Old Ladies Hate Me
I just received an angry call from one of the "white-haired ushers" mentioned below. "You've offended us," she said ominously. (The blurb ran in our latest Weekend magazine.)
A few years ago, I saw Kid Rock "play" Ruth Eckerd Hall, the venerable performance center in Clearwater, FL. Now sure, Ruth Eckerd hosts scores of concerts and plays each year. But as for Kid Rock, well, the Motor City dirtball just about turned that classy joint inside out and upside down. The sparkly venue's white-haired ushers never knew what hit 'em. Backed by a fleet of undulating strippers and exploding flashpots, the Kid made the place feel like a biker bar in hell.
I thought of that show when Ruth Eckerd announced the arrival of another wild act: Panic at the Disco. An energetic emo band on Florida's own Fueled by Ramen label, Panic probably won't have exotic dancers on call, but it will attract a couple thousand hairy, screaming kids who never knew Ruth Eckerd existed. And those kids are going to go absolutely bonkers for all the stuff on Panic's new album, Pretty. Odd., which is a little like Sgt. Pepper's on Red Bull. Those white-haired ushers might want to wear their steel-toed Florsheims.
Panic at the Disco, with Motion City Soundtrack, the Hush Sound and Phantom Planet, performs tonight at 7 p.m. at Ruth Eckerd Hall, 1111 N McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater. $35. (727) 791-7400.
Sean Daly is the pop music critic for the St. Petersburg Times. His CD collection -- from Journey to Dylan, Prince to U2, Public Enemy to Stan Getz -- is much bigger and better than yours.
THIS WEEK'S SHOW: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers rock Tampa Bay. To hear the latest "Stuck in the 80s" episode now, 
One thing I have learned as a DJ is that you should not piss off the venue because you may need to work there again some time. The 'white-haired ushers' could make your next visit to Ruth Eckerd a living hell.
Posted by: Bassnote | April 22, 2008 at 12:03 PM
That would be Sheryl Crow on the 29th. I'm gonna bring my brass knucks.
Posted by: Sean Daly | April 22, 2008 at 12:07 PM
Huh...you always struck me as "old lady friendly".
Shows what I know.
My daughter likes Panic at the Disco. I loathe Kid Rock with an unbridled passion. He's everything that's wrong with music and our society. If I had my wish, he and Fred Durst would sleep in bunk beds in music hell.
Posted by: NickWithAnAxe | April 22, 2008 at 12:56 PM