of the finest trumpeter in the world. Although Arturo Sandoval hasn’t called Cuba home in nearly 15 years, he’s done his heritage proud, winning four Grammys and six Billboard awards. Whether…
After 78 years, no damned hurricane — or even four of them — is gonna put the kibosh on Opa-locka’s Arabian Nights Festival. Originally scheduled for mid-September, the long-running shindig was postponed due to the unrelenting storm season but has emerged invigorated and expanded. It’ll be studded with celebrities from…
After toiling virtually underground for a decade, Magnetic Fields finally won mainstream acclaim via 1999’s three-volume 69 Love Songs — plus enough good press to wallpaper the Louvre. Of course, 2004’s belated follow-up, i, could never equal that achievement, but singer/songwriter Stephin Merritt has retained his gift for penning impeccably…
