Music

A consummate showoff, Rufus Wainwright has never had reason to doubt his gorgeous voice, his lush arrangements, his coy sense of romantic drama. Substance, however, presents a bit of a problem for him. Last year’s Want One addressed that deficiency in bracing terms — Wainwright celebrating his 30th birthday with…

On their 1999 debut, So . . . How’s Your Girl?, the faux-stylish studs in Handsome Boy Modeling School (a.k.a. super-producers Prince Paul and Dan “The Automator” Nakamura) emptied their imaginations and Rolodexes, creating an alternate musical universe with room for everyone from Mike D to Father Guido Sarducci. Yet…

The Dustys specialize in the archaic sounds of the ’50s and ’60s, with emphasis on the dance-happy backbeat that used to be the hallmark of the hit single, bouncing from rockabilly to jumpin’ jive, barrelhouse blues, hard-core honky-tonk and other roots-heavy forms. Lead vocalist Billy Joe Huels has a larger-than-life…

Garage rock seemed a better bet, but acts like the Shins, Death Cab for Cutie, and Modest Mouse have made the case that indie pop, not rock, is the next “thing.” If so, expect Pinback to come through the door and establish itself ahead of the legions of wanna-bes and…

Whether it inspires you or just leaves you pummeled, the Arcade Fire’s Funeral is a staggering debut. Over the course of just one album, the band bursts out of the rigid beats and chopping chords of its post-punk influences and straight into arena-rock territory; lead singer Win Butler’s raw-throated bombast…

Hip-hop hooray! It’s that time of year again, when the ‘Nix’s infamous Furious Styles Crew celebrates its anniversary with a flavor-filled blowout. This is the Styles’ 11th year reigning as the Valley’s premier b-boy and b-girl crew (that’s break-dancing for all you crackers out there). It’s also the first anniversary…

No one’s questioning the Badger State’s musical cred. After all, who among us is not devoted to the band Squirrel Bait or the vaudeville novelty hit “Mention My Name in Sheboygan”? But until 2004, Wisconsin seemed not to have a music scene vital enough to escape the state’s web of…

Tonetraeger is an electronic duo from Düsseldorf whose dissatisfaction with being an electronic duo from Düsseldorf is its biggest problem. Rather than just sticking to layering willowy vocals over humming organs and hiccupping percussion — a trick the group turns nicely for the bulk of This Is Not Here –…

Oakland’s Phenomenauts produce an energetic mash of ’80s dance beats — fueled by the sci-fi sound of the theremin, the primitive synthesizer favored by early prog rockers — and rockabilly thrash. They have the energy of the Clash, the party vibe of the B-52’s and the merchandising savvy of Devo,…

Every disgruntled, erstwhile band member (except food chain bottom-feeders, drummers) has probably thought, “Fuckin’ A. I could build something that plays better than these fools.” So it was that in his hubris, Jason Vance forged the instruments of his own doom — literally. A member of Chicago ska-punkers Blue Meanies…

If you’ve ever wondered, “When does retro get old?”, you’re probably not going to see Deke Dickerson and then eat at the 5 & Diner after the show. Dickerson’s albums look like the kind of lost late ’50s/early ’60s artifacts you almost never see at thrift shops anymore because eBay…

Before puke-punk legend G.G. Allin died of a drug overdose in 1993, critics always wrote disclaimers about his gory, self-mutilation-driven live shows. One pundit wrote, “Unless you’re trying out for a very tough detergent commercial, don’t sit anywhere near the stage.” The same warning holds true for twisted theatrical metal…

Monster Magnet main man Dave “Space Lord” Wyndorf could give Donald Trump a run for his money in the firing department. He sent founding guitarist John McBain packing shortly after the 1992 release of Spine of God, the New Jersey outfit’s shroom-damaged, psych-metal sludgebeast of a debut album and the…

1. Eminem, Encore (Aftermath) 2. Various artists, Give ‘Em the Boot Volume 4 (Epitaph) 3. Various artists, AZPunk.compV3 (independent release) 4. A Perfect Circle, Emotive (Virgin) 5. Elliott Smith, From a Basement on the Hill (Anti) 6. Korn, Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 (Sony) 7. Social Distortion, Sex, Love and Rock…

For an aural taste of something a little different, check out the innovative sonic flavors coming off the decks at Slapstick Sundays at Flip Flops in Tempe, hosted by DJ Smite. Smite is a hip-hop aficionado and turntablist, but he’s also got the funk and soul rattling around in his…

From 1971 to 1974, the New York Dolls were the best rock ‘n’ roll band on the planet. They never rose above their cult following, but they planted the seeds of glam and punk, and fanned the flames of guttersnipe art in the grim years of singer/songwriter hegemony. The Dolls…

These hotly tipped Londoners are sloppier than Franz Ferdinand, not as sloppy as the Libertines, bitchier than the Strokes and more butch than the Killers. Which means they kind of get lost in the shuffle. Up All Night, the debut by the foursome, led by extravagantly braggadocian singer-guitarist Johnny Borrell,…

Beatle people are already debating the merits and marketing of a four-CD boxed set that reissues the first four American Beatles albums as Capitol released them, when they skimmed off tracks from the longer U.K. albums to make more dough. But like a lost crush on a junior high school…

Those wacky kids on the Shizz Web-board sure do love off-the-wall theme bands. When they aren’t gushing over the whacked-out acts of the Minibosses, Treasure Mammal, or I Hate You When You’re Pregnant, they’re frothing at the mouth for a return of Denver’s Mr. Pacman. Clad in the “Pac-tastic PacFashion”…

The Clumsy Lovers began falteringly at first, befitting their name, but developed a grassroots following for their fluttering Americana blend while performing around their native Vancouver, British Columbia, and later the American Northwest. Like a sports team that jells in the playoffs, the Clumsy Lovers hit their stride in 2001,…