It's a big weekend for shows, to say the least. Or, to rephrase, a weekend that's filled with big shows. You've got the nu-metal gods of Korn headlining KUPD's holiday show tonight while Snoop Lion Snoop Dogg Nemo Hoes Snoopadelic doing his DJ thing in Scottsdale on Saturday. And, of course, True Music Festival tomorrow at Salt River Fields -- arguably the biggest concert of the fall -- starring Wiz Khalifa, The Flaming Lips, Bassnectar, Capital Cities, and plenty more.
But if none of those options suits your tastes, be sure to check out our extensive online concert calendar.
One More Time - Crescent Ballroom - Friday, December 13 Looks aren't everything, but when you're in a tribute band worth its salt, they can mean a hell of a lot. If you're playing, say, Slash in a Guns N' Roses homage, you need a top hat, curly black hair, a wordlessly cool aura, etc.--or at least worthwhile approximations thereof--to fill the part. One More Time have it easy by comparison. The Phoenix-based Daft Punk tribute don replica chromed helmets and electroluminescent costumes (which, admittedly, probably cost a pretty penny), take a dark stage and voilà! One of the dudes under the headgear could be Carrot Top's doppelgänger, but that doesn't make an ounce of difference.
Outfits aside, OMT promote themselves as "the first and only realistic tribute of their kind." The duo emulates their French forebears' Alive tour from 2007, with OMT even hauling around a full-scale pyramid stage to accomplish that goal. Like their inspirations, the DJs behind One More Time eschew the direct spotlight; in one interview, they went by just the initials of R and B. Still, for all this seductive anonymity, the project has a charmingly bland origin story. "We made the first set of helmets and wore it to our friend's Daft Punk-themed party in Tucson years ago," the pair told Arizona Foothills Magazine in June. "From there, things just spawned out of control." -- Reyan Ali
Trivium - Marquee Theatre, Tempe - Friday, December 13 Guitarist and lead vocalist Matt Heafy was around 13 or 14 when Trivium formed in Orlando in 2000, and only 17 when Trivium released their debut album, Ember To Inferno. Over the past decade, Heafy and the other members of Trivium have come a long way, from constant experimentation (each album has its own very different sound) to the evolution of their songwriting and musical prowess.
Rounded out by lead guitarist Corey Beaulieu (who came on board right after Ember to Inferno) bassist Paolo Gregoletto (2004-present) and drummer Nick August (2010-present), the band is still in their 20s, but they've achieved what most musicians their age only dream of. The name "trivium" even suits their accomplishments, translating to a three-way intersection that combines metalcore, melodic death metal and thrash.
Korn - Comerica Theatre - Friday, December 13 As a band, Korn is the master of musical reinvention. Jonathan Davis' songwriting is notorious for reaching deep into the bucket of taboo topics, putting his suffering, loneliness and pain on display like no other heavy metal vocalist. Right alongside guitarist Munky's raucous guitar talent and bassist Fieldy's funky finger-plucking and slapping, it's no wonder the band has developed a sound that has drawn several million fans for the better part of two decades. But this past year has proved to be one of rejuvenation for Korn, rather then reinvention, starting when original guitarist Brian "Head" Welch joined back up with the band in 2012.
Welch is responsible for helping craft Korn's unique sound combination of shrill shredding, dissonant guitar, and down-tuned riffing, which all helped create the almost turntable-like effects that defined nu metal. In October 2013, Korn released its eleventh album, The Paradigm Shift. While it received great reviews by critics, it hit mixed emotions with die-hard fans. The mix of old and new style Korn might not have appealed to everyone, but there's no doubt that the band's live show is impeccable. It's musically accomplished, with acute attention to detail, and during 2013 in particular all of the members have looked healthy and refreshed. Plus, you can never go wrong with the insanely still-effective "Freak on a Leash." -- Lauren Wise
DJ Snoopadelic - Maya Day & Nightclub - Saturday, December 14 RZA/Bobby Digital/Prince Rakeem ain't got shit on Snoop Dogg, at least when it comes to the alter-ego shizzle. To his mama and papa, he's either Calvin Cordozar Broadus or "Snoopy," his childhood nickname. Meanwhile, he's been the Doggfather to the hip-hop world for two decades, hood anchor Nemo Hoes on the Double G News Network, and Snoop Lion in the irie realm of the Rastafari. Whenever the 42-year-old rap icon steps behind his iBook and a set of knobs and dials while up in the club, however, he's DJ Snoopadelic, EDM fiend and ghetto-fab mixmaster with a taste for "EURO TEKNO."
Last year, Snoop reached out via Facebook for tracks to remix for a pair of dance music compilations entitled Loose Joints (natch), including efforts by such noted beatsmiths as Genius of Time, Toddla T, and Jokers of the Scene. Anyone who has checked out his SoundCloud or happened to witness his superfly session at Tempe's Firehouse in October can attest to his kung fu, which is stronger than the Paris Hiltons of the celebrity DJ world, or to the fact that he's known to selector up some funk, hip-hop, and reggae in his sets alongside all the EDM. Expect much of the same sounds when Snoopadelic slides into Scottsdale. Doors open at 9 p.m. Admission is $20. -- Benjamin Leatherman
True Music Festival - Salt River Fields - Saturday, December 14 It's been a long time coming. Music lovers across Phoenix have awaited an event that will truly encompass the diverse variety of today's most popular artists. On December 14, Salt River Fields will host the inaugural True Music Festival, marketed with the tagline "One day will change everything," as another contestant in the attempt to bring that intricate balance of musicians together for the first time.
"There is a complex market in Phoenix," says TMF founder and creator Jarid Dietrich, "with so much culture that is untapped because people don't dive into it. When you immerse yourself in it and understand what it is, you can design a festival to the market, rather than just bring it to the market.
"The best way is to take advantage of its valuable assets -- the local bands, the culture, the weather -- and put it in December, when no other music festivals are going on."
The idea of TMF begins with an unusually diverse class of performers: The lineup mashes together everything from electronic music to classic rock and hip-hop by featuring 16 different musical acts on stage for the event. -- Caleb Haley
Read our complete feature story on True Music Festival
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