New Zealand Prog-Metal Molten-Core Rockers Hit the Valley

One of the best, and worst, things about living in Phoenix is that we’re a pitstop on the way to and from loads of other more exciting places.Yes, we’re strategically located six hours from LA, four hours from Coachella, and a long day’s drive to Austin’s South By Southwest. While…

Attention, Phoenix: Your SxSW-Related Shows Suck. Love, Tucson

Dear residents of the Phoenix metropolitan area,I hope you enjoyed Cizmarch Madness, Rampage Fest, or the two-hour series premiere of Minute To Win It this weekend.While I’m sure those of you who made it out to one of the “Let’s catch the bands heading to SxSW” shows had a fun…

Tim Barry at Yucca Tap Room: ‘College Is For Suckers’

I’ve always thought that folk and punk had way more in common that people gave them both credit for having.They’re both strongly focused on community and social justice. They’re both working class movements. And while they both achieved mainstream success at some level, the seeds of each movements are to…

Conan O’Brien Makes Phoenix Date Official, Announces Full Tour

Conan O’Brien has announced via his twitter account (@ConanOBrien) that he will tour North America this spring.O’Brien’s “Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour” will span 30 dates will kick off April 12 in Eugene, Oregon and will come through Phoenix on April 30. Much speculation had been made whether…

David Bazan at The Sail Inn

David Bazan was worried he’d be marginalized. At least that’s what he told me over the phone a few weeks ago, discussing public reaction to his latest album, Curse Your Branches”Honestly, what I actually thought was that the record was going to be so marginal, because anyone who cares so…

Red Bull 3Style DJ Battle Goes Down Tonight In Scottsdale

Jimmy Martin-Nelson (a.k.a. Death to the Throne) is a little hesitant discussing the success he’s experienced in recent years as a DJ. No less a source than the Web sites of Rolling Stone and Vibe have heaped praise upon the funky Phoenician for his remixes of songs by such heavyweights…

Incoming: Iron Maiden, Caribou, Brooks & Dunn, Sage Francis, Eluvium

[jump] Shows announced in the past week:Iron Maiden: With Dream Theater, Thursday June 17, 7:30 p.m. Cricket Wireless Pavilion, 2121 North 83rd Avenue Phoenix, (602) 254-7200. Caribou: Tuesday, May 18, 7 p.m. Clubhouse Music Venue, 1320 E. Broadway Rd., Tempe, 480-968-3238. Sage Francis: Thursday, June 10, 7 p.m. Clubhouse Music Venue, 1320…

Rocky Votolato at Rhythm Room (Happy Birthday, Rocky!)

Rocky Votolato had a lot to celebrate last night at the Rhythm Room. To start with, the Seattle singer-songwriter just recently released his sixth album, True Devotion. Votolato’s latest record continues the folksy roots sound that his fans have become accustomed to. In addition to his latest album release, another…

Kirkwood Dellinger at Yucca Tap Room

It’d been almost two years since Kirkwood Dellinger released a record, an 8-song EP called Miniature Stallion. The title of that record is a reference to a man whose unfortunate demise came about as a result a colon punctured while having anal sex with a horse. A great title, to…

Love Me Nots at Desert Botanical Garden

​Dressed in mod 60s garb — men in black suits with skinny pants and ties, women in leggings and polka-dot dresses — equipped with classic-looking instruments and metal vintage microphones, The Love Me Nots look like extras from a spy movie. At first glance, they look like a benign lounge…

Mike Watt + The Missingmen Give a Punk Rock History Lesson

The answer to your question: Yes, Mike Watt and his new band, The Missingmen, reached back nearly 30 years to pull out of the musical vault a play a handful of songs by Minutemen, the band that secured Watt’s legend as one of the best bass players in punk rock…