There’s literally nothing sexy about zombies. Even if a pack of undead creepsters was scantily clad, the whole gray-skin-and-sunken-eyes thing would deter most humans from making a move. Maybe that explains the resurgence of zombie appreciation in popular culture over the last few years. As costume manufacturers keep pumping out…
If you become the soundtrack to FX’s Portlandia, you’ve reached a new kind of hipsterdom. Or is it meta-hipsterdom? The semantics boggle the mind. The show satirizes the many eccentric personalities you’ll find in the “keep it weird” Oregon city, all of which could be considered hipsters on the sliding…
If you were to look at Chromeo’s online diary, you’d find it’s less about collected, coherent thoughts than it is about posting random photos of The Bee Gees, Seinfield’s puffy shirt, and Bill Clinton playing sax on The Arsenio Hall Show. You can’t help thinking that’s exactly how their songwriting…
Growing up you were always told not to judge a book by its cover, but judging a band by its name? That’s pretty easy. The Black Keys? They’re blues rock, of course. Spice Girls? The poppiest pop imaginable. Nickelback? Yeah, I suppose that combination of flavors would taste a lot like…
Dawes and Blitzen Trapper Crescent Ballroom Monday, October 10, 2011 When you catch onto a band in its early stages, they become bigger in your head than they actually are in real life. For me, one of those bands has always been Blitzen Trapper. Their indie folk sound is exactly…
Since the appearance of Janet Jackson’s nipple in 2004, the Super Bowl halftime show has taken it easy with a steady stream of harmless acts, ranging from the rarely controversial Paul McCartney to the hyperactive, now-hiatused Black Eyed Peas. You can’t blame them. After millions of children saw their first star-studded…
It’s impossible to not hate almost everything about Twilight. The books changed what “vampire” means to an entire generation. Now, it’s less about being an undead monster than it is about misunderstood hunks with sparkly pale skin. Then, the movies went on to solidify the idea that as long as a…
As a kid, Ian Christiansen spent more time playing video games and watching Star Wars than he did studying his Bible. When his parents suddenly decided to take him to Sunday school for a little religious education, the line separating the Death Star and Hell blurred. Jesus and He-Man were…
Once a year, Arizonans get to turn “You’re into that!?” into “Hey, you’re into that too?” Whips, chains, leather, and lace move from the bedroom onto the stage at the Arizona Fetish Ball. The event consists of way more than a group of sexual deviants watching girls suspended by their…
Each spring, thousands of music fans from all across North and South America load their cars with camping gear, illicit substances, and three days’ worth of clothes and head to Indio for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. It’s a yearly ritual that involves little showering, more than 100…
As a kid, a lot of things creep you out that really shouldn’t. Shower drains, primarily, along with cryptic pictures of Jesus Christ and, of course, clowns (John Wayne Gacy, Jr. being the exception.) Certain bands seem to play on that irrational childhood fear, making their music a year-round Halloween-style creepfest…
As Munich’s 17-day slosh-a-palooza wrapped up yesterday, it left us feeling a little empty. We didn’t celebrate Oktoberfest the proper way — by getting shithoused in lederhosen and violently gesturing toward the breasts of a beer wench with a full mug of god’s greatest nectar, all while listening to polka. (As…
Indie’s Viva Voce, the husband-wife duo of Anita and Kevin Robinson, never had to fall back on “being cute.” Music lead them to each other, not vice versa. They’ve toured extensively over the better part of the last six years, including a stint with The Shins and local boys Jimmy…
Thursday 29 27th Avenue Bar: DJ Manage (Top 40) Afterlife: Thumpin’ Thursdays (various) AZ 88: Josh One (various) Blue Martini: Rewind Thursday with DJ Mendez (hip-hop, dance, Top 40) Bobby Q’s: DJ Deuce (hip-hop) BS West: Intravenous Thursdays (goth, industrial, electronic, ’80s) Capitol Sports Lounge: DJ JS3 (various) Carly’s Bistro:…
At a time when Americans readily toted instruments of war, instruments of peace were close by, too. Between the Civil War and World War I, America saw much unrest and people turned to music as a means of escape. As piccolos, violins, guitars, banjos, and mandolins carved the sound of…
Love connections turned musical duos, like The White Stripes and Matt & Kim, often attract attention, but the unique chemistry sometimes steals the spotlight from the music itself. And, yeah, that often happens with Viva Voce, too. Everyone loves a love story, even if the band doesn’t particularly like to…
They’re here, they’re queer, and they’re celebrating. As you might expect, Phoenix’s annual Rainbow Festival is all about honoring the diversity of the local LGBT community, and not just the color spectrum. The annual event celebrates all races, ethnicities and sexualities with a colorful, high-spirited weekend that starts at 10…
Sophia Gunn has been spinning in the Valley for years, which is exactly how she learned to blend old and new elements. She brings her “younger” humble beginnings to some of the Valley’s hottest nights and mashes them with new technology to give her turntabling skills a fresh edge. She…
Love connections turned musical duos, like The White Stripes and Matt & Kim, often attract attention, but the unique chemistry sometimes steals the spotlight from the music itself. And, yeah, that often happens with Viva Voce, too. Everyone loves a love story, even if the band doesn’t particularly like to…
I can just picture it now. Thirteen seasons ago, each member of the Dancing With the Stars backing band hopped off a bus in Hollywood with stars in their eyes. Little did they know, they’d have the asses of chubby D-list stars in their peripheral sooner than they’d think. It’s another…
Sophia Gunn blends old and new professionally.She brings her “younger” humble beginnings to some of the Valley’s hottest nights and mashes them with fresh, new technology to give her turntabling skills new edge. She mixes vinyl with MP3’s. She has learned to adapt with the times. Now, she’s adapting to a…
Yesterday, R.E.M. announced the band’s breakup on their official website, and they did it in just about the classiest way possible. After 31 years, the Georgia rockers bowed out amicably, without “lawyers squaring off” or “disharmony,” they said. But we have a feeling there’s more to the story than the band feeling…
