By Jonathan Alvira Trinidad JamesCelebrity TheatreJune 8, 2013 Groupies, strippers and first-time stage dancers were “turnt” up all night with Mr. “All Gold Everything” himself. As I watched a blonde bombshell from the crowd get pulled on stage to shake her ass for the screaming fans, I came to a…
If you want to see the Refreshments, who haven’t played together as a band since 1998, now might be a good time to figure out whether you’re legally allowed to go to Mexico. I don’t mean to spoil this week’s Must-See Phoenix Shows This Weekend, but it might take you…
Mumford and Sons (See the complete slideshow here)Desert Sky PavilionJune 5, 2013 Love ’em or hate ’em, Mumford and Sons’ popularity continues to grow. Last night’s sold-out show at Desert Sky Pavilion puts the band in a league with some of the Valley’s other huge indie shows from previous years–but…
By Eric Ruchensky CeremonyRhythm RoomJune 4, 2013 For indie-rock-loving dudes who required something harder-edged than the Generationals show at the Crescent on Tuesday night, Stateside brought four — two local, two touring — hardcore heavyweight bands to Phoenix’s premier juke joint, The Rhythm Room. Veteran locals Move Forward kicked off…
Hardcore/post-punk act Ceremony returns to Rhythm Room tonight, and it is not a show to miss. I saw the band perform for the first time about six months ago, opening for Titus Andronicus. The vibe of the night was a little weird — it was Election Night — but it…
The Refreshments are back. The fizzy, fuzzy, big, and buzzy ’90s band behind the hit “Banditos” is scheduled to reunite for one show only — but not in their home state or even their home country. The good news is that the gig is only as far as Puerto Peñasco,…
by Reyan Ali If you ever need a record cover to justify that cliché about a picture being worth a thousand words, Michael Kiwanuka’s Home Again does the trick. His 2012 debut full-length sports a stark closeup of its creator’s face draped in half-shadow and wearing a pensive expression. You…
We talked to John O’Callaghan of The Maine Monday afternoon about their upcoming tour, the way moving to analog recording changed their sound on Forever Halloween, and what their goals are after a brief stint with Warner Bros. But before they kick their tour off with a free performance at…
If you’re looking for proof that yesterday’s indie sound is today’s mainstream sound, you could do worse than examining the record sales of Imagine Dragons and Mumford & Sons, two enormously successful rock acts that spend most of their time blurring what was already a pretty blurry line. If you’re…
Music festivals have been around for decades, and they’re only becoming more popular. Each year, millions of fans fly around the world to attend more than 270 fests of various genres in the United States alone. They aren’t a cheap experience, either: between festival tickets, travel, hotels and basics like…
June is here (basically.) All across the Valley, people are glancing nervously at the sun, aware that at some point in the next month rising temperatures are going to force them into a kind of ersatz air-conditioning hibernation until sometime just after Christmas. Or maybe that’s just me. But hey:…
Fleetwood Mac US Airways Center See the full slideshow of the concert May 30, 2013 It would be challenging, at best, to attempt to write an objective concert review about a band that your love for borders on obsession, so I’m not going to try. Fleetwood Mac’s show at US…
Taylor Swift sold out Jobing.com Arena in Glendale twice this week, which means–if we’re doing our math right–that she was able to get more than 25,000 Taylor Swift fans in, processed, and out for their Best Nights Ever in 48 hours. We couldn’t possibly hope to catch all of the…
When the kind of band I usually go see plays the same setlist over and over, I get a little indignant. If Taylor Swift plays the same setlist Wednesday night that she did Tuesday at Jobing.com Arena, I’ll forgive her–when the grand finale involves a ticker tape parade, a bunch…
Taylor Swift (See the complete slideshow here.)Jobing.com Arena, GlendaleMay 28, 2013 First, you’ll notice the makeup — you’ll notice, more generally, the feeling of being underdressed in the company of 9-year-olds. All around Westgate, which feels itself like a mock downtown, a big occasion to play-act at sophistication, you’ll notice…
by K.C. Libman Taylor Swift is far from just a female-only icon at this point. The erstwhile country star’s crossover appeal has placed her firmly inside the pop pantheon, and it’s more apparent than ever that Swift’s infectious sound is the definition of radio-ready. Show me a red-blooded American male…
Taylor Swift is just hours away from Prince-ing Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, and people are — well, people are conflicted about it. It isn’t that individuals are conflicted — it’s just that the music fans of the Valley are, to a [wo]man, either incredibly excited or aggressively, vocally indifferent. Taylor…
“Just sit back and watch,” my friend tells me. “It’s hilarious.” What he’s referring to is the kind of collective hysteria that typically erupts among crowds of 16- to 19-year-olds at Joyce Manor shows. I had never seen the band live before Monday night, but I was told it was…
Punk Rock Bowling, Day Three FLAG, D.R.I., The Subhumans, and The Casualties Monday, May 27, 2013 Last night featured what was perhaps the most highly anticipated show of the entire festival — FLAG. Two reunited versions of Black Flag currently exist, and the lineup with original members Keith Morris, Dez…
Punk Rock Bowling, Day Two (view the full slideshow) Bad Religion, Turbonegro, Lagwagon, and Bouncing Souls Sunday, May 26 The second day of Punk Rock Bowling was full of some of the biggest names in punk, representing the past and present members of Epitaph and Fat Wreck Records like a…
Limp BizkitMarquee Theatre (view the full slideshow.)May 26, 2013 There were plenty of terrible covers, outfits, and just an overall lack of effort as rap-rockers Limp Bizkit did their best to relive the ’90s Sunday night at the Marquee Theatre. The band hit the stage to begin its 90-minute set…
Devo, The DamnedPunk Rock Bowling, Las Vegas (View the full slideshow.)May 25, 2013 The Punk Rock Bowling Music Festival had a strong start, though some bands like Swingin’ Utters (who bowled today as “Swingin’ Gutters”) had to rush to the festival after the bowling tournament ended around 6 p.m. This…
