Rocky VotolatoRhythm RoomSunday, February 27Last night, while film geeks dressed to the nines for Oscar parties, indie folk fans flocked to the Rhythm Room in casual attire for an evening with Rocky Votolato and Matt Pond, both of whom celebrate over ten years of music experience. Rocky Votolato stopped by…
910 LiveSunday, February 27Bitch all you want about Phoenix’s music scene, but sometimes smaller is better.On Saturday night in Los Angeles, the Monsters of Bass Tour sold out El Rey Theatre, meaning that the concert’s head count was somewhere around 1,000 people. Flash forward 24 hours to the 910 Live…
Just one track in, Canibus had to clear the sweat from his brow. The perspiration indicated the level of intensity with which Canibus would work his way through his heady music all night.
Black Fag The Rogue Bar Saturday, February 26 Henry Rollins, circa 1982, is an absolute archetype of manliness. Covered with tattoos and boiling over with testosterone, Hank the Tank thrashed his way through live gigs and dispensed plenty of punches as the frenetic frontman for Black Flag. Meanwhile, punks and…
Glassjaw Clubhouse Music Venue Thursday, February 24Last night’s show by Glassjaw was eight years in the making. The band — best known for their post-hardcore classic, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence and Vincent Gallo acting tough in the “Cosmopolitan Bloodloss” video — has been on a long,…
It’s been a good couple weeks for fans of indie hip-hop. Last weekend, Nocando and Open Mike Eagle stopped by the Hidden House, and this weekend, fellow LA underground rapper Busdriver is performing at the Red Owl in Tempe. (Tickets available here or at the door.) In a recent e-mail…
311 Marquee Theatre February 22, 2011 Until last night I had never attended a sold out show at the Marquee. I had also never been surrounded by fans chanting any band’s name as loudly as the audience of lovable stoners did last night as they waited anxiously for 311 to…
Captain Squeegee at Strong Beer Festival Saturday The annual Strong Beer Festival has been blessed with great weather in recent years — sunny with warm air and clear skies. In other words, typical weather for February in Phoenix. Such a thing should never be taken for granted, nor will it…
Captain SqueegeeArizona Strong Beer Festival Steele Indian School ParkSaturday, February 19, 2011The annual Strong Beer Festival has been blessed with great weather in recent years — sunny with warm air and clear skies. In other words, typical weather for February in Phoenix.Such a thing should never be taken for granted, nor…
Death AngelClubhouse Music VenueFebruary 19, 2011It took me 24 years to finally see Death Angel perform live, but all things considered, it was well worth the wait. If any show is capable of whetting one’s appetite for this April’s Big 4 extravaganza in Indio, California, this was it. The Bay…
Lisa Savidge released their second album one week ago, and hosted an exclusive listening party at Bar Smith the day of its release. The band has been working hard over the past week, and the hard work paid off at last night’s CD release show. $10 took care of admission…
Alt-country/punk/Southern rockers Lucero are true road warriors, spending more than half their days on tour in any given year. The band has earned a die-hard fan base thanks to their near-constant touring and twangy, rough-and-tumble sound. In a recent e-mail Q&A, Up on the Sun asked guitarist Brian Venable about…
What do you do if it’s Valentine’s Day and you’re an musician who makes music far removed from fuzzy teddy bears and chocolate, who has a concert scheduled, and not the sort of concert that just draws brodogs and the like? It was an interesting challenge for Pete Yorn, who…
The Pretty RecklessFebruary 14, 2011Martini RanchGossip Girl star Taylor Momsen told the crowd at Martini Ranch Monday night her band The Pretty Reckless almost canceled their show because her voice was completely shot. For the devoted fans in the half-full venue, it’s a good thing she didn’t. But for a concert…
YuckThursday, February 10, 2011Rhythm Room, PhoenixMy ears are still ringing as I write this, and I couldn’t be happier. Normally, I loathe doling out such large amounts of damage to my eardrums, but if it was at the hands of North London buzz band Yuck, then I think I can…
Rocking out and getting sweaty next to complete strangers might not exactly sound romantic, but it’s an unconventional and fun way to spend Valentine’s Day this Monday. The Pretty Reckless comes to town to play Martini Ranch on their first headlining, intimate club tour, after the Taylor Momsen-fronted band sold…
Tennis Rhythm Room Tuesday, February 8, 2011 So it was — a waif, diminutive indie chanteuse and her prim, penny-loafer adorned husband took to the stage last night. The local crowd came out in impressive numbers for a Tuesday night in February. People were dancing, nodding their heads in appreciation of the laid-back, effervescent music. And…
John LegendFebruary 8, 2011ASU Gammage AuditoriumJohn Only needed his voice and a piano to make a huge impression at Gammage auditorium last night.Legend’s show, sponsored by Arizona State University’s undergraduate student government and the black/African coalition, was held in celebration of Black History Month, and that background heavily flavored the…
Calexico at Corona Ranch Someone at Corona Ranch realized it was after 11 p.m. Someone knew the band had been playing for damn-near two-hours. Someone wanted to punch their time-card and go home, not caring to hear a truly stellar Southwesternized version of “Tomorrow Never Knows,” which you’d have to…
My name is Benjamin and I’m a classical music lover. I grew up in a household where Pachelbel’s Canon, Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, and Handel’s Messiah were played regularly. I’m also a big fan of hip-hop, although not to the degree of some of my colleagues (who can craft outstanding blogs…
Interpol Marquee Theatre Saturday, February 5, 2011Interpol hasn’t headlined a Phoenix show since 2004, a few months after Antics was released. In 2005 they visited our state twice, playing Edgefest, and Coconuts, a small Tucson bar that is now closed. Since then, Arizona has been skipped on every tour, including…
Someone at Corona Ranch realized it was after 11 p.m. Someone knew the band had been playing for damn-near two-hours. Someone wanted to punch their time-card and go home, not caring to hear a truly stellar Southwesternized version of “Tomorrow Never Knows,” which you’d have to imagine part-time Tucsonian Paul…
