Rolling Stone: Jay-Z Buys Out Def Jam Contract, “Blueprint 3″ Heads to Roc NationElectric Mustache: Photos: Miniature Tigers at The Phix 5/15/2009Rolling Stone: Allen and Lambert iTunes Hits May Be a Predictor of Future SuccessIdolator: Green Day Knows Its Enemy, And Its Name Is Wal-MartNME: Vampire Weekend to DJ ‘prom’…
In an unfortunate turn of events, New Orleans indie/soul singer Theresa Andersson has had to cancel her May tour due to a chest infection. News like this is never good, and it is especially saddening because of the nature of her infection. I just hope that she rests up and…
After conducting a thorough scientific evaluation (involving an array of test tubes and beakers, a Bunsen burner, and some heavy duty tongs) of Fleetwood Mac’s 17 studio albums, I’ve concluded that the veteran Anglo-American band’s music is 8 percent classic and 92 percent booooring. You may or may not agree,…
I’ve never understood the obsession with garage rock you’ll find in some corners of Phoenix. I like garage rock, sure, but I’m from Akron, Ohio, a Rust Belt town with strong ties to lo-fi punk and garage. Phoenix? Well, Phoenix was mostly ranchland and desert when “96 Tears” topped Billboard’s…
It’s a liberating feeling to break free from a commitment or relationship that was holding you back. From time to time in the life of an artist, a creative funk comes along with the people and surroundings he previously cherished: situations that had infused him with creativity and ingenuity turn…
Garage-rock gal pals Rachel Nagy and Mary Ramirez have gone through a lot of men in their day. Drummers. Guitarists. Bassists. All kinds. When an interviewer makes light of the fact, Ramirez playfully props her legs open, as if to receive yet another session-musician servicing. Nagy, her fellow creative principal…
Sunny pop music and summertime are made for each other like two soulmates holding hands on an oceanside stroll. With the weather heating up here in the Valley of the Sun, let’s take a look at some great summer music… Tinted Windows Tinted Windows (S-Curve Records) A power pop supergroup…
So Much Silence: Incoming: Gift of Gab, May 28, Blunt ClubRolling Stone: On the Charts: Green Day Sprint to Number One With “Breakdown”Idolator: Somehow, I Don’t Really Mind The Ubiquity Of “Don’t Stop Believing” All That MuchWaved Rumor: Pandora! Pandora! Profit!NME: Eminem makes live comeback in Detroit…
Summer has unceremoniously slapped us Valley residents in the face, making us long for those sub-100 degree days that October will eventually bring. Thank goodness there are bands like Passion Pit releasing albums that make for the perfect summer soundtrack. The quintet, based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts, have crafted a…
So Much Silence: The Walkmen on WOXY.com’s Lounge ActRolling Stone: Aerosmith’s Joe Perry Hints At Walmart Deal For New AlbumNME: ABBA-penned musical to get English language debut in NYCNME: Libertines reunion: Carl Barat speaks about more gigsIdolator: A Quick Guide To Your “American Idol” Pre-Finale ControversiesNME: Jennifer Love Hewitt to…
True to it’s name, local blog AZOverload has done a ton of legwork to compile a huge list of Arizona bands on Twitter. Check it out here. Oh, and if you’re not following me (twitter.com/martincizmar) you really should be…
This week marks the start of the most illustrious film festival of all, the Cannes Film Festival, held yearly in the lovely French town of Cannes. Other movies not selected to the festival itself are everywhere in the city for the duration of the festival, which kicked off May 13…
Idolator: Yung Joc’s Twitter Tells The Tale Of Why It’s Bad To Give Animals CocaineElectric Mustache: Video: New Miniature Tigers SongRolling Stone: The Story of Beastie Boys’ “Paul’s Boutique”: Free 33 1/3 AudiobookSo Much Silence: The Twilight Sad: Reflection of the TelevisionPitchfork: Sigur Rós Singer Remixes Depeche ModeWaved Rumor: The…
Do ya’ll want more of the jigga man? Well if y’all want more of the Jigga man, then I need ya’ll to help me, bring him back to stage. Say Hova, c’mon say it! HO-VA! HO-VA! Are y’all out there?Yes, J-A-Y is coming back to Phoenix, playing the cozy confines…
For everyone who complains about the lack of interesting music, or constantly says their is no good music anymore: What would you say if I told you that Danger Mouse, the producer behind Gnarls Barkley, Gorillaz, and The Black Keys, has been working on a collaboration with Mark Linkous of…
We’re used to seeing the occasional Motown review or single original member-led hair metal act come through Celebrity Theatre, but tonight’s show was supposed to be an oldies extravaganza of another stripe.Three post grunge acts who never gave up the ghost — Sponge (“Molly,” “Wax Ecstatic”), Days of the New…
The word “experimental,” when self-applied by indie rock acts, usually means painfully slow, and, quite probably, dreary. Not Minnesota outfit Cloud Cult, which plays Rhythm Room Sunday with Say Hi (To Your Mom) and Ice Palace. They’ve got all the buoyancy of poppier indie acts, and more exotic instrumentation than…
Pitchfork: Weezer to Tour With Blink-182Jess Harter: I’m off until May 18Pitchfork: Bonnaroo Reveals Festival ScheduleNME: Alanis Morissette to guest star on ‘Weeds’…
Back in 2007 R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. ran an ad disguised as editorial content in Rolling Stone which featured an insert called “The Indie Rock Universe” that had cartoons and features on indie rock bands. F*cked Up and Xiu Xiu have both sued the company over using their names in…
Ted Nugent talks a lot about discipline. Speaking on the phone from his ranch outside Waco, Texas, the Detroit-born guitarist of “Cat Scratch Fever” fame comes back to it again and again. His life of clean living is the way to go, he says, living another way is nothing less…
A funny thing happened to me as I watched the new Wilco concert DVD, Ashes of American Flags: I was forced to admit, without hesitation, that my favorite band is, in fact, a jam band. Yes, a jam band. Wilco are the kind of band that sees their shows taped…
Unfortunately, Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement — the singing Kiwis who constitute Flight of the Conchords — weren’t available for an interview in conjunction with their current tour. Nonetheless, I’ve spent some time imagining how my conversation with them might go. The key is to get on their good side…
