Brooklyn-based rapper El-P has had a tumultuous last few years. After reaching the Billboard Top 100 in 2007 with I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead, he lost his friend and musical collaborator Camu Tao the next year. In 2010, he chose to close his label Definitive Jux, an indie rap cornerstone…
It’s been a weird couple of weeks in the world of music-meets-advertising. Between Andrew W.K.’s announcement to speak at a My Little Pony convention and KISS’ licensing deal with Family Guy, it’s been pretty damn weird indeed. But think about it: A hard-partying My Little Pony would look great sitting…
Yesterday we ran a list of our most anticipated summer releases featuring, among others, Fiona Apple and Passion Pit. Lo and behold, Apple announced a tour date in Phoenix, and now, we can add Passion Pit to the list. The indie-pop combo is heading to the Marquee Theatre in Tempe…
See also: Howe Gelb Discusses Rainer Ptacek Howe Gelb doesn’t like to fight fate. The Tucson-based singer/songwriter says that destiny played a big role in the birth of Tucson, the new record from Gelb’s Giant Giant Sand collective. The extra “giant” was added to signify the group’s swelling ranks, which…
“Lay Lady Lay” is a classic Bob Dylan tune, even if it doesn’t sound like classic Dylan. ‘Ole Bobby D. claims his voice sounded different on Nashville Skyline because he quit smoking before recording. Magnet and Gemma Hayes’ soft, orchestral take on the song appeared on the Mr. & Mrs…
Some of Phoenix’s premier rappers will have a unique chance to share the stage with a hip-hop institution when Phife Dawg of legendary outfit A Tribe Called Quest rocks the mic at Club Red in Tempe, this Friday, June 22. Not only is it a chance to revel in some…
Editor’s Note: This blog has been modified from its original version to reflect that the interview was conducted with Mat Mitchell of Puscifer. It’s hard to keep up with Maynard James Keenan’s Puscifer, let alone predict where he’s taking the project next. The music melds the masculinity of industrial, comedic…
Well, how’s this for a good East Valley announcement day? Not only is Morrissey headed to Tempe’s Marquee Theatre in November, but singer/songwriter Fiona Apple has announced a tour that brings her to the Ikeda Theater at Mesa Arts Center on Tuesday, September 18. Touring in support of her highly…
See also: Rumspringer: Earnest Trio Builds Nothing on Punk’s Ever-Shifting Sands Bachelor parties are a tradition. The kind of debauched, “I-can’t-believe-we-did-that” bone-headed tradition that works for popcorn flicks (coming soon: The Hangover 3: Still Hangin’, where the boys find themselves in outer space or something). But a DIY bachelor party…
See also: We Love Morrissey, but Does He Love Us? See also: Morrissey at the Orpheum Theatre It’s weird time to be Morrissey: British rock tabloid NME recently apologized to the downer-pop icon for alleging he’s racist (stop me if you think that you’ve heard that one before), he’s currently…
Editor’s note: Occasionally, Up on the Sun contributor Christina Caldwell chimes in on local music, tackling topics like “how to get press” and asking questions like “What makes the ideal music venue?” This week, she addresses a topic we’ve looked at before — the concept of local clubs doing month-long…
Love it or hate it, it’s looking inevitable: dubstep isn’t going anywhere for awhile, and a lot of ambitious metalheads are pairing their riffs up with wobble wobble sounds in a bid for commercial success. It reminds me of a coked-out Paris Hilton making a sex tape with Slayer’s Kerry…
To our extreme delight, there are quite a few artists that are dropping new music this year for the first time in a long time. We’ve been waiting seemingly forever for No Doubt’s next album. Thankfully a few other artists didn’t leave us hanging for as long. We’ve selected five…
Van Halen at US Airways Center When the recently reunited Van Halen (featuring original vocalist David Lee Roth) announced it was postponing a handful of dates on its current tour, most people assumed that it was due to some conflict within the band. Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth…
Van Halen US Airways Center Saturday, June 16 When the recently reunited Van Halen (featuring original vocalist David Lee Roth) announced it was postponing a handful of dates on its current tour, most people assumed that it was due to some conflict within the band. Eddie Van Halen and David…
Los Lobos Wild Horse Pass Hotel and Casino Friday, June 15, 2012 East L.A.’s Los Lobos hit the Ovations Live Showroom stage almost unceremoniously Friday night. They smiled and waved and took their familiar places among one another; RayBan-wearing guitarist/vocalist Cesar Rosas far left, followed by bassist Conrad Lozano, guitarist…
If your weekend plans included journeying to Peoria check out a rock or pop tribute act at Skye, better head back to the drawing board. You certainly won’t be heading to the venue. The proprietors of the West Valley supper club and lounge, which regularly hosted tribute bands and live…
The future ‘s looking pretty damn bright for Steven Chung, which is probably why he’s wearing those Von Zipper shades in the picture above. Over the next 72 hours alone, the 31-year-old house music maestro (who performs as DJ Tranzit) will open for EDM wunderkind DallasK this evening at Wild…
Where we’re going, we don’t need roads; just a synthesizer, eyeliner, and a touch of androgyny. Welcome to Flashback Friday. See also: An ’80s Conversation with Super Stereo I hadn’t thought about British synthpop duo Erasure for a long time — until Super Stereo brought them up during last week’s…
YACHT Crescent Ballroom Thursday, June 14, 2012 Summer usually finds us in the concert doldrums. There are some good shows here and there, but mostly we opt for pool parties and air conditioning while eagerly awaiting fall. This hasn’t really been the case this year thanks to a concert calendar…
The Lost Leaf has always been an intimate setting. But quiet? Not so much. So when local quartet Snow Songs takes the stage this weekend for their acoustic set, it should be a nice change of pace for one of our favorite watering holes. Snow Songs, along with Jess Willamson…
Jonathan Cisneros knew Snail Quail was going to trail into the bizarre, and at first, he wasn’t going to drag a backing band into it. Band breakups are hard, but you don’t have to deal with that if you have a bunch of lovable weirdoes backing you up, as the…
