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Looking for good live music? Here are the Dust Devil’s picks for good concerts in March and April!

March 5th, 2009 Posted by: Dust Devil

Hello everybody!

Holy good night, the Dust Devil is going to be one busy man the next two months, there are some great shows coming up. Many will be here in the Valley of the Sun, three shows thus far will be out of town. I am doing my part to stimulate the economy!

Without further adieu, let’s start off with a busy week this week! The Pretenders were last night, March 4, at the Dodge Theatre, so that show will be a separate post. if you missed that concert, you blew it!

James Galway, March 6, Mesa Arts Center. “The Man With the Golden Flute” makes his return to the valley! What a remarkable performer, his performance back in 2006 at the Phoenix Symphony was absolutely outstanding. I rarely make a point of going to see classical musicians play live, but Sir James Galway is not someone to miss. He puts on a great show and has a wonderful rapport with the audience.

No Knife and Jimmy Eat World, March 7, Marquee Theatre. I list No Knife first because I am a big fan of that band. No Knife has been on hiatus for years, so when I saw they were opening for Jimmy Eat World on a few dates of the Clarity x 10 Tour I went nuts! Great band, innovative indie-rock with a slight old-school emo edge to it. Emo is not necessarily a bad thing folks, it only is when a band like My Chemical Romance makes it lame.

Jimmy Eat World has been a very good band for a long-time, they are local heroes and they are playing the entire Clarity disc on this short tour. How could you not want to be there? The show is sold out though, so for you procastinators check out TickCo Premium Seating, they still have tickets left.

Autumn’s End, March 13, The Clubhouse. I am a little biased here, because I have been friends with lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Cannella for over ten years. I have seen him play in Phoenix industrial legends N17 and his next project Mission 66. Both good bands, but Autumn’s End is clearly his passion, and it shows in the music. This is some pretty intense death metal that can peel paint off the walls, it is that brutal. The band dives into each tune with a high level of energy, creating one massive wall of sound designed to obliterate the eardrums. If you read this column at all you know metal is not my primary genre of music, but when I hear something I like I latch on to it. Check this band out, and as a local product they deserve Arizona’s support!

Knesset, March 15, Trunk Space. I saw Knesset open for the Appleseed Cast a few weeks ago, great duo! I am sorry to say I will not be there, but that night I will be in Denver at the Bluebird Theatre checking out Cut Copy whom I saw at last year’s Monolith Festival. Don’t miss the Knesset show if you are in town, the brand of shoegaze they play is outstanding!

Agent Orange, March 20, F1 Race Factory. The Dust Devil’s all-time favorite punk band returns to Phoenix, and after the show I saw in Tucson last year I know this is one not to miss. Strange venue though, a music festival at an indoor race track? I’m game though, I have been to some odd venues over the years to see bands play. Agent Orange anywhere is a good thing!

Dick Dale, March 22, F1 Race Factory. Years ago I saw Dick Dale play at a great venue in Tempe by the name of the Electric Ballroom. Dick Dale was around long before that venue opened, and years after it closed he is still playing. Don’t even pretend to like classic surf music if you don’t like the King of the Surf Guitar!

Flotsam and Jetsam, March 27, Venue of Scottsdale. Holy cow, these guys are still around?! What a great thrash metal band this was back in the day. I can remember seeing them live when Jason Newsted was still in the band before leaving to join Metal-Lick-A. I have fond memories of a Halloween show at a club called Prism’s years ago. I always felt Eric A.K. had one of the best metal vocal deliveries around.

Cheap Trick, April 4, Westworld Events Center. Cheap Trick is playing as part of Arizona Bike Week 2009 at Westworld. A great classic power-pop band, Cheap Trick had a slew of great songs in the seventies and eighties. Surrender and Tonight It’s You are just two examples of the fabulous track record this band has. Kurt Cobain of Nirvana supposedly once stated his band was just a lame version of Cheap Trick, or something to that effect. Considering what an amazing band Nirvana was, that is a pretty hefty compliment.

Franz Ferdinand, April 18, Marquee Theatre. I will be at the Coachella Festival that weekend in Indio, CA, but this band and the next artist will both be appearing at Coachella Friday the 17th, so I lucked out. Franz Ferdinand were part of the post-punk revival that occurred early this decade. Unfortunate for them, because typical with most music revivals the majority of the artists involved were pretty lame. I like Franz Ferdinand, the music is very much Gang of Four inspired.

M. Ward, April 19, Marquee Theatre. I only know of one song of his, Chinese Translation, great track! He is becoming a critical darling and has played with Jim James of My Morning Jacket.

Reverend Horton Heat, April 24, Marquee Theatre. I have not seen the Reverend in years, one of the best live acts I have ever seen. I lost track of how many shows I have seen them perform over the years, but I can recall shows at the now closed Mason Jar (yeah, they played there for you Phoenicians!), the also closed Electric Ballroom and the Cajun House (or had the name change to Venue of Scottsdale already happened?). I have seen the Reverend open for Soundgarden and White Zombie, and on both occasions blew away the headliner. Jim Heath plays one of the slickest guitars in the industry, Jimbo plays a mean stand-up bass and has a great presence on stage, and regardless of who plays the drums for the band, they always smoke live. GO TO THIS SHOW!

Flaming Lips (NO JOKE!), April 25, Westworld Events Center. Are you serious, the Lips are headlining Saturday night of the McDowell Music Festival? The Lips have not played in the Valley of the Sun since 2000 and to be honest folks, this one is a no-brainer. The Flaming Lips, whether you like their psychedelic and punk influenced rock music or not, whether you like Wayne Coyne’s politics and his tendency to become the messiah on stage at times or not, pour 100% of their energy into every concert and aim to provide a stellar show every time they take the stage. I had the most incredible time when I saw them headline Monolith in 2007, my first ever Lips experience, and will never allow myself to miss a show they play in Arizona. They are that much fun live!

Wow, what a great next two months! It seems I go to more shows now then I think I did in my late twenties and early thirties. What a life!

Cheers!
The Dust Devil

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