Toby Keith

Music Fests Like Coachella Drive Concert Sales to New Heights

The "Okie From Muskogee" Has Always Been a Populist

10 Best Country Bars in Metro Phoenix

Practically every Western film one can think of has at least one saloon scene, a place where the sound of honky tonk piano creates the mood, where the town folk mix with the cowboys and ranchers, the gamblers and outlaws rub shoulders with the Marshall and his deputies, and the mustachioed bartende ... More >>

Authority Zero- Working on Eighth Album and Headed to Mesa in November

Mesa reggae/punk outfitAuthority Zero has come a long way in the past decade. 2002 marked the release of the band's first full-length album, A Passage in Time, and the start of a relentless tour schedule. The band went from playing free, intimate shows at Zia Records to a few years at Warped Tour an ... More >>

Merle Haggard, Wild Horse Pass Casino, 9/21/12

Merle Haggard @ Wild Horse Pass Casino | Friday, September 21, 2012 We pity the grim reaper on the day he comes to collect the soul of Merle Haggard, because the iconic country musician won't be going anywhere without putting up a major fight. Without a speck of hyperbole, Haggard is a legitimate ... More >>

10 Black Pop Stars Who Should Go Country

See also: Q&A: Darius Rucker: "Even If I Wasn't Playing It, I'd Be Listening to Country." See also: Seven of Music's Most Beautiful Mustaches to Inspire Your Mustache Movember Growth [Editor's note: Country Time is a new biweekly column for our sister music blog in Seattle, celebrating that city's ... More >>

Incoming: The Jacksons, Rush, The Temptations

If there will ever be another hologram worth talking about this year, it'll be Michael Jackson on this year's Unity Tour. The Jacksons are hitting the road for their first tour together in nearly 30 years, and even though we're joking about a glowing vision of Michael belting out Ben, the show will ... More >>

Big & Rich and Jake Owen at Country Thunder in Florence, 4/13/12

See also: The Five People You Will Meet at Country Thunder Country Thunder Canyon Moon Ranch in Florence, Arizona Friday, April 13, 2012 I'm not superstitious, but it's hard to brush off the supreme bad luck I had on Friday the 13th, attempting to drive my Nissian Maxima to Day 2 of the four-day c ... More >>

The Five People You'll Meet at Country Thunder

Two years ago, yours truly embarked on finding a real country experience that didn't lead me into the backwoods of some quaint southern town, but rather out into a barren field in Florence. I was alone. I was scared. I was wearing flip flops, at the risk of getting my tootsies stomped by the cowboy ... More >>

New Film Queens of Country Has a Bizarre Vibe That Is Distinctly Arizona

New Year's Eve Guide: What Do to Do on the Biggest Night of the Year

"El Gatillero," Spanish-language Radio Personality, Celebrates 13 Years on the Air

​David Palacios "El Gatillero," one of Phoenix's favorite Spanish-language radio personalities, is celebrating his 13-year anniversary of being on the Valley's airwaves. "El" Gatillero" has been entertaining the Hispanic community in Phoenix on La Nueva 105.9, which airs from Monday through Frid ... More >>

Rope Opera

May 2 In Blogs: Osama bin Laden, Steampunk, Toby Keith, Eddie Matney, and Public Masturbation

​​​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:

Lords of the Ring

Denim & Diamonds Opens This Weekend

When the nightlife gods taketh away a country bar in Mesa, they ultimately giveth one as well.Mere weeks after AZ Country USA closed its doors, the good ol' folks behind Graham Central Station are opening a brand new boot-scootin' bunker this Friday on the opposite end of the city. It's called Denim ... More >>

AZ Country USA in Mesa Closes Its Doors

​It looks like AZ Country USA has ridden off into the sunset. The proprietors of the cowboy-themed bar and nightclub in Mesa posted a message on its Facebook page last week stating that the establishment has closed after only a mere four months of existence. "To EVERYONE I am sorry to say AZ Co ... More >>

Junction 10 Singer Robert Perez Ain't Your Typical Singer

Jimmy Eat World

Josh Turner

Kanye West, Sonic Youth, Conor Oberst, Rise Against: The SB1070 Boycott is Officially On, Everyone!

​Pitchfork is reporting that Rage Against The Machine singer Zack de la Rocha has secured commitments to boycott Arizona from Kanye West, Sonic Youth, Conor Oberst, Massive Attack, Rise Against, Tenacious D, Joe Satriani and others.Word comes from his new organization, The Sound Strike which as wh ... More >>

David Allan Coe Coming to Celebrity Theatre

How's this for pleasant coincidence: David Allan Coe, arguably country music's ultimate outlaw is finally coming to Phoenix again. Yup, the same DAC who is Today's Soundtrack just announced a date at Celebrity Theatre on October 8.You may recall that the 70-year-old's scheduled show at The Last Exit ... More >>

Incoming: Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato, American Idol, Lilith Fair, Limp Bizkit

These young people play popular rock music.​Zomg, you guys! This week's show announcements include the Jonas Brothers with Demi Lovato. If that news doesn't make your day, then I don't know what to tell you. What's that you say? Jonas Brothers not quite your bag? Well then let Limp Bizkit, Ice Cub ... More >>

AZ BBQ Festival, Pigs & Pinot, School Gardens, AZ Asian Festival, and National Fondue Day in Today's Eater's Digest

An early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives. ​ Get ready for a busy weekend, folks. With so much going on around the Valley it's going to be hard to choose what to miss! First up is the Arizona Barbecue Festival, happening Saturday, April 10th at the Scottsd ... More >>

Heidi of Christie's Cabaret Tempe

Benjamin LeathermanClick "More" for an undistorted peek. Welcome to Stripper Songs, a weekly feature that proves not all Phoenix strippers bump and grind to Warrant's "Cherry Pie" of Flo Rida's "Low." Scan the Internet for the top stripper songs of all time, and chances are you'll happen upon list ... More >>

Gin Blossoms, Blessthefall, The Love Me Nots and More Have Big Plans for the Valley

What does a band do if its tour bus hits a deer? Ask Blessthefall, who at least pretend to deal wit that situation in the latest dispatch from the Bangover tour, currently selling out shows in Canada. How do we know it's Canada? Just listen for the part where the band goes on and on about finding a ... More >>

August 17 In Blogs: Minuteman, Pussycat Doll Ashley Roberts, Foie Gras, and Bugatti Veyron

​​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: Feathered Bastard: Minuteman CEO Carmen Mercer Named in Arizona Attorney General Lawsuit Over Fraudulent Scam ... More >>

10 Things Under $10 This Weekend: Youth Brigade, Harry Potter, and Latin Beats

Harry Potter tribute band The Remus Lupins are scheduled to perform at the Scottsdale Public Library's Mustang Branch on Saturday. Who says there's nothing to do during the summertime besides planting yourself in front of either the television or the air conditioner? Certainly not us, since we've a ... More >>

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 >>

Josh Turner

Hitsville: The Year in Music, by the Numbers

By Randall Roberts You don't need a half-wit music critic to tell you it's been a remarkable year for America, one historians will be discussing and researching for centuries to come. War, financial collapse, politics, technology: All have been dinner-table topics for many Americans. Racial barrier ... More >>

Change of Art

Rock icon goes . . . hip-hop?

Tour de farce: the corporate-sponsored tours we don’t want to buy tickets to

This just in: Musicians also use performance-enhancing drugs

Patriot Pop Quiz

No Googling

Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music

Ten reasons to tune in country radio in 2006

Hank Williams III

A square genre in a round hole

Top 10 selling CDs from Circles Discs and Tapes, 800 North Central Avenue

Chart-busters for the week

Down-Home Delights

Ten of the best from Nashville and elsewhere

Country Jams

The Tragically Hip

Tragically underrated

Vote for Change Tour

Activism, schmactivism: where's the real rock?

Darryl Worley

Have You Forgotten? (DreamWorks)

Battle Hymns

Iraq and roll don't go together well when rockers protest

Joe Nichols

Country boy croons from the heart

Steve Earle

Jerusalem (Artemis/E-squared)

Jorma Kaukonen

Blue Country Heart (Columbia)

Long Time, No CD

More than two years after the release of its debut, Gloritone sates fans with a stopgap disc of demo material

Pic Hits for the week

DO LOOK BACK

THE YEAR IN MUSIC: IT JUST DIDN'T GET MUCH BETTER (OR WORSE) THAN THIS