Miami Music Matters

The Neanderthals Headline The Hukilau Tonight At The Bahia Mar Resort In Fort Lauderdale

The cultural phenomenon known as "exotica" has gained a tremendous amount of momentum over the last five years around the world. A retro-chic cocktail that  combines: B-movie aesthetics, 60s garage rock, polynesian design, and period costumes - exotica has been embraced by ex-punk rockers, rockabilly heads and art school kids who wanna dance, drink and and get their mating ritual on.

The annual bacchanal known as The Hukilau is South Florida's exotica event. It's headquartered at the Bahia Mar Resort's Commodore Ballroom, where The Neanderthals, Los Straightjackets' guitarist Eddie Angel's Flintstone-garbed garage rock act, will be headlining the festival's main event tonight. $75 gets you a 2-day pass for tonight's show and tomorrow activities. $28 gets you into tonight's show, and if you need some exotica priming before the gig, Marina The Fire Eating Mermaid will be performing at the Wreck Bar on Fort Lauderdale Beach 

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Proof That You Can't Kill Rock And Roll

23 years ago, the surviving members of  legendary southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd reformed.  This was done under a cloud of controversy, as they were sans their late frontman Ronnie Van Zandt, who died in a 1977 plane crash along with fellow members Steve and Cassie Gaines. But the reunited Skynyrd, whose music had never left the airwaves, went straight back to the arenas they headlined in their glory days. And they have never left - despite losing another four original members (and one replacement) since reforming.

While Skynard may be down to one original member (guitarist Gary Rossington) and Van Zandt's little brother (singer Johnny Van Zandt)  - this fall brings out red meat for the red states. A new Skynard album,entitled "God & Guns" hits the stores in September. To drum up interest in it, they are cranking out the hits with their latest  tour, which opens tonight at Cruzan Ampitheatre in West Palm Beach.

Normally, one-original-member-and-replacements acts are relegated to the county fair circuit. But Skynard are an institution built on blues-rock licks. Riffs that have been ingrained in the rock radio listener's eardrums for so long, that it doesn't matter who is on the stage. As long as a bunch of rockers  get up on the stage and match Rossington's licks on the aural orgasm that is the "Freebird" guitar solo - it's close enough to pass muster to Skynyrd's fans.  

Jay Electronica makes rare appearance in Miami Saturday

Elusive New Orleans rapper Jay Electronica will make a rare South Florida appearance at Cameo in Miami Beach on Saturday, June 12.

Romantically connected to singer Erykah Badu and the father of her youngest child, Electronica last appeared in Miami in August 2009 when he opened for Mos Def at the Adrienne Arsht Center.

Known for his eccentric wordplay and production abilities, he's also earned a reputation for a less-than-stellar work ethic. He's released very little material since bursting onto the scene, and his long-awaited Act II mixtape has been delayed for more than two years.

In December 2009, he released "Exhibit C," his most successful song yet. Produced by Just Blaze, the 5-minute-plus track features a head-nodding soul sample and no chorus, and has been re-purposed by seemingly every rapper on the planet. Most recently, he appeared with Mos Def and J. Cole on "Just Begun," from Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek's latest Reflection Eternal album, Revolutions Per Minute.

Tickets for the show will set you back $20, and are available at Wantickets.

3OH!3 lay down the crunkcore at Pompano Beach Ampitheater Tuesday

It is only fitting that "crunkcore" duo  3OH!3 met in a science class at the University of Colorado. Their sound - a pastiche of electro pop, punk, and Lil John crunk - could only be conceived in a lab.  It had no reason to work - even as a one off  jokey experiment. And yet over the past two years the pair have hit the top ten, outraged  the prim and proper brigade with their lyrics ( shush girl / don't talk with your lips /do the Helen Keller and talk with your hips) and become the latest in a string of obnoxious dance party white boy sensations dating back to the Beastie Boys and Andrew WK.

After conquering the Warped tour last year,  3OH!3 are promoting their latest album, "Streets Of Gold"  by headlining the "Too Fast For Love" tour, which finds them at Pompano Beach Ampitheater on Tuesday.  along with Coba Starship.

 This begs the  question: will the Pompano Beach cops enforce the city's no-swearing ordinance? Or will they threaten to arrest the group onstage (like they did to the Flaming Lips three years ago) Will they pout and fold their arms as one officer did onstage next to Jack Black when Tenacious D cursed every second of their glorious set back in 2002? Or will they just leave well enough alone and let the kids have their fun?

Nobunny And Sloppy Seconds Strip Punk Rock Down To The Bare Essentials Tonight @ Churchills Tonight

There's a popular school of thought among musicians of a certain age, that punk rock began and ended with the Ramones, and playing anything  more complicated than the revved-up twisted bubblegum rock the OG moptops from Queens is at once anathema to the whole point of punk's original reactionary philosophy and pointless.

While the furry-masked musical bandit known as Nobunny hails from the 21st century nuevo-garage rock scene and picks up an acoustic guitar - he is enough of a Ramones devotee to pay homage to their 1st album's cover theme on his first record and to have the late Joey Ramone hovering over him on his current tour poster, like a guardian angel. Musically, there's nothing beyond the sounds of 77. But if the kids who didn't live through it the first time must have their say ala Sha-Na-Na - might as well pogo to a dude in a bunny mask.

Having more of a claim on the OG punk way, is Indianapolis' 20+-years-and-running "junk rock" crew, Sloppy Seconds.  Proudly fat, loud, drunk and bawdy -  Sloppy Seconds revels in being the kind of party band that the late Rodney Dangerfield would have hired for his grandson's bar mitzvah. Tonight's revelry marks the first Sloppy Seconds appearance in South Florida in 15 years. If you dig fun and loud guitars, tonight is as good a night as any to drive down to Churchill's and get your rock on.

Celebration Thursday: Totally Nebular's Bon Voyage @ Sweat, Mayday! DJ Gianni Cash's Birthday Party @Vagabond

Ready to kick off the weekend? Tonight, two polar opposites of  South Florida's music scene are partying down forty blocks from each other. First, bizzaro broward county teenage trio Totally Nebular , who combine a love of Animal Collective with Frank Zappa's knack of inserting bells wherever possible, play their "adios subtropics" party at sweat records in Little Haiti. Given the inspired madness found on their debut CD "Boat,Boat" - one can only hope that they boomerang back here after college. As with all events at Sweat Records, showtime is at 8pm, and it is free.

Later that night down in Overtown, the vagabond hosts DJ Gianni Cash's birthday with a performance by his critically acclaimed hip hop collective MAYDAY! The group, who have collaborated with everyone from Lil' Wayne to Cee-lo - is celebrating the occasion and Gianni's moustache by letting everyone in free who wears a "proper moustache."  What makes a proper moustache?  Well, you can check out Gianni's look down below, and judge for yourself if he should hop on a plane saturday and get to the National Beard And Moustache Championships in Bend, Oregon. 

 

Aerosmith reunites, brings new tour to South Florida in August

It's been a rough year for South Florida Aerosmith fans: The Boston band's show with ZZ Top at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise in July 2009 was postponed at the last minute due to a then-unspecified "artist injury." The date was supposed to be rescheduled for October of that year, but then news came that Steven Tyler's injury was more serious than thought, and the band fell into an inner-turmoil that had guitarist Joe Perry searching for a new lead singer.

Fast forward to today, and local fans will no longer have to deal with the same old song and dance as last year. Aerosmith, with Steven Tyler in tow, is on the road again with it's Cocked, Locked, Ready To Rock! Tour, which will hit the BankAtlantic Center on August 9.

Sammy Hagar and the Wabos, featuring the ex-Van Halen and Chickenfoot singer, will open the show.

Tickets for the concert range from $59.50 to $149.50, and will be available at Live Nation on June 12.