Cover Story
City of Dust
The origins of heavy metal have been fiercely debated for nearly as long as its parent genre, rock ‘n’ roll, has existed, with examples of the Who, the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and reaching as far back as Screamin’ Jay Hawkins vying for the title of the first heavy metal artist. Late ’60s progenitors Black Sabbath…
Golden Age of Radio Theater
Golden Age of Radio Theater (GART) presents new shows on the third Saturday of the month through Sept. 20. Shows start a 3 p.m., at Hungry Fox Restaurant, 4637 E. Broadway Blvd. Tickets are $12 at the door (cash and credit cards only). For advance tickets, call 576-7658 or email TucsonGART@gmail.com. $10. The shows presented…
Help Fund This Strap On Dildo That Responds to Touch (NSFW)
Ambrosia Vibe from Orgasmatronics, Inc. on Vimeo. Looking for a new way to explore your sexuality? The Ambrosia Vibe, a strap-on dildo that activates when touched, might be the key to unlock your sexual treasure box in that dusty basement of yours. Orgasmatronics and ddenn creative are trying to raise $32,000 to produce and sell this futuristic strap-on. The Ambrosia…
Bloom Night
The folks at Tohono Chul Park are gearing up for Bloom Night 2014. Mother Nature determines when the flowers will bloom, between now and July 20. Hours are 6 p.m. to midnight. Tohono Chul is located at 7366 North Paseo Del Norte. For current updates, visit www.tohonochulpark.org. Call 742-6455 for more info. Event description below. …
Tucson Finally Gets Ramen Burgers
Good news for the Tucson food truck enthusiasts. The Tucson Fat Noodle food truck will debut in the coming weeks, according to the Facebook page. Co-owner Richard Gonzales and Click Magnet Internet Marketing have teamed up to bring this comfort/street fusion food that specializes in ramen noodles and burgers. A comfort food so simple kids of all ages…
Huppenthal Admits He Is “Thucydides” and “Falcon9.”
John Huppenthal fessed up to the Arizona Republic. Late Tuesday, June 17, Huppenthal issued a statement exclusively to The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com about the reasons he commented on blog posts under the names “Falcon9” and “Thucydides” instead of his own. He also apologized, saying in the statement, “I sincerely regret if my comments have…
Congrats to Jim Nintzel, AAN Award Finalist
Jim Nintzel, Tucson’s source of political info Next month in Nashville, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia will meet for its annual convention and at the very end of the information and frivolity, the annual AAN Awards will be given out. These things aren’t easy to win…there are a bunch of papers out there doing really…
Joe Pagac Learns You How to Draw Dolphins With Babes
Some of us get to paint for a living, and others get to live vicariously through working painters on Facebook. Joe Pagac, 2014 Best Local Visual Artist contender, is gearing up for the upcoming Yacht Rock Party at La Cocina on Thursday, June 26. Pagac was kind enough to share his creative process, and show you exactly…
Grijalva’s Office Wants Your Immigration Story
June is the evidently the first annual Immigrant Heritage Month, and in honor of occasion Congressman Raul Grijalva wants personal stories of immigrants who live and work in the third congressional district. Residents of the 3rd district should email their stories to Cassandra.Becerra@mail.house.gov with “My Story” in the subject line. The stories can be submitted…
Harley Needs a Home
The Humane Society of Southern Arizona presents Harley, a 1-year-old, male, Boxer/Great Dane mix Reference no.: 753068 When life gave Harley lemons, he made gallons of lemonade! This positive pup came to the Humane Society of Southern Arizona in April 2013, after he was shoved out the door and abandoned by his family. From the…
U.S. Patent Office Scraps Redskins Football Team Trademark Request
Think Progressive has that the United States Patent and Trademark office nixed six federal trademark requests for the Washington Redskins NFL team. The courts ruled that the name is “disparaging to Native Americans,” and unable to be trademarked because federal law disallows the protection of derogatory or racially offensive language. From Think Progress: “I am extremely…
Sex and Soccer: #dontfakeit
Loving the World Cup? Then yeah, this Durex ad for condoms makes absolute sense. Soccer players, especially our Latino brothers, know the art of dramatizing fake fouls with fake injuries in order to get a penalty called against the opposing team. But if they #dontfake it, where’s the fun in that? More on flopping and…
A View of the Kids Inside the Nogales Detention Facility
Juanita Molina of the Border Action Network shares a heart-wrenching account of the conditions insides the Nogales Placement Center where roughly 1,300 undocumented kids are being detained while their cases are sorted out: The management and care of migrant populations has become an increasingly complex and heartbreaking situation, especially now that we are seeing an…
Jimmy Fallon and Kevin Hart Ride The Roller Coaster From Hell
Kevin Hart and Ice Cube are on a Think Like a Man Too talk show press blitz. We have learned that Cube is annoyed by Hart’s comedic antics, and that Hart is deathly afraid of roller coasters. The 5′ 2″ popular comedian was a guest on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show, and the duo spent the day at Universal Orlando…
Human Behavior and Friends Are Performing at Club Congress Wednesday Night
Everyone and their drummers are venturing off to cooler weather this summer. Human Behavior will embark on a 20-day tour along the west coast this Thursday, so we wish them a successful and safe trip. The folktale band is performing a free show starting at 8 p.m., Wednesday, June 18, at Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St. The special…
John Huppenthal, Serial Wikipedia “Editor”
Before he was indulging in sock puppetry on left and right wing blogs as well as more traditional media outlets, before he was Superintendent of Public Instruction, John Huppenthal was selectively editing his Wikipedia bio, as well as the bios of current Secretary of State Ken Bennett and a former political opponent, State Senator Slade…
Local Improv Group Trying to Crowdfund For Theater on 4th Ave
The Tucson Improv Movement is trying to permanently relocate to Fourth Avenue, but they will need your help. Currently, TIM has been performing and training out the Red Barn Theater and shifted from various stages since the group’s inception in 2012. The improv group has a signed lease at 329 East Seventh Street next door to…
Congress Doesn’t Lack For Solutions After VA Problems Hit The Headlines
WASHINGTON – AMVETS spokesman David Gai said his organization is hoping for one comprehensive reform bill to fix problems at the Department of Veterans Affairs. But choosing just one could be difficult, considering the dozens of bills that members of Congress have introduced recently on the issue. “While there are varying ideas and legislation being…
Channel 12 News’ Brahm Resnik Is On The Huppenthal Blog Commenter Story
Reporter Brahm Resnik has a story on Phoenix’s Channel 12 news about Ed Supe John Huppenthal’s sock puppet comments on Blog for Arizona. Resnik interviews BfA’s Bob Lord, who is the guy who put all the pieces together. Huppenthal didn’t respond to a request for comments from Resnik, but his implausible deniability is becoming more…
GOP Uses French Squirrel Mascot For Hillary Clinton Smearing Campaign
The smell of mud is in the air. The GOP has created this Sports Center inspired 35 second spot to show off the $866.18 French squirrel mascot that’s against the notion of Hillary Clinton running for President. We find this premature campaign odd because Hillary hasn’t announced that she’s running for anything, yet. Clinton told Stern…
Ed Shorts: June Edition
Image courtesy of shutterstock.com Too many stories are piling up in the “good intentions” corner of my desktop. I know I’m not going to get to them individually as I always plan to, so here they are in brief, with links so you can learn more if you wish. • Paper is alive and well…
Check out Prom Body’s Music Video for ‘My Paradise’
The summer of Prom Body continues with a brand new music video of “My Paradise” off the forthcoming album Naughty by Natural. There will be a party for the band’s sophomore album debut on Tuesday, July 29, at TOPAZ, 657 W. St. Marys Road #C1A. Finally, here’s the video thanks to NOISEY: Related Stories
Weird Al Drops Some Science in The Latest ‘Epic Rap Battles of History’ Video
Epic Rap Battles of History were a thing, but I’m not sure if any still cares about these clever songs. Weird Al, the King of Parody, takes the form of Sir Isaac Newton and goes toe-to-toe with “Bill Nye the Science Guy” in this latest episode. I think Weird Al won this one, but some Cosmos…
Have You Seen Ka-Wa The Missing Midtown Bear?
Someone has issued an award to find his or her missing bear that goes by Ka-Wa. The bear was last seen near East Sixth Street and North Euclid Ave, according to the flyer that has been plastered all over Fourth Avenue. The poster doesn’t specify when the astray bear was last sighted, so Ka-Wa could…
Yes, Let’s Put Some Water In The Santa Cruz River Downtown
It’s a great idea. Let’s get the Santa Cruz River running in the downtown area. Rebuild and maintain the riparian environment, to the extent it can be rebuilt and maintained, anyway. Turn it into a natural attraction for locals and tourists. Bring people to its banks to get a sense of the river and the…
Pima County Recorder’s Office Says Orr Has Enough Signatures To Remain on Ballot
Kirsten Adams/Cronkite News Service Ethan Orr: “Pettiness like this, it’s easy to put behind me.” It appears that state Rep. Ethan Orr may stay on the November ballot after all. Earlier this week, attorney Jeff Rogers filed a legal action saying that Orr had fallen short of the required 361 signatures for a variety of…
Win Tickets to The Hawaii Burlesque Show at Flycatcher Tonight
Looking for something to do tonight? Got a baby sitter, but no plans? We’ve got your back because that’s what friends are for. The insanely beautiful and talented Pisa Cake is giving away two free tickets to the Tucson Gets HOT in Honolulu: Support Local Artists Performing in the Hawaii Burlesque Festival. There will be sexy…
‘Daily Show’ Reports on the Hate Crimes Against Google Glass Explorers
The world is full of hate for people and things we don’t understand. The whole concept of people wearing $1,200 Google spectacles hasn’t caught, yet. There have been some instances where people felt threatened by the self proclaimed “Explorers” because they are infringing on the privacy of people around them. One Glasshole’s frames was ripped from his head…
Orr, Maybe He’s Just Not Ready For Prime Time
Ethan Orr’s campaign signs are still up, even though he’s on notice they’re not supposed to be there for at least another week. I took this pic at the corner of La Cholla and River today, along with two others you can see later in the post. It kinda makes you wonder about his ability…
See How Dangerous it is to Leave a Pet Inside a Hot Car
Veterinarian Dr. Ernie Ward has made the perfect video for pet owners that think it’s alright to leave their pet in the car during when it’s hot outside. Ward decided to lock himself in his car for 30 minutes while it was 95 degrees outside. Unfortunately, temperatures reached 117 degrees Fahrenheit when it was time to…
Skaters Gonna Skate 90’s Edition
Wazzup, dudes and dudettes. The totally tubular Skaters Gonna Skate is go on tonight from 10:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., at Skate Country, 7980 E. 22nd St. DJ Herm will be mixing all the mad 90’s tunes so you and your beeotches can get jiggy with it. The ring master will be none other than Ronnie Hardcase, since Herm “can’t skate for…
Jack White Wants You to Stop Filming His Shows and Live in the Moment
When was the last time you enjoyed anything without wiping out your cell phone so you can snap a picture or sharing a meaningless Snapchat? It’s hard to enjoy live concerts when you’re trying to fight for a good view when everyone has their cell phones in the air. That’s why Jack White is asking…
Ansel Adams and Debra Bloomfield at Etherton This Summer
Ansel Adams, Fresh Snow, Yosemite Valley, California (1947) gelatin silver print © The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. Downtown’s Etherton Gallery is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act with a glorious display of photography from Ansel Adams and Debra Bloomfield. Wild America continues through Aug. 30, with a Bloomfield coming to town for…
Pizzeria Bianco Tucson to Open on July 24
The highly anticipated Pizza Bianco is coming to downtown Tucson, and we can practically taste the artisan pizza. We broke the news in December, and everyone under the sun has written a feature on the highly anticipated Phoenix based pizzeria. Finally, the restaurant’s imminent opening date was revealed in a Instagram post Thursday afternoon. Thanks to Instagram: Inside the…
Cinema Showdown: High School Narcs and Odorama Edition
If the World Cup isn’t your thing, fear not—for there are movies. There’s lots of cinema special events this week, starting with tonight’s double feature of 2012’s 21 Jump Street and it’s brand spankin’ new sequel, the oh-so-cleverly titled 22 Jump Street. You can jump down on Jump Street starting at 5 p.m. over at…
V Modern Thai Finally Threw in The Towel
You might remember our controversial V Modern Thai announcement in May. They denied the closure, but they finally announced the news on their Facebook page. Straight from the horse’s mouth: “Sometimes it takes a wrong turn to get you to the right place.” – UnknownWith a heavy heart we regret to announce that V Modern…
Postcards from Phoenix Comicon 2014
Jim Nintzel If any trouble had struck in Maricopa County last weekend, there were plenty on heroes on hand to save the day at the Phoenix Comicon 14, which lured a lot of Avengers, Justice Leaguers, Guardians, Black Widows and others to downtown. Here are a few snapshots of the cosplay underway at the con.…
Let’s Watch This Video of the Grand Canyon’s Jaw-Dropping Beauty
YIKÁÍSDÁHÁ from Sunchaser Pictures on Vimeo. Photographer Gavin Heffernan of SunchaserPictures.com talks about capturing the stunning images in the above video: In April I had the privilege of being invited to Northern Arizona University as an “artist in residence” to speak with their Photography students about my timelapse experiences. While there, we also took shooting…
Conan Reviews ‘Super Smash Bros.’
Conan O’Brien, A.K.A. Coco, is doing his best to stay relevant with the gamers, so he’s reviewing Super Smash Bros. for the WiiU. The video game doesn’t his stands until holidays — just in time for Christmas. Honestly, I would love to play video games with Conan any day, but I would hate to discuss U.S. history…
You and Me
Typically speaking, music gets interesting when the musicians in question start to embrace their inner weirdness and forget about keeping up with what’s considered hip at the moment. Enter synth-pop duo Head Over Heart, and their just released single “You and Me.” Jordan Prather and Belinda Peters (nee Esquer) lounge, prance, and generally get their…
Media Watch
Meteorologist Aaron Pickering has spent the last three years gearing for a career change, and finally implemented that transition last month, thus concluding an eight-year run as part of the KOLD TV 13 weather team. “I started getting my master’s degree about three years ago. I really enjoy weather and really enjoy what I do,…
City Week
EMERGENCY CIRCUS BENEFIT GALA In a voice that sounds like a narrator in a superhero movie, we hear a telling premise: “In a world ruled by depression, poverty and isolation, a handful of exceptional individuals have taken it upon themselves to save the human race—using only the transformative power of circus.” Enter the Emergency Circus,…
Danehy
The really bad movie Brewster’s Millions was on the other night. In it, Richard Pryor plays a minor-league baseball player who stands to inherit $300 million from a long-lost relative, but there are strings attached. He must first blow through $30 million in 30 days. He has to receive services rendered for all financial outlays,…
Jersey Boys Cometh
The harmonious hits of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons have been ingrained in pop culture for five decades now. Starting with “Sherry,” the group’s first No. 1 single in 1961, and continuing through “My Eyes Adored You”, which hit No. 1 in 1975, the hits just kept coming. It’s like their output has always…
Guest Commentary
Tucsonans have a right to be proud of how we manage water. Our per capita water use is at historic lows—in fact, it’s among the lowest in the U.S. Frankly, this isn’t that surprising. Tucsonans have a strong conservation ethic. We love our Sonoran desert. We want to protect it. And it doesn’t hurt that…
True TV
Game of Thrones Sunday, June 15 (HBO) Season Finale: Not only has this been the most rape-y and head-popping season of Game of Thrones yet, but also the most-watched ever: Season 4 has averaged 18.4 million viewers, beating out The Sopranos as HBO’s highest-rated series (just imagine the numbers if HBO Go actually worked). So…
Goodbye, Old Courthouse
While many employees set to move into a new facility early next year seek to benefit from the approved amenities, security and functionality that come with a more modern facility, Pima County Consolidated Justice Court Administrator Doug Kooi has more low-maintenance requirements: He’s anticipating the moment every morning that he can wash out his coffee…
A Darker Dragon
The seaside village of Berk, once a war-torn land that pitted Vikings against dragons, has become something of a paradise. So we’re told by Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel), the teenager who in this franchise’s first entry made friends with a Night Fury dragon he would name Toothless. An end of hostilities! And no messy…
The Skinny
As promised in last week’s feature story (“And They’re Off,” June 6), here is a roundup of this year’s legislative races. The most competitive race this year is shaping up in Legislative District 9, a swing district that includes midtown Tucson, the Catalina Foothills and Casas Adobes. LD9 is currently a split district represented by…
Ask A Mexican!
Dear Mexican: If dark-skinned people are so “undesirable,” unwelcome and put down by you gringos, how come you bake in the sun like zopilotes to get dark? Summer is fantasy time for all of you, when you can actually get some color in that white skin of yours. Maybe the whole deal about racists is…
Police Dispatch
LESS MONEY, MO’ PROBLEMS EAST SUNRISE DRIVE May 12, 4:05 p.m. There was no stopping a short-tempered man after he ran over a bank’s stop sign and cussed out a “fat bitch” bank teller and at her “half-assed” establishment, according to a Pima County Sheriff’s Department report. Deputies found the man in a car near…
The Boats that Go Boom
Jesse Eisenberg follows up his bravura 2014 performance in The Double with another winner in Night Moves, a chilling eco-terrorism drama that taps into the actor’s darker side, and benefits from it. Josh (Eisenberg) is a radical environmentalist and organic farmer. Along with his two like-minded accomplices, Dena and Harmon (Dakota Fanning and Peter Sarsgaard),…
Medical MJ
It didn’t take long for the internet to light up with the news of an Arizona judge’s ruling June 6 that PTSD should be added to the list of medical marijuana qualifying ailments. Unfortunately, a lot of websites got it wrong, many of them because of the venerated Associated Press, whose story about the ruling…
The Sweet Life
Local neighborhood restaurants—especially successful ones—play an important role to both the economy and the well-being of the area where they’re located. Often the staff lives nearby. People don’t have to travel far to get a meal thereby leaving a small carbon footprint. I’d venture to say that crime rates might be lower near busy restaurants.…
Noshing Around
Day of Dad Father’s Day is Sunday, June 15, and while the day celebrating dads isn’t generally quite the spectacular Mother’s Day is, there are some options at local restaurants, most featuring combinations of meat and booze. • Noble Hops, 1335 W. Lambert Lane: Special pulled pork sandwich with slaw, corn on the cob and…
Les Claypool’s Duo de Twang: Four Foot Shack
Originally formed as an one-off for San Francisco’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, Les Claypool’s Duo de Twang is a rootsy, countrified experiment, but one that’s no less strange for its supposed conventionalism. Despite telling Rolling Stone the duo is his “fuck-off vacation band,” the berserk genius Claypool reveals both a willingness to play without a…
A Bittersweet End
After 11 years, it’s finally time to turn out the lights on the dessert case. Something Sweet Dessert Lounge is shutting its doors — and unlike a similar scene in 2011, it looks like this is the restaurant’s last gasp. Something Sweet began its life in 2003 as something simple: A laid-back, comfortable place for…
Electric Six
WHO ARE THEY? This Detroit sextet formed in 1996, with the original name The Wildbunch, an apt description of the new-wave dance rock smorgasbord they put forth. Adopting band alter egos (Dick Valentine, Da Ve, Johnny Na$hinal, Tait Nucleus?, Percussion World and yes, Smogasbord), the Electric Six can reach party frenzy in no time flat.…
Soundbites
GETTING INTO THE JAM Sure, the next month of my life will be defined by how much soccer I can manage to watch each day, but thanks to Brazil’s super-convenient time-zone, my nights will still be free to go to shows and talk to people or whatever. Great news, right? A two-night double-header of Spanish…
Tender Through Touring
The songs on Tender Madness came from a couple years of hard touring for PAPA. The band—formed by childhood friends Darren Weiss and Danny Presant, who moved from New York back to Los Angeles in 2010—had a growing fanbase, but was just starting to realize a vision they had for the music. Weiss, on drums…
Nine Questions
Henry Barajas So, I have decided to ask myself these questions so I can know what it’s like to be put on the spot and define my musical tastes for all of you to admire and or judge. Full disclosure: I used to play the trumpet when I was a lad, so I’m qualified and…
