David Bazan was worried he’d be marginalized. At least that’s what he told me over the phone a few weeks ago, discussing public reaction to his latest album, Curse Your Branches”Honestly, what I actually thought was that the record was going to be so marginal, because anyone who cares so…
Jimmy Martin-Nelson (a.k.a. Death to the Throne) is a little hesitant discussing the success he’s experienced in recent years as a DJ. No less a source than the Web sites of Rolling Stone and Vibe have heaped praise upon the funky Phoenician for his remixes of songs by such heavyweights…
[jump] Shows announced in the past week:Iron Maiden: With Dream Theater, Thursday June 17, 7:30 p.m. Cricket Wireless Pavilion, 2121 North 83rd Avenue Phoenix, (602) 254-7200. Caribou: Tuesday, May 18, 7 p.m. Clubhouse Music Venue, 1320 E. Broadway Rd., Tempe, 480-968-3238. Sage Francis: Thursday, June 10, 7 p.m. Clubhouse Music Venue, 1320…
The musical genre of rock ‘n’ roll has had something of a curious symbiotic relationship with the bombastic world of professional wrestling over the past decades. Both experienced major heydays in the 1950s and inevitably became intertwined in the early 80s when such grapplers as the Fabulous Freebirds began using…
Rocky Votolato had a lot to celebrate last night at the Rhythm Room. To start with, the Seattle singer-songwriter just recently released his sixth album, True Devotion. Votolato’s latest record continues the folksy roots sound that his fans have become accustomed to. In addition to his latest album release, another…
Flying Blanket CD Release Party In Photos The Love Me Nots, Dear and the Headlights, Sister Cities, Black Carl and other local bands rocked the house at Martini Ranch on Friday, March 5, 2010…see photos Landmine Marathon at Chaser’s Despite some technical difficulties in the form of Landmine Marathon singer…
It’d been almost two years since Kirkwood Dellinger released a record, an 8-song EP called Miniature Stallion. The title of that record is a reference to a man whose unfortunate demise came about as a result a colon punctured while having anal sex with a horse. A great title, to…
Dressed in mod 60s garb — men in black suits with skinny pants and ties, women in leggings and polka-dot dresses — equipped with classic-looking instruments and metal vintage microphones, The Love Me Nots look like extras from a spy movie. At first glance, they look like a benign lounge…
The answer to your question: Yes, Mike Watt and his new band, The Missingmen, reached back nearly 30 years to pull out of the musical vault a play a handful of songs by Minutemen, the band that secured Watt’s legend as one of the best bass players in punk rock…
I’ve been behind local metal band Hemoptysis since I reviewed their debut EP nearly a year ago. In fact, I picked the neo-thrashers as our automatic bid to South By Southwest this year, and am happy to report the band is playing a showcase at Soho Lounge on Friday, March…
Minibosses 10th Anniversary Show at Yucca Tap Room It’s official. The Minibosses have been rockin’ covers of 8-bit tracks for a decade. To celebrate, the band played a full on set of their classic game renditions at Yucca Tap Room on February 27, 2010…see photos A Storm of Light &…
If New Times decided to create a new “Best of Phoenix” award for Most Subdued Crowd, the 100-plus folks in attendance at Saturday night’s A Storm of Light/Via Vengeance show at The Underground in Mesa would have to be in the running. Granted, it’s not as if ASOL’s sweeping post-rock…
Yes, you heard me right. Try to stifle your laughs — I’m prepapred for many — but I can’t possibly write this review without confessing that I’m truly a Jovaholic. Seriously, I named my maltipoo “Jovi” to pay homage to the New Jersey rockers. I’m just lucky enough that this…
Despite being best known by most as a member of The Raconteurs, Brendan Benson has not given up on his solo career.In 2009 Benson released his fourth LP My Old, Familiar Friend on ATO Records. While most of the songs on the album are about romantic woes you’d never really…
Mariah Carey at Dodge Theatre It’s pretty much accepted fact that pop musicians have to switch identities every album or two to stay ahead of the curve. Everybody does it — Justin Timberlake, P!nk, Madonna — with varying degrees of success…full story See: Mariah Carey’s Dodge Theatre performance in photos…
It’s pretty much accepted fact that pop musicians have to switch identities every album or two to stay ahead of the curve. Everybody does it — Justin Timberlake, P!nk, Madonna — with varying degrees of success.Mariah Carey, who brought her Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel tour to Dodge Theatre Saturday…
Until last night, that is. Probably right around the moment he uttered the following during his spoken word appearance at the Marquee Theatre: “What am I doing? I’m getting turned on by a guy? I’m not being a good judge! I’m not gay! I’m not gay!” Are you sure about…
Strong Beer Festival at Margaret T. Hance Park The only evidence that we have of even attending the Strong Beer Festival on Saturday, February 13 at Margaret T. Hance park are these photos. Based on them, we can assume that there were many varieties of deliciously decadent brews all very,…
It was ironically named The Losers’ Ball, but if you know anything about how people market stuff nowadays, you’d correctly guess that Sail Inn’s show had incredibly cool musicians playing for a bunch of incredibly cool people. That started right at the top of the bill, with North Carolina’s Dex…
It was clear who the star of the show was Saturday night at the Jack’s Mannequin concert at Marquee Theatre — Nate Ruess, formerly of local band The Format, currently with New York City-based fun. (possibly the worst band name ever.) Fun. lived up to its name, entertaining the sold-out young…
Reviewers are supposed to be objective. By that standard, perhaps I’m not the best person to write about Thursday night’s St. Vincent show at the Rhythm Room. So, before you read on, in the interest of full disclosure, I’ll be honest with you: I’ve been a huge fan of Austin-based…
George Strait at Phoenix’s US Airways Center For a guy who hasn’t filled out a W2 in 30-plus years, George Strait sure can sing the working man’s music. Opening with “Twang,” the title track off his latest studio album — his twenty-sixth, if you can believe it — the “King…
