Show Review: Vacationer fills Valley Bar with good vibes, dancing for magical show
“We’re the people’s band,” Kenny Vasoli said genially towards the end of a dreamy Vacationer show in Phoenix on Sunday. Based on the late Sunday turnout, this was just a statement of fact. Valley Bar was packed for the late weekend show, with an early arrival for Sego, the evening’s only opener. What started as […]
Show Review: 311 and The Offspring pump positive vibes with Never-Ending Summer Tour
Reggae-rock powerhouse 311 and veteran rockers The Offspring rolled into Phoenix this week, once again proving that you can indeed turn up on a Tuesday. Things started early with the return of former Fueled by Ramen staple Gym Class Heroes. Fans were still slowly arriving as the band jumped right into “Stereo Hearts,” their biggest […]
Show Review: Sleeping with Sirens slows things down with acoustic tour
In the middle of a festival-heavy summer, Sleeping with Sirens called up The Rocket Summer for the appropriately titled Chill Out Acoustic Summer Tour. While SWS has experimented with acoustic tunes before, they are well-known for a much heavier sound. If I hadn’t seen them do this successfully in the past, I would have been […]
Show Review: Stacked Like Pancakes preview new tunes with brash live performance
Stacked Like Pancakes is the oddball band you haven’t heard of- yet. The self-proclaimed “brass-rock” band clamored into Phoenix on the preview tour for their new album Strange Creatures. Local bands 2000 Foot Turtle and Bad Funk kicked off the evening with energetic sets that drew support from their hometown fans. Bad Funk especially had […]
Show Review: Thirty Seconds to Mars closes Monolith Tour with bright, epic show
For nearly 20 years, Thirty Seconds to Mars has been one of the biggest rock acts in the world. With the final date of the massive Monolith Tour, they reminded us why that continues to be the case. The night kicked off with Welshly Arms and K.Flay in the opening slots. Welshly is all raucous […]
Show Review: Citizen charges through Phoenix for raw, emotional show
With so many bands out there, it’s a real treat to see a group move a venue to express their rawest emotions. Citizen is one such band. Joined by Queen of Jeans, Teenage Wrist and Oso Oso, Citizen packed The Rebel Lounge in Phoenix on Wednesday for another sold out show on their current tour. […]
Bands and fans sweat it out for one last summer at the Warped Tour
This is the summer that we say farewell to the rock show. After 24 years, founder Kevin Lyman is putting the Vans Warped Tour to rest. Kicking off on its final cross-country run on June 21 in Pomona, CA, this last trek will end on August 5 in Florida. Atlas attended the Phoenix, AZ, and […]
Show Review: Peking Duk and *repeat repeat defy expectations for rowdy, groovy Saturday
No matter where you live, once you start seeing a lot of live music, you recognize the promoters and how each one sticks to a niche genre. In Phoenix, that means you’re expecting EDM whenever you see that Relentless Beats is advertising a show. You’re not expecting a surf pop/garage rock band. But that was […]
Show Review: Shakey Graves and Lauren Ruth Ward take Phoenix on a journey through Americana
Here in Arizona, the desert heat feels like Texas, the dusty highways feel like Texas, and the numerous barbeque options feel like Texas. But other than that, you have to travel east for the unique aesthetic of our nation’s largest state — or just set foot inside a venue where Shakey Graves is playing. You’ll be immediately transported […]
Lauren Ruth Ward: When Retro Meets Right Now
“I am the Lizard King / I can do anything.” The infamous Jim Morrison lyric sums up a few things about Lauren Ruth Ward: her title of Lizard Queen, her feminist outlook, and her no-boundaries way of life that applies to aspects as small as her vocal nuances to major pillars like her very identity. […]