Old 97's

Top Five Must-See Shows This Weekend in Phoenix

Awesome 'ish alert: Drake and Riff Raff are collaborating. Yeah, totally. Along the same lines: It's the weekend, and all sorts of great shows are scheduled for Phoenix. We've gone ahead and rounded 'em up for you, including a broken-hearted industrial party at the Rogue, a night of experimental mu ... More >>

Night Beds @ The Sail Inn

Mill's End @ The Rogue Bar

Top Five Must-See Shows This Week

Yeah, yeah, yeah...we get it Mondays suck (we've read Garfield). But it means the start of a new week, which means a bunch of killer shows in and around Phoenix. And here are a few of the coolest, our top five must-see shows this week.

Incoming: Blackstreet, Henry Rollins, Yelawolf, Brother Ali, and More

There's no diggity, no doubt that we're oddly delighted to hear that Blackstreet's hitting the road, and with Ginuwine, no less. These 90s R&B crooners are going to tear up the stage at the Celebrity Theatre with some of your favorite hits from around 15 years ago. Blackstreet's got us exc ... More >>

What's Selling: Hoodlums Top 10 Selling Albums of the Week

http://www.hoodlumsmusic.com​Washed Out's Within and Without topped last week's list at Stinkweeds. This week we look at what's selling at Tempe neighborhood music store Hoodlums. The independently-owned music and movie haven has been rooted in Tempe since 1998, when they first opened their ... More >>

Old 97's @ Martini Ranch

Incoming: Biffy Clyro, Crystal Stilts, Def Leppard, Journey, Old 97's, Cut Copy

Magnus BlikengCut Copy​There's plenty a fine show coming through Phoenix in the foreseeable future, so allow me to write about a show that has been announced for August 12 - Aussie synthpoppers Cut Copy. For those who may not be familiar with Cut Copy, they have released three albums so ... More >>

March 24 In Blogs: Eric Cox, Cut Copy, Citizen Public House, and a Mock Border Fence

​​​In the 24-hour news cycle, it can be difficult to keep up. We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times' blogs. Today's entries:

The Sound Strike's Spin on Their SXSW Panel, Old 97's and More from SXSW

The Sound StrikeArizona activist Leilani Clark, Sound Strike organizer Javier Gonzalez and rapper Immortal Technique pose after The Sound Strike panel at SXSW.​A day ago, I told you what happened at the panel discussion The Sound Strike hosted at South By Southwest. The group, which is organizing ... 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 >>

Six New Times Contributors Name Their Top 10 Records of 2010

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 >>

Nothing Not New: Podcast #10

Peter Storch​Oh, how we've missed podcasting to the music fans of the Valley. Well, music editor Martin Cizmar and I are back with a new one, with nine new-ish songs and lotsa banter about music, including the artistic achievements of Sufjan Stevens, a great new song by local band Gospel Claws, wh ... 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 >>

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 >>

Mill's End: Mill's End

​Artist: Mill's EndTitle: Mill's End, the band's self-titled, debut EP.Basics: Billed as a band that "carries on a tradition of American Alt-Country that blends modern influences with folk/Americana songwriting," Mill's End's sound is "firmly rooted in a style reflective of Drive By Truckers, Whis ... More >>

Odds 'n' Sods: Delta Spirit, Stereo Total, The Tallest Man on Earth, The Cringe, The Dig, and more

​Let's clear off the desk, shall we?Stereo Total: Baby Ouh! -- This band on the Kill Rock Stars label is a multi-lingual new-New Wave boy-girl band with songs sung in English, German, and French. It's quirky with a capital "Q" and not nearly as charming as it thinks it is. Still, most songs are un ... More >>

The Scourge of Aesthetic Atrophy, and the Top 50 Albums of the Aughts

Nothing Not New: We All Suffer from "Aesthetic Atrophy," But at Least I'm Getting Help

"If music be the food of love, play on. Give me excess of it . . ." -- Wm. Shakespeare ​ I recently received some bad news regarding a diagnosis. It's never easy to hear someone (especially an expert in his field) tell you that you have a serious problem, and it certainly wasn't easy this t ... More >>

Wilco Is Dave Matthews Band – And That’s Okay

Lucero Live: Why Country Music Needs Some Punk Blood

I love discussing music with our new Music Editor, Martin. More often than not we basically agree on most things. But I could not disagree more with his review of the Lucero show last night at the Rhythm Room. The first of my complaints is when talking about how the crowd was reacting (or the fact t ... More >>

You Asked For It: A Few Random Drunks

A Few Random DrunksWorld Famous County Wide(Self released)If you ask me, there's too many alt-country acts doing the Old 97s thing, and not nearly enough doing the Drive-By Truckers thing. Now, granted, I prefer the former to the latter, but unless you've got Rhett Miller's worn-denim vocals -- and ... More >>

Phoenix’s Best Records of 2008

You Asked For It: Tractor Pull Divas

Tractor Pull DivasLove Songs for (Insert Your Name Here)(Self released)I haven't been overly enamored of local alt-country bands since I started doing You Asked For It back in September. The New Westerns had a nice sound, but spotty vocals, and suffer from occasional self-indulgence. Instant Hobo ... More >>

Show Announcements: Junior Brown, Limbeck, David Banner, Davey Jones, The Verve Pipe

Bloodshot Eye Candy

Whose alt is it?

Lucero

Two fingers of punk and a splash of country-rock

The Damnwells

Palomar

Palomar III: Revenge of Palomar
(Self-Starter Foundation)

World Class Gad

Gadabout Film Fest makes its way in the reel world

Old 97s

Drag It Up
(New West Records)

Rhett Miller

Solo tour picks up new familiar steam

High School Confidential

Teen punk band Angry Dirty Sanchez finds itself in the principal's office

Ride On

With the release of their latest, the Old 97's put something good into the world

Retro No More

Singer-songwriter Neko Case and her musical pals bring country music out of the curio cabinet

Road Weary

The Grievous Angels bid goodbye with a bleak chronicle of a traveling band

Various artists

Down to the Promised Land: 5 Years of Bloodshot Records (Bloodshot)

Obsessions, Passions, Perversions

New Times music critics reveal their deepest, darkest record-buying secrets

Are You Coming With Us?

The Lo-Fidelity Allstars pose some dizzying musical questions with a riot of sounds and styles

Recordings

Harm's Way

Arizona Music Forum finally reaches local musicians with its first local jam

Calendar for the week

Miller's Crossing

The Old 97's form from wreckage of musical mishaps

Recordings