By Chyrisse Tabone, Rock At Night Tampa, and Vlad, Rock At Night Detroit
Venue: The Hub Bar, Tampa, Florida-December 7, 2019–The Woolly Bushmen with Nox Boys and Johnny Mile and the Kilometers
After seeing The Romantics in downtown Clearwater, Florida, Rock At Night continued on their Saturday night music fest by heading over to The Hub, downtown Tampa, to check out the night’s music. Once a hangout for press folks of the defunct Tampa Tribune, The Hub is a locally-known dive bar that dates back to the 1940s, but always has had its pulse on the underground garage rock scene. There was a tent outside the venue with a guy selling $7 hot dogs and other nighttime fare as well as a cadre of spoke-lighted bicycle gangs cruising down Franklin Street.
When we walked inside the smoke-filled room filled with an eclectic crowd of locals, Rock At Night fave Johnny Mile and the Kilometers were packing up their gear. We were sorry to have missed their set but will have a chance to see them on December 21st at Red Star Rock Bar in Ybor City, Tampa. Nox Boys, hailing from Blawnox, a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were setting up their gear. We decided to stick around—and boy, were we glad! The four-piece 60s, psychedelic, garage rock band tore the place up, had the audience dancing between tables, and put on one hell of a raucous show!
Nox Boys are composed of twenty-somethings Zack Keim (guitar/vocals), Mitchell McDermott (bass/vocals), and Sam Berman (drums/vocals), and rounded by veteran musician, Bob Powers, who played a mean slide guitar on a vintage Melobar. The Melobar, which provided psychedelic keyboard sounding riffs, served as a really unique addition to the 60s garage sound, which has been impressively captured by these lads, all born in the 1990s, with the exception of Powers.
Nox Boys have been on tour since early-November, beginning in the Northeast, making their way to the Midwest, down to New Orleans, and ending later in the month in Washington D.C. Their second album, a 10-song album Out of Touch, was released in May through Get Hip Recordings. Nox Boys performed songs from their new album as well as their single “Mr. No One” (Nox Boys album-2014), which was featured in Showtime’s Ray Donovan.
Nox Boys’s set peaked as rowdy revelers gathered near the front of the band. At one moment, Zack Keim climbed on the shoulders of a dancer, while still playing the guitar. The Hub became one raucous dance party, as the band fed off of the audience’s energy, providing a memorable live performance, and gaining a lot of loyal followers along the way. At the end of the set, Keim promised, “We will be back, Tampa!”
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I grew up in a household full of rock music, studied journalism in college, and then became a scientist.Although my science career has served me well, music has always played a major role in my life. I grew up reading "Creem" magazine; I play several musical instruments as a "hobby";and it seems a camera has always been in my hand. Now, I am combining what I love the most--music and photography--serving as editor of Rock At Night. I travel between the US and UK seeking my dream! My motto: life is short...no regrets. Chyrisse
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