Black Friday. One of those days when people like me hole up for one more day of food-coma bliss, fearing the heightened level of commercialism that turns consumers into zombified shopping maniacs, out for blood over $30 plasma televisions. But the upside to Black Friday is when the words Record…
It’s been a little over a year since Tempe-based pop-rockers The Maine released Black and White, the band’s major label debut. And while the paint still seems wet from that album’s promotional blitz (view “the Maine Wall” on Roosevelt downtown on Tumblr), the group is already gearing up for a…
“Beam me up, Scotty.” “There’s…somethingonthewing. Some…thing!” “Rock-it-man.” Get your best/worst Shatner impression ready, because Phoenix Comicon announced today that none other than Captain James T. Kirk himself, William Shatner, will be the esteemed guest at the convention on Saturday, May 26, 2012. Fellow nerd Benjamin Leatherman alerted me to the…
Opera might not be your thing, but Il Divo could very well change that. These guys have got some major pipes, and crossover ever-so-slightly into the pop music realm.Il Divo, Rammstein, Yip Deceiver and other artists plan to deliver some bangin’ shows in the coming months.The rest of this week’s…
Anyone who’s ever picked up a guitar and tried to play along with another human knows that that process if a whole lot of “miss” and the occasional “hit.” In this week’s exciting installment of Record Heat, Brad Dwyer examines the difference between rock ‘n’ roll fantasies and rock ‘n’…
David HilkerHilker is the CEO of Fervor Records. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on the radio, what station would play right now? KWSS, of course. What’s the first album you bought? Miles Davis, Bitches Brew. What’s the first concert you saw? I’m dating myself here, but it…
Road-worn, exhausted, wiped out. There’s no way of getting around it: Devin Fleenor, frontman of Phoenix-bred glitch-rock band Mr. Meeble, looks like shit. To be fair, there shouldn’t be anything glamorous about someone who, less than 48 hours ago, hopped off a plane from Europe, where his band has been…
First: A Scene from a Movie Setting: a bowling alley. WALTER SOBCHAK, a volatile Vietnam vet finally reaches his breaking point. (Well, one of many, many breaking points.) He pulls a gun on a competitor who’s quibbling over sporting minutiae. Technically, Walter’s correct in his claims, but he’s overreacted. Later,…
Off all the fabled “new Dylans” of the early ’70s, none has been as transparent, prolific, and open as Loudon Wainwright III. 40 Odd Years, a box set released this year and produced by Knocked Up and Funny People auteur Judd Apatow, covers 1969 through 2010, from Wainwright’s first songs,…
If it all pans out the way Tourbait hopes, the traditional concert with a standardized, band-written set list could be a thing of the past. The new website basically works as a mediator between the band and fans. Say a mid-sized band like Dawes is coming to town and you…
Touring Europe sounds like a blast right? Well, sure, but it’s a lot of work. Phoenix-based glitch rockers Mr. Meeble did it, booking the entire tour without the help of a tour manager or press people. In this week’s issue, Nicole Smith brings us the tale straight from the mouth…
This week, New Times ran a list in our print publication highlighting some of the most interesting posts published at Up On The Sun over the past week. Here are links to those posts. What does alt-comedian Tim Heidecker have to say about his Herman Cain-inspired album? Who’s sporting our…
We reported back in August that downtown wax-shack Revolver Records would be launching a vinyl imprint, Ammit Records, with a single from Eddy Detroit, set for release in October.Well, it’s…um…November? Holy crap. Where has the time gone? And more importantly, where the hell is that Eddy single? Delays are pretty…
Local electro pop band Peachcake may be just one of the most social media savvy bands in the Phoenix area. The group crafted a cool Facebook “Like” drive, where you can enter to win a customized iPod simply for “Liking” their Facebook page. Existing fans of the page can enter,…
In college, everything is better if it’s free. And no matter how many times Mastercard convinces you that the slice of pizza and Frisbee offered at their just-off-campus booth are free, they’re not. …
As we barrel toward the impending Arizona Centennial, we find ourselves contemplating a lot of things. Why would someone settle in this hot-as-bejeebus desert? Who serves the best burrito in the state? Most importantly — where are the faces in the Grand Canyon? The Presidents? We’ve been thinking a lot…
This past Saturday Michael J.Fox, who suffers from Parkinson’s Disease, held his annual charity benefit, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Cure Parkinson’s. While at the New York fundraiser, Fox busted out a guitar and reenacted the popular scene from 1985’s Back To The Future where Marty McFly…
Garret Dutton and his band, more commonly known as G. Love & Special Sauce, are coming back for more love from their fans in the Valley.The Philly group will be bringing their alternative blues jams to Martini Ranch in support of their latest album, Fixin’ To Die.G. Love & Special…
Well, it looks like Bryan finally got a taste of Facebook’s Lightningrod. Bryan Lightningrod, the 37-year-old ASU student, who claims to be a 97-year-old vampire from Cairo, has experienced plenty of backlash from his solicitation of photos of young girls, many of whom choose to write his name on their…
Last week Jason Woodbury and DJ Dana chatted about Courtney Marie Andrews’ latest single “Bumper in the Hail” for Up on the Sun’s weekly episode of Sound Off. Our experts marveled at the singer’s voice as they discussed the lead single off of her upcoming album, No One’s Slate Is…
There’s seriously nothing I enjoy more than an hour or two killed in a good record store, but you know, this new-fangled interwebs-thing is pretty good for finding music, too. A couple weeks ago I read something interesting about a power pop artist named Carl Rusk (of The Nashville Ramblers,…
The Tumblr made by The Whisperlights, who we recently touched upon in a post about Drinkify, is worthy of a mention. The Whisperlights are a great local group (well — locally formed — the members of the band are currently spread pretty far out) that has a self-described “dreamy folky…
