LIGHTSOctober 27, 2010Nile TheaterIt’s got to be tough for a petite young lady to fill the Nile Theater stage, especially when your band has only three people in it.But Canada-based LIGHTS managed to hold her own at last night’s show, as the electro pop singer energized the room with her…
Gorillaz Comerica Theatre 10/26/2010 Twelve years ago Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett decided to create a cartoon band. The concept was to separate celebrity from pop music. This was the perfect vehicle for someone like Albarn, who is probably best known as the front man for Brit pop legends Blur…
If you’re a fan of indie pop act Never Shout Never, Thursday, October 28 at Marquee Theatre is your last chance in the Valley to see the band as you’ve grown to love them. That’s because frontman Christofer Drew says he’s getting rid of the NSN moniker and is forming…
Built To Spill Marquee Theatre, Tempe Tuesday, October 26, 2010 Built To Spill’s Tuesday show at Marquee Theatre was one for the die-hards. While the hips kids paid upwards of $100 to watch Damon Albarn’s Gorillaz cartoon/art-rap spectacular down the theater formerly known as Dodge, a crustier sort gathered to…
Foxy Shazam October 25, 2010 Rhythm Room Foxy Shazam left the crowd buzzing about a performance they’ll be discussing for days after an exciting, action-packed show at the Rhythm Room last night. Singer Eric Nally came out spinning in circles with a huge grin while wearing face-eater sunglasses. The timid…
Independents Bowl at Let It Roll Bowl: The annual charity bowling event featuring Phoenix scenesters rolling for the benefit of Local First Arizona took place on Sunday, October 24, featuring a veritable “who’s who” amongst the Valley’s music scene. Members of such bands as Captain Squeegee, Scorpion vs. Tarantula, Snake!…
It was the day-drinkin’-est Independents Bowl yet. By noon on Sunday, an hour before the 1 p.m. first roll, Let It Roll Bowl’s bar was already filled with hipster bowlers knocking back $2.50 PBR tallboys and ordering pitchers of Miller Lite. You had to feel a little sorry for the…
Why wait for the weekend when you can start your Halloween festivities on “hump day”? Marshall “Fucking” Beck, one of the Valley’s most prolific and controversial heavy metal musicians, is getting a head start on the season with a Halloween bash at Martini Ranch Wednesday night. Beck is scheduled to…
Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the release of their debut album, Cake, the Trashcan Sinatras find themselves at a career crossroads. Two of the band’s four remaining original members reside in their native Scotland, while the other two now live in sunny Southern California.”We’ve already written a couple of songs…
Ra Ra RiotClubhouse Music VenueFriday, October 22, 2010On Friday night, I was sure the Ra Ra Riot show would sell out, but I was so very wrong. Maybe it was because Sufjan Stevens was playing his own sold-out show, or maybe it was because people had never heard of Ra…
Veterans Memorial Coliseum at the Arizona State FairSaturday, October 23, 2010Last night’s Bret Michaels concert came with a fair amount of trepidation. What were fans to expect? Was Michaels going to play a show full his newer, solo material with his aptly-namned Bret Michaels Band? Or would he play a…
Jónsi Marquee Theatre in Tempe Saturday, October 23, 2010 Even when he sings in English, I have absolutely no idea what Jónsi is saying. But at last night’s show at the Marquee Theatre, that didn’t matter at all. His music transcended language barriers, and was understood as a profoundly moving…
Sufjan StevensMesa Arts CenterFriday, October 22. It didn’t take Sufjan Stevens long to bust out the banjo at his sold-out Mesa Arts Center show. The Detroit-bred, Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter picked up the instrument just after taking stage, opening with the title track from Seven Swans, which is both his most parred-down and…
Caitlin CronenbergLIGHTSSome musicians like to drink, party and hang out with groupies while they’re on tour. For LIGHTS, a spunky little 23-year-old Canadian who has played on Vans Warped Tour and with Owl City, playing World of Warcraft is the perfect way to unwind. And the electro pop singer hopes…
Dayglow Brings Paint to the Marquee What do you get when you pack the Marquee full of ravers dressed in white, get the DJs spinning, and dump a few hundred gallons of paint on the crowd? Answer: Dayglow, “America’s Largest Paint Party.” Check out the messy fun in our Dayglow…
Everyone’s heard of the Final Fantasy video game series, but few people have heard of the Final Fantasy I’m writing about: Owen Pallett. What does one have to do with the other, you may ask?Pallett, who opened for The National at Marquee Theatre last night, the Canadian violin virtuoso, used…
Luke HolwerdaThe National live at Marquee Theatre in Tempe.The NationalOctober 14, 2010Marquee Theatre in TempeThe National’s singer, Matt Berninger, has a reputation for performing drunk. It hasn’t been a huge problem — never leading to a canceled tour or even ruining a high-profile show as far as I know –…
Sleigh Bells October 13, 2010 The Clubhouse An army of sweaty hipsters turned out for Brooklyn pop metal duo Sleigh Bells at the Clubhouse last night. They didn’t have to wait long for a full-on onslaught of cute, noisy, pop. It didn’t last long, either. The whole thing was over…
Jack JohnsonOctober 10, 2010Cricket Wireless PavilionLast night’s Jack Johnson show was like an episode of late night television where the host casually invites all his famous friends to chill on stage with him. The stage gradually got more crowded with the Brushfire Records family as he played on.Jack kicked off…
CaribouClubhouse Music VenueOctober 9, 2010Canadian electronic act Caribou is essentially only one person, Dan Snaith. At least in the studio. When Snaith, who I was lucky enough to interview for this week’s print edition hits the road, however, he is joined by bandmates.The question is what they do. How do…
Every Dying DayClub Red puts on a massive rock festival tonight and tomorrow, Saturday, October 9, but don’t rely on the www.clubredrocks.com website to figure out which of the more than 50 bands to see.The bands on the site do not necessarily correspond with the day they’re playing, and rock…
Jonathan McNamaraTom Petty and The HeartbreakersUS Airways CenterOctober 7, 2010Phoenix fans had to wait a few extra weeks to see Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Once the veteran heartland rocker took the stage, though, they didn’t have to wait for the hits. Petty came out swinging, opening with four of…
