Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist, and is the author of The Girls’ Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to help you stop…
Editor’s Note: With a tip of the cap to the man, we bid Maynard James Keenan adieu. This is MJK’s final column for Up on the Sun, as he’s devoting 2013 to more music and more wine. You won’t have to wait too long to hear some of the fruits…
One of the best turntablists in Arizona, if not the entire southwest, announced today that he’s hanging up his headphones for good and bidding farewell to the DJ world. Logan Howard, known to many by his moniker DJ Element, dropped a bombshell on the local music scene within the last…
It’s been a mighty big year for hip-hop music in Arizona, most notably with the explosion of the locally-produced platinum hit “Mercy” by Kanye West. Producer and New F-Os member Lifted helped direct ears towards our corner of the map for his work on the massively popular track, but he…
The year 2012 brought an array of exciting moments in heavy metal, from album releases by veteran acts like Napalm Death and younger bands like Goatwhore, to some of the biggest ever heavy metal festivals, to a few of my personal favorite interviews with metal legends. Enjoy — and happy…
Friends and family of Matt “Fundy” Funderburk, bassist of Lydia, Bears of Manitou, Joey Arroyo Band, and other musical groups, are still coming to terms with his passing. The musician’s Facebook wall is still full of endearing messages. Two memorial services for Matt Funderburk have been announced: the first is…
By day, Suzy Homewrecker is the supervisor of a local laboratory that studies pathology and immunohistochemistry. At night or on the weekends, however, the 30-year-old crimson-haired vixen becomes a tough-as-nails roller derby queen, a gothy go-go dancer, or industrial music DJ known as Defense.Mekanizm. It all depends on her particular…
Alexus Poulette Poulette plays Aldonza in the musical, Man of La Mancha, performed by the Scottsdale Musical Theater Company tonight, December 28, through Sunday, December 30. For tickets, go here. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on the radio, what station would play right now? The…
Each week in our print editions and every day on our blogs, the 13 Voice Media Group papers feature some of the best music writing in the country. That’s why we’re excited to announce the winners of our first VMG music writing awards. The honor goes to the authors of…
The local music community has lost a valued member. Matt “Fundy” Funderburk was known for his talents in a number of local bands including Lydia, Bears of Manitou, and Joey Arroyo Band, but most of all, he’s remembered as a good friend. Bears of Manitou’s Facebook page refers to him…
As 2012 draws to a close, we couldn’t be more optimistic about the state of music in the Valley of the Sun. With new bands emerging from various scenes and subgenres, it can be hard to keep up with the latest in Phoenix music. What follows are our picks for…
Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist, and is the author of The Girls’ Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to help you stop…
Once a week Up on the Sun features a new comic strip from punk rocker, cartoonist, and full-time dad Brad Dwyer. See the New Times print edition to check out the strip in glorious, inky newsprint each Thursday…
Ladies and gentleman, here are our 10 picks for our favorite Phoenix albums of 2012. Enjoy! See also: -13 Phoenix Bands You Need to Hear in 2013 -Jason P. Woodbury’s 10 Best Things I Heard in 2012 -Top 10 Reissues and Compilations of 2012 -Top Five 2012 Heavy Releases In…
Is this year over yet? Well, close enough. So in honor of 2012 we’ve dug through the past 12 months of stories looking for the greatest hits. Below you’ll find the stories (minus most of the newsy stuff) that people clicked on each month. And if thousands of other people…
So long, 2012. You were a weird, uncomfortable, and scary year. You were also wonderful, at times so unbearably wonderful that I thought my brain was going to explode as I struggled to wrap my head around your pure, blindingly bright joy. You had all the things a monumental year…
The walls, floors, and fixtures of Bar Smith are definitely gonna be quaking and shaking at some point later tonight. But despite what all those apocalypse nuts might lead you to believe, its not because seismic forces are tearing up the Valley is some end of the world scenario. Nope,…
Laura S. Strickland Strickland is the Principal Flutist for the Arizona Pro Arte Ensemble and a soloist in the upcoming concert, The Winds; Woodwind Masterworks, on Friday, January 25 and Saturday, January 26. For more info, go here. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on the…
Ian WitlenYes, this happened.By Liz Tracy Most of the people we met on the S.S. Coachella had never been on a cruise before. Like us, they weren’t so sure what to pack or how to dress for three days of awkwardly saying hi to their favorite bands on a floating…
Just how many side project pairings can Sister Cities come up with? I’m not good with math, but I have a feeling they’re approaching max capacity – if not in arithmetic, then definitely with their own free time. Drummer Keith Walker has Being Cool is Lonely, his sexed-up electronic side…
The Oxford Coma doesn’t sound like any other band you’ve ever heard, and that’s the idea. With thumping, funky-to-furious bass lines mixed with propulsive drumming and searing guitar action, the band blurs the distinctions between modern rock, alt-metal, and punk. The band’s debut album, Adonis, is not something that easily…
Spirit Cave is a young band, but members Ryan Breen and Michael Bell have been playing shows together for more than a decade, each with his primary band, Back Ted N-Ted and Lymbyc Systym, respectively. It was only a matter of time before they struck out together. Given Breen’s expressive,…
