MartyParty @ 910 Live

Sometimes the anticipation of sex can be just as thrilling as the act. The same goes for MartyParty’s bass, especially heard in concert. His slow, ever-building melodies — constructed with bleeping synths and snare — peak, then pause, before giving way to deep valleys of dubstep bass lines. As a…

Rocky Votolato @ The Rhythm Room

Rocky Votolato’s music has a hushed, strummy ambiance and bittersweet, minor key melodies that recall Elliott Smith — albeit with more backbeat and a hint of country. Votolato grew up in Dallas before moving to Seattle for high school, and he blends the disparate sensibilities honed in those cities with…

Streetlight Manifesto @ Nile Theater

New Jersey band Streetlight Manifesto is the whole package — all the raucous fun we’ve come to expect from Jersey without the orange tans and irritating accents. Yes, the seven-piece band plays ska punk, a genre that’s irritating almost by default, but they do it so flawlessly that even people…

Roots Rockers Flathead Have Played with Everyone

There’s a musician’s adage that goes something like “Being in a band is like being married to all of its members at the same time.” It’s not surprising most groups collapse after a few years under the weight of petty personal issues (“You’re a dick, dude!”), or the dreaded, clichéd…

12th Planet @ Disco

The popularity of the dubstep scene continues to grow in the Valley. At least four different nights devoted to the bass-heavy genre are operating at local clubs, including Subversion’s Thursday throw-down at Disco, 4301 North Civic Center Plaza in Scottsdale. Anchored by rock star residents HavocNdeeD (the talented twosome made…

Linkin Park’s New Record Is Going to Confuse Some Fans

Saturday Night Live has just come back from a commercial break, and tonight’s host, former longtime cast member Dana Carvey, smiles, looks into the camera and says, “Ladies and gentleman, Linkin Park.” It’s the second time that the band has played the show and, tonight, they’re there to play two…

Celebrating George Jones’ Big Comeback

George “No Show” Jones is coming to town, so you’re probably expecting all the cliché jokes (“Well, he’s scheduled to play on Thursday . . .”). But that would be lazy, and, honestly, you can make only so many jokes about a concert not happening. Since the rest of the…

Canibus @ Club Red

Canibus is probably best remembered for his feuds with LL Cool J, Wyclef Jean, and Eminem, but the Jamaican-born rapper has kept busy in the years since those famous tiffs of the late ’90s and early ’00s. Outside of a two-year stint in the U.S. Army, Canibus has remained prolific…

Telekinesis @ The Sail Inn

Michael Benjamin Lerner is a Seattle-based indie rock musician who performs under the moniker Telekinesis. Though he was a solo act before hiring two guns for his latest album, his foil on this particular project has long been Chris Walla, a guitarist who plays in Death Cab For Cutie. Walla,…

Seven Nights of DJs and Dancing

THURSDAY 24 Bar Smith: Splash Thursday (reggae, dancehall, Top 40, house) Bobby C’s: DJ Willie B. (old school) Bobby Q’s: All-Star Thursdays (hip-hop, Top 40) BS West: Intravenous Thursdays (goth, industrial, electronic, ’80s) Chilly Bombers: DJ Gregg (Top 40, rock, old school) Cream Stereo Lounge: Blush Thursdays (Top 40, hip-hop,…

Dave Matthews Band Announces Multiple “Mini-Festivals”

It turns out that Dave Matthews Band won’t be taking the year off after all, according to Billboard.Tuesday afternoon the band made consecutive announcements about “mini-festivals” that they will be playing this summer via their Twitter (@davematthewsbnd). They tweeted, “DMB will host 4 3-day music fests across the US this…

Is Mesa Amphitheatre in Trouble? Outdoor Venue Losing Revenue Fast

A story in today’s Arizona Republic should worry all local music fans. The paper reports that Mesa Amphitheatre, a grassy 5,000-capacity outdoor amphitheater has entered a world of hurt as it loses out on big-name acts booked into another city-owned space, Mesa Arts Center, and other competitors.The Republic story paints a picture that’s…

AgesandAges, “No Nostalgia”

: AgesandAges, “No Nostalgia”Context: I really, really dig Alright You Restless, the debut from this Portland seven-piece that sort of reminds me of Go Team! meets The Decemberists. This is the first song but the entire record is very, very good. Agesandages – No Nostalgia by mmcizmar…

311 Made the Marquee Theatre Feel So Good

The band was all about sharing their high energy and extreme positivity with the crowd a few months before their annual summer Unity Tour will kick off.Read what 311 fans had to say about the show, and check out our review here:@brodElla311: 311 BABY! 311-3-3-11!!!!!@hellocindy: 311 days left in the…

From Print: Blogs Teased in Our 2/24 Issue

​This week, New Times ran a list 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’s up with Frankie Muniz’s alleged suicide threat? How fast is the Arcade Fire show at…

Club Candids: Shake! Six Year Anniversary at The Rogue Bar

Shake! may have ended two years ago, but the original DJs got together last Saturday to celebrate the dance party’s six year anniversary. The Rogue Bar was packed with Scottsdale’s sexiest and strangest patrons, who resurrected the party once more. DJs spun a mix of indie, brit pop, 80’s rock,…

Courtney Marie Andrews, Smith Family Band, Banana Gun, Mergence, Hooves, and Gospel Claws Tapped for Creamy Radio Stage at McDowell Mountain Music Festival

McDowell Mountain Music Festival named its headliners more than a month ago — Edward Sharpe, Black Joe Lewis and Xavier Rudd probably having the most mass appeal. Now local independent web radio station Creamy Radio has announced the acts playing the local state they schedule. New Times covergirl Courtney Marie Andrews,…

311 at the Marquee Theatre Last Night

311 Marquee Theatre February 22, 2011 Until last night I had never attended a sold out show at the Marquee. I had also never been surrounded by fans chanting any band’s name as loudly as the audience of lovable stoners did last night as they waited anxiously for 311 to…

Matt Pond on Recording, Severed Tendons, and Texas

Matt Pond recorded his most recent album, The Dark Leaves in a secluded New York cabin last year. Looking to get away from the cold solitude of the cabin, he went to Austin a couple weeks ago to begin recording his ninth full-length album.He is about to embark on a…