As guitar maestro and frontman for Built to Spill, Doug Martsch has developed an instantly recognizable sound — soaring, layered guitars, pounding rhythm section, quirky lyrics — that often builds into a psychedelic frenzy. At least, that much characterized the band’s earlier output. For the band’s last two albums, You…
It’s easy to wonder why some bands continue to perform at all. Just look at all the formerly larger-than-life acts now relegated to the casino circuit. Ratt isn’t part of the casino circuit, but they once were larger than life. Essentially defunct by 2000, Ratt re-emerged in 2010 with original…
Brian Brooks lives in a psychedelic world — one filled with optimism. That’s evident in the artist’s first solo show “Now That Looks Like Fun: The Colorful Claw, Woof & Feathers of Brian Brooks & His Spectral Friends,” in which his artwork reveals a place full of anthropomorphic animals where…
It’s kind of like a game of Clue, a whodunit full of unexpected twists and turns, and ultimately some very surprising results. Except the audience “playing” Accomplice doesn’t have to pick cards and move board pieces. With subtle innuendo, sly manipulations, and a few dangerous weapons (words included), the Rupert…
Given the build-up over the Oscar Award-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man — the reason Sixto Rodriguez is only now getting his due, and the reason for a surprisingly large Mesa Amphitheatre audience — it seemed only fitting that the street poet and alternative folk-icon would open the show with…
I couldn’t understand a word Tinariwen were singing Monday night at Crescent Ballroom. I didn’t know a single song, and there was no set list to cheat from — and I couldn’t find anyone to ask about it. But I was completely blown away by the deep, rhythmic, heartfelt pulse…
When Portugal. The Man last came through town — just about a year ago — its Crescent Ballroom concert was the first after a lengthy break. The band had been touring almost nonstop for a year, so the idea was that some time off would renew the vigor they needed…
Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti was something of an enigma in Nigeria in the 1970s. Born to an aristocratic family and schooled in London, Kuti eschewed privileged life to reside with people suffering and combating a government indifferent to their needs. Mixing soul, jazz, funk, and indigenous rhythms, his music became…
In the social media era, it seems unfathomable that an artist, no matter how trivial, could completely disappear off the radar. In the 1970s, it was a different story entirely. Sixto Rodriguez was one musician who not only fell through the cracks but was thought by many to have died…
Tinariwen is the plural of ténéré, which simply means “desert” in the African language Tamashek. The name is fitting for these Sahara Desert musicians, and their music captures the beauty, hardships, longing, and isolation of their nomadic lifestyle. Tinariwen began in Libyan resistance camps in the 1980s when most members…
Fela Kuti was a man of many hats: Afrobeat pioneer, revolutionary, and outspoken crusader for political justice. Music was his weapon, a driving, pulsating, often hypnotic sound mixing jazz, soul, funk, blues and rock with Nigeria’s indigenous rhythms, which moved people spiritually and to action as much as it moved…
Put on almost any Rolling Stones record and it is instantly recognizable as the Rolling Stones. There is no mistaking the gritty sound and straight-up rock ‘n’ roll riffs. Now, put on a Portugal. The Man album. It, too, is instantly recognizable by the complex layers and textures in each…
No matter how urban the environment or sprawling the cityscape, every county fair is packed with local flavor. From livestock exhibitions to horticultural displays, Ferris wheels to roller coasters, jugglers and magicians to live concerts, such far-reaching fun is the joy of the Maricopa County Fair. While there are big…
How often does an event feature a map that one can plant and grow when finished? Probably not often, but such is the case with the Scottsdale Cultural Council’s Cycle The Arts, an organized, guided bicycle journey that will visit art installations in Scottsdale, Tempe, and Phoenix. The seed-impregnated map,…
Yellow Minute should never be confused with a New York minute. The atmospheric, psychedelic indie-pop band moves at a much slower pace. With dreamy atmospherics, gentle rhythms and drifting vocals, Yellow Minute is perhaps better for that late-night chill session than the shimmering club scene. At least, explains band founder…
Student artists should be recognized for their work. The artists whose work is displayed in “New Art in Arizona” will be. That’s thanks to a scholarship awards partnership between the Arizona Artist’s Guild and Shemer Art Center, 5005 East Camelback Road, where the exhibition is on view through Wednesday, May…
Ryan Leslie is a smooth operator. The rap/hip-hop artist’s rhymes melt like butter on toast — actually, given Leslie’s penchant for upscale video shoots in Paris and other exotic locales (“People ask me my address and I say global,” he raps on “Swiss Francs”), make that butter on a baguette…
There are an estimated 300 Grateful Dead tribute bands (by one website’s account), including the Tempe-based Xtra Ticket. But of all those bands, only Dark Star Orchestra actually play the Dead. Let us be a little clearer. DSO picks a Grateful Dead show from a list of thousands spanning the…
Hank Williams III (Hank 3 to those in the know) says Dale Watson is one of his favorite artists — a tried-and-true country artist — and goes so far to shout him out to audiences at virtually every concert. This appeal is easy to understand: Watson is a throwback to…
It’s hard to think of Phoenix as historic. While there has been a community of some sort in the Valley since the late 1800s, older structures were routinely demolished to make way for “progress.” Given the endless suburban sprawl and copycat strip malls on every other corner, what historic structures…
Golden, Colorado, features a bar called the Buffalo Rose. Bands are flanked on stage by stuffed standing polar and black bears. The walls are lined with animal heads. About 200 people squeeze inside. It’s where once-popular top-selling, stadium-filling bands go to die. Soul Asylum hasn’t yet played there, but the…
Those planning to attend but one fashion event this spring (and the Paris show is already over), might want to consider the high heels, glitter, champagne and outrageous, often in-your-face style of Mad Girl Productions’ Sugar Art and Fashion Show, “Sugar Does America 2,” hitting Phoenix Friday, March 29. The…
