What Laura Says CD Release Party

August 26th, 2008 by Pete

It take a lot to get my arse out on a weekday night, and Wednesday night I will do just that and head down to the Rhythm Room in Phoenix for What Laura Says‘ CD release party. I’ve been playing the hell out of their label debut, Thinks and Feels, for the last couple of weeks. These guys are the real deal folks…. killer harmonies, a retro feel, an indie folk vibe - just really refreshing.

If you’re in the Phoenix area, join me down at the Rhythm Room.

Here’s one of the tunes from their new CD…

What Laura Says - July 23 (mp3)

Check out some more tunes on their MySpace page.

I’ll have a lot more on these guys soon.

Thinks and Feels was released last week. Check it out…

Posted in Local | No Comments »

Review: George Michael in Phoenix, June 22

June 24th, 2008 by Pete

You know what’s entertaining to me? The looks I got from people over the last couple of months - some of them close friends of mine - when they found out I was going to see George Michael in concert. Say what you will friends, but like a lot of people, George’s music has been a part of my life for over 20 years.

Thinking back, I was never a huge fan of the Wham! stuff. It wasn’t until 1987, when George released Faith, that I would call myself a fan. Four words reeled me in: I - Want - Your - Sex.

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Posted in Local, Pop | 11 Comments »

Review: Citizen Cope with Alice Smith, Live at the Marquee Theater

March 30th, 2008 by Pete

While a mass of humanity took in Fergie’s (disappointing? gasp!) set across Town Lake at the Tempe Music Festival, we smart ones were filing into the Marquee Theater to take in D.C. / Brooklyn artist Citizen Cope. It was billed on the venue’s web site as “an evening with no support”. But I was pleasantly surprised when a tall, slender female figure took the stage at 8:10 and tore the roof of the joint with a short four song set…

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Posted in Local, Reggae, Rock, Soul | 1 Comment »

A Local Joe Strummer Tribute with Glass Heroes

January 4th, 2008 by Pete

I had December 27th marked on my calendar since early November. A Joe Strummer Tribute & Benefit in my own hometown? Yes please! I headed down to my favorite small club in Phoenix, the Rhythm Room, and caught the last two bands, the Jeff Dahl Band and headliner Glass Heroes. Keith Jackson is the lead singer and guitarist in Glass Heroes (that’s him with Joe Strummer above), and this is the fourth year in a row he has organized a local Strummer tribute to benefit Strummerville.

I was impressed by both bands. They’re both veterans of the Arizona punk scene, which is alive and well. Dahl’s four piece power combo tore through their set, the rhythm section of Jason Smith (bass) and particularly Russ Covner on drums laying down some ferocious punk beats. Really impressive. They kicked off the set with “Janie Jones”, then concentrated on their own material for the next 35 minutes or so.

Keith Jackson and his Glass Heroes were next. They offered up great versions of “What’s My Name”, “Tommy Gun”, another “Janie Jones”, and “Police on my Back”. Their originals definitely showed the Clash influence. One of my faves was “Kick Down the Doors”, which I grabbed off their MySpace page. Check it out below.

Kudos to Keith for keeping Joe’s spirit alive, and gathering the local Strummer faithful for a great evening.

Glass Heroes - Kick Down the Doors (mp3)

Links: Glass Heroes Official Site | MySpace | Jeff Dahl Band’s MySpace

Have you guys and gals checked out imeem yet? It’s a social music site where you can stream music & videos. The extra bonus is that they have licensing agreements with 2 out of the 3 major labels, so you can find and listen to full songs, make your own playlists, and basically waste several additional hours of your life on another music site. Here’s a lil’ Strummer / Clash mix I put together.

Posted in Joe Strummer, Local, Punk | No Comments »

Ickmusic Local: Stone Devil Hill

November 23rd, 2007 by Michael

The local music scene in New York’s Hudson Valley, by in large, consists of a myriad of cover bands, the occasional singer-songwriter, a smattering of bluesmen, a punk trio or two and a plethora of de-tuned metal-core bands. While Poughkeepsie’s Stone Devil Hill doesn’t squarely fit into any of those genres they certainly contain the sensibilities of them all combined into a very cohesive package that ranges from melodic and soaring to heavy and grooving. Their debut record …for the fallen captures the essence of the bands energy and highlights the groups strength in songwriting. Heavier tunes like the lead-off track “Down with the Captain”, “A.F.O.C”, and “Neverchange” take notes from the forefathers of heavy metal and groove with an urgency that is relentless. Lyrics ranging from political to deeply personal are delivered with the utmost passion and the slow burn of “Child Inside” and “Lost Denial” feature dual vocals reminiscent of Alice in Chains at their best. And putting the power back in the ballad the track “This Lie” is nothing short of majestic. As a teaser here is the band at their most honest and passionate…

Stone Devil Hill – 20 Years (MP3)

Buy: …for the fallen

Link: Official Site | MySpace

Posted in Local, Rock | No Comments »

Local IckMusic: What Laura Says Thinks and Feels

May 7th, 2007 by Pete

As a married pops of two living in the sticks outside of Phoenix, my days of spending five out of every seven nights bar-hopping and band-watching have come to an end. So my knowledge of the local music scene is pretty much limited to the local press and the occasional night out.

Today, a columnist for the Phoenix New Times posted about a cool local band on his blog. The title of his piece is ‘Annals of Bad Band Names’, and he has a valid point in this case: the band’s name is What Laura Says Thinks and Feels. They may have a good story behind the name, so I won’t judge. And after hearing these tunes, I was willing to overlook the silly name, because this stuff is infectious… a retro feel but completely unique at the same time. Folky, trippy, Brit-poppy, Brian Wilson-y.

Add your -y’s in the comments.

What Laura Says Thinks and Feels - Couldn’t Lose Myself If I Tried (mp3)

The New Times post has another tune you can listen to.

Their MySpace has three other tunes, including a nice soft one called “Dot Dot Dot” (reminds me of Kings of Convenience).
And of course it’s excellent karma to support an unsigned band, so go to their CD Baby page and pick up their album. Or get it on iTunes. After listening to these songs, I think a lot of you will.

Posted in Local, Rock n' Folk | 3 Comments »