Friday Forecast: Bob Montreal Jons

Photo by Jamie Mauk-Olson from Christabel and the Jons website

[Charles] This winter weekend in Florida has plenty to keep us busy like a Bob Dylan tribute in St. Pete Beach, big production band Of Montreal, and Christabel and the Jons swinging at Ella's in Seminole Heights.

Kick the weekend off right with a drive over the bridge to St. Pete Beach. Over there some of our favorite local bands are playing 3-4 song tribute sets to Bob Dylan. Expect to see folks like Bradenton's Have Gun Will Travel, my favorite - Rebekah Pulley, Ronny Elliott, Radio Free Carmela, Steve Arvey, Blind Buddy Moody, and Grant Peeples. The show kicks off at 7:00 and is bookended by parties at The Wine Shop and The Swigwam. I gotta say that I love Bob Dylan's music even more when great singers take their turns at it. This should be a great time and a nice primer to some of our best local acts if you are new in town!

Saturday night, if you can get tickets, you could do a lot worse than checking out Of Montreal at the Ritz Ybor. I have to hand it to the Ritz, they've really been bringing in some nice mid-sized acts to town and they have a nice old theater setup that makes seeing a show there really special. It's like a large club and you can get close to the stage if you want, but most of the room has a great view. They've got Galactic, Drive By Truckers, and Jimmy Eat World in the next months coming up at the Ritz. I've never seen Of Montreal live but people that have say their show is quite the spectacle. You can read the CL Tampa interview with lead singer Kevin Barnes here and get some insights. People call them psyche pop and they have been compared to Prince and other cinematic acts with huge stage shows, costumes, and lots of crazy on-stage storytelling antics. Here's one of my favorite songs to give you an idea of the funky grooves to expect...

Finish up the weekend right on Sunday - I love it when Ella's Folk Art Cafe puts a great band together for us. Sunday's were made for Ella's. That is the perfect place to hang, drink, eat, and run into friends. They literally have to kick us out of there some days after the continuous rounds of chatting and drinking. Ernie and Mel couldn't be better hosts and when you add in a great band like Christabel and the Jons well all I can say is, I hope to see you there!