Okkervil River and Roger Miret are about as disparate musically as you can get. The former is the eclectic indie darling septet from Austin, Texas whose intricate instrumentation and folkie sound has been described by NPR as “dark, literate rock that’s as explosive as it is thoughtful and intimate.” The…
If you’re into the genre of mashups, no doubt you’ve heard of the dope DJ duo of Adrian and the Mysterious D (a.k.a. A Plus D). Over the past six years, the punky San Francisco couple have pimped the art form of smashing together songs, either through their own masterful…
If you’re into mash-ups, no doubt you’ve heard of the dope DJ duo A Plus D (a.k.a. Adrian and the Mysterious D. Over the past six years, the punky San Francisco couple have pimped the art form of smashing together songs, either through their own masterful mixes (merging Kanye and…
God bless the souls of Don Cenobio Sauza and José María Guadalupe Cuervo. Why? Because they’re the crafty cats who first imported the spirituous concoction known as Tequila to the U.S. from Mexico in the 1870s. Thus, they gave our country one of its favorite mind-erasers. So be sure to…
Arizona Diamondbacks fans, meet your newest scapegoats: Bobby Korecky, Doug Slaten, Juan Gutierrez, and Jon Rauch. What’s their crime? The quartet of relief pitchers collectively screwed the D-Backs out of a two-game win streak (not to mention their first series clinch of the season) by blowing a three-run lead and…
There’s one word to sum up the Arizona Diamondbacks’ 2009 season thus far: Exasperation. While the emotion has been brewing amongst players and fans since the second game of the year against the Colorado Rockies — when the Snakes began their infuriating tendency of squandering decent pitching with woefully-inconsistent offense…
Just in case you weren’t already enticed into participating in tomorrow’s Record Store Day after reading Steve Jansen’s and Michael Lopez’s scribblings on the nationwide event (which celebrates the independent spirit of mom-and-pop music emporiums), we’ve got one more reason for you. And it’s kinda teh awesome. Kimber Lanning and…
[jump] THURSDAY, APRIL 16: The Brian Jonestown Massacre [rock/pop/indie] With Flavor Crystals 8 p.m., $15 The Clubhouse Music Venue, 1320 E. Broadway Rd., Tempe, 480-968-3238. Grayskul With The Insects, Crusher Sound System, DJ Element, Pickster One, Emerg McVay, & more [hip-hop] 9 p.m., $10 Club Red, 2155 E. University Dr.,…
Here’s some news that’s certain to delight old-school Valley music fans: the location of bygone Tempe music venue Boston’s will re-open next month as a new nightspot called Club 910. And it looks like the place is gonna pick up right where its predecessor left off, promising to become a…
The Wednesday night electro/hip-hop affair Pinky Ring has offered some choice guests over its six months of existence (including local legend Z-Trip and NYC/ATL funkmeister Treasure Fingers). And now its organizers are about to add top themselves with their latest coup: Afrika Bambaataa. The Bronx-born hip-hop pioneer (who’s considered by…
After more than four years of rocking the Stray Cat Bar & Grill, the members of Wildlife Refuge have moved their weekly hip-hop hootenanny down University Drive to the Big Fish Pub. But while the location has changed, the game remains the same: fresh rhymes, urban jams, and some of…
The Wednesday-night electro/hip-hop affair Pinky Ring has offered some choice guests during its six months of existence (including local legend Z-Trip and NYC/ATL funkmeister Treasure Fingers). Now, its organizers are about to top themselves with their latest coup: Afrika Bambaataa. The Bronx-born hip-hop pioneer (who’s considered by many to be…
It’d been almost nine long months since Conor Jackson hit a home run for the Arizona Diamondbacks, with the left fielder’s last moon shot coming way back in July against the San Francisco Giants. Co-Jack’s homer dry spell ended in dramatic fashion Tuesday night when he drilled a pinch-hit, three-run…
Local music fans can breathe a huge sigh of relief, as Tempe’s Last Exit Bar & Grill will remain open past the end of April. While I’ve had almost a dozen people tell me in recent weeks that the Tempe live music venue will be closing, the bar’s co-owner Brannon…
Does anyone have any concert-going energy left (or any money, for that matter) after last week’s ginormous orgy of music events? We definitely do, which is why our asses will be out and about this weekend. Since Easter is on Sunday, the schedule is somewhat lighter than normal, but there’s…
Zach Sciacca (a.k.a. Z-Trip) may not look like the Easter Bunny, but just like ol’ Peter Cottontail, the renowned Phoenix-born turntablist is planning on delivering some treats this weekend. We ain’t talking about sugary peeps or gooey chocolate, however, as Sciacca will instead be serving up some sweet beats as…
Looks like AZPunk’s not dead after all. The infamous local website was reborn last week with a completely new look after taking a year-long hiatus from the Internet. For those of you unfamiliar with AZPunk, it functioned as an information resource and meeting ground for P-Town’s punk and hardcore community…
I’ve never seen Modified Arts as packed as it was last night during Will Oldham’s performance as Bonnie Prince Billy. And it’s no surprise why. More than 60 people jammed into the downtown Phoenix music venue to watch the iconic and enigmatic indie folk hero’s long, powerful concert that lasted…
It looks like Chez Nous’ closing is going to be pretty permanent. In my blog post from Wednesday, I mentioned how the renowned retro lounge and soul music venue has been closed for several weeks, with no sign of re-opening anytime soon. (And as you can see above, some vandals…
If you’re the type who bitches how nothing ever goes on in Phoenix, please feel free to grab a nice steaming cup of STFU. We’ve been referencing all week long on this very blog about how huge this weekend’s concert line-up is going to be, but “huge” doesn’t even begin…
If you were a club kid or music fan back in 1995, chances are you might have heard about a swanky little soiree called The Hip Joint. Seeping with style, the fly fete went down weekly during the middle of the Clinton era at bygone venues like Jamaican Blue in…
After writing about a few bar and club closures over the past week (including Maloney’s in Tempe and Lyte Lounge in Scottsdale), it feels refreshing to dole out some news about some openings instead. It’s even better when it’s a previously-deceased nightspot that’s getting reincarnated with a new identity. Case…
