By Samir Mathur
Contributing writer
Staff page | Twitter | Tumblr
Contributing writer
Staff page | Twitter | Tumblr
Hands up, how many of you missed this column over the last few weeks?
Yeah, that's what I thought.
As ever, if there's something else you're excited about, chuck it in the comments!
Monday – March 21
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings / Peter Baldwin at the Beacham
The newest music venue in downtown Orlando brings one of America’s finest live acts, and a local favourite. Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings are remarkable. Nobody is allowed to not dance at their shows. I think it’s actually written in small print on their tickets. “Failure to get down may result in ejection from venue and/or scorn and pity from fellow concertgoers”. Horns, strings, soul and energy. What else are you going to do on a Monday night? Get there early for Peter Baldwin’s sensitive and calm soul sound.
Wednesday – March 23
Mike Watt and the Missingmen at the Social
The legendary bass player (Minutemen, fIREHOSE, Stooges) is nothing if not a hard worker. This particular date is part of his enormous hyphenated-man tour of the United States. In all of March and April, the band is playing every single night. (Except for April 21st). Seriously! The man is relentless, so grab this chance to see one of the most legendary punks of all time.
Thursday – March 24
The Cave Singers at Will’s Pub
Last month’s ‘No Witch’ album saw Seattle’s Cave Singers (featuring ex-members of Pretty Girls Make Graves) expand their sound from pleasant if unremarkably low-key, to more amplified and skittish. Yes, they’ve found some bite, and it’s the opposite transition of what you’d expect from a band who moved from one indie label (Matador), to another, much smaller indie, Jagjaguwar. They’re certainly worth some investigation.
Matt Braunger at the Improv (Also playing two shows each on Friday and Saturday; and one on Sunday - click here for all showtimes)
This is one of my favourite stand-ups, so I’m excited to check out his show. Braunger has a great CD available called ‘Soak up the Night’, and a Comedy Central show (not a special, an actual series) due sometime this year. He loves music, hates owls, and his bit about prank-calling the funniest names in Portland kills me.
Friday – March 25
Yeah, that's what I thought.
As ever, if there's something else you're excited about, chuck it in the comments!
Monday – March 21
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings / Peter Baldwin at the Beacham
The newest music venue in downtown Orlando brings one of America’s finest live acts, and a local favourite. Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings are remarkable. Nobody is allowed to not dance at their shows. I think it’s actually written in small print on their tickets. “Failure to get down may result in ejection from venue and/or scorn and pity from fellow concertgoers”. Horns, strings, soul and energy. What else are you going to do on a Monday night? Get there early for Peter Baldwin’s sensitive and calm soul sound.
Wednesday – March 23
Mike Watt and the Missingmen at the Social
The legendary bass player (Minutemen, fIREHOSE, Stooges) is nothing if not a hard worker. This particular date is part of his enormous hyphenated-man tour of the United States. In all of March and April, the band is playing every single night. (Except for April 21st). Seriously! The man is relentless, so grab this chance to see one of the most legendary punks of all time.
Thursday – March 24
The Cave Singers at Will’s Pub
Last month’s ‘No Witch’ album saw Seattle’s Cave Singers (featuring ex-members of Pretty Girls Make Graves) expand their sound from pleasant if unremarkably low-key, to more amplified and skittish. Yes, they’ve found some bite, and it’s the opposite transition of what you’d expect from a band who moved from one indie label (Matador), to another, much smaller indie, Jagjaguwar. They’re certainly worth some investigation.
Matt Braunger at the Improv (Also playing two shows each on Friday and Saturday; and one on Sunday - click here for all showtimes)
This is one of my favourite stand-ups, so I’m excited to check out his show. Braunger has a great CD available called ‘Soak up the Night’, and a Comedy Central show (not a special, an actual series) due sometime this year. He loves music, hates owls, and his bit about prank-calling the funniest names in Portland kills me.
Friday – March 25
!!! at the Social
Well, to be honest, I was planning on getting to this one early because I’d really like to see Klaxons, but they just cancelled their support slot, and indeed all their U.S. dates due to “unforeseen circumstances”. Thanks, guys! Looks like my lifelong dream of singing the harmonies along to ‘Golden Skans’ will have to be deferred yet longer. Warp Records’ dance-punk heavyweights !!! still headline, and they really have never done much for me. Last year’s ‘Strange Weather Isn’t It?’ was a bit more loose than some of their previous output, but this’ll certainly be a sweaty night of dancing and sort-of dancing.
Saturday – March 26
Langhorne Slim at McRaneys
Another folkie offering for you, this time in a surprisingly small and intimate venue. There will be banjo. Langhorne Slim has toured with Cake, Drive-By Truckers and Josh Ritter, for example, so that should help you imagine what ballpark we’re in. A constant theme of his music is being an outsider – check out ‘Back to the Wild’ - and it’s to his credit that he can get this across without alienating or losing listeners. His isolation is something that everyone can enjoy.