The melding of pop and country music is no new phenomenon. The marriage of the two genres has brought the latter into the mainstream and thoroughly incensed the purists of the former for decades now. Country radio today has embraced the change wholeheartedly, yet few artists are willing to admit…
Wye Oak is a band that, if nothing else, understands contrast. Their sound is a mixture of dream pop and dark folk dominated by nu-gaze, that mid-2000s renewed interest in pedal-driven walls of guitar distortion and buried vocals. It’s a moody mix, a feeling of elation and melancholy introspection. “I…
It’s a long way to the top if ya wanna rock ’n’ roll, sure, but if you’re more interested in just making sweet tunes, touring the world in a minivan, and keeping it real, you really don’t need much. Take it from Deerhoof, the strange noise pop quartet originally from…
Before Doug Hopkins tragically committed suicide in 1993, he would often tell his friends that the Gin Blossoms were ripping him off. He was fired from the band at their label’s request after recording for what would be the band’s 1992 breakthrough album, New Miserable Experience, completed in Memphis. He…
Bad Suns stumbled upon everything: their name, their record deal, and even each other. When the band formed in 2012, then-19-to-22-year-olds had left behind former bands—not to mention high school—in favor of new projects. Fronted by vocalist Christo Bowman, the Southern California four-piece formed in 2012 and picked up where Elvis…
Apparently there’s a lot of fan overlap between Weezer and Warped Tour. Vans Warped Tour has announced that it will change the date of its Arizona stop from August 2 to August 4 in order to avoid conflicting with the Weezer/Panic! At The Disco concert scheduled for August 2 at…
It’s not difficult to hear why Pet Sounds, celebrating its 50th anniversary this summer, is considered to be one of the greatest albums in music history. It was a game changer upon its release in 1966, a marked departure point for The Beach Boys and a defining pinnacle of Brian…
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…
We’d understand completely if you’re planning to lay low this weekend. And we’re sure you’d have plenty of justifiable reasons to so. It’s the dog days of summer, for instance, or you could still be recovering from the Fourth of July weekend. And the latest season of Orange is the…
It’s 2016 and Vancouver’s White Lung have no qualms about it. Although steeped in punk’s history and aesthetic, they prefer to innovate rather than look to the past. While their most obvious influences stem from ’80s hardcore and feminist didactics expressed in ’90s Riot Grrrl fashion, their newest album, Paradise,…
Evan Stephens Hall already has an idea of what heaven looks like — creatively speaking, of course. The frontman of New Jersey indie rock band Pinegrove, Hall seems like the kind of musician who just has to get it out via whatever medium he has at hand. Luckily for him,…
You know that licking toads to get stoned isn’t exactly an urban legend, right? If you piss off Bufo alvarius, it will secrete 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenin, two highly potent psychedelics chemically similar to DMT. The Colorado River toad is actually native to the Sonoran Desert, but there’s another legendary psychedelic…
Happy Fourth of July everyone. If you’ve still got some mojo and, more importantly, money leftover from spending the three-day weekend partying and playing hooky from work, there are several notable shows happening this week. The list includes gigs by pop princess Selena Gomez, indie singers like Mitski and Japanese…
We’re about to hit what’s known as the dog days of summer, a period of the summertime that’s particularly loathsome due to the fact its muggy as hell outside and no sign of relief on the horizon (save for the occasional monsoon storm). Thankfully, we’re also about to roll into…
Ted Nugent. Ted “Fucking” Nugent. He calls himself this frequently. During a 45-minute phone conversation, he must’ve said “Ted fucking Nugent” at least a dozen times. The man is mesmerizing and drunk on confidence, even if he never takes a drink. There really is no one else quite like him,…
XIXA came to exist almost by accident. The Tucson sextet – formerly known as Chicha Dust – formed and began playing the Peruvian style of psychedelic cumbia as a way to get more gigs without overbooking the solo projects of its two co-founders, Brian Lopez and Gabriel Sullivan. With almost…
Punk rock is many things. It’s fun, it’s furious, it’s chock-full of rebellion, and for some, it’s a labor of love. With any luck, it’s all four of those things. Enter Brendan Kelly, singer/guitar player of the Falcon. Kelly’s a busy man. The Chicago-area native is married, a dad to…
There’s an urgency to New Madrid. It’s evident by the opening thrust of “Not In Me,” the lead track on the Athens, Georgia, band’s latest effort, magnetkingmagnetqueen. Sporting rapid, airy vocal overlays pushed by a frenetic drumbeat and prog-ish guitar licks, the song makes it clear New Madrid is not…
If you want the best rock ‘n’ roll concert in Arizona this summer, you’ll have to travel south. Rock legends Kiss kick off their ‘Freedom To Rock” tour at AVA Amphitheater in Tucson on the same day we celebrate America’s independence. Nothing says Fourth of July like a Kiss, right?…
Comerica Theatre was almost full on Sunday, June 25, when Kenny Rogers said farewell to his Phoenix fans. The almost two-hour performance/retrospective was highly entertaining and, at times, bittersweet, as the 77-year-old singer sang a great many of the hits from his near-60-year career. For those who came to hear…
Looking for a memorable concert to check out this week? You’ve got plenty of options, including the following “can’t miss” selections that comprise our weekly list of the best concerts happening over the next several nights. And its certainly an eclectic list, to say the least, as it features costumed…
Fishbone played 22 songs last night at the Rebel Lounge over what seemed like half a day. The 37-year-old Los Angeles-based group played one of the more perplexing sets I’ve ever seen them play. It was good, even really good at times, but maybe it’s me or maybe it’s them,…
