Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am performs a solo DJ set at Ultra. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

“Miami, you are beautiful!” – David Guetta

As the entire universe converged on Miami for the final day of the 2011 Ultra Music Festival, it’s hard to imagine that all 150,000 people (dressed in banana costumes, underwear, and neon wigs) would soon be returning to their everyday and probably pretty boring lives.

The first ever third day of the festival proved that, yes, Ultra is still the biggest and best electronic music party on the planet. Early in the day, the crowd was a tad on the thin side, but as the eight-stage venue slowly began to come alive, fans came out in full force to simply dance.

More: Day 1: Miami takes on a sense of sensory overload | Day 2: Carl Cox’s high-energy tent was the place to be | Ultra photos: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Visit this writer’s website

For the second time during the festival, Dirty Vegas took to the stage. This time, instead of a DJ set in the Heineken Dome, the trio played a live set of the Main Stage, showing that they are far more than a few guys with computers.
Read the full story

Ozzy Osbourne performs at the BankAtlantic Center. (Kate Dingle / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: Ozzy Osbourne and Slash at BankAtlantic Center | Visit this writer’s website

It doesn’t matter how you look at it, Ozzy Osbourne is a legend. He’s done a few things in his lifetime that people of all ages have heard about (like one particular incident involving a dove) and his music is timeless (but not in that Engelbert Humperdinck kind of way). And everyone who didn’t know the phrase, “I am Iron Man!” knows it now courtesy of the Prince of Darkness himself.

Ozzy brought the BankAtlantic Center to its knees in submission Sunday night and proved that he’s still, “f***ing crazy after all these years”.

As soon as the house lights went down, “Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy” chants resonated throughout the arena. A series of videos portraying Ozzy as a cast member on the Jersey Shore and as Edward in Twilight showed on a screen, and fans ate it up. By the time Ozzy stormed the stage and into “Bark At The Moon”, crowd members could no longer contain themselves.
Read the full story

Robyn opens her show at the Fillmore Miami Beach. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: Robyn at the Fillmore Miami Beach

There was once a time when Swedish electro-pop sensation Robyn was a direct competitor with the squeaky clean pop stars of the mid-90’s (namely a couple of girls named Britney and Christina). Since then, we have all learned that those girls aren’t so shiny and that although Robyn seemed to have disappeared of the planet (at least in the U.S.), she has continued to make music and evolve into the dance icon she is today.

Friday night, Robyn kicked off her U.S. tour at the Fillmore on Miami Beach. And although the crowd was a bit on the thin side, those who did who did show up were clearly there to dance their butts off.

By the time the uniformly dressed backing band took the stage, everyone in the venue seemed to rush forward just to be closer to the all the action. When Robyn finally emerged from the wings, I suddenly felt like I had been transported to a hopping gay club.
Read the full story

Elly Jackson of La Roux performs at Fort Lauderdale's Culture Room. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: La Roux at the Culture Room

What’s not to love about the U.K.’s latest electro-pop export, La Roux? The music is catchy and infectious and certainly dance-able. They are a “duo”, but there is one pretty clear (and pretty cute) face of the act, Elly Jackson. But there is just one tiny thing, but I’ll get to that in a minute.

Last week, La Roux was in Fort Lauderdale to keep their promise to make it here after the show’s original date was cancelled due to Elly’s bout with bronchitis turned pharyngitis.

The sold out crowd showed up in full on La Roux gear complete with skin tight multi-colored leggings and over the top eye make-up. The nearly 50 minute set was packed with their entire catalog and plenty of love both given and received by Jackson. Everyone danced and sang along with every single song and the vocals from the crowd definitely overpowered Elly’s still healing voice.
Read the full story

Timothy B. Schmit and Don Henley perform with the Eagles. (Erin Marta / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: The Eagles at the BankAtlantic Center

“Fort Lauderdale! Thanks for waiting for us!” - Glenn Frey

Nearly 20 days after their originally scheduled stop at the BankAtlantic Center, the Eagles finally made their way south for an unforgettable performance.

Wednesday night, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh, and Timothy B. Schmit proved to South Florida that they still have it. Performing without an opening act, it was apparent that this is a tour designed to hone in on every single reason why they are one of the greatest groups of all time.

Things got started slowly with “Seven Bridges Road”. But with each progressing note, not only did the rock legends get more energized, but so did the near-capacity crowd. As each member took their turn in the spotlight, fans seemed to fall in love with their music all over again. “You forget how many great songs they have!”, was a sentiment that echoed throughout the night.
Read the full story

Andrew VanWyngarden of MGMT performs at the Fillmore Miami Beach. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: MGMT at the Fillmore

Tuesday night in Miami was a battle of the bands of sorts. Music fans were posed with what some would call a dilemma; both MGMT and Massive Attack were playing shows within miles of each other.

To the sold-out crowd at the Fillmore, the decision didn’t seem like a tough one at all. MGMT was the show to see.

Before college friends Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden took the stage, there was still a little room to move around. But when the house lights went down, any and all vacant spaces were quickly filled.

As the Brooklyn-based duo turned five-piece blew through their set, kids in skinny jeans of every shade in the spectrum danced and sang along with the psychedelic rockers. And although there wasn’t much interaction with the crowd, the electricity radiating from the stage was eaten up by every single person in the venue (except for maybe the few parents milling around the lobby area).
Read the full story

New Century Dance Company performs its 'True Blood'-inspired piece earlier this month at Seminole Casino Coconut Creek. (Christina Mendenhall/Ryan Merrill Photography)

More: Directions, nearby dining, more | Page2Live.com: ‘True Blood’ stars haunt area Halloween hype | Photos: Halloween events at Seminole Casino Coconut Creek | Local Halloween events, more

Each year, many South Florida residents are challenged with finding the perfect Halloween events to attend. And although a lot of people may not associate the Seminole Coconut Creek Casino with over-the-top entertainment, many might be surprised at their spectacular calendar of events for this coming All Hallows Eve.

With such recent events as extreme pumpkin carving (including specialized martinis) and the appearance of two members from one of TV’s hottest shows, True Blood (one of them being super hottie Joe Manganiello), one can’t help but wonder what’s next. Here’s a hint: thousands of dollars in cash and prizes and a horror-film icon.

We recently spoke with Heather Seely, the special events manager for the Seminole Coconut Creek Casino to find out what else they have up their sleeve for upcoming Halloween events.

Pbpulse: It seems as though Halloween is a month-long event, any particular reason why?

Heather Seely: Halloween is intrinsically theatrical so the possibilities are endless. Having a variety of Halloween related events throughout the month offers our casino the opportunity to appeal to a wide range of “baby boomers”. Guests that are “forever young” and young at heart!

An example would be the Extreme Pumpkin Weekend we had on Oct. 8-9. It incorporated traditional Halloween activities but at the same time those activities had a mature twist to them: pumpkin carving with a jigsaw and caramel-apple martinis!
Read the full story

Kim Schifino and Matt Johnson -- aka Matt and Kim -- play a fun set at Fort Lauderdale's Culture Room. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: Matt and Kim at Culture Room

“This is one of the most exciting shows we’ve played in a while, so thank you!” – Matt Johnson

For the past six years, Brooklyn-based duo Matt and Kim have been showering fans with their dance punk sweetness. When they hit Fort Lauderdale’s Culture Room for a sold out show Thursday, the confections these two created surely would’ve made Willy Wonka jealous.

It’s not a secret that Matt and Kim are known for their high-energy, hip-hop infused shows. And Thursday’s show was no different.

From the moment they stormed the stage and took their appropriate places on their special little platform in the center of the stage, the pair instantly elevated the fun meter. The entire set was littered with Matt doing handstands on his keyboard and Kim climbing on just about anything she could get to; including an epic walk across the hands of the crowd. Balloons with drawings of their faces were passed out to fans, and eventually, the Culture Room got lost in the sea of red, white, blue, yellow, and green.
Read the full story

James Murphy leads LCD Soundsystem at the Fillmore Miami Beach. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: LCD Soundsystem at Fillmore Miami Beach

They came wearing leopard print, studded dresses, combat boots, flannel shirts, and five-inch heels. They were from all walks of life and had the t-shirt to prove it. But Wednesday night, they all had one thing in common: They were all there to dance their butts off courtesy of LCD Soundsystem.

The more fans that trickled through the doors of the Fillmore, the more the energy in the building rose. James Murphy’s project was clearly one of the most anticipated shows from the past few months. And at the end of the night, many in the crowd were convince it was one of the best shows of the year.

Even though Murphy is responsible for nearly every sound on LCD’s three full-lengths, six other musicians appeared onstage with him Wednesday night (including Florida’s own Pat Mahoney). Throughout the set, the musicians would often switch off between the electronic driven instruments and more “traditional” ones like electric guitars. From cowbells to bongos to wood blocks, there were more instruments onstage than a full orchestra has in its arsenal. In bringing the LCD sound to the stage, Murphy’s show was well orchestrated. Each musician seemed to know their place and depend on their leader for direction.
Read the full story

Chris Keating of Yeasayer performs at the Fillmore Miami Beach. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: Yeasayer @ Fillmore Miami Beach

Tuesday night, hundreds gathered to welcome Brooklyn-based Yeasayer to the Fillmore on Miami Beach.

Although the crowd was a bit thin (maybe the fact that King James was making his Miami debut just a couple miles away had something to do with it), those who did show up did so to support their favorite music festival regulars.

Having only been around since 2007, the unconventional rockers performed with the ease of seasoned veterans. With their music drawing on everything from hip-hop to world to dance and (a little) Tears For Fears, the visually mismatched (suit jackets and skinny jeans and tank tops) quintet performed to near perfection.
Read the full story