via www.darwilliams.comDar Williams isn’t exactly a household name … yet. All that might be about to change, as she’s recently tapped Grammy nominated producer Brad Wood (think Liz Phair, Pete Yorn, and Ben Lee) and Greg Leisz (who’s played with Wilco and Robert Plant) to help write her latest album,…
Pure Imagination is a bunch of weird people playing instruments with a story being read over the top of it. Last time I walked in on it, I thought I was listening to an American version of that Velvet Underground track “The Gift,” minus the Welsh accent and the heroin…
One of the best things about South Florida has got to be the wide array of music available to dance to on any given night. Forget “open format,” whatever that really means. Sometimes the best is music is true to its roots — a specific genre, done up right by…
Pamela WasabiBritish R&B singer Estelle performs at The Fillmore Miami Beach Friday night. Estelle and John LegendFriday, January 30, 2009The Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason TheaterBetter Than: Being sung to by the girl of your dreams. Or close to it anyway.Okay, I’m gonna get a lot of flack…
Launched in 2007, Leggo My Demo is a Miami Beach-based demo competition aiming to expose and promote distinguished new electronic music productions from around the world. Each month they select new demo submissions, providing winners with network exposure and a feature at their monthly events in Miami Beach. Leggo My…
If you haven’t heard already, two of the world’s greatest living blues guitarists descend on South Florida on February 9. The legendary BB King and Buddy Guy will be rocking the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts. The show is not sold out and the cheapest tickets available can be…
Those of you who missed the Music Musica Exhibit at the Miami Science Museum in early December will get another chance this week. The exhibit returns to give museum-goers a chance to learn about the impact of Latinos throughout the history of American popular music, and also to play with…
via www.myspace.com/311 311: still around, and playing SunFest!SunFest, in West Palm Beach, has always impressed me, 1) for the expensive, marquee names it has attracted, but also 2) for the really strange ways it has often combined them. The festival, in its latter-day incarnation, now spans several days, with packed…
The new release from Miami psych/blues outfit the Psycho Daisies, Return from Blood Island, is a wash of feedback, distorted growls, bumps, grunts, reverb, and haunting vocals, courtesy of Johnny Salton and company. Salton’s roots are embedded in Miami musical history, from power-pop group the Reactions, through his extensive work…
DiagonalDiagonal(Candlelight)One of the great things about the post-everything era, in which hyper-hyphenated, clash up genre bending is the norm, is that the concept of musical taboo is becoming increasingly passe. No longer do you have to be concerned that your particular pet genre doesn’t sit at the cool table; these…
Slayer in 2007Last year marked the inauguration of the Rockstar Mayhem Festival tour, a summer package from the creators of Warped Tour that featured heavier acts. There were some pretty surprising bands on the bill: besides Miami’s Black Tide, performers included Mastodon, Underoath, and Of course, if you’re a Slipknot…
If there’s such a thing as Miami royalty, Gloria Estefan is undoubtedly the queen. Along with husband, producer, musician and impresario, Emilio Estefan, she’s literally changed the landscape of the Magic City over the years, first putting the town on the map with Miami Sound Machine’s run of rampant success…
…Um, the DJs. Or at least, we think that should be plural — South Florida has been receiving a spate of solo spinners in place of advertised teams. At the recent (fun!) Scion House Party at the Vagabond, instead of both members of the DFA’s Still Going, we got one…
It’s been 50 years since Castro took power, and still the stretches of ocean surrounding Cuba can’t stop the flow of its people’s creative juices. The second annual Global Cuba Fest pays homage to the continuity of this unique Caribbean culture by uniting artists who long ago spread to the…
R3K was on the streets of downtown putting flyers on peoples cars. I asked him what the deal was. Here’s the interview.New Times: What’s your name and what do you do?My [DJ] name is R3K+. I spin at Psychic Tuesdays with DJ Healer at Bella Rose and Nightdrive Wednesdays at…
The folks from Gooshie House Promotions are now hosting the exciting new “House 101” night every Sunday at Black Sheep music lounge in Miami Beach. Each night features 3 select DJs from the South Florida house music scene, in an innovative format that encourages participating DJs and producers to collaborate…
via www.myspace.com/badmannersofficialBad Manners’ frontman, Buster Bloodvessel, in 1983Bad Manners and the English BeatWednesday, January 28, 2009Culture Room, Ft. LauderdaleBetter Than: Feeling sorry for yourself, anywhereThe Review:When a portly, fiftysomething man in a floppy, sweaty, leopard print suit rubs his protruding belly and asks, in an impenetrable, working-class Brit accent, if…
New Times recently caught up with John Legend in between all kinds of action. After his high-profile appearances at the inaugural festivities, February will find the five-time Grammy winner playing Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, the NBA All-Star Game, and the Dubai International Jazz Festival. Oh, yeah: He also boasts a new…
Funplex, released last year, is the B-52’s’ first album in 16 years. It pumps up the volume, cranks the guitars, and rocks harder than anything the veteran group has done since its 1979 debut. There’s nothing here as sweet or as catchy as “Roam” or “Love Shack,” both of which…
Photo by Shigeo Kikuchi, via www.agnosticfront.comNew York City hardcore legends Agnostic Front definitely still bring it: They’re still as loud and confrontational as always, even with their wrinkles, gray hair, and degenerating vision. Well-into-their-50s principals Roger Miret (vocals) and Vinnie Stigma (guitar) — who, inspired by the likes of Black…
Arik, drummer of Lasso the Moon, Baby Calendar, and Call it Radar, draws from a seemingly endless pool of talent and ingenuity. LtM’s super-technical emo/indie onslaught evolved into a more tempered and highly melodic, if precious, Baby Calendar. Now Arik has parted ways with Baby Calendar bandmate Tom Gorrio and…
You sold me out, bro! What the hell? What happened? I’ll tell you what happened: I got an e-mail from some dude from the New York Times. He said he was in Miami to cover some sort of terrible crime spree, complete with beheadings. He wanted to write about something…
