Miss Krystle Explains “Want a Star”

​For a young woman who claims she’s not a star, local electronic pop artist Miss Krystle, featured in this week’s copy of Phoenix New Times, certainly has no problem getting all eyes on her. Her latest music video, “Want a Star,” has already amassed more than 120,000 views on YouTube…

Reactions to The Clubhouse Closing on Twitter

See also: Clubhouse Music Venue Closes ​It has been almost two weeks since gang-related gunfire erupted outside the Nipsey Hussle show at The Clubhouse in Tempe, wounding 15 and placing a scar on the face of an otherwise admirable venue. Last Friday, owner Eugenia Ruven was arrested for “failing to…

Asher Roth Is Bro Rap Incarnate, but Don’t Hold It Against Him

In the Occupy age, America’s highest income brackets have proved unsympathetic. Alas, class discrimination persists even in that most liberal of institutions: hip-hop. Consider the curious case of Asher Roth. Roth’s early years resembled those of Silver Spoons’ Ricky Stratton. By his own admission, Roth was the child of well-to-do…

The Wiley One Is All About Going Green

Sam Wiley, the heart and soul of Tempe-based The Wiley One, is known around town for churning out acoustic-driven, reggae-infused hip-hop tunes with rapid fluidity. Since 2007, the “No. 7 Kid” has dished out bouncy beats and twangy guitar licks, spreading his sound across the Southwest while, at the same…

Howe Gelb @ Crescent Ballroom

It’s hard not to read a little into the story behind Tucson, the new album from Howe Gelb’s Giant Giant Sand, which tells the story of a “semi-grizzled man with overt boyish naivete” who leaves his home, possessions, and girlfriend behind fearing the end of the world. Described as a…

Caspa @ School of Rock

Hailing from London, Caspa (Gary McCann) describes his sound as “the quiet storm.” Though McCann’s start in music was a precarious one (he got into electro music while laid up with a basketball injury), he quickly gained notoriety in the field. His breakout single, “Bassbins,” was on BBC Radio’s 1Xtra,…

Hooves @ Crescent Ballroom

Call it unfair, but former Phoenicians-turned-Washingtonians Hooves have always garnered more attention for their hotel trashing and indie-rock bowling debacles than for their music. Sure, this publication is probably the most to blame for the reputation, but when it comes down to it, we’ve always been fans of the music…

North @ Trunk Space

Simple but explosive juxtapositions are at the root of North’s compositions — emotionally driven metal that asks its audience to surrender. Not to surrender in any kind of spiritual way, but to literally surrender to the band’s aggressive vocals and post-metal bombardment. Songs such as “Eidolon” usually begin understated, as…

Cupcake!

As tradition dictates, many a lad and lassie will be sporting the green this weekend for Saint Patrick’s Day. In Scottsdale, however, the ritual will take on a more fetishistic bent during the latest edition of Cupcake!, on Saturday, March 17. The macabre monthly will feature a “surgical green +…

Seven Nights of DJs and Dancing

Thursday 15 16th Street Bar & Grill: Kickback Thursdays with DJ Cedric Ceballos (hip-hop, classics, neo-soul, reggae, R&B, Top 40, old school) Afterlife: Beat the Scene Thursdays (electronica, dance, remixes) Bar Smith: Double Vision Thursday with DJ Kyko, DJ Idenaty, & DJ Dario (Latin, hip-hop) Bobby Q’s: DJ Phlava, MC…

Seeing Red: Miss Krystle’s Pop Is Far from Routine

You wouldn’t have recognized Krystle Delgado three years ago. She was 20 then, dressed to the nines in a gorgeous floor-length gown with platinum blond hair. She sat at a piano and played “Think of Me,” the classic track from Phantom of the Opera, her own voice evoking operatic tones…

Blogs Teased in Our March 15 Issue

This week, New Times ran a list in our print publication highlighting some of the most interesting posts published at Up On The Sun over the past week. Here are links to those posts. What did the community have to say about the Clubhouse at an open forum in Tempe?…

Treasure Mammal’s SxSW “Real Talk Diaries” by Tye Rabens

See also: Alert: SXSW Coverage Ahead Editor’s note: Tye Rabens, a contributor to both our sister blogs Chow Bella and Jackalope Ranch, is on tour with Phoenix agit-pop collective Treasure MammaL, heading to Austin for SXSW. He’ll be periodically checking in with us from the road. Fuck. This is a…

Paul Collins & Peter Case, Rhythm Room, 3/13/12

See also: Paul Collins and Peter Case on the First Time They Heard the Ramones and The State of Power Pop Peter Case and Paul Collins Rhythm Room Tuesday, March 13 “I’m playing on the streets everyday…I lose my voice, get sunburned, my fingers bleed, and I never make much…

Flier of the Week: Flogging Molly

If you’re looking for a good time on St. Patty’s Day, there are tons of local options. With all of the great shows that will be going on, seems like all of Tempe is turning Irish for a day!Flogging Molly’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Bash at Tempe Beach Park is…

Ting Tings Move Show Scheduled at Clubhouse to Marquee Theatre

See also: Breaking News: Clubhouse Music Venue Closes Down Love ’em or hate ’em, Apple commercials have power — just ask The Ting Tings. The British duo has a 2008 iPod commercial to thank for making them popular here in the States, after silhouettes on a colorful background boogied to…

Help Bad Lucy Choose Their Album’s Cover Art

Making a record is an involved, laboring process. There’s writing, recording, mixing and mastering. Sometimes it can be the little things that vex an independent band. Currently, alt pop-rockers Bad Lucy find themselves mulling over the artwork for their upcoming EP. The guys held a cover shoot with models Lear…

KUKQ Returns to Phoenix (Via the Internet)

Legendary Valley alternative radio station KUKQ is back — on the Internet, that is. Operators of the site boasting those famous call letters, synonymous with Phoenix jock Jonathan L (host of Jonathan L’s Lopsided World of L, which is syndicated on terrestrial Valley station KWSS 106.7 these days), announced via…