The debate over a crazy Arizona law that would, essentially, make it a state law to violate federal immigration law (and thus empower state and local cops to enforce federal immigration law) is something the folks over at Valley Fever and Feathered Bastard can tell you a lot more about…
The latest issue of AZ Kaos has an interesting dissection of my theory on Aesthetic Atrophy which is worth sharing.In case you missed it, “Aesthetic atrophy is the diminished capacity to appreciate new or unfamiliar music or other sensory stimuli. It is typically accompanied by the sufferer’s retreat to familiar…
In case you’ve missed it for the last eight years, AZPunk.com has put out these incredibly cool DIY compilations of local punk bands. Sold for merely $3 and containing anywhere from 30 to 40 tracks from different bands, the albums, which are simply titled AZPunk.comp Vol. 1-6, were a way to…
According to Spin and MTV, Death Cab’s ultra-busy frontman Ben Gibbard has announced that the band is working on a new record that should be out in the spring of next year. The album will be produced by guitarist Chris Walla, who also produced last year’s record by The Thermals.While…
But you’re not listening to this stuff to hear music editor Martin Cizmar (he even says the “f” word on this show. Don’t ever mention Beastie Boys; he can’t abide those guys) and I yammer. You’re listening for the music, right? Check out this week’s playlist after the jump…
Artist: Roky Erickson and Okkervil RiverTitle: True Love Cast Out All EvilRelease date: April 20Label: Anti-Score another one for the old goats. The latest has-been to crawl out of the peculiar limbo that the popular culture reserves for aging legends is Roky Erickson.If you’ve never heard of the guy, he’s…
Band: Comfort For ChangeTitle: Radio TherapyBasics: It’s quite odd that a Phoenix band would offer up an album that was released in 1999 for review.Wait, what’s that? The album was released just recently? Wow, you could have fooled me.Radio Therapy (or Radiotherapy, that is still ambiguous since it loaded up…
In case you were at Coachella this past weekend, or don’t watch SNL any more because it’s lost all its humor, here are two delightful (gag) performances by trashy singer Ke$ha that would make even Ashlee Simpson cringe. They are so incredibly awkward, they might actually make you feel sorry…
The Old Gray Lady is getting a little bit hipstery today. The New York Times is streaming The National’s newest record, High Violet, here.It’s the first time the paper has streamed a record. The multimedia is paired with a feature from the Times’ magazine which comes out Saturday.A few things…
Up on the Sun contributor/club guru Benjamin Leatherman couldn’t have said it better in regards to this week’s announcements “Shit week for announcements.”There is hope, however, in this meager group. That hope rests on the strong comedy lineup for The Valley, including the likes of D.L. Hughley, Jim Gaffigan, Jim…
Name: J.Alan EhrhardtAKA: DJ J. AlanCurrent club nights: Thursday at Suede, Friday at Axis/Radius, Saturday at Suede, one Sunday per month at Martini Ranch.Genres spun: Hip-hop, house, electro, and Top 40How did you get started as a DJ: Rob Wegner was DJing at Club 411 at the time. He and…
Are you planning to see Norah Jones’ show at the Dodge Theatre Sunday, April 25, 2010? If you’re into jazz you should, since, as Steve Jansen argues in this week’s print issue, she’s the rare bird who sings as good as she looks. If so, get there early to see…
Artist: CaribouTitle: SwimRelease date: April 20Label: MergeSometimes you just have to throw your hands up and declare, “I don’t get it.” And I’m not talking about matters of taste, because people like what they like, and that’s totally cool. The older I get as a music fan, I try to…
It’s never surprising when Lady Gaga makes headlines, and given that Cyndi Lauper has been laying down the law on Celebrity Apprentice, it should come as no surprise that she’s making headlines with her own ventures outside of the show. According to feministing, Lauper and Gaga teamed up with the…
This week’s music feature gives you the skinny on Phoenix’s new Musical Instrument Museum, which opens this weekend. You know you’re curious about how instruments from all 195 countries were obtained. And why they’re in Phoenix of all places…We take a look at the old-school, Americana, “grassroots success story” the…
As the debate about bringing indie rock to Phoenix’s NPR station, KJZZ, continues to bubble, you’ll see some mentions of internet-only Radio Phoenix as a possible solution to the problem.Personally, I think web radio is a pretty poor substitute for the over-the-air kind, but you have to respect what Radio…
So it seems that even though Vampire Weekend’s critically acclaimed, (by nearly all music critics except our very own Jay Bennett,) Contra came out just this January, the plan is that they’ll have another recording out before the year’s end, according to TwentyFourBit.Their frontman, Ezra Koenig said that they band…
“We should just close our eyes, and maybe they’ll sound the same,” she says about The Eagles, the band we’re headed to see. I’m sitting next to her in our crowded light-rail car. She smells of strong perfume, too strong, but her visibly excited manner makes her fun to listen…
This week, New Times ran a box 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. What was the scene like at Coachella? Why does Glenn Danzig need to watch his back…
This eye-catching flier comes courtesy of Mesa indie musician Austin Gibbs, who plays this Friday, April 23 with a bunch of local bands at The Trunk Space in Phoenix. Not really sure what it means, but it definitely is eye-catching. The girl’s blue eyes are brought out even more by…
Shock-rocker Alice Cooper’s downtown bar and grill, Cooperstown, has been named one of the nation’s top 10 celeb-owned eateries by TripAdviser.Cooper joins athletes (Michael Jordan), actors (Robert DeNiro) and fellow musicians (Justin Timberlake and Gladys Knight) on the list, which was compiled based on the travel site’s user reviews. Here’s…
While many American Idol finalists go on to Z-list fame — anyone remember Nicki McKibbin, who graced the cast of VH1’s Celebrity Rehab? — former American Idol fourth-place finisher Chris Daughtry has proved his star isn’t in danger of falling anytime soon. Daughtry, who sold over 5 million copies of…
