Dani's Local Dish Serves Up Some Tasty Tempe Bands

This weekend is overflowing with places to fill your soul with music.

Tempe Town Lake will be buzzing with beer, brats, and local music for Four Peaks Oktoberfest. There will be performances from Sugahbeat, Playboy Manbaby, Black Bottom Lighters, Sara Robinson Band, Wyves, Break the Robot, The Hourglass Cats, Banana Gun, and more.

If you are looking for something more underground, a couple of Tempe bands are celebrating the release of new music this weekend.

I discovered Japhy’s Descent from KWSS Radio eight years ago and was immediately drawn to their raw rock sound and lead singer Travis Ryder’s raspy vocals. One of the things I love most about this band is their diversity. They'll rock your world one moment, and then grab your heartstrings with an acoustic ballad. These staples of the Tempe scene are releasing their latest album, Dharma's Flight. "Cuyahoga," the record's first single, sets the tone for what the album will be. It’s a gritty yet soulful track.

"We take so much stock in others saving us rather than ourselves that we sometimes cannot see the fire around our own salvation until it's too late," the band say on Facebook.


The video, directed by Yod Paul of Mergence and Sara Robinson Band, is a western tale of finding said salvation.

You can celebrate with Japhy’s Descent at Sunbar, located at 24 West Fifth Street in Tempe, on Friday, October 11. It will be a festival of art and music featuring Sara Robinson Band, The Woodworks, Future Exes, The Psychedelephants, DJ Nathan Reeser, Bad Joker, and Kaydee Cage. The show begins at 5 p.m. Tickets are $10 on the band's website.

Twin Ponies are releasing their new album, Body on Credit, on Friday, October 11. If you crave a more experimental sound, then this is your band. This record is a journey. You could listen to each song on its own (they have released two singles from the album), but I suggest you find 40 uninterrupted minutes to sit back with headphones on and take in the entire album. There could be a tempo or key change at any moment as you are flowing through their musical thought processes. You will get lost in listening,

The quartet's experimentation comes through in their live performances. There is plenty of free play in their songs. Every time you listen to their recorded music or go to one of their live performances, you will hear something new.


Twin Ponies are celebrating the release of their new album at The Rebel Lounge on Friday night with Celebration Guns, Tiny Bird, and Brother Teresa. The show begins at 6:45 p.m. with $10 to $12 tickets available via Eventbrite.