Phoenix.BloggersPub

Well, nobody got me the Ghostface Doll for Christmas, so maybe some kind soul in Berlin would be willing to order me this set of Legends of Rap trading cards (via Hype Beast).
Having been a baseball card collector back in the day, I cannot explain how cool I think this is. My music collection […]

You’d think with how much I’ve been posting on Travis that I’d be stalking the band. I’m not, really. But I did track down this new video for New Amsterdam on the band’s YouTube page.
Like the Selfish Jean video, this one follows a similar theme of tracking the words through visuals/cards (a la Bob Dylan’s […]

Credit: www.gregorynolan.com.
I can’t believe that after seeing Frank Turner last March I haven’t written about his EP, Campfire Punkrock. Good thing, then, that the physical CD just became available in the U.S. on Jan. 8 through Welcome Home Records. It gives me a good reason to strongly urge you to go out and buy it.
I […]

Rogue Wave, scheduled to play Rhythm Room in Phoenix on Jan. 22 (another fine Stateside Presents offering), has backed out of that date in favor of an 18-and-over show at Tempe Marketplace, our newest beacon of big-box consumerism.
The good news is the show is free. The bad news is that likely means Rogue Wave reversed […]

One of the nicest guys – and probably one of the most talented – you’ll meet is Jon Rauhouse, pedal-steel guru and touring member of Neko Case’s band. (Previously discussed here and a little bit here.)
Rauhouse, on the heels of his 2007 release Steel Guitar Heart Attack (Bloodshot), has picked up a Tempe date, Feb. […]

I chatted a couple months ago about Mike Doughty’s new record, Golden Delicious, which is due out Feb. 19.
Doughty has released the album’s first video, for the song 27 Jennifers. It’s decidedly low budget – Doughty shot it himself – and looks like it might have been filmed using night-vision goggles. True to form, Doughty […]

I’ll be honest when I say I haven’t kept up much with Pete Rock since he and CL Smooth went their separate ways after 1994’s The Main Ingredient (man, I love that record).
But that doesn’t change the fact that Pete Rock is responsible for some of the best hip-hop production of our generation: Look no […]

I’ve been diggin’ Phat Kat’s Carte Blanche (available at eMusic) since I came across it last spring.
Here’s the video for the lead single, Cold Steel, which was produced by Phat Kat’s fellow Detroit son J-Dilla. I love that this video is in black and white, which seems to add to the gritty nature of the […]

The concert lineup is starting to pick up again, so here’s a quick roundup of some noteworthy shows:
Jan. 14: Dan Deacon, Modified Arts.
Jan. 18: Ryan Adams, Rialto Theatre (Tucson).
Jan. 22: Rogue Wave, Rhythm Room.
Jan. 24: Yeasayer with MGMT, Rhythm Room.
Jan. 31: The Blakes, Modified Arts.
Feb. 1: Mr. Lif with the Perceptionists, The Brickhouse.
Feb. 12: Editors, […]

In doing some reading on the Editors – I’m interviewing bassist Russell Leetch today in advance of the group’s Feb. 12 show in Tempe – I discovered the group’s producer, Garrett “Jacknife” Lee, remixed Run-D.M.C.’s track It’s Tricky, from the seminal Raising Hell album.
I don’t mean to disparage the art of the remix or Garrett […]