Perhaps the sagest songwriting advice ever bestowed to a newbie came not from a how-to book or a multi-platinum recording artist but from some anonymous grizzly guy I saw at an open mic night in Greenwich Village eons ago. After playing two great songs, he sat down to his coffee…
Their New Orleans apartment building having burned down in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, brothers Kintrell “Krispy Kream” and Alvin “Rah Almillio” Lindsey have gone from Cajun survivalists to the toast of the underground rap scene in only a few years. Together known as the experimental rap duo The Knux,…
What secret shame binds the heart of Buckethead? What private disgrace compelled guitar virtuoso Brian Carroll to forsake his Christian name and perform under a Michael Myers-esque kabuki mask and unused KFC bucket for these past 20 years? There is scant evidence that he has ever performed with his face…
THURSDAY 13 Bikini Lounge: DJ HFE (rockabilly, surf, jazz, classic country, indie, obscuro) Blooze Bar: DJ El Dedo (rockabilly) Bunkhouse: DJ Doom (dance) Cherry Lounge: DJ M2 (hip-hop, Top 40) Club Red: The Blunt Club with MC Jawa, Drunken Immortals, Pickster Uno, DJ Element, Emerg McVay, & more (hip-hop) Crabby…
The hip-hop scene in the PHX is bigger than ever. Homegrown homeboy Willy Northpole made an appearance at the BET Hip Hop Awards last month, rhyme-spitting MCs are doing their thing on the mic at nights like The Blunt Club and Raising Arizona, and a new old-school station started broadcasting…
It is difficult to maintain momentum over the course of 13 songs, yet New Zealand’s Pip Brown — better known as Ladyhawke — is blissfully ignorant of this. Right from the dual claps on the opener “Magic,” Ladyhawke grabs listeners by the hand with a purple, sequined glove of splendid…
English-born Sarah Brightman has nothing left to prove — throughout her career, her iconic soprano has been heard in the definitive versions of various Broadway tunes, successfully crossing over to pop while still making classical recordings. On her first holiday-themed album, with the London Symphony Orchestra, she takes on standards…
Shiny Toy Guns guitarist/singer Gregori Chad Petree and bassist/keyboardist Jeremy Dawson (the two creative forces behind the Los Angeles synth-pop band) evidently like to keep trying until they get things just the way they want them. They released their debut album, We Are Pilots, three different times and are now…
Will Minus the Bear make it? With a second successful tour and a new EP just released, it may be safe to say the critically lauded quintet is going to stick around. Then again, maybe not, considering that its EP Acoustics, released in October, features only one new offering, which,…
It took Daniel Smith, the man behind Danielson, a sudden realization while attending Rutgers University to help him embrace his childhood and live as a child once more. The revelation eventually led him to form Danielson, an indie rock/gospel supergroup whose stage shows feature matching outfits (nurses, gospel choirs) with…
Looks like everyone’s favorite Hasidic reggae singer/rapper might just outlast his novelty status after all. But that doesn’t necessarily make it safe to go back in the reggae waters for anyone aspiring to stand out based on his, uh, demographic makeup alone. On one hand, it’s unfortunate that Matisyahu’s work…
Acts like Cypress Hill and The Luniz (remember “I Got 5 on It”?) helped blow a big cloud of stoner rap into the ears of hip-hoppers back in the ’90s and early ’00s. And few did it with more bonhomie than Def Jam’s playful punk Redman and the Wu-Tang Clan’s…
Words are so over. Well, at least plenty of post-rockers think so, increasingly ditching the language in their spaced-out experimental music. But while bands like Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Mogwai at least named their songs, Spencer Seim, the man behind sBACH, has no use for such extravagance; the track…
There are heroes among us. Some wear uniforms, some wear spandex, and some dress like you and me. And one of mine is a man named Nick Nelson. A few years ago at Seattle’s Sasquatch Music festival, Mr. Nelson noticed a horrifying sight. Twenty yards away from him was the…
Seeing is believing, particularly in Underoath’s case. Whatever your feeling about their thunderous, increasingly complex and dynamic metalcore tsunami, their performances are a sight to behold. Writhing and shaking as though in the midst of a full-body seizure, the Florida six-piece appears on the verge of physically vibrating apart as…
By Benjamin Leatherman Since the global retail industry has decided in it’s great wisdom that the day after Halloween is the official starting point for the annual Christmas season, we feel it’s our duty to inform the public of the following: You’ve only got 43 shopping days left to track…
By John Dickerson See more shots in our Ben Folds slide show. Ben Folds may be 42 years old, but his songs still bring out the white college kid/yuppie demographic like a liquidation sale at Urban Outfitters. Said white folk arrived at Gammage Theater in droves last night, donning fedoras,…
It’s always amazing to me how long a massively huge album can reverberate, even if it’s not terribly influential or the subject of any significant critical acclaim. Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill – the tenth biggest selling album of all time and either the biggest or second biggest selling album of the 90s, depending on which numbers you use – still has some sway with people of a certain age, as was on display at Dodge Theatre last night.
By Lilia Menconi These ladies REALLY want you to check the slideshow. Some weekends, we just want a little comfort. There’s been a lot of special event-oriented club candids that are always a good time, sure. But between the opening of the W Scottsdale Hotel and Halloween at Last Exit,…
Let it never be said that Evan Brightly lacks ambition. The Narrator, this week’s You Asked For It, not only comes with a novel, it’s also augmented by a web site featuring paintings. I only skimmed the first chapter of novel, but it wasn’t great, though the paintings showed a great touch and an ability to create a real mood. I’m especially fond of this one, even if it is a little emo.
By Martin Cizmar Electric Six singer Dick Valentine is your pathetic uncle, and last night he showed up at The Clubhouse in fine form: buzzed, doling out insults and begging for cash. For those of you interested in making a full accounting, Valentine does not like John McCain, Gin Blossoms,…
By Martin Cizmar
It’s arguably the most influential record ever released by an Arizona band, and next year Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity turns 10. To celebrate, the band has announced that they’ll be playing the album in its entirety on a slate of 10 shows, culminating at The Marquee on March 7. Tickets go on sale Thursday.
