Osaka

Bartenders & Baristas: Carson Quinn at Roka Akor

GIGS GALORE

Sumitomo Wrestling

Government officials are crowing about the deal that brought Sumitomo's silicon-wafer factory to northeast Phoenix. But they haven't mentioned that the deal will cost taxpayers billions of dollars.

Edible Complex

Cibo Matto's avant pop is more about flava than flavor

Proto-metal gods Blue Cheer are making a racket as if it were 1967 all over again

Cibo Matto's avant pop is more about flava than flavor

Hot Links: Mental Health, Don Stapley, and Colonel Sanders

The National Alliance on Mental Illness gave Arizona's mental health care system a grade of "C,"which, sadly, is higher than the national average of  "D." Governor Jan Brewer has formed a special panel to address the subject at a hearing in May...A massive house fire near 47th avenue and Gl ... More >>

Xtreme Cuisine

Arizona's cunning culinary wizard Chef Kaz Yamamoto prepares taboo illegal moveable feasts for the elite and über-rich

Overlooked in '05

Ten great discs that were, shall we say, underserved by the media but are more than worthy of your money and close attention

Postal Modernism

Pushing the envelope

Turning Japanese

Desert drifters import "car surfing" to Arizona's hot streets

East Meets West

A weekend of cherry rides and zoot-suited friends

Breakfast Club

Two of the Valley's premier places for morning munching

Off the Rails

The Guns N' Roses tour collapses, and Axl folds. Is anyone really surprised?

Wargasm

L7 declares an all-out assault on Warped boys and Lilith Fairies with slap-happy

Concealed Weapons

Despite some misfires, The Pistoleros keep looking for a break and say that rumors of their demise are greatly exaggerated

Young, Gifted, Gay and Animated

Despite some misfires, The Pistoleros keep looking for a break and say that rumors of their demise are greatly exaggerated

Shonen Knife at Plush in Tucson

Jonathan McNamaraNaoko Yamano of Shonen Knife​Here at Up on the Sun, we're constantly shaking our fists in frustration watching band after band head to Tucson and pass us by. Last night, we rebelled. If Tucson's going to take our bands, we're going to take Tucson! At least that was the sentime ... More >>

Cafe: Modern Burger and Other Valley Steak Places Serving Up Sliders

​We came to appreciate tasty burgers during our stint as freelance journalistic Japan-o-philes in Osaka. Think good sushi is hard to find in the Valley? Try finding a decent slider amid the ramen stalls and kaitenzushis in O-town. While we were in the Land of the Rising Sun, steak houses star ... More >>

Drum Major

International performing percussionist sires sounds

Toybox Debuts Stay Alive and Kicks Off National Tour

Jonathan McNamaraToybox performing at Matsuri at Heritage Square in Phoenix​When one thinks of Japanese punk, exotic locales like the hard-hitting streets of Osaka come to mind. Well think again, gaijin. Turns out the Valley's got its own J-punk band called Toybox and they're releasing a brand ... More >>

Anarbor Are Recovering on the Warped Tour After Bombing in Japan

Jonathan McNamaraToybox performing at Matsuri at Heritage Square in Phoenix​When one thinks of Japanese punk, exotic locales like the hard-hitting streets of Osaka come to mind. Well think again, gaijin. Turns out the Valley's got its own J-punk band called Toybox and they're releasing a brand ... More >>

Okonomiyaki from Nobuo at Teeter House

David SydiongcoOkonomiyaki from Nobuo at Teeter House​Tired of the same old tired orange chicken and California rolls? Want to venture beyond the standard suburbian-stale take-out? Here comes Chop PHX, with the Valley's rarer Asian offerings.  This Week: Okonomiyaki from Chef Nobuo Fukuda ... More >>

Authority Zero Is Turning Japanese

​I really think so. It's been a busy year for Mesa's leading reggae/punk export, Authority Zero. The band is in the midst of a national tour that includes a date at Marquee Theatre on November 5, which will be a hometown sendoff of sorts before the band heads to Japan at the end of the month ... More >>

Darren King of MuteMath on Music Videos, Japan, and Being "Chrish"

Claire Vogel​We're legit bummed that X103.9's Bush and MuteMath show was cancelled, but since it would have been tonight, we decided that our interview with MuteMath is definitely still worth a read. Mutemath drummer Darren King had a lot to say about stop motion photography, comparisons to the Bl ... More >>