What do a couple of DJs from the land of milk and honey know about darkness? Quite a bit, it would appear from She Wants Revenge’s self-titled debut, which bubbles with the same debauched, white makeup/black lipstick vibe and downcast synth as British darkwave progenitors Joy Division, Bauhaus, and The…
Fans of West Coast “true school” underground hip-hop will have loads to throw their hands in the air about during this weekend’s Gold Chain Music Tour stop at the Clubhouse Music Venue. Oakland legend Casual headlines; he’s best known for his affiliation with the famed Hieroglyphics collective (which also counts…
March 5 will find most of the world gearing up for the 78th Academy Awards, but here in Phoenix, everyone with more than one use for a safety pin will still be coming down from the AZ Ska Punk festivities the night before. These two gala events would appear to…
As you might glean from the title of the second collaboration between Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and Glenn Kotche, and composer/engineer/all-around post-rock icon Jim O’Rourke, religion figures heavily in Loose Fur’s (or is that Lucifer’s?) curious, frequently skewed, mostly engaging songwriting this outing; while Pat Robertson likely will disagree, the trio’s…
Rock ‘n’ roll flicks that aspire to quality are usually a waste of time. The ones sincerely committed to being dumb, however, can be treasure troves of useful bad taste. I Was a Teenage Mummy (released in ’92, but stuck in ’65), for example, is brimming with quotably stupid soliloquies…
Compared to his pioneering work as a producer, drummer and bandleader, ?uestlove’s DJ career seems modest and unassuming. Live, he usually plays to the people in the crowd (whether they’re VIP glitterati at a posh nightclub or hundreds of enthusiasts at a hole-in-the-wall rock bar), mostly avoids too-rare grooves and…
If the theme of 2006’s party is art damage, then Test Icicles — originally called Balls, in case you’ve missed the sketchy word play — provide the soundtrack. But party rock was once about partying, while this might not be about anything. To wit, the Icicles’ declaration “Yeah yeah, bitches…
Seattle sextet The Lashes is the latest contender in a bewildering blitz of earnest-sounding, stylishly dressed haircut bands. Its debut album, Get It, is expert corporate power-pop, hitting all the notes The Killers, My Chemical Romance, and others have already struck. On “New Best Friend,” lead vocalist Ben Clark sings,…
In 1991, Chico Science began mixing the local percussive styles of Pernambuco, Brazil, with searing electronic rhythms. Until his early death in ’97, he led Nação Zumbi and heralded the Mangue Beat movement. The band has since pushed on, still considered the unquestionable champion of North Brazil rock/electronica, and Futura…
This Is an Exercise provides more evidence that one’s playmates don’t necessarily determine one’s own character. Anna “Oxygen” Huff’s many guest spots on twee efforts from the likes of The Blow, The Microphones, and Mirah don’t prepare you for the dancey This Is an Exercise, which is more bionic I…
There’s something to be said for scarcity, the way something becomes more special as it becomes more unattainable. That’s how it is with elusive Valley duo Reubens Accomplice, who manage to play out about as often as it rains here — if even. Last time the band graced a local…
Known primarily for his role as bassist in Bla Fleck’s Grammy-winning New Grass Revival band the Flecktones, Victor Wooten is a phenomenal composer and bandleader in his own right. Widely respected by fellow musicians and acclaimed by the bass cognoscenti (he’s the only three-time winner of Bass Player magazine’s Bass…
Buddy Guy got his start in Baton Rouge during the ’50s before heading to Chicago, where he recorded with heavyweights such as Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and Willie Dixon. Despite his fiery onstage guitar pyrotechnics, distinctive vocals, and the unparalleled respect of guitar gods such as Stevie Ray Vaughan and…
Although British DJ extraordinaire Paul Newman (a.k.a. Tall Paul) shares the same name with the famous film actor, the world-renowned turntablist won’t be starring in any Oscar-winning films about pool hustlers or creating his own brand of gourmet salad dressings any time soon. Instead, the six-foot-seven DJ is more likely…
Anar Badalov, one-half of the lo-fi duo Metal Hearts, could really benefit from some self-esteem seminars. Granted, Metal Hearts’ musical style (quiet guitars and haunting harmonies layered over subtle, programmed drum beats, à la Mazzy Star on a booze bender) begs for melancholy musings, but Badalov takes a lyrical turn…
Before 2005, the only memorable thing Las Vegas had to offer rock ‘n’ roll was a kick-ass Elvis movie with Ann-Margret in it. Then along came The Killers with their painted peepers and Duran Duran pinches, and now following close behind in public consciousness is Panic! at the Disco (these…
Dear Ladies, Valentine’s Day may be past, but don’t worry, your number-one loverman has a special night of romance in store when I slide into town. First, I’m gonna set the mood right so you won’t even remember you’re in a club surrounded by hundreds of other screaming women –…
“First of all, fuck Bush, that’s the all, that’s the end of it.” With the first line of his latest CD, Audition, Minnesota’s P.O.S. wastes no time arming his verbal brass knuckles, and everything he brings to the hip-hop game on this impressive LP is what both mainstream and backpacking…
Few people dispute that Wu-Tang Clan is the supergroup of the hip-hop world. The eight remaining members of the group — RZA, GZA/Genius, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Raekwon, U-God, Ghostface, and Masta Killa — have all enjoyed some amount of individual success or notoriety, and it seems like everyone’s curious…
On a typical weekend night, it’s not at all unusual to see dozens of people socializing on the sidewalk in front of Modified Arts, or smoking in the parking lot at The Trunk Space — spots on Roosevelt Street and Grand Avenue that, not so long ago, were vacant. What…
Within 30 seconds of popping in Greenhaven’s new disc The Last Powerful Second, listeners will be ready to slam shots at a bar with several hairy, gregarious men making dirty jokes — and those guys may actually be the members of Greenhaven. Much like their key influence, stoner metal kings…
Be careful where you listen to the new self-released xrayok EP Like Life — you’re likely to find your pulse quicken and your body move without permission to the throbbing, ’80s-informed dance-rock sound. With atmospheric vocals and haunting keyboard lines, xrayok mixes enough New Wave appeal to tempt you to…
