As we predicted last month in the best monthly metal shows, those crazy April metal showers clearly yield May metal — 13 to be exact, aligning perfectly with those Friday the 13th shows as well. And this month’s list of killer shows, combined with the crazy cool weather we’ve been…
The Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) received a video invitation from Phoenix native and legendary shock rocker Alice Cooper. Cooper isn’t bringing ECC leadership to one of his shows or to see him in the studio of his radio program Nights With Alice Cooper. He is inviting attendees at Gather ’16,…
No doubt about it, we suffered two devastating music legend losses in April 2016, but it is heartwarming to know that alarmist podcasts like Infowars and websites Survivopedia.com have found the missing link between Merle Haggard and Prince and united them in death — yes, those geo-engineering chemtrails! “Just to…
When thousands of party fiends, electronic dance music fans, and members of the young-and-beautiful crowd invaded Big Surf this past weekend for Wet Electric, they came dressed for the occasion. After all, the annual EDM festival also serves as the largest pool party in Arizona, which meant that practically everyone…
The recent hiring of Joseph Specter as Arizona Opera’s new general director isn’t the first time in this last year that Phoenix and Austin have shared organizational arts leaders. Last December, the former director of the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, Cory Baker, began a VP role at Austin’s…
Paper Foxes – “Indica Feels” For the first time in my recollection, three local bands have come together to put out a three-way split single in anticipation of an upcoming tour together. Paper Foxes is releasing their first song in the year since the release of their debut EP Love…
Being a self-made independent hip-hop artist in 2016 is a daunting task. It can be especially difficult if you are a 28-year-old white Jewish rapper from suburban Pennsylvania. David Burd, aka Lil Dicky, has embraced his differences rather than erase them, and as a result has carved out his own…
Strip joints are very rock ‘n’ roll kind of places. While it seems like hip-hop is largely what blasts from the sound systems at most gentlemen’s clubs in this day and age, there’s a certain seedy, sexy, and debaucherous vibe at such spots that lends itself to the decadence of…
Pool parties have become a major hallmark of the warmer months here in the Valley. So much so that it seems like every weekend during the spring and summer features a stylish poolside bacchanal of drinks, dancing, and DJs happening somewhere in either Phoenix or Scottsdale. And then there’s Wet…
When Slope Records began releasing vintage Phoenix punk records toward the end of 2015, there were a few jewels in the crown for the fledgling label. One of those jewels was a 1987 live recording by the infamous Mighty Sphincter, which was released under the title Undead at Hammersmith Odeon…
“The beautiful part about jazz is it’s like the gumbo,” says saxophonist and keyboardist Doc Jones, who’s played with the likes of Aretha Franklin and The Temptations for more than 30 years. “There’s all styles of jazz, from Boston over to smooth jazz to acid jazz, and on and on,…
Mitchell Hillman listens to more local music than just about anyone in the Valley. He presents his picks for best new music in his column, Right Hear, Right Now. The Maya Spectra – “Music Box” The Maya Spectra is in the process of relocating to Phoenix, and that’s good news…
The Valley’s own The Summer Set are back with a new album and a full supporting tour after last year’s reported breakup. “We’re running through old songs, learning new songs, and kind of playing the longest set we’ve ever really played,” says frontman Brian Dales. “I’m excited about everything.” The…
Music lovers in Mesa just got another reason to stay in town and off of the highway. Zia Records announced this morning the opening of an 11,000-square-foot superstore in Mesa on 1302 South Gilbert Road. It appears Record Store Day has started a day early. The store’s opening is slated…
Mitchell Hillman listens to more local music than just about anyone in the Valley. He presents his picks for best new music in his column, Right Hear, Right Now. The Hellflowers – “Running Through The Fog” The Hellflowers may be based in Los Angeles, but half of their lineup hails…
When a band like the Valley’s own BroLoaf tells you its new record has “pop sensibilities,” you just have to roll your eyes. Those who have witnessed the spectacle of the almost 8-year-old band’s live show understand the general need to eye-roll when the subject of the “Loaf” comes up…
Though it may seem contrary to the notion of becoming a successful band, ignoring trends may be the best way to get discovered. At least, that concept proved successful for The Darkness. Formed in 1999 by brothers Dan and Justin Hawkins, the pair set their sights on the big time…
Nonpareil is a band that want to tell it like it is. Locally grown but internationally influenced, the Phoenix-area quartet plays a noisy brand of post-punk carefully designed to enthrall and motivate the listener and will please even the most discerning devotee of the great Dischord Records label out of Washington,…
Mitchell Hillman listens to more local music than just about anyone in the Valley. He presents his picks for best new local music in his column, Right Hear, Right Now. Snake! Snake! Snakes! – “In My Head” Depending on how long you’ve been into Snake! Snake! Snakes! you’ve been waiting…
You can never have too many urinals, right? That probably wasn’t the logic that went into some of the new renovations at Mesa music and event venue, the Nile Theater, but the addition of bathrooms, urinals, and a small room in the men’s room area has allowed the venue’s overall…
In the six years between the release of the self-titled debut of awkwardly punctuated Phoenix band Snake! Snake! Snakes! and the upcoming release of the group’s sophomore record, Tranquillo (due out April 9), the rock ’n’ roll four-piece has changed an awful lot. For starters, the group traded in ivory…
As the temperatures rise, those who travel via motorcycle begin to hit the open road. Bike festival season is on the horizon. The big four nationally recognized veteran bike events are well-known across the US: Sturgis, South Dakota; Myrtle Beach, Florida (both in their 76th year); Daytona Beach, Florida in…
