Skybox who you might remember from their time in the Phoenix music scene a few years ago return to the Valley from their new home in Chicago for their first show in the area in over a year this week. The band takes on the music business in a way that may not get them rich anytime soon, but might be closer to a working paradigm for the future for bands of their scale. Give out music to anyone who might become a fan, whether actual physical copies of their second album of whimsical hooky pop Morning After Cuts or by semi-encouraging illegal downloads of their music on their website and focusing on other ways of monetizing their product. Their music is certainly entertaining enough in its recorded form, but the live show is energetic and theatrical in a way that would be familiar to any Of Montreal fan. If you're one those new media types who say free is the future of music, seeing Skybox this week might be a good way to put your presence where your positioning is and have some fun in the process.
Sat., Sept. 25, 9 p.m., 2010