Matthew Paul Miller, otherwise known as Matisyahu (translated to “Gift of God” in Hebrew), has been putting out his blend of traditional Jewish themes, reggae, beatboxing, alternative, and slightly psychedelic rock since 2004. From the beginning, he was known for his signature beard and Hasidic garb, and strong Jewish faith…
The Jonas Brothers are coming to Phoenix this week, and if I’m counting right, they’re at least two major boy band generations old — Justin Bieber stole their thunder, and then One Direction became the subject of more fanfiction than any other real people on earth (unless you’ve read either…
A new Lady Gaga song leaked Monday night called “Burqa,” though some blogs suggest it may actually be called “Aura.” (Hypeable did some sleuthing, leading us to believe that it is, in fact, called “Burqa.”) Both Zedd and Calvin Harris are mentioned in Gaga’s “**rq*” tweet from October, prefacing this…
Between the season premiere of Breaking Bad and the debut of Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black, there already are plenty of reasons to stay glued to the television, but Discovery Channel did everyone one better by kicking off Shark Week on Monday. We really wouldn’t blame you if you…
Emby Alexander have had a pretty busy year. They released a self-titled EP in March, let Mandi Kimes (their backup vocalist) go, unveiled two music videos this summer, and joined the roster of Bigo & Twigetti, a label in the UK. Their first single through the record company, “Dressed Undressing,”…
An emergency deployment to Hollywood Alley might have deprived them of sleep and beer money, but it wasn’t about to keep our Club Candids photographers off their usual July beat: Taking pictures of people who would probably have left Phoenix for the summer if it weren’t for the pool parties…
Our intrepid Club Candids team was camped out at Hollywood Alley all last week as the Mesa institution prepared to close its doors just shy of its 25th birthday. The result: Copious material for an upcoming feature, some video, and lots and lots of photos. They were on assignment, technically,…
The Monkees and the Jonas Brothers are both playing the Valley this week, which is a think piece someone else is going to have to write — only one of them made our list of five Phoenix shows to see this week. Find out which one it is after the…
Fitz and the Tantrums August 4, 2013 Crescent Ballroom Fitz and the Tantrums were the first band I ever reviewed for Up on the Sun, so seeing them Sunday night at Crescent Ballroom was a bit nostalgic. But the “whoa factor” definitely was still there, from their energetic entrance to…
I used to look forward to the arrival of Shark Week like it was a new Hatebreed album release — amped up and eager for new material and bloodshed. Unfortunately, after a couple years of tuning in, I realized that the masterminds behind the programming didn’t really care to bring…
“I’m just looking for a sign.” Keith Buckley, vocalist for establish metalcore act Every Time I Die, is a composed character, having fronted one of the most beloved metal acts of the past 16 years. He’s conducted symphonies of straight-edge moshers meeting in the pit with hardcore veterans and beer-swilling…
After 25 years of slinging drinks, trashy fun, and rock ‘n’ fucking roll, the party is finally over at Hollywood Alley in Mesa. All the beer and booze has been exhausted, the last song has echoed through its cavernous sticker-covered interior, and the last pizza has been served. We dropped…
The website for Hollywood Alley contains a fairly lengthy rundown of some of the vast array of renowned musicians and bands that have performed at the Mesa rock dive over its 25-year history, and it’s both enormous and impressive. Said list includes name both iconic and influential, ranging from such…
When you’re talking to Random–aka Mega Ran, aka (to Caller ID) Raheem–it’s not hard to detect the former-teacher in his voice. When he’s not rapping about video games or not giving into self-doubt, he’s talking in the methodical, well-practiced way of somebody who spent a lot of weekdays lecturing patiently…
Musician/songwriter Alejandro Escovedo has made a career out of taking chances. His first true band was the San Francisco-based punk outfit The Nuns. Then he joined up with cow-punks Rank & File before forming the country-oriented True Believers with his brothers, eventually hacking out a solo career. His music typically…
Are you on a live album? Not as a performer, I mean — are you background noise for one of your favorite bands? If you haven’t already earned the opportunity to make your friends scrub through 40 minutes of crowd noise to hear you shouting “My wife!!” during between-songs banter,…
On one side, there are the credentials that mark Daughn Gibson as a country musician — the slightly twanged baritone, the smoky barrooms and long roads that appear in his lyrics, and the years spent working as a trucker before recording his first album. On the other side are the…
It turns out that Hollywood Alley’s last night wasn’t last night after all. According to the Facebook page of the renowned Mesa rock bar — which was originally scheduled to close on Wednesday night after 25 years in operation — and a few of its employees, the place will remain…
This feels a little like Barnes and Noble offering combined subscriptions to Teen People and Adbusters because they’re both in the magazine section, but I guess I can’t fault the Phoenix Suns and US Airways Center for trying something new: The team is now offering a season ticket package that…
I’m feeling a little guilty about last week’s column, in which I took the crappy popular music of the ’80s to task (High School Music: A Reunion from Hell). Why? It was negative, and generally I like to promote good music instead of baggin’ on bad stuff. I’ve fed my…
Bruno Mars, US Airways Center, July 31, 2013 It’s so cool to see the American dream in action. Last night at US Airways Center, Bruno Mars played to a sold-out crowd at US Airways Center for his Moonshine Jungle Tour. About 20 years ago, he was a child performer in…
IP is Ill smokes weed. Like, a lot of weed. It’s kind of his thing. Known for his work as one-half of local hip-hop duo, Numbers, IP has never been shy about his toking, but don’t get it twisted; he’s not just some slacker pothead. (No offense to those of…
