Some of my friends think I’m a music elitist. Totally untrue. After 25 years in record stores, and a lifetime of being a music junkie, I know more about music than the average bear. I cannot deny that. But an elitist? No way. I’m not even a decent critic. I…
Why should Phoenicians care about a festival that’s happening nearly 400 miles away, in rival territory no less? Some of you diehard sports fans are probably groaning that we’re featuring a music festival in the hometown of the dreaded Lakers, Kings, and Bruins. The short answer is My Bloody Valentine,…
Wildly psychedelic, stylishly dressed, always uplifting in spirit (so much that some considered them just another wayward Texas cult), The Polyphonic Spree has kept a relatively low profile lately. The band has been holed up in leader Tim DeLaughter’s home studio jamming the night away — but the pop-psych veterans…
In December 2012, Dagwood Reed was singing, playing keyboards, and writing songs for his sci-fi-inspired local band, Se7en of Nin9. His romantic partner of nearly 20 years had passed away a year earlier from Addison’s disease, but the self-proclaimed most positive person he knows stayed in high spirits. He loved…
NSYNC reunion talk has dominated music news this week, because everybody in America really, really misses the ’90s, and despite a non-denial from Lance Bass it seems like there’s still a good chance it actually happens, even if nobody at the VMAs was planning on it originally. (How could they…
This summer, I took a trip of epic proportions, leaving the hot, sweltering desert for the cool, mosquito-filled vastness of Alaska and points north. I saw amazing sights — bears, whales, glaciers, rain forests, and rivers two miles wide — before school forced my return to this urban existence. All…
Well, this is a surprise: Lil Wayne, just three years removed from a career-making feature in Weezer’s “Can’t Stop Partying,” is playing Phoenix on September 2, just over two weeks from now. Tickets–$50 each, all proceeds benefiting the conveniently named Carter Fund–go on sale tomorrow morning at the Celebrity Theatre’s…
My mom warned me about rock ‘n’ roll. She said it was a bad influence and a crazy lifestyle. Overflowing with sex, drugs, partying, and lots of other things God didn’t dig. She said stay away at all costs. So I made a career out of it. No, really. Not…
I went to see some of my favorite local bands at Tempe’s most notoriously seedy dive bar, the Palo Verde. If you haven’t had the privilege of checking it out, you can find it located in the scenic industrial district of Tempe. Nestled between a milk-processing factory and an array…
As a kid, Christopher George Manak’s ambitions for adulthood didn’t involve growing up to be rich or famous. Instead, he wanted to be an inventor, like Thomas Edison. “My dream is always to discover things,” says the man who also goes by Peanut Butter Wolf. “I wanted to do something…
It’s hard to figure out exactly what to make of modern country’s flirtations with genres outside Nashville’s rustic confines. Taylor Swift’s Red incorporated an (ever-so-slight) dubstep wobble into her pop-country frame. The Zac Brown Band is covering Metallica in concert. Former Hootie and the Blowfish frontman Darius Rucker gets as…
Charles Bradley, his voice dripping with raw emotion, sings as though his life depends on it. It’s a voice that, in essence, gave Bradley a new start in life at 61, when his debut album, No Time for Dreaming, at long last found its way into the world, via Daptone…
Last week, we spoke to FLAG’s Keith Morris about Greg Ginn’s Black Flag lawsuit. Black Flag released another new song Tuesday, “Wallow in Despair,” which sounds a bit better than the band’s other new material. Ultimately, we’re just thankful that it doesn’t feature five minutes of Ginn playing the theremin…
In today’s completely random lineup news, Less Than Jake and Anti-Flag are coming to Mesa’s Nile Theater on Tuesday, December 3, as part of the 2013 Fat Tour. These groups aren’t the most representative members of the Fat Wreck Chords roster, since Anti-Flag’s last Fat release was 2003’s The Terror…
Normally I don’t go out of my way to listen to music the moment it’s released, but I devour on-trend, manufactured pop like a snake devouring its prey. I digest over a period of days, listening to it over and over, and then something snaps inside me and the song…
As a general rule, I don’t like to be lectured by Lady Gaga. This is not to say that I haven’t earned a lecture, since she’s a rich and famous superstar who’s touched millions of kids who feel sad and alone and I’m a guy who listens to episodes of…
Earlier this week, Black Flag cofounder Greg Ginn filed suit against Henry Rollins and the members of FLAG for using the Black Flag trademark. It’s a sticky situation to say the least–you can sift through all the legalese on Punknews. I interviewed FLAG’s singer and fellow Black Flag alum Keith…
A few weeks ago, I wrote that there is no such thing as background music in my world. I’m constantly aware of what’s playing, for better or worse. When I posted the column on my Facebook page, I had two different people refer to the comment specifically. Knowing both of…
You’d never know Fayuca’s video for “Por Que Seguir” wasn’t produced on a big-budget national scale. The local Latin rock band’s clip, featuring dozens of extras and a perfectly rendered digital urban factory setting, is so impressive, it’s currently competing for a spot for heavy rotation on MTVu, in its…
The first time I visited Mesa-based Heavy Metal Television (www.heavymetaltelevision.com), this past spring, I was sure there had to be a catch. The more I watched, the more sure I was. It was too simple: A local website was serving a metal cocktail with current technology and a television format…
Forget Japan: Jann Klose is big in Indonesia. The songwriter and guitarist is something of a cult figure there, and he’s still not sure exactly how it happened. “It’s a really weird thing,” he says with a laugh while on the road in New Jersey. “People are still posting this…
The Monkees have survived so many backlashes and revivals that Micky Dolenz can answer most of your questions before you even consider asking them. Just say “TV show” or “actors” or “instruments,” by way of priming the pump, and he’ll generate an interview that touches on every important piece of…
