Drug smokin’, Lower East Side squattin’, dumpster divin’ crust-metal pop-punk crew Leftover Crack is a band that’s mastered the art of branding. For 14 years, these dudes have made themselves synonymous with unwashed, disgruntled vagabond youth culture, playing left-field ska-punk laced with death metal and infinite allusions to hardcore. They’ve…

Death to the Sun IV: The Final Episode Churchill’s Pub, Miami Saturday, November 24, 2012 Better Than: Rocky IV, Lethal Weapon IV, The Land Before Time IV, Alien: Resurrection, and Indiana Jones and the Aliens or whatever. Death to the Sun has celebrated its final end-of-summer extravaganza. So obviously, we’ve…

So we got bad news and we got good news. The bad news is the UR1 Festival — which was set to take place during the 2012 edition of the annual citywide, Caligula-style art party otherwise known as Art Basel — has been postponed. Lucky for us, the Windish Agency…

While James Brown was the hardest working man in soul music, Lee Fields is the hardest feeling, dishing out emotional exorcisms with every hoot, holler, and wail. Even the name of his backing band – the Expressions – is loaded with burning sentiment. On Saturday, December 1, Sweat Records will…

Regina Spektor With Only Son Fillmore Miami Beach November 17, 2012 Better Than: An Audrey Tatou movie marathon. Last night, Regina Spektor — the reigning queen of quirky, folky, and hyper-emotive piano pop — filled the Fillmore Miami Beach to the brim and inflamed nearly one thousand separate smiles…

Regina Spektor at Fillmore Miami Beach November 17

Araabmuzik at Mansion Miami November 16

“I was there before reggae,” says Monty Alexander, speaking of his native Jamaica, in a way that’s perfectly balanced between humble admission and matter-of-fact declaration. “I was playing in the studios of Kingston Jamaica, with the masters of Jamaican music, The Skatalites, before they were The Skatalites. I played for…

Despite all of the hootin’, hollerin’, and mouth-breathin’ about “Obamacare,” communism is nowhere near making a comeback. Let’s review the facts: It’s been more than 20 years since David Hasselhoff rubbed his gargantuan wienerschnitzel all over the crumbling Berlin Wall. China went so far to the fucking left they ended…

One of the first critiques hurled at electronic music (usually from an individual of the guitar-bass-drums persuasion) is the performers “aren’t doing anything.” This is a valid charge. Are you really trying to tell us in between smashing people in the face with cake and washing it off with a…

Waka Flocka Flame at Revolution Live November 14

For three consecutive autumns, local musician and promoter Ricardo Guerrero’s annual end-of-summer local showcase — Death to the Sun — has ranked among South Florida’s best festivals for contemporary and/or experimental rock music. Just shy of reaching half a decade (and more than a couple months after the actual end…

Hibernus Mortis may be South Florida’s greatest death metal band of all time. And a big part of that has to do with a long tenure as South Florida’s only death metal band. While the Sunshine State’s Gulf Coast can tout a robust history of Cookie Monster deathcries and bangover-inducing…

Nouvelle Vague Presented by the Rhythm Foundation Grand Central, Miami Friday, November 2, 2012 Better Than: Watching a punk and/or new wave band cover Bossa Nova standards. When French musicians Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux sat down and drew the blueprint for Nouvelle Vague, we bet they had a “Eureka!”…

Backed by DJ Eric B’s expertly sampled soul-funk-R&B ejaculations, late ’80s rapper Rakim was a true hip-hop innovator who broke from the first wave’s Mother Goose rhyme schemes and party-shout vocal delivery. The duo is regarded as one of the all-time greats. Rakim sans Eric B? That’s a slightly different…

Plan B From Outerspace With Holly Hunt, Crucial Taunt, and Andrew W.K. 2 Churchill’s Pub, Miami Wednesday, October 31, 2012 Better Than: Throwing a party on a Native American burial ground, moshing with mummies, and Trick-or-Treating at Britney Spears’ house. Miami has a tendency to turn every holiday into a…