Music

It’s a sweaty Wednesday and I’m running some errands after work when I find myself on the west side of Phoenix. I’m on autopilot, stuck in traffic, when I spot an oasis — a lighted sign that says nothing but “Cocktails” on an old, nondescript block building. I barely avoid…

If you have wanted to check out Phoenix-based Treasure Mammal, but aren’t ready for one of his longer efforts, listening to this 7-inch is the perfect way to ease yourself into his unique (if not slightly disturbed) sonic art. “Ain’t No Shame in My Game” features a sparse techno beat…

Phoenix metal band Fracture Point sounds like a mastodon stampede, but instead of directionless destruction, this beast intelligently winds its way through a well-constructed maze of down-tuned guitars, burly bass lines, screaming solos, and tricky timing changes. In the “sounds like” category, they’re akin to bands like Lamb of God…

When the members of Three 6 Mafia won a 2006 Best Song Oscar for “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp,” from Hustle & Flow, they reacted with so much exuberance that they made Cuba Gooding Jr.’s Jerry Maguire acceptance speech seem restrained by comparison — and even though the…

While parents have predictably freaked out over the social menace imposed by the blues, jazz, secular R&B, rock ‘n’ roll, heavy metal, rap, and techno, they never seemed to bat an eyelash over Steely Dan. In fact, they seemed to dig the band more than anyone. And it’s a testament…

Cute Is What We Aim For is likely the perfect 21st-century pop band. Almost purpose-built for short-attention-span marketing campaigns, the four gents in CIWWAF focus so heavily on pop sheen, hooks, and scenester touchstones that it’s often difficult to figure out just what the sum of the parts is. Then…

Like his dad Larry, singer-songwriter James McMurtry knows characters. But unlike his novelist father — who penned The Last Picture Show and Lonesome Dove, and wrote Brokeback Mountain’s screenplay — the guys and gals who populate James’ work don’t even bother looking for a way out. They’re already down for…

Even with Ozzfest gearing up for another go, metalheads would be hard pressed to find a better festival bill this summer than the Rockstar Energy Mayhem tour. Slipknot — Iowa’s favorite (and probably only) Grammy-winning metal band — headlines the melee, with a barrage of badass metallers in tow, including…

Summertime ain’t a dead time as far as the local rave scene is concerned. The particular all-hours party that we’re going to be swooping into will definitely be The Dark Knight, being put on by Silent Unspoken ­Entertainment on Saturday, July 19, in honor of that certain comic book flick…