When we last checked in with former Valley mainstays Lymbyc Systym in early 2007, siblings Mike and Jared Bell were getting ready to release their first full-length album, Love Your Abuser, on Mush Records. In the 21/2 years since, the duo has released a remix version of that same album,…
Blowing up a borrowed amp belonging to a guy who plays a Flying V and is known to wear face paint or cover himself in blood should be badge of honor for a local band. Blowing up an amp that belongs to notably loud garage-punk Jay Reatard? Shit, Earthmen and…
Bob Dylan can’t even get a decent drink in his wife’s backwater of a hometown. Perhaps that’s why he carries a gun during most of his new record, Together Through Life. He’s just an ordinary citizen, looking for someone to love, in “If You Ever Go to Houston” (a town…
When you’re tasked with writing about the Jonas Brothers, it can be hard to get enthused. All I could think to myself was, “Couldn’t it have been Miley Cyrus instead?” Then I could have written an epic road trip itinerary to take you out of Arizona and into the promised…
Covers albums, by their very nature, are a mixed bag. Not only are their songs usually drawn from disparate sources, but the quality of interpretations varies wildly as well. Beyond that, the covers album seems to represent a mixed bag for the artists creating them. On the one hand, it…
It seems every week, if not every day, I have a fantastic new show announcement for The Valley. This week’s edition brings us Lucero, a Valley favorite judging by the last time they packed the Rhythm Room. Their sixth album and major label debut, 1372 Overton Park, is due out…
A lot of Valley residents are ditching the desert as of late, and are heading up north to places like Portland or Seattle. On Tuesday, August 11, a little piece of the Emerald City will be storming through Phoenix to show us why…
William Fucking Reed is celebrating his 32nd fucking birthday at this Sunday’s Adult Swim, and ’90s dance music diva Lady Miss Kier will be in attendance offering many happy returns. The vivacious and glamtastic songstress, best know as the former front woman for Deee-Lite will provide a guest DJ set…
Spin: Radiohead Release New Song Spin: Eminem, Kanye, Lady Gaga, Beyonce Lead MTV VMA Noms So Much Silence: New Kidz in the Hall: Flickin’ Rolling Stone: Lollapalooza ’09: Day-By-Day Guide to the Acts You Can’t Miss Rolling Stone: Paula Abdul Announces She’s Leaving “American Idol” Rolling Stone: Heath Ledger’s Video…
Muse, everyone’s favorite British rock band to love/super-safe pick as favorite band, have recently released two new tracks from their upcoming album The Resistance to a great fervor. People fawned over “United States of Eurasia” when it was released a few weeks ago — some astute critics even noticed how much…
State Press: YACHT Not A Standout Idolator: “Weird Al” Yankovic Makes An Icky Thump In Honor Of Charles Nelson Reilly NME: Bruce Springsteen To Perform ‘Born To Run’ Album In Its Entirety NME: P Diddy Moshes His Way Through Arctic Monkeys’ Intimate New York Gig NME: Rihanna and Chris Brown…
Skinny Puppy fans, get ready to rock. Cevin Key, a founding member of the industrial rock band Skinny Puppy, will headline Scottsdale’s Mardi Gras Bar & Grill Saturday, Aug. 15 for a special DJ set packed with industrial jams. According to a flyer posted on the club’s Web site, Key…
If you were one of the countless Americans to shell out anywhere from eight to eleven bucks a pop (and contribute to its near $200 million gross) to see the film version of the Young Adult book sensation Twilight, there’s a great chance you heard English musician Bobby Long’s song “Let Me Sign” in…
Excited for supergroups? Disappointed that the Dead Weather’s album isn’t quite as good as you think it should be? Well let Monsters of Folk — Conor Oberst, Jim James (Yim Yames, whatever), M. Ward and Mike Mogis — ease your mind with their folky goodness. Sure, their name sounds like…
A few days ago, it sounded like the head of our esteemed contributor Michael Lopez was about to explode from all the huge concert announcements that were made this past week. “When will this madness end?” he asked. Apparently not anytime soon, M-Lo, as there’s been a slew of even…
Rolling Stone: Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor Explains Why He Left Twitter Rolling Stone: Eminem Issues “Warning” to Mariah Carey With New Dis Track Rolling Stone: All Points West’s Acts to Watch Pitchfork: The King Khan & BBQ Show Announce New Album in Typically Wacky Fashion Pitchfork: Big Boi Update:…
Spin:Listen: Scarlett Johansson Duets with Pete Yorn NME: Rejected Britney Spears Song Set for Har Mar Superstar Album NME: Ray Davies: ‘The Kray Twins Wanted to Manage The Kinks’ NME: Lily Allen and Liam Gallagher Cause Boozy Havoc on 11-Hour Flight NME: Charles Manson Asks Phil Spector to Collaborate in…
How many teenage girls would be willing to read their diaries aloud to a roomful of strangers? Okay, so Phoenix singer-songwriter Courtney Marie Andrews doesn’t literally read passages from her diary to audiences around the Valley. But the heartfelt — and occasionally uncomfortable — honesty in Andrews’ lyrics is something…
Florida emo/screamo-pop quintet Red Jumpsuit Apparatus may be one of the quietest success stories in recent years, having jumped from the pack of Warped Tour forgettables to platinum-selling stars — via 2006’s Don’t You Fake It and the recently released Lonely Road — without a ton of fanfare. Frontman and…
The first time I laid ears and eyes on Los Angeles quartet War Tapes, I thought to myself, “Now this is a band that’s going somewhere!” Ultra-chic and unabashedly dramatic, their debut disc, The Continental Divide, has all the ingredients for success: • A brooding, pathos-splashing baritone vocalist who croons…
Yes, folks, the hits just keep on coming. Indie rock shoegazers Titus Andronicus have announced a September 26 date at Modified Arts. Andronicus’ debut album The Airing of Grievances was lauded by the fine folks at Pitchfork as one of the 2008’s best. The New Jersey quartet have been enjoying…
Nathan Williams, the creative force behind Wavves, has been having an interesting last few months. There was the meltdown incident in Spain and the broken wrist. He released a new song, Mickey Mouse, a week ago and now he’s announced the icing on the cake : a tour stop in…
