In a case of “why?” and “how did this even come about?,” (editors note: to sell energy drinks) once Phoenix-based indie rockers Miniature Tigers will face Philadelphia legends The Roots in a turn-based, Red Bull-sponsored rock battle November 20 in Scottsdale.The whole thing is going down at American Junkie, situated…
Get in the Halloween spirit by taking a gander at this flier for The Creepy Crawl Ball this Sunday, October 31 at The Underground at in Mesa.The poster depicts a giant Frankenstein trying to capture a very scared woman, giving viewers a spooky taste of what to expect at the…
Robert Perez, singer in country band Junction 10, doesn’t fit the mold as far as the appearance of a typical country musician goes. But that doesn’t matter because he’s more talented than most local country musicians. Although he comes from a metal background, he was already opening for Shooter Jennings…
The story of Deerhunter is a fucked-up one. It’s the story of death, betrayal, genetic disorders, and really weird names. But it’s mostly a story of overcoming those things — especially the weird names. The first thing that comes to mind when I hear Deerhunter is the phrase “Eat a…
Hating Nickelback is reflexive for many of us. It’s become one of those comforting mass-culture validations, like praising the Dalai Lama or distrusting people with Hotmail accounts. This groupthink methodology has an obvious flaw: The conclusions, though potentially valid, are also quite empty. I’ve never actually listened to a Nickelback…
If you’ve been keeping up with the country music coming out of Nashville, stumbled upon one of the industry’s several televised awards shows, or even if you’ve just glanced at the cover of Country Weekly in the grocery store checkout line, you’ve noticed that most of today’s male country stars…
It’s always been easy to mistake Gov’t Mule for a travel-size version of the Allman Brothers Band. Formed in 1994 by ABB regulars Warren Haynes and Allen Woody, Gov’t Mule featured some of the same personnel as its larger, more famous cousin and hails from the same Southern blues-rock sound…
Kid Rock described Lady Antebellum as a “hillbilly Fleetwood Mac, except I suspect they don’t do drugs or sleep with each other.” Hmm? Like a lot of today’s country stars, Lady Antebellum traffics in heartache. But aside from the lyrics, there is little to suggest the band is hurting in…
Lynyrd Skynyrd has endured a lot in their nearly 45 years of existence — withstanding allegations of racism over “Sweet Home Alabama,” the 1977 plane crash that claimed the life of three band members (including lead singer Ronnie Van Zant), their song “Free Bird” becoming a ubiquitous gag during encores…
Remember MySpace? It was this ugly website where kids went to reveal too much about themselves, sometimes in musical form, occasionally in a way that sprouted into a career. Harmony Tour co-headliners The Maine and Never Shout Never — the former Tempe-based, the latter the professional handle of 20-year-old Missouri…
When a band has a quick and steep rise to success — and doesn’t come from a town with much indie cred (read: New York or L.A.) — it appears to easily let go of its hometown as an important aspect of its identity. Phoenix is lucky that Jimmy Eat…
THURSDAY 28 27th Avenue Bar: R&B Thursdays (old-school R&B) Airia Nightclub: Ladies Night with DJ Circle, & D-JR (hip-hop, Top 40, remixes, house, electro) AZ88: Josh One (rare groove, urban funk) Bikini Lounge: DJ Shane Kennedy (jazz, blues, country, R&B, rarities, vintage vinyl) Blue Martini: Rewind Thursday (retro) Bobby C’s:…
Artist: The 88Title: The 88 Release date: September 28 Label: Rocket ScienceWhat do you do if you’re a band like The 88? You’re top-flight songwriters and musicians, you get your songs placed in all kinds of big-name TV shows and high-profile TV commercials, you tour the country opening for famous bands and…
I’ll be honest with you: this week’s group has to be the most random assemblage of just announced shows I have seen. Leading this week’s pack is Los Gatos rockers Trapt, whose 2002 song “Headstrong,” it has been confirmed, will simply never go away. Trapt has released three albums –…
Song: Snake! Snake! Snakes!, “Thieves”Context: S!S!S! will be opening for Jimmy Eat World’s big Invented homecoming show this weekend where fans will get a download card for this track. Up On The Sun readers get it first. Thieves by Common Wall Media…
It’s hard to believe that given as in demand as music producers Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo are as the Neptunes that they can still find time to put out a new album for their N*E*R*D project. But somehow Pharell, Chad, and fellow band member Shae Haley have managed to…
Apparently Boston’s in Tempe isn’t just for gourmet pizza anymore. Black Eyed Saint clothing took over the sports bar/pizzeria Friday night for its Evil Ball/fashion show/hot rod and bike show and New Times was there to chew bubblegum and kick ass. Feast your eyes on our slideshow…
People couldn’t help but leave the Comerica Theatre last night with giant smiles on their faces. That’s because it’s pretty difficult not to have fun at a concert where the “band” is animated, and their antics are displayed on-stage above a live performing orchestra. Thank the Gorillaz for that. The…
A U.S. District Court judge has ordered LimeWire to be shut down, according to Consequence of Sound. Four years ago, 13 record companies sued Lime Wire LLC so that their company and their artists could properly be paid for their hard work.The LimeWire program is the only part of the…
Gorillaz Comerica Theatre 10/26/2010 Twelve years ago Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett decided to create a cartoon band. The concept was to separate celebrity from pop music. This was the perfect vehicle for someone like Albarn, who is probably best known as the front man for Brit pop legends Blur…
If you’re a fan of indie pop act Never Shout Never, Thursday, October 28 at Marquee Theatre is your last chance in the Valley to see the band as you’ve grown to love them. That’s because frontman Christofer Drew says he’s getting rid of the NSN moniker and is forming…
Built To Spill Marquee Theatre, Tempe Tuesday, October 26, 2010 Built To Spill’s Tuesday show at Marquee Theatre was one for the die-hards. While the hips kids paid upwards of $100 to watch Damon Albarn’s Gorillaz cartoon/art-rap spectacular down the theater formerly known as Dodge, a crustier sort gathered to…
