Those who say metal is all screaming and no melody clearly have never heard Children of Bodom, the Finnish five-piece that just released its fifth full-length album, Are You Dead Yet?, on Spinefarm Records. The follow-up to 2003’s Hate Crew Deathroll is full of guitar sweeps, killer keys and growling…
A new disc from the Rolling Stones is often cause for celebration. Not because the albums are any good — they’ve been shit since, oh, about 1981, right? — but because it means the band will be coming around on tour, and loyal fans will get to see Mick ‘n’…
Man, if you think Eminem had a rough upbringing, check out the backstory of Chris Palko, better known as rapper Cage: Born to a heroin-addicted Army father who made his young son help him shoot up, until he was arrested for threatening the family with a shotgun when Cage was…
In the annals of rock ‘n’ roll history, nothing matches the Rolling Stones’ 40-year-old reputation for sex, scandal and outrage. To see how well you know the Stones’ self-made legend, take the Shrapnel quiz on these raunchiest of rockers. The more answers you get right, the greater your, ahem, satisfaction…
Three of the Briefs’ four members recently took the time to briefly discuss their new album Steal Yer Heart, punk rock’s brevity, and the truth behind their songs “Genital General” and “My Girl (Wants to Be a Zombie).” New Times: Any downside to being so brief? Steve E. Nicks (guitarist):…
To celebrate 10 years in the concert promotion biz, Charlie Levy tried to give Phoenix a really cool present: a big indie rock festival, the city’s first. But without even saying thanks, Phoenix blew Charlie off. There’s got to be a reason the Grand Cayenne Music Festival — scheduled for…
Ali Jackson, big-shot jazz drummer extraordinaire, won’t claim encyclopedic knowledge of indie rock, but like all sensible Americans, he enjoys Pavement a great deal. “I like that hit that they had on MTV, that ‘Cut Your Hair,'” he enthuses. “It’s real catchy and real earthy, just playin’ around, like you…
Arizona State University president Michael Crow’s stepped up his campaign to turn the most populous main campus in the nation into America’s most sterile institution of higher learning. Having already neutered ASU’s unruly fraternity community and squashed any display of politically oriented window decorations in dorm windows (because college kids…
Maggie Voss cried as her 7-year-old son, Ryan, received a Student of the Month award from his school’s principal recently. The weeping was a little weird, but the other parents didn’t seem to notice. Some suburban moms tend to overreact to their babies’ accomplishments. That’s a given. It’s better than…
Punishment Park (New Yorker Video) This 1971 movie from director Peter Watkins could have been made yesterday, which is no doubt why it finally sees video release long after accruing cult status. Born of the filmmaker’s outrage over the Kent State killings, the war in Vietnam, and other abominations of…
Deep down, we all want money for nothing and chicks for free. Back in 1985, when Dire Straits first revealed this eternal truth, it seemed that any goofball with a DayGlo headband could pour himself into package-hugging spandex and become a rock star. But it turned out that noodling on…
There isn’t a single image of Phoenix in the “Big City: Cityscapes and Urban Life” exhibition at Phoenix Art Museum. Which is odd, seeing as how there are only a handful of cities in the country bigger than this one. Don’t we rate at least one tiny watercolor in a…
Cave Creek might as well be the dark side of the moon as far as this city mouse is concerned. I know, I know. It’s scenic and all that crap, but in my book, any area so lacking in streetlights is the sticks. And as I wend my way up…
Okay, so it’s a furniture store. But one of the most popular items for sale at IKEA is its two-and-a-half-pound bag of frozen Swedish meatballs, the very same meatballs that customers line up for at the store’s indoor cafes around the globe. But county health inspectors are busy trying to…
It’s getting near closing time at Tempe’s IKEA, and Kelli Quinn is inching farther away from the front entrance. Like some lonely patron in a smoky bar during last call, she’s hesitant to leave. But instead of horny drunks, Quinn is surrounded by screwed-together chairs and heat-veneered tables and polystyrene…
THU 17The iPod Nation has a seemingly insatiable craving for larger-than-life gaming. What’s The Amazing Race but a high-stakes Easter-egg hunt? What’s Fear Factor but an over-the-top game of chicken? The latest overgrown-kid craze is RoShamBo/Rock-Paper-Scissors, an extreme makeover of the kiddy contest that’s morphed into a fiercely competitive “sport.”…
Thursday 17Acme Roadhouse: College Night with DJ J. Alan (Top 40) Anderson’s Fifth Estate: Area 51 with DJ Jeremy (goth, industrial) Club Dwntwn: DJs Kirby and Chris Shannon (dance) e4: “Eve” Ladies’ Night in the Fire Room with DJ Tranzl8r (rock mash-ups) Garcia’s: Latin Dance Night (Spanish rock/pop, reggaeton, cumbia)…
Whereas most rappers make a name for themselves by slaying competitors in freestyle rhyme battles, MC Chris came up through strange circumstances: voicing a cartoon spider. Fans of the Cartoon Network’s cult favorite Adult Swim series should know Chris from his hyper-obnoxious voice as Hesh on Sealab 2021 and various…
Pop-punk boasts about as much intrigue these days as “blues-rock,” “rap-metal” and every other innocent-sounding compound that has grown into a stinky, world-dominating blob. For five years, Chicago’s Lawrence Arms have stayed interesting by being the Renaissance men of a genre that’s broader than our wary ears might recognize after…
East of El Segundo’s refineries and beachfront ghettos, Hawthorne, California, remains an unassuming musical bastion, home to the Beach Boys, pop wunderkind Emitt Rhodes, and Greg Ginn of Black Flag. It’s also the stomping grounds for dios (malos), Angelenos who share Brian Wilson’s love of druggy melodies and rich vocal…
Get geared up for a turkey coma by sampling some of the Valley’s most delicious bands, pitch in to feed the hungry, and get a scrumptious DVD of the show mailed right to your door — all for 10 bucks. Hosted by longtime Valley promoter Harold Morales, the first AZ…
Poor Paul McCartney: a Knight of the Realm, with a personal fortune of more than $1 billion, a new wife (an ex-model) and kid (to join his other three), and an early career so monumental that journalists still manage to perform critical fellatio while bashing him. You’ve got to feel…
