2016 Phoenix music news: Roger Clyne and more
Check out the latest Phoenix local music news for 2017 here.
There are two thing people tend to do on New Year’s Eve: looking back on the year that’s ending and looking forward to the new year.
And when I got the opportunity to talk to Roger Clyne about his New Year's Eve show with the Peackemakers at the Celebrity Theatre, I asked him what he saw when he looked back on 2016.
“It was a blast,” he enthuses. “But it was also a blur because it was the ‘Fizzy Fuzzy (Big and Buzzy)’ anniversary. First of all, that two decades just blew by and then we started our commemorative shows here in the Valley at the Yucca Tap Room in February. We did 12 or 13 of those Yucca shows. And then we hit the road in March and didn’t get back until the end of November. So it was the earliest start and the latest finish to a tour. We saw a lot of people and we had a lot of fun. But as I looked at it on the calendar, going into it, it looked like it would be a really long year. Now I look back and think, ‘Where did it go?’ I guess I have to lean on that old maxim: Time flies when you’re having fun. I kind of wish I could do it again, it was so much fun.”
People have been asking if they plan on celebrating any other anniversaries.
“Fans are asking ‘Well, how many anniversary records are you doing?’ Because ‘The Bottle & Fresh Horses’ comes up next year and then in 2019, it’ll be ‘Honky Tonk Union.’ But I’m still writing music. We did a lot of writing, actually, this year. And we’ve begun our sort of preliminary discussions with a really cool producer – a cat who’s in Los Lobos, Steve Berlin. He’s overseeing our direction right now in terms of production.”
Berlin is a brilliant producer and a perfect fit, in many ways, for Clyne’s approach to rock and roll.
“I love his work,” Clyne says. “I love his ethos. He came to a couple of shows of ours in Portland, came backstage, hung on the bus and said, ‘Look I only work with what I like and I really like what you’re doing. I want to do your record.”
At this point, it’s all just a matter of lining up schedules.
“We’ve already shared about nine songs with him that he’s already given us some good comments and direction on,” Clyne says. “We’re doing our very best to line up our schedules in time to get it out by June. I feel really blessed that he’s a fan and we could stumble into him. I’ve been in the business a long time, but he’s been in it longer and his body of work is impressive. When a guy like that stoops down and says, ‘I want to work with you,’ it feels odd but very good.
The goal is to record at Wavelab Studio in Tucson.
“So we’re hoping that our touring schedule, the studio’s availability and his touring schedule allow us to get in there in February and March,” Clyne says, “which means as soon as we’re done with these ’76 songs, we’re gonna start doing pre-production in early January here at home. It’s a pretty ambitious schedule, but we’re hopeful.”
As to how it’s shaping up, direction-wise, Clyne shrugs it off with “I don’t know. And I’m OK with that. Typically, I have a statement of intent before I go into writing a record. But with this one, the only thing I wanted to do was to not lean on all my old habits, because as a writer, I’ve got 20 years of habit. Some of them are successful and some of them aren’t. And I wanted to make sure that before I used these devices again, that I was scrutinizing them. I really tried to stretch the envelope in my writing in terms of subject matter and chord progressions and compositionally. There’s clearly something to be said for pop sensibility but I’m trying to stretch out and listen to stuff like Los Lobos or we were just talking about Jeff Lynne. Those guys shed a lot of light on the art form and I’m standing here kind of in awe while trying to incorporate the new stuff they’ve been showing me.”
Asked if there’s anything else he’s looking forward to in the new year, Clyne says, “Yeah, we’re doing the return of January Jams, our little festival in Mexico. Circus Mexicus in June is our big one and then we do kind of a miniature one in January. We skipped it last year in favor of rehearsals for the ‘Fizzy Fuzzy’ commemorative shows. So we’re bringing it back and we’re doing it at three different venues which we haven’t gotten to do for a while. Traditionally, January Jam is just at JJ’s Cantina. But this year, we’re doing the 13th at Banditos, then the 14th at JJ’s and the 15th at Wrecked at the Reef. We’re doing different sets each night and Jared and the Mill are going to accompany us. So I’m stoked to be getting back down there and putting that back on the calendar.”
The Darts sign to U.K. label Dirty Water Records, album due next summer
Last month, the Darts threw a record-release celebration at Valley Bar in honor of their first EP.
Now comes news that they've already signed to Dirty Water Records, the in-house label of a legendary London club night named in honor of the Standells' "Dirty Water."
An all-female garage/psychedelic rock supergroup featuring Nicole Laurenne and Christina Nunez of the Love Me Nots together with Michelle Balderrama of Brainspoon and Rikki Styxx of the Dollyrots, the Darts joined forces early this year when the Love Me Nots went on what Laurenne says is a "a semi-permanent hiatus."
They've released two EPs in the past few months and the hope is to have a full-length effort out on Dirty Water by next summer.
Laurenne says she's been trying to get the attention of Dirty Water for years "because of their perfect taste in trashy garage punk and their great media presence." And it's easy enough to hear why a label like that would take an active interest in the Darts, whose music more than lives of to the promise of putting those particular musicians in the same room -- especially given the reckless abandon with which they make their way through tracks as instantly engaging as "Revolution" and "Carry Me Home."
Dirty Water "finally stopped ignoring me this Fall," Laurenne says. "One of their PR guys, a real sweetheart named Matt Hunter, came to the US and asked to meet with me in Phoenix. There was an instant connection, being that we know a lot of the same bands and people around the world, and have pretty much the same taste in music."
"It's a solid indie label," Laurenne says, "that will allow us a ton of freedom to do what we want creatively but will also give the Darts a presence overseas, which has been one of the band's goals. The label is connected closely with Trash Can Radio, an exciting new UK-based radio show that is starting to come into its own, and it also has top notch physical distribution worldwide. We are really looking forward to playing in Europe this May and putting out a new full-length release on the Dirty Water imprint over the summer. The band could not be more psyched about what 2017 holds."
As for this year, it still holds a Phoenix show on Saturday, Dec. 17, at Lost Leaf with the Vooduo and 16 Eyes. The action starts at 9 p.m.
Snake! Snake! Snakes! return with even more new music for 2016
It’s only been eight months since Snake! Snake! Snakes! released “Tranquilo,” as strong a contender as I can imagine for the title of best local album of the year. And here they are with something new – a four-song EP called “Wait Up,” recorded at Tucson’s Midtown Island Studios with producer Matt Rendon.
And if the first track they’ve shared from the EP – a piano-rocking opener called “Breakdown” – is any indication, it would seem this record picks up pretty much exactly where the last one left off, with reckless abandon to spare.
The full EP should be released before the week is out. And they’re planning on making a video. In the meantime, you should definitely check out “Breakdown.”
Bassist Christopher Sanchez says, “We had no plan for the release whatsoever. It was kind of by accident really. We were supposed to go on a small weekend tour through New Mexico and Colorado, but were having trouble getting bands and venues locked so we just decided to cancel and use the days to go record.”
They’d heard about Rendon through friends who had recorded there, he says, and they had nothing but great things to say. Now, Snake! Snake! Snakes! have nothing but great things to say as well.
“We think it sounds great,” Sanchez says of the EP, which Rendon recorded and mixed in three days in October. “And he really captured what we felt we sound like live.”
Crescent Ballroom's biggest New Year's Eve block party yet
Crescent Ballroom has announced the details on its biggest New Year's Eve block party yet. The club is blocking off both Second and Third avenues outside the venue with entertainment by Kalliope & the Walter Show, DJ Sean Watson and Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra.
Crescent owner Charlie Levy says, "Every year, New Year’s Eve at Crescent gets bigger and bigger. This year, we’re expecting thousands of people and the thing that makes it exciting for us is all the different experiences under one roof."
Most of the action is actually under one sky, taking place outside the venue.
"We’re getting the guys from Walter Productions to bring all their fun, crazy art cars from Burning Man to take over the back parking lot and Third Avenue with their artistic direction and Burning Man sensibility," Levy says. "So we’re gonna have a really fun dance party in the back lot. Inside Crescent, we want to kind of keep it a little more relaxed and quiet, where if you want to go and have a cocktail and sit at a table and have maybe a little bit more of a quiet evening, you have that going on. And then we’re closing down Second Avenue to have Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra play outside with some really fun DJs. Plus, with the balcony now, you can sit on the balcony and watch them do their thing."
Levy says there's something very special going on at midnight in that back lot.
"I can’t tell you what it is," he says. "But everyone is gonna have their cellphone out taking pictures of this."
Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra's David Marquez says, "It's going to be an Apocalyptadelic-it's-the-end-of-the-world-so-lets-go-crazy vibe with human capital, flames from the depths of the earth, and the most raw/primal grooves to dance the night away!"
Tickets are $17, on sale now at crescentphx.com.
Jimi Hendrix pedals and amp to be auctioned in Scottsdale
A small yet truly awe-inspiring treasure trove of musical items once used by the late Jimi Hendrix is going up for auction New Year's Day at J. Levine Auction & Appraisal in Scottsdale. The items – a wah-wah pedal custom-built for Hendrix prior to his legendary Woodstock set, an amp used in his earliest days at the helm of the Hendrix Experience, and a prototype three-transistor fuzz pedal – have been consigned by Dave Weyer, or the Amp Doctor, as he’s been billed.
Weyer, who designed both pedals and repaired and modified the amp, worked with many of the premiere artists of the Woodstock era, including Neil Young, Crosby Stills and Nash, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Vanilla Fudge, Three Dog Night, and Ike and Tina Turner.
“We’ve spent a lot of time reviewing the provenance, listening to audio recordings, and examining photos and films from Woodstock, and we are confident that this was the wah pedal Jimi used during Woodstock,” said Antoine Gedroyc, J. Levine’s instruments and audio manager and consignment specialist. “It’s an honor and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent such an important part of music and American history.”
Weyer says of the wah-wah pedal: “It can be identified by the lack of a Vox logo on the front, the relief where the logo was supposed to be glued on, a West Coast sticker on the bottom, and Jimi’s signature on the inside of the casing wall, applied at a difficult angle, but identifiable nonetheless — and, of course, the things he loved the most, the low noise and the sharp sweep, clearly audible in the Woodstock recordings.”
Sebastian Bach signing memoir in Phoenix
Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach will be in Phoenix on Monday, Dec. 12, to sign his new memoir at Changing Hands Phoenix.
"18 and Life on Skid Row" discusses his rise to fame, touring with the likes of Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Motley Crue, Soundgarden, Pantera, Nine Inch Nails and Guns N’ Roses, the breakup of his band and his personal life.
If you go: 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 12. Changing Hands Phoenix, 300 W. Camelback Rd., Phoenix. Hardcover book is $27.99. 602-274-0067, www.changinghands.com.
MRCH get well-deserved national launch for new 'Glitter McQueen' music video
Consequence of Sound had nothing but praise for Phoenix-based synth-pop revivalists MRCH when they premiered the duo’s new video, “Glitter McQueen.”
“There’s a lot you can do with a Korg and a drum kit, as a listen to MRCH’s new single ‘Glitter McQueen’ proves," the rave began. "The electronic duo have carved out a nice place for themselves in the CHVRCHES vein of synthpop, and their relatively modest setup belies the complex pop hooks at the core of songs like this one.”
And as complex pop hooks go, they're pretty undeniable, from the opening synth line to Mickey Pagburn’s expert pouting of “I can’t seem to get it together” on the chorus.
The music video, directed by Frank Thomas, makes the most of the lead singer’s videogenic possibilities as she and drummer Jesse Pagburn perform the song at a house party before cutting to footage of Mickey alone in her bedroom rocking a Mickey Mouse T-shirt while working on music surrounded by vinyl (Talking Heads, “Footloose” soundtrack, “Some Girls”). This is all before she's transformed into Glitter McQueen.
“It's pretty straightforward really," the singer explains. "We worked with Frank Thomas to convey a pretty obvious message complete with ‘perfection’ manifesting as a literal mannequin. The chorus harkens to the overall concept - that we just ‘can't seem to get it together.’ It can be incredibly difficult to live up to others’ ideals of how you should be, but in the end it's all Glitter McQueen - a fabrication of what's beautiful, or cool, a facade. It's a shallowness. The video kinda shows the artist process we go through. The alone-in-a-room-scratching-out-some-chords phase... to creating something... to sharing that something (aka the party scene) which can really be one of the most fun parts. Followed by the glamorized photoshoot scene -- which was meant to show that aspect of trying to fit a particular mold or be liked and accepted. Often to be ‘good enough,’ we fight the compulsion to change everything about ourselves. That's why the character in that scene looks so strikingly different than the others. To show a false image. Art makes us vulnerable, but our hope is to not let that hold us back from being sincere.”
There is No Us mixing EP with Slayer producer Terry Date
Phoenix’s There is No Us have enlisted the aid of famed metal producer/engineer Terry Date, whose credits range from Metal Church to Deftones, Pantera and Slayer, to mix their new EP at his Seattle studio.
Date says, “With the current events in America, the message in their music is as important and relevant as ever, and that's exciting.”
Scheduled for a spring release, "Generation of Failure” finds the local rockers taking aim at Donald Trump, economic inequality, political corruption and online bullying.
Singer Jim Louvau says when he and guitarist Andy Gerold, a former member of Marilyn Manson, first started working on music together, they were writing songs with Date in mind.
“So it felt like the perfect match when he decided he wanted to be a part of the project,” Louvau says. “Terry's back catalogue of records includes some of the most important metal releases all of time but what really struck us was newer records he's produced like Bring Me The Horizon's 'Sempiternal.’"
Louvau and Gerold formed There Is No Us in early 2015 to “expose the failure of the human race,” as they put it, adding bassist Amy Abramite and guitarist Jared Bakin to the fold before releasing their debut EP, "Farewell To Humanity," in September.
Support the station that supports the scene at KWSS-FM Pledge Drive weekend
We’re heading into Pledge Drive Weekend for the community-driven independent station most likely to spin your favorite local music, KWSS-FM (93.9). And they’re kicking it off this Friday with a local-music showcase at Pho Cao, where you should definitely plan on eating lunch or dinner, maybe both, because the food is awesome. They’re broadcasting live from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
For those who may be wondering “Why a pledge drive?,” I can answer that.
KWSS-FM is a non-profit station that relies on listener support to underwrite expenses such as music licensing, promotional materials, broadband connectivity, studio and transmitter facilities, insurance, power, web hosting and phones to consider. Unlike NPR or PBS, KWSS is not a part of a larger network of stations. FCC regulations requires the station to be fully independent and locally operated here in Phoenix.
This is why they can support so many local artists. That and the exquisite taste of folks like Dani Cutler, who says, “The reason I have been volunteering my time to KWSS for nearly 10 years now is not only for my love of music, but the community. We are supportive of each other and all I want to do is help these local bands be recognized for their talents and hard work. Our station is the only independent alt-rock station on the FM dial, and we have the freedom to give them the air time they deserve. The Pledge Drive is a great introduction to KWSS and many of the bands we support.”
You can make donations now at http://bit.ly/PledgeDrive2016
Or go to Pho Cao Friday to check out this lineup of locals.
11:00 AM Ruca
12:00 PM Mikey Foresteater
1:00 PM Mill's End (Jeff Bump)
2:00 PM Shawn Johnson
3:00 PM The Glides
4:00 PM Exploding Oranges
5:00 PM Manic Monkeys
Jimmy Eat World join Artists for a Trump-Free America
Jimmy Eat World have joined forces with R.E.M., Moby and more in the Artists for a Trump-Free America project 30 Days, 50 Songs. It was originally 30 Days, 30 Songs, but so many artists came forward with music, they had to expand it to 50.
The Washington Post has declared it “a playlist of songs that Donald Trump will hate” and no fewer than four of the songs were featured on our Best October Singles playlist, from Aimee Mann singing “I don’t want this job / My god, can’t you tell? I’m unwell” in character as Trump to Death Cab for Cutie’s “Million Dollar Loan.”
The goal of the project, according to David Eggers, who assembled the playlist with Jordan Kurland, is to “motivate voters to stand against bigotry, sexism, hatred and ignorance.”
The 38th song in the series, released today, is Jimmy Eat World’s “My Enemy,” a jagged post-punk track that would have fit right in with the themes they address on “Integrity Blues,” their latest album.
The lyrics are more about letting go of the fears Jim Adkins feels the Donald Trump campaign has been manipulating than it is about the candidate himself. And like Jim James’ contribution to the project, “Same Old Lie,” it’s a perfect fit that also works outside the context of songs for a Trump-Free America.
“There are dangerous and very real consequences for using fear of ‘The Other’ to motivate a potential electorate,” Jim Adkins. “While that’s nothing new in politics, what is newly alarming in context of the current presidential campaign, is how seemingly effective that strategy has been for a certain candidate. That candidate used the low-hanging fruit of fearmongering to gain his initial momentum and continues to employ variations of it to sustain his place. The only way to steel yourself against that kind of manipulation is to do the real self-work in discovering and letting go of your own fears. While that pursuit is difficult because it means fighting against your own ego, it remains worth the effort — not just for what it can do for us as individuals but even more for what it can do for our collective society. Are you willing to accept that maybe, just possibly, what you feel as a threat, isn’t?”
Or, as he sings in the song, “You feel the tide is rising / That water’s cold as hell / Think enemies surround you / Everyone, except yourself.”
Trunk Space reopens
Well, it looks like the end of the end of an era. The Trunk Space will reopen in a new location less than five months after closing its doors on Grand Avenue.
The venue has issued the following statement about the new digs in Grace Lutheran Church that reads as follows:
"The rumors are true. The Trunk Space is BACK.
After just under five nomadic months, we will have a stable home once again for DIY arts in downtown Phoenix. Yes, we are at Grace Lutheran Church. Maybe you’ve visited at one of our recent pop-up shows? The space we’re occupying is on the south side of their campus, in a space most recently occupied by a health clinic, and a Montessori school. We will continue to provide an open space for performance and art of all kinds, with an emphasis on that of the weirdo persuasion. Our stage will continue to be uncensored, and we already have several exciting shows in the works for you all.
We chose this location for a number of reasons, being walking distance to light rail and three high schools, across the street from our friends at Phoenix Center for the Arts, with plenty of parking onsite, walking distance to bars and restaurants, and still close to a variety of other music venues and art spaces.
With the new space, we’re very excited for new opportunities: art studios, classroom space, and a green room. All of these are in development and we’ll let you know as these get finalized. Our new performance room is about the same size as our old space, but slightly more square. And we have access to the Church’s basement, courtyard, multi-purpose room, and sanctuary for special occasions with acts that might be suited by a different space. And, hey, we might still host pop-up shows with our friends at FilmBar, Phoenix Center for the Arts, and 51West if the occasion calls—we’re flexible!
Also, we are now a nonprofit! Thanks to the fiscal sponsorship of Carefree Write Productions, we can now accept tax-deductible donations. To help with startup costs, we have set up a Razoo crowdfunding page with some fun rewards here: https://www.razoo.com/us/story/Trunk-Space-Opening
The Trunk Space is and will always be all ages, low-cost, volunteer-centered space ready for performance and art of any kind you can create. See something missing? Let us know, and let’s make it happen.
When the Trunk Space decided to leave our long-time home on Grand, we considered leaving for good. Don’t want that to happen? THEN WE NEED YOU! The Trunk Space needs and will always need donors, coffee wizards, door people, bookers and promoters, art installers, sound engineers, social media managers, street team, and anything else that might keep this space running. Now is the time to make an impact.
We look forward to seeing you soon, and stay tuned for show announcements, volunteer needs and more. In the meantime, shoot us a message at thetrunkspace@yahoo.com. We’ll be needing your help to get this thing off the ground.
WE ARE EXCITED.
-Steph, Connor, Aislyn, Jose, Robbie, Amy, Ben, Seth, Alex, and the rest of the Trunk Space family"
Fairy Bones added to national tour after opening sold-out Crescent Ballroom show
Being added to a sold-out show at Crescent Ballroom is always a cause for celebration when you’re playing in a local band. Chelsey Louise of Fairy Bones recalled the mood as they were heading into the Sept. 21 show with Highly Suspect: “The day of the show we were so excited, like kids on Christmas status.” And that’s before it even turned into an invitation to join the Grammy-nominated rockers on a string of West Coast dates.
As Louise and her bandmates were loading out after the show, their first since April, they started talking to the Highly Suspect crew and tour manager. “The conversation basically went like this,” Louise recalls. “’You guys were great, I wish you were on more shows with us!’ ‘We would love to. We will drop everything and do that.’ ‘Oh! Are you guys seriously local?’ ‘Yes. But we can be national?!’"
The next day, Louise woke to an Instagram comment from the group’s lead singer, Johnny Stevens, saying they all enjoyed Fairy Bones’ set and they should do it again sometime.
“We thought, cool; that's (expletive) amazing they like us that much, first show back,” Louise says. “Maybe they hit us up next time they play Phoenix. But then I got a call, asking if we wanted to do some upcoming tour dates. Starting next week. And I literally cried.”
The dates, which start Sept. 29 in Fresno and run through Oct. 10 in Montana, fit perfectly into their schedule. They’d taken some time off to record a single (which made our list of 15 Songs You Need To Hear Right Now) and didn’t have any shows planned until their single release show Oct. 14 at Rebel Lounge
“And like we said to them, we would drop everything and go,” Louise says. “We only work to pay for the band, our house and food. Matt and I ran to Ben’s room to tell him the news and he was like, ‘Maybe they'll fire me.’ In the end, you're not gonna look back and think, ‘Boy am I glad I kept my dead end job.’ S--t like this doesn't happen without sacrifice. If you're serious about a career in music, you know that going in.”
The Sept. 21 show was the first time Louise had played guitar on stage.
“So it was a really intense show for me,” she says. “All the songs are new, too. We don't have synths or piano anymore. I think this really made it feel like the ‘hiatus’ was worth it. Some really s---ty things happened to me, and I completely changed the way I write songs. I think that night and landing this tour felt really validating.”
Thaahum catches ear of 'Luke Cage' show developer
Phoenix rapper Thaahum is so hyped for the Friday, Sept. 30, series premiere of “Marvel’s Luke Cage” on Netflix, he collaborated with another local artist, DJ Big Serg, on a video to celebrate the series. And the show’s developer, Cheo Hodari Coker, has tweeted about it twice since the track premiered Sept. 15 on YouTube, thanking Thaahum for the shout-out.
“As an artist,” Thaahum says, “I feel some of the best music comes out of doing songs about things we like and are fans of ourselves. Being a Marvel fan and hearing that they were releasing a series that has hip-hop elements in it was just the thing to spark my creativity.”
He reached out to DJ Big Serg because he's also a comic book fan.
"Then once we realized we had a dope track," Thaahum says, "we figured the next step would be to make a video out of it, and further hype the September 30th release of Luke Cage. Over the years I've done things like this in the past with great success. Rosario Dawson did a comic book called 'The Occult Crimes Taskforce' that I did a mixtape based on. It actually ended up in her hands & she really liked it. And years before that I did a couple songs about Kevin Smith movies that he liked as well."
On the track, Thaahum sets the tone by rapping, "We'll be glorious the day we see / the Notorious C.A.G.E. / One-fourth of the Defenders' amazing team / No pretenders when it comes to get they streets clean." And before the track is through, there's a shout-out to Jessica Jones, whose Netflix series also features Cage.
Euromerica comp raises funds for Parkinson's research
Melanie Rogoff, an Arizona State University student who hosts a show called Euromerica on ASU's KASC 1330 AM Blaze Radio, has assembled a second compilation CD benefiting Parkinson's disease research.
Released in mid-December, “Euromerica and Friends: Volume 1” raised more than $1,000 for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Disease Research.
“Which is huge,” Rogoff says, “because that was the first time that I ever organized a charity CD. In addition, thousands of people from around the world gained an awareness of Parkinson’s Disease and the CD also exposed them to the amazing talent on the CD.”
The business management major started reaching out to artists about “Volume 2” in May, revisiting the first collection’s blend of local acts and artists from around the globe. This time, there are seven local acts, including IAMWE, Luxxe, Wanderer and 76th Street. The other artists are from California, New York, England, Switzerland, Australia and France.
“To tie in with my radio show, Euromerica (a blend of pop/dance music from Europe and America), I wanted to really have more international artists in comparison to national artists,” Rogoff says. “I feel like a lot of people in America aren’t exposed to international artists unless they’re relatively mainstream, and I really want to expose people to the talent that not only lies within America, but from all over the world. I tried to aim, especially with the second volume, to have as much variety as possible."
The CD is available for sale at http://euromericaradio.bandcamp.com/releases through March 15.
The financial goal for this “Volume 2” is $1,200.
Another goal, she says, is “I thought to myself, ‘If I could introduce a superstar team of artists to the world, who would I have, and what would it look like?' Asking that question allowed me to figure out what artists I wanted to have, and, in turn, helped me realize my musical goal, which is exposing as many people as possible to some of the humblest, hardest-working and talented artists that I have had the pleasure of working with. I certainly would love to spread the word about my radio show as well."
To find out more about the compilation or Euromerica, go to Facebook.com/euromericaradio or Twitter.com/euromericaradio.
Wyves rock Tilted Kilt ads
Local rockers Wyves have been selected for a nationwide campaign of TV ads for Tilted Kilt Pub and Eatery. "Jump Into The Water," the opening track on Wyves' new album, "Spoils of War," plays under all the ads. In the longer ads, there is a point where you can see three members of the group "performing" along to the music (although drummer Evan Knisely is shown on keyboards).
Knisely explains the unusual arrangement: "(Bassist) Brenden (McBride) was out of town at Outside Lands, so we put (guitarist) Nick (Stirling) on bass, and they said no drums but wanted me to still be in it so we just stuck me on keys."
Wyves posted the news on Facebook, saying, "We couldn't be happier to have our music featured for this thriving Arizona based company."
WATCH: Tilted Kilt ad featuring Wyves' song "Jump Into the Water"
Jimmy Eat World plays 93.3 Alt AZ Zombie Prom at Fear Farm
Jimmy Eat World have announced a string of fall tour dates, including a stop in the Valley at Fear Farm – yes, Fear Farm -- in support of “Integrity Blues,” an album due to hit the streets Sept. 30.
The Fear Farm date of Saturday, Oct. 22, is the 93.3 Alt AZ Zombie Prom, which makes more sense than just a random date at Fear Farm. Also playing? Good Charlotte, the Struts, Lewis Del Mar, Barns Courtney, K. Flay and the Hunna.
This is their ninth release and follows “Damage,” their fourth consecutive to go Top 20 on the Billboard album charts.
“Integrity Blues” was produced by Justin Meldal-Johnson, Beck’s musical director.
Jim Adkins explained the inspiration for the album in an open letter to the fans:
“It is about throwing away your default responses to life, accepting life on the terms of life and becoming willing to accept the best any of us have is to be in a state of progress.
Emotional injury is usually our own making…our ego fighting to selectively ignore reality that may not reflect our expectations. When we allow a moment of honesty and look at the gap between our expectations and reality, all too often we find a place to identify as a victim. We take the disappointment gap personally. There is some kind of sick rewards in the imagined moral high ground. Self-righteousness leads to rationalizing tantrum behaviour (which is never a good look!) adding back into the feedback loop reinforcing a lack of self worth.
“Your enemy is you. And unfortunately you know every button to push, every hidden fear and every secret regret. You speak to yourself in your own voice. And you have a very convincing pitch to work against your betterment in the hopes of those finish-line type expectations, maybe… finally… bringing you a sene of peace this time.
“You break that reverse feedback loop of reinforcing negative self-worth through action.
Doing your best to accept and live as a person doesn’t mean you’re always going to be happy. Staying one the best path you can may feel like lonely work sometimes. But then, happiness is one of those fleeting finish lines. Integrity matters because if you let the answer of ‘Who do I need to be?’ inform your question ‘What should I do?’, there just isn’t room for that negative cycle to get traction.”
Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers tour "Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy"
Roger Clyne & The Peacemakers are taking “Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy” by his old band, the Refreshments, on the road for a 20th anniversary tour that starts tonight in Austin, Tex.
Universal Records re-released the album earlier this year on vinyl and a tribute record is forthcoming with singles from Miles Nielsen (“Blue Collar Suicide”) and the Yawpers (“European Swallow”).
22 local Phoenix music picks for September 2016
The Refreshments major label debut, “Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy” put the local rockers on the map out of Tempe’s thriving music scene in 1996. It peaked at #97 on the Billboard Top 200, and spun off the modern-rock radio classic “Banditos.”
All Clyne had in mind going into the making of the album was to “put those songs together so that it could be a classic,” as he told us earlier this year, going on to admit with a laugh, “We were aiming pretty high. But I think every new band should. And in a few people’s minds, we hit the mark.”
Clyne and the Peacemakers honored the 20th anniversary of the album earlier this year by playing the entire album, start to finish, in a run of 10 dates at their former stomping grounds, the Yucca Tap Room.
As I wrote in reviewing the seventh of those Yucca shows: “The Peacemakers approached those 20-year-old songs with an enthusiasm that managed to hit on all the right nostalgic notes while sounding as alive and in the here and now as if they’d written them a week or two before the show.
“Of course, a number of those songs have gone on to be staples of the set. But hearing them played in the order in which they appeared on that Refreshments album on a stage where many of those songs were more than likely shaped by live performance was its own unique experience — which may be why all 10 shows sold out in a hurry.”
The Peacemakers are also in the midst of recording their eighth studio album for release early next year.
The tour dates are as follows.
September 8: Austin, TX @ Antone’s
September 9: Dallas, TX @ Gas Monkey Bar & Grill
September 10: Houston TX @ Firehouse Saloon
September 11: New Orleans, LA @ Parish Room
September 13: St. Louis, MO @ Blueberry Hill
September 14: Des Moines, IA @ Wooly’s
September 15: Sioux Falls, SD @ Icon Lounge
September 16: Minneapolis, MN @ Cabooze
September 18: Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
September 20: Ferndale, MI @ The Magic Bag
September 21: Cleveland, OH @ The Grog Shop
September 22: Milwaukee, WI @ Shank Hall
September 23: Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room
September 25: Fort Collins, CO @ Downtown Artery
October 1: Chandler, TX @ SanTan Brewing Oktoberfest
October 8: Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
October 10: Kansas City, MO @ Knuckleheads
October 11: Bloomington, IL @ The Castle Theatre
October 12: Nashville, TN @ The High Watt
October 13: Atlanta, GA @ Smith’s Olde Bar
October 15: Falls Church, VA @ State Theatre
October 16: Philadelphia, PA @ World Café Live
October 17: New York, NY @ The Highline Ballroom
October 19: Providence, RI @ Fete
October 20: Teaneck, NJ @ Mexicali Live
October 21: Hartford, CT @ Infinity Hall
October 22: Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Downstairs
October 23: Pawling, NY @ Daryl’s House
November 12: Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater
November 18: San Diego, CA @ Belly Up Tavern
November 26: Flagstaff, AZ @ Orpheum Theatre
Beef Vegan leaves Phoenix for Tucson
These are bittersweet days for fans of local music.
Beef Vegan, who took over hosting the TMI Radio Show on KWSS-FM (93.9) in 2009 from a studio set up in what should have been his living room, is moving to Tucson after seven years as the best friend a local musician could hope to have in radio.
But it’s good news for Vegan, whose real name is Brad Pfirmann (yeah, I know, I always wanted to believe it was his real name, too).
He’s taken a job at one of Tucson’s three-biggest corporate radio stations, where he’ll co-host and produce a morning show.
That’s all the information he can give us at the moment. TMI? Not this time.
As Vegas explains the vow of silence, “They want to do this big unveiling with a press release, which sucks. All I can say is I’m going down to one of the top three stations in Tucson. That’s why I’ve been Vaguebooking. I don’t feel good about it. I’m like, “Oh, I’m THAT chick.” But I did it for a reason. They’re gonna do this whole advertising campaign. I think they’re gonna do a ‘Where’s the Beef?’ teaser campaign they’ve been joking about. They’re making kind of a big deal about it, which is cool, especially since I’m coming down there as the No. 2 guy.”
His last day on the air in Phoenix is Friday, Aug. 26. He’ll be broadcasting live from 6-11 a.m. from Stinger’s Sports Bar & Grill at 43rd and Peoria avenues in Glendale.
“We’re doing one last Tequila Sunrise,” Vegan says. “It’s a great opportunity for all the listeners to come out to meet each other and say hi and goodbye to the show. We’re gonna have a bunch of performances from musicians and comedians. And jam sessions and games. It’s really a rare thing to be able to kind of get closure on something like this. Usually, people in radio, they get fired and you just don’t hear from them. A week later, you’re like, “Hey, whatever happened to so-and-so?” We get to do a victory lap and read listener feedback and play some of our favorite songs from the last seven-and-a-half years.”
He even has a final song picked out, which will, of course, be local.
When I spoke to Kongos earlier this year, they talked about Vegan's support and what it meant to them.
“Beef Vegan started playing us in 2011," Jesse Kongos told me. "And obviously it’s a small station with not a lot of power, but it had a core listenership and we were like, ‘All right, there’s this guy Beef Vegan. Let’s send him our songs.’ Then, he tweeted that he was gonna spin it. So we listened and he was, like, raving about it.”
With Vegan’s support, their shows in Phoenix started getting bigger, and as Jesse says, “We were like, ‘Oh, so people hear our music and then they come to the show? That’s a good sign.’ ”
Not that local is the DJ's only legacy on local radio.
“A lot of people focus on the local-music aspect in the quote-unquote scene,” Vegan says. “But I think it was larger than that. I’ve gotten a lot of messages from people who say that it made them want to listen to radio again. And it wasn’t just local music. There was a lot of unsigned national and global music, a lot of under-the-war, not-corporate-playlist music that we got people passionate about. It was great to be able to be a tastemaker and live up to the person that I was compared to since I was 13. As soon as I hit puberty, old people all the time were like, ‘You sound like Wolfman Jack. You sound like Wolfman Jack.’ I didn’t even know who Wolfman Jack was. I was 13 years old growing up in the gangsta-rap era but I was already passionate about radio.”
He has mixed emotions.
“I’m happy and proud,” he says, “that I accomplished an impossible goal through being insane enough to overwork myself and never give up and I’m sad that I created something very special with little to no help that I take immense pride in and now I’m leaving that behind. But I felt like it was definitely the time to kind of move forward in my career and do what’s right for me and my daughter. And that was to get paid and get health benefits and a 401K and become an adult, I guess.”
As for that last Tequila Sunrise, in addition to surprise performance, he's promising a lot of crying.
"You'll hear grown men cry on the radio," he says. "You'll hear grown women cry, too. There will be a lot of f--king crying. Crying and tequila. Those shots of tequila will be coming through their tears."
The Haymarket Squares have 'Carpool Karaoke' moment with a U2 cover
The Haymarket Squares have gone "minor-league viral," as singer Marc Oxborrow puts it, with a video recorded in a moving van that shows them performing a bluegrass rendition of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," Oxborrow singing lead vocals while driving as his bandmates accompany him on harmonies, accordion, harmonica and mandolin.
The video was shot somewhere in southern Colorado as they traveled from New Mexico to Colorado Springs on a nine-date tour that wraps this weekend with three gigs in one day – a festival date, a radio appearance and a bar show.
Phoenix music news: Haymarket Squares have their own 'Carpool Karaoke' moment
They posted the video Sunday, July 31, to their Facebook page. In less than a week, it's been viewed more than 44,000 times while earning more than 600 Facebook reactions and 542 shares.
As Oxborrow explains the inspiration for the video, "We like to make videos on tour, and often spend our time in the van working on harmonies and arrangements. So we figured it was time to combine the two and tackle a whole song. And we've finally got a van quiet enough not to drown out our voices in road noise."
It's a great arrangement of a great song, but watching them do it is half the charm, especially Oxborrow's facial expressions as he sings and drives. He's a videogenic guy, which is part of the reason they ended up topping our list of the best local videos of the first half of 2016 with "Let's Start a Riot."
Why a U2 cover?
"There was an element of randomness," Oxborrow says, "in keeping with the off-the-cuff feeling of filming in a moving vehicle. We wanted a song we hadn't performed before, something that we could learn quickly and would show off our harmonies."
Then, he jokingly adds, "And some of us may have been U2 fans in the distant past."
MORE MUSIC: Get the Things to Do app | Latest concert announcements | Top concerts this week
Glendale renames itself Paradise City for Guns N' Roses concert
It's our understanding that the grass will be green and the girls will be pretty on Monday, Aug. 15, when the city of Glendale will symbolically change its name for a day to Paradise City in honor of the Guns N' Roses concert playing University of Phoenix Stadium.
The "Not in This Lifetime Tour" marks the first time Guns N’ Roses founder Axl Rose has shared a stage with Slash since 1993. The other founding member taking part in this year's biggest rock tour, Duff McKagan, has played dates with Rose as recently as 2014. Rolling Stone described the tour as a “triumphant return of one of the most important bands to cross rock music history.”
Leaving their formal meeting attire behind and wearing Guns N’ Roses T-shirts, Glendale’s City Council members unveiled plans Wednesday, July 20, to celebrate the tour stop with a temporary name change. Mayor Jerry Weiers issued a proclamation calling for Glendale to be named Paradise City on Aug. 15, and a large sign welcoming fans to Paradise City was unveiled. Over the weeks leading up to the concert, fans will see other ways the city is setting the stage for a rock and roll paradise, including billboards welcoming Guns N’ Roses to Glendale.
“Having lived in the West Valley my entire life and seeing the transformation of former farmland into the place where Super Bowls and championships are played and where top performers book their shows is exhilarating,” said Glendale Councilmember Samuel Chavira, who represents the Yucca District, which includes the stadium and adjacent Westgate Entertainment District. “It certainly does not get bigger than having one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time perform here and we are ready to welcome these rockstars to Paradise City.”
Guns N’ Roses’ place in the rock-and-roll history books was secure from the day they crawled out of the gutter with their first full-length release.
"Appetite for Destruction" felt as much like a rejection of the status quo in 1987 as the Sex Pistols' "Never Mind the Bollocks" had a decade earlier. But Guns N' Roses took their revolution to the masses in a way the Pistols never managed, topping the charts with the reckless abandon of a first release that sent three singles to the upper reaches of the Hot 100, including the chart-topping "Sweet Child O' Mine" — a power ballad with actual power.
It's been nearly 25 years since they followed the spontaneous combustion of their masterpiece with the ambitious twin release of the "Use Your Illusion" albums.
They started losing members during the sessions for "Use Your Illusion" with the 1990 firing of drummer Steven Adler. Izzy Stradlin, the rhythm guitarist who'd written or co-written nine of the 12 songs on "Appetite," quit in 1991, followed in 1996 by Slash, with McKagan staying on until his 1997 resignation.
Bogan Via reissue EP, announce headlining tour dates
Phoenix synth-pop duo Bogan Via, who released a great new track called "Throw It on the Fire" earlier this year, are now releasing a deluxe reissue of their "Wait Up" EP with brand new remixes. Available for presale now at hellomerch.com, the reissue is a limited-edition 12-inch vinyl run of just 250 copies on transparent red with blue haze virgin vinyl.
All purchases include free digital download of the EP and an unreleased extended Director's Cut of Freddie Paull's inspired music videos for "Kanye" and "Gatsby."
In other Bogan Via news, they've just announced their first headlining tour, which launches in Seattle on Sept. 28. And they're taking Luna Aura with them as support on the entire tour:
9/28 – Seattle, Fun House
9/29 – Portland, Analog Room
9/30 – Boise, The Reef
10/1 – Salt Lake City, Kilby Court
10/2 – Denver, Lost Lake Lounge
10/4 – El Paso, Lowbrow Palace
10/5 – Albuquerque, The Co Op
10/6 – Phoenix, Crescent Ballroom
10/7 – Tucson, the Flycatcher
10/8 – San Diego, House of Blues
10/9 – Los Angeles, The Bootleg
Bogan Via - "Kanye" (W.A.S.H. Remix) - https://soundcloud.com/wearewash/bogan-via-kanye-wash-remix/s-pFacd
"Wait Up" 5th Anniversary Deluxe Reissue - https://www.hellomerch.com/products/bogan-via-wait-up-5th-anniversary-deluxe-reissue-12-ep
Zia Megastore opens in Mesa
Zia Record Exchange opened a 11,000-square-foot megastore in July on the southwest corner of Gilbert Road and Southern Avenue. Located less than a half-mile from the US 60 freeway in the Mesa South Shopping Center, the store features the usual Zia assortment of pop-culture necessities – music on vinyl and compact disc, movies, games, books, toys, comics, musical instruments, electronics and a wide selection of T-shirts, posters and more.
It's the farthest east the local chain, which opened its first store in 1980, has gone in the Valley, a distinction previously held by Zia's Chandler superstore.
"So we're pretty excited to get to Mesa," says vice president and general manager Brian Faber. "And it's so close to the US 60 that I feel like it's going to be really accessible for people even farther east."
Why Mesa?
"We've been such a strong East Valley chain for much our existence, from our Tempe store being a flagship location for so long and adding Chandler to the family," Faber says. "So Mesa just made sense. We really looked Valley-wide and this particular opportunity presented itself and it was the right fit for us. Right place, right time, great landlord and it's been great to work with the city of Mesa."
The goal, Faber says, is "to bring the total Zia experience" to Mesa, from in-store appearances to offering cash and store credit for used items.
Adding to Faber's excitement, he says, is the fact that it's their first all-new location in the Valley in a long time for the chain, which also has stores in Las Vegas and Tucson.
"The other local stores have all moved and expanded in the past 10 years," he says. "But in terms of opening a purely new store in the Valley, it's the first one in 10 years. So we're pretty excited. This is a brand new store in a brand new city for us. We're proud to be a part of the city of Mesa's business family. There's already some good record stores and some good entertainment stores in Mesa and we're happy to join that group."
Zia Records Mesa will fill the rest of 2016 with special events — in-store signings, live music and a Black Friday bash, featuring limited edition vinyl, CDs, and a store-wide sale. For information, go to ziarecords.com.
The new Zia Record Exchange is located at 1302 S. Gilbert Rd, Mesa, AZ, 85204.
Jimmy Eat World on Rolling Stone best pop-punk album list
Jimmy Eat World have made another all-time best-of list in Rolling Stone. And this time, they're pop-punk, not emo, joining Green Day, Blink-182, Generation X and the Ramones on a list of the 10 Best Pop-Punk Albums of All Time.
The Ramones?!!
Well, that's just silly, right? They are definitively punk, no qualifiers needed.
Best punk debut albums of the '70s: Ramones and Sex Pistols to Patti Smith and Wire
It's a reader's poll, but Rolling Stone does appear to condone the confusion when it writes, "If the Ramones set the groundwork for what pop-punk would become, Green Day made it a radio reality."
As for Jimmy Eat World, I wouldn't call them pop-punk, either, but they made the list with "Bleed American."
Rolling Stone writes that "Jimmy Eat World may have arguably been the point where pop-punk and emo merged, making the two genres closely related in the new millennium. Heavy riffs became intertwined with emotional depth as the band were direct about their feelings and offered tender comfort on tracks like 'Sweetness' and 'The Middle.' While early pop-punk had a bit more snarl, Jimmy Eat World were the pop-punk band you could bring home to mom."
Earlier this year, the Valley rockers placed two local classics in the upper reaches of Rolling Stone's countdown of the 40 Greatest Emo Albums of All Time.
Released in 1999, "Clarity" placed 13th on the list, one spot ahead of Weezer's "Pinkerton." "Bleed American" placed 9th, edging out Fall Out Boy's "From Under the Cork Tree."
At the time, Jim Adkins told us, "I don't consider them 'emo' at all. It's amazing to know those albums still are important to people. Flattering. But, it would be my personal take that while some of the records were coming from a generally similar scene, what 'emo' means could be debatable. Maybe that's just it. It's sort of the blanket term for bands who happened to be touring and recording around a certain time. With a similar outlook on how to operate."
We didn't ask him how it felt to make a pop-punk list because we're pretty sure we know the answer and the man has more important things to do than tell us why that album isn't pop-punk.
Cait Brennan inks a demo deal with Seymour Stein
The legendary Seymour Stein, now President of Sire Records and Vice President of Warner Bros. Records, has offered Cait Brennan a deal to cut a demo for the labels with producer Andy Paley.
Stein is known for having signed such pioneering Hall of Famers as Madonna, the Pretenders, Talking Heads and the Ramones. Paley has produced recordings by the likes of the Ramones, Madonna, Brian Wilson, Debbie Harry and Jonathan Richman.
Brennan is a Phoenix-based artist who after a Kickstarter campaign that managed to raise more than $7500 was able to release her debut album, “Debutante,” early this year. She’s 47.
“It’s almost impossible to process,” Brennan says. “Seymour Stein discovered and signed Madonna, the Ramones, Talking Heads, brought us the Smiths, Depeche Mode, Echo and the Bunnymen, the Undertones, k. d. lang, Ice T, Against Me! The list is endless. Of course I was hoping he might be interested in my stuff but the music fan in me just wanted to ask him a trillion questions. Nothing is in any way final or certain; he may hear my demos and pass, but that there was even enough interest to get this far. To even get to meet with him let alone be asked to make music for him, is the absolute highest of compliments.”
Stein heard “Debutante” and loved it, which led to a meeting when Brennan flew to New York City for some shows.
AZCentral also loved the album, weighing in with, "This pop classicist has packed her first album with songs that marry timeless hooks to introspective lyrics. Setting the tone with the wistful, McCartney-esque intro of “Good Morning and Goodnight,” the singer delivers an album that should speak to several generations of power-pop enthusiasts, whether they cut their teeth on Big Star and the Raspberries or Teenage Fanclub in the ‘90s."
Stein also told Brennan — repeatedly — that she had "one of the greatest and most unique voices he’d ever heard,” she says. “I have been pretty much impossible to live with ever since. Maybe he says that to all the girls, I don’t know, but considering the legendary artists he’s worked with over the years, it was one hell of a compliment.”
Now, she’s heading to Los Angeles to track four to six songs with Paley on the label’s dime.
“If Sire likes the demo,” Brennan says, “then we'll begin negotiation about a full record deal; if they don't, they can either ask me to do other demos or we can shake hands and walk away. So there's no obligation for them to sign me (or for me to sign) but it's definitely something that has the potential to lead to a full deal. It's a modestly-budgeted demo session, I'm not getting paid, but it's an opportunity. With Andy at the helm, we will likely record at Reseda Ranch Studios, where I recorded both ‘Debutante’ and my upcoming second album, Introducing ‘The Breakdown According To Cait Brennan,’ with contributions from my co-producer and musical collaborator Fernando Perdomo (who currently plays in Jakob Dylan's band).”
And regardless of what happens, the deal allows her to record with Paley.
“It’s ridiculously great to get to work with him,” she says. “He’s a musical savant and has an amazingly warped sense of humor. He really gets my songs. But he’s obsessed with the lyrics. There’s a woman-scorned revenge theme in a few of my songs, and Andy’s constantly asking me ‘Is that true? did that actually happen? did you really do that to the guy?’ A lot of the time the answer is a qualified ‘Kind of, yes’ but once in a while I have to say ‘Yes, Andy, I locked a guy in an Airstream and set it on fire with kerosene when he cheated on me, then I fled the jurisdiction and flew to Amsterdam with my lover.’ And he takes two hesitant steps back and goes ‘I can never tell when you’re kidding.’ I think I should keep it that way.”
She’s hoping to release “Introducing The Breakdown According to Cait Brennan” in mid-October.
“If Sire decides they want me for keeps, that may change,” Brennan says. “But for now, we’re proceeding as if nothing has changed and I’m still the same plucky, unsinkable indie-gal with a heart of gold as always. The Susan Boyle of indie glam and soul, really. Even if nothing else comes of it, it’s just quite an honor. To go from 800 bucks in loose change to Seymour Stein’s office. Not a bad life for a kid who grew up in the desert in a trailer park out by Turf Paradise.”
Taylor Upsahl, Wolvves in Best May singles playlist
Two local artists made our best our best May singles playlist, joining the likes of Rihanna and Radiohead. You can hear the songs and read what won us over here.
RPM Orchestra films video at Trolley Museum
How did RPM Orchestra come to shoot their music video for "Song of Sheba" inside a street car at the Phoenix Trolley Museum?
As Pete Petrisko, who supplies the shortwave radio effects on the recording and directs the video explains, "We knew we wanted a location that fit the era of the slang heard in the lyrics. At the same time, news broke that the Phoenix Trolley Museum would have to find a new location. That's when we decided to make the restored trolley itself the star of our video. It's a creative way to raise public awareness about the museum, and its pending relocation, by showing this downtown treasure to a wider audience."
That required them pitching the video concept and story outline to the board at the museum for approval, but after that, the museum stayed out of their way. "They were very supportive," Petrisko says, "of us following our own creative vision."
The video opens with a haunting toy-piano melody complemented by archival footage of a trolley shot by Phoenix businessman Bob Miller in 1948. The scene is an excerpt from the "Our Last Trip" DVD that's shown to museum visitors.
It’s when Jocelyn Ruiz starts singing that the action shifts to the Petrisko shot inside the street car housed at the museum. The passengers go about their business as a woman in white (long-time collaborator, choreographer/dancer Debra Minghi, with whom they’ve done live multi-disciplinary performances in the past) makes her way down the aisle.
Their first collaboration was “BUTOH+MUSIC,” performed at Bragg's Pie Factory during Art Detour 24. The second, “Animalogue,” was funded by the National Endowment for the Arts' Our Town grant program, as part of Roosevelt Row CDC's A.R.T.S. project series in 2013. They’re also collaborating on “Displaced - An Immersive Theater Experience,” set to premiere Oct. 1 at Unexpected Gallery.
But getting back to “Song of Sheba,” Minghi had free rein, Petrisko says, to choreograph her movements as “a metaphorical retort to the idea that a woman's assumed role is that of pretty bride or perfect angel, set in an era that included passage of the 19th amendment, a sexual revolution embodied by the flappers of the Roaring '20s, and women entering the workforce in increased numbers during WWII.”
Petrisko directed a couple of one-off music videos for local bands a few years ago, he says. “But this more cinematic approach is new territory. I'm working out a visual storytelling style here, with an eye toward creating original film shorts (scored by RPM Orchestra) in the future.”
in addition to Ruiz (on vocals, keyboard, toy piano) and Petrisko, "Song of Sheba" features Jim Dustan on bass, Erik Hunter on drums and percussion and Vic Void on laputaphone.
Former KTAR producer in Justin Timberlake video
If you've seen the video released this week for Justin Timberlake's new summer smash "Can't Stop the Feeling," then you probably recall a very animated dancer in a Member's Only jacket busting loopy moves outside a car wash.
That's David Moskowitz, who moved to LA after 13 years in news/talk radio here in metro Phoenix, including lengthy stints at KFYI and KTAR, where he produced the Marconi Award-winning "Preston Westmoreland."
News/talk radio may not seem like a stepping stone to a role in a Timberlake video. In fact, when Moskowitz first read the email blast from a casting director saying, "If you like to dance," his initial reaction was: "Dancing’s not really my thing, but what the hell? I’ll give it a shot.”
He didn't know he was auditioning for Timberlake. The email that led the aspiring actor to overcome his suspicion for casting auditions held at a Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf only referred to a "MAJOR recording artist."
Moskowitz was thinking it could be Beyonce. Or Ariana Grande. Maybe even J.Lo. Either way, it seemed worth driving to a coffee shop.
As he recalls: "The guy with the iPad who was shooting me for about three minutes put a Bluetooth speaker on the ground, and he plays Michael Jackson’s 'Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough.' So, I start doing my MJ moves. I start moonwalking. Granted, it wasn’t smooth like Michael Jackson. I’m a White, Jewish balding guy moonwalking. I did backwards and forwards, did spins, did my mime, acted like I was smoking a joint. I don’t smoke pot for reals. I did all kinds of crazy stuff. Then somebody popped out of a store next to the coffee shop and started applauding when I was done."
Despite the applause, he was worried that maybe he'd blown the audition after complaining of a lack of signs directing him to the audition when he showed up to the coffee shop, where none of the employees knew a thing about it.
"I told the guy, 'Hey Mike, I was just sort of venting to you because I’m sitting here for 15 minutes. I didn’t know who to ask. There’s no sign. I hope you don’t hold this against me.' I thought I'd totally blown it. Then I get a call 9 in the morning from the guy who I thought hated me. He said, 'You were the director’s first pick. Are you available these dates?' I was blown away."
And it wasn't just any director, either. Mark Romanek has won 20 MTV Video Music Awards and three Grammys.
As for Timberlake? Mokowitz says, "He was so down-to-earth, personable, warm and friendly. I just think the world of his talent. I had the utmost respect for the guy even before I did this video. So it was a pleasant surprise finding out who it was for."
Matty Steinkamp's 'Play' makes timely plea for music education
Original Alice Cooper lineup writes new music
Will Alice Cooper's next album include a reunion of the four surviving members of the lineup that produced such early Cooper classics as "Killer" and "Love it to Death?"
That's the word on the street. And the person who put the word out there is no lesser an authority on all things Alice Cooper than Cooper himself.
In an interview with the Weekender, Cooper said, “I wrote three or four songs with (drummer) Neal Smith and (guitarist) Mike Bruce. And so we worked together in Phoenix for about two weeks just writing songs and demoing songs. And you never know which ones are going to make the album, but I said let’s do that.
Cooper added “(Bassist) Dennis Dunaway wrote two or three things. We haven’t seen those yet, but I know Dennis has always written great stuff. It’s fun to go back and work with guys you haven’t worked with in awhile. It’s not trying to recapture your youth. It’s trying to recapture a sound. And it’s a very elusive sound.”
This should come as fairly awe-inspiring news to Cooper fans.
When Dunaway and Cooper met, the singer hadn't yet adopted the ghoulish persona that made him a star. He was still Vince Furnier, class clown and student athlete at Cortez High School on the northern edge of Phoenix. They bonded in Mrs. Sloan's art class over their interest in Salvador Dali and Rene Magritte and shared their first onstage experience at a Cortez talent show, spoofing the Beatles for their classmates with another future member of the Alice Cooper band, Glen Buxton, who died in 1997.
At first, they were known as the Earwigs. Changing their name to the Spiders, they recruited Bruce, a North High football player, and scored a big regional hit with a single called “Don't Blow Your Mind.” After changing their name yet again, to the Nazz, they relocated to Los Angeles in 1967, where Smith, a Camelback High grad who'd been in art classes with Dunaway, Cooper and Buxton at Glendale Community College, joined on drums.
The rest, of course, is history, from massive hits to major tours. In 1973, their U.S. tour in support of the chart-topping “Billion Dollar Babies” broke box-office records then held by the Rolling Stones. In 2011, they took their rightful place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
KONGOS most-added at U.S. alternative radio
That new Kongos song, "Take It From Me," is the most-added track of the past two weeks at alternative radio across the country, currently climbing the U.S. alternative radio charts at No. 19. Meanwhile, the video, which features the brothers in "Big Head Mode" from the video game "NBA Jam," has racked up more than 165,000 views on YouTube/Vevo in less than a week.
In other big news, Fox Sports handpicked Kongos as its artist of the month for May. As part of this initiative, four songs from "Egomaniac"—“Take It From Me,” “I Don’t Mind,” “I Want It Free,” and “Look At Me” — will be played during broadcast sports events all month-long.
The Paradise Valley brothers hit the mainstream hard in 2014 when a three-year-old song from "Lunatic," "Come With Me Now," became the double-platinum breakthrough most bands only dream of. The song enjoyed a five-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard alternative-songs chart while earning the Kongos brothers — Johnny, Jesse, Dylan and Danny — a deal with Epic Records, home of Michael Jackson and the Clash.
Could "Take It From Me" be the song that builds on that momentum?
Written by Jesse, the song tops a pulsating dance beat with an accordion riff that's sure to speak to anyone who came on board with that big single, a chant-along chorus, a pitch-shifted vocal hook, hiccups in all the right places and a brilliant slide-guitar lead. "Take It From Me" has been part of the live set for a while now. There’s a video on YouTube of them playing an early version of the song at Summerfest in 2014, but the single sounds more like a pop hit. They’ve refined what worked and added elements that lend a more contemporary vibe to the proceedings.
When I spoke to Dylan in December, he talked about the long road to recording “Egomaniac.”
"It’s been a long time that this album has been not necessarily in the works,” he said, “but we’ve been waiting to get around to it because it kind of took a couple years for it get rolling for us, and then we were already kind of moving on to this album. We had some of the material written, we were starting to work on it, and then when “Lunatic” took off, we put it on the back burner because we had to give “Lunatic” a real shot with touring and supporting the album. So we were really excited to finish touring this year and get started on this album. There are some huge songs. Without getting into the details, there’s a common theme to the whole album, and sonically it’s just a really big sound. There’s a lot of layering and really big drums. We were really going for an in-your-face kind of sound.”
The album hits the streets on June 10.
The Maine take on a Justin Bieber song for 'Covers (Side B)'
Local rockers the Maine have recorded a cover of the recent Justin Bieber single, "Love Yourself" as the first taste of a sequel to December's "Covers (Side A)," aptly titled "Covers (Side B)."
The "(Side A)" EP featured 90’s pop tunes reinvented by the Maine with guest appearances by Technicolors' Brennan Smiley and Mayday Parade’s Derek Sanders.
Drummer Pat Kirch says, “It is always a great learning process to see how other songwriters put songs together. We always have a good time recording cover songs because of the lack of pressure. We like to use cover songs to take some chances with sounds that we normally don't try.”
“Love Yourself” will premiere on the Maine's website at 5 .m. Thursday.
Why "Love Yourself?"
John O’Callaghan explains.
"To Beliebe or not to Beliebe is not the question here because no one can deny the quality of Sir Justin's tune. We haven't fully converted to the church of Bieber just yet, but we decided to try our hand at covering this religious hymn.”
It's not a jokey cover, either. In fact, it's kind of weird that Bieber's single spent two weeks at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100, but the Maine's recording feels more like a pop hit — a richly textured, atmospheric Wall of Sound with O'Callaghan bleeding emotion all over the vocal.
The track listing for "Covers (Side B)" has not yet been announced in full but Kirch says, "We have not covered any current songs in a long time so we wanted to branch out and try something current.”
The "Covers (Side B)" EP is out.
Taylor Swift singing and dancing to Jimmy Eat World
"OK, activities," she says. "Getting ready to go out."The minute-long video starts with her looking for something to play on her iPhone, walking us through the process with narration. Taylor Swift has released an Apple Music ad that features her dancing and singing along to "The Middle" by local rockers Jimmy Eat World.
With that, she pulls up a menu titled "Getting ready to go out" and says, "Oh my God, I love this song. I used to listen to this in middle school all the time."
Then, the music starts and Taylor lip-syncs every line, dancing around her bathroom in a joyous display of total fan-girl abandon while using her lipstick as a microphone.
Doll Skin drop full-length album
Doll Skin -- singer Sydney Dolezal, guitarist Alex Snowden, bassist Nicole Rich and drummer Meghan Herring — have released a full-length version of their "In Your Face" EP, produced by David Ellefson of Megadeth. The bassist signed the teen sensations last year to his label, EMP, which is distributed by Megaforce, responsible for launching the careers of Anthrax and Metallica.
Retitled "In Your Face (Again)," the new edition features nine tracks, including “Furious Fixation”, mixed by Richard Easterling (American Head Charge, Fuel), and a “Punk’D” demo version of their first single “Family of Strangers.”
"It's a rocking kick in the face that you don't want to miss," says Richie. "We've got some fun new surprises on it and it'll leave you wanting more."
The video for current single “Let’s Be Honest” premiered exclusively via Revolver magazine earlier this month.
The girls are on tour now with Otep.
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Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495.Twitter.com/EdMasley.