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Tom Jones
Details: Friday 8 p.m., Ruth Eckerd Hall, 1111 McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater. $42-$103. (727) 791-7400.
It's not unusual to love Tom Jones. Adoring women shower him with undergarments. Singer-songwriter elite-types (Van Morrison) place him atop their lists of favorite artists. Queens (Elizabeth II) knight him. So what could be left for the 70-year-old bronzed baritone to accomplish? In a word, grit. On the Welshman's latest, Praise & Blame, gone are the Vegas-style sex bombs, playful pussycat calls, the loose buttons and usual bombast. In are bluesy, roadhouse-rock covers (of John Lee Hooker, Bob Dylan, etc.) about where we go when we die. Fans should expect a little of both Jones styles at this show.
m Civil Twilight
Details: Wednesday 7 p.m., State Theatre, 687 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. $12. (727) 895-3045.
On Letters From the Sky, a piano-powered lament for a lost love, Civil Twilight singer Steven McKellar pleads, "I was meant to taste your kiss." Before long the South African band is crescendo-ing its way to a blissful reunion, and straight into your heart. If you like Keane, Snow Patrol or have two X chromosomes, you can't not love this one. The show precedes the band's gig on the VH1 Best Cruise Ever.
m Dirty Heads
With SOJA
Details: Saturday 8 p.m., Jannus Live, 16 Second St. N, St. Petersburg. $20. (727) 565-0551.
In the years after Sublime singer Brad Nowell's death, stoney reggae-rock bands from Cali became a dime a dozen. But these sun-loving pacifists broke the mold when they released Lay Me Down (featuring Rome Ramirez of Sublime with Rome), a reggae-rock-hip-hop love story drowned in Corona. The Dirty Heads earned extra street cred when Rolling Stone named them one of the best new bands of 2010 and when Slash lent his screaming six-string to the track Check the Level.
The AP Tour
Featuring Black Veil Brides, Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows, VersaEmerge, I See Stars
Details: Friday 7 p.m., State Theatre, 687 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. $15.50 and up. (727) 895-3045.
Former Chiodos frontman Craig Owens joins members of Story of the Year, Matchbook Romance and From First to Last to form Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows, a group whose aggressive melodies conjure up a Circa Survive/the Used combo. Black-clad fret board gymnasts Black Veil Brides will co-headline. If musical genres were categorized by stores in the mall, the AP Tour would most certainly be Hot Topic. Folded arms not permitted.
Tortured Soul
With ClrH2O, DJ Chang, Cubanix
Details: Friday 9 p.m., Crowbar, 1812 17th St. N, Ybor City. $12. (813) 241-8600.
House music DJs have always favored a headphone-turntable setup to create a seamless soundtrack for late-night clubbing. But Tortured Soul manages the same sleek, unbroken house sound with a full band — a singer, a drummer and a keyboardist.
Times correspondent Carole Liparoto can be reached at carole.liparoto@gmail.com.
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