Megan Thompson
Audio By Carbonatix
The Super Bowl circus may be leaving town, but there are still plenty of big concerts happening in metro Phoenix. This week, you can catch performances by legendary punk bands Bayside and MDC (each hailing from different eras of the genre), influential Latin rock group El Tri, and Americana/alt-country artist Early James.
Other notable acts due in the Valley in the nights ahead include horrorcore rapper Sematary, garage punkers Bass Drum of Death, and Hawaiian-born reggae rockers Pepper.
Details about each of these gigs can be found below. For more live music in the Valley this week, visit Phoenix New Times‘ concert calendar.
Early James
Monday, February 13
The Rebel Lounge, 2303 East Indian School RoadWhen your tunes are endorsed and produced by The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, you’re obviously going somewhere in the music world. That’s certainly the case with alt-country/Americana singer, musician, and songwriter Early James. Over the last decade or so, the Alabama-bred artist has gone from obscurity to inking a deal to appear on Auerbach’s label, Easy Eye Sound. Like others who have heard Early James’ folksy mix of blues-rock and classic country topped with suitably world-weary and gruff vocals (which Rolling Stone described as “Tom Waits-ian”), the Black Keys’ frontman dug his sound after discovering the artist. James has released two albums since then, 2020’s Singing for My Supper and last year’s Strange Time to Be Alive, both filled with his idiosyncratic, poetic, and often heartfelt lyrics. With Adam Townsend; 8 p.m., $17/$20 via seetickets.us. Benjamin Leatherman
Sematary and the Haunted Mound
Monday, February 13
Crescent Ballroom, 308 North Second AvenueMuch like the main villain in a slasher franchise, horrorcore will never die. That rap subgenre focusing on all things grimy, spooky, and bloody has endured ever since the Geto Boys and Gravediggaz blazed a trail to bring Halloween aesthetics to hip-hop. Few rappers go quite to Danzig levels of committing to the bit, but Sematary – the self-styled “Grave Man” of rap – revels in being a Party City weirdo. An independent rapper who self-produces his music, Sematary cuts jams drawn from witch house, black metal, and emo rap. He isn’t whistling in the graveyard by himself- he’s hooked up with fellow musician Ghost Mountain to create a collective of artists called Haunted Mound. Their crew include Buckshot, Hackle, Turnabout, and Gonerville. Sematary and every member of Haunted Mound are taking their spooky show out on the road and visit Crescent this week. Bars will be spit, beats will be dropped, and perhaps a few buckets of blood will be slipped too. Weak stomachs and ears need not apply. 7 p.m., tickets are available on the secondary market. Ashley Naftule
MDC
Monday, February 13
The Underground, 105 West Main Street, MesaDepending on the source, the letters in MDC could stand for “Millions of Damn Christians,” “Multi-Death Corporation,” or (as its members have frequently claimed) “Millions of Dead Cops.” One thing that isn’t quite as debatable is the fact this legendary band helped define and shape hardcore music. MDC emerged in Austin, Texas, during the late-’70s/early-’80s heyday of punk alongside, birthed alongside the likes of The Dicks and Big Boys. Led by frontman (and genre icon) Dave Dictor, MDC injected their three-chord fury with political rancor, rhetoric, and satire, not to mention plenty of vitriol and invectives. Their 1982 debut LP, released on Jello Biafra’s Alternative Tentacles Records, put capitalism, homophobia, and cultural norms on blast with such now-famous songs as “John Wayne Was a Nazi,” “Corporate Death Burger,” and “America’s So Straight.” The band’s members may have come and gone over the years (Dictor and drummer Al Schvitz are the only originals left), but their influence and relevance haven’t waned over the 44 years. 7 p.m., $15 via simpletix.com. Benjamin Leatherman
Bayside
Tuesday, February 14
The Nile Theater, 105 East Main StreetThough Bayside haven’t released a full-length album since 2019’s Interrobang, the veteran punk band from Queens whet our appetites for new Bayside jams back in October when they released a new EP, The Red. The three tracks featured on the album are vintage Bayside: short, punchy pop-punk songs packed with mall-pop melodies, nasally vocals, and buzzing guitars. “Someday you’ll die but for now enjoy the ride,” Anthony Raneri sings on “Good Advice.” It’s hard not to enjoy the ride with a bit of Bayside in your headphones. Formed in 2000, the band christened themselves with the name of their neighborhood while on their way to give New Found Glory a demo tape. The impulsively selected name stuck and has accrued an impressive body of work. The group has released a string of concise and catchy albums, from 2004’s Sirens and Condolences to last year’s EP, each of them marked by Raneri’s impassioned vocals and Jack O’Shea’s caffeinated guitar lines. Malls may be a thing of the past, but Bayside’s brand of mall punk music is alive and well. 7 p.m., tickets are available on the secondary market. Ashley Naftule
Pepper
Wednesday, February 15
Marquee Theatre, 730 North Mill Avenue, Tempe For more than 25 years, Pepper have been bringing their brand of dance-worthy rock-pop-reggae to fans all over the world. It’s a type of mellow yet vividly powerful music that, even though it’s easily categorized as reggae-rock, is more scintillating than most acts from the genre. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Kaleo Wassman and vocalist/bassist Bret Bollinger, friends since middle school, and drummer Yesod Williams, who they found was a perfect fit after going through a “bottomless pit” of drummers. Influenced by such acts as Sublime (natch) and Hawaiian artist Three Plus, the trio moved to San Diego from Hawaii a year after their founding began releasing some of the seminal and best-loved albums, including 2002’s Kona Town, which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard‘s reggae charts. Pepper is currently celebrating the 20th anniversary of Kona Town on their current tour, playing every song from the album, including its big single “Give It Up.” 8 p.m., $25-$45 via seetickets.us. Lauren Wise
El Tri
Wednesday, February 15
The Van Buren, 401 West Van Buren StreetReferred to by friends and critics alike as Mexico’s Rolling Stones, the raunchy and prolific El Tri are elder statesmen in the rock en Español scene. Fronted by Alex Lora, El Tri’s sound encompasses blues-rock, psychedelia, acoustic music, and hard rock. The group started as a spinoff group from Three Souls In My Mind, who made waves in Mexico City’s scene with their covers of American rock and blues songs. Part of what distinguishes El Tri from many of their contemporaries is the wide-ranging sweep of their lyrics. Lora often takes requests from fans for song subjects, spinning their requests into original compositions about prostitutes, taxi drivers, the Pope, and the World Cup (among other varied subjects). Critical of the government and a committed leftist, Lora infuses his pop-influenced music with a revolutionary edge. This populist quality of Lora’s music is one of the reasons why El Tri have managed to stay relevant for so long, but it’s the quality of the songs and the band’s intensely rhythmic and dynamic playing that have helped them go the distance. 8 p.m., $65 via livenation.com. Ashley Naftule
Bass Drum of Death
Wednesday, February 15
The Rebel Lounge, 2303 East Indian School RoadWatch enough cartoons, and the phrase “one-man band” conjures up a very specific image: some poor schmuck with a giant drum on their back, cymbals between their knees, a harmonica around their neck, and a precarious stack of instruments clutched in their busy hands. When John Barrett first started performing as Bass Drum of Death in 2008, he had a bit more of a stripped-down approach: just a guitar and a bass drum. They haven’t been a one-man act for a long time now, but even with a full band setup, Barrett’s music still has the energy and looseness of a street musician wailing on a corner. Bass Drum of Death play a blues-inflected, punky brand of garage rock. The drums (yes, including the bass drum) have a hard snap, the guitars buzz like hair clippers, and Barrett shouts over the din like he’s making a P.A. announcement at the airport. With a new album, Say I Won’t, out now, Bass Drum of Death will be banging ominously from coast to coast. With Murder Me and Have A Rad Day; 8 p.m., $20/$22 via seetickets.us. Ashley Naftule
