French Quarter

Astor House in Phoenix to Host "Mega-Authentic N'awlins Crawfish Boil" on Sunday, April 14

Astor House, the charming little eatery in Central Phoenix, may be the smallest of owner DJ Fernandes' three restaurants (next-door Tuck Shop and Vovomeena on Seventh Avenue and McDowell being the other two), but it's celebrating a big milestone. See also: - Caramelpalooza 2013: And the Winners Are ... More >>

The Vieux Carré is Perfect for Your Sophisticated Mardi Gras

Ring the bell, it's time for Last Call, where JK Grence, bartender at Shady's, serves up booze advice and recipes. Got a burning question for your bartender? Leave it in the comments and it might be answered in a future column. New Orleans is a town with a storied past. Most tourists' tales are of ... More >>

Andrew Jackson Jihad: Google Chatting About Optimism and Hipsterism

Folk punk heroes Andrew Jackson Jihad are one of the most recognizable fixtures in the Valley's independent music scene, and Sean Bonnette, the band's frontman, is one of the most down-to-earth, friendly musicians I've ever met. I've often bumped into Bonnette at local dive bars or kickass shows and ... More >>

Top Five Must-See Shows This Weekend

Curious about what's going on around town this weekend? Need some suggestions where to rock, dance, or krump in the Valley of the Sun? Don't fret: These are our Five Shows to See This Weekend.

Slashed Tires @ Trunk Space

Michelle Blades Bids Phoenix Farewell With Ambient-Electro Collaboration With Scenery

See also: Songwriter Michelle Blades Walks a Tightrope See also: Michelle Blades Streams Album, MarianaIn this week's issue, we discuss Valley singer/songwriter Michelle Blades, and her delicate balance between riot grrrl verve and orchestral grandeur. We ended up with more material than we could fi ... More >>

Product Review: Southern Comfort Bold Black Cherry

We never really had a problem with the original Southern Comfort. Sweet and interesting, the spiced liqueur served its purpose as the standard cola mixer, and even made its way into the occasional cocktail. Then they started coming out with new flavors, like lime and pepper, which confused us -- if ... More >>

Stephen Steinbrink Leaves Arizona With a Pop Record About Arizona

Like nearly everyone in Phoenix, songwriter Stephen Steinbrink (you may recognize his project name French Quarter as well) has a love/hate relationship with the city. It's easy to love the pockets of true community, the DIY art-spaces, punk rock house shows, and the affordable, delicious Mexican foo ... More >>

New Pub and Grill With "One Hell of a Martini," Kelly's at Southbridge, Opens in Old Town

A 30-foot ficus tree, a patio lined by French Quarter gas lamps and an eight-foot ivy wall, and, as their Facebook page states, a "man cave" and "one hell of a martini," will be a few of the focal points at Kelly's at Southbridge, the new American pub and grill at 7117 East Sixth Avenue in Old Town, ... More >>

Happy Birthday Arizona: 100 Songs that Define Arizona, Pt. 4

Editor's Note: An abridged version of this article appears in this week's issue, featuring 100 Songs that Defined Arizona. In celebration of Arizona's centennial, we've rounded up sound clips for (almost) everything featured in our list. Thanks to everyone who submitted song suggestions, all of our ... More >>

100 Years of Music That Defined Arizona

Cassette County: Three Local Cassette Labels

In 2010, Billboard Magazine's annual album sales evaluation read thusly: physical sales were sinking like a septic tank full of concrete, except for vinyl. Sales of records were up 14 percent to 2.8 million units that year. Don't go proclaiming vinyl an industry savior. It's hardly enough to resusci ... More >>

Year in Review, Kickstarter, Top 15 Local Releases in This Week's Issue

​In this week's issue of New Times, I join our friends in café, art, and stage in a look back on 2011, observing trends and noting the good, the bad, and the ugly of the year in the review. I focused on the crowd-funding site Kickstarter. We featured a couple Kickstarter projects this year, (my ... More >>

Top 10 Albums of 2011: Chase Kamp

Peaking Lights​Welcome to another installment of Up on the Sun's 2011 Review. Over the next couple days we'll be counting down our favorite songs, shows, national and local releases of 2011. This entry comes from Chase Kamp, a Phoenix musician and writer. Kamp began writing for Up on the Sun w ... More >>

French Quarter Tour Diary - Week 1

​I won't attempt to explain the amalgam of esoteric in-jokes that manifested into the tour poster seen above. There's a perfectly good but lengthy explanation for why the four of us chose to put John Fogerty's head on a French Quarter t-shirt, gave him dice for eyes and exhorted the viewer to ... More >>

French Quarter 'Desert Wasn't Welcome' Release Show and Tour Diary

B. Schwenkler​Phoenix-based pop band French Quarter has a new record out, Desert Wasn't Welcome, and the band is heading out on tour to support it. Recorded at Dub Narcotic Sound System in Olympia, Washington, home base for K Records, and finds the trio incorporating elements of dance, dub, and ... More >>

Andrew Jackson Jihad's Sean Bonnette on Knife Man and Gawker

​Well, he's done it. Sean Bonnette, one half of Valley mainstays Andrew Jackson Jihad, lover of hip-hop, passionate defender of all things Phoenix, has moved away. But don't get up in arms. "This is just a temporary thing," Bonnette says of his recent move to Chicago to be with his girlfriend. ... More >>

You Can Stream the New French Quarter Album Right Now

French Quarter, The Desert Wasn't Welcome​ Phoenix indie-poppers French Quarter have a new album due out on Off Tempo Records in October, but lucky you: you can hear the whole thing right now. Recorded at the indie-famous Dub Narcotic Studios in Olympia, Washington, the album is the latest in a ... More >>

Andrew Jackson Jihad Announce Knife Man

​Everyone's favorite sardonic folk duo, Andrew Jackson Jihad, have announced details regarding their new album, Knife Man, due out on Asian Man Records on September 20.I spoke with bassist Ben Gallaty about the new record."Sean [Bonnette, singer/guitarist] gave me a CD of 13 demos in December. The ... More >>

Abstinence, French Quarter, Tacocat, and Forever at YOBS, 6-27-11

Taco Cat​ Abstinence, French Quarter, Tacocat, and ForeverYOBS in TempeMonday, June 27The cops who patrol the Farmer neighborhood handing out noise violations can rest a little easier at their posts. Last night, YOBS, a.k.a. Ye Olde Bike Saviours, a.k.a. Tempe's noisiest punk rock house venue/art ... More >>

Yellow Canary Dance Hall To Take Over Warehouse Venue Sound Kontrol

Steinbrink is opening a venue, not pizza store.​With the folks over at Cityslaang and YOBS closing doors, musician Stephen Steinbrink (French Quarter) and James Fella, of Gilgongo Records, have stepped up to the plate with Yellow Canary Dance Hall, scheduled to take over warehouse venue Sound ... More >>

Record Store Day Round Up 2011 : Phoenix Stores Offer Up Exclusives, Live Performances and More on RSD

​"Folks who work here are professors. Don't replace all the knowers with guessors -- keep'em open -- they're the ears of the town." - Tom Waits, on the important of independent record stores. If you're a nerd like me, April 16 isn't just another Saturday. It's Record Store Day, the day independent ... More >>

Cafe Du Monde Coffee & Chicory

Cafe Du Monde's Coffee & Chicory ​We love trying new coffees and energy drinks around town, but sometimes, we want to brew our own java, and the most popular brands of coffee don't really float our boats. It wasn't until we picked up a can of Cafe Du Monde Coffee & Chicory that we truly f ... More >>

Becky Windels' Smoked Trout Beignets

Courtesy of The Herb Box​Yesterday we talked to Chef Becky Windels of The Herb Box in Scottsdale. Today, she shows us how to prepare one of the restaurants signature appetizers, Smoked Trout Beignets. A beignet is a fried pastry ball, often served as a dessert with powdered sugar or jam. ... More >>

Top 25 Lists of 13 New Times Contributors

Locals Only: The Best Albums and EPs From Valley Bands in 2010

Bastille Day Dinner and Ice Cream Sandwiches in Today's Eater's Digest

www.sophistimom.com​Hungry for your early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives?Bastille Day at Cheuvront Phoenix has yet to develop a French Quarter, but that doesn't mean you there isn't anywhere to celebrate the French holiday, Bastille Day. Tonight Cheuvront in Phoe ... More >>

French Quarter Releases New Record, Heads Out on Tour

​Looks like Stephen Steinbrink has decided to "get the band back together." May 17 marks the release date of It's Not Just Kissing and marks the full-length return of French Quarter, the "band name" under which Steinbrink recorded and toured for several years. Steinbrink, aided in concert by ... More >>

How Treme Can Get It Right

The Rÿche

Stephen Steinbrink, a.k.a. French Quarter, Is Hyper-Productive

Stinkweeds Offers a Killer Comp of Local Music for Record Store Day

The unique CD artwork for Phoenix: We Love It Just in case you weren't already enticed into participating in tomorrow's Record Store Day after reading Steve Jansen's and Michael Lopez's scribblings on the nationwide event (which celebrates the independent spirit of mom-and-pop music emporiums), we ... More >>

Joking Off

Andrew Jackson Jihad brings serious sing-along

A Rundown of Today's Light Rail Celebrations (Both Official and Unofficial)

Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers are scheduled to perform this afternoon at the "Destination Tempe" celebration at the Tempe Transportation Center."I hear the train a-comin'/It's rolling round the bend" -- Johnny Cash Plenty of partying is planned for today's long-awaited debut of the Valley Metro L ... More >>

Happy Thanksgiving, Again

Every day is Turkey Day for Portland folk-rocker

Podcast & Local Label Spotlight: Tiny Panda Records

French Quarter

S/T
(Gilgongo Records)

Group Hug

Friends don't let friends jam alone

Joking Off

Andrew Jackson Jihad brings serious sing-along

Crescent Fresh

The cafe that foot traffic forgot

Top Brass

The Big Easy lives on in the music of the transplanted Treme Brass Band

Drear Factor

Running on empty

New Deal

Poker Ride stacks the deck

Al Green

I Can't Stop (Blue Note)

Best Creole/Cajun Restaurant

Justin's Ragin' Cajun Cuisine
13416 North Cave Creek Road, Phoenix
602-404-2900

Second Helpings

HARD-CORE ADDICTSPOISED ON THE BRINK OF BIG TIME, THE PHUNK JUNKEEZ STILL LIKE IT LOUD AND STUPID

TIDAL TRACK

WHAT'S THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY?

THE PROBLEM FOR CRITICS AND JAZZ POLICE IS NO PROBLEM TO HARRY CONNICK JR. HE'S CROONING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK.

BOXING YOUR EARS

IF YOU'VE GOT CASH IN YOUR WALLET AND TIME ON YOUR HANDS, BOXED SETS ARE FOR YOU