Record Heat: Comicon Blues by Brad Dwyer

See also: Vixens and Sexy Super-heroine Nerdettes of Phoenix Comicon 2012 Once a year, the nerds unite and take over. Phoenix Comicon can be exhausting (there are only so many back issues and vintage clamshells you can look over), but it’s worth the effort for the people-watching alone. Wonder if…

Club Candids: You Write the Caption

It’s that time of the month: the time when we sift through all the party photos we’ve taken in the past few weeks to create our favorite party photos of the month slideshow. To change it up we thought we’d give you, our loyal readers, a chance to put on…

Gardner Cole, What Are You Listening To?

Gardner Cole Cole, who has written and produced for artists such as Madonna, is the producer for local country pop band Arrowheart, who are schedueld to perform Sunday, May 27 at Hidden Meadow Ranch. For more information, head here. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on…

Flashback Friday: Factories Talk the ’80s

Where we’re going, we don’t need roads; just a synthesizer, eyeliner, and a touch of androgyny. Welcome to Flashback Friday. In case you missed it, Google commemorated the 78th birthday of electronic music pioneer, Bob Moog, with a wicked-cool doodle earlier this week. Moog left his mark on the world…

Throwback Thursday: TLC

Tupac’s hologram appearance at Coachella sparked all sorts of buzz, from the Hologram Tupac Twitter to the exclusive all-hologram Coachella lineup. And, sure, it would be pretty rad to see Michael Jackson, Nirvana, Buddy Holly, The Beatles, and Bob Marley & the Wailers on the same bill, but Goldenvoice would…

Download: Dead Eyes of London’s Strutting “You’re My Queen”

See also: Dead Eyes of London Aim For Loose Grooves In this week’s issue of New Times, Lauren Wise speaks with modern-rockers-turned-retro-garage-soul fetishists Dead Eyes of London. “[Our music is for] the fan that has listened to punk rock and matured,” guitarist Chan Vallarino says. “[It’s] heavy and darkly romantic…

From Print: Blogs Teased in Our May 24 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. What are deceased Bee Gee Robin Gibb’s best songs? How does Ian Astbury of The Cult…

Dead Eyes of London Aim for Loose Grooves

The music of Phoenix-based rock ‘n’ roll outfit Dead Eyes of London is the sound of a reboot. It’s a terse re-imagining of the beats of vintage Motown, the slinkiness of jazz, the sweat-caked T-shirts of garage rockers, and spilled cocktails. But it’s not retro-minded and stuck in the past,…

Ladylike Approaches ’70s Pop With Sharpened Tools

Free online music service Spotify has plenty of fans (and nearly as many vocal detractors) but let’s stick to the facts. According to the music library, Ladylike is a “rock-oriented version of The Pussycat Dolls,” a “contemporary girl group comprised of four striking vocalists.” Below the description, you can listen…

Bad Veins Are Just Another Two-Guys-and-a-Tape-Machine Story

Irene, simply put, is an enabler. Ostensibly a duo, Cincinnati’s Bad Veins are able to augment their indie-pop performances with a vintage reel-to-reel player, such a crucial element to the band that it’s been anthropomorphized, sort of as a do-it-all female multi-instrumentalist (complete with her own Twitter: @thereelirene). “Irene does…

Ear Candy Teams With Scottsdale Leadership

Valley charity Ear Candy — which gets instruments out of closets and sheds and into the hands of Arizona school kids — has teamed up with some notable names. Like the dance party residents at Sticky Fingers, for example, or local indie-poppers Bears of Manitou, and AOR kings Blue Öyster…

OMB, Justin Bieber is Coming to Glendale!

It looks like Christmas is coming a little early this year. Justin Bieber will be kicking off his just-announced North American headlining tour in the Valley. OMB! Biebs will be stealing the hearts of thousands of girls at Jobing.com Arena on Saturday, September 29. He’s hitting the road in support of…

Take Cover: Darkness Dear Boy Covers Fugazi

See also: Fugazi: Five “Waiting Room” Listening Essentials It’s usually a safe bet to cover an artist that influenced a band’s sound, so Darkness Dear Boy opted for some Fugazi. “I’d say we’re rock, reggae, punk, and a little honky tonk. With Fugazi, you’ve got the punk and rock,” says…

Mega Ran Drops New Project in Time for Phoenix Comicon

The Avengers may still be kicking plenty of ass at the box office, but don’t get it twisted — superheroes are not easy to come by. As luck would have it, though, the closest thing to a hero Phoenix has will be making an appearance at this weekend’s Comicon. He…

Record Heat: Minibosses at Bookmans in Mesa by Brad Dwyer

See also: Three Nerd Concerts to Celebrate Phoenix Comicon A lot of the time, I open Record Heat with some flimsy parallel between the world of comics and music — worlds that have been well connected forever, from Crumb’s brilliantly scuzzy album covers to Adrian Tomine’s classic Weezer poster to…

Incoming: Chick Corea, Shockwave 2012, Dionne Warwick

See also: Up on the Sun’s interview with Chick CoreaOne of America’s jazz great and Grammy Award-winner, Chick Corea, is coming to town. The jazz legend has played alongside people like Miles Davis, but his own catalog is rife with creative explorations. With a little help from Gary Burton, the…

Tumblr of the Week: The Hood Internet

See also: Isaiah Toothtaker Discusses the Hood Internet-Produced Tooth Wavy It’s been tough for us to stop spinning Toothy Wavy, the collaboration among Tucson-based Isaiah Toothtaker, Max B, and The Hood Internet, so it only makes sense that we’d wind up spending a some time with The Hood Internet’s official…

Carrie Benton, What Are You Listening To?

Carrie Benton Benton is an improviser with The Torch Theatre and invites you to the Skewed News Hour, Friday nights at 7 p.m. at The Torch Theatre. She also performs with Chaos Comedy at Dearing Acting Studio at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Saturday’s. When you put your key…