Fans of singer-songwriter Rob Dickinson’s old band The Catherine Wheel should not expect to hear the same spacy, silvery guitars and feedback-filled solos on Dickinson’s new album, Fresh Wine for the Horses. Nor should they expect any visceral ditties like TCW’s “Happy Days” — with its angst-ridden line “Eat my…
Tempe rockers The Heartless not only have hearts, but smarts as well. The heart beats throughout the band’s seminal release, This Could Take Some Getting Used To, as all six songs on the pop-punk opus seem to have their lyrical origin somewhere between Lonely Street and Nostalgia Drive (but thankfully,…
Dem bow is like audio crack. The modified Jamaican dancehall beat creeps up on even the most rhythmically challenged and makes them move, leaving them craving more of the springy tempo. On a recent Saturday night at Jackson’s on 3rd, the floor is a sea of bobbing bodies, all grooving…
SAT 12/10Liz Phair doesn’t want to be your blowjob queen anymore. She may have sung such on her groundbreaking 1993 album Exile in Guyville (an answer to the Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main Street), but, truth be told, she’s stopped singing songs that make feminists pump their fists while manly…
SUN 12/11We need some advice. Godzilla’s 51st birthday is coming up, and we haven’t a clue as to what to get the big fella. Imagine the pressure involved with selecting the perfect gift for this ungodly creature that’s laid waste to numerous cities and battled everyone from Mothra to onetime…
12/11-3/12If the photographers whose work will be displayed at Phoenix Art Museum’s new exhibition “Keeping Shadows” were a baseball team, they’d be the 1927 Yankees. The all-star lineup includes Margaret Bourke-White, Walker Evans, Imogen Cunningham, Man Ray, Ansel Adams, Alfred Stieglitz, Timothy O’Sullivan, Lewis Carroll, Henri Le Secq, Julia Margaret…
If hip-hop’s all about the handle, the hooks, and the homies, then local wordsmith Chilee Powdah’s got the full package. His name (complete with a double “e” for easy rhymes) has thug appeal, and his album Code of Loyalty boasts a combination of thumping club beats, catchy choruses, genre-pimpin’ from…
THU 12/1The Reggaeton Festival 2005 is like a yummy mixed drink: two parts reggae, one part hip-hop, one part Latin dance, with just a splash of techno and dancehall. The Puerto Rican brew of Caribbean music and rap (mostly in Spanglish) will shake up the Venue of Scottsdale, 7117 East…
FRI 12/2The giant squid may have eluded scientists for decades, but Phoenix artist Pete Deise has been capturing them for years — in metal, that is. Deise creates steel sculptures (including one at the airport and another in front of My Florist Cafe) with characteristic tentacles. His latest exhibition, “Ascension,”…
12/2-12/16Jason Hill’s retro-futurism is so bright, he’s gotta wear shades. You will, too, when you view his blindingly vivid works, which seem to leap out of their frames and smack you right between the eyes. It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to liken Hill to Ed Mell, another…
The holiday season may be the only time of year we’re prepared to kill other shoppers — right in the middle of the aisle — if they dare lay their hands on that last, limited-edition Star Wars thingamajig that every kid in the world seems to want. Or that damn…
Seattle, Washington, 1992: The city becomes the music capital of the country with the explosion of grunge, as bands like Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and Stone Temple Pilots saturate the airwaves. If that story was on cassette tape, Calvin Johnson would hit “rewind” so everybody could get the full scoop…
11/25-1/22When a woman calls her guy a “minute man,” it usually spells doom for the relationship — and his ego. But for artist George Palovich, it’s a sizable compliment. Palovich practices gesture drawing, a process in which an artist produces a sketch in 30 to 60 seconds. This method was…
THU 24 While driving through the city to see citizens’ holiday light displays can be entertaining, it isn’t much fun when you’re stuck in traffic or prowling the block for a parking space. See a celebrated holiday display (minus the traffic hassles) at ZooLights, opening Thursday, November 24, at the…
11/25-11/27Monica Long Ross admits she’s a voyeur. The playwright has been collecting other people’s home movies for years and watching them in her basement. “I remember thinking, “These are beautiful images. Someone should see these,'” says Ross. So she used the films of one particular family that she purchased at…
11/26-11/27For the average American, polo is a head-scratcher — along the lines of what people in Yemen must think of pro football. But polo is arguably the most popular sport in the world after soccer. It’s also one of the oldest, and the North Scottsdale Polo Club plays the game…
11/17-12/4Bad dates blow chunks. Whether it’s the icky chick who talked about her colonoscopy over dinner or the gross guy who said he wanted to “feel your belly button from the inside out,” there’s always one meet-up that makes you want to throw up. In the comedy Bad Dates, opening…
11/17-11/20According to the folks at the International Hot Boat Association, the premier site in the U.S. for drag-boat racing is right here in the desert. No, they aren’t high on nitro-methane. They’re talking about Firebird International Raceway, host of the 2005 IHBA Coors Light World Finals. From Thursday, November 17,…
SAT 11/19With an abundance of screenwriting requests, a plethora of awards, and multitudes of speaking engagements, it seems that everyone wants a piece of Suzan-Lori Parks. She was the first African-American woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for Drama with her dark comedy Topdog/Underdog, which is about two brothers, Lincoln…
11/19-4/9Last summer, public displays of lingerie were as plentiful as feral kittens and bad movies. Luckily, as temperatures plummet and sweaters appear, the Phoenix Art Museum is unveiling “Lingerie: Secrets of Elegance” — a sociohistorical perspective on frilly things from the 18th century onward. So what is it about the…
THU 11/10To hell with Niagara Falls, we’ve got an even better location lined up for our impending nuptials: Hades. Sure, the guests might have a devil of a time trying to find transportation, but think about all the gory details: Instead of champagne, we’ll sip blood from bone goblets and…
WED 11/16If you’re looking for an alternative to Hollywood’s seasonal onslaught of high-concept blockbusters, you’ll find it at “Video Slam!” — a digital offshoot of the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art’s popular “Slide Slam” series. “Video Slam!” features experimental offerings by Tony Ash and Steve Gompf and a screening of…
