Danzig (Band)

An Infamous 2004 Scuffle Continues to Define Danny Marianino and Glenn Danzig

Synth Metal Band Element a440 Hoists Its Genre-Defying Freak Flag

It doesn't matter who synth metal band Element a440 is playing with. It could be a punk band, a DJ, or death metal group. The outfit's only concern? To put on a theatrically, entertaining show, visually and audibly. In this week's issue, we profiled the band and delved into the details concerning ... More >>

Your Holiday Heavy Metal Gift Guide

What's the most metal gift you've ever received? I can think of several that stick out: Led Zeppelin vinyl, a miniature model of Dimebag Darrell's Razorback lightning bolt guitar, spike-bedecked high heels that would make a dominatrix envious, a stripper pole paired with a handle of whiskey. But I ... More >>

Dead Kennedys, Marquee Theatre, 9/22/12

http://www.voiceplaces.com/marquee-theatre-phoenix-2553186-l/

Pennywise: New Album, New Singer, Same Contentious Vibe

Punk and hardcore bands aren't usually known for lineup stability, but Hermosa Beach, California, rockers Pennywise had a pretty solid run for their first 20 years of existence. Beyond the death of bassist Jason Matthew Thrisk (they dedicated "Bro Hymn" to him) Pennywise's line-up remained solid a ... More >>

KUPD's John Holmberg Chats About MILFs, Naked Grandmas, and Mom Farts

The Big Red Radio, known by its longtime call-letters 98 KUPD, is known for putting on big productions, like UFest, the End of Summer Scorcher, and the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival. Concert events and heavy music are the station's bread and butter, but the unique and hilarious contests they ... More >>

Cursive and Cymbals Eat Guitars Cover Gin Blossoms

See also: Cursive at Crescent Ballroom, 2/27/12 (VIDEO) See also: Cursive's Ted Stevens on I Am Gemini, Duality, and Line Up Changes We're big fans of AV Club's Undercover Series, where the Chicago-based pop culture site invites bands into its little round room to cover songs from a list compiled b ... More >>

DJ Alvin Bitsue on Strip Club Music, Crate Digging, the State of Phoenix's Punk Scene, and Getting into Fights Over Records

​ If you've attended a local punk show anytime in the last two decades, chances are good you've seen (or rubbed elbows with) Alvin Bitsue. The 36-year-old vinyl freak and punk fan has been a part of the Valley's punk scene for years -- whether working the door or hanging in the audience -- and wit ... More >>

Mark Sultan, The Wrong Ones, Andrew and His Feisty Felines, and The Cosmeticators at Trunk Space, 11/21/11

Marks Sultan, The Wrong Ones, Andrew and His Feisty Felines, and The Cosmeticators Trunk Space Monday, November 21 Mark Sultan: Someone has offered me a Xanax and an enema tonight. Audience member: Welcome to Phoenix! Such was the tone last night at Mark Sultan's Phoenix stop. He seemed perturbed ... More >>

From Print: Blogs Teased in Our November 10 Issue

​This week, New Times ran a list in our print publication highlighting some of the most interesting posts published at Up On The Sun over the past week. Here are links to those posts. What did Hoodlums Music owner Steve Wiley have to say about owning a record store for 13 years? What Phoeni ... More >>

Nobunny, Mangled Men, JJCNV, and Andrew and his Feisty Felines at Yucca Tap Room, 11/2/11

Becky Bartkowski​Nobunny, Mangled Men, JJCnV, and Andrew and his Feisty Felines Yucca Tap Room Wednesday, November 2, 2011 I think my favorite part of my recent JFA/skate punk oral history was Brian Brannon's description of the early '80s Phoenix punk scene: "It was good to have so many div ... More >>

Canyon Club to Bring The Misfits, Leon Russell, Poco, and More to Scottsdale

The Misfits​2011 is the year that music geeks finally beat the jocks. When it comes to Valley bars, live music fans seem to be gaining the upper hand. The Red Owl announced its sports grill to music venue conversion earlier this week and now the Canyon Club, formerly Fox Sports Grill in the Scott ... More >>

Five Songs That Chronicle the Salt River Tubing Experience

No matter how many times you've stated the contrary, you will more than likely find yourself on a black buoyant tube floating along Salt River's murky waters this summer. You will drink copious amounts of alcohol, forget to apply sun block on at least 13 percent of your body, and you will lose at le ... More >>

Big 4 vs. Coachella: Which Will Reign Superior?

​The Empire Polo Club in Indio, California has booked a third event to go down on their grounds between Coachella and the Stagecoach country festival this April.Metal fans are rejoicing over The Big 4, a one-day concert featuring some of metal's most prominent acts: Metallica, Megadeath, Slayer, a ... More >>

Incoming: The Black Lips, Danzig, Gene Loves Jezebel, Keith Urban, Al Jarreau

Al Jarreau ca. 1983​There's lots of diversity in this week's just announced shows, with offerings from The Black Lips, Danzig, Keith Urban and KUPD's U-Fest. None of those artists, however, have won a Grammy in three -- count 'em, three -- different categories. Al Jarreau has. Hell, he joins Micha ... More >>

15 Good Songs You Might've Missed in 2010

Peter Storch​I listened to more than 3,000 songs in 2010, so I was asked to come up with a list of the best of the year. But you've probably heard "Swim" by Surfer Blood and "Boyfriend" by Best Coast and "Helicopter" by Deerhunter and "Hustle and Cuss" by the Dead Weather, so I came up with a ... More >>

Girl Talk: All Day

​Artist: Girl Talk Title: All Day Release date: November 15 Label: Illegal Art Whether sample-happy mash-up act Girl Talk is "good" or "not good" and whether you "like" or "dislike" Girl Talk are completely irrelevant to any discussion regarding Girl Talk. The only things I care about when it ... More >>

Tierra del Fuego: Queen of the Rendezvous

​Artist: Tierra del Fuego Title: Queen of the Rendezvous Release date: December 11 Label: Scapular Winging Through pure happenstance, I witnessed this local band, Tierra del Fuego, on Saturday night play as they played to a small but appreciative crowd at Trunk Space. It just happened to be t ... More >>

Odds 'n' Sods: Helmet, Michael Franti & Spearhead, The Charlatans, Small Black, and more

​It's amazing how much music is released in a year. I've listened to nearly 270 records in their entirety this year, yet I still have a huge stack of unlistened CDs on my desk, several unlistened digital downloads in my iTunes, and a lengthy list of high-profile stuff I never got a chance to h ... More >>

Mini Mansions: Mini Mansions

​Artist: Mini Mansions Title: Mini Mansions Release date: November 2 Label: Ipecac One of the biggest musical curveballs of the year has to be the debut record by the Southern California trio Mini Mansions. I say it's a curveball because I wouldn't have guessed such a Beatles-esque display o ... More >>

Sun City Girls: Funeral Mariachi

​Artist: Sun City Girls Title: Funeral Mariachi Release date: October 26 Label: Abduction Sun City Girls' last-ever record -- they've made dozens since forming in Phoenix way back in the early days of West Coast punk -- comes off as a more somber affair. And some of it is downright -- odd to ... More >>

Daft Punk: Tron Legacy (Original Soundtrack)

​Artist: Daft Punk Title: Tron Legacy (Original Soundtrack) Release date: December 7 Label: Walt Disney Records I'm a little surprised by the buzz surrounding the release of a soundtrack to a Disney movie. I understand that the kids love the helmeted French house duo Daft Punk and that said ... More >>

The Parting Gifts: Strychnine Dandelions

​Artist: The Parting Gifts Title: Strychnine Dandelions Release date: November 9 Label: In the Red Last week, I didn't have many good things to say about the new record from Kanye West. This morning, a white co-worker walked into my office and said, "I read what you said about Kanye West. Whe ... More >>

Sharon Van Etten: Epic

​Artist: Sharon Van Etten Title: Epic Release date: September 21 Label: Ba Da Bing! If you're relatively unknown as a musical artist, as is Sharon Van Etten, and you name your record Epic, you'd better be damn sure your record doesn't suck. The good news for Van Etten is that her seven-song r ... More >>

OFF!: First Four EPs

​Artist: OFF! Title: First Four EPs Release date: November 23 Label: Vice Records In 2010, few things seem more ridiculous than a punk supergroup anchored by two guys who made their most indelible marks on American punk rock nearly 30 years ago. But, damn, OFF! pulled off an unlikely feat, ma ... More >>

Robyn: Body Talk

​Artist: Robyn Title: Body Talk Release date: November 22 Label: Interscope The critics sure do love the Swedish dance-pop star Robyn, who's been releasing Body Talk in chunks throughout 2010 and now has finally dropped the entire album as one 15-song compendium. But there seems to be a commo ... More >>

The Fresh & Onlys: Play It Strange

Fresh & Onlys, Play It Strange​Artist: The Fresh & OnlysTitle: Play It StrangeRelease date: October 12Label: In the RedAnd just like that, I find myself a little bored by the sound plied and, possibly, perfected by San Francisco's The Fresh & Onlys. It's the sound that has passed for g ... More >>

Matt & Kim: Sidewalks

​Artist: Matt & KimTitle: SidewalksRelease date: November 2Label: FaderI suppose I should mention up front that I didn't like Tears for Fears in 1985 and I still don't 25 years later, even in a nostalgic sense. So it stands to reason that I have little use for Matt & Kim in 2010.It's not t ... More >>

Gospel Claws: C-L-A-W-S

​Artist: Gospel Claws Title: C-L-A-W-S Release date: October 26 Label: Common Wall Media Gospel Claws are a local band (Tempe, I've been told) that is currently enjoying a little bit of national exposure, residing in a reasonably high position on some relatively obscure indie-rock-tallying ch ... More >>

Elvis Costello: National Ransom

​Artist: Elvis Costello Title: National Ransom Release date: November 2 Label: Hear Music I really wish it weren't the case, but I'd have to file the new record by Elvis Costello under "For Completists Only" (of which I'm sure there many when it comes to Elvis Costello fans). If you heard hi ... More >>

The 88: The 88

​Artist: The 88Title: The 88 Release date: September 28 Label: Rocket ScienceWhat do you do if you're a band like The 88? You're top-flight songwriters and musicians, you get your songs placed in all kinds of big-name TV shows and high-profile TV commercials, you tour the country opening ... More >>

Warpaint: The Fool

​Artist: Warpaint Title: The Fool Release date: October 25 Label: Rough Trade The musical path taken by L.A. foursome Warpaint is well trodden -- but this kind of ultra-moody, sort of experimental, Joy Division-indebted music is usually plied by men. But Warpaint is a quartet of women, and in ... More >>

Screaming Females: Castle Talk

​Artist: Screaming Females Title: Castle Talk Release date: September 14 Label: Don Giovanni Back in the day, I'd hate to miss a good show (I'm still not happy that my parents wouldn't let me drive to Kalamazoo one Monday night to see Scratch Acid and Big Black play, ditto the time I couldn't ... More >>

Kings of Leon: Come Around Sundown

​Artist: Kings of LeonTitle: Come Around SundownRelease date: October 19Label: RCAI think it's funny that people are getting all bent out of shape over the supposed "selling out" of Kings of Leon, saying their new record sucks worse than that sucky one that sold a bajillion copies a few years ago. ... More >>

Sufjan Stevens: The Age of Adz

​Artist: Sufjan Stevens Title: The Age of Adz Release date: October 21 Label: Asthmatic Kitty The new record by indie-music deity Sufjan Stevens is an hour-and-12-minute endurance test, one who's raison d'etre is revealed in the closing seconds of the record's final song, "Impossible Soul." A ... More >>

The Corin Tucker Band: 1,000 Years

​Artist: The Corin Tucker BandTitle: 1,000 YearsRelease date: October 5Label: Kill Rock Stars Who else loves Sleater-Kinney and was disappointed to hear they'd gone on indefinite hiatus after the release of one of their best records, The Woods, in 2006? In my opinion, we're one of the finer bands ... More >>

Grinderman: Grinderman 2

​Artist: GrindermanTitle: Grinderman 2Release date: September 14Label: Anti-Most of the indie rock I've heard this year (well over 200 records and counting, with 11 weeks to go in this series) is really pretty toothless. Even the harder-rocking stuff, with its big drums or wall-of-sound guitars or ... More >>

Nothing Not New: Podcast #9

​Welcome to our latest podcast, in which Martin Cizmar and I play some new music and about it, too. On today's program, we discuss the merits of such bands as Wavves, Arcade Fire, The Budos Band, Jimmy Eat World, and local superstars Snake! Snake! Snakes!Here's the playlist:Jaill -- "The Stroller" ... More >>

Odds 'n' Sods: Cowboy Junkies, Winnie Cooper, Grieves, Shelby Lynne, and more

​Holy crap, only five-plus months left of Nothing Not New. I gotta get to a lot more new(-ish) releases. Let's roll . . .Cowboy Junkies -- Remnin Park: Who knew these dour Canadians were even still around? Remnin Park is a concept album inspired the Timmins' family month-long sojourn to China. Out ... More >>

Authority Zero: Stories of Survival

​Artist: Authority ZeroTitle: Stories of SurvivalRelease date: June 22Label: Suburban NoizeI have a friend who's a native Phoenician and longtime fixture in the Valley punk scene, both as fan and musician. He loves West Coast punk, thinks Southern California spawned the best of the best punk, espe ... More >>

13 Must-Hear Songs from the First Half of 2010

Dum Dum Girls​Today marks the halfway point of Nothing Not New. That means I've listen to nearly 140 records in their entirety in the first six months of 2010. Just another 140 or so to go before I can retreat to the familiarity of my record collection.To recognize the occasion, the Up on the Sun ... More >>

Foals: Total Life Forever

​Artist: FoalsTitle: Total Life ForeverRelease date: June 22Label: Sub PopThough I disagree with a commenter on one of my posts this week (Shawn from excellent local music blog Electric Mustache) about the merits of electro-punk Sleigh Bells, I agree with him that S.B. are a band that you either l ... More >>

Crystal Castles, Against Me!, and Blitzen Trapper; June 8 Was a Record-Release Bonanza

Jailhouse Butt Rock

Band fuses The King with the ‘80s

Skeletonwitch

10 Things Under $10 This Weekend: D.I.Y., Europop, and Danny NSK's Benefit

The Bollox are scheduled to perform tonight at Club Red in Tempe. Can't find enough scrilla to take you S.O. go see Star Trek for the 16th time? Don't wanna take out a loan just to go see Les Claypool or Peter Murphy live and in concert? Then check out our list of ultra-affordable events happe ... More >>

Oh, Danny Boy

The punk scene supports one of it's own

When Danny Punched Danzig