Features

Cancer could have killed Jane Fendelman. Instead, it brought her back to life. And her video documentation of her painful treatment and miraculous recovery (which she edited and released as a documentary titled Jane Doe) has brought her accolades — most recently, a nomination at the International Women’s Film and Television Showcase, taking place next month in Hollywood. Jane Doe is one of only ten films worldwide to be nominated for an award at the showcase.

By Martin Cizmar With the end of the year fast approaching, you’re about to be inundated with lists about the best and worst music of 2008. Phoenix New Times will be adding to that, of course, with our picks running the first week of the new year. And since I’ve…

By Yvonne Zusel See more shots in our Guinness World Record slide show. It’s 2:40 on Saturday morning and while most people’s nights are winding down, Hollis Cantrell’s has just begun. He’s bent over a man’s calf with his tattoo needle moving carefully but efficiently, first drawing an “A,” then…

There were a massive amount of upcoming shows announced this week, including Willie Nelson on the road again and possibly three of the four worst nu metal bands of all time (Staind, Papa Roach, Hoobastank) on a single stage… with the insufferable Adam Carolla. Crooner Chris Isaak and Strokes’ drummer Fabrizio Moretti will also be in town with his side project, Little Joy. Katy Perry will be in town to do a solo show hot on the heels of her Phooson set and Woodstock veteran Richie Havens is coming.

By Benjamin Leatherman sBACH is scheduled to perform on Saturday at Modified Arts. The Valley’s concert venues will be stacked with superstar musicians this weekend. For instance, a Cursive Memory do their indie rock thing tonight at the PHiX in downtown Phoenix, while the Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man and Redman…

Perhaps the sagest songwriting advice ever bestowed to a newbie came not from a how-to book or a multi-platinum recording artist but from some anonymous grizzly guy I saw at an open mic night in Greenwich Village eons ago. After playing two great songs, he sat down to his coffee…

Their New Orleans apartment building having burned down in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, brothers Kintrell “Krispy Kream” and Alvin “Rah Almillio” Lindsey have gone from Cajun survivalists to the toast of the underground rap scene in only a few years. Together known as the experimental rap duo The Knux,…

What secret shame binds the heart of Buckethead? What private disgrace compelled guitar virtuoso Brian Carroll to forsake his Christian name and perform under a Michael Myers-esque kabuki mask and unused KFC bucket for these past 20 years? There is scant evidence that he has ever performed with his face…

By Martin Cizmar

It’s arguably the most influential record ever released by an Arizona band, and next year Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity turns 10. To celebrate, the band has announced that they’ll be playing the album in its entirety on a slate of 10 shows, culminating at The Marquee on March 7. Tickets go on sale Thursday.

By Martin Cizmar

A few show announcements fans of alt-country are going to like this week, led by Cottonwood’s Junior Brown and California’s Limbeck.

Say you are a “winter visitor” to Arizona, sitting in your Buick at a stoplight in east Mesa, listening to Sean Hannity on your factory-installed radio. There you are, enjoying your retirement, when you notice the car in front of you has a “Fuck Strange Young Things” sticker in the…

With the release of his 1987 sophomore album, Surfing with the Alien, Joe Satriani effectively established himself as a guitar icon. Aside from his obvious command of proficiency and flashy technique, Satriani was able to rise above the niche visibility of the guitar-shredder ghetto on the strength of the lyricism…

It’s not often that a local band gets national recognition. It’s also not often that a local band has a song featured in a movie released internationally. Yet that’s exactly what Tramps and Thieves has done, all in about four months. In June, the group that guitarist/vocalist Emmett DeGuvera refers…

By Martin Cizmar

If you’re someone like me who, somewhat embarrassingly, cannot get enough Ben Gibbard, I have some good news.

For the past eight years, Alice Cooper has given us yuletide rockings with his annual Christmas Pudding show. Phoenix’s resident shock rocker hosts the annual fete to raise money for his charity, the Solid Rock Foundation, a non-profit Christian corporation that provides a recreation center (The Rock Teen Center) for teenagers. To that end, Cooper’s “Proof is in the Pudding” talent competition — which nets the winning contestant a gig at the Christmas Pudding show — now includes a Teen Competition.

Steve Wynn Crossing Dragon Bridge (Rock Ridge Music) By Thomas Bond After three stellar albums known as the “desert trilogy” because they were made in Tucson, singer/songwriter Steve Wynn set off for a change of scenery for his new disc Crossing Dragon Bridge. Recorded in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia,…

Last night, local bands rocked the SRC Fields at ASU to show their support for solar power. Phoenix rock band Shawn Johnson & The Foundation, Tempe funksters Fred Green, and spoken word artist Jamal a.k.a. i-Dee brought their talents to a stage set up on the athletic field, while students filled out forms advocating for solar power.

Tomorrow (Tuesday, November 4) is election day, and as a “thank you” to voters for casting their ballots, Starbucks is offering a free small coffee to anyone who comes in and says they voted.

By Martin Cizmar

There ain’t no bowling alley at Kierland Commons. So, really, I am at a last to explain what happened at Sunset Bowl today, as a team from Desert Living Magazine bested two New Times teams and a slew of other area bands, promoters, club owners and assorted independent music types to win the inaugural Phoenix Independents Bowl.

By Martin Cizmar

To be honest, we purposely drug out feet on the show announcements this week. Usually we blog ‘em here Friday, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell you all we’ve got is Kenny Loggins and NOFX.

The brainchild of local world music enthusiast DJ Seduce, Afro:Baile Records’ catalog brims with global beats, from sambas and forro to funk and jazz fusion. The overall vibe is one of laid-back goodness, and Maria Maria provided a perfectly chill setting for Seduce’s rich soundscapes.

Glenn Danzig is the Devil’s curator for the Blackest of the Black Tour, a metal mini-festival he’s been presenting and headlining intermittently since 2003. The punk alumnus has reached highs beyond most of his peers, but, 31 years into his musical career, he still thinks it’s important to help bands…