Mark Linkous, renowned and beloved singer/songwriter who released his music under the name Sparklehorse, took his own life this Saturday in Knoxville, Tennessee. He was 47 years old.With Sparklehorse, Linkous created a vivid, beloved alt-rock/alt-country sound adored by his fans for its earnest, yet dark, lyrics. Sparklehorse released its first…
Title: A Cold Open, a 7-song EP.Basics: The debut EP from “epic indie rock” act The Other 49 has a sound akin to Explosions In The Sky and is one of the more professional sounding releases I’ve reviewed for You Asked For It. Its pretty standard fare, but at least the…
Ke$ha grills Ke$ha on the topic of the Hollywood sign, the Grammys, Ke$ha’s album Animal and some of her favorite artists, among them Bob Dylan, the Beastie Boys and Arizona’s own Alice Cooper. Prepare yourself for the video after the jump…
The Melvins lead off this week’s breakdown of just announced shows with a June date at Tempe’s Clubhouse Music Venue.The seminal ’80s punk band led by the freakishly-coiffed Buzz Osborne has 19 albums to their credit, all in their trademark blend of sludge, metal, and punk. This year marks the…
U.K. experimental rockers These New Puritans have finally unleashed their second full-length record, Hidden. Their 2008 debut, Beat Pyramid, found the band exploring their post-punk roots, joining the already massive stable of like-minded British bands. Two years later, the band has turned their own sound on its ear, blowing up…
The album is chock full of Gorillaz charm — an often unclassifiable sound mashed full of different styles and plenty of guest spots including Snoop Dogg, Lou Reed, Kano, Gruff Rhys, Mos Def and, of course, The Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music…
[jump] Tom Petty returns to Arizona for this first time since an August 2008 show out in Glendale. More info on the upcoming tour, including the track “Good Enough” from Petty’s forthcoming album Mojo can be found at TomPetty.com.Other live show announcements (not nearly as big as Tom Petty, but…
Title: Horae, a three-song EP.Basics: Billing themselves as an “electronic/rock” band, this Tucson foursome formed in 2008 and recently opened for Neon Indian. That got my attention since Psychic Chasms was one of my favorite albums of 2009 and Neon Indian’s November show in Phoenix was just as fantastic.Neon Indian these guys ain’t,…
[jump] What this critic says: “Past Lives — lead by enigmatic lead singer Jordan Billie — have crafted an album that constantly shifts tempos, often playing things on the more slower, serious side. Gone are Billie’s days of relentless screaming over punk-laden guitars, replaced with a more subtle approach to his…
[jump] First up we have VW Trainwreck and the video for their song “VW ThemeWreck:”And the plucky upstarts Final Placement with their video for “Shine:””Shine” by Final Placement from sharity world on Vimeo.VW Trainwreck’s video is like listening to someone laugh at their own bad joke for three and a…
[jump] Liars – “Scissor:”Oh this song takes its time, but its a builder. Its ominous opening gives way to an loud, brash chorus. The matching onslaught of rocks during the more blistering parts of the song is just perfect. Sisterworld is out 3/9 via Mute. Head on over to www.thesisterworld.com to…
Is…Aggressive(Self-released)Grade: B+Well it took three weeks, of doing these You Asked For It reviews of local records, but I finally got an album for that I could actually enjoy. Truly, picturing the other bands I’ve reviewed for this project playing live makes me cringe, but not Joey Arroyo Band. Their…
More show announcements, more show announcements, more show announcements.Tempe’s Sail Inn has tapped Quebecois husband and wife-led collective The Besnard Lakes to play a date on their upcoming spring North American tour. It’s a busy spring, indeed, for the band as they have a showcase at SXSW in March, followed…
What this critic says: “With his cowboy boots and 10-gallon hat in tow, Devonte Hynes has crafted a fantastic follow-up to 2008’s Falling Off The Lavender Bridge. Where his first album established Hynes’ incredible talent for writing a song, Life Is Sweet! shows just how talented a composer the British…
It’s been a long time coming, but the Sasquatch! Music Festival — held annually at Washington’s Gorge Amphitheater over Memorial Day weekend — has come of age. Too long the festival had been bogged down by underwhelming lineups, but 2009 started an impressive upturn in the artists being asked to…
No Longer Together(Self-released)Grade: DWell, it was a bumpy start to my first go around with You Asked For It. The transition into my second week was somewhat better, but not by much. Case in point: Scottsdale’s No Longer Together, a spunky little three-piece that won Alice Cooper’s “Proof is in…
There have been big days for live music in Phoenix, and then there have been BIG days for live music in Phoenix. Today has been absolutely bonkers for Valley music fans as a plethora of artists have all announced upcoming shows for March, April and even May. Freak folker Devendra…
What this critic says: “One Life Stand is really the tale of two albums: the blisteringly fast-paced first four songs plus the final track versus the sluggish, filler-esque latter half. No other album this year, however, opens as strongly through it’s first four tracks as One Life Stand, and “Take…
The Valley is getting a ton of runoff from this year’s Coachella. First it was Yeasayer and Beach House. Deer Tick and Vampire Weekend then entered the fold. Finally, Sia and Frightened Rabbit scheduled Phoenix dates around the massive festival in Indio, California. The recent announcement that Arctic Monkeys will play Tempe’s Marquee…
Last Wednesday night, Nick Jonas went on Jimmy Kimmel Live to plug his brand-new album — Nick Jonas and the Administration’s Who I Am — and shoot the shit with Kimmel. During the latter part of Jonas’ segment, his recent role in the new version of “We Are The World”…
The Modern Leper – Frightened …..
