When a band has to make up a genre name to describe its music, it’s easy to suspect said band lacks focus. Not so with Tempe-based band The VeraGroove, as their self-coined “desert reggae rock ‘n’ roll” label works pretty well. The band, which says it seeks to unite listeners…
As winter approaches, the nights will inevitably grow both colder and longer. If you’re looking for somewhere to simultaneously get both warm and wild, consider spending a few hours amidst the frenetic bodies gathered at the Madison Event Center, 441 West Madison Avenue, for the annual Hard Dance Nation on…
Another Friday, another debaucherously fun night at Philthy Phil’s (they serve drinks in plastic buckets for god’s sake). See the “Fu@% it Bucket” induced happenings for yourself in our slideshow!…
Nicki Minaj’s tell-all documentary, My Time Now, aired on MTV on Sunday night. She told even more in the new issue of Rolling Stone.In the documentary she discussed her crack addicted father and child abuse, and being raised by her grandparents for quite some time. In the article she talked…
Album: Fever DreamsBasics: Ryan Osterman — the man behind both Sownbones and Owl & Penny — is one of the more talented players on the River Jones Music roster.Osterman’s folk-tinged indie rock smacks of one of his admitted favorite artists, Ryan Adams.There’s also a hint of Bright Eyes-era Conor Oberst…
Wow, an R&B star singing about marriage and commitment and true love. You’re not dreaming it–it’s happened with Jason DeRulo’s “What If,” and it’s downright refreshing to hear a guy who’s already sung about dirty fantasies belt about something more meaningful…
When you’re born with the name Leon Blue, it’s hard to imagine life taking you down any path other than that of a badass boogie-woogie blues pianist. Blue — real name, natch — has racked up plenty of high-profile work as a sideman, manning the keys for The Ike &…
Call them “hyper,” “sugary,” “bouncy,” or just “too stoked to function,” and The Summer Set will totally thank you for the compliments. The young Scottsdale five-piece pop band knows its fan base is full of teenage girls and knows how to cater to them. Yes, these guys wear bright colors…
Most of the audience that discovered the screamo-metalcore act Atreyu in 2003 (via MySpace, of course) has gone on to college, where their musical tastes have likely matured into more sensitive indie-rock types like Sufjan Stevens or Conor Oberst. Yet Atreyu is still chugging along. As David Wooderson famously said…
For years, I was a pretty big fan of the ska-punk — a genre that aimed to marry punk’s energy to ska’s rocksteady vibe — until, at one point in my late teens, I decided that I detested ska and ska-punk and tossed out all my previous feelings for the…
Although the five-day Thanksgiving holiday technically doesn’t start until tonight, those in attendance at Martini Ranch’s Retox Sundays shindig this past weekend got a jump on the festivities. They drank down plenty of beer and booze, smoked flavorful shishas, danced to the sounds laid down by DJs, and witnessed the…
Kesha is bratty, she always looks a little dirty, and she performs live with Auto-Tune (see the American Music Awards).She would wear garbage bags as clothes if she could, and she’s been pictured with only semen covering her chest. She’s not exactly the classiest or most talented artist out there,…
In case you can’t guess by looking at this flier, local indie band Banana Gun really likes old science fiction movies. Besides adopting the style when it comes to designing their promotional materials, one of the first songs the band wrote together, “HAL,” was loosely based on the computer HAL…
: Static MarchTitle: All At Once, a six-song EP.Basics: Formerly known as Five High, this mellow Phoenix trio plays alternative/indie rock inspired by — according to to the band — Incubus, Muse, Death Cab for Cutie and Kings of Leon.Red flag!While the Kings may be personas non gratas with this…
Leave it to Enrique Iglesias to channel lust into a dance hit all about f-ing. The Spanish singer just has this impossible-to-pinpoint, irresistible charm that excuses his chauvinistic qualities and makes him radio gold.But at least he knows he’s a pig, and this is the second song where he implores…
New Riders of the Purple Sage are famous for their rambling brand of California country music, which is a lot like the original Southern stuff sans the vocal twang. Lumped in with artists like Dwight Yoakam, Merle Haggard, and Buck Owens, they re-create the collective “Bakersfield sound” of the ’50s…
Bruno Mars sure has a way with the ladies. His song “Just the Way You Are” has become an anthem for females everywhere, as the number one hit implores women (and, well, anyone) to stay true to themselves and not give in to changing for the object of their affection…
Following in the footsteps of Jake E. Lee and Randy Rhoads would seem an unenviable task, but Zakk Wylde proved he was more than up to the challenge, serving as Ozzy Osbourne’s lead guitarist for a two-decade, five-album stretch from 1987 to 2009. Along the way, Wylde formed his own…
I was going to get an “I Hate Social Distortion” tattoo, but I didn’t, for a couple of reasons. First, just about every tattoo artist loves the band, and I didn’t want hepatitis C. Second, I was afraid my T-shirt would cover up the “I Hate” part, and people would…
I can’t imagine it makes Mr. Raymond IV very happy, but Auto-Tune may have saved his career. It’s not as though he were about to disappear off the pop music map or anything, but when you’ve already sold 40-some million albums, any album that doesn’t dominate your genre’s landscape isn’t…
You may think that the days of punk songs sounding just like those of The Ramones are over. Not so. The Qt up a bit, and throw in some surf-y sounds. That sound is packaged for digestion with fast-paced, two-minute songs. The New Hampshire-based band (note the irony: New Hampshire…
There’s a little 80s darkwave goth kid inside all of us, so we were elated to get a serious fix Saturday night at Sanctum, everyone’s favorite local vampire disco. From Q Lazzarus to Concrete Blonde to Janet Jackson, DJs Dan and Noiz.Fkr went way beyond the stereotypical retro darkwave tunes…
