Carl F. Gauze jumps a freight train to Austin to check out some new music by Icona Pop and Marina and the Diamonds, and returns with a bad case of bubble gum fever.

Robert Glasper and Friends find the Wonder in Jazz, and Lauressa Nelson is there to soak it all in at the Harlem Stage.

Surf music from the hills of North Carolina washes up on the Orlando shore and pelts Carl F Gauze with free fried chicken. Southern Culture on the Skids is back in town.

Die-hard fans, May Terry among them, mind-moshed and recalled their early days of musical aggression at Irving Plaza, thanks to legendary punk rockers, X.

The question on Matthew Moyer’s mind, when checking out the trimmed-down version of Cult of Youth, was this: will they still be able to pull off the rich hues and near-psychedelic textures of this album? The answer: a resounding YES!

An unplugged evening with Eddie Vedder full of conversation, confessions, and two hours of music is a damn fine way for Jen Cray to spend the night.

When given the chance to see Madonna, on a moment’s notice and four hours away, Jen Cray abandons all responsibilities, hightails it to Miami, and enjoys every sleep-deprived second of the journey!

Aesop Rock gives Jacksonville some quality hip hop – the kind so good that even shoegazer Jessica Whittington can’t appreciate.

Weezer brings the Memories Show to Orlando for a pair of full album performances that sell out with fans looking to take a time machine back to the early ’90s. Jen Cray caught the 1992 train and heard the Blue Album from start to finish.

Passion Pit gives concertgoers a song and dance to bounce to and a healthy bunch of streamers and sweat for Anna Allred to shake off at night’s end.

“Antmania” is alive and well 30 years after Adam Ant’s peak, Michael Crown discovers at a sold-out Orlando gig.

Ani DiFranco brings Orlando, and Jen Cray, to levels of enjoyment not often felt in the company of so many others.

Flutes, leather vests on bare skin, werewolf songs, and kids on stage. It’s not your average recipe for a rock show, but then, as Matthew Moyer points out, Faun Fables is not a rock band.

OFF! is not your average over-the-hill rock band out to capitalize on past glories. With Keith Morris at the helm, they’re jet-propelled, as Matthew Moyer found out.

Riverboat Gamblers can always be counted on to give fans a live music aurogasm, and Jen Cray can always be counted on to cheer them on whenever they play her hometown.

The hard candy sweetness of Metric doesn’t quite sugar the ears of Jen Cray the way she thought that it would.

May Terry relives a bit of teen pop nostalgia with The Ugly Club in NYC, where the ladies swoon over girl-candy frontman Ryan Egan.

Rock legend Lindsey Buckingham delivers the goods in front of a sold-out crowd that includes Christopher Long at Orlando’s premier concert venue.

The Kills are natural born killers who slay Yifat Grizman every single time.

Now in its 18th year, Warped Tour still manages to give Jen Cray and the rest of Orlando’s fans a beautiful day of sweat-soaked awesomeness.