It’s OK, Sufjan Stevens fans, you can piss your pants about this one — The Age of Adz, Steven’s first album in nearly five years — will be released October 12.This is especially good news for Arizona fans of Stevens as he is set to play Mesa Arts Center on…
This week’s music feature is on The Maine’s rise to success, all the way from the networks of MySpace to their major label signing and $38 keepsake albums. Their adaptability has allowed them to chart and headline. And it doesn’t look like the power-pop force is gonna be on the…
Ever wanted to play a freakin’ laser beam? Like, instead of an instrument? A Scottsdale company called Beamz Interactive gives you the chance with a device called the Beamz Player. It’s a cool little gadget: The $199 player is hooked to a computer and speakers and you coax pre-programmed tones…
Song: The Philistines Jr., “The Bus Stop Song” Context: The Philistines Jr., a project from Peter Katis, the producer who makes The National and Interpol sound like they do (or at least how they did at their peaks) has a new record coming out in October — the first in…
Don’t look now, but there’s a revolution going on in the Valley music scene. No, not that kind of revolution — no dope, guns, and fucking in the streets. But, over the past few years, the Valley has quietly become a hotbed for young, Internet-savvy power-pop bands weaned on Jimmy…
Somewhere, down deep inside each one of us, a Tubes song is playing. Possibly it’s “White Punks on Dope” or it might be “What Do You Want from Life.” Unfortunately, it is probably “She’s a Beauty.” The pre-punk, post-glitter rock of this bright band with its long, sparkly roots here…
Slayer is known for having very dedicated fans. Turns out they’re dedicated enough to issue their own press releases.Hand-written on notebook paper, no less. So, yeah, check out this crazy letter from someone who says he’s Greg Valentino of Pleasant Hills, California. No idea who that is, but the bodybuilder…
Artist: Dead ConfederateTitle: SugarRelease: August 24Label: Razor & TieRecently, I wrote about a really good band with a terrible name. Today, I’ve got a band with a pretty cool name and really so-so music. Dead Confederate evokes a sound that is quite a bit different from what actually emits from…
This week, New Times ran a list in our print publication highlighting some of the most interesting posts published at Up On The Sun over the past week. Here are links to those posts. Why did the drummer of a local band get stabbed in the neck outside a show?…
Song: Calexico, “Two Silver Trees” Context: Getting excited for the big Artists For Action show this weekend. Two Silver Trees…
You could never really call Katy Perry original. From the moment she broke onto the scene with her first mainstream single, “I Kissed a Girl,” she was criticized for copying the title of the track by Jill Sobule. Her songs have always been sticky sweet pop that’s radio-ready, but on…
As Idolator points out, John Legend and The Roots are typically known for their socially conscious music. So it was a bit surprising to hear that Legend performed the music for the 2010 Miss Universe Pageant. The performance featured the skinny girls in heels performing choreography that was more like…
Local rockers Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers tweeted the unsurprising news that the GreenStock has been canceled this afternoon.I’ve been unable to confirm this with organizers — who don’t seem to have voicemail and haven’t answered an e-mail — but there’s little reason to doubt it’s true…
It’s not often a world-class musician is kicking off their American tour in Arizona, so try to understand that the recent announcement that Joanna Newsom has a fall tour planned and is starting out in Arizona is a big, big deal. Newsom will play Tucson’s Rialto Theatre November 6 before…
Hanson — the 90s kiddie band known for “MMMBop” — is coming to town. Pretty swell, right? Well, it gets even sweller. Believe it or not, bands are falling all over themselves to win a contest that will allow them to open for the band at their Phoenix show.The apparent…
Welcome to our latest podcast, in which Martin Cizmar and I play some new music and about it, too. On today’s program, we discuss the merits of such bands as Wavves, Arcade Fire, The Budos Band, Jimmy Eat World, and local superstars Snake! Snake! Snakes!Here’s the playlist:Jaill — “The Stroller”Arcade…
Song: Gucci Mane ft. Swizz Beatz, “Gucci Time”Context: Just got an advance copy of the new Guc record, The Appeal: Georgia’s Most Wanted. This is the first single. Hands up: It’s Gucci time. Gucci Mane ft. Swizz Beatz “Gucci Time” by Warner Bros. Urban…
Why all the effort for just one album? There’s really no rhyme or reason to it — the fact that it leaked so early helped me write a post about the album when it was still fresh to my ears. By this point, however, I have completely consumed the thing…
Artist: Magic KidsTitle: MemphisRelease date: August 24Label: True PantherPaying tribute to Pet Sounds seems to be passé among the new crop of indie bands. Now, it seems a lot of these kids are all about a post-Pet Sounds era, one in which the Baroque elements of Brian Wilson’s masterpiece take…
“Mesa’s only known ska-rock septet,” Captain Squeegee has a pretty cool video of them recording their new album at Glendale’s totally-weird Pyramix Studios.Looks like they’re having a lot of fun working on Lucidity.The first fruit of their labor, a song called “Your Own Invention” can be downloaded for free here…
If you head over to the MySpace page for Phoeenix sceamo act The Word Alive you’ll see a nifty counter displaying a countdown to the release of the band’s new record, Deceiver, currently at seven days and change.The Fearless-signed band, which celebrates the release with a show at Mesa’s Nile…
Song: Toubab Krewe, “Holy Grail”Context: Hearing that a band combined “indie rock” and “West African music” puts me on high alert. Toubab Krewe manages to do it very well, however. Looking forward to TK2 in September. TBKTrack by Shore Fire…
