After discovering that MxPx lead singer Mike Herrera was coming to Tempe’s Yucca Tap Room with his rockabilly/country side project Tumbledown, I knew I had to check it out for sheer curiosity alone. I’ve been an MxPx fan for years and have seen the band live on numerous occasions. And…
SxSW Wrap Up Whether you’re trying to put back together the memories you made after being hit by the speeding truck that was this weekend’s SxSW music festival or you’re a local who couldn’t make the trip, we’ve got all the slide shows and articles to catch up on what…
It’s no secret that we at Up on the Sun love local music. Hell, our music editor just made the journey to SxSW to make sure you get to read first-hand accounts of how Miniature Tigers, Kinch, Dear and the Headlights and several other Phoenix bands did in Austin, Texas…
Of all the Arizona bands at SxSW, no one had a higher profile than Dear and the Headlights. They played five shows over the course of the five-day festival, including headlining the I Heart AZ showcase and the same official showcase at Spiro’s that Miniature Tigers played.I caught up with…
[jump] FRIDAY, MARCH 20: The Anchor Tour With The Wedding, & more [Christian rock] 7 p.m., $12 (visit www.ticketforce.com) The Church at Arrowhead, 7902 W. Union Hills Dr., Glendale, 623-572-7902. BeatleMania Live! [tribute band] 7 p.m., $37-$40. (visit www.ticketmaster.com) Casino Arizona at Salt River, 524 N. 92nd St. (off Loop…
In some ways, Arizona’s first “official unofficial” showcase at SxSW wasn’t a big deal. Other cities, states, and countries have been doing it for years. Hell, Seattle’s party is even promoted by a flier in the high-value real estate of the official party envelope you pick up with your badge…
Greetings from the outskirts of Austin, Texas, where we’re holed up in a hotel after a long day of music at South by Southwest’s opening day. What happened? Well, a few Phoenix bands played their showcases, hopefully making an impression on tastemakers and industry types at this massive festival, which…
Beware the “Brides” of March Riding on the heels of December’s “Santarchy,” “The Brides of March,” is the latest whacky social gathering created by Arizona Cacophony Society, the same people responsible for the Idiotarod. Their goal: total inebriation while sporting dresses usually reserved only for days of matrimonial solidification…full story…
My name is Benjamin Leatherman and I’m a former Shizzaholic. Back in 2004, local music message board The Shizz was practically the center of my universe. I used to regularly check the site several times a day to catch up on the most recent gossip and goings-on of the downtown…
Heavily tattooed blues singer/songwriter Jake La Botz will perform twice this weekend – at West Phoenix’s Rogue West on Friday and Tempe’s Last Exit Bar & Grill on Saturday. The Friday show, kicking off somewhere around 9 p.m., will be a more intimate gathering with drink specials throughout the night…
For those of you who may not know, this coming Tuesday is St. Patrick’s Day – a day to revel in the sheer glory of Ireland and all that Irish culture has bestowed upon us. As I have also been told, St. Patrick’s Day is an excuse to get shitfaced…
[jump] THURSDAY, MARCH 12: Bob That Head Tour With Rascal Flatts, & Jessica Simpson [country/pop] 8 p.m., $40-$78.75 (visit www.ticketmaster.com) Cricket Wireless Pavilion, 2121 N. 83rd Ave., Phoenix, 602-254-7200. Neil Halstead With Courtney Marie Andrews [indie/folk] 8 p.m., $10-$12 (visit www.ticketweb.com) Rhythm Room, 1019 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, 602-265-4842…
By No Age standards, last night’s 45-minute show at Modified Arts was an epic. After all, the the Los Angeles-based noise-pop band’s last album, the critically-beloved Nouns, clocks in at only 28:17. Though it normally feels a little short for a headliner, even at a small club, 45 minutes was…
All week we’ve been sharing personal essays about Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity, online and in print. Sadly, I don’t have a Clarity story because I wasn’t in to the Mesa emo/pop act until my college paper got an advance copy of Bleed American, the follow-up to Clarity, in July 2001…
I’ve been in my fair share of mosh pits, but I’m pretty thankful that I wasn’t in any of the three or four that raged on all through Slipknot’s show at Jobing.com Arena on Thursday night. Swirling like tornadoes full of teen angst and shirtless fat dudes, the pits dominated…
For those of you who have been keeping tabs on the Arizona Brewer’s Guild recent run of beer festivals, you know, full well, that the 21st Annual Great Arizona Beer Festival is this Saturday and Sunday at Tempe Beach Park from 2-6 PM. Hoping to piggyback on the success of…
[jump] THURSDAY, MARCH 5: Asylum Street Spankers[folk/jazz/roots/world]8 p.m., $14 (visit www.rhythmroom.com)Rhythm Room, 1019 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix, 602-265-4842. Margarita Escarpa[Latin/Spanish guitar]7:30 p.m., $7-$18 (visit music.asu.edu)Katzin Concert Hall, 40 E. Gammage Pkwy. (ASU School of Music Building), Tempe, 480-965-3371. Dominick Farinacci[jazz]8:30 & 10 p.m., $10 (visit www.voceristoranteandlounge.com)Voce Ristorante & Lounge,…
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better-preserved 57-year-old rock star than Chrissie Hynde. Onstage at Dodge Theatre Wednesday night, the Pretenders frontwoman looked incredible and sounded exactly as she did 30 years ago, when the band recorded their eponymous debut. Really. Her distinctive voice — a raspy coo that’s been…
Zack de la Rocha Leads an Army Against Joe Arpaio’s Racist Rule: My conservative estimate is that today 3,000 to 4,000 people braved 90 degree weather to march from Steele Indian School Park to the Sandra Day O’Connor Federal Courthouse in downtown Phoenix to protest Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s immigration abuses…full…
Like a lot of people, I really, really need to be in the mood to listen to third wave ska. And by “in the mood” I mean I need to be in high school again. Still, I kinda dig Tempe’s 2 Tone Lizard Kings. Sure, the time I saw them,…
Considering Frank Zappa’s vast catalog of music, I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only person at Dodge Theatre Thursday night who was surprised when Zappa Plays Zappa’s set kicked off with a Van Halen cover. After a half-hour delay reportedly due to an exhaustive sound check, Dweezil Zappa took the…
The Venue of Scottsdale is gonna become a house of hyphy this Saturday, as the NoCal rap superstar E-40 (a.k.a. the “Ambassador of the Bay”) will take over the joint. We’re expecting plenty of slick rhymes from the “King of Slang,” as well as the myriad local hip-hop artists that…
