If you came across the pairing of Modest Mouse and Brand New and thought to yourself, “What an odd bill,” you’re right. The two bands don’t have a lot in common, and their fan bases barely overlap. The only similarity is that they experienced their peak popularity at about the…
If you’ve jumped on the Pokemon Go bandwagon, chances are you’ve picked your team and favorite Pokemon — but does your favorite Pokemon-type predict your favorite music style? Probably not, but we tried to see if it did anyways. And if we missed, think of these as suggestions to…
Suffering from a little cabin fever after spending all of your free time indoors lately? Can’t say we blame you, considering the average temperature outdoors is around 108 degrees these days. It might do you a bit of good to get out of the house, however, and we’ve got several…
“There’s no doubt that Jeff Hardy is extreme; he is very extreme.” – Jim Ross, Former WWE Commentator on Monday Night Raw It’s July 1, 2002, and Jeff Nero Hardy, 24, is standing atop a 15-foot steel ladder. The WWE title belt is dangling near his fingertips, just above the…
Korn pummeled a packed Ak-Chin Pavilion with hit after hit on Saturday night during a 14-song set that spanned their entire catalog. From opener “Right Now” the new metal pioneers reminded fans not only how important they have been to the metal scene over the years but that they haven’t lost…
Inspiration comes from many different places, the radio being one of them. While carousing around town in my hooptie the other day, the Notorious B.I.G./Puff Daddy/Mase 1997 classic “Mo Money, Mo Problems” came on over my speakers, much to my odd delight. After I was done singing Biggie’s verse word-for-word…
Juggalos are hilarious. All weekend long, if you could hear them over the boom of fireworks and horrorcore rap, Gathering attendees were dropping one-liners faster than a classic Simpsons episode. Not always intentionally, but still. So thanks for the laughs and the memories, ninjas. And here, without further ado, are…
I’ve been reading Donald Trump’s The Art of the Deal, which was ghostwritten by Tony Schwartz, who channels Trump’s daily deal-making in what is basically a window into the life of a more charmingly juvenile version of Gordon Gekko. I like this book a lot, if only because it reads…
Juggalos know how to hustle. At their annual Gathering, just about anything you could ever possibly need to have a good time, from drugs and booze to more, uh, creative fare, is available for purchase from wicked clowns advertising their wares via hand-lettered cardboard signs. Here’s a small sampling of…
Rob Zombie and the metalheads of Korn are headed to the Valley this weekend. So’s blues legend Robert Cray, R&B/pop star Meghan Trainor, grunge-era refugees Soul Asylum, and hip-hop icons EPMD, for that matter. Meanwhile, Japanese avant-garde metal band Boris will be coming to Crescent Ballroom to perform their 2005…
The last eight years have certainly been more than just a dream for Michael Fitzpatrick and his six-piece neo-soul indie pop group Fitz and the Tantrums. In that time, the band has grown from a festival favorite to bona fide superstars. But even with all their successes, their dynamic frontman,…
Mitchell Hillman listens to more local music than just about anyone in the Valley. He presents his picks for best new local music in his column, Right Hear, Right Now. Dogbreth – “Steeping” The release of Dogbreth’s new album Second Home is getting close. The newest preview track off the…
Of all the ways I thought I would be describing my first Gathering of the Juggalos, “like my first rave” was not on the short list. But after less than 24 hours among the fans of Insane Clown Posse, that’s how I’m feeling. It’s like I’ve traveled back in time…
Despite Steven Tyler’s own protestations that this is not a solo tour because he is performing with a fully integrated band called Loving Mary, it’s hard not to see his whole career trajectory of the last few years—from signing on to judge American Idol to writing a tell-all best-selling biography…
An Arizona (by way of Michigan) candidate has not only thrown their top hat into the U.S. presidential election, but also the British Prime Minister race, and is running on one of the more unique platforms ever. That’s right, Alice Cooper, shock rocker extraordinaire and guillotine proponent, has launched a…
The shooting at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando on June 12 affected many people in different ways. For Stacy Louis, owner of the gay club Stacy’s At Melrose, it hit close to home. “I heard about the event as I was going to sleep that night,” Louis recalls. “The way…
Tempe’s Brick and Barley finally got its big moment on national television this past weekend. The latest episode of Spike TV’s reality show Bar Rescue focused on the local spot and its transformation from a badass biker joint and lowbrow haven into a more upscale neighborhood establishment. Or in the…
In 2005, Brian “Head” Welch shocked the metal world when he left nu-metal pioneers Korn at the height of the band’s career. The surprise wasn’t so much that Welch was departing from the band he helped create but his reasoning. The guitarist quit the band because he had found Jesus…
Alan Vega died peacefully this weekend in his sleep. It was a sad end to a man who fronted the pioneering proto-punk combo Suicide. Alan Vega, along with the likes of Lou Reed and Iggy Pop, revolutionized what a lead singer could get away with, far beyond, say the affectation…
Fresh off the release of his critically acclaimed Blank Face LP , Schoolboy Q announced tour dates this week, including a stop at Mesa Amphitheatre on Tuesday, October 11. Chicago rapper Joey Purp will join him on tour. Blank Face LP is Schoolboy Q’s second major label album and follows…
“Jameson,” the ninth track of Zella Day’s 2015 album, Kicker, stands out like a grassy meadow in a metropolis. Sparse in its vulnerability and despair, the song is just Day finger-picking acoustic chords as some gentle guitar lines float through the background. Day was just 18 when she wrote the…
Before the torches are lit and the pitchforks are sharpened, read the next line. Most of the often over-rated records mentioned in this opinion-based blog/list do NOT completely suck. Admittedly, some do suck quite a bit, but some are really good and even ground-breaking but are often held in too…
