The Fresh & Onlys: Play It Strange

Artist: The Fresh & OnlysTitle: Play It StrangeRelease date: October 12Label: In the RedAnd just like that, I find myself a little bored by the sound plied and, possibly, perfected by San Francisco’s The Fresh & Onlys. It’s the sound that has passed for garage rock for over a half-decade…

The Decemberists – Down By The Water

Song: The Decemberists, “Down By The Water” Context: The Decemberists announced tour dates for early 2011 today. Sadly, Phoenix will once again be Decemb-less as the band’s closest show is in San Diego on February 13. Book your flight to California aboard a steam-powered zeppelin now. This is the first…

New Girl Talk Album All Day Available for Free Download

Seemingly out of nowhere, Gregg Gillis has made his fourth Girl Talk album, All Day, freely available via illegal-art.net.Do you like Jay-Z rapping over General Public’s “Tenderness?” How about Dorrough’s “Ice Cream Paint Job” over some Brothers Johnson? Girl Talk gotchu, son! Gillis is masterful in outdoing himself album after album, and…

Nothing Not New: Podcast #10

Oh, how we’ve missed podcasting to the music fans of the Valley. Well, music editor Martin Cizmar and I are back with a new one, with nine new-ish songs and lotsa banter about music, including the artistic achievements of Sufjan Stevens, a great new song by local band Gospel Claws,…

Jessica Lea Mayfield – Our Hearts Are Wrong

Song: Jessica Lea Mayfield, “Our Hearts Are Wrong” Context: Jessica Lea Mayfield’s now album is due in February, produced by The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach and out on Nonesuch. This first single is pretty damn good. Jessica Lea Mayfield – Our Hearts Are Wrong…

New Gorillaz Album Recorded on an iPad… Yes, Really

In between dates on an extensive international tour, Damon Albarn has been recording a new Gorillaz album on his iPad, according to NME.Albarn said he hopes he has “made a completely different kind of record.” In an effort to be the first to release an iPad-made album, he hopes to…

Taylor Swift to Headline Country Thunder 2011 in Arizona?

Taylor Swift may be headlining the 2011 version of the Country Thunder music festival in Arizona.The event’s organizers sent out a press releases today announcing the dates for the annual hootenanny: April 7-10, in Florence where the festival has been staged at Canyon Moon Ranch since outgrowing Schnepf Farms in…

Weezer – Tragic Girl

Song: Weezer, “Tragic Girl”Context: This is the last song on the excellent and informative two-disc re-issue of Pinkerton which came out last week. Weezer – Tragic Girl (Pinkerton Reissue) by mmcizmar…

Glastonbury Going Green… But Who’s Playing?

Worthy Farm, home to the Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts in the UK, now boasts what festival organizer Michael Eavis calls “the best solar power system in the country,” according to NME.The cluster of 1,116 solar panels that is fixed on top of the cowshed at Worthy Farm is…

The Future According to Gwar

Over the past 25 years, Gwar has become the most successful extraterrestrial music act of all time, selling more than 30 million albums worldwide. Although attempts at carbon dating have been inconclusive, the members of Gwar are believed to be more than 1 million years old, making them the second-oldest…

The Aggrolites – Free Time

Song: The Aggrolites, Free TimeContext: You’ve got your choice of American reggae bands this week with both The Aggrolites and Pepper coming to town. Both have shows on Friday — choose wisely. The Aggrolites – Free Time by KROQ…

From Print: Blogs Teased in Our 11/11 Issue

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.Is AZ Country Music USA’s four-month tenure the shortest ever by a Phoenix-area club?How was A Perfect…

OK Go FTW With Toasty New Viral Video

OK Go is back with a brand new soon-to-be-viral video, according to SPIN.The video for the new song, entitled “Last Leaf,” shows that the band has gone in a new direction with their visuals. Rather than another video that showcases the Rube Goldberg Machine (which was shot 89 times), a…