Spring means the return of much, from flowers to baseball. Head down to Raymond James Stadium Grounds with pitchers & catchers for Inning Festival Tampa, Saturday & Sunday, March 18th-19th:
SATURDAY, MARCH 18th
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Imagine Dragons, 9:20 PM – 11:00 PM From Las Vegas comes big-name alternative outfit Imagine Dragons (QRO photos). They played seemingly every late night show out there off of 2012’s debut Night Visions, which shows what having a major label behind you (QRO photos) can do for a new band (QRO photos). They’ve only gotten bigger (QRO photos), including playing Amnesty International ‘Bring Human Rights Home’ (QRO photos), most recently with 2021 & 2022’s Mercury – Act 1 & Act 2 (QRO photos in Florida in ’22), and now headline Innings (QRO photos at a festival). |
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Pitbull, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM If Miami could be a person, it would be famed rapper Pitbull (QRO photos at a Formula One after-party), who pretty much everyone likes. Out this year with Timeless (QRO ’22 photos), he crosses over to Florida’s Gulf coast for Innings Festival. |
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Japanese Breakfast, 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM The project of Michelle Zauner (QRO photos at a festival), Japanese Breakfast (QRO photos at a ’22 festival) already brought Soft Sounds from Another Planet (QRO review) in 2017, and last year wowed the world with Jubilee (QRO review) and Crying in H Mart: A Memoir, including a wonderful return to touring (QRO 2021 photos) with her beautiful show (QRO photos at a ’22 festival), gong included (QRO photos at a ’22 festival). And she’s coming to Innings (QRO photos at a ’22 festival) after playing last year’s season finale of Saturday Night Live! |
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Also: Joey Valence & Brae, 3:15 PM – 4:00 PM Briscoe, 1:45 PM – 2:30 PM |
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Right Field Stage |
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Weezer, 8:00 PM – 9:15 PM For a long time, the new output from Weezer (QRO photos at a festival) like 2010’s Hurley (QRO review) and Death To False Metal (QRO review) or the previous year’s Raditude (QRO review) wasn’t up to their nineties classics (and 2008’s red album-covered self-titled – QRO review – couldn’t hold a candle to the blue- and green-covered earlier Weezers – QRO blue Weezer live review – or Pinkerton – QRO deluxe edition review), but they still played those nineties classics like “My Name Is Jonas” (QRO video), “Say It Ain’t So” (QRO video), “Buddy Holly” (QRO video), “No One Else” (QRO video), “Surf Wax America” (QRO video), “Falling For You” (QRO video), and “Dope Nose” (QRO video), which can even lift later pieces like “Islands In the Sun” (QRO video) and “Beverly Hills” (QRO video). And their live show (QRO live review) – especially outdoors (QRO live review outdoors) at a festival (QRO photos at a festival) – has stayed great (QRO photos at a festival). 2014 also came Everything Will Be Alright In the End (QRO review), their best record in years & years (QRO Everything live review), then another Weezer, 2016’s white one (QRO review), another good one (QRO White Album live review). They’ve been releasing at a pretty steady pace, with 2017’s Pacific Daydream (QRO review), 2018’s Teal covers album (QRO review), 2019’s Black (QRO review), last year’s OK Human (QRO review) and big rock Van Weezer (QRO review), even last year’s SZNZ: Spring EP (QRO review), SZNZ: Summer EP (QRO review), SZNZ: Autumn EP (QRO review), and SZNZ: Winter EP (QRO review) – plus dude, Hurley (QRO photo). And their live show encompasses it all & more (QRO live review). MLB regulars by this point, Weezer comes to Innings (QRO photos at a festival) after 2021’s epic summer baseball stadium ‘Hella Mega Tour’ (QRO live review at a baseball stadium). |
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Grouplove, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM In 2012 rock collective Grouplove (QRO spotlight on) have had two of the most enjoyable recent hits, “Tongue Tied” (QRO video) and “Colours” (QRO review) from the debut Never Trust a Happy Song (QRO photos at a festival). Live, they take it to another level (QRO live review), with a massive spectacle (QRO photos outdoors), and can even persevere in the rain (QRO live review in the rain) or on television (QRO live review at TV taping). The band (QRO interview) followed that up in 2013 with Spreading Rumors (QRO review) and tour (QRO live review), and singles like “I’m With You” and “Shark Attack” (QRO review). Then lead singers Hannah Hooper & Christian Zucconi (QRO interview with both) had a child, Willow – who has accompanied them on tour (QRO live review) behind 2016’s Big Mess (QRO review). Grouplove (QRO photos at a festival) were looking to have a big 2020 with new album Healer (QRO review) – only to release it pretty much right before everything shut down. But the group knows how to roll with the punches, doing great livestreams (QRO livestream review), great videos such as for Healer’s “Inside Out” (QRO review), covers like Robyn’s “Dancing On My Own” (QRO review) & Tom Petty’s “Wildflowers” (QRO review) – and then put out a new record in 2021, This Is This (QRO review) with singles “Deadline” (QRO review) & “This Is the End” (QRO review). They finally got back out on the road (QRO photos at a 2021 festival), and kept it going all over (QRO ’22 live review), now returning to Tampa for Innings (QRO photos at a ’22 Tampa festival). |
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Tai Verdes, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM California rapper Tai Verdes went from working at a phone store at the coronavirus outbreak to viral TikTok success. Also: Cydeways, 2:30 PM – 3:15 PM |
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Left Field Stage |
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Off the Mound with Ryan Dempster, 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM All-Star Jam hosted by Jake Peavy, 3:15 PM – 4:00 PM |
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Player Appearances – Speed Pitch |
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Rafael Furcal, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM Wade Boggs, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM |
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Player Appearances – Batting Cage |
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John Kruk, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM Ryan Klesko, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM Ray Lankford, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM |
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SUNDAY, MARCH 19th
| Home Plate Stage | |
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Dave Matthews Band, 9:00 PM – 11:00 PM Admit it: you’ve always wanted to see Dave Matthews live (QRO live review). You listened to Crash in high school or college, you’ve sung along to “Some Much To Say”, and you probably still have a Dave Matthews Band CD or two. There’s a reason the group was the most successful touring act of the aughts (QRO live review), and to have a record six albums debut at #1 on the Billboard charts. The jam road warriors (QRO ’22 live review) come to headline Innings (QRO photos headlining a ’22 festival) behind this year’s Walk Around the Moon. |
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Marcus Mumford, 6:40 PM – 7:40 PM Fronting Mumford & Sons (QRO live review), Marcus Mumford brought alt-folk to a much larger audience (including playing Austin City Limits twice), even married Hollywood actress Carey Mulligan. But it was also still difficult, and so he channeled his personal struggles into this year’s solo debut (self-titled) (QRO review) and now comes to Innings on his own (QRO solo live review). |
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Third Eye Blind, 4:40 PM – 5:40 PM Old enough to be mocked by kids in the nineties, Third Eye Blind (QRO photos) are somehow still around and still leading their “Semi-Charmed Life”. Though they have been on a bit of an upswing in the last few years (QRO photos), from calling out homophobic attendees at a paid gig they did around the 2016 Republican Convention, to recruiting The Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan to help write 2019’s Screamer. They come down to Innings (QRO photos at a festival) behind 2021’s Our Bande Apart. |
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Faye Webster, 2:55 PM – 3:40 PM Atlanta’s Faye Webster (QRO ’22 photos) has been releasing her dream pop folk records since she was sixteen, and now comes to Innings (QRO photos at a ’22 festival) behind 2021’s I Know I’m Funny Haha (QRO photos at a ’22 festival). Also: The Ries Brothers, 1:25 PM – 2:10 PM |
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Right Field Stage |
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The Avett Brothers, 7:40 PM – 8:55 PM One of the bigger – and better – hits of today’s Americana (QRO photos at a festival), The Avett Brothers (QRO photos at a festival) won a wide audience with 2009’s fine country of I and Love and You (QRO review), including playing on The Grammys with Bob Dylan, and followed that up in 2012 with The Carpenter (QRO review). 2016’s True Sadness (QRO review) did sort of show a limit to their ability, and 2019’s Closer Than Together (QRO review) meant well, but their country will be great as they come to Tampa (QRO photos at a festival), and they have a great live show (QRO live review). |
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The Revivalists, 5:40 PM – 6:40 PM New Orleans seven-piece Americana rock band The Revivalists (QRO photos at a festival) have been reviving N’Orleans rock in such hit singles as platinum “Wish I Knew You” and “All My Friends”. Look for their friends to shimmy on over to Florida to catch their return to the Tampa festival stage (QRO photos at a ’22 festival in Tampa). |
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The Breeders, 3:40 PM – 4:40 PM Back in the early nineties alt-boom, Kim Deal left Boston’s acclaimed Pixies to form her own band with her sister Kelley, The Breeders, and they had one of the biggest hits of the era with the classic Last Splash (QRO live review performing Last Splash). However, after that the band sputtered to a delayed disappointment record Title TK a decade later. But this is the twenty-first century, and everything is coming back. First Deal and Pixies frontman Black Francis buried the hatchet and reunited the old band, while Kim & Kelley reteamed up (QRO live review) to make Mountain Battles (QRO review) – which unfortunately was no Last Splash. So Kim left the Pixies (again), recruited the entire old Splash crew and played the record on tour (QRO photos of them performing Last Splash at a festival). 2018 (QRO photos in 2018) has seen the old band release the new All Nerve (QRO review) – and it was yet another disappointment (QRO photos at a festival). But hey, Last Splash still sounds great live (QRO photos of them performing it at another festival)… |
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Also: The Heavy Heavy, 2:10 PM – 2:55 PM |
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Left Field Stage |
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Off the Round with Ryan Dempster, 6:40 PM – 7:40 PM The Bronson Arroyo Band, 2:55 PM – 3:40 PM |
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Player Appearances – Speed Pitch |
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Andy Van Slyke, 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM Goose Gossage, 3:40 PM – 4:40 PM Tom Herr, 2:15 PM – 3:15 PM |
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Player Appearances – Batting Cage |
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Travis Hafner, 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM Edwin Encarnacion, 3:40 PM – 4:40 PM Cecil Fielder, 2:15 PM – 3:15 PM |
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