Tempe’s Last Exit Bar & Grill has two big shows on its calendar for April. Valley pop-rock favorites Violet Wild, who haven’t played for months, will take the stage on Saturday, April 4 while New Times quirky faves The Loveblisters and Let Go are set to perform on Saturday, April…
[jump] FRIDAY, MARCH 20: The Anchor Tour With The Wedding, & more [Christian rock] 7 p.m., $12 (visit www.ticketforce.com) The Church at Arrowhead, 7902 W. Union Hills Dr., Glendale, 623-572-7902. BeatleMania Live! [tribute band] 7 p.m., $37-$40. (visit www.ticketmaster.com) Casino Arizona at Salt River, 524 N. 92nd St. (off Loop…
Attention, all Phoenicians unable to attend SxSW this year: Don’t worry. Sure, it’s not as good as standing inches away from your favorite band in a trendy Austin club, but we’ve got the coverage to keep you satisfied. South By Southwest, Day Two In Photos The action continues in Austin,…
In some ways, Arizona’s first “official unofficial” showcase at SxSW wasn’t a big deal. Other cities, states, and countries have been doing it for years. Hell, Seattle’s party is even promoted by a flier in the high-value real estate of the official party envelope you pick up with your badge…
Justin Timberlake brought sexy back and now he’s bringing tequila back. Okay, so it never really left — like sexy — but nonetheless, the singer and budding entrepreneur is set to launch 901, a new brand of tequila that has been in development for more than two years, in May…
MxPx lead singer Mike Herrera will bring his side project Tumbledown to Tempe’s Yucca Tap Room for a free show Monday, March 23. But don’t expect to hear the sugary pop-punk sweetness that MxPx is known for because Tumbledown is the night to MxPx’s day. The band has a rockabilly/country…
Attention, all Phoenicians unable to attend SxSW this year: Don’t worry. Sure, it’s not as good as standing inches away from your favorite band in a trendy Austin club, but we’ve got the coverage to keep you satisfied. Twitter Music Editor Martin Cizmar has been uploading twit pics of Phoenix…
There’s a bunch going on this week, and by a bunch I mean SXSW. It is hard to compete with that wonderful festival right now, so I will let our coverage — handled dutifully by our own ambassador of the funk Martin Cizmar — of the events take precedence over…
Greetings from the outskirts of Austin, Texas, where we’re holed up in a hotel after a long day of music at South by Southwest’s opening day. What happened? Well, a few Phoenix bands played their showcases, hopefully making an impression on tastemakers and industry types at this massive festival, which…
As I wrote back when I reviewed their album The Narrator for You Asked for it, I’ve always been a fan of Evan Brightly’s aesthetic. The group, which functions more like an art collective than a traditional band, does some cool stuff. Not sure who designed this poster for their…
It’s a stark contrast in weather while talking to Steve McGraw, guitarist for Gilbert indie-rock act Lydia. From New York City, where McGraw is enjoying the tail end of a lovely little storm that dumped snow all across the Northeast, he gets to hear all about another mild, sunny March…
Co-founded by Phoenix musicians Pandy Raye and Rhonda Hitchcock, the inaugural Chicks with Picks Music Fest — featuring Sedona-bred popster Michelle Branch, singer-songwriter (and Waylon Jennings’ widow) Jessi Colter, country newcomer Sarah Buxton, and 70 other female performers — will take place Saturday, March 21, at Tempe Beach Park. We…
There was a time when hearing a boyish and manicured voice like Conner Cecil’s alongside a willowy pedal steel wasn’t uncommon in country music. That time is long gone, though, and hearing Conner — a Globe native whose voice matches his cherubic face — on his debut EP, Conner, is…
THURSDAY 19 Bunkhouse: DJ Doom (dance) Cherry Lounge: Scandalous Thursday with DJ Juan Rocha (house, electronica) Club Red: The Blunt Club with Tricky T, Pickster Uno, DJ Element, more (hip-hop) Copper State Tavern: DJ Kavi, & guests (hip-hop) Cream Stereo Lounge: Blush Thursdays (Top 40, hip-hop, mash-ups) Homme: So Paid!!!…
Not so long ago, Mill Avenue was the center of the universe for local bands trying to break into the music industry. Almost every band signed out of the Tempe scene in the ’90s made it via the conventional route, cutting their teeth in the nightclubs along the strip, winning…
Over the years, instrumental rock has earned a (mostly deserved) reputation for being self-indulgent, pretentious, and unnecessarily intricate. On their early albums and EPs, Chicago instru-metal quartet Pelican certainly fit that mold, crafting dense, multilayered songs that frequently exceeded the 10-minute mark. But their latest release, 2007’s City of Echoes,…
In a town struggling to hold onto indie cred by the hair of its collective chinny-chin-chin, a hometown concert of a successful indie rock band is like a big “HA!” to the rest of the country. Enter Tempe’s own musical underdogs, The Maine. Sure, their stylists seem to be part…
What is there not to like about Paul Wall? First of all, his name is an absolute blast to say — especially in his trademark Houston drawl. He always rocks his beloved grills, allowing the world to see that he has both fine taste in mouth jewelry and a big…
The Yucca Tap Room has long been a haven for local bands, but the venue rarely hosts national touring acts (we’re guessing that whole “never a cover” policy might have something to do with it). Thus, it will be a rarity when Los Angeles hardcore punk outfit The Bronx plays…
Local punks Johnny Volume and Tyler King are making like The Jeffersons. More specifically, they’re taking their long-running punk rock weekly, BANNED, and “movin’ on up” to Jugheads, 5110 East McDowell Road, starting on Thursday, March 19. The night debuted in late 2006 at Stray Cat Bar & Grill as…
The Valley saw green on March 17, 2009 as everyone and their blarney stones came out in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. PHX folks were Dublin their fun all night at bars and clubs across the Valley with green outfits, goofy-ass hats, and plenty of Guinness. We checked out the…
The music portion of SxSW starts today, but the interactive portion finished yesterday. One of the big stories out of interactive this past weekend was how ill-prepared AT&T was for the influx of iPhone-wielding hipsters and geeks descending on Austin. Tens of thousands of attendees are using their phones far more than…
