Artist: Dead ConfederateTitle: SugarRelease: August 24Label: Razor & TieRecently, I wrote about a really good band with a terrible name. Today, I’ve got a band with a pretty cool name and really so-so music. Dead Confederate evokes a sound that is quite a bit different from what actually emits from…
This week, New Times ran a list in our print publication highlighting some of the most interesting posts published at Up On The Sun over the past week. Here are links to those posts. Why did the drummer of a local band get stabbed in the neck outside a show?…
Song: Calexico, “Two Silver Trees” Context: Getting excited for the big Artists For Action show this weekend. Two Silver Trees…
From time to time I take the opportunity to abuse the platform entrusted to me to push my personal agenda. In this case it’s the totally brilliant LeBron James diss track from Mike Polk. You’re probably from Arizona so you probably don’t remember Polk’s hilarious “Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Video”…
You could never really call Katy Perry original. From the moment she broke onto the scene with her first mainstream single, “I Kissed a Girl,” she was criticized for copying the title of the track by Jill Sobule. Her songs have always been sticky sweet pop that’s radio-ready, but on…
As Idolator points out, John Legend and The Roots are typically known for their socially conscious music. So it was a bit surprising to hear that Legend performed the music for the 2010 Miss Universe Pageant. The performance featured the skinny girls in heels performing choreography that was more like…
No doubt about it, the downtown dance spots located along Washington Street get pretty damn busy during weekend nights as countless clubgoers congregate to drink and debauch until last call looms amidst this massive club hub. PHX Nightclub was particularly packed this past Friday evening as the deckmaster duo of DJ…
Local rockers Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers tweeted the unsurprising news that the GreenStock has been canceled this afternoon.I’ve been unable to confirm this with organizers — who don’t seem to have voicemail and haven’t answered an e-mail — but there’s little reason to doubt it’s true…
It’s not often a world-class musician is kicking off their American tour in Arizona, so try to understand that the recent announcement that Joanna Newsom has a fall tour planned and is starting out in Arizona is a big, big deal. Newsom will play Tucson’s Rialto Theatre November 6 before…
Hanson — the 90s kiddie band known for “MMMBop” — is coming to town. Pretty swell, right? Well, it gets even sweller. Believe it or not, bands are falling all over themselves to win a contest that will allow them to open for the band at their Phoenix show.The apparent…
Welcome to our latest podcast, in which Martin Cizmar and I play some new music and about it, too. On today’s program, we discuss the merits of such bands as Wavves, Arcade Fire, The Budos Band, Jimmy Eat World, and local superstars Snake! Snake! Snakes!Here’s the playlist:Jaill — “The Stroller”Arcade…
Song: Gucci Mane ft. Swizz Beatz, “Gucci Time”Context: Just got an advance copy of the new Guc record, The Appeal: Georgia’s Most Wanted. This is the first single. Hands up: It’s Gucci time. Gucci Mane ft. Swizz Beatz “Gucci Time” by Warner Bros. Urban…
Why all the effort for just one album? There’s really no rhyme or reason to it — the fact that it leaked so early helped me write a post about the album when it was still fresh to my ears. By this point, however, I have completely consumed the thing…
This is part of a series of reviews of bands who play weekly at local bars. The show: Nicole Pesce at My Florist Cafe. The look: Sleek, chic, and trendy. The smell: Salmon and warm bread. The taste: Savory, sweet, and filling. Three words/phrases to describe the night: Neon light,…
Artist: Magic KidsTitle: MemphisRelease date: August 24Label: True PantherPaying tribute to Pet Sounds seems to be passé among the new crop of indie bands. Now, it seems a lot of these kids are all about a post-Pet Sounds era, one in which the Baroque elements of Brian Wilson’s masterpiece take…
“Mesa’s only known ska-rock septet,” Captain Squeegee has a pretty cool video of them recording their new album at Glendale’s totally-weird Pyramix Studios.Looks like they’re having a lot of fun working on Lucidity.The first fruit of their labor, a song called “Your Own Invention” can be downloaded for free here…
If you head over to the MySpace page for Phoeenix sceamo act The Word Alive you’ll see a nifty counter displaying a countdown to the release of the band’s new record, Deceiver, currently at seven days and change.The Fearless-signed band, which celebrates the release with a show at Mesa’s Nile…
Song: Toubab Krewe, “Holy Grail”Context: Hearing that a band combined “indie rock” and “West African music” puts me on high alert. Toubab Krewe manages to do it very well, however. Looking forward to TK2 in September. TBKTrack by Shore Fire…
How about some Italian DJs who wear Spider Man masks onstage at every performance and call themselves Bloody Beetroots? October 29 marks their performance at the Marquee Theatre, just in time for those not in the know to figure, “Oh, they must be wearing those things since Halloween is two…
By now you’ve probably heard the news that Haitian presidential hopeful Wyclef Jean was disqualified from the race, as determined by the Haitian board of elections. The latest word on the blogosphere though is that Wyclef ain’t quite ready to give up yet. According to E! Online Jean plans to…
Amazing was the word of the night at the Something Corporate concert at Marquee Theatre last night. The band, who was on a reunion tour after being on hiatus since 2005, had no opening act, allowing the guys to play an extensive, 2-hour-plus set. Singer/pianist Andrew McMahon gave the crowd…
The music lovers who frequent Zia Records in Phoenix tend to favor heavier fare — typically metal and hip-hop. But they always pepper in a few surprises. While the latest from Bun B comes out on top this week, The Black Keys slide right in the middle. The newest Arcade…
