Club Candids: Faux Show Summer Pre Party at Brick

Soulwax’s Steve Slingeneyer, better known for his One Man Party moniker, headlined an evening full of electronica during Faux Show’s Summer Pre Party at Brick. Steve wasn’t the only one partying, the bar and patio were full of patrons dancing and socializing all night. Check out this weeks Club Candids…

WU LYF: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain

I came across the band’s debut album, Go Tell Fire to the Mountain, this past Friday, entering into it with mixed emotions, fueled by not knowing what the hell was about to come over the speakers. After all, WU LYF stands for “World United/Lucifer Youth Foundation” and the band often…

Matt and Kim @ Marquee Theatre

If Matt and Kim had never made it as a musical duo, they probably could’ve found success as therapists. The indie-punk band is sickeningly sweet and happy, putting just as much emphasis on their perma-smiles and interaction with fans as on the music they play. Matt and Kim dance on…

“Weird Al” Yankovic @ Wild Horse Pass Casino

It might be easy for some people to dismiss “Weird Al” Yankovic as an ’80s relic/Dr. Demento rip-off — if it weren’t for the fact that since he started his comedic music career in 1976, he’s sold more than 12 million albums and performed more than a thousand live shows…

Cake @ Mesa Amphitheatre

You know how powerful Cake is? When you Google the word “cake,” the band’s website is the first search result. That’s serious stuff, a band being able to muscle its way to the top, beating out all the love actual cake earns on the Internet. What’s even more impressive is…

Meat Puppets @ The Clubhouse Music Venue

The Meat Puppets are rightly considered legends by just about everyone in Arizona. The band’s records for SST are generally regarded as classics, unique keepsakes from a time when the band’s blend of psychedelic rock, dusty country, and punk rock was inspiring guys like Kurt Cobain, who famously covered a…

Faux Show Summer Pre-Party @ Brick

It isn’t fair to call Mercurius FM a “retro artist,” but there is a definite “old school” tone to his work. His 2007 remix of Marvin Gaye’s “Sexual Healing” augmented the sexy vibe of the original song with squiggly synths and brisk tempos, and established a steady stream of hype…

Flier of the Week: S.L.F.M.

S.L.F.M.’s upcoming show at the Trunk Space quickly caught my eye. There’s no bad day that a bold top hat and a variety of mustaches can’t fix.S.L.F.M. has been described as “one-woman distorted ukulele blues” from Salt Lake City, Utah.Also performing that night will be Relatives, a harmony trio from…

Club Candids: Toxic Mondays at Zuma

As far as nightlife is concerned, Mondays are among the slowest nights of the week. Sure, most clubs won’t have a line and the bartenders are a bit more attentive, but it can be a little boring to see the same small group at your neighborhood watering hole. Fortunately, this…

The New York Dolls, Dancing Backward in High Heels

The New York Dolls’ new album, Dancing Backward in High Heels, comes out today, June 7. As one of the most influential acts in the punk and glam rock genres, the New York Dolls’ body of work mostly consists of gritty garage rock and glam punk songs — you know,…

Junior Boys: It’s All True

However, may I direct your attention towards Canadian electronic pop duo Junior Boys? Their latest album, It’s All True, is set to be released next Tuesday. A solid follow-up to 2009’s rather excellent Begone Dull Care, It’s All True finds Junior Boys producing yet more electronic pop-driven music, complete with…

Old 97’s @ Martini Ranch

Old 97’s should have hit it big in the late ’90s, when fellow alt-country bands like Whiskeytown were riding the No Depression wave to success. Over the course of their 18-year career, Old 97’s (named after a Johnny Cash cover) have toured consistently with the original lineup. And although they…

Kansas @ Celebrity Theatre

Kansas’ 1977 hit “Dust in the Wind” is a pretty serious song. Penned by guitarist Kerry Livgren, it’s straight out of the book of Ecclesiastes, a mournful, solemn existential statement that nothing lasts, no one lives forever, and at the end of the day, we aren’t much more than dirt…

Aceyalone @ Club Red

Over the years, Aceyalone (pronounced Ace-ee-alone) has released enough smart, meandering rhymes that his collection could have driven even the most dedicated hip-hop heads to boredom — maybe even himself, if his last two albums are any indication. After a sensible collaboration with RJD2 on the critically acclaimed Magnificent City…

CH3 @ Rips Ales & Cocktails

The official blog of old-school OC punk rockers CH3 might not be the first place you’d think to go to in search of a review of Glee. But don’t miss out; it’s well worth a read. Over the course of more than 1,200 words, a CH3 member band articulates a…

Delinquency @ Yucca Tap Room

You won’t catch Tim Neilson (a.k.a. Johnny Volume) loading up the latest remixes by The Twelves or fiddling with Serrato Scratch Live on a Macbook when performing during Delinquency. Nope, the 36-year-old keeps thing far more lo-fi during the biweekly punk night at Yucca Tap Room, 29 West Southern Avenue…

Club Candids: Memorial Day Mayhem at Pussycat Lounge

When the dreaded hour of 2 a.m. approaches at most Scottsdale joints, clubgoers start sucking down the last few gulps of their drinks and start shuffling towards the door. At Pussycat Lounge, however, that’s when the action really seems to get going. Maybe it’s because there’s only a few scant…

Givers: In Light

In anticipation of their debut album, In Light, being released next Tuesday, NPR Music has deemed Givers worthy of their Exclusive First Listen label, offering up a full album stream of their much-anticipated debut. Oh, did I mention Givers are playing Phoenix this Saturday?…

Flier of the Week: Mother Mother

Mother Mother will be sharing the stage at the Rogue Bar with the lovely local talents Super Stereo, Prague, and Sun Ghost.Here’s the full scoop: doors open for the 21-and-up gig at 8 p.m. on Friday, June 10. Tickets are $8 in advance and $10 at the door.Until the show begins,…

Flogging Molly’s The Speed of Darkness Comes Out Today

Irish-American Celtic punk band Flogging Molly release their fifth full-length studio album, The Speed of Darkness, today. Like Flogging Molly’s previous records, the new one’s full of furious fiddles laid over backdrops of supercharged punk guitar riffs and fast-paced beats. Unlike the band’s previous albums, all the songs on Speed…