For dance-driven electro acts, there’s no grander feat than managing to stay “big in Brooklyn” while inching toward the mainstream. Melbourne-bred quartet Cut Copy has got the trick down, parlaying its steady buzz into one of the ultimate status symbols for a band, a headlining slot at the Coachella music…
Phoenix-based stoner-metal band Twingiant doesn’t screw around when it comes to material. “Songs about being accidentally shot out into space on a giant garbage barge because y’all was sleeping in a pile of garbage when the tractor beam picked y’all up by mistake,” reads the bio on the group’s (hilarious)…
When the name of your band comes off like a warning, you can be sure no one is going to mistake you for a straightforward pop band. Sure enough, Chandler hardcore band Keep Your Distance makes aggressive music, but songs like “For I Am the Sky” may surprise listeners expecting…
The naysayers doubted, but The Summer Set has proved they’re more than a one-hit wonder and they have a future beyond dating Disney Channel stars. Yeah, the audiences still consist mostly of rabid, screaming teenage girls, but Everything’s Fine, the band’s solid sophomore album, balances a knack for writing catchy…
We’re going to play nice. Days of the New singer Travis Meeks has had it rough over the years. A kidney stone in 1999 led to an addiction to painkillers, which led to cocaine and, finally, meth. He even appeared in 2005 on A&E’s Intervention to document the whole thing…
Following a 16-year career and four-year album-making process, Los Angeles-based DJ Jaybird’s first full-length record was finally released in March, and it’s all him — sort of. At least that’s the title. It’s All Me features a collection of DJ Jaybird originals and dubstep-ified remixes of high-profile tunes like Cee-Lo…
Mill Avenue is loud, and Vintage is no exception, perched on the corner of 4th Street and Mill blasting dance music to passerbys. It’s loud for a reason, Vintage has a huge dance floor full of Tempe’s finest. We captured the mischief in this week’s Club Candids slideshow…
They say it ain’t bragging if it’s true — but last time we wrote about someone’s Kickstarter project, big things happened. Now I know that we aren’t the sole reason Shawn Demumbrum’s Smiths comic met and exceeded its goal. It’s a great idea on its own, and the fact that…
Lucky for us all, NPR Music has given the album its exclusive first listen treatment, streaming The Rip Tide in its entirety before its release…
Don’t miss indie pop band NEBA throw it down tonight at the Yucca Tap Room. Flamingo and DJ Adrian Flanagan will take the stage as well. Unfortunately, the word on the street is that Andrew Duncan Brown had to cancel…sad trombone noises.The show is going down 9 p.m. In good…
As if the reign of Ticketmaster didn’t already suck badly enough, now you can get overcharged in a new convenient neighborhood location. You know, because buying tickets from your home computer wasn’t convenient enough. That’s right, Walmart and Ticketmaster are teaming up to bring you more locations where you can…
It’s nearly impossible not to yawn at the mere mention of the term “singer-songwriter.” You’ve heard it before — some Lisa Loeb or Elliott Smith clone crooning about a botched relationship over the sounds of a barista cranking out another chai latte. Singer-songwriter Ari Herstand has worked hard to distance…
Someone should really make a movie about the saga of The Wailers. This band — founded by reggae legends Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Bunny Wailer in 1963 — is the seminal reggae band, and its various members have influenced every style of reggae imaginable, from roots to rocksteady to…
Do you remember when Dave Grohl issued the Probot album? The Southern Lord Records release found the Foo Fighter teaming with Lemmy, King Diamond, and members of Soulfly, Saint Vitus, Voivod, Corrosion of Conformity, and more. It was good fun, and it allowed Grohl to shake loose the pop format…
Despite possessing such a nondescript moniker, local act Genre sure has a lot to stand for. The group has big ideas and a penchant for taking its music very seriously. “There are things holding humans back that prevent trueness and goodness from being the norm,” says singer and synth player…
Hailing from Perth, Australia, founding members of Pendulum — Rob Swire Gareth McGrillen, and Paul “El Hornet” Harding — come from musically diverse backgrounds in electronic, punk, hardcore, and metal scenes. The trio’s varied experiences in heavy music can be heard in their DJ sets, in which drum ‘n’ bass,…
Bar Smith is always popping on the weekend, and Solstice Saturdays are no exception, as DJs play house on the rooftop and hip-hop downstairs. Saturday, July 30 was a bigger party than usual– it was DJ Senbad’s birthday. Check out the excitement in this week’s Club Candids slideshow. On behalf…
As we touched upon earlier this week, the concert benefits teenagers struggling with suicide.The good times for a great cause will begin at 5:30 p.m. at The Fixx. Tickets are only $8, so there’s no excuse not to check out the event and support Teen Lifeline Suicide Prevention. More information…
Dredg has never been shy about taking risks. The Bay Area quartet’s music is heavy with prog signifiers, but Dredge is usually game for anything: a little synth-rock here, a little noir psychedelia there. It felt curiously appropriate when the band announced it would be working with Dan the Automator…
The woods can be a dark and scary place. According to Lord of the Rings fans (ringers?) on the interwebs, they are lousy with orcs. Other times, they’re full of tension, as esteemed environmental philosopher Geddy Lee once observed: “There is trouble with the trees, for the maples want more…
Carlos Santana isn’t exactly the hardest brother on the block. Those Rob Thomas and Michelle Branch collaborations didn’t do much for his street cred. Luckily, his personal brand of champagne, Santana DVX Sparkling Wine (it’s just so smooth), is one of the few factors keeping the Mexican guitar-god legit. That…
Rockabilly trio Tiger Army hasn’t released a new record since Music from Regions Beyond in 2007, and they played all of two shows in 2010. So why are they touring now? Well, frontman Nick 13 — who is into transcendental meditation — must’ve had some kind of vision after releasing…
