Bob Dylan, ever the people’s musician, has announced he will take on a summer tour of America’s prestigious minor league baseball stadiums to Glendale’s brand new Camelback Ranch Ballpark on August 11. He has also employed the services of über-American musicians John Cougar Mellenamp and Willie Nelson. At this point…
The Flaming Lips Dazzle at McDowell Mountain Music Festival Major labels get a lot of flack. Whether it’s because they supposedly put out nothing but overly-commercialized crap, or because they’re suing computer-using kids in a vain effort to salvage their busted business model, it’s rare to hear anyone say anything nice…
Major labels get a lot of flack. Whether it’s because they supposedly put out nothing but overly-commercialized crap, or because they’re suing computer-using kids in a vain effort to salvage their busted business model, it’s rare to hear anyone say anything nice about the Big Four. That’s why Flaming Lips…
So between New Times and my “day job” I get to go to more shows and festivals than anyone ever should. After a while you notice that most share a lot more in common than you might think after you look past line-ups. Sitting in the VIP area at MMMF…
The sun has set at McDowell Mountain Music Festival and the crazies have run to the parking lot to retrieve their pink robot costumes for the big Flaming Lips closer. As for the rest of us, we’ve run out to get our jackets as it’s about as cold a night…
Hula-hooping hippie chicks. Deadhead flags. Dudes twirling Devil Sticks. Naked babies running around in circles near their napping parents. A full-on tie-dye revival. Yes, we’re living it up at McDowell Mountain Music Fest, an event we were seduced in to attending by the promise of a show by the decidedly…
Last nigt more than 700 Wolverine fans descended on Harkins Theater at Tempe Marketplace with folding chairs, portable DVD players and coolers full of caffeine-based sustenance to wait it out for tickets to the X-Men Origins: Wolverine premiere on Monday, April 27. As advertised on their web site since earlier…
So you didn’t get your tickets to the world premiere of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, huh? Good news, bub: You can get in line with everyone else at Harkins Theater at Tempe Marketplace right now and hope you’re one of the first 500 to get tickets when they hand them out…
Uncertainty is sometimes the only certainty in life. That’s ultimately the best way to describe the current situation at Last Exit Bar & Grill, as the Tempe live music venue may or may not be closing come tomorrow night. It’s a surprising about-face from what I reported two weeks ago…
We’re not covering Britney Spears tonight. Yes, we know she’s been number one on Billboard’s Top 200 4 times. Yes, we know she’s a pop sensation that sells out arenas all over the world, but here’s the rub: press access for Ms. Spears’ concert tonight is $150. Press access. According…
It was with great sadness that I read about our friend Dan Gibson retiring from Idolator this afternoon. Now, sure, as a local guy, Dan’s been one of our harshest critics (fer realz) but it was always nice to know he was out there, calling us out and keeping us…
This weekend marks a big occasion for fans of outdoor music festivals and jam-ish bands: the McDowell Mountain Music Festival. The lineup boasts The Flaming Lips, Matisyahu and Michael Franti — a pretty solid lineup for such a festival (and I didn’t even include Hot Tuna). Those artists all lend…
There is still something odd about seeing the faces of your favorite “radio stars.” For musicians we all know MTV killed this years ago. But for fans of PRI and NPR many “stars” are still faceless voices that may or may not belong to living breathing human beings. And on…
AZ screamo rockers Scary Kids Scaring Kids will perform on all 46 dates of this year’s annual Warped Tour, according to a bulletin the guys posted on MySpace The tour kicks off in Pomona, Calif. Friday, June 26 and hits the Valley Tuesday, June 30 at Cricket Pavilion. AZ favorites…
What’s there to do this weekend? A lot. Unless you’ve been living under a rock somewhere (or haven’t been reading Up on the Sun much lately), you probably aware that fearless freak Wayne Coyne and the rest of the Flaming Lips are performing on Saturday at the massive multi-day McDowell…
Okkervil River and Roger Miret are about as disparate musically as you can get. The former is the eclectic indie darling septet from Austin, Texas whose intricate instrumentation and folkie sound has been described by NPR as “dark, literate rock that’s as explosive as it is thoughtful and intimate.” The…
So this is a good find we got from the guys in Kinch, over Twitter: R.INC’s “Arizona Ways.”I kinda dig the geekcore beat and the lyrics, which include, in part:”Listen loud and clear to these words I’m bout to say, I’m gonna educate you bitches on these Arizona ways. You…
I’m not sure who it is, but I think I have a favorite poster artist in town. For the first time, we’re giving a second Flier of the Week nod to the same band: Japanese Monsters. Their “Sarah Palin with bug” poster won back in November, and now this Lebowski…
So let’s get it out of the way at the beginning so we can move on to more pressing matters: Anoop Desai and Lil Rounds got kicked off Idol last night, and it was kind of sad to see them go, but nobody can say it was surprising, right? I…
When Earps frontman “Hotwheels” McGregor compares his band to Spinal Tap, he’s not referring to his band’s music (although a song like “Hoggin!” might owe at least a small debt of gratitude to Tap’s “Big Bottom”). It’s just that the Earps’ recent travails remind McGregor of the near-constant onslaught of…
“Hello! Hey, gimme one second, I gotta pee . . .” As I wait for Wayne Coyne, frontman of The Flaming Lips, to take care of business, I remember that when we spoke a year ago, the subject of urine also came up. We were talking about the odd commencement speech he gave…
Mates of State have been living the indie-rock life for over a decade. The husband and wife duo of Jason Hammel and Kori Gardner spin their sharp songwriting, harmonies, and dexterity with a suite of instruments (including piano, guitar, and drums, as well as Rhodes electric organ and glockenspiel) into…
