Normally we showcase five interesting shows in Phoenix each week in this space. This week, Prince is playing four shows. It is, therefore, with the public interest in mind that we condense all four of those shows down to one White-Dwarf-dense ball of concert-recommendation. That and more after the jump:…
Prince’s relationship with his backing bands has always been a little more fraught than, say, Buddy Holly and the Crickets or Dave Matthews and Band. There’s been several of them, for one thing — the Revolution and the New Power Generation, along with associates like Morris Day and The Time…
Playboy Manbaby CD release partyCartel Coffee Lab, TempeApril 27, 2013 I get weirded out when large crowds share unbridled enthusiasm. I chalk it up to either “rugged individualism” or “special snowflake syndrome,” depending on how positively or negatively I want to look at myself. This makes me a wallflower in…
Paperhaus with Playboy Manbaby and St. RangerThe Trunk SpaceApril 26, 2013 Post-punk is a minefield for modern musicians. There’s always going to be a group of people who dig through a cool older relative’s record collection or read Simon Reynolds’ Rip it Up and Start Again and discover bands like…
Nerf HerderPub Rock, ScottsdaleApril 26, 2013 What the heck have geek rockers Nerf Herder been up to since their last trip to Phoenix in 2002? It’s been a full 11 years since the band co-headlined a show with Guttermouth at Club Rio. At the time, the band’s third full-length album,…
This weekend is Prince Eve. We understand that. But if you’re unable or unwilling to part with the kind of money it takes to see Prince in something smaller than an arena, you can divert yourself with any of these coming attractions:…
Pop music is obsessed with youth, but it’s also obsessed with itself. Result: An endless procession of youthful musicians from pop golden ages who are rapidly becoming capital-h Historic figures. The MTV era’s counterculture heroes are now culture heroes. Bruce Springsteen is an institution. Madonna is an icon. Prince is…
It was 1993 when Brandon Capps and a few like-minded friends started coordinating the first Beautiful Noise “shoegaze” festivals around Arizona. But 20 years ago, shoegaze wasn’t a compliment. It was an insult, a pejorative tossed at the kind of guitarist who stared down at his pedals, waiting for the…
A common complaint about the Phoenix live music scene is fan apathy. A show may be sold out, but many fans will keep their arms crossed and not move around much. That was not the case at Marquee Theatre Tuesday night. The Gaslight Anthem’s fanbase showed what live music should…
Your mom wants to go see Bon Jovi in Glendale. Other people do, too — don’t get me wrong. Former hair-metal aficionados, air-guitar soloists, a surprising number of people in what appear to be Bon Jovi football jerseys. But mostly your mom. Having successfully finished raising you and come into…
Given the build-up over the Oscar Award-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man — the reason Sixto Rodriguez is only now getting his due, and the reason for a surprisingly large Mesa Amphitheatre audience — it seemed only fitting that the street poet and alternative folk-icon would open the show with…
I couldn’t understand a word Tinariwen were singing Monday night at Crescent Ballroom. I didn’t know a single song, and there was no set list to cheat from — and I couldn’t find anyone to ask about it. But I was completely blown away by the deep, rhythmic, heartfelt pulse…
LP HastingsButterfly?!The Visual Stimulations for People Who Were High Coachella’s art installations — the ones designed to impress you while you’re high, a.k.a. all of them — were particularly impressive this year. There was the Tesla coil, the crane that was formerly a flower but now a praying mantis, the…
That Damn Show | Mesa Amphitheatre | April 20, 2013 The history of That Damn Show is full of fond memories. A decade or so ago, the festival combined punk bands with alt-radio favorites for a blistering day in the sun. Saturday, it was back with a vengeance, and hopefully…
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 17 months since the release of rapper Mouse Powell’s outstanding debut, Where It’s Cloudy. The Tempe-based artist has kept busy during that time, notching several tours on his belt and becoming the house hype-man at the Valley’s renowned weekly hip-hop night, Blunt Club…
The Postal Service’s reunion is still fresh. The band played its first live show on April 9, the day the Give Up reissue was released in honor of The Postal Service’s 10-year anniversary. The reunion news was sudden and raised some questions. First and foremost, would the reunited Postal Service…
On Saturday, you’re going to have to make some very difficult choices. In one corner: the first That Damn Show in a decade, featuring Bad Religion and an impressive cast of local and touring bands. In another: The Real Coachella, featuring The Real Wu-Tang Clan and The Real Grimes. In…
When Portugal. The Man last came through town — just about a year ago — its Crescent Ballroom concert was the first after a lengthy break. The band had been touring almost nonstop for a year, so the idea was that some time off would renew the vigor they needed…
Phunk Junkeez and Jimmy Eat World do not have a lot in common. The Phunk Junkeez’ major-label video was about “Me N Yer Girl” booty-shaking; Jimmy Eat World’s was about two kids who fall in love and put their clothes back on. Jimmy Eat World hit on the mixture of…
If you went to Coachella last weekend, you’re probably still sunburned, dehydrated, and physically exhausted. Sleeping in your own bed is a glorious feeling after camping out or crashing on a friend’s hotel room floor, but some aches and pains are bound to persist. Fortunately, if you had a good-enough…
Kai Flanders The Coachella campgrounds are the Wild West of the festival. They are the sort of place you can imagine Hunter S. Thompson running around with his pants around his ankles. Drugs are more plentiful than food and going to bed before 4 a.m. is considered an early night…
Vial of Sound @ Crescent Ballroom, 4/13/2013 Obviously, I was not at Coachella. But I don’t get what the big deal about it is, so I didn’t care. Besides, something great happens when a bunch of local talent comes together. Sure, music scenes have their pitfalls, their petty grudges, the…
