Creative Loafing Tampa

The summer quit

Scott Harrell — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:12:00 -0400

’Tis not the season for smoking. A personal vaporizer, on the other hand… by Scott Harrell If you’re a Floridian who smokes cigarettes, there’s no better time to take a serious stab at quitting than summer. You never feel more like a slave than when you’re getting up from your desk or couch or restaurant table to go outside, knowing you don’t even want to go outside, that it’s a million wet degrees and you don’t have your sunglasses and the sidewalk is full of “hot-enough-for-ya?” closet masochists “enjoying” all that moistened Florida sunshine.…

One Bitch Two Bitch

Erica Dawson — Fri, 24 May 2013 16:08:00 -0400

When to name things and when to call things names. by Erica Dawson A woman called me “nigger bitch” while I walked down a Baltimore street, on one of those nights when the city seems to ignore you. The skyline simpers, half-lit, despondent, and constellations don’t bother to fill in their gaps.…

Rick Kriseman says Kathleen Ford's advocacy against the Lens could hurt her run for mayor

Mitch Perry — Fri, 24 May 2013 15:17:48 -0400

With Memorial Day weekend upon us, it's unofficially summertime, which means the next three months will be a concentrated campaign season in St.Petersburg for the mayoral and City Council candidates; the primary election takes place a week before Labor Day.

There are two announced challengers who want to thwart Bill Foster from enjoying four more years leading the 'burg — Rick Kriseman and Kathleen Ford, both former members of the City Council who served alongside Foster in the aughts.…

Summertime farmers markets

Rebecca Bailey — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:33:00 -0400

Summer has arrived in Florida and growing season is on its way out, once again. While some farmers markets are closing for the summer, others are staying open so you don't have to worry about missing out on the delights of fresh and local food during the stretch of hot months.…

Rowdies win award at Soiree, advance to Cup

Chris Girandola — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:30:00 -0400

The Tampa Bay Rowdies host Minnesota United FC on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. for a chance to move into first place in the NASL standings. The Rowdies have been quite busy over the past couple of weeks while I've been on vacation so here is a quick run-down on the team:

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Make Memorial Day weekend memorably fun

Julie Garisto — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:15:54 -0400

The holiday is meant to honor the dearly departed, soldiers who’ve fallen in the line of duty, but remember to have some fun, too. Local attractions and museums salute military men, women and their families throughout the holiday weekend by offering a fleet of freebies — and there's plenty of free, affordable activities for family outings through Monday afternooon.…

Tampa Bay Unified Auditions registration ends at 5 p.m. today!

Julie Garisto — Fri, 24 May 2013 12:59:00 -0400

If you're a professional stage actor or aspire to be one, take note. Today is the deadline to register for the Tampa Bay Unified Auditions.…

Inside the photo booth: Dunedin Brewery's Mike Bryant

Kevin Tighe — Fri, 24 May 2013 11:25:00 -0400

Mike Bryant is the general manager at the Dunedin Brewery, Florida's original craft brewery. The Dunedin Brewery is known not only for tasty craft beer but also kick ass' live music which Mike personally lords over.…

Get tanked on tiki with the Zombie

Arielle Stevenson — Fri, 24 May 2013 10:46:00 -0400

Before you drink up at the Sunset Tiki Party on June 2 at the Post Card Inn, try this classic tiki cocktail recipe at home from Dean Hurst, Director of Spirits at Sidebern's and the President of the Left Coast Bartenders Guild. Originally concocted (legend has it) by Donn Beach at Don the Beachcomber in Hollywood, it's rumored the Zombie was made to help a hung-over customer get to a business meeting.…

Mitch Perry Report 5.24.13 - Code Pink never went away

Mitch Perry — Fri, 24 May 2013 08:05:00 -0400

If you watched President Obama's major speech on his national security policies yesterday, or even just read about it today, you no doubt must have seen or heard about the protester at the National Defense University in Washington who began shouting in the middle of the address regarding drone warfare.

That activist was Medea Benjamin, best known as being a member of Code Pink.…

Weisse up

Sean Nordquist — Fri, 24 May 2013 04:00:00 -0400

Florida brewers adopt and adapt the Berliner Weisse style. by Sean Nordquist The West Coast has a signature style of IPAs. There’s an argument over whether those should be called “Cascadian” IPAs, named for the region in the Pacific Northwest where the hops are bountiful.…

Boy Scouts of America decision to take in openly gay youth as members a bitter pill for John Stemberger to swallow

Mitch Perry — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:24:00 -0400

John Stemberger is not a happy camper tonight.

The Orlando based Christian conservative was a leading figure supporter for Amendment Two back in 2008, the constitutional amendment that defined marriage as a union of one man and one woman.…

2013 Tropical Heatwave video recap

Leilani Polk — Thu, 23 May 2013 15:00:00 -0400

In case you missed it, here's the CL video recap of this year's Tropical Heatwave, WMNF's annual music festival, which was held on May 10 and 11 in Ybor City (including performances at the CL Space):

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Major rallies against Monsanto planned this Saturday in Tampa and St. Petersburg

Mitch Perry — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:38:00 -0400

At 2 p.m. EST on Saturday, major rallies are planned in more than 400 cities around the world, with people protesting biotechnology giant Monsanto — one of the least popular major corporations around the world.…

Debate about budget analyst triggers emotions at Tampa City Council meeting

Mitch Perry — Thu, 23 May 2013 11:59:09 -0400

On Thursday morning, The Tampa City Council voted down a proposal to hire a budget analyst. The discussion leading up to the vote opened up fissures amongst board members who feel their work ethic and independence in standing up to Mayor Bob Buckhorn is being challenged when it comes to fiscal matters.…

Tiki revival: Mai Tais and marimbas

Arielle Stevenson — Thu, 23 May 2013 10:21:00 -0400

Four locals talk the rise, fall and revival of tiki culture. by Arielle Stevenson On a breezy Sunday afternoon, the view from the courtyard at the Sands Motel on Treasure Island opens onto a beachscape of dunes and sea grass. A bellhop cart carrying a 6-foot-tall hand-carved Sabal Palm Tiki god is parked near the motel’s built-in ping-pong table.…

Mitch Perry Report 5.23.13 -Hillsborough County, where progress moves at a snail's pace

Mitch Perry — Thu, 23 May 2013 08:14:00 -0400

News about the LGBT community in one way or another seems to dominate the news these days. A big national story will be taking place later today in Grapevine, Texas, where the Boy Scouts of America are considering a proposal at their annual meeting to allow gay youths to participate openly in the popular organization for the first time (but not gay adults).…

Welcome back, Bluths

Daniel Figueroa IV — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:05:00 -0400

New episodes of Arrested Development on Netflix? Here’s why we give a shit. by Daniel Figueroa IV I was drunk. But a night spent at all times not far from a glass of vodka with a splash of olive juice will do that to you.…

Check out these new albums

CL Staff — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:04:00 -0400

Catching up with some of the biggest album releases of 2013. by CL Staff David Bowie The Next Day Critic’s rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 The always innovative David Bowie, who most fans thought had permanently retired from the business, shocked the world when in January, on his 66th birthday, he announced he’d completed a brand new studio album. As a teaser, he premiered the plaintive single “Where Are We Now?” on the same day, and the first full-length of fresh Bowie material since 2003’s Reality arrived in March.…

Fast 6 is Furiously entertaining

Katelyn Williamson — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:03:00 -0400

Old favorites return for the best installment of the Fast and Furious series yet. by Katelyn Williamson Fast and Furious 6 opens with Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O’Connor (Paul Walker) racing through the striking Spanish Canary Islands. Dom’s all-American Dodge Challenger and Brian’s GTR Skyline rocket and bandy for position along the edge of steep cliffs as the cerulean waves crash far below.…

Dressing up the little black dress

Leslie Joy Ickowitz — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:02:00 -0400

Start by thinking of one item that will elevate the look to a whole other level. by Leslie Joy Ickowitz Which type are you? Are you all about the thrill of the hunt?…

This week in Tampa Bay area live music, featuring Coheed and Cambria, Steve Martin, King Lincoln and more …

Leilani Polk — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:00:00 -0400

by Leilani Polk THURSDAY, MAY 23 Hockey/The Hush Sound w/River City Extension/Genevieve/Lucas Carpenter The sexy post-punk rock and electro-disco roll of Hockey’s debut full-length, Mind Chaos, made it a favorite of 2009, though the Portland-based outfit (featuring core members Benjamin Grubin and Jeremy Reynolds) has since ventured into synthesized dance punk territory with more fuzzy tones, New Wave bounce and technotronic embellishments and effects in sophomore follow-up Wyeth IS, out digitally a few weeks ago and due for a physical release in late June.…

The Hangover trilogy ends with a whimper

Joe Bardi — Thu, 23 May 2013 04:00:00 -0400

The Wolfpack is back and largely defanged for The Hangover Part III. by Joe Bardi While not exactly a classic, 2009’s The Hangover did provide a rude and crude comic jolt to that year’s summer movie season. Riding an original plot twist (the characters awake after a debauched night of Las Vegas partying and have to retrace their steps to find a missing comrade), fresh performances (particularly Zach Galifianakis and Bradley Cooper, both relative newcomers at the time) and a “boys behaving badly” gestalt that widely appealed to the pussy-whipped masses, The Hangover raked in big bucks and ushered in a new wave of big-screen raunch.…

Epic in name only

Anthony Salveggi — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:59:00 -0400

But this modest eco-fantasy is refreshing. by Anthony Salveggi That a film about tiny heroes should feel small in scale and scope is perhaps only right. Except when that film is called Epic, and brings to mind something more ambitious and bombastic — say, last year’s holidays-and-action-heroes entry Rise of the Guardians.…

Album Review: Vampire Weekend, Modern Vampires of the City

Colin Joyce — Wed, 22 May 2013 17:19:00 -0400

by Colin Joyce Don’t think just because Vampire Weekend’s latest album is called Modern Vampires of the City (XL) that their brand of neo-colonialist art-pop has taken a turn entirely toward the morose. Frontman Ezra Koenig’s concerns may be newly self-reflective, but not at the expense of the bouncy indie pop they’ve built an empire producing.…