Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker frontman David Lowery is royally pissed. Make that royalty pissed for the lack of compensation he’s received for the use of his songs on online webcasts, most notably Pandora. On June 23, The Trichordist, a website for artists for an ethical and sustainable Internet, ran…
With their beloved Spurs coming up painfully short in the NBA finals against the Miami Heat, San Antonio finds that its hoop dreams now fall to the WNBA’s Silver Stars, who come to town hoping their title run continues by defeating Western Conference rival Phoenix Mercury. However, knocking off the…
Nathaniel Martin Stroman received the nickname Earthquake because of the violent, shaking laughter his audiences experience. Okay, this may not be true in terms of how he got the name, but the results are the same — Stroman’s quick wit and explosive comedy about everyday life and his time in…
When it is hot out — this hot out, anyway — it’s easy to feel a little worn down by lunch time. But if a nap in the office cubicle is out of the question, how about a pick-me-up with Someday, a blast of Lunch Time Theater at the Herberger…
Wow . . . Talk about a time trip. As someone who lived through the ’80s and now accepts the inevitable hangover of artists such as Peter Murphy, The Cure, Psychedelic Furs, and Morrissey still in touring mode, I have a question for young artists today: Why? Why the fascination…
Musician and professional surfer Donavon Frankenreiter has been all over the world and seen his share of big waves. Still, he marvels at the daredevils who routinely tackle giant waves, including an estimated 100-footer recently surfed in Portugal. “It’s unbelievable what some of these guys do,” he says by phone…
It wasn’t until Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s seminal work on Paul Simon’s Grammy-winning Graceland that the world truly took notice of the South African a capella group, but the ensemble’s been on a cross-cultural journey from the moment the members came together in the early 1960s. In the years since, they’ve…
Tossing cans, bottles, paper, and cardboard in the recycling bin each week is awesome, but really, you’ve got nothing on Marco Albarran and Jose Benavides. These local artists up the recycling ante by providing cast-off and discarded objects new lives as art. These works also offer the remaining traces of…
Fans of Brian Setzer Orchestra and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy will be happy to know that it looks like swing dancing is due for a comeback. The Arizona Lindy Hop Society formed to create an outlet where new fans of this 1920s and ’30s vintage music and dance form could…
The Refreshments are back. The fizzy, fuzzy, big, and buzzy ’90s band behind the hit “Banditos” is scheduled to reunite for one show only — but not in their home state or even their home country. The good news is that the gig is only as far away as Puerto…
The Refreshments are back. The fizzy, fuzzy, big, and buzzy ’90s band behind the hit “Banditos” is scheduled to reunite for one show only — but not in their home state or even their home country. The good news is that the gig is only as far as Puerto Peñasco,…
Fifteen years ago VHI ranked Rickie Lee Jones number 30 on its top 100 female rockers list. It’s kind of funny really, because rock is a small fraction of Jones’ musical world these days. Starting out singing around Los Angeles, Jones’ big breakthrough was the mellow, jazz-infused “Chuck E’s in…
If the food is bad backstage when Cheap Trick plays Wild Horse Pass on May 31, this reporter isn’t to blame. In any case, after criss-crossing the globe for 40 years and playing enough exotic locations that anything from sushi to fried cassava to bull testicles could appear on the…
If you want to know what former Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland is up to these days, don’t bother visiting his website. It’s almost three years out of date, the music is spotty, and the images go in and out. Serious rehabilitation work is needed. Hmmm…
Arizona artist Ron Burns doesn’t paint dogs in bowler hats playing cards — that would be too easy. Focusing on man’s best friend at his best, worst, and when working hardest, Burns’ use of bright, Day-Glo-esque colors amazingly captures Fido’s personality and expression. Burns happened into this second career by…
If the third annual Ameri-Can Canned Craft Beer Festival has one goal, it’s to debunk the myth that canned beer doesn’t taste good. Brewer Gabe Wilson of San Tan Brewing, host of this year’s festival, tells it like it is: “There are still those out there who have negative perceptions…
Adding a new art gallery to the local scene is always a good thing, and R. Pela Contemporary Art celebrates in high style as owner (and New Times contributor) Robrt L. Pela welcomes visitors with an inaugural exhibition of new works from Hank Fries and Jake Fischer. Fries’ three-dimensional metal…
Is it an ominous sign when a band’s first gig is broken up and shut down? For Sundressed, it clearly was inspiration. When the Phoenix quartet’s first performance ended before it began, they went into the studio to record a self-titled EP. Their first official full-length, Whiskey with Milk, is…
Just because a former hardcore punker turned surf instructor decides to dump the angst for acoustic guitars, it doesn’t instantly make him a Jack Johnson shuffle artist. (And the world needs another Jack Johnson like I need a hole in my head.) Fronted by Andrew Heilprin, a surf instructor by…
There are reasons enough to grab a cold beer. With summer’s heat already beating down, that one’s a gimme. A new beer festival is another. From 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday, May 11, the inaugural Scottsdale Beer Festival brings together several dozen breweries from near and far for an evening…
Built to SpillCrescent BallroomMay 7, 2013 Built to Spill is something of an anomaly. Part grunge, part punk, part indie-rock quirkiness, the band encompasses all these elements without completely embracing any one for too long. That’s what made Built to Spill’s Crescent Ballroom show so appealing — this is a…
Sir Ernest Shackleton was one tough mother. Marooned by sea ice that destroyed his ship during the 1914 Trans-Antarctic Expedition, Shackleton and his crew survived a winter on meager rations, the occasional leopard seal (which tried to feed on them), cunning, and wits. Ultimately, the journey became a triumph of…
