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Why Dillon Francis Will Never Name His Future Children After Taco Bell Menu Items

By Benjamin Leatherman

Sep 12, 2014

Despite anything you might've read online, Dillon Francis does not own a Taco Bell. That was just a clever April Fool's prank. That said, the infamous dance-music producer seems to spend enough time patronizing the fast food chain and professing his love for its various menu items that one could...

The Sail Inn: More Memories From Local Musicians and Regulars

By Benjamin Leatherman

Jun 27, 2014

When The Sail Inn closes on Sunday evening after the final night of its three-day Farewell Festival, it will mark the end of an era -- not just for the bar itself, but also for the Tempe music scene. A big chapter in the city's lore will draw to a...

Trunk Space: 20 Favorite Shows From the Last Decade

By Phoenix New Times Staff

Apr 8, 2014

Later tonight, the Trunk Space will wrap up both its 10-year celebration and its ambitious performance project, the Indie 500. As we've previously reported, the multi-day concert festival -- which dozens of bands playing the space over the last week and change -- sought to have a total of 500...

Trunk Space: More Memories From the DIY Venue's First 10 Years

By Yezmin Villarreal

Apr 7, 2014

There are many reasons people keep coming back to the Trunk Space, and it's not necessarily because of the music (although that is the biggest reason). There's the whole sense of community that's developed around the DIY gallery and venue, which has become a wayward home and all-inclusive haven for...

Parenthetical Girls' Zac Pennington Learned To Loathe Popular Music While a Music Journalist

By Troy Farah

Mar 7, 2013

It's not easy being beautiful. Just ask Zac Pennington, frontman of experimental pop group Parenthetical Girls, whose vocal strains fall halfway between Perfume Genius and Lightspeed Champion, complemented with the baroque pop stylings of Belle and Sebastian. Pennington, known for his gender-neutral lyrics and his Morrissey-borrowed wit, pens some brutally...

Murs Says Don't Write Music If You "Don't Have Shit to Say"

By Chris Parker

Jan 31, 2013

In this week's issue, we profile Arizona-based rapper Murs. Some great stuff got left on the cutting-room floor, so in this installment of Outtakes, we'll crack open the tape recorder and let a whole bunch of good material that didn't make the print edition see the light of day. One...

The Father Figures Dish on Phoenix's Punk Rock Glory Days

By Melissa Fossum

Jan 24, 2013

In this week's issue, we chat with the members of Phoenix art-punk band The Father Figures, discussing the band's phenomenal sophomore album, All About Everything. We ended up with quite a bit of information left over from our 90-minute interview, so in this installment of Outtakes, we'll crack open the...

Gregg Turkington on Punk in Tempe, the '80s, and a Band As Good as Black Flag

By Chase Kamp

Dec 7, 2012

Speaking with comedian Gregg Turkington about Phoenix's storied 80's punk scene, yielded plenty of yarns about seeing legendary bands in their prime. However, he also painted a vividly grotesque portrait of Arizona during the Reagan '80s and his own teenage experience in trying to navigate reactionary politics, fried food, and...

Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead: "The Music Is Working Out Just Fine"

By Glenn BurnSilver

Dec 6, 2012

In this week's issue, we chat with with former Grateful Dead and current Furthur guitarist Bob Weir. We ended up with more material than we could fit, so please enjoy another installment of Outtakes, where we sweep up all sorts of good stuff that ended up on the cutting room...

Sci-Fi Thrash Group Vektor on Mexican Food in Philadelphia

By Anthony Sandoval

Aug 30, 2012

See also: Metal Band Vektor Goes Back to the Future In this week's issue, we speak with Frank Chin, bassist for former Tempe-based sci-fi metal thrash band Vektor, about the band's recent move to Philadelphia. The quartet may still be settling into their new surroundings, but that doesn't mean they've...

Michelle Blades Bids Phoenix Farewell With Ambient-Electro Collaboration With Scenery

By Chase Kamp

Aug 23, 2012

See also: Songwriter Michelle Blades Walks a Tightrope See also: Michelle Blades Streams Album, MarianaIn this week's issue, we discuss Valley singer/songwriter Michelle Blades and her delicate balance between riot grrrl verve and orchestral grandeur. We ended up with more material than we could fit in print, so please enjoy...

Lee Hazlewood's "Manager" Wyndham Wallace on the "Surreal and Offbeat" Songwriter

By Jason P. Woodbury

Aug 16, 2012

See also: Improbable Lee: Lee Hazlewood Re-Issues Chart an Unexpected Trajectory See also: John Dixon Discusses the Lee Hazlewood-produced "The Fool," by Sanford Clark, 1956 See also: 100 Songs That Defined Arizona In this week's issue, we cover the psychedelic trajectory that brought songwriter/producer/vocalist Lee Hazlewood from Arizona to Sweden...

Alice Cooper's Mom Has the Original "School's Out" Panties

By Glenn BurnSilver

Aug 2, 2012

See also: Alice Cooper's Ode to Teenage Rebellion Hits Middle Age See also: Alice Cooper, Rob Halford, The Tubes, Brian "Head" Welch at Welcome 2 My Pudding See also: Alice Cooper: No More Mr. Bad Guy In this week's issue, we speak with Alice Cooper about the 40th anniversary of...

Kongos on the Cutting Room Floor

By Serene Dominic

Jul 20, 2012

See also: Kongos are Huge in South Africa. Is Phoenix Next? See also: The Serene Dominic Show: Kongos Tear it Up Back and forth banter that didn't find its way in this week's New Times article on Kongos finds its way to you now, courtesy of Up On the Sun...

Banana Gun's Pot Shots and Misfires

By Serene Dominic

Jun 21, 2012

See also: Eclecticism is The Elephant in the Room by Banana Gun When I sat down over rounds of Stella Artois to talk about the new Banana Gun album The Elephant In the Room, with Kevin Loyd, Kyle Scarborough, Ian Breslin, Nic Dehaan, and Ross Troost, there were some stories...

Ladylike Says the Honeymoon Is Over

By Jason P. Woodbury

May 24, 2012

See also: Ladylike Approaches '70s Pop With Sharpened Tools Records don't often sound as effortless as Ladylike's self-titled debut. The Tempe-based power-pop combo subtly incorporates disparate elements of '70s pop, piano rock, and Queen bombast, topping it all off with effervescent melodies. The band, made up of Rob Kroehler, Ryan...

Spiritualized's Jason Pierce on How Amazing The Liver Is

By Glenn BurnSilver

May 17, 2012

See also: Spiritualized's Jason Pierce on New Record Sweet Heart Sweet Light Jason Pierce is lead singer, guitarist, songwriter, and mastermind behind the psychedelic wall of sound and texture that is Spiritualized. Pierce, who also goes by the moniker J. Spaceman, is something of a troubled soul in the classic...

Outtakes

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