Last year, two mixtapes dropped that shifted R&B on its axis: Frank Ocean’s Nostalgia, Ultra and The Weeknd’s House of Balloons. Both took the standard propulsive club groove and softened it with production nuance, the lyrics conceding to self-doubt and disappointment. Soul jams were supposed to be the providence of…
The Wednesday night lineup at one of downtown Phoenix’s favorite hipster hangouts has been on the receiving end of a major reboot recently. Bi-level EDM emporium Bar Smith, 130 East Washington, axed its moombahton night The Scenario a few weeks back in favor of two newly launched Hump Day happenings…
Something unusual has been happening recently inside the establishment on the northeast corner of Mill Avenue and University Drive in Tempe: People are having a blast after dark. Lots of people. Such a thing is commonplace along party-hearty Mill Avenue, given its proximity to Arizona State University, just not at…
“Who’s ready to jump?” If you’ve ever attended an electronic dance music event anytime in the last few years, its incredibly likely you’ve heard the frequently used audio drop — sampled from Dutch house producer Chuckie biggest track — that asks this question and typically causes a crowd explode with…
I know it sounds weird, but I’ve always been a fan of Men’s Health magazine. But in a recent issue, the magazine featured an article about updating sex playlists from such old cliches, like substituting Air’s Talkie Walkie in for Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon. This article linked…
Christopher Lee Marshall admits he’s been more than a little tired lately, which isn’t surprising, considering the EDM artist’s busy tour schedule. In the past year alone he’s crisscrossed the country, toured with influential dubstep producer 12th Planet, and played some of the biggest festivals in North America – including…
We’ve spent the last year in the laboratory putting Phoenix under the microscope to reveal hundreds of specimens of the best culture, outdoor adventures, shopping, dining, and nightlife the city has to offer. And we’re finally ready to publish our results. Nerd alert! Now presenting Scientific Phoenix. Don’t get us…
Back in 2007 when Vinnie Paul and Chad Gray announced their new band Hellyeah, fans weren’t sure what to expect of group made from members of Mudvayne, Pantera, Damageplan, and Nothingface. No doubt it was going to be heavy, but would it gear towards visual theatrics and sonic experimentation like…
Space is the place. It is the (claimed) birthplace of legendary jazz composer Sun Ra, it’s where Captain James T. Kirk boldly traveled, and it was there to give Cold War strategists something else to think about as people raced for the moon. It’s also where acclaimed hip-hop artist and…
“New York had lied to me. I needed the truth.” So sing The Lumineers, who fled the city, stifled by the hard realities of high rent, limited practice space, and constant demands on their free time. Songwriting partners for years, Wesley Schultz and Jeremiah Fraites moved to Denver, where The…
Justin Bieber more closely resembles John Lennon than the majority of musicians today. That’s right: It’s been said. Songs like “As Long As You Love Me” and “Baby” are more heartfelt, innocent love ballads than the jaded, bitter tunes of jilted rock stars who have been used, abused, and left…
I’ve long held the suspicion that Los Angeles-by-way-of-Tucson songwriter Jacob Cooper (better known by his production moniker, Jacob Safari) ganked the name of his long-running Bark Bark Bark project from a prominent graphic displayed in a scene from Anchorman (“A La Jolla man clings to life . . .”). I could be wrong,…
“On the blue side of evening / When the darkness takes control / You start looking for a reason / To take your lonesome down the road.” These forlorn lyrics, cribbed from honkytonk hitmaker Steve Earle’s 1986 ditty “Down the Road,” might have been rolling through the heads of DJs…
What’s one to do on a Sunday night in downtown Phoenix? Going to bed early and vegging out seems like an appealing option, but by staying in, you’d miss all the fun Retro Hi-Fi at Sidebar has to offer. Check out the fashionable folks we spotted at Retro Hi-Fi at…
Since 2006, local band Digital Summer has been garnering fans from all over the country, with a Facebook count of almost 50,000 fans. They have a distinguishable style of heavy, melodic guitars and raw vocals that not only comes off as radio-friendly, but also sets them apart from other local…
In the late ’90s and early ’00s, Limp Bizkit was a juggernaut, and guitarist Wes Borland was the chugging soul of the band. The observant, cryptic counterpart to outspoken rap-rocker Fred Durst, he was responsible for much of the band’s success, with his experimental, heavy riffs and outlandish look (makeup-caked…
Just in case you didn’t know, Tuesday, September 25, is National One-Hit Wonder Day. It’s the day the nation has carefully selected (or something) to celebrate musical splashes that never go beyond that big single (at least in the ears of most listeners). One-hit wonders are tricky things. They can…
“I love Phoenix,” Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 says excitedly. “Rob [Zombie] and the other guys in the band, they like the colder weather, but for some reason I love the really hot weather.” He pauses, then anxiously asks, “It should be really warm there still when I’m there in…
Rob Zombie isn’t out to terrify you. He’s out to blow your mind. He holds a number of titles: director, artist, musician, actor, writer, lover, and freak show. And everything he does is loaded up with theatrics, subtle intelligence, and aggression. Zombie is fresh off his August release Mondo Sex…
Attention DJs and EDM artists of the Valley: If y’all are adept at pulling a Rumpelstiltskin and are able to spin up some gold, the promoters of this weekend’s Sound Wave Music Festival and have a hankering to hear your stuff. They’re currently conducting a massive statewide DJ battle and…
The Monarch in downtown Phoenix is going to be shaking and quaking with sonic booms of bass every Thump Day as long-running dubstep joint UK Thursdays has moved to the Washington Street club as of last week. Promoters behind the bass-heavy EDM night, which originally launched back in 2009 as…
If you jumped on the Sondre Lerche bandwagon after the 2004 release of Two Way Monologue, you no doubt dreaded the hype you thought he’d receive because of his collaboration with Regina Spektor on the Dan in Real Life soundtrack in 2007. But somehow Lerche avoided the level of obnoxious…
