What Coldplay is these days is increasingly rare: A young-ish rock band that inspires a monoculture and plays to adoring crowds in arenas nationwide. To illustrate: Coldplay headlined the Super Bowl halftime show last year, a show where only the least offensive, most broadly popular artists get to perform. It…
Sometimes bands really do get it right with a name that truly reflects the nature of its music. It was a dazzling display of fireworks following the band’s first-ever gig that spawned the name Explosions in the Sky, and for 16 years this all-instrumental Austin, Texas, four-piece has consistently delivered…
During the past seven years, decker. has been recording music quite clearly drawn from the very land of the Southwest itself, from all that is comforting, eerie, haunting, healing, harsh, and beautiful about it, as though he and his partners are able to somehow evoke the very taste of Arizona…
In an industry where top earners are praised as “electronic cash kings,” it is no surprise that the world of DJing and dance music is preponderantly patriarchal. Despite the historical context and deafening statistics of male dominance within the DJ industry, women are now more visible than ever. While the…
Purists scoff. Detractors, whom are often vocal, will tell you that its soul has been lost. Those who are indoctrinated are often divided themselves, gravitating toward certain aspects and shying away from others. Country music has never been more dynamic or divisive, and few artists know this quite like Chase…
The Go-Go’s still have the beat, but the beat will no longer go on: The group is calling it quits after decades together. The group’s sound epitomized the New Wave era of the early ’80s. The Go-Go’s combined ’60s beach music fandom with a spunky punk-rock DIY attitude, created catchy…
Mother Nature tried her best to keep metal fans from catching two of the most prominent acts in the genre Saturday night at Ak-Chin Pavilion as Slipknot and Marilyn Manson rolled through town. After openers Of Mice & Men kicked things off, the Phoenix monsoon took over. Nearly 30 minutes…
Let’s be honest, if rappers were athletic, there’s a good chance they wouldn’t be rapping (and if athletes could rap, well… they’ve tried that a few times). Of course, that’s not to say that every rapper has the same body type. There are the jacked-up muscular guys (50 Cent, Flo…
Believe it not, but we’re almost done with summer. Yes, we’re well aware that there are still several scorching weeks of loathsome weather ahead, but, for all intents and purposes, there’s light at the end of the tunnel, y’all. If you need something to help make the time between now…
Courtney Marie Andrews is always in flux and she wouldn’t have it any other way. The Phoenix born-and-raised folk artist has spent the better part of her adult life in some state of movement, never lingering in one place for too long. Though Arizona will always be home – “It’s…
DMX – Friday, August 19 – The PressroomRap superstar DMX has had a bit of a sordid history in the Valley, to say the least. During a six-year stint living in Cave Creek, he was collared eight different times, frequently by the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, on such charges as…
By all accounts local rapper Jose “Low Key” Hernandez was both talented and generous during his short time on Earth. According to his family, Hernandez spent Christmas Day 2015 with his friends, handing out blankets to the homeless and toys to kids as part of the charitable organization he founded,…
If there’s one word to describe the bands taking the stage at Ak-Chin Pavilion this Sunday, it’s “experienced.” The three groups on the Rock Hall Three For All tour — Cheap Trick, Heart, and Joan Jett and the Blackhearts — have sold almost 65 million records between them. All told,…
Adele has rescheduled the concert she canceled due to illness. The singer will return to Phoenix for a November 21 concert at Talking Stick Resort Arena. Tickets for the previously scheduled August 17 date will be honored at the new event. Refunds will be available at the point of purchase. …
Mitchell Hillman listens to more local music than just about anyone in the Valley. He presents his picks for best new local music in his column, Right Hear, Right Now. AJJ – “Junkie Church” There was a rash of concern when AJJ released the video for “Goodbye, Oh Goodbye” that…
Diversity and adversity often go hand in hand. In the case of England’s Culture Club, the two words have always come bundled together, even if the former is more descriptive of what the group represents, and the latter is something they seemingly love to create. A product of the early-1980s…
Julien Baker dreaded telling her parents she’s not going back to school this semester. The singer-songwriter, who released her debut album, Sprained Ankle, last year to great acclaim, encountered the same reaction from her parents as she has throughout her 20 years of life: unconditional support. Baker says, “I think…
Adele sends her love, Phoenix, but she has to cancel tonight due to illness. Refunds will be available at point of purchase. In a video posted to her Twitter account, a red-nosed and puffy-eyed Adele told fans that she’s been battling a cold for the past few days, but the…
I’ll admit to being a bit baffled at times by the magnitude of Adele’s success. She deserves every bit of it, of course, and she’s obviously an amazing singer. But her voice alone doesn’t quite explain the massive level of global adoration she’s experienced. This isn’t a knock on her…
There was actually a little bit of room to breathe at last night’s Guided by Voices show at the Crescent Ballroom. By no means was it a light crowd, just one that allowed for a little wiggle room, along with some personal space between audience members, who were treated to…
“Come over here / let’s make some time,” pleads singer/guitar player Daniel Shircliff at the start of “Baby Wants More,” on the Christian Family’s new self-titled, seven-inch EP on Slope Records. The record contains four tracks of stripped-down, gospel- and blues-tinged garage punk perpetuated by Shircliff, who also fronts local…
The Guns N’ Roses song “It’s So Easy” just might be the most swaggering rock song ever written. Even coming from an era of dick-swinging hyper-masculine rock music, it feels gaudy. The song oozes an easy confidence, an arrogance that can only come when your social capital is in such…
