Niki’s Weekend Word: Local Music News Wrap

I’ll admit it: I didn’t do jack this weekend. There were some cool shows going on, but this past weekend was the first one in several months where I decided to just hang completely low for two days in a row. But the local music scene charged on, and I did keep an eye on my incoming e-mails. Hence, this week’s (and the first ever) local music news wrap!

Various Artists

The movie may not be highbrow, but the Rocky Horror soundtrack contains some great songs. Of course, “The Time Warp” is timeless and essential listening for anyone who wants to learn how to do the Time Warp dance in the film, but so many of the 14 tracks here could…

Ying Yang Twins

The Atlanta crunk duo of Kaine and D-Roc (Ying Yang Twins) may be better known for their collaborations (the singles “Get Low” and “Salt Shaker” with Lil’ Jon, Britney Spears’ In the Zone album, their Chemically Imbalanced album with Wyclef Jean as producer), but the pair’s latest album, A.T.L. Holes…

Fetti Profoun

Let’s start off on a positive note: Fetti Profoun is an immensely talented rapper, capable of spitting 16 witty bars that could dust most competitors at MC battles. And the instrumentation and production here are stellar, from the smooth sitar sample that drives the song “Blue Skies” to the sexy…

Oh, the Rocky Horror!

Arriving at Chandler Cinemas on a recent Saturday night feels like walking into a subpar episode of The Twilight Zone. The strip mall that houses the cinema (along with a Target store) is huge, but at midnight on a weekend, the entire place is gloomy and dead quiet. When I…

Get Paul Westerberg’s new album for only 49 cents

Former Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg is offering fans his new album for only 49 cents. The Minnesota-based rocker has increasingly gravitated toward independent, experimental, basement-based recordings, and his new record, 49:00…Of Your Time/Life, is one long track with no song listings. Westerberg played all the instruments himself, and the sale price stems from a joke Westerberg made to his manager that fans would “pay a penny a minute.”

The DMX Rap Sheet: Arrested in Phoenix (again)

The legal woes continue for DMX, Phoenix’s most illustrious rap star/resident. As reported by The Associated Press, the 37 year-old rapper was arrested at Phoenix’s Metrocenter Mall on Saturday on suspicion of providing a false name (“Troy Jones”) and a fake Social Security number to the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale back in April, allegedly to avoid paying $7500 in medical bills.

Flier of the Week: Rava Flav

Usually, I like to post fliers for upcoming events in the “Flier of the Week” section. But this flier for a rave last weekend was just too good to pass up. Rock on with your clock on, Flava Flav!

Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival

Even with Ozzfest gearing up for another go, metalheads would be hard pressed to find a better festival bill this summer than the Rockstar Energy Mayhem tour. Slipknot — Iowa’s favorite (and probably only) Grammy-winning metal band — headlines the melee, with a barrage of badass metallers in tow, including…

Fracture Point

Phoenix metal band Fracture Point sounds like a mastodon stampede, but instead of directionless destruction, this beast intelligently winds its way through a well-constructed maze of down-tuned guitars, burly bass lines, screaming solos, and tricky timing changes. In the “sounds like” category, they’re akin to bands like Lamb of God…

Niki’s Weekend Word: Summer of Sound, Rocky Horror, and The Lopsided World of L

This weekend was full of fun (and rain). Friday, July 11, the New Times Summer of Sound jazz show took place at the Brickhouse Theatre. I was not there for personal reasons (a close friend had a medical emergency in the family), but I heard the event was smooth and groovy. Props and thanks to all the local acts that played the show — Jazz Robot, Eric Rasmussen, Music for Bowlers, and Jiggle — and headlining act, the B-Side Players.

Rusted Root

This Pittsburgh jam band has long been a shared favorite of Deadheads everywhere (the devout are known as “Rootheads”), as the band’s music incorporates world-music percussion and touches of bluegrass, but leaves room for improvisational jams. Some of the bands songs, like their biggest hit, 1995’s “Send Me on My…

Coldplay

Chris Martin and company return to the road in support of their latest album, Viva La Vida, their follow-up to the number one, 10-times platinum album X&Y. Critics are already commenting on the album’s “harder edge,” and even Coldplay front man Chris Martin remarked to Entertainment Weekly that “We’re slightly…