Wayne “The Train” Hancock Will Plow Through The Rhythm Room Sunday

[jump] He’s been compared to all three Hank Williamses, even recording a live duet of his song “Juke Joint Jumpin'” with Hank Williams The Third: Juke Joint Jumpin’ – Wayne Han…   According to his website, Wayne Hancock is a walking musical contradiction: “Steeped in traditional but never ‘retro’; bare bones…

GiantONE Proves to Be One Giant Party at Cream Stereo Lounge

It was quite a shock stepping into Cream Stereo Lounge in Scottsdale last night, and not because there weren’t any VIP hostesses pestering me about getting bottle service. Truth be told, there was a decidedly un-Scottsdale aura flowing through the joint as Joe DiPadova brought his popular “ONE” dance night…

Tool in Phoenix: Point/Counterpoint

By Mike R. Meyer and Martin CizmarWhen it comes to divisive ’90s alt-rockers, we at Up On The Sun like to hedge our bets. So, as we did for the Beck and Nine Inch Nails/Jane’s Addiction shows, we dispatched two music critics to Tuesday night’s Tool concert at Phoenix’s US Airways Center…

Tonight: Tool at U.S. Airways

Tonight is a home-coming show of sorts for Tool, whose frontman Maynard James Keenan graced our cover a few months back because of his ambitious wine-making operation near Sedona. We’ll have a review for you tomorrow morning.Some other things to read before the show:Our somewhat controversial advance from last Thursday’s…

Slayer Plays Through The (Dry) Heat

Two stages, 13 bands, more than nine hours of music, and yet the Rockstar Mayhem Festival could easily be summed up in one word: SLAYER! Unfortunately, New Times doesn’t pay me for one-word reviews, and to be honest, a handful of other bands on the bill definitely made an impression…

Toadies Fans, In Arizona, In 2009: Who Knew?

“Huh? The Toadies are back together?” was pretty much my reaction last week, when I heard a radio ad for Wednesday’s show at Martini Ranch in Scottsdale. Clearly, I’d been out of the loop, since Todd Lewis had reconstituted his Dallas-Fort Worth band — known nationally for 1994’s Rubberneck and…

George Jones Shows At Celebrity Theatre

The last time I was at Celebrity Theatre, I saw country legend Loretta Lynn do most of her set by request, politely declining to sing the songs with lyrics she was fuzzy on. George “No Show” Jones, one of a handful of living musicians who can claim a place near…

Rise Against: Nazi Wingnuts or Just Plain Lazy?

If you thought skinhead punk was a fringe phenomenon occurring only in clannish groups like the one depicted in American History X, think again. Chicago punk act Rise Against appeared to send a clear message that they’re outraged with the Obama administration at Mesa Amphitheatre last night, offering a bitter…

Jenny Lewis and OBSCURA Over the Weekend

Jenny Lewis at The Marquee: Not Quite Convincing Jenny Lewis is certainly an entertainer. “From Los Angeles, with love, here’s Jenny Lewis,” the announcer belted Vegas-style as she took the stage at the Marquee on Saturday night, and Ms. Lewis wasted no time making her indie-diva status abundantly clear. As…

Jenny Lewis at The Marquee: Not Quite Convincing

Jenny Lewis is certainly an entertainer.  “From Los Angeles, with love, here’s Jenny Lewis,” the announcer belted Vegas-style as she took the stage at the Marquee on Saturday night, and Ms. Lewis wasted no time making her indie-diva status abundantly clear.  As her ace-card backing band cranked out solid seventies-folk…