Title: The Dalliance AlbumBasics: Underground Cities is described as being “formed by old high school friends in the summer of 2009 from the remnants of punk, indie, metal and rockabilly bands.” Thankfully, Underground Cities is not just one of these sounds — the band plays instrumental rock songs in the…
DeVotchKa is Russian for “girl.” Not sure what that has to do with anything, but I like when foreign words are so much longer than their English counterpart. DeVotchKa is also the name of a crazy-ass band from Denver that sounds like Fiddler on the Roof if many, many more…
California singer-songwriter Joey Cape is best known for his work in bands like Lagwagon and Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies. When he’s not working on records for those groups, Cape is building a pretty strong solo career for himself. Unlike the pop-punk sound Cape developed with his bands, his…
The grungy hard rock band 10 Years has had its share of ups and downs. Like most groups that last more than a hot minute, they’ve gone through personnel changes, management changes, and a few creative crises. In fact, the band wasn’t even certain that its most recent album, Feeding…
Let’s say you decide to start a solo project, eventually inviting some friends to play with you. It’s hardly serious — the newly formed band is just a way to see some friends you might not otherwise get to see on a regular basis. Why not give the band a…
San Francisco duo The Dodos’ bright, intricately rhythmic music quilts together influences ranging from Afro-pop and folk-psych to country-blues and po-mi (post-millennial) experimental pop. Since forming in 2005 around singer/songwriter Meric Long and drummer Logan Kroeber, The Dodos have released three increasingly polished and refined albums, with a fourth, No…
Mixtapes have been a staple of the hip-hop world, dating back to the old days when NYC selectas like Kool Herc were using the rhymes of artists like Grandmaster Flash and Afrika Bambaataa to help launch their careers. Another cat who rose to glory via his masterful mixtapes was DJ…
It’s become a cliché for music journalists to write “pity poor Ron Sexsmith” stories about how wonderful the Canadian singer-songwriter is and how it’s a crime that he doesn’t sell more records. It’s only a cliché because it’s true. With his eleventh studio album, Long Player Late Bloomer, in stores…
Casey Moore’s is the neighborhood bar of Tempe. Located just walking distance from the Mill Avenue bars, Casey’s is the perfect place to have a couple beers and still be able to talk to your friends without yelling. Jimmy Eat World even wrote a song about the place. The casual…
Title: For When It’s Sunny OutBasics: Phoenix foursome Snow Songs features the versatile Yolanda Bejarano as their lead singer, and it’s damn near impossible to not to mention Bejarano when discussing the band. She is one of the strongest presences I have come across in my time with YAFI and…
Boston punk rock band the Street Dogs have appropriately chosen to go with a Celtic theme on the flier for their upcoming gig at the Rogue Bar.Joining the band for awesome pre-St. Patrick’s Day festivities will be fellow Boston bands the Have Nots, Lenny Lashley Gango of One, and The…
Title: A Room Full of HatersBasics: Is there room for more haters? I don’t like to start things off like that, but I couldn’t help myself — especially given the title of the damn album. A title, I might add, that was not included on the CD itself and was…
The Sound Strike, the musical boycott of Arizona organized last year in the wake of a controversial immigration law, is crowing about its success. The boycott is lead by former Rage Against The Machine singer Zack de la Rocha. It persists even though SB 1070 — like an “eerily similar”…
There is a very good chance that at some point in your life, whether you’re too young to realize it or not, you’ve heard at least one song by Jackson Browne. It’s not just because the legendary singer-songwriter has been making music since the early ’70s, but it’s because his…
When Quiet Riot singer Kevin DuBrow passed away in 2007, many felt that his death would mark the end of the band. Among them was Quiet Riot drummer and figurehead Frank Banali, who issued a statement on the band’s official website declaring that, “Kevin was too important to go on…
When life gives you lemons, they say, make lemonade. But sometimes life throws you a double-fudge chocolate cake. That’s sorta what happened to heavy-rock outfit Unwritten Law. In 2002, just after the mainstream success of their single “Seein’ Red,” the five-piece (now four-piece) band from Poway, California, was asked to…
Autumn’s Victorian rock operas offer surprisingly poppy burlesque-glam — imagine a coned-tit-era Madonna gone goth. Rasputina and Dresden Dolls are obvious touchstones, sharing similar predilections for moody theatricalism, classical music, and Kurt Weill. A violin prodigy, Autumn attended the Music Conservatory at Indiana University when she was 14. She wouldn’t…
If you’ve loved all the hipsterrific DJs, EDM artists, and remix maestros who’ve been coming through the Valley in recent months (including Flosstradamus, Pictureplane, and Cassian), be sure to give a hearty high five to Jeremiah Gratza. The Stateside Presents co-promoter has been exposing our fair city to some of…
Title: The Progression Vol. 1Basics: More YAFI hip hop? You got it. Luckily, The Orphanz have a clue as to what they are doing, as opposed to certain other hip hop artists from last week. Veteran producers Dre Lesean and D.K. Simmons comprise The Orphanz and their Progression Vol. 1…
Ravers are an ultra-colorful bunch, to say the least. For example, if you happened to hanging out at Stratus this past weekend, your eyeballs likely woulda exploded from the onslaught of outrageous outfits, multi-colored madness, and bizarre behavior. The event was called Just Keep Raving IV, and the cast of…
This new hit of hers might be a little too similar to Madonna’s hit “Express Yourself.” In the “Born This Way” video, Gaga’s rockin’ Madge’s classic lengthy high ponytail hairdo. Lady Gaga portrays herself as a strong, powerful woman just as Madonna has always done, plus she’s channeling the 80s…
To paraphrase what John Lennon said of Chuck Berry and apply it to Bob Marley’s impact on his chosen musical genre, one could easily opine: “If you tried to give reggae another name, you might call it ‘Bob Marley.'” Approaching the 30th anniversary of the Legend’s death on May 11,…
