SAT 2/12 With plenty of cold nights left until the spring thaw, keep yourself warm at Fetish Revolution 5 on Saturday, February 12, at the Paper Heart, 750 Grand Avenue. Owners Jen and Scott Sanders will probably leave the heater off during the steamy soiree, with enough glimpses of the…
SAT 2/12 The tough chicks of Arizona Roller Derby aren’t your typical suckers for Valentine’s Day. In fact, give a Roller girl a rose, and she might just crush your heart. No, really, she might just rip the pulsing muscle out of your chest and blade right over it –…
It finally happened. After nearly a decade of trying — of awakening at the crack of dawn, crouching in my chilly, parked car for hours on end, and enduring the steely glares of a crush of bitter book collectors — last February I was first in line at the Volunteer…
One should expect little from the man who has directed an Olsen Twins movie (It Takes Two, the one with Steve Guttenberg, no less), Matthew Perry’s first Friends-to-film entry (Fools Rush In, its title an apparent nod to audiences who went to see it), and Sweet Home Alabama, one of…
Sometimes it takes a mellow evening out on the town to balance out your usual debauched nights, especially after Valentine’s Day. Lift your spirits at PAINT at the Paper Heart (750 Grand Avenue) on Tuesday, February 15. Host Even-Steven is on hiatus for the month, so guest LC will preside…
Okay, kids, hope you’ve been watching MTV and reading your “Next Big Thing” issue of Revolver, because it’s time for an Atreyu pop quiz! Answers at the bottom (no cheating!). 1. Orange County quintet Atreyu is named after the hero of the 1984 fantasy film ______ . 2. British post-punk…
It seems like everything written about the Blood Brothers includes the phrase “disaffected youth.” The general context is that the band’s songs speak to jaded youngsters and give the kiddies something relatable to grasp onto. That’s lame. The last time youth were accurately depicted as disaffected was when flannel dominated…
It was bound to happen, but still took me by surprise. In the February 1 New York Post’s infamous Page Six, there was my homie Conor in the “Sightings” section. “Lou Reed backstage at Town Hall congratulating indie darling Conor Oberst on his band’s third straight sold-out show there.” As…
Yeah, he won still another term in the November general election, but there’s reason for hope that Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s days in office may be numbered. This just in: A recall committee that includes several prominent defense attorneys and the founders of the political action group Mothers Against…
SAT 2/12 She can flex her rippled six-pack one pop at a time. She wrote a book titled The Gut Book! Learn How to Lose Weight and Flaunt a Waist Like Mine!. But Nakarát (née Jennifer Gerhardt) isn’t a fitness instructor. She’s a teacher and performer of “Raks Sharqi” (“Dance…
THU 10 If the organizers of the fourth annual Arizona Black Film Showcase achieve their mission statement — “to become the premier, national media arts event dedicated to supporting black film professionals” — Phoenix could hatch a Spike Lee for the 21st century. On Thursday, February 10, three local indie…
Thursday 10 Acme Roadhouse: College Night with DJ J. Alan (Top 40) Ain’t Nobody’s Bizness: DJ Suzy (hip-hop, dance) Anderson’s Fifth Estate: Area 51 with AKA (gothic, industrial) Axis/Radius: DJ MCB (hip-hop, dance) Big Fish Pub: Reggae Thursdays with Selector J-Cut & DJ Blackstar (reggae, dance hall) Dos Gringos –…
What else can you say about an indie band that’s suddenly on every TV show still hosting live music? Or about a lead singer like Isaac Brock, who goes on several national shows and doesn’t even try to disguise the big, nasty shiner on his right eye? What happens when…
A favorite critics’ punching bag for decades, Dennis DeYoung has become something of an antihero for his former detractors ever since VH1’s Behind the Music: Styx special put his inspired lunacy in context. With the Kilroy Was Here tour, he single-handedly destroyed one of the top-grossing arena bands by hinging…
The statistics are sobering: Suicide is the third leading cause of death for people between the ages of 15 and 24; each year in the United States, more people die by their own hand than by homicide; and, most tragically, 90 percent of suicides result from undiagnosed yet very treatable…
Yes, Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings, and yes, George Harrison had a thriving solo career, most of it on his own Dark Horse Records, after the Beatles called it a day. This DVD — also gone solo after originally being included as a bonus disc in last…
With their debut, Gallowsbird’s Bark, New York’s Fiery Furnaces made the best two-person indie-blues CD in 2003 that didn’t feature someone surnamed White. For a follow-up 10 months later, they released Blueberry Boat, a complicated, intermittently brilliant departure from indie blues that didn’t feature someone surnamed Zappa but sounded like…
There are punk rock bands, and then there are PUNK ROCK bands. Out of New York City comes Endangered Feces. Now, I gotta admit, I’ve known their singer, Jay Levitz, for quite some time. In fact, when I first met him, he was the roadie for one of my favorite…
Mediate This Maybe they can smell the despair: How do men like Gary Karpin keep happening in Arizona (“Dr. Buzzard,” Paul Rubin, January 27)? It seems like this kind of con man is a rampant problem in this state, particularly in the Valley of the Sun. Thanks to Paul Rubin…
Y’all are gonna think I’m crazier than Houston plucking his eyeball out in that London hotel room, but I’m here to spit the truth like Twista, Jesus, Buddha and Kanye West, and that truth is: Most strip clubs bite big, hairy camel balls. Now, no one loves lookin’ at nekkid…
Does Phoenix really need another steak house? That’s what pops to mind considering the recent arrival of the swank, upscale Donovan’s near 32nd Street and Camelback. I mean, if there’s anything you can say definitively about Phoenix, other than the temperature of the sidewalk in August, it’s that we’re one…
WED 2/9 Many a music fan has declared Hank Williams III to be more about image than talent. They’ve accused the Misfits-loving, tattoo-wearing cowpunk of milking the hellbilly persona of a hard-drinkin’, Southern-fried outlaw, labeled him a novelty act, and sentenced him to forever toil in the shadow of grandpappy…
