In 2005, Brian “Head” Welch shocked the metal world when he left nu-metal pioneers Korn at the height of the band’s career. The surprise wasn’t so much that Welch was departing from the band he helped create but his reasoning. The guitarist quit the band because he had found Jesus…
Fresh off the release of his critically acclaimed Blank Face LP , Schoolboy Q announced tour dates this week, including a stop at Mesa Amphitheatre on Tuesday, October 11. Chicago rapper Joey Purp will join him on tour. Blank Face LP is Schoolboy Q’s second major label album and follows…
Looking for a great local concert to check out this week? Look not further. We’ve got the lowdown on biggest and best shows happening at Valley music venues over the next several nights, all of which are worthy of both your time and money. Wye Oak – Mondau, July 18…
In a triumphant return after ten long years away from the Valley, Dixie Chicks smashed expectations at Ak-Chin Pavilion with a show that went beyond simple country music. Visually, it was as modern and effective as they come, a slick black-and-white palette as a setting that would have looked at…
If I could pin down the year that Comerica Theatre time traveled to last night for the Taste of Chaos tour, I think it would be 2003. In 2003 Dashboard Confessional had its first top 10 album. Taking Back Sunday was still riding high on its critically acclaimed debut. Anthony Green…
Looking for a memorable concert to check out during the next few nights? You’re in luck, as there are plenty of big shows happening. In fact, we’ve got nine picks for your consideration, all of which are taking place during the next 72 hours are certainly worthy of both your…
The melding of pop and country music is no new phenomenon. The marriage of the two genres has brought the latter into the mainstream and thoroughly incensed the purists of the former for decades now. Country radio today has embraced the change wholeheartedly, yet few artists are willing to admit…
Wye Oak is a band that, if nothing else, understands contrast. Their sound is a mixture of dream pop and dark folk dominated by nu-gaze, that mid-2000s renewed interest in pedal-driven walls of guitar distortion and buried vocals. It’s a moody mix, a feeling of elation and melancholy introspection. “I…
It’s a long way to the top if ya wanna rock ’n’ roll, sure, but if you’re more interested in just making sweet tunes, touring the world in a minivan, and keeping it real, you really don’t need much. Take it from Deerhoof, the strange noise pop quartet originally from…
Before Doug Hopkins tragically committed suicide in 1993, he would often tell his friends that the Gin Blossoms were ripping him off. He was fired from the band at their label’s request after recording for what would be the band’s 1992 breakthrough album, New Miserable Experience, completed in Memphis. He…
Bad Suns stumbled upon everything: their name, their record deal, and even each other. When the band formed in 2012, then-19-to-22-year-olds had left behind former bands—not to mention high school—in favor of new projects. Fronted by vocalist Christo Bowman, the Southern California four-piece formed in 2012 and picked up where Elvis…
Apparently there’s a lot of fan overlap between Weezer and Warped Tour. Vans Warped Tour has announced that it will change the date of its Arizona stop from August 2 to August 4 in order to avoid conflicting with the Weezer/Panic! At The Disco concert scheduled for August 2 at…
It’s not difficult to hear why Pet Sounds, celebrating its 50th anniversary this summer, is considered to be one of the greatest albums in music history. It was a game changer upon its release in 1966, a marked departure point for The Beach Boys and a defining pinnacle of Brian…
Suffering from a little cabin fever after spending all of your free time indoors lately? Can’t say we blame you, considering the average temperature outdoors is around 108 degrees these days. It might do you a bit of good to get out of the house, however, and we’ve got several…
We’d understand completely if you’re planning to lay low this weekend. And we’re sure you’d have plenty of justifiable reasons to so. It’s the dog days of summer, for instance, or you could still be recovering from the Fourth of July weekend. And the latest season of Orange is the…
It’s 2016 and Vancouver’s White Lung have no qualms about it. Although steeped in punk’s history and aesthetic, they prefer to innovate rather than look to the past. While their most obvious influences stem from ’80s hardcore and feminist didactics expressed in ’90s Riot Grrrl fashion, their newest album, Paradise,…
Evan Stephens Hall already has an idea of what heaven looks like — creatively speaking, of course. The frontman of New Jersey indie rock band Pinegrove, Hall seems like the kind of musician who just has to get it out via whatever medium he has at hand. Luckily for him,…
You know that licking toads to get stoned isn’t exactly an urban legend, right? If you piss off Bufo alvarius, it will secrete 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenin, two highly potent psychedelics chemically similar to DMT. The Colorado River toad is actually native to the Sonoran Desert, but there’s another legendary psychedelic…
Happy Fourth of July everyone. If you’ve still got some mojo and, more importantly, money leftover from spending the three-day weekend partying and playing hooky from work, there are several notable shows happening this week. The list includes gigs by pop princess Selena Gomez, indie singers like Mitski and Japanese…
We’re about to hit what’s known as the dog days of summer, a period of the summertime that’s particularly loathsome due to the fact its muggy as hell outside and no sign of relief on the horizon (save for the occasional monsoon storm). Thankfully, we’re also about to roll into…
Ted Nugent. Ted “Fucking” Nugent. He calls himself this frequently. During a 45-minute phone conversation, he must’ve said “Ted fucking Nugent” at least a dozen times. The man is mesmerizing and drunk on confidence, even if he never takes a drink. There really is no one else quite like him,…
XIXA came to exist almost by accident. The Tucson sextet – formerly known as Chicha Dust – formed and began playing the Peruvian style of psychedelic cumbia as a way to get more gigs without overbooking the solo projects of its two co-founders, Brian Lopez and Gabriel Sullivan. With almost…
