5 Best Concerts to See in Phoenix This Weekend

It's a slow weekend in Phoenix, but there are still some options to get your music fix. Check out our picks here, and visit our comprehensive concert listings for more options.

Friday, December 5 - Metal for the Hungry - Crabby Don's

You gotta love an event that combines a good cause with good metal, such as the first-ever Metal for the Hungry Show on Friday, December 5, at Crabby Don's. Here's the rundown: For $5 you get a diverse lineup of almost 10 bands, and all proceeds go to St. Mary's Food Bank. There's In Vengeance, pushing the boundaries with their brand of thrash-y extreme metal. Betrayal of Allies' trifecta style of melodic death-meets-metalcore-meets-thrash is unique, set off by raspy vocals and growls. There's also Metallica cover band Disposable Heroes, the louder-than-hell Hell Defined, alt-metallers Xpansion Theory, Cry Evil and Existence AD. LAUREN WISE

Bob Margolin - Friday, December 5 - Rhythm Room

Claiming blues legend Muddy Waters as a teacher is something few musicians can own up to. "Steady Rollin'" Bob Margolin is one such performer. Already showing promise as an upstart bluesman following a short-lived foray into the psychedelic rock world with Boston's Freeborne (the band's lone album now fetches big bucks), Margolin was lucky enough to have Waters take him under his wing in 1973. Margolin calls it a "Crossroads" moment in his career. "I was completely aware of the significance as it was happening," Margolin explains via e-mail. "I knew I had to do it if I could, that I had a lot to learn, and I had to prove myself to keep the job and go farther with it. Muddy knew that, too, and he gave me a chance. I owe him forever." The ensuing seven years provided Margolin the tools to sustain a lengthy music career. Leaving Waters in 1980, Margolin became a staple on the East Coast blues circuit before succumbing to the realities of needing to make albums to "get back out on the world's blues scene." Margolin, now a blues master in his own right, has been racking up awards and accolades ever since. GLENN BURNSILVER

Cannabis Corpse - Saturday, December 6 - Club Red

Founded by Philip "Landphil" Hall and Josh "HallHammer" Hall, Cannabis Corpse has been celebrating pot and extreme modern death metal for almost a decade. The band has shared the stage with acts like Skeletonwitch and Black Dahlia Murder, recorded albums with members from Gwar and Municipal Waste, and are currently touring in support of their new album, From Wisdom to Baked. This show is going to be as heavy as they come, rounded out by Austin-based band Mammoth Grinder (a modern blend of punk and metal), and extreme death and blackened metal bands Inanimate Existence, Scattered Guts, Six Million Dead and Saint Breaker. LAUREN WISE

Tongue Tied's Fugly Sweater Dance Party - Saturday, December 6 - Apollo's

Pretty much everyone has an ugly sweater, even you. Fact. Don't bother denying it, because we know it's hidden away somewhere dark and deep in your closet along with whatever skeletons that have been accumulating over the years. Chances are likely that you either got it from a snarky or clueless relative or via a local thrift store on a lark.

However it happened into your possession, that knitted atrocity typically gets stuffed away into your personal Phantom Zone for 360-odd days of banishment until the Christmastime season rolls around and it suddenly becomes useful again, especially at events like Tongue Tied's Fugly Sweater Party on Saturday, December 6, at Apollo's Lounge, 5749 North Seventh Street. In fact, if your particular pullover, sweatshirt, or knitted atrocity is truly revolting and repugnant, you have a good chance of scoring $200 worth of booze or being the star of the ugly sweater fashion show at the dance event. In addition to showing off gaudy holiday threads, the party will feature indie, dance, and retro tracks spun by DJ Roya and DJ Funkfinger, an awkward family photo contest for a $50 Apollo's bar card, and other antics. The fugly fiesta starts at 9 p.m. Admission is free until 9:30 p.m. and $5 thereafter. BENJAMIN LEATHERMAN

X - Sunday, December 7 - Crescent Ballroom

Of all the stars of the '80s punk scene, one band is still having impact some 35 years after forming: X. Mixing driving punk energy with rockabilly riffs, staccato rhythms, unexpected dual vocal drive, and socially conscious lyrics, X was a defining voice in the punk movement. The band's uncompromising ability to defy perceptions and expectations keeps it going today. GLENN BURNSILVER

Find any show in Metro Phoenix via our extensive online concert calendar.

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