The Black Keys @ US Airways|10/9/12The Black Keys have come a long way since their last performance in Phoenix a year and a half ago. They released a new album, El Camino, played prime time slots at Coachella two years in a row, and performed at a much larger venue…
The Hives @ Marquee Theatre|10/9/12Eleven miles from the US Airways Center, at The Marquee Theatre, an important question was pondered tonight. “Do any of you like The Black Keys?” asked Hives lead singer Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist. Every band that took the stage before the Swedish garage rock band got to…
Grimes @ Crescent Ballroom| 10/8/12What a difference six months makes. The last time Canadian synth-pop visionary Grimes visited Phoenix, her set was riddled with painful sound problems and an unruly crowd. Rumor had it Grimes herself separated the bathroom fight that resulted in a swarm of cops in the parking…
Apache Lake Music Festival has grown leaps and bounds since its launch in 2010. The festival now spans three days and features nearly twice as many bands as last year’s installment, Arizona’s beloved local music fest has continued to expand in size and scope in no time at all. See…
Yeah, yeah, yeah…we get it. Mondays suck (we’ve read Garfield). But it means the start of a new week, which means a bunch of killer shows in and around Phoenix. And here are a few of the coolest, our top five must-see shows this week…
Zero Zero Album Release Party @ Rogue Bar | 10/5/12As you might notice by the timing of this posting, I come from that age-old school of being fashionably late. (I try to limit these things to social gatherings, dinner dates and house parties, but every so often the habit bleeds…
Hood Internet @ Bar Smith| 10/5/12Generally speaking, the later someone stays out, the more fun they have soaking up the local nightlife. This isn’t always the case, though — if you stay out all night and pass out on a stranger’s floor, you probably aren’t having the best of times…
If you’re a diehard fan of video games and you’ve never listened to The Minibosses, you should be ashamed of yourself. The local band by way of Massachusetts performs rock versions of classic Nintendo video game soundtracks. The Minibosses are scheduled to perform their 250th show at Yucca Tap Room…
Robyn Hitchcock @ Musical Instrument Museum| 10/4/12The Musical Instrument Museum theater was a lonely place this evening, with a scant 50 music insiders in attendance to hear one of England’s great musical treasures, Robyn Hitchcock. Insiders, I say, because it takes a certain kind of music fan, one that appreciates…
Curious about what’s going on around town this weekend? Need some suggestions where to rock, dance, or krump in the Valley of the Sun? Don’t fret: These are our Five Shows to See This Weekend…
Big Gigantic @ Marquee Theatre|10/3/12Doors at 6:30 is pretty strange thing to me, but when it comes to music I like to be punctual. I want to make sure all is set for an entertaining night. Due Big Gigantic has always stood to the left of EDM, owing as much…
Jason Mraz @US Airways Center|10/2/12 Whoever was high at the Jason Mraz concert last night most likely had a blast. There were bright and swirling colors, extensive jam sessions, and captivating backgrounds that shifted from scenes of clouds in the sky to images of the universe rotating around — not…
Mt. Eerie and Bouquet @ Crescent Ballroom| 10/1/12Phil Elverum, the veteran soothsayer behind blackened avant-folk monolith Mt. Eerie, did two things that he hasn’t done in Phoenix for a very long time. First: he played with a full ensemble, complete with Sunn amp stacks and ominous keys, harboring a set…
Nick Lowe @ The Musical Instrument Museum|10/1/12If the tag “The Jesus of Cool” strikes you as hyperbolic or overblown, you’ve never watched 63-year-old Nick Lowe strut onto the stage, strap on his big Gibson J-200, and proceed to crack jokes and break hearts for 90 minutes. Lowe, with his easy…
Yeah, yeah, yeah…we get it Mondays suck (we’ve read Garfield). But it means the start of a new week, which means a bunch of killer shows in and around Phoenix. And here are a few of the coolest, our top five must-see shows this week…
Sound Wave Music Festival & Red Bull Thre3style Massive: Calvin Harris, Z-Trip, Switch, Adventure Club, Crizzly, and Others at Big Surf | 9/29/12 The third time was most definitely the charm for the Sound Wave Music Festival. The inaugural edition of the electronic dance music massive back in April 2011…
Uproar: Godsmack, Staind, Hellyeah, and More @ Ashley Furniture HomeStore PavilionWhile Friday’s Desert Uprising brought a wealth of debauchery, pyro, and sweat-drenched goths, metallers, emos, hipsters, well, damn, just about every type of rocker you can think of, Saturday’s Uproar turned out a crowd that much more party rock oriented…
Desert Uprising, featuring Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson, Buckcherry, Corey Taylor, The Art of Dying @ Ashley Furniture HomeStore Pavilion| 9/28/12There have been a lot of ups and downs during the planning of 98 KUPD’s first annual Desert Uprising last night, which found Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie’s Twins of Evil…
Rise Against, The Gaslight Anthem, and Hot Water Music @ Mesa Amphitheatre, 9/28/12Punk fans really couldn’t have asked for a better line up last night. As Tim McIlrath stated in our interview, it was a dream team of sorts, with punk vets Hot Water Music kicking things off, The Gaslight…
A Saucerful of Secrets, The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals, The Wall, — Pink Floyd and its albums are so world-renowned and integrated into pop culture that even if you don’t like their music you can’t help but have a level of respect for it…
Curious about what’s going on around town this weekend? Need some suggestions where to rock, dance, or krump in the Valley of the Sun? Don’t fret: These are our Five Shows to See This Weekend…
Sondre Lerche @ the Musical Instrument Museum| 9/25/12″Ever since I saw Psycho, I’ve wanted to come to Phoenix.” That’s how Sondre Lerche introduced himself to Phoenix last night at the Musical Instument Museum, and in a time of SB1070 band boycotts, it’s pretty refreshing for a musician to reference Hitchcock…
