Chris Chavez of Power 98.3 Passes Away Over the Weekend

The employees and fans of Valley radio station Power 98.3 are in mourning today as former hip-hop jock Chris Chavez died over the weekend. According to a source at the station, the 34-year-old midday host passed away in his sleep on Saturday night or early Sunday morning. Although an official…

Record Meat? by Brad Dwyer

Every Monday morning Up on the Sun features a new comic strip from punk rocker, cartoonist, and full-time dad Brad Dwyer. See the New Times print edition to check out the strip in glorious, inky newsprint each Thursday…

Top Phoenix Music Stories of the Week

The news waits for no one — at least that’s what we read somewhere — so it’s perfectly understandable that you, the reader, might have missed out on a musical tidbit, breaking news about your favorite venue, or one of our rants. So enjoy this digest-style sampling of some of…

Amy Donohue, What Are You Listening To?

Amy Donohue The stand-up comedian presents as part of Ignite Phoenix After Hours Friday, July 27 at Radius in Scottsdale. For more information, go here. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on the radio, what station would play right now? 101.1-FM. I love old school hip-hop!…

Lamb of God and Dethklok Cancel Tour

See also: We Spoke to Lamb of God’s Chris Adler Before the Band’s Future Was Up in the Air See also: Lamb of God Controversy: Tempe Metal Band TOAD Sounds Off The continued incarceration of Lamb of God frontman Randy Blythe in the Czech Republic in alleged connection with the…

The Perks of Being a Wallflowers Fan

See also: No Seriously, Chumbawamba Has a Storied Anarchist Past See also: Our Throwback Thursday Archives Ladies and gentlemen, may I present The Wallflowers: The Only Band That Matters. Just kidding, but the Clash vibes from the band’s new tune, “Reboot the Mission,” are clearly intentional. It’s a tribute, featuring…

Does Baroness’ Yellow and Green Sound Like Nickelback?

Hell hath no fury like metal fans “scorned.” On July, 17, Savannah, Georgia, Baroness released its anticipated double record, Yellow and Green. Embraced by the kind of people who often ignore metal and backhandedly complimented as a “thinking man’s metal band,” Baroness’ string of recordings — First, Second, A Grey…

oOoOO Makes Terrifically Scary Pop

Goth-pop pixie oOoOO is a terrific soundtrack for when a club night in Ibiza gets rained out by hellfire. Both 2010’s oOoOO EP and this year’s Our Love Is Hurting Us are dance music for social misfits. They’re dusky, palely moonlit fantasias enlivened by synths that churn like Bernard Herr­mann…

Jazz Progeny Ravi Coltrane Does His Own Thing

Despite the famous last name — and the fact that he plays the same instrument as his father — Ravi Coltrane, son of jazz icons John (sax) and Alice (piano), doesn’t pretend to be anything more than just a saxophonist. He could claim rights of royalty or expect open doors,…

Spotify Ruffles Feathers, Promises Paradigm Shift

“Spotify? I’m not a fan,” says Maynard James Keenan from his home in Cornville, where he balances his winemaking and numerous musical projects. “I haven’t made enough from them for a cup of coffee. Rhapsody? Same sad story.” That’s the complaint circulating among musicians as industry buzz builds around the…

Elvis Is in the Building (The MIM Building, That Is)

See also: Elvis Presley Week Kicks Off at The MIM Elvis hasn’t left the building since last summer, when he took up permanent residency in the renovated Artist Gallery at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix. But that doesn’t mean the MIM can’t shake things up a bit. To commemorate…

Vintage Arizona Crooner Connie Conway Makes Mad Men

See also: Remembering Kirby Allan – The Man Behind the Mystique Arizona’s rich music history is often forgotten, but luckily local label Fervor Records is doing its part to preserve some of that legacy with their dynamic catalog of vintage recordings. Coupled with pop culture’s continued love affair with period…

Take Cover: Avery Covers Damien Jurado

See also: The Rolling Blackouts Cover Kongos The cello is a tremendously under used instrument, but perhaps that’s a good thing. In most cases, the scarcity of the instrument makes a band’s sound that much more interesting. This is the case for Avery, whose unique sound derives from a cello,…

Record Heat: The Wanking Dead by Brad Dwyer

Every Monday morning Up on the Sun features a new comic strip from punk rocker, cartoonist, and full-time dad Brad Dwyer. See the New Times print edition to check out the strip in glorious, inky newsprint each Thursday. In this week’s Record Heat, Brad and Shannon take on the approaching…

Top Phoenix Music Stories of the Week

The news waits for no one — at least that’s what we read somewhere — so it’s perfectly understandable that you, the reader, might have missed out on a musical tidbit, breaking news about your favorite venue, or one of our rants. So enjoy this digest-style sampling of some of…

Take Cover: The Rolling Blackouts Cover Kongos

See also: Kongos are Huge in South Africa. Is Phoenix Next? See also: The Serene Dominic Show: Kongos Tear it Up Are you stoked for Kongos’ album release party tonight? Well, you should be. The band’s latest album, Lunatic is doing quite well in South Africa. Banana Gun, Iamwe, and…

George Michael: Better Today Than Yesterday?

Where we’re going, we don’t need roads; just a synthesizer, eyeliner, and a touch of androgyny. Welcome to Flashback Friday. So this totally missed my radar last year … or maybe it didn’t and I just plum forgot. But apparently George Michael almost died late last year…