Modesty is not one of Crazy Angie’s better virtues. The charmingly foul-mouthed host of the weekly Goldfish Races at Giligin’s, 4251 North Winfield Scott Plaza, is rude, crude and brimming with attitude. Oh, and she’s also smoking hot to boot. Crazy Angie acts as equal parts referee and roastmaster of…
Calling the warehouse space where Mesa-based band The Rÿche rehearses a “practice space” doesn’t seem fair. Behind heavy metal doors, the room is equipped with a full stage, lined with couches, gig posters, and a sound system that actually puts those at some Valley clubs to shame. In front of…
When it comes to Cinco de Mayo celebrations, Phoenix knows what it’s doing. The holiday has particular resonance in the United States, where General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín and his army’s unlikely defeat of French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862 is heralded as an important moment in the…
We’ve been living in the age of the mash-up for over a decade, with enterprising, savvy DJs stretching the limits of copyright and pop decency. Occasionally the results are brilliant, as with Dangermouse’s Grey Album. Other times, it’s simply a cut and paste job. Anyone remember Jay-Zeezer, which combined Weezer…
We’ve been living in the age of the mash-up for over a decade, with enterprising, savvy DJs stretching the limits of copyright and pop decency. Occasionally the results are brilliant, as with Dangermouse’s Grey Album. Other times, it’s simply a cut and paste job. Anyone remember Jay-Zeezer, which combined Weezer…
This month sees the release of two records featuring Ryan “Elvis Wong” Rousseau. The first is Sonoran, by Destruction Unit, seeing release via indie label Volar Records, and the second is a reissue of The Reatards’ debut Teenage Hate, an album Rousseau played drums on in 1998 with his friend…
Who’s ready for a fight?! I’m sure that there’s not actually any bad blood between Tempe-based soul/funk band Black Carl and indie-rockers Gospel Claws, but it’s fun to imagine the two bands climbing into the vintage boxing ring at The Duce to settle a score and duke it out. Sure,…
The Beastie Boys have been pumping out some of the best promotional blitz I’ve ever seen for their new record, Hot Sauce Committee Pt. 2, out yesterday in stores and online. In addition to the incredible Fight for Your Right Revisited short film, staring Seth Rogen, Elijah Wood, Danny McBride,…
Everyone knows “Tequila,” the 1958 hit by the California combo The Champs, even if they don’t know the name of the band that recorded it. The song was originally cut as a toss-away b-side for rockabilly artist Dave Burgess’ single “Train to Nowhere.” But it was “Tequila,” written by songwriter/saxophonist…
Day 3, McDowell Mountain Music Fest Compound GrillSunday, May 1, 2011Last night, I stood at The Compound Grill bar watching the president deliver a speech about the death of Osama Bin Laden, as the sounds of Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros wafted in from the open doors. The band…
Crusher Sound System, Mr. Meeble & more. Sail Inn Saturday, April 30 You know, the old substance over style debate can get a little old. Isn’t it possible to have both? It sure seemed like it watching Mr. Meeble on the outdoor stage at Next Fest at Sail Inn last…
Dirty Beaches, Outro Mundo, Where Dead Voices Gather The Trunk Space Friday, April, 29 2011 My favorite review of Dirty Beaches’ latest LP, Badlands, is also the most negative one I’ve read. In a review for Dusted Magazine, Doug Mosurock states: So, the ’50s sucked, right? They sucked pretty hard…
The Meat Puppets released a new album, Lollipop, back in April, and Pitchfork TV has debuted a video for their song “Orange,” a particularly driving psych-rock with Cris Kirkwood’s heavy bass leading the charge, from the record. The stop-motion animated video, directed by Michael Etoll, is damn twisted, too. Chock…
I love NPR as much as the next fella (gotta get my Car Talk on), but every now and then their media coverage highlights something truly unique –case in point, last March, Sami Yenigun ran this story about moombahton, a DC-bred brand of dance-music that encompasses elements of electro, Dutch…
Gardens & Villa, Factories and Hello the Mind ControlThe Trunk SpaceWednesday, April 27Sometimes it doesn’t take a packed room full of sweaty bodies to have a dance party.Sometimes it just takes the right band and the right fans. Santa Barbara band Gardens & Villa brought the funk to Trunk Space…
THURSDAY 28 27th Avenue Bar: DJ Manage, & DJ Android (Top 40, dance) Afterlife: Thumpin Thurzdays (various) AZ/88: Josh One (rare groove, urban funk) Bar Smith: Splash Thursday (reggae, dancehall, Top 40, house) Bikini Lounge: DJ Shane Kennedy (jazz, blues, country, R&B, rarities, vintage) Blue Martini: Rewind Thursday with DJ…
In his review of their 2008 self-titled album, Mike McGonigal of Pitchfork said of the Brooklyn band Crystal Stilts, “rock ‘n’ roll is theft.” He meant it as a compliment. The ‘Stilts do not reinvent the garage pop wheel, but they do play it exceedingly well. Fitting comfortably in the…
McDowell Mountain Music Festival has quickly become one of the Valley’s most popular music festivals. This year’s installment looks to continue the tradition set up by years past, mixing jam bands with rising indie acts. Day one features blues-rocker JJ Grey and Mofro, Martin Sexton, Shawn Johnson and the Paper…
The late Bill Hicks was misunderstood, even long after his premature death from pancreatic cancer. Case in point: In 1993, David Letterman chose not to air a controversial standup segment on The Late Show after caving into pressure from CBS executives unhappy Hicks’ jokes about religion and the handicapped. More…
When it comes to Cinco de Mayo celebrations, Phoenix knows what it’s doing. The holiday has particular resonance in the United States, where General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín and his army’s unlikely defeat of French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862 is heralded as an important moment in the…
Considering the sheer volume of music we’re exposed to on a daily basis, it’s easy to forget that songs can be more than a distraction or a catchy beat. For Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, music was less a pastime and more an anchor, a tool used to stay hopeful…
Dirty Beaches songwriter Alex Zhang Hungtai started with a desire to make films and, sure enough, his album Badlands feels like a movie, owing as much to filmmakers like Jim Jarmusch, David Lynch, and Wong Kar-Wai as it does to his musical influences, Suicide, Nebraska, and lonesome Roy Orbison pathos…
