Adult Swim Pool Party at Millennium Resort Adult Swim, formerly the hippest of weekly hipster pool parties, returned for just one day on Sunday. Promoters Jared Alan and Jen Deveroux brought Adult Swim to the Millennium Resort this summer instead of to the Downtown Phoenix pools of the past. The…
Reverend Horton Heat Marquee Theatre Saturday, July 16, 2011 Reverend Horton Heat makes an annual stop in Phoenix year after year and never fails to put on a good show. Sure, the band tends to play a lot of the same songs and tell a few of the same jokes,…
America Wild Horse Pass Casino Friday, July 15, 2011 Sure, the venues that America is likely to play these days have gotten smaller, but it doesn’t mean that the band isn’t still capable of putting on a good show. The crowd of folks who came to watch them perform at the…
Megadeth, Godsmack, and Disturbed at Rockstar Mayhem Festival Friday, July 15, 2011 The Ashley Furniture HomeStore Pavilion”You guys are fucking amazing, Phoenix!”This was the first thing I heard as I approached the Ashley Furniture HomeStore Pavilion for the Rockstar Mayhem Festival. The compliment, enthusiastically hollered from the stage by Machine Head singer…
The time is nigh to get your last dose of local songstress Courtney Marie Andrews before she embarks on her west coast tour later this month. The acoustic americana singer has assembled a full band to accompany her on stage for next week’s show.Andrews will be playing at The Rhythm…
In March, Conspire coffee shop closed down, got a face lift, and then re-opened as a downtown art gallery and vegan cafe. There have been growing pains, for sure — the cafe still doesn’t have regular, set hours (don’t expect to ever find the door open before noon), there have…
As the dust settles and the heat continues to ramp up, local misfits Dogbreth will be hosting Oregon-based Self Proclaimed Narcissist and Ariana Marie and Rainbow at The Trunk Space.This Friday, July 15, they’ll be braving sweltering conditions with their do-it-yourself folky pop-punk sounds. You should join them…
Ska-rockers Streetlight Manifesto and Reel Big Fish rocked The Marquee last night, and we were there to take photos. Our reviewer wound up with food poisoning (bleh), but Timothy Cason, next door neighbor of this particular Up on the Sun writer, went, and offered this mini review (I promised him…
Cowboy MouthThe Foundry on First Saturday, July 9 Despite pesky city inspectors delaying the doors opening and Mother Nature battering concertgoers with gusts of wind and blasts of dust, The Foundry on First opened her doors for the first time last night. The work-in-progress venue dealt with its fair share of…
Major League Baseball announced the official All-Star Week musical performance roster on Wednesday, and it reads like the back of a Now That’s What I Call Music compilation mix. But thank god, we love Jordin Sparks and Michelle Branch. It would’ve totally sucked if MLB had a relevant indie surf…
David BazanThe Sail Inn Thursday, July 7Last night was the sixth time I’ve seen David Bazan perform, and I am struck by how each concert has been a unique experience. There were different band-names some of the times: Pedro the Lion, the group he’s best known for, The Headphones, his…
The upbeat melodic pop songs of singer/songwriter Maren Parusel can turn someone with even the surliest reputation into a purveyor of positive vibes. Case in point: Pall Jenkins from Black Heart Procession, a band known for creating deep, dark, introspective songs. Jenkins produced Parusel’s debut album, Artificial Gardens, and when…
Cannonball Pool Party Kickoff The hipster pool party is officially back. The promoters of Sticky Fingers and Retro Hi-Fi have come together for the all new Cannonball Pool Party at the Lexington Hotel. The summer’s remaining Sunday afternoons are going to be all about looking hip, taking a dip and…
NightlandsThe Sail InnSunday, July 3, 2011My very first thought when Nightlands took the stage last night and began cranking out lush harmonies was “Oh man, this band needs to open up for Fleet Foxes,” and I couldn’t be any more sincere about that statement. It might seem a bit far-fetched…
Jeff Bridges Arizona BiltmoreSunday, June 3, 2011Jeff Bridges is a likable guy. He’s the kind of character you root for, even when he’s beating up Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man, even when he’s playing a cold-blooded killer in Jagged Edge. He’s got a quality that just endears people to him,…
Chants of “Let’s go Murphys” rang through the half-filled Marquee Theatre about 45 minutes before the opening band even took the stage. The mantra only grew louder throughout the night as the crowd grew to capacity and eventually beckoned the Dropkick Murphys out on stage for an encore performance three hours later.
Face to Face Nile TheaterFriday, July 1 The ’90s were a good time for punk rock. Fat Wreck Chords, Epitaph, Lookout, and Nitro were powerhouses of the upbeat catchy punk that dominated Warped Tour’s glory days. While many of the bands that defined the genre have faded away after year…
Did someone say $1 Pabst Blue Ribbons? And a “punk rock DJ night”? We are so there. This Tuesday, July 5, local punk purveyor Tim Neilson (better known by his DJ handle, Johnny Volume ), continues hosting his bi-weekly Delinquency event at the Yucca Tap Room in Tempe. In addition…
REVIEW BY MELISSA FOSSUM AND DANIEL RAVEN New Kids On the Block and Backstreet Boys have grown up a bit since their heydays on MTV and the music charts, and so have their fans. But that hasn’t stopped the bands from cashing in on nostalgia, or people from buying tickets for…
Former Friends of Young Americans, The Tremulants The Lost Leaf Thursday, June 30 There’s something to be said about Arizona’s music scene when you can slip into a local watering hole and find great local bands like The Tremulants and Former Friends of Young Americans just hanging out, playing a…
The CosmeticatorsThe Trunk Space Thursday, June 30, 2011After the loud ‘n’ proud punk rock show at Trunk Space last night, I’m starting to think there’s a new trend of garage rockers writing songs about their pets. As we mentioned in this week’s music feature on Phoenix trio The Cosmeticators, the band has songs…
The Young & Useless Tour may not be so aptly named. While the performers — Austin Gibbs, Carter Hulsey, and headliners This Century — are young, they’re not exactly useless. Locals This Century, in particular, has been generating buzz around their feelgood, melodic indie rock. Alternative Press named the band…
