We can hear what you’re thinking as soon as you read the following: The Phoenix Chinese Week Taiji Tournament is taking place. The Karate Kid. Wax on, wax off. “Sweep the leg, Johnny.” Well, cut it with the stupid Daniel-san jokes already, because taiji ain’t karate. It’s an all-skill-levels-welcome tai…

Mountain biking. Kayaking. Hiking. In our out-of-shape world, each activity is a bitch. Combine all three and you have an outdoor freak’s wet dream: the Desert Rage Adventure Race. There’s a 25-mile course (no effing way, dude) and a shorty that covers up to 15 miles. We’ll opt for the…

We hate to talk about what Phoenix isn’t, but when it comes to homegrown farmers’ markets, our fresh-from-the-Earth emporiums are either tucked away in random nooks of Maricopa County or operate for only half the year. Maybe this explains why local farmer/artist/overall good guy John Milton has opened Farmer John…

Remixing classic tunes into booty-shaking dance songs is a tricky business. Mess with the original’s integrity too much and folks aren’t going to want to move their feet. On the other hand, some reinterpretations don’t even sound like the original mash-ups, save for an oddly placed, out-of-synch backbeat. The Los…

Remember every supersweet local act you’ve seen at Modified Arts? Well, there’s a supergood-ass chance that they’ll be playing during Modifest, a sidewalk art fair and live-music potpourri showcasing more than 20 bands. Here’s the rundown of groups who’ll be performing each day. Friday, Jan. 25: What Laura Says Thinks…

Since this is a piece about O Canada, we’ll try not to say “eh?” Uh, too late. Okay, while we’re at it, all Canadians live in igloos and eat blubber. Now that that’s out of the way, check out the 56th annual Great Canadian Picnic. Yes, there will be curling…

The Atlanta Hawks make their one and only visit of the 2007-08 season when they take on the Phoenix Suns. Tue., Jan. 29, 7 p.m., 2008…

We ain’t skeered to admit that we gots a bit of white trash in us. We’re also not scared to admit that we say “ain’t skeered.” That’s why we’ll feel tit-high on the hog when metal-monster-truck-crushers Grave Digger, Maximum Destruction, Bulldozer, and more visit for Monster Jam. Sat., Jan. 26,…

We get that “the jazz” isn’t for everybody, but here’s something tight for even you holier-than-thou indie-rock kids: A Musical Tribute to John Coltrane. A quintet featuring woodwind player Scott Zimmer, pianist Dan Delaney, Brett Reed on vibes and percussion, bassist Ted Sistrunk, and drummer John Lewis will interpret numbers…

We’ve noticed a pattern in world-music criticism these days, especially pieces penned by American audiophiles. Anytime an album from Africa is reviewed, the terms “groove-oriented” and “polyrhythms” appear, ad nauseam. That’s good and all, but can y’all change it up a bit? Just a little? Thank you very much. The…

The Cards are done, the football Devils finished. Now are y’all gonna pay attention to the Phoenix Coyotes? They are having a nice run of late, uknow? Oh, yeah, of course you don’t. Well, we know what’s up, so go watch the ’yotes battle the Columbus Blue Jackets. Thu., Jan…

What were you doing with your sorry life at 21? Binge-drinking in your mommy’s basement? Watching endless hours of elimiDATE and all of those other lame-o UPN shows? Sweating bullets that you just got your girlfriend preggo? At age 21, world-renowned bassist Stanley Clarke, the dude who basically invented the…

If any musician in town has the cred to open up a club whose name translates as “voice,” it’s Khani Cole. The adult-contemporary soultress and her skins-playing hubby, Mike Florio, have transformed the old Leccabaffi space into Vocé Ristoranté & Lounge. In one room, there’s a swanky Italian eatery. In…

Downtown’s Burn nightclub is going out with a bang when RedMonkey, in association with White Crane Kung Fu, presents Drunken Monkey. Pete “SuperMix” Salaz put together this 21-and-over shindig that will feature a special Lion Dance and demo by White Crane Kung Fu. Best of all, Burn is trying to…

We’re used to seeing souped-up hood rides dotting the contemporary urbanscape, not dotting the walls of an art gallery. That’s why we’re gonna roll out to the “Lowriders: 8th Annual Dia de los Muertos Festival Exhibit.” The show merges modern automotive art with iconic Day of the Dead representations. Mondays-Fridays,…

October 29, 2007, was a dark day in our fair town. Downtown’s most recognizable coffee shop, the Willow House, closed its longstanding locale on McDowell for good. We could say economic factors (two Starbucks within a one-mile radius) spelled doom for the indie hang, but anyone who downed a house…

Enough with these weenie two-mile leisure walks through the desert. The Cholla Mountain Loop Hike at McDowell Mountain Regional Park will kick your freaking ass. The four-hour gauntlet is an eight-mile jaunt filled with peaks, valleys, and thigh-burning switchbacks. Meet up with other macho men and women at Alma School…

We have a no-way-in-hell-you’re-gonna-win challenge for you, dear reader. Check out any fashion mag from the newsstand and try to tell us that the faux Photoshopped beauty on the cover has something over any portrait snapped by Richard Avedon. You won’t have a chance. The late American shutterbug — who…

The Gore fest (as in Al Gore) chronicles the loser politician (as in the 2000 Presidential election) and his global warming tutelage. Wed., Jan. 16, 7 p.m., 2008…

Wear your tie-dye tees and pass the peace pipe during Revolver’s Psych Record Listening Party. Feel free to bring your own obscure strange folk wax to spin. Sun., Jan. 13, 3-5 p.m., 2008…