By Dave Good It’s hard not to notice: Indie bands seemingly soundtrack just about every sitcom, film and television commercial today. But why? Influential music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas swears it’s not just about cheap labor. “It’s far more of a creative decision than a monetary one,” she says. “We’re picking…
He’s being awful polite about it, but Lawrence Zubia has places to go. It’s Halloween evening, and he’s sitting at a table at Casey Moore’s in Tempe. He looks every inch the rock star. He’s sporting a black vest and drain-pipe black Levis, a red bandanna around his neck, and…
It starts simply enough, with a pulsing electric guitar blip and waves of synths. “Brace for the glory, as you stare into the sky,” Deftones vocalist Chino Moreno moans through the fuzzy washes of noise. “Beneath, I know you can’t be tired,” he sings softly, as the twin guitars roar…
In hip-hop, the past is a constant, and idealization of one’s forefathers — or mothers — is an uncrossable tradition. The Game might be hip-hop’s most eloquent eulogizer. His 2005 hit “Dreams” spoke poignantly to that point: Game all but admitted that he’ll never mean as much to the culture…
The quickly expanding lineup of McDowell Mountain Music Festival 2013 has added two more big names to the roster: The Shins and Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeroes. The 2013 installment of the festival is looking to have the most impressive lineup in MMMF history, as The Shins and Sharpe…
Local DJ and activist Austin Head was assaulted early Friday morning in what has now been designated an anti-gay hate crime. The local community has expressed outrage over this incident, as well as sending its best regards to Austin Head. Check out what some local DJs have to say about…
With the holidays rapidly approaching, some of us have our sights set on another holiday. One awash in Olympic-sized swimming pools of Guinness and all the corned beef we can eat. It’s one of the few holidays where public urination, vomiting, and rabble rousing are perfectly acceptable forms of celebration…
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…
Update: Phoenix Police have officially designated the attack on Austin Head an anti-gay hate crime. Read more at New Times’ news blog, Valley Fever. Local DJ, activist, and former New Times Clubs Editor Austin Head was assaulted early on Friday, November 9, while walking down Central Avenue. Two men harassed…
I imagine there are some casual Morrissey fans out there, but most of the Moz fans I know are the diehard sort, the kind of folks who’ll stick by the singer no matter what grumpy things he says and does. So while I’m sure someone was just kinda bummed about…
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…
The news waits for no one — at least that’s what we read somewhere — so it’s perfectly understandable that you, the reader, might have missed out on a musical tidbit, breaking news about your favorite venue, or one of our rants. So enjoy this digest-style sampling of some of…
There are many perks involved with being a DJ: Complimentary booze, free schwag, the adoration of hundreds at gigs, and (depending on the particular selector or promoter) possibly a nice payday. Then there are the more unusual bonuses, like the one that DJ Intel got the other night at The…
TK Newman Newman is the co-founder of upscale wedding dress reseller Hustle Your Bustle. For more info, go here. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on the radio, what station would play right now? Either 100.7 FM or 102.5 FM — I’m a country girl at…
Broadcast built a dedicated fanbase with its innovative mix of ’60s nostalgia and electronic beats. If you’ve never heard the band, imagine Nico singing for Stereolab. Youceff Kabal, who performs under the stage name of Yus plays piano and slows the song down a bit for his version of “Michael…
Matters of the heart exist, of course, in an emotional realm, but for singer/songwriter Jens Lekman, heartbreak has a bit of a scientific component, too. For his follow-up to 2007’s Night Falls Over Kortedala, Lekman didn’t want to make an album about a difficult breakup. But the songs had other…
Sera Cahoone is hilarious. Don’t believe it? Ask. “I am a pretty hilarious person,” the singer/songwriter laughs, discussing “Rumpshaker,” one of 12 excellent country rock songs on her latest record, Deer Creek Canyon. But “Rumpshaker” isn’t exactly a joke. Lyrically, it’s far from it. “I know you, at the time…
There’s no better illustration of the fine line between brilliance and madness than Daniel Johnston. Indeed, the childlike simplicity and directness of his lyrics suggests the two are inseparable at times. A talented cult fave who spent years and years listening to and dissecting the Beatles, Johnston has a gift…
“Don’t rock the boat, sink it!” commands the anonymous scribe behind I Hate Indie Rock, a fiery Twitter account that has been launching crust-punk-tinged salvos at publicists, nostalgia and vapidity in the indie rock realm. The account has been around only since October, and at this point, the feed has…
Do you hear that? Off in the distance? It’s the sound of a bass guitar being slapped. Furiously slapped. That’s kinda what Les Claypool (Primus, Oysterhead, Frog Brigade) does, and I’m betting that’s what he’ll be doing with his Duo de Twang (Claypol plus MIRV) on Sunday, March 24. The…
The Blasters will be hitting The Rhythm Room on Saturday, December 15th. They’ll no doubt be pushing their latest album, Fun on Saturday Night, a 12-track joyride through rockabilly and blues territory. The album also includes a June Carter Cash cover of “Jackson” with X’s Exene Cervenka. After thirty years…
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…
