Hot Snakes at Crescent Ballroom, 3/28/12

BY BENJAMIN HOROWITZ Hot Snakes Crescent Ballroom Wednesday, March 28 When I heard about the Hot Snakes reunion tour, my first thought was, “that doesn’t make sense.” The band just didn’t seem like the reuniting type. They called it quits in 2005. They certainly didn’t have the commercial clout of…

Dogbreth Recording Two New Albums, Set to Rock The Trunk Space

Valley pop-punk rockers Dogbreth have big things planned for 2012. Aside from helping Trunk Space celebrate their 8th birthday next month, the band has two 7″ records in the works, a split cassette and a two-month US/Canada tour coming up. The new recordings mark a departure from the band’s first…

Weekend: Emperor X, Acidic, Tugboat, Nu Sensae, Jim Adkins

See also: Tugboat’s Phillip Hanna Talks About the Band’s Breakup, Final Shows, and What Happens Next After six years, Tempe based weirdo rockers (it’s a compliment) Tugboat are calling it quits. “The idea was up in the air,” Phillip Hanna told Up on the Sun’s Christina Caldwell. “Because we kept…

Dance Your Chucks Off at The Rogue Bar, But First …

I’m throwing myself under the bus here, but I’m going to do this anyway. These are my Chuck Taylor All Star tennis shoes. As of yesterday, my retired Chucks. They used to be black and white, but now they’ve got this brown hue — and holes to boot. I don’t…

Good Old War Talks Leaving Philadelphia and Finding Home On the Road

Despite their tongue-in-cheek moniker, there’s nothing truly controversial about Good Old War. It would be tough to argue the negative sides of singable indie folk, after all. The Philadelphia-based trio makes pretty music. It’s accessible. They’re not looking to be the next hipster fad, but to have approachable melodies that…

Cults at Rhythm Room, 3/19/12 (VIDEO)

Cults Rhythm Room Monday, March 19, 2012 Better Than: Sweating buckets or inhaling copious amounts of secondhand smoke at previous Cults shows. Being “Internet famous” can come as a mixed blessing, but Cults has now played three sold out Arizona shows thanks to hype from the blogosphere. The band’s career…

10 Awesome Concert Posters at SXSW’s Flatstock 33

This poster by Nakatomi caused the kid behind me to say: “Dad, I want the giant squid poster. Now.” ​See also: The Worst Moments from SXSW 2012 By Nick Rallo Flatstock is a dangerous place to be with a credit card. This year, Flatstock 33 (presented by the American Poster…

Flogging Molly, The Ataris, and SXSW Over the Weekend

Flogging Molly at Tempe Beach Park Owwwww… St. Patrick’s Day is the one day a year where we confuse the warm fuzzies we have for our fellow man for outright hostility. It’s also the one day a year we get to punish our bodies for being Irish. At least that’s…

The Worst Moments from SXSW 2012

You were a little flat at the end of your performance of “Happy Birthday” there, Wolf ViolinistThe last few days, Village Voice Media’s indefatigable music staff has been regaling you with stories of the best from SXSW 2012. In the midst of these discoveries, we’ve been culling another list: the…

Flogging Molly at Tempe Beach Park 3/17/12

Flogging Molly Tempe Beach Park Saturday, March 17, 2012 Owwwww… St. Patrick’s Day is the one day a year where we confuse the warm fuzzies we have for our fellow man for outright hostility. It’s also the one day a year we get to punish our bodies for being Irish…

The Best of SXSW Music: Saturday 3/17/2012

Nick RalloJustin Townes Earle at Stubb’s BBQSo, we come to it: the end of all things. Four days of madness, Doritos, Skrillex and finally, St. Patrick’s Day. Before we bid SXSW 2012 farewell, allow us to share our favorite moments from SXSW day four. Later, we’ll let you know which…

The Ataris at Yucca Tap Room, 3/16/12

The Ataris Yucca Tap Room Friday, March 16, 2012 Kris Roe’s had a few near-death experiences in Arizona, but he now calls the state home. The rest of the band relocated to Tempe in July and played its first official “local” show last night. Roe has played a couple solo…

The Best of SXSW Music: Friday 3/16/2012

Marco Torres50 Cent and Eminem at the Austin Music Hall. More photos below.If you’re familiar with chaos theory, which in its basic form is the attempt to find patterns in the random acts of shit on Earth, then you may understand the difficulty that comes with describing a full day…

Caspa at School of Rock, 3/15/12

Caspa School of Rock Thursday, March 15, 2012 UK DJ Caspa likes to brag that he’s the “dopest ghost in town,” and while plenty of folks were across town checking out a couple of other pale, English gents, he proudly shredded speakers in downtown Tempe and lived up to his…

SXSW: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Rock ACL Live

Photos Courtesy of SXSW Editor’s note: We’re happy to bring you a special guest post by Houston Press/Rocks Off blogger Craig Hlavaty, who’s hanging tough at SXSW. Bruce Springsteen’s Thursday started with a keynote speech in one of the big ballrooms at the Austin Convention Center, and ended with a…

Radiohead at Jobing.com Arena, 3/15/12

RadioheadJobing.com ArenaThursday, March 15See the full Radiohead slideshow here.Last week I made it public knowledge that I’m not a Radiohead fan. Call me crazy, but the songs of the critically adored, legendary art rockers just don’t speak to me. The sounds are distant and obtuse, and what can I say?…

The Best of SXSW Music: Thursday 3/15/2012

Nick RalloOh nothing, just a guy in a wolf mask playing “Happy Birthday” on the violinIf you’re familiar with chaos theory, which in its basic form is the attempt to find patterns in the random acts of shit on Earth, then you may understand the difficulty that comes with describing…