As many others will inevitably do during the holiday season, Elizabeth Quintanilla (a.k.a. DJ Alkemé) is planning on serving up some sweet treats to her nearest and dearest. But instead of peppermint pinwheels and peanut butter bars, the 32-year-old she-jay’s confections are of the auditory variety. Quintanilla is planning on…
I first met Nate Allen a couple of years ago, when he played a house show in downtown Tempe where he rolled up in a ramshackle van full of ‘zines and self-pressed CD-Rs. I don’t think the cops were called that night, but if they were, they would have stumbled…
What is rock ‘n’ roll if not the sound of youthful exuberance? In that context, Orange Juice might just be the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band of all time. Led by a young Edwyn Collins, he of the “A Girl Like You” international mega-hit in the mid-’90s, Glasgow’s Orange Juice…
As a lifelong Phoenician, it’s hard not to get all nostalgic for the old Boston’s when stepping foot into 910 Live, but even without its dirt lot and smelly interior, the location has once again become a great place to see bands. We stopped by on Saturday for the No…
Album: Wake Up Dead EPBasics: Phoenix’s The Whisperlights are amongst the stable of indie rock bands currently making the rounds in Phoenix/Tempe — Black Carl, What Laura Says, Dry River Yacht Club, and Gospel Claws. Many an opening slot has been reserved at those bands’ shows for The ‘Lights. Their Wake…
Awwww, Bruno Mars. What a puppy dog he is.He’s the lyrical epitome of what a man should be–accepting, someone who doles out sincere compliments, someone who wants his partner to be his equal, etc. And his current single, “Grenade,” is yet another example of what a fine gentleman he is.In…
Usually when you pay money to go see a show, you want the bands you’re seeing to perform their best–you know, not mess up, sing in key, play the right chords.That’s a little hard after you’ve taken 10 shots.Shotfest 4: The Quest for Peace might be one of the only…
If making pimp remixes of pop artists were a martial art, Richard Vission would easily be a ninth-degree black belt. The Grammy-nominated maestro of house music has unleashed his magic on some of best and the brightest in the biz, including Lady Gaga (“Bad Romance”), Black Eyed Peas (“Meet Me…
Funny how things work out. When a violent dustup with a choirgirl in Arkansas ended Joseph Williams Perkins’ budding career as a guitarist, it started him down his path as a pianist. Better known as “Pinetop” Perkins, Joseph holds the distinction of being one of the oldest Delta blues performers…
Smell that? It might be the scent of your roommate’s fifth bong rip today. However, it could also be the Smoker’s Club tour bus nearing the Arizona state line. As if you didn’t already know that rap music and pot go together like alcohol and Taco Bell, Curren$y has made…
Over the past decade, the model for the live music business has been turned upside down. Back in the day, a band would go on tour to increase the sales of its record. Now, bands often sell their records in an attempt to support their tour. Roger Clyne and the…
Usually, band’s origin stories are pretty similar to one another. You know the drill: The members, outcasts at school, rebelled against their parents and wound up in a forceful, angst-y band. That’s not really how things worked for the members of NeedToBreathe. The stripped down Southern-sounding quintet hailing from Seneca,…
As most people get all warm and fuzzy during the holiday season, others flip their shit. There are just so many times when the stress of shopping for stupid gifts and coordinating stupid family schedules is just too much to handle. That’s when banging your head and screaming it off…
Christmas is a big thing at the Coach House. The folks at this Scottsdale mainstay do it up right by decorating the renowned dive bar with more than 10,000 twinkling glow lights and more wrapping paper and bows than one can imagine. It’s definitely a sight to be seen, which is…
Compiling year-end lists is an art form. Lucky for everyone, our own Michael Lopez understands that art very well. So does Consequence of Sound. The Associated Press, on the other hand… not so much, which is why the Houston Press, among others, famously and understandably shit all over AP’s 2009…
While it’s been more than two decades since Australia’s The Church were anywhere near the mainstream in the United States, the band made, and continues to make, terrific music both before and after “Under The Milky Way” became their only US Top 40 hit in 1988. Featuring the fantastic and…
Is it just me, or is anyone else completely shocked by Katy Perry’s nomination for Album of the Year for the 2011 Grammy Awards?I mean, don’t get me wrong. As a person, I adore her. She’s funny, sassy, confident and beautiful, and she really does have amazing vocal talent. Her…
Title: Life’s CaféBasics: Basics, you say? Where to start — Russell is on his fifth CD. He has also appeared in theatrical productions as Howard Bevins in William Inge’s Picnic and as Simon Stimson in Thorton Wilder’s Our Town and he is the owner of Desert Winds Development, Inc., a…
Ever wondered what a zombie Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer looks like? Take a gander at this flier. It was created for metal band Living Sacrifice for their A Very Metal Christmas Tour. Since the name of the tour has to do with Christmas, Tooth & Nail Records/Invisible Creature art director/designer…
It’s tough being one of hip-hop’s elder statesmen. Take Jay-Z’s spot on the recent Kanye West single “Monster,” for instance. It isn’t that Jay’s verse is terrible, but surrounded by Rick Ross, Kanye, and the unstoppable Nicki Minaj, Hova lacks vigor. Next to the other MCs, he comes across as…
You’ve heard of 2 Live Crew, and their famous “me so horny” refrain, but have you laid ears on Toubab Krewe? Admittedly, the groups don’t have much in common besides their names. The former: Miami-based dirty-rappers who excelled at pissing off censors. The latter: North Carolina-based white-boy Afro-rockers who excel…
Not quite the Dropkick Murphy-style fiddle jockeys their name vaguely depicts, Reckless Kelly has been making twangy alt-country roots-rock since they formed in Bend, Oregon, in the mid-’90s. Named after Australian bank robber Ned Kelly, the band later relocated to Austin and released a string of well-received country-charting albums, including…
