Charity Show: Bring A Sleeping Bag or $8

By Martin Cizmar Maybe it’s the holiday spirit, but I’ve had a lot of people pitching charity concerts to me in the last couple weeks. “Do you like beer? Do you like charity? Do you like bikes?” my friend Candace asked, not intentionally sounding like an Amway rep. Anyway, there’s…

You Asked For It: The Sweet Remains

The Sweet remains Laurel & Sunset (Self-released) By Martin Cizmar If writing a handwritten note counted for as much as it should on these things – and it doesn’t – I’d have written about The Sweet Remains a month or so ago when their album Laurel & Sunset arrived in…

Irwin Benefit Boasts Two Brash Female Voices

By Martin Cizmar st1:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } It was a bold move, putting Dry River Yacht Club on right before Black Carl. Here you have two of the biggest female voices in the Valley’s indie rock scene — Emma Pew of BC and DRYC’s Garnet — back to back. But, hey, when you’re talking…

Local singer Lincis Makes Darfur Video

By Martin Cizmar Local photographer and musician Elliot Lincis is doing what he can for the people of Darfur, the region of Sudan that’s been the scene of bloody conflict since 2003. He’s recorded a song called “Never Again,” an old school “We Are The World” style anthem that features…

Trans-Siberian Orchestra at Jobing.com Arena on Sunday, November 23

Sometimes, we do things we don’t want to do because the people we love want to do them. Such was the case with me attending the Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert last night at Jobing.com Arena in Glendale. I hadn’t planned to attend the show, but I couldn’t refuse in the face of my girlfriend’s unbridled enthusiasm.

Illumination 2.0

See more shots from Illumination 2.0 in our slideshow.By PJ Standlee Ryan Jeffs, aka “Inertia”, of Phoenix, deftly mixes trans-beats as the crowd starts to move slowly to a lucid tempo. The sound is repetitive and catchy but not annoying. The music starts to take on a life of its…

Backstreet Boys Canceled

By Martin Cizmar I sure would hate to be a bartender at the Chandler TGI Friday’s tonight: The Backstreet Boys show at Dodge Theatre this evening has been canceled – CANCELED – at the last minute. Due to illness. “The Backstreet Boys and Live Nation sincerely apologize for any inconvenience…

Knux Redux and Cool Kids Explain Why Q Tip Sucked

By Martin Cizmar It’s Friday of a loooong week and I’m still thinking about Monday’s show at the Marquee, The 2K Sports Bounce Tour with Q-Tip, The Knux and The Cool Kids. Sure, I panned it in my review, mostly because it was a six-hour slog that should’ve been an…

Twilight Opening at Tempe Market Place

Fans of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series rushed to Tempe Market Place in droves on Thursday, November 20 for the midnight release of the film adapatation of Twilight. Some waited since 5 a.m. Thursday morning just to catch Edward on the big screen. See more shots from last night’s opening and…

BBC Sessions chronicles early Belle and Sebastian

Belle and Sebastian The BBC Sessions (Matador) By Thomas Bond For a band that began life as a one-off final project for singer Stuart Murdoch’s university music business course, Scotland’s Belle and Sebastian have done pretty well for themselves, now seven studio albums into their career. As it’s been nearly…

Café Tacuba Party Down at Celebrity on Nov. 19

By Michael Lopez Calling the crowd that made it out to the Celebrity Theatre Wednesday night receptive would be selling them short by a mile. Every song played by Mexican alt-rockers Café Tacuba whipped the crowd into an absolute frenzy that didn’t die until the house lights came on. I…

Los Guys Take It Easy and Don’t Sweat the Mill Ave. Label

Most bands will tell you that being in a group is like being a polygamist. You’re married to three or four other people, each with a dizzying array of emotional needs, including either an inflated ego or a total lack of self-confidence. There’s the guitarist who’s jealous of the lead…

Seven Nights of DJs and Dancing

THURSDAY 20 Bikini Lounge: DJ HFE (rockabilly, surf, jazz, classic country, indie, obscuro) Blooze Bar: DJ El Dedo (rockabilly) Bunkhouse: DJ Doom (dance) Cherry Lounge: DJ M2 (hip-hop, Top 40) Club Red: The Blunt Club with Digable Planets, Afro Classics, Pickster Uno, DJ Element, Emerg McVay, & more (hip-hop) Crabby…

Insane Clown Posse’s Juggalos Aren’t a Gang — Just Punk Kids

Woop-woop. Walking around Metrocenter in an Insane Clown Posse shirt, I hear the sound every few minutes. Kids I don’t know, teenagers with tilted ballcaps, most of them not wearing ICP shirts but all greeting my 28-year-old ass with the universal call of the Juggalo, just for wearing something I…

Yeasayer

We’ve all been to that show at least once. You know, the show where the opening act far outperforms the headliner, making you wish the opener got the longer timeslot. It’s a common occurrence, and it’s hardly tragic, except for the headliner that just got its ass handed to it…