By: Marc Ballon Hawaiian Sierra Blackford really wanted to go to Coachella. It wasn’t easy. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter juggled three jobs as a waitress, playing gigs at local bars and working in a slipper store to save enough for her concert tickets, heavily discounted airfare (She knows somebody in the…
It was time to break the seal. When used for their intended purpose, port-a-potties are hardly a pleasant experience for either sex. But they can be especially tricky for women. Men only have to squat half the time–women have to for both excretory functions, and it can get a little…
Timothy Norris There’s never just one way to get into Coachella. Cash, of course, is always king. But there are still myriad ways to ensure that your exposed flesh is burning along with the rest of us in the Indio sun. In that case, it’s nice to know that bartering,…
Following in the footsteps of his pastor father, Joel Marquard, of Dear and the Headlights fame, decided to record a gospel album in his late 20s. Marquard’s father was responsible for picking out the hymns and songs for each service at their church and now his own 12-piece traditional gospel…
By Andy Hermann We get it, Coachella. You’ve got over 100 acts and only about 36 hours to cram them all onto your six stages, so there’s bound to be some overlap. And for the most part, you do a good job of putting acts head-to-head that have little chance…
Nobody makes sullenness seem so stylish as New York’s brooding post-punk band Interpol. As part of the so-called post-punk revival in the early- to mid-2000s, the quartet (now a threesome) helped re-popularize a genre largely forgotten by the huddled masses. Alongside the Strokes, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and the White…
Lots of good stuff to do this weekend as festival season in Arizona comes to a close with a strong finale. This weekend we have Country Thunder down in Florence, and Quail Run Park in Mesa will host two consecutive days of concerts — FestivALT AZ on Friday and UFEST…
When Drew Cooper strolls into the Hotel Congress on a dimly-lit late afternoon, he’s got a canvas bag, festooned with a pink block print of an owl, over one arm and a rambunctious, wildly endearing toddler in the other. His iPhone speaks volumes about his preferred aesthetic though, a mix…
To characterize the musical stylings of the Reverend Horton Heat as simply rock ‘n’ roll is akin to saying the founder and leader of the popular rockabilly band, Jim Heath, likes playing the occasional live show. For more than the past quarter-century, the Dallas-based Heath and his two bandmates have…
Do not come to the Swans concert expecting to hear a parade of songs from the latest album, or preceding ones for that matter. Swans leader Michael Gira doesn’t dwell in the past. Instead, he strives for the next “invigorating, energizing” sound to move his world. “It’s more about internally…
Brett Eldredge sounds like a damn maniac. He’s not listing off conspiracy theories, nor is he divulging dark stories of Hollywood debauchery: Rather, he’s laying out in detail what he’s going to do once his latest hit, “Mean to Me,” reaches number one on the country charts. “I’ve made the…
There was a point during last night’s Ariana Grande concert at Talking Stick Resort Arena where the video on the screen behind the tiny pop star scrolled some campy, sci-fi-esque nonsense (with an accompanying voice over which was probably necessary due to about 10 percent of the audience not being…
Oh, how sweet the emotion — Aerosmith is coming to Gila River Arena on Saturday, June 13. This show, part of the band’s Blue Army Tour, promises to bring a custom stage that “brings the band up-close and personal with the audience,” according to a press release from promoter Danny…
Joe Nichols has a self-imposed duty to uphold. That is not a self-aggrandizing statement, nor is it overwrought hyperbole for his role in country music. Rather, Nichols is a modern artist who places importance on traditional country music, the same vein he’s been working as no less than five of…
This Easter weekend was filled with 10 bands and 10 hours of music as Tempe Beach Park hosted Lucky Man’s festival of punk-rock and post-hardcore bands. Tempe Beach Park Festival (the unofficial name for the event) made use of some big name acts like Offspring, A Day to Remember, and…
At first, Dick Dale peeks his face around the corner of the stage door, grinning, being coy, but then he marches onstage, guns blazing, his golden guitar already screaming. He’s looking limber, arching in his New Balances, all smiles. He was a tailor, already sewing into us, then cutting us…
It was only a mere six months ago when I last saw Exodus on stage, opening for Suicidal Tendencies and Slayer. The latter can easily outshine an array of legendary bands, but not the thrash titans known as Exodus. They never cease to amaze me with their tight, unexpected sets…
Here are our picks for this weekend. Be sure to check our comprehensive concert calendar for more options…
Love & Theft are growing up. In a literal sense, Stephen Barker Liles and Eric Gunderson, the singing and songwriting country duo at Love & Theft’s core, have both gotten married and started families in recent years, seen Top 40 success on a handful of occasions, and found traction on…
McDowell Mountain Music Festival is Phoenix’s Most Cohesive Festival. I’ll leave the designation of “best” music festival for the voters to decide when the Best Of issue comes out later in the year. But I feel completely confident is saying MMMF is by far the most cohesive. The bands on…
William Kenneth Alphin is 15 years old and picking up a girl on a first date. It is 1978 and Kenny, as he’s known to friends and family, has been granted his driver’s license early on account of his status as a volunteer firefighter in the tiny agricultural town of…
Scoff all you want at country radio today, but Dustin Lynch knows damn well what listeners want, and he gives it to them three and a half minutes at a time. Unlike some country artists who complacently churn out radio-ready singles, Dustin Lynch also has an approach and a perception…
