The Entertainer! Magazine - July 2022

PHX METRO » JULY 2022

His girls and music bring him ‘pure joy’

‘THE LION KING’

s a m o Th tt e h R

MOVING DAY YOUR UN

Inside

MOVING DAY

YOUR UNIVERSITY HOUSING GUIDE

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MOVING AWAY FROM HOME

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JULY 2022 EST. 2002

Advice for living in your first apartment or dor m

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Dorm Room Meals

CONTENTS

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‘PURE JOY’

ON THE COVER

Life is good for country singer Thomas Rhett

Times Media Group 1900 W. Broadway Rd. Tempe, AZ 85282 Phone 480.348.0343 Fax 480.348.2109 entertainermag.com

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Aaron Kolodny

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writers

Alison Bailin Batz, Zakkary Brog, Abi Celaya, Eryka Forquer, Alex Gallagher, Dave Gil de Rubio, Jordan Houston, Laura Latzko, Jordan Rogers, Annika Tomlin

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Reno Aces, Jodi Cunningham, Grayson Gregory, Jordan Kelsey Knight, Deen Van Meer, David Minton, Brinkhoff Mogenburg, Mark Seliger, John Shearer, Universal Pictures, Erica Weitz, WWE

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ENTERTAINMENT DESTINATION

New sportsbook opens near Chase Field

CONTENTS

UPFRONT

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A SHOW FOR ALL AGES

Broadway’s ‘The Lion King’ comes to ASU Gammage

ARTS

20

CASINOS

Top 25 • Thomas Rhett • Billy Howerdel • The Lumineers

“The Lion King” • “On Your Feet! The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan”

Counting Crows • Casino Entertainment Calendar

CITY

DINING

SPORTS

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Caesars Sportsbook • Rainbow Ryders • Eric Ramsey and Charles “Cros” Mack • Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers

TRAVEL Yountville

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The Living Room • Dining Calendar

BREWS & SPIRITS 18

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Cole Tucker • Sports Calendar

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Sweet Dreams Winery • Brews & Spirits Calendar

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MUSIC

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The Entertainer! is circulated throughout the Phoenix Metro area, especially concentrated in entertainment districts. ©2022 Affluent Publishing, LLC. A free online subscription is available to all readers simply by going to entertainermag.com/subscribe.

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on the cover: Thomas Rhett Cover photo courtesy John Shearer

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TOP25

By Connor Dziawura

“How to Make an American Son”

TO JULY 17 Arizona Theatre Company, in association with Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, is presenting this play about “what happens when the promise of the American dream collides with the reality of immigration and family” at Stage West. A preview performance will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 1, with the opening performance following at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 2. At 7 p.m. Sunday, July 10, there will be an open captioned performance, and at 2 p.m. Saturday, July 16, there will be an ASL/AD performance.

Herberger Theater Center, 222 E. Monroe Street, Phoenix, 602.252.8497, herbergertheater.org, various dates and times, $25-$78

302 W. Latham Street, Phoenix, 602.262.2050, azpuppets.org, 10 a.m. Fridays, 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, $6-$12 or free for infants

“Rumpelstiltskin”

JULY 1 TO JULY 17 Recommended for kids 5 and older, this magical, family-friendly show uses rod marionettes to recount the classic fairy tale. From the strange creature with the hard-to-guess name to the miller’s daughter who wants her straw spun into gold, Great Arizona Puppet Theater remembers the iconic characters humorously.

Great Arizona Puppet Theater,

PHX » CITY » LOCAL » PRIDE » DO » SEE 3001 W. Indian School Road, Phoenix, 623.920.7114, https:// bit.ly/3xDNXhL, 6 to 11 p.m., $8

Independence Day Celebration: Red, White and Floom

JULY 3 Tempe’s annual celebration of the Fourth of July is back (a day early), featuring all sorts of food, drinks and entertainment, including ’80s cover band Rock Lobster, a fire floom show choreographed to music atop Tempe Town Lake, and kids activities. The event is produced by the city of Tempe with support from the local Kiwanis Club, and it raises funds for local children and youth organizations.

Tempe Beach Park, 80 W. Rio Salado Parkway, Tempe, tempe4th.com, 6 to 10 p.m., free admission

All-American Festival

“Minions: The Rise of Gru”

OPENS JULY 1 One of the highest-grossing films of all time is finally receiving a sequel after a seven-year wait. The sequel to 2015’s family-friendly “Minions,” “The Rise of Gru” — another spinoff of the “Despicable Me” franchise — sees the return of Steve Carell to voice Gru, amongst a star-studded voice cast including Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, RZA, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lucy Lawless, Dolph Lundgren, Danny Trejo, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews and Alan Arkin. The film chronicles Gru’s rise to supervillain status. Rated PG. In theaters, minionsmovie.com

UPFRONT

“WWE SmackDown”

JULY 1 World Wrestling Entertainment is returning to the Valley with wrestlers like Drew McIntyre, Ronda Rousey, the Usos, Bobby Lashley and Omos in tow. It’s about to go down at the Footprint Center.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 602.379.7800, footprintcenter. com, 4:45 p.m., $20-$90

All for the Culture Hip-Hop Festival

JULY 3 Supporting local artists and businesses is this festival featuring 15 acts. Presented by UNDER1NATION, this event is “all for the culture” — and features live hip-hop and R&B, vendors and food trucks, including soul food. This event is for attendees 18 and older.

Underground Cultural Center,

JULY 4 Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers will headline this family-friendly Northwest Valley festival, which will also feature live music from the Sidewinders; giant inflatable water slides; a cornhole tournament; and food and drinks, including alcoholic beverages. A Sensory Room — equipped with noise-canceling headphones, weighted blankets, plush chairs and soft toys — will also be available as a calming space for children, teens and adults with sensory-processing needs.

Peoria Sports Complex, 16101 N. 83rd Avenue, Peoria, peoriaaz.gov, 5 to 10 p.m., free general admission or $25$35 for VIP experiences

Light Up the Sky 4th of July Celebration

JULY 4 Proclaimed to be “the largest tailgate fireworks experience in the Southwest Valley,” this Independence Day celebration from the city of Avondale, Phoenix Raceway and Avondale Toyota features a free, 25-minute fireworks show; DJ entertainment; games; a kids zone; and food. The event will conclude at the end of the fireworks show, which begins at 8:30 p.m.

Phoenix Raceway, 7602 Jimmie Johnson Drive, Avondale, 623.333.2400, avondaleaz.gov/ rec, 5 p.m., free admission

Scottsdale 4th of July Celebration

JULY 4 Bull riding and mutton busting, live performances, games and dances, balloon artists and face painters, a parade, the Canine Stars Stunt Dog Show and, of course, what’s billed as the largest fireworks show in Scottsdale — these are some of the can’t-miss ways to celebrate Independence Day if you make it to the ninth annual Scottsdale 4th event. Fireworks begin at 9 p.m., after which the event will promptly end. This event is cashless and requires card payments.

WestWorld of Scottsdale, 16601 N. Pima Road, Scottsdale, 480.656.9940, scottsdale4th. com, 5 p.m., $15-$40

Arizona Diamondbacks vs.

San Francisco Giants

JULY 4 TO JULY 6 The D-backs kick off a slew of matchups against the Giants this Independence Day. For Fourth of July, the first 10,000 fans will receive a patriotic T-shirt. If you can’t make it, you can catch the games on TV via Bally Sports Arizona or radio via 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station and KHOV Univision 105.1.

Chase Field, 401 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 602.462.6500, dbacks.com, 3:10 p.m.

Monday, 6:40 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, $15-$187

“The Lion King”

JULY 5 TO JULY 31 A multi-Tony Award-winning Broadway show, Disney’s classic “The Lion King” comes back to life with this return to Gammage.

See this adaptation of the classic animated film that birthed beloved and iconic characters like Simba, Mufasa, Nala, Scar, Rafiki, Timon and Pumbaa. ASL interpretation

JULY 4

Independence Day Celebration

SEPTEMBER 17

32nd Annual Fiesta de Septiembre

NOVEMBER 11-13 43rd Annual Bluegrass Festival

DECEMBER 2-3

33rd Cowboy Christmas Poetry Gathering

DECEMBER 9

28th Annual Christmas Parade of Lights

928-684-0977 OUTWICKENBURGWAY.COM FACEBOOK.COM/WICKENBURGAZ

Photo: © Craig W. Cutler Fine Art

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UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

is available for the 6:30 p.m. July 24 performance by request.

ASU Gammage, 1200 S. Forest Avenue, Tempe, 480.965.3434, asugammage.com, various dates and times, see website for tickets

prolific string of records over the past handful of years, the duo of rapper Slug and producer Ant is returning to the Valley with reggae rock band Iration for the Sunshine & Summer Nights Tour. The two acts will share the stage with rapper The Grouch and DJ Fresh as well as reggae rock band Passafire.

Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Avenue, Tempe, 480.829.0607, luckymanonline. com, 6 p.m., $50-$200

“Frozen”

Phoenix Mercury vs.

New York Liberty

JULY 7 The first of five home games this month, July 7 sees the Mercury take on the New York Liberty Downtown.

The game will be available on Facebook, Bally Sports Arizona Extra and YES App for those who are unable to make it in person.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 602.252.9622, mercury. wnba.com, 7 p.m., $22-$85

“Thor: Love and Thunder”

OPENS JULY 8 Starring Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, and Christian Bale as Gorr the God Butcher, “Love and Thunder” is the fourth installment of the “Thor” franchise and a part of the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe saga. Once again directed by Taika Waititi, who helmed 2017’s critically acclaimed “Thor: Ragnarok,” this latest film appears to maintain the same colorful world-building and humor, albeit with the added darkness of Bale’s villain. Stay tuned as Portman’s character gains some powers of her own. Rated PG-13.

In theaters, marvel.com

Arizona Rattlers vs.

Vegas Knight Hawks

JULY 10 After defeating the Knight Hawks back in April, the Rattlers will show their skills by facing off against the Vegas team again to put a cap on the 2022 season. Here’s hoping for Arizona to take the win again!

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 602.514.8274, azrattlers. com, 3:05 p.m., $30-$95

Atmosphere and Iration

JULY 10 Rhymesayers hip-hop group Atmosphere seems to always be either working or touring. After a ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

JULY 10 Enjoy an afternoon with Anna, Elsa, Kristoff and Olaf when the 2013 Disney musical film that birthed a franchise returns to the big screen thanks to Friends of the Orpheum. Rated PG. Orpheum Theatre, 203 W. Adams, Phoenix, 602.262.6225, etix.com, 3 p.m., $11-$16

Drive, Glendale, 602.485.1691, maricopacountyhomeshows.com, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, $3-$10 or free for children 2 and younger

Audio Bend

JULY 16 This year’s iteration of the Audio Bend festival features sets from Axel Boy, Danny Fathom, DJ Caffeine and Aibai. Described on its website as a “Futuristic Music & Art Showcase,” Audio Bend features an airconditioned warehouse stage as well as, overlooking Lake Pleasant, other stages and festival features (which have in the past included water slides, bouncy castles, vendors, laser light shows and more).

Pleasant Harbor at Lake Pleasant, 8708 W. Harbor Boulevard, Peoria, 480.256.BEND (2363), audiobend.info, 7 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday, $20

“Hits! The Musical” Auditions JULY 12 Ahead of its national tour, which will hit roughly 50 cities from March 1 to May 15, 2023, “Hits! The Musical” is searching for the best young stars.

Kids and teens ages 8 to 23 can audition to be featured singers on this Phoenix stop. Several rounds of auditions will take place. The final tour next year will feature around 22 singers and dancers performing pop, country, rock and Broadway hits from throughout the decades.

Marriott Phoenix Airport, 1101 N. 44th Street, Phoenix, thehitstour.com, various checkin times, free admission

“On Your Feet! The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan”

JULY 13 TO AUGUST 28 Described by Phoenix Theater Company as a “smash-hit Broadway musical fiesta” and a “salsa-splashed showcase of (their) dance-floor hits,” “On Your Feet!” recalls the true story of how husband-and-wife duo Emilio and Gloria Estefan and their band Miami Sound Machine rose to fame. This show will be presented in the Mainstage Theatre.

Phoenix Theatre Company, 1825 N. Central Avenue, Phoenix, 602.254.2151, phoenixtheatre. com, various dates and times, see website for tickets

Maricopa County Home Show JULY 15 TO JULY 17 The popular county home show is back, featuring highlights like an artisan marketplace and vendor booths, seminars, landscape consultations, cooking demonstrations and crafting workshops.

State Farm Stadium, 1 Cardinals

Repticon

JULY 16 AND JULY 17 The perfect convention for reptile enthusiasts, Repticon features a variety of vendors and seminars, allowing attendees to see live reptiles up close, buy reptiles and other exotic pets from breeders, and get advice from breeders and experts.

Mesa Convention Center, 263 N. Center Street, Mesa, 863.268.4273, repticon.com, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, $6-$15 or free for kids 4 and younger

SneakerBall and Awards Show

JULY 16 It’s the hottest sneaker, art, fashion and philanthropic event for kids in Arizona this summer! It will feature a red-carpet entrance, award show honoring community excellence, fashion show, SneakerBall signature tables, food, raffle and vendors, plus music by DJ B-Dash and a special guest DJ. FAB Events, which presents SneakerBall with Greyscale Media, is looking to collect new and slightly used sneakers for needy homeless people and youth.

Phoenix Convention Center, 100 N. Third Street, Phoenix, phoenixkidssneakerball. eventbrite.com, 5 to 9 p.m., $20-$50

“NOPE”

OPENS JULY 22 Following “Get Out” and “Us,” Jordan Peele is back with his latest film in the horror genre, “NOPE.” The plot only mentions “residents in a lonely gulch of inland California who bear witness to an uncanny and chilling discovery,” though it’s notable for the UFO imagery in its trailer as well as a cast that re-teams Peele with actor Daniel Kaluuya. Keke Palmer and Steven Yeun co-star, with Michael Wincott and Brandon Perea among the supporting cast. Not yet rated.

In theaters, nope.movie

Phoenix Rising vs.

Sacramento Republic

JULY 23 The summer is rolling on, temps are rising, and the soccer season is underway. Catch the Rising on the field at this matchup against the Republic, the second of three home games for Phoenix’s football club this month.

Phoenix Rising Stadium at Wild Horse Pass, 19593 S. 48th Street, Chandler, 623.594.9606, phxrisingfc.com, 7:30 p.m., see website for tickets

Wiz Khalifa and Logic

JULY 30 Grammy Award-nominated rapper Logic just dropped his latest project, “Vinyl Days,” to warm reception.

Meanwhile, fellow Grammy nominee Wiz Khalifa is reportedly capitalizing on the multiverse trend with his own project, “Multiverse,” his first solo studio album since 2018’s “Rolling Papers 2.” An official release for the latter has yet to be revealed, but the Vinyl Verse Summer Tour also features 24kGoldn, DJ Drama, Fedd the God and C Dot Castro, plus other special guests on select dates.

Ak-Chin Pavilion, 2121 N. 83rd Avenue, Phoenix, 602.254.7200, vinylverse.co, 6:30 p.m., $29.50-$309.50

‘PURE JOY’ 8

UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

Life is good for country singer Thomas Rhett

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

C

ountry star Thomas Rhett has a new motto: “Pure joy.”

The mantra refers to his shows, his music and his

life.

“I don’t look at this as playing a bunch of songs,” Rhett says about gigs like his Thursday, August 4, date at Ak-Chin Pavilion.

“We’re there to bring joy to people.

We’re extremely energetic. We don’t stop bouncing around the stage for about 105 minutes.”

Rhett is changing his tune thanks to the pandemic lockdown. He and his band tried to perform during that time via Zoom, but, he says, “It got pretty old.”

He played 20 shows in 2021, and it proved to be a “nice re-entry into the touring world.”

Rhett is hitting stages in support of his sixth studio album, “Where We Started,” for which he collaborated with Katy Perry, Riley Green, Tyler Hubbard and Russell Dickerson. The current single is “Half of Me” with Green.

“I love to overcollaborate,” he says with a laugh.

“Maybe I collaborate too much. It’s way more fun. I love recording songs by myself. But when something organically happens when another artist — in or out of genre — wants to do something together, it’s amazing.”

The collaborators on this album may seem “all over the place,” but there is a commonality, he says.

“These songs resonated with these artists,” he says. “It’s what music was intended to do: share with your buddies and friends.”

Family is wedged in there, too. Rhett’s dad, the legendary Rhett Akins, opened his world to Motown and soul, while his grandmother turned him on to doo-wop.

“My dad is a huge influence on me musically,” Rhett says.

“My grandmother taught me how to do the twist in her living room. There’s always been a lot of doo-wop elements, strictly because my grandparents love it.

‘Crash and Burn’ is highly influenced by the 1950s. It’s a simple song.

“Every record has an ode to the ’50s — at least one song on the record has to be that way.”

Rhett doesn’t always funnel his collaborations through music.

Recently, he started working with ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

Chaco Footwhere: Chaco x. The limitededition sandals are inspired by Rhett’s love for the outdoors and memories on the river with his family, featuring the vibrant colors of the rainbow trout and the brook trout.

“This year was our second collaboration with Chaco,” he says.

“I’ve been wearing their sandals since the seventh grade. As a 30-year-old, it was super fun to collaborate with something that brought me so much joy.”

He and his cousin, Jeff Worn, founded Dos Primos tequila and the new Dos Primos tequila reposado. The easy drinking reposado tequila is made from hand-harvested 100% blue agave sourced from estates in Los Altos and the valley area of Jalisco, Mexico, and aged for at least six months in used bourbon barrels.

“My tequila brand is in year two,” he says. “I started it with my cousin, hence the name. It’s been really cool to watch it take off. At the show, we have a large presence there.”

As for Rhett, he’s a “sipper” when it comes to tequila.

“You can do anything with tequila that you can do with bourbon. You

can make an old-fashioned by adding tequila instead of bourbon. There’s just something about it that I love so much. I love drinking in the wintertime, sitting by the fire, in the woods or on a mountain somewhere.”

RHETT: THE MENTOR At Ak-Chin Pavilion, Rhett will be joined by burgeoning stars Parker McCollum and Conner Smith. Rhett says this just adds to the fun.

“Conner is 21 and just signed a record deal,” Rhett says.

“I was 21 years old when I signed a record deal. I know about being green in the business. I could tell him about some of the things I’ve learned over the years.

“Parker, I met a couple years ago.

I didn’t listen to a whole lot of Texas country as a young kid, but five or six

years ago, I dove really hard into it. He quickly became one of my favorite Texas country acts.”

For McCollum and Smith, Rhett will serve as a mentor of sorts.

“I love it. Maybe that shows I’m kind of getting old,” he says.

“I think turning 30 did a lot for my brain. I’ve had enough time to find a lot of success and make a lot of mistakes, and share what I’ve learned from those mistakes. It brings me joy to share a little bit of knowledge form the last decade of my career so, hopefully, they don’t make the same mistakes.”

Rhett’s biggest regret is allowing big moments to slip by. He admits he’s played some cool shows, met amazing people. But he never took the time to cherish great moments when they happened.

“I don’t think I soaked enough in,” he says. “In that, I think it brought a bunch of weight and stress to keep up with the Joneses instead of sitting back and saying, ‘Dang. As a 19-year-old kid, all I wanted was to write songs and play small shows.’

“I wish I had taken more time to see how awesome it was, instead of looking back at it as a 32-year-old man. Young kids need to embrace what’s happening.

If you sign a record deal and do a tour, you’re in a very small percentage of people who get to do that.”

Full time, he spends his time acting as a cheerleader to his daughters — Willa Gray, Lennon Love, Ada James and Lillie Carolina — with wife, Lauren Akins.

“Our kids are all involved in 48 million different things, whether it’s gym, ballet or horse lessons, soccer camp or tennis camp — whatever they love to do,” Rhett says with a laugh.

“I love so much getting to take them to all these different camps. I let them decide if they love it or not and if they want to continue. They’re amazing.”

Thomas Rhett w/Parker McCollum and Conner Smith WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, August 4 WHERE: Ak-Chin Pavilion, 2121 N. 83rd Avenue, Phoenix COST: Tickets start at $35.50 INFO: livenation.com

AN EVOLUTION THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

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e group’s full-length debut, “Mer Billy Howerdel deThNoms,” went platinum and was the “highest Billboard Top 200 bow for a goes out on rock band’s debut.”

They followed it with the platinum his own “Thirteenth Step” in 2003, 2004’s

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

W

ith “What Normal Was,” Billy Howerdel has made the record of his career.

“This is me stepping back into my early teen self and making the record I would’ve made if I had the means and the knowledge when I first picked up a guitar — just in 2022,” Howerdel explains.

“It’s that moment as a kid when you hear a record, close your eyes, and go somewhere else. That was the time I found my lane, so to speak.”

His moody, atmospheric debut album was released June 10 via Alchemy Recordings/Rise Records/BMG. The founding member of A Perfect Circle and Ashes Divide will support “What Normal Was” with shows, including one on Wednesday, July 20, at the Crescent Ballroom in Phoenix.

“There won’t be any cartwheels, no flips, no fire,” he says. “I just want a disclaimer so nobody’s heart is broken.

The exciting thing is the Phoenix show is our first.

“Those will come will be along for the ride for our very first official show of this album under this name with a new band.”

New Jersey-born and Los Angelesbased vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer Howerdel has devoted his life to music after seeing a Pink Floyd concert.

Until this point, he’s worked as a touring musician and studio tech for the likes of David Bowie, Guns N’ Roses, and Nine Inch Nails.

He met Maynard James Keenan when Tool opened for Fishbone, for whom Howerdel served as a tech.

Living together in a North Hollywood cottage with Keenan, the two of them he co-founded A Perfect Circle in 1999.

uide The Insider ’s G

gold “Emotive,” and 2018’s “Eat the Elephant.”

In between, Howerdel’s music has also appeared in video games and on the big screen. During 2008, he made his first solo statement under the moniker Ashes Divide with “Keep Telling Myself It’s Alright.” He stopped using the Ashes Divide name earlier this year.

His proper full-length debut is this year’s “What Normal Was.” Once he started writing the album, it came about quickly.

“A lot of times I slept only three to four hours,” he says. “I was definitely a nightmare to be around during that time.

“People endured it. When I was on a roll, I just wanted to keep going.

Everything kept sounding better, and that makes me really excited. To make a record in six months is ambitious, and we almost did it.”

On the record, Howerdel is joined by drummer Josh Freese.

The wait to release music was troubling. The music was finished in May 2020.

“We’ve been sitting on it and waiting,” he says. “There were a lot of false starts.”

After the pandemic delays, he’s happy to be on the road and having the record out.

“It’s going to be even more about the music than the visuals at this point,” Howerdel says, comparing his band to A Perfect Circle.

“As it grows, I think it’ll bring back more of the visual elements within the packaging of the album. It’s an evolution.”

Billy Howerdel WHEN: 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 20 WHERE: Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Avenue, Phoenix COST: Tickets start at $30 INFO: crescentphx.com

rtainment

to Arizona Ente

.com

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ON THE ‘BRIGHTSIDE’ The Lumineers say their new album is timeless

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UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

By Dave Gil de Rubio

W

hatever you do, don’t call “Brightside,” the Lumineers’ fourth and newest studio effort, a COVID-19 album, even though the band started tracking its nine songs in March 2021.

While founding member Wesley Schultz acknowledges the pair of twoand-a-half-week sessions occurred during the pandemic time frame as the 39-yearold New Jersey native was hunkering down with his family in Denver, he feels this latest outing is its own thing.

“We kept saying it was like the postCOVID-19 record,” Schultz explains.

“To me, it was not consciously trying to float above that while still observing that. In a lot of ways, we were trying to make a record that we’d want to hear in 10 years, and it would still make sense. I started to realize that a lot of the artists who I really love from the late ’60s to mid-’70s — they were pushing off of a lot of social unrest like Vietnam. There are a lot of things that I don’t know personally but that I felt through the music. Instead of being isolated to a few countries, this is the whole world now. It’s a very strange, relatable thing. Part of the goal of the record, at least subconsciously, is to try to write an album that describes the pain without getting so caught in the weeds in using the words quarantine or pandemic.

It was bigger than that.”

Like many a music act, when touring was paused in March 2020, the Lumineers’ time on the road came to an abrupt halt. Schultz went through what he felt like was a quasi-grieving process.

“You go through your confusion, anger and then acceptance,” he says. “I felt pretty stifled and down. I was out of my element for a while there. I think the writing helped dig me out of the hole and find a purpose again and maybe channel some of the stuff I was really feeling in a healthier way versus drinking every day or doing something that was going to distract me.”

And adding a baby girl to a brood that already included his toddler son helped give him perspective during this unprecedented time.

“The way touring goes, you say yes to a hell of a lot more things than you say no, so I was forced to be grounded and to see my son and spend real time with him,” Schultz says.

“You’re like a workaholic in some ways because you’re hustling for so many years that it was a gift to be told that you have to stay still for a little while. Even though ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

that was painful, I felt like what do I do with myself now? I felt useless. You crawl out of that and get a lot of beautiful time out of it. I feel way, way closer to my son than I probably would have had we been on the road.”

For the past decade, the duo of Schultz and Jeremiah Fraites have been the constants in the Lumineers (cellist/vocalist Neyla Pekarek was in the band from 2010-18), carving out a niche as one of the premier folk-rock/Americana acts through what is now the group’s fourth album.

The band’s breakthrough single was the 2012 Top 5 hit “Ho Hey,” which gained enough traction to be used in a Bing commercial and pop up in a number of television series, including “Bones,” “Nashville” and “The Vampire Diaries.”

Its simplicity taps into an organic vibe that has come to define much of the Lumineers’ work that Schultz has found to be lacking in a lot of pop music.

“Even though I didn’t think that song was going to resonate the way it does. I just thought it was interesting to my ear,” he recalls.

“It had to come from someplace other than trying to please someone. I’ve been to BMI Awards where people collect awards for these songs, and half the time you never heard of the song and there are 12 or 15 writers that go up and collect trophies because I guess they generated money.

Half the time, those guys don’t even like what they wrote. They just know that it’s catchy. Isn’t it better to just write stuff that you care about? So for me, there’s this

element of people asking about the 10th anniversary of our first record and how that feels and what does that mean? And most of it is that we got to make stuff the way we liked it on our own terms.

“One of the things that I learned the more that I make music is to get out of your own way and to hold on to some level of your own innocence,” Schultz says.

“You’re not just creating new instruments and making up new chords.

You’re finding yourself not quite sure of what you’re doing. It’s funny to even evaluate things when they come out, because in a lot of ways, my favorite record is something it took me a while (to come around to). All of a sudden, it’s on heavy rotation the rest of my life. The transcendence of all this is a really funny thing. It’s like a mystical thing. That word alchemy comes to mind.”

That straightforward simplicity comes across in spades on “Brightside,” whether it’s the opening title track that uses a cadence reminiscent of Tom Petty’s “Don’t Come Around Here No More” while Schultz implores that, “I’ll be your brightside, baby, tonight” or providing reassurances during uncertain times amid bare bones piano accompaniment and just a hint of strings amid the optimistic vibe of “Where We Are.” Both songs have provided a degree of comfort to the band’s fan base, who have shared their feelings on social media.

“Ironically, a lot of parents, whether it’s people I don’t know that are posting it or parents that I know personally, so many

have sent me images of their kids singing ‘Where We Are’ or ‘Brightside,’” Schultz says. “But particularly ‘Where We Are’ and they’re singing, ‘Where we are/ I don’t know where we are’ and it’s these little kids, most of whom don’t even know words yet and they’re mouthing these words. That for me is very exciting to see. It’s like tapping into some kind of universal power.”

Suffice it to say that the creative restlessness that defined so much of how “Brightside” came out will be a driving force of what the Lumineers will bring to the stage on this summer’s tour.

“We have four albums out and we have to cut songs now, and that’s a good feeling,” Schultz says.

“We can actually put on a show that has no fat. As a band, we’re most excited to play. Not pulling a rabbit out of our hat, but having, from start to finish, moments (fans) won’t want to leave, grab a beer or take a leak. You want to just be there. I got to see Tom Petty during his “Wildflowers” tour, and I forgot how many songs he wrote. I would never compare us to him, but in that feeling, I want people to leave hopefully saying, ‘I forgot how many songs they wrote,’ even just four albums in.”

The Lumineers WHEN: 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 26 WHERE: Gila River Arena, 9400 W. Maryland Avenue, Glendale COST: Tickets start at $34 INFO: gilariverarena.com

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ENTERTAINMENT DESTINATION

New sportsbook opens near Chase Field

By Jordan Rogers

T

he much-anticipated Caesars Sportsbook has finally opened its doors.

The two-story, 22,300-square-foot entertainment destination is located right next to Chase Field in Downtown Phoenix. It is the largest free-standing sportsbook in Arizona, and the partnership with the Diamondbacks makes it the largest retail sportsbook to open in partnership with a major sports stadium in the country.

“Thinking back to when we first broke ground in September, we, the Diamondbacks, talked about this opportunity and trying to partner up with the perfect, absolute perfect, operator,” says Derrick Hall, president and CEO of the Diamondbacks. “For us, it was a brand. To partner up with the D-backs brand; one that was all about hospitality, about experience, about class, and that’s what Caesars is.”

An opening event was held on June 21, featuring comments from Caesars and Diamondbacks representatives, a first-bite sampling of menu items and ceremonial first bets made by five longtime Diamondbacks season ticket holders, as well as a donation of $20,000 by Caesars to the Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation.

“The D-backs are an organization that is incredibly well run,” says Ken Fuchs, head of sports at Caesars. “They understand our business. So, we knew that was going to be very complementary to this location. When you have 81 games a year here, plus Spring Training and playoffs, it’s a gathering spot. Then we looked at the space, and we could see what we were able to do with it.

“It was really one of those things that came together where you’re going to get a lot of people, you’re able to build in your great space, you’re going to have a partner and execute on it. That’s really what you want.”

The venue features nine betting windows and 13 self-service betting kiosks, as well as wall-to-wall flatscreen televisions. It also has ample patio space with table and plush lounge-style seating on both stores with a capacity of more than 425. Private space is also available for rent.

“This has been a labor of love for us,” Fuchs says. “It really is a culmination of a vision that we had with the D-backs to bring something special to fans and to our customers. I couldn’t be happier with the outcome. It’s beautiful space. It’s a place for people who gather before and after games and, frankly, 365 days a year for sports.”

While at the opening event, Hall displayed his satisfaction with the finished product.

“This is going to be quite the place every day,” Hall says. “This will be the place to be, and you can see why. It’s absolutely gorgeous.”

The immersive experience doesn’t stop with sports betting. In conjunction with Caesars and the Diamondbacks, world-renowned celebrity chef Guy Fieri has brought his unique cuisine style to Downtown Phoenix.

Located on the second floor of the building, Guy Fieri’s PTPHX Kitchen + Bar at Caesars Sportsbook marks Fieri’s first full-service restaurant in Arizona.

“You think about, in my opinion, the biggest brand when it comes to a chef and the most, I think, reputation and name awareness, Guy is the chef,” Hall says. “He’s the one who we had targeted and wanted for sure.”

Guy Fieri’s DTPHX Kitchen + Bar

features a combination of new recipes and Fieri’s personal favorites from his other restaurants, such as his trash can nachos and bacon mac and cheeseburger.

“I want to thank Caesars and the Arizona Diamondbacks for being great partners and making this happen,” Fieri says. “We’ve got a great team on the ground in Phoenix, and we’re ready to rock and make this the place to be in Downtown Phoenix on game day and every day. Real deal, scratch-made food, killer cocktails, D-backs baseball and sports betting. Come on, does it get any better? We’ll see you there.”

Also on hand at the sportsbook’s opening was Caesars Brand Ambassador Kenny Mayne. He calls the location perfect.

“Looking out a window (in the building), I can throw a rock to (Chase Field) sitting here,” Mayne says. “It’s pretty convenient, and because of the convenience, it’s a place to hang out before the game or after the game. This is the perfect spot.”

Now having been with Caesars since September 2021, Mayne sees the company is the premier sports betting option for gamblers. He says name recognition and good partnerships play into that.

“It’s just the name alone the history of the place,” Mayne says. “The name is kind of worldwide famous. I think that

helps additionally, and they merged with the William Hill folks who already had a good beat on how the whole thing is supposed to work. Kind of together, I think, they exceeded what they expected.”

As far as interest in the Downtown Phoenix area goes, Fuchs says the Diamondbacks were a huge part of that.

As soon as Arizona legalized sports betting, Fuchs says Caesars had interest in putting the Caesars name on the map in the Valley.

To commemorate the sportsbook’s opening, Caesars is running a promotion where fans can get a free $5 bet every time the Diamondbacks hit a double throughout the rest of the Major League Baseball season.

“We understood that there was this great potential,” Fuchs says. “The Diamondbacks have a preeminent franchise here in the state, and it’s a great state for sports fans. You think about the history and some of the legacy of the moments here.

“The location Downtown allows us to be a premium spot here. This was a perfect, perfect setting.”

Caesars Sportsbook at Chase Field https://atmlb.com/3NlSrQ2

‘RYDING’ ON A RAINBOW THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

Hot air balloon company gives bucket list opportunity

By Jordan Houston

W

hether it’s conquering a fear of heights, boosting adrenaline or simply enjoying a romantic setting, hot air balloon rides are a top bucket list contender for many — and Rainbow Ryders is here to help.

The North Phoenix-based hot air balloon company, with offices in Albuquerque and Colorado Springs, boasts four decades of experience providing rides to over 500,000 passengers. Rainbow Ryders, headquartered at 715 E. Covey Lane, Unit 100, is the official balloon ride operator at events around the country, including the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta and the Colorado Springs Labor Day Lift Off, according to its website.

The Phoenix location offers daily scenic rides year-round over Deer Valley and the Sonoran Desert vistas.

Rainbow Ryders seeks to provide an “unforgettable bucket list experience,” founder and owner Scott Appelman explains.

“Being in Arizona, you’ve got the beautiful mountains around us, and the desert landscape — it’s just stunning,” he tells Entertainer! Magazine. “I’ve flown in over 45 states and three different countries. There is nothing like flying here. It’s just so pretty. It’s like the pictures that are painted.”

All company pilots are FAA certified

and have nearly 200 years of combined experience, the site continues. With 40 balloons throughout the three locations, Rainbow Ryders fleet sizes vary in order to accommodate guest and party requests.

While each typically services between two and four people, and can fit up to 12 to 14, personal requests seeking smaller baskets are available. Rainbow Ryders is also the only COVID Safe Practice Certified hot air balloon ride company, the site continues.

“When you’re coming out here with your grandma, grandchild or your sweetheart, you know you’re in the best hands possible,” Appelman says. “The simple fact is you’re floating with a bag of hot air and you’re at the mercy of mother nature, which has all of the cool romance that goes with those words, but you just want to make sure you’re with an operator that is reputable and will treat you right.”

The Phoenix location offers yearlong group and private sunrise rides. Sunset rides are also available from November through March due to climate and weather factors.

Adult group ride tickets originally cost $275 but can vary depending on the time of purchase and potential specials. Individual adult tickets for private rides are slated as $425 per person. Both types of rides take about three and a half hours in total, with 45 minutes to one hour of flight time.

“A majority of our people will do this once to fill that bucket list,” Appelman says. “And I am amazed that a lot of people

have multiple flights with us and bring back new family members or new friends.”

Sunrise Rainbow Ryders’ passengers are asked to first meet the pilots at the headquarters 30 minutes prior to sunrise.

The pilots will then study the wind conditions to determine the best location to launch.

The flight team will drive passengers to and from the drop-off and pickup locations before and after the flights.

Once the balloon is inflated, pilots will fly from ground level to a couple thousand feet above, depending on wind direction and speed. The conductors will steer the balloon by moving it to different altitudes to get different wind patterns, so the height of the balloon will vary throughout the flight.

“The wind will change based on the geographic conditions of where you are,” Appelman says. “You can’t fly through the mountains, because it has weird weather sensations that compromise safety — you won’t see us flying through the mountains.”

Appelman says the flight’s sensations are similar to what it would feel like to float. He adds that it’s very quiet other than the sound of the burner.

“It’s like the ocean. There are different currents down there, and it’s the exact same thing when you’re up in the air,” he says, noting that the pilot will steer by adding more heat.

Each trip concludes with a traditional celebratory toast and a commemorative flight certificate.

Rainbow Ryders prides itself in its safety and training protocols, Appelman says.

All pilots are required to have a minimum of 500 flight hours and are regularly tested for drugs and alcohol, the website reads.

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They are also required to carry a 2nd Class Airman Medical Certificate.

Appelman says the company has won countless awards and has been named the only official ride operator for worldrenowned events “due to the impeccable safety record we hold as a company.”

“All of our pilots are FAA-certified commercial pilots. Rainbow Ryders endorses a very high-level standard of safety and ongoing education to make sure we are providing the safest and most qualified experience possible,” he says. “We are continuing to reinvest into our equipment and personnel to be sure everybody is safe.”

Rainbow Ryders Inc. dates began offering hot air balloon flights in the scenic Rio Grande Valley back in 1983, after Appelman made the decision to walk away from his family’s construction business and pursue his passions above the ground.

“When I was 12 years old, I lived in Albuquerque. They had the first balloon festival there, and I was fascinated as a young boy,” he says. “I love aviation and I saw these balloons fly and I thought, “Oh, my gosh, this is so cool.’”

Appelman attained his license in 1983 and began to fly hot air balloons recreationally. When he launched Rainbow Ryders, he started with one two-passenger balloon and did every task from answering the phones and booking reservations to piloting the flights.

And he hasn’t looked back since.

“I thought, ‘Holy mackerel, I’m doing something that really matters,’” Appelman says. “It’s a luxury item — it’s not like putting dinner on the table, but it’s being part of making people’s lives and being part of that memory. It is probably the greatest privilege of my life.”

The founder went on to originate and organize the Fiesta’s Balloon Glow from 1987 to 1992. He also organized the event’s Special Shapes Rodeo and Albuquerque Aloft, winning the Heritage Award from the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta and Tourism Hall of Fame award from the Tourism Association of America.

Appelman shifted his attention to Phoenix in 2008, drawn to the region’s year-round balloon weather, he says.

“None of us are promised tomorrow, and the bucket list thing has become a very big thing — especially since we get younger generations,” he says. “This is a way that people can go on out and fill up their list and do something different and exciting during what has been challenging times.”

Rainbow Ryders For more information, visit rainbowryders.com ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

SINGING THE BLUES

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UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

Vocalist and band take home challenge prizes

By Laura Latzko

L

ocal musicians Eric Ramsey and Charles “Cros” Mack have developed their craft over a lifetime.

Now, it’s paying off. At the recent International Blues Challenge, they finished first and second in the solo/ duo and band categories, respectively.

This is their third time competing.

Organized by the Blues Foundation, the competition brings together hundreds of blues musicians and bands from around the world.

The two qualified locally for the international contest during the Phoenix Blues Society-sponsored Arizona Blues Showdown in September.

During the local and international competition, Ramsey performed as a solo artist and Cros with his six-piece band.

ERIC RAMSEY Wichita-bred Ramsey has had a lifelong passion for music but only recently began to pursue it full time in the last seven years.

The Scottsdale resident has released five albums and is working on his next one. His latest is “Right, Raw or Wrong,” a live blues album that features “Hurricane Woman Blues,” “Everybody’s Just a Heartbeat Away,” “Cocoon,” “Around Here,” “What Else Do We Need” and “Road of Man.” Ramsey will perform locally with his duo partner, Robby Roberson, at Fatso’s Pizza in Phoenix on Friday, August 19, and the Musical Instrument Museum on Friday, July 1.

Ramsey taught himself to play guitar, banjo, mandolin and oud by listening to songs on the radio. Starting on guitar in the seventh grade, he played in rock bands in high school and college.

For about 20 years, he focused on work and family. When he returned to

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music, he played covers but segued into originals.

He counts among his influences Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Keb’ Mo’, Bruce Cockburn and Joni Mitchell.

As a guitar player, he ranges from fingerpicking to bottleneck slide.

As an artist, he engages audiences by taking a “VH1 Storytellers” approach.

“It lets the listener get a little bit of a personal glimpse into the person that’s on the stage,” Ramsey says.

“You can find some empathy with them or some shared experience.”

His song “Hurricane Woman Blues” was inspired by his wife, Marci. Before he sings it, he shares that his wife likes the redeeming line at the end.

“I like bringing my wife onto the stage with me because she’s such a big part of what I’ve been able to accomplish,” he says.

“Her support and her belief in me have been big reasons why I do what I do.”

His music is often inspired by moments of and observations from his life.

“I have a hard time making up things that I haven’t done or haven’t experienced and putting them into songs,” Ramsey says.

“It’s easier for me to take personal experiences and work around that somehow, whether it is expressed as a personal experience or not. It influences where you go with the song.”

As for the International Blues Challenge win, Ramsey says it was time.

“I felt like I was good enough to win,” says Ramsey, who competed against artists from the United Kingdom and Australia.

Finishing in first and second place comes with chances to perform at U.S. blues festivals. As a first-place winner, Ramsey may play on a blues music cruise.

“It was surreal to actually have won, but I wasn’t completely blown away.

I felt like I had as good a chance as anyone. It’s a great honor. There are some tremendous artists who are mainstream

artists who have won this thing before.”

For more information about Ramsey, go to ericramsey.net.

CHARLES ‘CROS’ MACK Glendale-based Mack has been performing on and off his whole life.

He grew up in Chicago with a family of blues musicians.

Mack became interested in music at age 3. He started with the piano and later moved to the acoustic guitar.

“At that age, I was tinkering around on the piano,” Mack says.

“I pretty much taught myself. When I was 9 or 10, my parents found an acoustic guitar with four strings in the garbage. They picked it up. I practiced on that guitar. … I taught myself from ear, listening to a lot of different styles of music.”

He started writing his own music in his early teens, when he heard his family perform together at family get-together.

“My aunt would bring her guitar, so my father and my aunt would sit and play the blues together,” Mack says.

“She was more the slide blues player, and he was more for finger picking.”

In school, Cros learned to play the tuba for the marching band. He continued that at the college level.

While he was in the Navy and the Army National Guard, he also in the band. He sang and played the bass, tuba, euphonium, trombone, bugle and guitar.

He is a former bassist for Lucky Peterson and James Cotton and has shared the stage with Cypress Hill, Inflatable Soule, Koko Taylor, B.B. King, Mavis Staples, Maria Muldaur, Otis Taylor, Jimmy Johnson and Buddy Guy. With four albums behind him, Mack is working on a new blues collection.

He hopes to submit it for the Grammy

Awards in the best new artist category.

He’ll follow that up with mixedgenre release — similar to what he does now — and film scores and production.

Mack’s music runs the gamut of personal topics such as death to relationships.

The stage name “Cros” refers to his father’s name and the crossroads in his life following the deaths of his mother, niece and brother.

“I hit the lowest of the low in my life,” he says.

“I had two options: either push through it and keep going or just close out the entire book and end it. I was at that crossroads. I ended up taking the higher of the two and kept pushing.”

For the international competition, Mack’s band performed mostly traditional blues styles such as blues shuffle and swing.

With his band, the MBA candidate regularly sings, something that didn’t come naturally.

“I ended up practicing day and night and listening to different singers,” Mack says.

“I just kept practicing and kept doing it.

The more you do it, the better you get at it.”

Mack says his band used judges’ feedback from previous competitions to improve, especially over the two years that the competition was on hiatus.

“It had given me time to prepare what we were going to do and what songs would work best,” Mack says.

He’s proud to represent the Phoenix blues community.

“Phoenix is well deserved of that spotlight,” Mack says.

“There are so many great artists that are here. As much as I can do to help put Phoenix on the map on the blues side I want to do.”

To find out more about Mack, visit cros.rocks.

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UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

MAKING PEACE

Roger Clyne celebrates America with fans in Peoria

By Laura Latzko

R

oger Clyne & the Peacemakers have helped to shape rock in the Valley with its Southwestern sound.

Traveling around the world with its music, the band will return to the Valley to perform at the city of Peoria’s AllAmerican Festival on Monday, July 4.

This is the second All-American Festival for the band — lead singer/ guitarist Roger Clyne, drummer P.H. Naffah, bassist Nick Scropos and guitarist Jim Dalton.

The group performs 150 to 170 shows a year nationally, with three to four of them around Arizona.

The festival was one of the first events the band did coming out of COVID-19.

Clyne says that playing again for a lively, engaged audience was exhilarating.

“It was great to come out to our hometown and play to an audience who wanted to hear rock ’n’ roll and celebrate life and America,” Clyne says.

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“We don’t play in our home state as much as we would like to, but every time we do a show, it’s a blast.”

After all of these years, Clyne, a thirdgeneration Arizonan, feels a pull and connection to his home state.

“I can be asleep on the tour bus if we are on our way home, and I can tell in the darkness of my bunk and in the rumble of the bus when we cross the state line,” Clyne says.

Known for their prowess in playing live rock, Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers crisscrosses genres. Clyne has personally been influenced by punk rock.

Clyne started playing music while in high school. When he was getting ready to graduate from ASU, he made the decision to pursue music.

“I reached the end of my academic career before I was going to go into graduate school and decided to weigh the scales,” Clyne says.

“One was practicality, and one was passion. I really loved music more. I took the road less traveled with music

instead of academia and got pretty lucky and found the right players and the right audience, and that made all the difference.”

Before founding Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers, Clyne and Naffah were part of the Refreshments. With this Tempe-based quartet, they put out their cult classic album “Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy,” which featured the hit song “Banditos.” The song received airplay on the radio and on MTV. A few years later, Clyne wrote and performed the theme song for the TV show “King of the Hill.”

The film “Here’s to Life! The Story of the Refreshments” highlights the band’s ’90s journey.

Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers started in 1999 when changes in the record label and internal issues with the band prompted Clyne and Naffah to form a new group.

With its debut, “Honky Tonk Union,” the band tried to experiment more with different sounds and were influenced by classic country stars such as Johnny Cash

and Marty Robbins.

The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Internet sales charts that year.

As an independent act, it has released eight more Top 10 albums. In 2019, the band was inducted into the Arizona Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame.

Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers recently reimagined four of their older songs and recorded three new songs for an upcoming album, which is set to be called “The TexAZ Sessions.”

Recorded in Wimberley, Texas, they worked with musicians and producers such as Cody Braun from Reckless Kelly, Mike Harmeier from Mike and the Moonpies and Adam Odor from yellow DOG Studios.

In June, they released a new version of their song “Never Thought,” a guitardriven tune about “the discovery of compassion through suffering.”

“That one, in particular, has to do with losing your thoughts, losing the idea of your sanity and your mind,” Clyne says.

“Certainly, the world in 2019, 2020, 2021 probably gave everybody that same

THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

experience. A really good song should have many lives and should be able to be interpreted many ways throughout time. I’m hoping our songs have the same quality.”

They also reworked other songs from their catalogue, including “Maybe We Should Fall in Love,” “Green and Dumb” and “Banditos.”

“Banditos” was changed up to have more of a Texas swing sound.

“That song took a heck of a turn. It’s quite the Texas swing adventure now. We will see if everyone can get on that horse and saddle it up,” Clyne says.

Throughout its career, the band has continued to evolve its sound. Recently as a songwriter, Clyne has been interested in jazz and its unpredictable chord progressions and melodies.

He has always loved Norteño music, which has also been inspiring him recently.

“We are trying to write different things, perform in different ways, explore different genres,” Clyne says.

“We change almost daily and almost every performance.”

In June, the group was able to put on its popular Circus Mexicus music festival in Puerto Peñasco, Mexico, which it headlines.

The four-day festival spotlighted around 30 rock, country, mariachi and jazz groups.

Clyne says that the band always looks forward to the festival. They have the chance play on the beach and enjoy the local food, especially tacos.

This was the first time the band had the festival since the start of COVID-19.

The event began 20 years ago with the band playing in one small cantina, and it has grown from there.

“I just went down in a van and asked if any cantina owner would host the

17

Canción Tequila. The brand has four varieties and has won medals at national and international competitions.

This fall, Clyne and Naffah will bring back the local AZ Highways Tour, during which they perform as an acoustic duo in towns around the state.

Clyne says that while playing to a larger venue is exciting, he and other band members also enjoy doing smaller honky-tonks.

“We still really love the feel, the ma and pa touch of those little joints, and we do it when we can. … It’s like eating at a small table.

You are really connected to everyone that’s there,” Clyne says.

Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers has a multigenerational blend of longtime fans and new listeners.

“We are really lucky that way. There have been people who have followed us since 1995. They are now showing up to shows with their kids, who are now of legal concertgoing age. I’m meeting young people who are in their early and mid 20s and sometimes 30s who are like, ‘We were turned on to you by our parents. We thought they were crazy at the time, but your band has withstood the test of time,’” Clyne says.

Peacemakers for a show. I found one sympathetic cantina owner who says, ‘I don’t have a stage, but I’ve got a roof, and I’ve got extension cords if you guys want to plug in up there.’ We did, and that was the very first one in October 1999,” Clyne says.

Clyne has always had close ties to Mexico and was hoping to do something there.

“I wanted to play in Mexico. It’s where a lot of the roots in my music are. My

family’s ranch is on the border. I’ve been interested in border culture my whole life. A lot of our music comes from that,” says Clyne, whose family has owned its ranch in Sonoita for 70 years.

While in Mexico, the band also hosts charity events benefiting the local children’s home, youth sports and rescue dog organizations.

Along with music, the band has had its hands in the tequila business since 2011 with its brand of premium agave tequila

Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers at City of Peoria’s All-American Festival WHEN: 5 to 10 p.m. Monday, July 4; band performs around 8:15 p.m.

WHERE: Peoria Sports Complex, 16101 N. 83rd Avenue, Peoria COST: Free general admission INFO: peoriaaz.gov

BE DEBT FREE IN 24–48 MONTHS! If you owe more than $10,000 in credit card or other debt, see how we can help.

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TRAVEL

VACATION » SIGHTS » DAY TRIPS » ADVENTURE » EXPLORE » TRAVEL

THE ULTIMATE

n o i t a c d o o F

By Alison Bailin Batz

W

hile Yountville is known worldwide as home to Thomas Keller’s French Laundry, there is so much more to explore in the charming city located at the heart of Napa.

The region, which is almost completely walkable, effortlessly blends small-town ambiance with a sophisticated wine country lifestyle, making it perfect retreat for anyone — especially foodies.

As one might imagine, all the accommodations in the region drip luxury, but Hotel Yountville and Bardessono Hotel and Spa stand out. Just steps from more than a dozen tasting rooms, boutiques and

Napa Valley’s culinary heart offers bucket list bites

restaurants, Hotel Yountville — built using river rocks from the nearby Napa River — has elegance to spare.

There are just 80 rooms and suites on property, ensuring intimacy yet offering resort-level service and amenities.

Of note is its Yountville Suite, a palatial 1,100-square-foot room with freestanding rainfall steam shower, formal living room, dining room with seating for eight, and private courtyard with ample garden.

Even if not staying in the Yountville Suite, blissing out is a snap thanks to the fountains and gardens that envelop the property as well as the pool pavilion — complete with a glowing outdoor bar — and its connected spa, offering both traditional services as well as specialty hydrotherapy and seasonal wine-inspired treatments.

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Bardessono is approximately two blocks from Hotel Yountville. The sprawling LEED Platinum Certified property, situated within its own vineyard, is committed to providing a lavish experience for guests within a sustainable environment.

Each of the 65 guestrooms and suites at Bardessono serves as a personal sanctuary and offers the rarity of an in-room personal spa, presenting discreet massage tables, steam showers, soaking tubs and top-of-the-line, organic bath amenities as well as spa butlers.

A private haven of refined luxury, the Maple Grove Villas at Bardessono — available individually or as a threebedroom retreat — are a grand respite for guests seeking more space with elite experiences. The natural, earth-infused décor is embellished with refined accents, and there are daily enhanced amenities as well as docent service to ensure a customized stay and an effortless, immersive visit. Bonus: Guests who reserve all three villas receive access to a Bardessono Lexus throughout their stay.

Beyond the accommodations and grounds, the hotel’s acclaimed Spa at Bardessono offers personalized oil blending, nourishing tinctures and

local honeys to spa guests before or after treatment. There is also a rooftop pool and a signature farm-to-fork eatery, Lucy Restaurant & Bar, that is equal parts classy and craveable.

In addition to Lucy, any trip to Yountville should include plans to dine at RH Yountville, North Block, Bouchon Bistro and of course French Laundry (note that reservations at French Laundry are limited and must be made at least one month in advance). The flashy, splashy RH Yountville is hard to miss, as it takes up nearly a full block. The Restoration Hardware-owned property is a wine, food and shopping mecca comprised of five separate experiences: an indoor/ outdoor restaurant with a glass roof surrounded by trees and adorned with dramatic chandeliers; a twostory wine-tasting space; a limited production wine center; an espresso bar; and a boutique design gallery grander in scale than even the sister property at Scottsdale Quarter.

North Block is smaller in size but just as big when it comes to flavor. Taking advantage of the proximity to the Pacific Ocean, it dishes up both raw and cooked delicacies from the sea, including oysters, halibut and black cod.

Like French Laundry, which for those unfamiliar boasts a three-hour Michelin- and James Beard-honored culinary adventure with a dozen or more courses, Bouchon is helmed by celebrity chef Thomas Keller but is far less formal.

The French bistro offers a seasonally changing menu and epic raw bar as well as wine selections made exclusively for the restaurant from top vineyards across Napa and France.

And the wine at Bouchon is just the beginning. In Yountville, wine tasting is a multi-sensory experience. For example,

the Silver Trident Winery tasting home is exclusively furnished by Ralph Lauren Home.

As guests experience a traditional wine tasting or Silver Trident’s popular “potato chip extravaganza” pairing with small-batch potato chips, they are also able to peruse fine area rugs, decorative accessories and serving ware, all available for purchase.

Similarly, at Handwritten Wines across the street, guests may indulge in a specialty tasting including a rare cabernet sauvignon made from Carneros AVA grapes that is paired with artisanal butters from around the world before shopping at the elegant hat boutique on-site. At the over-the-top JBC Tasting Salon, curated by wine pioneer Jean-Charles Boisset, tastings are accompanied by the opportunity to sample perfumes as well as shop customdesigned jewelry, candles and luxury

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home accessories.

Also downtown, Hestan Vineyards Tasting Salon, founded by cookware pioneers Stanley and Helen Cheng, whose products are still used in Keller’s kitchens, offers exclusive sips of their reserve wines unavailable to the general public. Other can’t-miss stops include Paraduxx, Cliff Lede Vineyards, Jessup Cellars and Chandon, which has tasting cabanas as well as five-course food and wine pairing most days of the week.

Finally, take a hot air balloon ride.

Napa Valley Aloft has sunrise, sunset and custom rides daily. Flights are about four hours, each with 360-degree views of Napa like you’ve never it seen it before and many with champagne for the ride.

Yountville yountville.com ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

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ARTS

CULTURE » THEATER » DANCE » GALLERY » DRAMA » VISION

A SHOW FOR ALL AGES

Broadway’s ‘The Lion King’ comes to ASU Gammage

By Abi Celaya arian Sanders and Michelle Scalpone are obsessed with “The Lion King.”

They call the musical — which comes to ASU Gammage from Tuesday, July 5, to Sunday, July 31 — beautiful, stunning, and a story for all ages.

“I have been obsessed with big cats and lions my entire life,” says Sanders, who plays Simba.

“I named my first dog Nala, and this was 15 years ago. I was obsessed with the animated feature. I absolutely loved it.

It’s been cool to come full circle.”

Broadway’s “The Lion King” hit stages for the first time in 1997, three years after Disney’s animated film was released. Since then, it has garnered more than 70 theatrical awards.

“That story and that journey are personalized for everyone when they come and watch the show.”

The strongest connection between Sanders and Simba rests in their faith.

“My faith is what grounds me,” says Sanders, who also works as a worship leader.

“For Simba, Mufasa has told him that the kings of the past are who he can rest on and who he can call upon, and I say, ‘Man, that’s awesome.’”

Sanders, who made his theatrical debut at Lexington Theater Co., says audiences should keep an eye on the opening scene, “The Circle of Life.”

“There’s something about being there in the theater and having Rafiki do that opening call,” Sanders says.

“That just shifts and changes something in your heart, and it brings you back to the first moment you ever saw the animated feature.”

DARIAN SANDERS

MICHELLE SCALPONE

With roots in Kentucky, Sanders joined the cast of “The Lion King” in September 2019. He heard about the role after singing the national anthem at a basketball game. And, thanks to his former manager, he was connected with “The Lion King” producers.

He was hired as a cover for Simba and was in the ensemble for the Broadway show. Last year, he landed the role of Simba on the national tour.

Sanders says, in some ways, he’s similar to his character.

“Everybody has a little bit of Simba in them,” he says.

An East Tucson native, Scalpone is the assistant stage manager for “The Lion King.” She speaks to the joy of working on such a large-scale production.

She fell in love with the magic of stage management at a young age when she attended a production of “Beauty and the Beast.”

“I remember more things that happened in that wing than what happened onstage,” Scalpone says.

“I immediately went to my middle school like, ‘How do I do that?’ I staged my way through high school and went to college for it and then I went to Juilliard

D

working professionally, and now I work for Disney,” Scalpone says.

She started with the legendary company 10 days before the pandemic put its clamp on the world.

She was working on “Love Life” for Encores at City Center when she got a text from her mentor asking her if she wanted to go on tour for “The Lion King.” Scalpone interviewed, and two days later she was hired.

Scalpone — who travels by car so she can sightsee—agrees with Sanders that the opening scene is moving.

“I’ve been working here, technically, for two years,” she says. “‘The Circle of Life’ still brings me to tears because it is just so beautiful.”

She says her favorite line in the performance is, “The past can hurt, but the way I see it, you can either run from it or you can learn from it.”

WIDE APPEAL Sanders and Scalpone say they believe “The Lion King” is a show for people of all ages.

He says anyone who has a pulse,

heartbeat and breath in their lungs needs to see “The Lion King.”

“It is phenomenally great, and it is timeless,” Sanders says.

Scalpone was quick to add that the show isn’t just for kids.

“The messages are so universal and make you feel like it is an individual story being told just to you,” Scalpone says.

“The Lion King” is about inner strength and being OK with your journey, she adds.

“The aspect of redemption” is important, Sanders adds.

“There is nothing you can do or a spot you can go too far that you can’t come back and be redeemed from.”

“The Lion King” WHEN: Various times Tuesday, July 5, to Sunday, July 31 WHERE: ASU Gammage, 1200 S. Forest Avenue, Tempe COST: Tickets start at $75 INFO: asugammage.com, ticketmaster.com

THE AMERICAN DREAM

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UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

Musical brings audiences to their feet

By Eryka Forquer

T

he ideal of the American dream is brought to life in scenes from “On Your Feet!” as Gloria Estefan works to make an impact on the music industry as a Cuban immigrant.

Phoenix Theatre Company Associate Producing Director Pasha Yamotahari says the musical celebrates immigrants’ influence on other cultures.

“Whether you’re living in Kentucky hearing this music or it’s jammed into your Walkman in the early ’90s on a cassette tape in New York City, music is music,” Yamotahari says. “Her music is that, in a way that makes us move, it makes us think, it makes us breathe and it makes us live.”

“On Your Feet” hits the Phoenix Theatre Company stage from Wednesday, July 13, to Sunday, August 28.

It recounts Gloria and Emilio Estefan’s climb to stardom, detailing Gloria’s childhood in Miami and the tour bus crash that left her with a fractured spine.

Yamotahari says the musical will bring back memories of Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine.

“It’s going to be a great way to rekindle

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our love for the Miami Sound Machine and to revisit Gloria and Emilio’s life,” Yamotahari says.

The story is accompanied by music and lyrics from the Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine and features songs like “Conga” and “1-2-3.” Yamotahari calls the couple’s music “anthems” that will encourage audience members to sing the lyrics with the cast.

“As a community of audience members, they all remember what it felt like to be at a concert, or in their car or in their house vacuuming their carpet and hearing a song,” he says. “So, they will hear it and sing out loud.”

Yamotahari says the music will be brought to life by a 13-piece band with Phoenix musicians who blend synth and Afro-Cuban sounds with music from South America and Central America.

“One thing that’s going to be really amazing is to hear a live band bring these into a full-piece sound, which is something that we don’t necessarily feel when we hear a recording of a song,” he says. “It’s something that you feel in a concert.”

“On Your Feet!” also captures the relationship between Gloria and Estefan.

As scenes from their relationship unfold, the audience will witness the pivotal role that the two played in each other’s lives.

“It’s a crazy, passionate and challenging relationship that they had,” Yamotahari says.

Emilio and Gloria’s relationship was fiery and passionate, which they parlayed into their careers. The pair worked with

fervor as they tried to change “what pop music should be defined as.”

The actress who plays Gloria, Kassandra Haddock, says audience members will get a sense of community and family from the show.

“I don’t think Gloria would be who she was without Emilio, without her family and without the love of those people,” Haddock says.

Haddock says she appreciates the relationship between Gloria and Emilio.

In the musical, Emilio encourages Gloria to keep going.

“It is the Emilio and Gloria Estefan show,” Haddock says. “Every moment with them is so funny, it’s so real and it’s so inspiring. Who doesn’t want that kind of love?”

Haddock, who grew up singing in choirs, was introduced to musical theater in high school when she auditioned for her first musical role in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” Now at 29 years old, Haddock says playing the role of Gloria is terrifying as she prepares to step into “really, really big shoes.”

Haddock says she is inspired by Gloria’s “endless drive” and her pursuit

of the American dream.

“She has dealt with so many hardships in her life,” she says. “From coming to America as an immigrant and then having to help raise her sister and care for her father, my question the whole time is how did you become a superstar?

She didn’t have any trajectory.”

Yamotahari says the musical has all the ingredients for a memorable show.

“You have an orchestra concert,” he says.

“You have top-tier choreography and dancers, amazing vocalists and amazing actors all working together within a beautiful design of the show to create a memorable postcard for anyone that’s attending.”

“On Your Feet! The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan” WHEN: Various times Wednesday, July 13, to Sunday, August 28 WHERE: The Phoenix Theatre Company, 1825 N. Central Avenue, Phoenix COST: Tickets start at $44 INFO: phoenixtheatre.com

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DINING

EAT » EXPERIENCE » INDULGE » SAVOR » DEVOUR » NOSH

SPRUCING UP THE MENU

Chef was The Living Room’s missing ingredient

By Alex Gallagher

W

hen Tom Kaufman opened The Living Room at DC Ranch in 2014, he knew his business would be different from other wine bars/ restaurants in the Valley.

He decorated his dining room with plush seating, offered myriad wine options, and utilized every inch he could of a kitchen he describes as being smaller than his bathroom.

Yet, Kaufman still felt there was a missing ingredient to elevate The Living Room.

“When I wrote the business plan, I said to myself and the possible investor, ‘I don’t want to be one of 10,000 restaurants in Arizona, and I don’t want to be one of six or seven lounges. I equate this place more to a resort lounge,’” Kaufman recalls. “I’m a wine guy, and I always wanted to do a wine bar that wasn’t cork dorky.

“I wanted it to be more a place to come and hang out that still has great wine options.”

Kaufman was alarmed when he learned of the “restaurant” criteria.

“Arizona has certain criteria for certain

liquor licenses. So, to be defined as a restaurant, you have to sell at least 40% food,” he says. “So we were, with all humility, popular and we sold a lot of wine and alcohol, but I wanted to have great food offerings because that’s that sustainability in the restaurant business.

“Buyers come and go, but if you have great food, that’s the anchor of a great restaurant.”

In its first year of selling food, it accounted for 39% of the restaurant’s sales, allowing Kaufman to get a six-month extension to surpass state regulations.

The Living Room at DC Ranch cleared the hurdle, but Kaufman still knew there was room for improvement.

That was until 2021 when a Hawaiiraised chef who graduated from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Scottsdale reached out to Kaufman’s corporate chef.

In came BJ Dalumpinis, who has worked in restaurants since he was 14.

Dalumpinis quickly impressed Kaufman with his kitchen prowess, and Kaufman decided to double the kitchen size.

He purchased an additional 424 square feet of space from a neighboring business to fit two walk-in coolers for

beverages and vegetables. Kaufman also invested in induction burners and reachin refrigerators for his kitchen.

With top-of-the-line equipment, Kaufman tasked his new chef with devising a menu that would impress customers’ tastebuds.

“We worked on (the menu) for about a month, and that month consisted of a lot of tasting, a lot of experimenting and knowing what goes good with what,” Dalumpinis says.

Since revamping the menu, Dalumpinis has seen an uptick in orders

for the heirloom salad, house-made lobster potstickers and prime rib sliders.

Fish dishes have become popular with the warmer weather.

“We’re a lounge, so there’s no ticket time. With normal restaurants that have an appetizer, a main course and a dessert, they have a two-hour turn time,” Kaufman says. “Here, I have no idea how long somebody is going to stay. I’ve had come in at 5 p.m. and they’re still here at 12:30 a.m. because it’s a lounge and they’re partying.”

Because of this, Dalumpinis feeds off of the laid-back atmosphere of the establishment and utilizes every second he can to spruce up his dishes.

“It’s fun to work here. You have to keep it light and have fun with what you’re doing; otherwise, you are just going to be miserable,” Dalumpinis says.

The Living Room Wine Café & Lounge 20751 N. Pima Road, Suite 120, Scottsdale 480.404.7465 4905 E. Ray Road, Suite 107, Phoenix 480.454.3599 2475 W. Queen Creek Road, Chandler (Downtown Ocotillo) 480.855.2848 livingroomwinebar.com

THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

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DINING

CALENDAR

By Annika Tomlin

Dog Days of Summer

ALL MONTH Monday to Saturday, Miracle Mile Deli will offer its Dog Days of Summer, featuring a hot dog, fries and a drink for $6. Spice it up on National Hot Dog Day, Saturday, July 23, by adding chili, New Yorker or straw toppings for $1. Miracle Mile Deli will be closed on Monday, July 4.

Miracle Mile Deli, 4433 N. 16th Street, Phoenix, 602.776.0992, miraclemiledeli.com, $6

Chill at the Mill

ALL MONTH Summer is a great time to Chill at the Mill in Queen Creek. Queen Creek Olive Mill is dishing out daily specials throughout the summer. Mondays offer a bruschetta sampler (pick any four) with any carafe of sangria, $35.

Tuesdays include antipasto boards with any bottle of house wine for $35. Wednesdays are 30% off select bottles of house wine. Thursdays offer any pasta and wine for two with cannolis, $35. Friday to Sunday specials include two pizzas and two pints for $35 or $3 off bar items between 5 to 8 p.m. for happy hour.

Queen Creek Olive Mill, 25062 S. Meridian Road, Queen Creek, 480.888.9290, queencreekolivemill.com, $35

Nacho Average Trivia

TUESDAYS The Hot Chick has introduced Nacho Average Trivia nights featuring a different special theme each Tuesday night. Dining specials during trivia night include fried chicken nachos ($7), Teremana margaritas ($7) and Coronas ($3) all night long. Trivia night themes include “Back to the Future” (7/5), Sandler/Ferrell Movies (7/12), “The Simpsons” (7/19) and “Star Wars” (7/26).

The Hot Chick, 7 p.m., 4363, N. 75th Street, Scottsdale, 480.550.7507, thehotchickaz.com

Brews, Views, BBQ

SATURDAYS Skysill Rooftop Lounge invites hotel guests and locals to its open-air bar and lounge to enjoy a specialty menu of straight-from-the-grill barbecue delights and Four Peak beer specials, backdropped by panoramic views and a live DJ. Four Peak specials

include buckets, six Suns Bru beers for $25, and $5 Hazy IPAs. Skysill Rooftop Lounge, 11 E. Seventh Street, Tempe, noon to 5 p.m., 480.968.8885, skysillrooftop.com

Roaring Fork Fourth of July

ine National W ay D and Cheese

JULY 4 Roaring Fork’s Dinner on Us promotion returns this Independence Day featuring buy one entree, get the second one free. The restaurant will be serving signature wood-fired favorites including braised pork shoulder carnitas, grilled fish tacos, cedar plank salmon and rainbow trout.

Roaring Fork, 4800 N. Scottsdale Road, Suite 1700, Scottsdale, 4 p.m., 480.947.0795, roaringfork.com

Fourth of July at STK Steakhouse

JULY 4 Ring in the Fourth of July at STK Steakhouse with a red, white and blue steak topping. Enjoy a filet topped with a lobster tail, blue corn tortilla and cream.

Veterans, gold star families, active military and front-line workers will receive 20% off on the day.

STK Steakhouse, 7134 E. Stetson Drive, Scottsdale, 480.581.5171, stksteakhouse.com, $17.76

Lustre 4th of July

JULY 4 Lustre Rooftop Bar will celebrate the holiday with a specialty rooftop cookout where a chef will grill burgers and hot dogs.

Live music will be featured.

Lustre Rooftop Bar, 2 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, noon, 602.258.0231, lustrerooftopbar.com

Dog Days

of Summer

rk Roaring Fo ly Fourth of Ju

National Wine & Cheese Day JULY 25 It is National Wine & Cheese Day, and both Crust Simply Italian locations are celebrating with a bottle and board special. For the day only, patrons may purchase a meat and cheese board and a bottle of either red or white wine.

Crust Simply Italian, 10 N. San Marcos Place, Chandler, 480.568.5704; 8300 N. Hayden Road, F101, Scottsdale, 480.386.1713, crustrestaurants.com, $25

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BREWS & SPIRITS

SIP » BREW » RELAX » EXPERIMENT » REFRESH » TOAST

TRAILBLAZING A CLASSIC

Sweet Dreams puts a new twist on wine, cocktails

By Jordan Rogers

S

weet Dreams Vineyard, and founder Bill Gibbs, have brought a cutting-edge product to the cannabis industry.

As of early 2021, the company released a nonalcoholic, THCinfused red wine and margarita, dubbed “Cannabernet” and “Marijuarita,” respectively.

Both products are sold to anyone over the age 21 at Herbal Wellness Centers, as well as a growing number of dispensaries around the Valley.

The cost is in the low to high teens for the 187 ml bottle of either Cannabernet or Marijuarita and in the low to high $30s for a 750 ml bottle of Cannabernet, depending on the strength. As they are both essentially juices, both products must be refrigerated after opening.

“The impetus for this is I’m older and I love to drink alcohol, but it’s just getting harder and harder for me to do,” Gibbs says. “But I love the social experience of being around people. So that was kind of the impetus about why I did it. It was selfish on my part. I wanted to drink less alcohol, but I didn’t want to change my lifestyle at all.”

These beverages also offer fast-acting effects similar to that of an alcohol-based beverage without the hangover. By using nano-emulsification technology, which makes the THC water-soluble, the effects are felt in as little as 15 minutes.

Cannabernet has half the calories of traditional wine per serving, and the Marijaurita only has 45 calories, which is far fewer than the traditional version of a margarita. Gibbs says keeping his products healthy was at the top of his list for things to accomplish.

“People are more health conscious these days, as they should be, and as am I,” he says. “So, you want to try and be as healthy as you can.”

No stranger to the marijuana industry, in 2012, Gibbs founded a dispensary called Urban Greenhouse Dispensary in Phoenix and served as its CEO until he later sold the company to Harvest Health and Recreation.

While he was with the company, Gibbs was at a marijuana convention in

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2016 when, for fun, he threw a cannabis label on a bottle of wine.

“Just out of a lark, I took a bottle of wine and put a cannabis label on it,” Gibbs says. “I got calls from — and that convention attracts an international crowd — all over the world, from people going, ‘We’re going to get the wine in my location.’ That was kind of an amazing response. I also literally got probably around 100 emails from people.”

After selling that dispensary in 2019, Gibbs took a break from the industry.

When he decided to get back into it, he followed up on that response he received at that convention.

“I thought there would be a million products out there by that time because at that time nobody had done it,” he says. “I was surprised to see that there was virtually none. There were plenty of people that I saw websites for where they said they were going to do it, but they never did. So basically, I just started investigating that and I thought it would be relatively easy.

“You know, we’re close to California.

I thought I’d get some (nonalcoholic) wine and put THC in it. There you go; there’s the product.”

What Gibbs hadn’t realized is that nonalcoholic wine is not exactly fruitful in the taste department.

“It’s not just awful; it’s incredibly terrible,” he says. “You would never want to have it by the glass. I don’t know exactly what causes that, but without the alcohol in there, it really is bad.

Nobody would ever want to drink that.

It was like, ‘Oh, man, that’s not going to work.’”

From there, Gibbs hired a sommelier and purchased “every kind of juice known to man.” The two of them, Gibbs says, sat in his kitchen to try and figure out the juice combination that would best mimic the taste of a glass of red wine.

After finding the correct combination, Gibbs wasn’t exactly done with the beta stage. He said the “edible experience” is something he did not want his cannabisinfused beverages to mimic, as edibles can be unpredictable and take a long time to take effect.

“When I was able to do some research,

I realized that this was an issue that the pharmaceutical companies had solved a long time ago to be able to have the active ingredients enter the bloodstream at a much quicker rate,” Gibbs says.

“Then, I just went about trying to figure out how to do that.”

Gibbs wanted his product to have the quicker response time that alcohol has — roughly 15 minutes. He says it would be his “holy grail” if he could figure out a way to achieve that, but that as well would not be an easy task.

“With cannabis, it’s been illegal for so long, so there’s no manual,” Gibbs says.

“Nobody writes any of this stuff down; it’s not like almost any other industry. If you go into any other industry, there’s long legions of people that have done stuff before. Well, this had never been done.”

After learning about nano-emulsifying technology, he was able to figure out how to correctly utilize it, and he had his finished product. In this case, nanoemulsification converted the THC into something that would allow it to enter the bloodstream faster.

In addition, the cannabis is not able to be tasted in either Cannabernet or Marijuarita. Gibbs said the flavor the of the juices serve as a blocker to the bitter taste cannabis brings.

Gibbs, however, says he doesn’t want

people to expect a perfect flavor profile to a classic cabernet.

“You’re never going to drink that and go, ‘That’s the best cabernet I’ve ever had,’” he says. “You’re going to say, ‘It’s wine-like, and it tastes good.’”

Gibbs says his products are in about a half a dozen dispensaries around the Valley and he is looking to be in 25 by the end of the year. He’s cautious about growing too quickly, however.

“I kind of want to be selective about how we do it,” he says. “I’ve had experience of growing, and it’s better to make all your mistakes when you’re smaller.”

For Gibbs, it all comes back to the social aspect.

“The big reason about why I wanted the alcohol experience is that it includes the social aspect of it,” he says. “You could bring a bottle of this to a party where you might not be able to bring a joint. This encourages the social aspect, which for alcohol, for me, I think is one of the most important and endearing properties of it.

“You kind of do with other people and have a good time.”

Sweet Dreams Vineyard sweetdreamsvineyard.com

THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

BREWS & SPIRITS

CALENDAR

By Annika Tomlin

santanbrewing.com

Fourth of July at The Ostrich

Cork Crafting Happy Hour

JULY 4 Across the street from Chandler’s All-American Bash, The Ostrich is open with special hours offering creative drinks. Celebrate the Fourth of July with $10 dealer’s choice or drinks off the menu. The Ostrich is the speakeasy downstairs from Crust Simply Italian.

The Ostrich, 10 N. San Marcos Plaza, Chandler, 6 to 10 p.m., theostrichbar.com, $10

be available for pots to complete the whimsical afternoon experience.

The potions master will also make special-tea cocktails and mocktails that can be added to the experience.

Drink Me! Tea Room, 1730 E. Warner Road, Suite 5, Tempe, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday, drinkmetearoom. com, $40-$58

JULY 19 On the third Tuesday of the summer months, craft and wine lovers are invited to cork crafting happy hour led by LDV’s “crafty Susan.” Patrons are armed with corks, glue guns and all the inspiration needed to create creative craft projects to take home.

LDV Winery Tasting Room, 7134 E. Stetson Drive, Suite B110, Scottsdale, 480.664.4822, ldvwinery. com, $45 plus tax and gratuity

Tequila Tasting Dinner

JULY 20 Tequila experts or newbies are invited to Salt Tacos y Tequila for an intimate dining experience hosted

by Don Julio at the eatery’s SanTan Village location. Enjoy a four-course tasting menu paired with Don Julio tequilas and handcrafted dishes.

Salt Tacos y Tequila, 2206 E. Williams Field, Suite 101, Gilbert, santan.salttacosytequila.com, $55

Fourth of July at Z’Tejas

JULY 4 This Fourth of July, Z’Tejas Southwest Grill will serve a festive margarita to celebrate America’s birthday. The La Bomba is three layers — strawberry, traditional lime and blue curacao — topped with a classic, a bomb pop.

Z’Tejas Southwest Grill, 72210 W. Ray Road, Chandler; 8300 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale, ztejas.com, $10

Summer Wine Series @ Bottle & Bean

JULY 21 Bottle & Bean Coffee House and Wine Shop is launching its Tasting with Tom Summer Wine Series.

Longtime restaurateur and advanced sommelier Tom Kaufman will lead monthly tasting events. Held in Bottle & Bean’s private dining room, guests will be treated to wine tastings paired with food, along with lively discussion about each wine.

27

July’s tasting will feature sauvignon blanc. Reservations are required.

Bottle & Bean, 2577 W. Queen Creek Road, Chandler, 480.265.9996, bottle-bean.com, $25

Sips of Summer Cocktail Experience

JULY 22 Morton’s The Steakhouse is hosting a cocktail experience inspired by an island oasis.

Patrons will indulge in chefprepared dishes and handcrafted cocktails reminiscent of flavors of the tropics. Cocktails include ocean siesta, gold n’ banana, coco smash and a’uku krush. Dining options include shrimp sugar cane skewer, ahi tuna poke bao buns, lobster mango fritters, kalua pork tostones, shrimp and scallop spring rolls, Hawaiian lamb chops pupu, teriyaki pork belly bao buns and banana macadamia nut bread pudding.

Morton’s The Steakhouse, 15233 N. Kierland Boulevard, Scottsdale, 6 p.m., mortons.com, $99

Greenwood Brewing Second Anniversary

JULY 22 TO JULY 24 Greenwood Brewing, a womanowned microbrewery, will celebrate its two-year anniversary this month. Partnering with food trucks and local restaurants including Il Bosco and Tap That, Greenwood will toast its newly created brews to live music by Sugar Thieves.

Greenwood Brewing, 425 E. Roosevelt Street, Phoenix, 2 p.m., greenwoodbrews.com

FIND YOUR PHUNKY

Christmas in July

JULY 16 SanTan Brewing Company is celebrating the halfway mark to the holiday season with Christmas in July. Guests can sip on Santa’s stashed kegs of winter warmer English strong ale along with the gastropub’s house smoked turkey pot pie. Patrons can order a 32-ounce Canzilla of the winter warmer to go.

SanTan Brewing Company, 8 S. San Marcos Place, Chandler, 480.917.8700,

Drink Me! Second Anniversary JULY 20 TO JULY 31 Drink Me! Tea Room celebrates its two-year anniversary with the Magical World of Afternoon Tea with a “Harry Potter”-themed tea party. Bringing together muggles and wizards, each reservation will include a three-tiered selection of “Harry Potter” curated savory sandwiches and decadent sweet treats. Blends of hot or iced tea will

ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

28

CASINOS

PLAY » SPIN » LAUGH » GROOVE » UNWIND » WIN

FOOD FOR THOUGHT Adam Duritz’s girlfriend upped his cooking game

By Dave Gil de Rubio

I

f you happen to see Adam Duritz around, the surest conversation starter to go with is to ask him about his chili verde recipe. The pandemic found the Counting Crows frontman hunkering down in New York City with his girlfriend and significantly upping his cooking game.

And then there’s the release of “Butter Miracle: Suite One,” an EP that is the first Counting Crows release since 2014’s “Somewhere Under Wonderland” (but more on that later). For the former California resident, culinary pursuits both in and out of the kitchen sustained him during the pandemic.

“I was reading a lot of cookbooks and spent time researching recipes versus stuff for my podcast, which I couldn’t do,” he explains.

“I learned to cook a lot of different stuff. A lot of my friends are Italian from Providence and from Queens — years ago, their grandmothers and them taught me a lot about Italian cooking and I improved my red sauces. But I worked a lot more on that during the pandemic. I learned Chinese food, Thai food and trying to do things like briskets and ribs in an oven, because you can’t do a smoker here (in the city).

“I really improved my different kinds of stocks and soups, because those are useful in cooking lots of stuff, so it’s good to be able to make a good stock. I worked on that. My best dish might be this chili verde that I make with pork or chicken, which is pretty outrageous. I’m working on getting into some Brazilian stuff, but that’s a little harder.”

Inspiration for “Butter Miracle: Suite One” came to Duritz during a trip with his girlfriend to visit a friend’s farm in the western English countryside. Not having written any music for quite some time, the singer-songwriter was inspired enough by his rural surroundings and occasional solitude to have a rented keyboard brought up from London.

Before long, the seeds were planted for one song to evolve into a four-track suite that led to his extensively working with Rochester-based Dave Drago to flesh out this radical idea over Zoom and the phone.

“I started working and a couple of days later I wrote ‘The Tall Grass,’” Duritz recalls. “The day after that, in experimenting with the ending, I was playing with different things and seeing if I wanted to make it a longer song. I thought I was writing another movement for that song and then I ended up realizing that it was the start of a different song and that ended up being ‘Elevator Boots.’ At that point, I thought it was really cool how it flowed out of ‘Tall Grass.’ There’s no break there. It’s so connected that actually, at first, I thought I was writing a longer version of that song. Then I thought about what it would be like if I wrote a series of songs where the end of one is the beginning of the next and then they’re all connected.

It would be four different songs that flow like one long song. I got really excited about doing that because it seemed like such an interesting challenge.”

While this quartet of songs has the character-driven flow of people and specific places that have become hallmarks of Counting Crows’ best material, compositional nuances

reverberate with a subtle nod to the glam influences of vintage David Bowie, Mott the Hoople and other artists from that era.

While Duritz admits to these influences, he’s quick to point out that it’s less about sounding like someone else and more about filtering how they resonate with the listener.

“I don’t know that I was listening to (any glam) right then, but it was in my head — especially ‘Elevator Boots’ and some of that stuff where I wanted to have those Mick Ronson-ish guitars,” he says.

“I love that kind of Mott the Hoople, “Hunky Dory,” “Ziggy Stardust” kind of feeling it gave those songs. That’s how I think influences really work. You think about the way a kind of period had a sort of emotional effect on you and then you try to make that effect happen. And not necessarily by playing like them, but sort of give it some flavor. It was certainly in my head. As soon as I started writing ‘Elevator Boots,’ it was sort of textures.

I think you can hear that on ‘Elevator Boots’ and especially on ‘Bobby and the Rat-Kings,’ too, where I was thinking of

Phil Lynott/Thin Lizzy (characters like) Johnny the Fox and Jimmy the Weed — Thin Lizzy.”

Duritz gives plenty of credit for “Butter Miracle’s” crunch and anthemic swagger to Drago and Seán Barna, who opened for the Crows on last summer’s tour. Sharing this latest creative turn with fans in a live setting is a major priority for Duritz, although the current state of the post-pandemic world has been raising major concerns for him.

“As always, (fans) can expect a really passionate show because we’re only going to play the songs we really want to play that night,” he says. “The thing I’m really determined to do on this tour is play the suite all the way through.”

Counting Crows WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday, July 22 WHERE: Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino, 15406 Maricopa Road, Maricopa COST: Tickets start at $74.50 INFO: 480.802.5000, caesars.com/harrahs-ak-chin

THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

CASINO ENTERTAINMENT

CALENDAR

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

Daisy Train

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 1 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Priminition

7 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 1, AND SATURDAY, JULY 2 The Dragonfly at Cliff Castle Casino, 555 Middle Verde Road, Camp Verde, free, 1.800.381.7568, cliffcastlecasinohotel.com

Chris Rock

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 1 Casino Del Sol’s AVA Amphitheater, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, tickets start at $50, 1.855.765.7829, casinodelsol.com

Project Presley

7:30 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 1, AND SATURDAY, JULY 2 Casino Arizona, 524 N. 92nd Street, Scottsdale, tickets start at $10, 480.850.7777, casinoarizona.com

Pepe Aguilar

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 2 Casino Del Sol’s AVA Amphitheater, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, tickets start at $45, 1.855.765.7829, casinodelsol.com

Release After Dark: Slushii

5 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 2 The Pool at Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, 480.850.7777, tickets start at $30, talkingstickresort. com, releasevip.com

Tribute to Selena: Amor Prohibido

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 2 Vee Quiva, 15091 S. Komatke Lane, Laveen, $15, 1.800.946.4452, playatgila.com

Painted Cave

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 2 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

One of These Nights (Eagles tribute band)

7 P.M. SUNDAY, JULY 3 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Starship featuring Mickey Thomas 8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 8 Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E.

Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, 480.850.7777, tickets start at $35, talkingstickresort.com

Aravaipa

7 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 8, AND SATURDAY, JULY 9 The Dragonfly at Cliff Castle Casino, 555 Middle Verde Road, Camp Verde, free, 1.800.381.7568, cliffcastlecasinohotel.com

Frankie Moreno

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 8 Casino Del Sol Event Center, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, tickets start at $24, 1.855.765.7829, casinodelsol.com

Dynamite Draw

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 8 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Motley Crue’d: Tribute to Motley Crue

7:30 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 8, AND SATURDAY, JULY 9 Casino Arizona, 524 N. 92nd Street, Scottsdale, tickets start at $10, 480.850.7777, casinoarizona.com

Release After Dark: Jonas Blue + Lost Kings

Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 16 Casino Del Sol’s AVA Amphitheater, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, tickets start at $40, 1.855.765.7829, casinodelsol.com

Release After Dark: DVBBS

5 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 16 The Pool at Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, 480.850.7777, tickets start at $30, talkingstickresort. com, releasevip.com

Happy Together — features the Turtles, Gary Puckett & the Union Gap, the Association, the Buckinghams, the Vogues and the Cowsills 8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 16 Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, 480.850.7777, tickets start at $50, talkingstickresort. com, releasevip.com.

Clay Walker

8 P.M. SUNDAY, JULY 17 Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino, 5040 Wild Horse Pass Boulevard, Chandler, tickets start at $45, 1.800.WIN.GILA, playatgila.com

8-Man Jam — features Russell Dickerson, Erin Kinsey, Ernest, Walker Hayes, Jon Langston, Jimmie Allen, Kassi Ashton and Matt Stell

7 P.M. WEDNESDAY, JULY 20 Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, win tickets through KMLE, 480.850.7777, talkingstickresort.com.

5 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 9 The Pool at Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, 480.850.7777, tickets start at $30, talkingstickresort. com, releasevip.com

Priminition

Retro Connection

Simply Renee

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 9 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Basketball Jones

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 15 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Grupo Kulpalblez

7 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 15, AND SATURDAY, JULY 16 The Dragonfly at Cliff Castle Casino, 555 Middle Verde Road, Camp Verde, free, 1.800.381.7568, cliffcastlecasinohotel.com

Elvis: Danny Memphis

9 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 16 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, $25, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 22 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com 7 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 22, AND SATURDAY, JULY 23 The Dragonfly at Cliff Castle Casino, 555 Middle Verde Road, Camp Verde, free, 1.800.381.7568, cliffcastlecasinohotel.com

Live to Rock Tour — features Skid Row, Warrant, Winger and Quiet Riot

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start at $74.50, 480.802.5000, caesars.com/harrahs-ak-chin

Young Country

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 23 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Bronco and Ramon Ayala

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 23 Casino Del Sol’s AVA Amphitheater, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, tickets start at $40, 1.855.765.7829, casinodelsol.com

Hip-Hop, R&B and Rap Talent Explosion Competition 7 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 23 Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino, 5040 Wild Horse Pass Boulevard, Chandler, tickets start at $45, 1.800.WIN.GILA, playatgila.com

Rhythm Edition

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 29 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Chad Freeman and Redline

7 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 29, AND SATURDAY, JULY 30 The Dragonfly at Cliff Castle Casino, 555 Middle Verde Road, Camp Verde, free, 1.800.381.7568, cliffcastlecasinohotel.com

Turn the Page: Bob Seger Tribute

7:30 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 29, AND SATURDAY, JULY 30 Casino Arizona, 524 N. 92nd Street, Scottsdale, tickets start at $10, 480.850.7777, casinoarizona.com

Powerdrive

8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 30 We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, 10438 Wekopa Way, Fort McDowell, free, 480.789.4957, wekopacasinoresort.com

Summer Oasis Pool Party Series: R3HAB

2 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 30 Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino, 5040 Wild Horse Pass Boulevard, Chandler, tickets start at $40, 1.800.WIN.GILA, playatgila.com

Native American Comedy Jam

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 22 Casino Del Sol’s AVA Amphitheater, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, tickets start at $20, 1.855.765.7829, casinodelsol.com.

7:30 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 30 Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino, 5040 Wild Horse Pass Boulevard, Chandler, tickets start at $20, 1.800.WIN.GILA, playatgila.com

Fan Halen

Release After Dark: Ekali

7:30 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 22, AND SATURDAY, JULY 23 Casino Arizona, 524 N. 92nd Street, Scottsdale, tickets start at $10, 480.850.7777, casinoarizona.com

Counting Crows

5 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 30 The Pool at Talking Stick Resort, 9800 E. Talking Stick Way, Scottsdale, 480.850.7777, tickets start at $30, talkingstickresort. com, releasevip.com

8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 22 Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino, 15406 Maricopa Road, Maricopa, tickets ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

30

SPORTS

CHEER » HIT » HIKE » LEAD » ROOT » COMPETE

LIKE COMING HOME Cole Tucker is living his dream with the D-backs

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

A

hwatukee native Cole Tucker has been waiting 26 years for his dream to come true.

That dream? To play in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization.

On June 5, the snakes claimed Tucker off waivers and optioned him to the Reno Aces of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League.

“It’s really exciting,” says Tucker, calling from Sacramento, where the Renos were playing the River Cats. “I grew up a diehard D-backs fan. I was growing up in Ahwatukee in 2001 when the D-backs won the World Series.

“The D-backs were a part of my young, impressionable life. It’s a dream come true to be employed by them.”

His girlfriend, actress Vanessa Hudgens, expressed her excitement via social media.

“Let’s go babyyy. A great day indeed,” she posted.

In a much-circulated quote, Ben Cherington, the general manager of Pittsburgh Pirates, said, “We like Cole a lot, personally. Sometimes you just run out of time, and I think in this case we just ran out of time.

“We tried to give Cole as much opportunity as we could at the majorleague level, and at some point you’ve got to give it to other guys if the performance isn’t there. It doesn’t mean he won’t improve and perform in the future. It doesn’t mean he’s not going to get another opportunity in the big leagues at some point, but we just felt like we’d given it as long as we could in this case and needed to give the opportunity to other guys.”

The Mountain Pointe High School graduate was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first round of the 2014 MLB draft. Subsequently, on June 12, 2014, he signed with the team and spent the year with the Gulf Coast League Pirates.

The next two years he played for the West Virginia Power and was eventually promoted to the Bradenton Marauders.

After stints with Altoona Curve and

the Indianapolis Indians, Pittsburgh’s fifth-best prospect — according to MLB.com — joined the big leagues on April 20, 2019.

He bowed that day versus the San Francisco Giants. In his third at bat, he hit a two-run homer over the center field wall at PNC Park.

Tucker bounced between the big and minor leagues, eventually being designated for assignment on May 30.

Tucker admits he was hoping the Diamondbacks would sign him. He stayed positive despite being designated for assignment.

“I was hopeful, when I got DFA’d by the Pittsburgh Pirates, that it would lead to something cool — and it definitely did,” Tucker says.

“It’s a dream come true. The D-backs are a really good organization to be a part of it. I’m having fun with it. It feels like I have a new lease on life.”

When players are designed for assignment, Tucker says, they wait for five to six days to see what happens — whether they return to the team or head to another team.

Tucker was eating breakfast in the living room with his mom and dad when he received the call from the D-backs.

“My mom was sitting right there,” he says. “My dad had left for about 10 seconds. He walked back in and saw the look on my face. It was really cool.”

“I played for the Pirates organization for the last eight years,” Tucker says. “It’s wild. There’s a whole new bunch of guys.

I’m a people person and really enjoying it.”

Tucker said — whether it’s the Reno Aces or the Arizona Diamondbacks — he brings effort, hustle, energy and excitement.

“When the game happens, we’re at the mercy of the baseball and what it wants

to do,” he says.

“There definitely won’t be a shortage of effort and energy and desire. This has been my dream gig my whole life. I’m going to try to make the most of it. I’m just taking it day by day. Baseball has done so much for me. This is the perfect storm of all-things me.”

When he’s not playing baseball, the Arcadia resident hits whiffle ball with his family, or practices in his parents’ backyard batting cage. He also chips golf balls on a putting green.

“When I’m in Ahwatukee, I go back to being 12 years old again,” he says enthusiastically.

“Ahwatukee is the best place in the world to grow up. It’s so much fun to be there. I’ll pop into Water and Ice in the Foothills. We’re always at Spinato’s (Pizzeria) or crushing all my favorite food spots. I play a lot of golf. I’m addicted to it. It’s bad.”

THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

31

SPORTS

CALENDAR

By Zakkary Brog

Arizona Rattlers vs.

Northern Arizona Wranglers

JULY 2 The Arizona Rattlers welcome the Northern Arizona Wranglers to town for an Indoor Football League matchup. Earlier this season, when the teams met in Prescott Valley, the Wranglers defeated the Rattlers 37-34.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 6:05 p.m., tickets start at $11, azrattlers.com

Arizona Diamondbacks vs.

San Francisco Giants

JULY 4 TO JULY 6, JULY 25 TO JULY 27 The Arizona Diamondbacks will celebrate Independence Day with a series of NL West contests against the San Francisco Giants. The first 10,000 fans in attendance for the July 4 game will receive a patriotic Diamondbacks logo T-shirt. The Giants will also return for another series in Arizona later in the month. Likely to appear for the Giants are shortstop Brandon Crawford, left fielder Joc Pederson and third baseman Evan Longoria.

Chase Field, 401 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 3:10 p.m. July 4, 6:40 p.m. July 5, 6:40 p.m. July 6, tickets start at $15, dbacks.com

Phoenix Mercury vs.

New York Liberty

JULY 7 The Phoenix Mercury welcomes

the New York Liberty to the Valley. It’s the first of three times that the two teams will meet this WNBA season. The Liberty are led by forward Natasha Howard and guard Sabrina Ionescu.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 7 p.m., tickets start at $21, mercury.wnba.com

Arizona Diamondbacks vs.

Colorado Rockies

JULY 7 TO JULY 9 The Diamondbacks follow up one NL West series with another as the Colorado Rockies come to town. The last time the two clubs played at Chase Field, the Diamondbacks won two out of three games. Likely to appear for the Rockies are first baseman C.J. Cron, second baseman Brendan Rodgers and left fielder Connor Joe. Chase Field, 401 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 6:40 p.m. July 7, 6:40 p.m July 8, 1:10 p.m.

July 9, 1:10 p.m. July 10, tickets start at $15, dbacks.com

Arizona Rattlers vs.

Vegas Knight Hawks

JULY 10 The Rattlers face off against the Vegas Knight Hawks. This IFL season is the first for the Knight Hawks, who will come into Arizona looking to avenge their loss earlier this year to the Rattlers by the score of 67-20.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 3:05 p.m., tickets start at $11, azrattlers.com

Phoenix Mercury vs Washington Mystics

JULY 14 The Mercury begin a four-game homestand with a matchup against the Washington Mystics. It will be the third matchup between the Mystics and Mercury this season, with the series being split at one win a piece. The Mystics are led by 2015 and 2019 WNBA MVP Elena Delle Donne and 2012 WNBA MVP Tina Charles.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 7 p.m., tickets start at $19, mercury.wnba.com

Phoenix Mercury vs.

Atlanta Dream

JULY 17 The Mercury will continue to defend home court when the Atlanta Dream come to town. The season series is split between the Mercury and Dream, with one win for each.

The Dream are led by Rhyne Howard, who was the first overall pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 3 p.m., tickets start at $19, mercury.wnba.com

Phoenix Mercury vs.

Seattle Storm

JULY 22 The Mercury’s homestand continues with a Western Conference contest against the Seattle Storm.

Phoenix has already claimed the season series against Seattle with two wins against the Storm. The

Storm is led by 2018 WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart and three-time WNBA All-Star Jewell Loyd.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 7 p.m., tickets start at $22, mercury.wnba.com

Arizona Diamondbacks vs.

Washington Nationals

JULY 22 TO JULY 24 The Diamondbacks take on the Washington Nationals in a threegame series. The first 10,000 fans to arrive at Chase Field for the July 23 game will receive a Diamondbacks-Star Wars T-shirt as part of Star Wars Night at the park.

Likely to appear for the nationals are right fielder Juan Soto, second baseman César Hernández and third baseman Maikel Franco.

Chase Field, 401 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 6:40 p.m. July 22, 5:10 p.m. July 23, 1:10 p.m. July 24, tickets start at $25, dbacks.com

Phoenix Mercury vs.

Los Angeles Sparks

JULY 28 The Mercury finish their homestand with a showdown against their longtime rivals, the Los Angeles Sparks. It will be the fourth time that the teams will meet in the 2022 regular season. The Sparks are led by four-time WNBA All-Star Liz Cambage and 2016 WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike.

Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 7 p.m., tickets start at $20, mercury.wnba.com ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

32

MUSIC

LISTEN » JAM » INNOVATE » EVOLVE » ROCK » SING

LIVE MUSIC

CALENDAR

By Connor Dziawura

JULY 1 Cat Dealers

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $28

Denzel Curry

The Van Buren, 9 p.m., $35-$40

Hey Chels

Yucca Tap Room, 9 p.m., free

Hans Olson’s 70th Birthday Party featuring the Hans Olson Band

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

The Summer Set

Doobie

JULY 11

Grave Miasma

The High Curbs

Sunbar, 9 p.m., $24 The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $20-$100 Pub Rock Live, 7 p.m., $20

Ignite

Yucca Tap Room, 7:30 p.m., $15-$18

Los Teximaniacs

Musical Instrument Museum, 7:30 p.m., $33.50-$44.50

The Sugar Thieves

NGHTMRE

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Starbenders

JULY 9

Maya Dayclub, noon, $40 Valley Bar, 7:30 p.m., $18-$20

The Irie

JULY 4

Korine

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Marquee Theatre, 5:30 p.m., $20-$30

Delta Heavy

Sky Creature

Adia Victoria

Valley Bar, 7 p.m., $18-$20

Alex Zurdo

Celebrity Theatre, 7 p.m., $35-$55

John McLean

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $29-$33

The Rebel Lounge, 7:30 p.m., $15-$18

Machine Gun Kelly and Avril Lavigne and Willow Footprint Center, 8 p.m., $34.50-$499

Streetlight Manifesto

Marquee Theatre, 8 p.m., $30-$60

JULY 12 Bryan McPherson

Yucca Tap Room, 8 p.m., free

Coin

Arizona Federal Theatre, 8 p.m., $29.50-$100

Mapache

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $15-$18

The Rebel Lounge, 7:30 p.m., $12-$15

JULY 5

Orpheum Theatre - Phoenix, 7:30 p.m., $80-$590

Mike Ozuna

Cola

Le Youth

The Nash, 7 p.m., free

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $15-$17

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $17-$1,500

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Psyclon Nine

Fleet Foxes

Paper Foxes

JULY 13

The Underground, 7 p.m., $15

Vektor

Pub Rock Live, 7 p.m., $18

JULY 2 A Casual Divorce

Arizona Federal Theatre, 7:30 p.m., $45-$121

Yucca Tap Room, 9 p.m., free

Motion City Soundtrack

The Underground, 7 p.m., $5

The Van Buren, 7 p.m., $35-$38

JULY 6

Punk Rock Extravaganza Sacred Skin

The Rebel Lounge, 9 p.m., $15-$18

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Ricky Hil

The Rebel Lounge, 7:30 p.m., $14-$16

Musical Instrument Museum, 7:30 p.m., $38.50-$54.50

Crystal Skies

JULY 7

Will Clarke

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $23

Darkest Hour

The Nile Theater, 7 p.m., $25-$27

Gera MX

The Van Buren, 8 p.m., $39-$45

Heartless Bastards

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $25-$38

Mr. Carmack

Sunbar, 9 p.m., $18.75-$1,500

Necronauts

Yucca Tap Room, 7:30 p.m., $12-$15

Paul Oakenfold

Marquee Theatre, 8 p.m., $25-$70

Through the Roots

Valley Bar, 7 p.m., $17-$20

JULY 3 Double Fisted

Yucca Tap Room, 7:30 p.m., $5

The Aristocrats

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., $28

Dave Parley

The Underground, 7 p.m., $15-$17

ESA / iVardensphere

The Rebel lounge, 8 p.m., $18-$22

Great White

Marquee Theatre, 6:30 p.m., $30$45

Liily

Valley Bar, 8 p.m., $15-$18

JULY 8 Balkan Bump

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $24.50

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony Marquee Theatre, 7:30 p.m., $40-$70

The Blue Stones and Des Rocs Crescent Ballroom, 7:30 p.m., $22-$25

Shady Park, 9 p.m., $23

JULY 10 Atmosphere and Iration

Marquee Theatre, 6 p.m., $50-$200

Big Gigantic

The Van Buren, 7 p.m., $30-$40

Corinne Bailey Rae

Chandler Center for the Arts’ Mainstage, 7 p.m., $38-$58

Cowgirl Clue

Valley Bar, 7:30 p.m., $17-$20

Francine Reed

The Nash, 3 p.m., $14.80-$45

Intocable

Celebrity Theatre, 7 p.m., $52.50-$108

Party Favor

Maya Dayclub, noon, $33

Sierra Hull

Musical Instrument Museum, 7 p.m., $38.50-$49.50

Sexual Jeremy

Antibacteria Cafeteria presents Brenyama, Hyperchromatic and Bleak Mystique

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

The Black Birds

Yucca Tap Room, 8 p.m., free

Enanitos Verdes

The Van Buren, 8 p.m., $59.50-$65

Fish Narc

Valley Bar, 8 p.m., $17-$20

Primitive Man

The Rebel Lounge, 7:30 p.m., $17-$20

JULY 14 Donovan Keith

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Ethan Tucker and Thrive!

Pub Rock Live, 8 p.m., $12

Mattsta Graham

The Underground, 7 p.m., $10

JULY 15 Amtrac

Sunbar, 9 p.m., $23

Dispatch and O.A.R.

Mesa Amphitheatre, 6 p.m., $48.75-$53.75

Icon for Hire

The Rebel Lounge, 7:30 p.m., $18-$20

THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

Crescent Ballroom, 10 p.m., $15

JULY 20 Billy Howerdel

Kenji Wagner

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $30-$179

Not Nearly

Musical Instrument Museum, 7 p.m., $54.50-$74.50

The Nash, 7:30 p.m., $10-$20 Pub Rock Live, 8 p.m., $10

Poliça

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $22-$25

Stephen Marley

Marquee Theatre, 7:30 p.m., $33-$63

JULY 16 DVBBS

The Pool at Talking Stick Resort, 5 p.m., $30

Fire by Night

The Rebel Lounge, 6 p.m., $12-$15

Jerry Paper

Valley Bar, 7:30 p.m., $15-$17

Matt Zo

Cowboy Junkies

Post Sex Nachos

Slightly Stoopid

Mesa Amphitheatre, 4:30 p.m., $47-$150

Veronica Everheart

The Underground, 7 p.m., $10

JULY 17 The Fiends

The Underground, 6:30 p.m., $7

Grayscale

The Nile Theater, 6 p.m., $25

Igor & the Red Elvises

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Marian Hill

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $30-$43

Reina del Cid

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $18-$20

JULY 18 The Criticals

Valley Bar, 7:30 p.m., $17-$20

Horse Jumper of Love

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $15-$18

Iya Terra

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $25-$40

JULY 19 Cowboy Junkies

Musical Instrument Museum, 7 p.m., $54.50-$74.50

Hippie Death Cult

Pub Rock Live, 8 p.m., $12

Marquee Theatre, 8 p.m., $49.50-$139

Ak-Chin Pavilion, 6:45 p.m., $29.50-$454.50

Ape Machine and All Souls

Yucca Tap Room, 7:30 p.m., $12-$15

The Wrecks

The Rhythm Room, 3:30 p.m., tickets available at the door

Tiny Moving Parts

JULY 25 New Hope Club

Valley Bar, 7:30 p.m., $18-$20

Arizona Federal Theatre, 8 p.m., $59.75-$338.50

THC Worm

Dirty Heads

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Erra

JULY 26

The Grand Pricks

Anthrax and Black Label Society

Mesa Amphitheatre, 5 p.m., $50-$55 The Nile Theater, 6:30 p.m., $20 The Underground, 6 p.m., $10

The Van Buren, 6:45 p.m., $55-$60

Jeremy Olander

James Taylor & His All-Star Band

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $25

The Legendary Count Basie Orchestra Maverick City Music and Kirk Franklin

Ak-Chin Pavilion, 6:30 p.m., $30.50-$400.50

Darius Rucker

The Van Buren, 6:30 p.m., $35-$38

Summer of Love

Train

Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino, 8 p.m., $74.50-$722

Frank Turner & the Sleeping Souls

Musical Instrument Museum, 7 p.m., $69.50-$85.50

The Nile Theater, 6:30 p.m., $20

The Nile Theater, 8 p.m., $22-$25

Bidi Bidi Banda

Standards

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $15-$18

JULY 21

Counting Crows

Chandler Center for the Arts’ Mainstage, 8 p.m., $36-$52

The Shins

REO Speedwagon and Styx w/Loverboy

The Purple Xperience

Lost Dakota

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $10-$12

Musical Instrument Museum, 7 p.m., $28.50-$38.50

Crescent Ballroom, 8 p.m., $23-$35

The Van Buren, 8 p.m., $23-$26

JULY 22

JULY 28

Memphis May Fire

Purity Ring

The Underground, 7 p.m., $15

Jack Broadbent

Yucca Tap Room, 8 p.m., free

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $13-$15

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $28

JULY 24

Hulder

Ak-Chin Pavilion, 6:45 p.m., $25-$215.50

Zach Person

Valley Bar, 7:30 p.m., $13-$15

JULY 29 Dennis Jones

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Fostermother

Pub Rock Live, 8 p.m., $12

Fuerza Regida

Footprint Center, 8 p.m., $34.50-$474.50

Kaleo

The Van Buren, 7 p.m., sold out

One Night of Queen performed by Gary Mullen & the Works

Chandler Center for the Arts’ Mainstage, 7:30 p.m., $38-$58

mike.

Footprint Center, 8 p.m., $59.50-$1,450

Prince Mirth

Junk Drawer

Arizona Federal Theatre, 8 p.m., $35-$313.50

Soul Power

The Lumineers

JULY 30

The Van Buren, 8 p.m., $35-$100

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $12-$15

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $12-$15

Gila River Arena, 7 p.m., $35-$545

The Rhythm Room, 8 p.m., tickets available at the door

Monsieur Periné

Musical Instrument Museum, 7 p.m., $44.50-$54.50

JULY 23 Broadside

The Rebel Lounge, 7 p.m., $18-$20

EvilDead

Pub Rock Live, 6 p.m., $15

GRUM

Darkstar, 9 p.m., $27.50

Joan of Arkansas

Yucca Tap Room, 9 p.m., free

Traitrs w/Haunt Me

33

JULY 27 Danny Goo, rosecoloredworld and RexiXO The Rhythm Room, 7 p.m., tickets available at the door

Enterprise Earth

The Nile Theater, 5:30 p.m., $16-$18

The Happys

Santa Fe Klan

Cheekface

Valley Bar, 7 p.m., $15-$17

Hellbound Eddie (of Hellbound Hayride)

Yucca Tap Room, 9 p.m., free

Wiz Khalifa and Logic

Ak-Chin Pavilion, 6:30 p.m., $29.50-$309.50

JULY 31 Daddy Yankee

Footprint Center, 7 p.m., $480-$1,575

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $13-$16

The Insider’s Guide to Arizona Entertainment

Honey Creek

Yucca Tap Room, 8 p.m., free

King Princess and Dora Jar

The Van Buren, 8 p.m., $32-$35

Subhumans

The Rebel Lounge, 8 p.m., $20

entertainermag.com ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

THE BAND ALL THE BAD GUYS WANT

34

UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

Bowling for Soup revisits classics on jaunt

By Alex Gallagher

W

hen Jaret Reddick hit the road after the birth of his first child in 2003, he knew balancing music and fatherhood would be challenging.

Then he did what any other punk rock dad would do: He hit the road for two weeks, returning home for just over a week.

“It’s kind of fun because we’ve been touring in two-week increments with time off in between for many, many years,” Reddick says. “I had kids in 2003, and this was the way that I chose to tour to make sure that I was putting my family first.”

Reddick has witnessed other bands doing the same thing, seeing the same concept being adopted by bands who are starting families of their own.

“Now that all the other bands are catching up and having kids, it’s kind of funny how they think this is a pretty good idea,” he says with a laugh.

He also adds that this touring style aids in preventing touring fatigue.

“We’re getting a little older, and we have things that we don’t want to miss out on at home,” Reddick says. “It makes for a happier group of people on the bus and morale stays high when everyone gets to go home and see their family.”

Because of this, Reddick and his bandmates utilize their rest by taking their energy out onstage replicating the energy of the Vans Warped Tour.

“It’s been in the back of my mind since Warped Tour ended of how we could keep the vibe and keep the bands that had that tie to it together since it really was the foundation of so many of our bands and this kind of music,” he says.

“We’re trying to give people a little bit of that energy of Warped Tour, only this time in air conditioning,” he adds with a laugh.

The tour’s second leg will aim to capture that energy with fellow Warped Tour alumni Less Than Jake and Scottsdale’s Doll Skin playing in support of the tour.

“I’ve always been about having diversity on the bill since we started,” ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

Reddick says. “I always thought if we sounded the same, we’re probably drawing the same people. But if we’re getting different kinds of bands that merge in some places, then we’re all playing in front of some new fans, and it makes for a better night when it’s evolving and changing.”

Despite stacking the set list with hit songs including “1985,” “Girl All the Bad Guys Want,” “Alexa Bliss” — the former entrance theme for the WWE Superstar — and the theme song to the hit Disney TV show “Phineas and Ferb,” Reddick and his bandmates plan to make the audience laugh almost as loudly as they sing.

“When people come to see us, it’s not going to just be ‘Phineas and Ferb’ and ‘1985.’ We do tend to be a bit out there when it comes to the comedy,” Reddick says. “We’re just naturally hilarious, and since we’ve been doing this for 28 years, I know that if I can make Chris, Rob or Gary laugh, then I know that

the audience is probably thinking that’s funny as well.”

In addition to hearing the audience giggle as he vamps while changing guitars, there is another high point of every show that Reddick looks forward to each night. “‘High School Never Ends’ is usually the first time I hear how loud the audience is going to sing, which is always a really special moment for me every night,” he says.

“I also always look forward to ‘Girl All the Bad Guys Want’ every single night.

It doesn’t matter where it is in the set; I love the audience’s reaction when I start that riff and the energy that it brings when the drums kick in.”

Even though the theme song to ‘Phineas and Ferb’ is the track most people recognize Bowling for Soup for, Reddick does love the reaction he gets every time he queues up the lyrics “there’s 104 days of summer vacation, and school comes along just to end it.”

“I always love playing ‘Phineas and Ferb’ because there’s the surprise aspect where there are people who don’t know that we do that song or think we would never play ‘that cartoon song,’ so it’s really fun,” he says with a grin.

No matter which track gets the crowd amped up, Reddick aims to have fans leave the Marquee Theatre with grins stretched across their faces and tunes stuck in their ears.

“I want everybody to leave with a smile on their face and a song in their head.

That’s my goal every day,” he says.

Bowling for Soup and Less Than Jake w/Cliffdiver and Doll Skin WHEN: 6:30 p.m. Friday, August 5 WHERE: Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Avenue, Tempe COST: $32.50 INFO: bowlingforsoup.com

REMADE IN MISERY Memphis May Fire to break out new tracks on tour THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

35

By Alex Gallagher

M

emphis May Fire vocalist Matty Mullins admits it’s getting more difficult to curate a set list, as his band recently released its seventh fulllength record, “Remade in Misery.”

Although the album is a fresh release, most of the songs were released as singles as early as June 2021 — a year before the album dropped.

“I wanted every single song on this album to have its spotlight,” Mullins says. “When we were writing the album, it felt so special that I didn’t want to just release three singles then the album. I wanted people to get a new song every month and digest it slowly.”

This is in part because the music was meticulously written and recorded during a time when the band couldn’t tour.

“We weren’t on a deadline since it was written during the pandemic, so we had the ability to take our time and enjoy the process of writing and tracking demos,” he says.

The result was a body of work that Memphis May Fire considers to be its most mature record to date.

“We rediscovered some of the angst from our early years and paired that up with a lot of the knowledge that we’ve learned along the way,” Mullins says. “I think we made the best record we’ve ever made.”

Because this album offers a mature presence for the metalcore outfit that has been churning out tracks for over a decade and a half, Mullins wanted to set the tone for the album by releasing the personal track “Blood & Water.”

“The song is about abuse and things that happened in my childhood that I’ve never gone into detail about and I’ve done a lot of therapy and healing around,” Mullins says.

“I knew that a lot of people would need a song like that to relate to. The beauty of music is that we get to share our experiences through these art forms to where my story can become someone else’s story and my healing can become someone else’s healing.”

“Blood & Water” is not the only tune Mullins is particularly proud of, as he has a strong affinity for the ballad-like ditty dubbed “Make Believe.” “‘Make Believe’ feels like such a special tune to me because it’s different than anything else that we’ve ever done as a band sonically and lyrically,” he says. “I was stoked when we finished that song and it felt like a step up for us.”

Although the band’s newer works offer a contrast from staple tracks like “Miles Away,” “The Sinner” and “Vices,”

Mullins and the rest of Memphis May Fire curated a set list for their first headline tour since 2019 that integrates new tunes and staple songs to create a cathartic experience.

“I want the show to be therapeutic, and that looks different for everybody, whether they’re dancing and moshing or they’re sitting in the balcony and soaking in the words,” Mullins says. “I want people to feel a release when they leave our shows, and I want them to feel a sense of community when they’re at our show to where they can be themselves and let go.”

Although Mullins admits artists are sometimes overwhelmed with the response to their lyrics, he views his music as a way to bridge a connection with his legion of fans.

“When we start to understand that when fans come to us and give us praise, that is them saying they’re a lot like us,” he says. “It helps us realize that it puts us on the same playing field and helps me feel a lot more connected with fans and feel that I have a bond beyond a stranger who listens to my art.”

Memphis May Fire’s Remade In Misery Tour w/From Ashes to New, Rain City Drive and Wolves at the Gate WHEN: 7 p.m. Sunday, July 24 WHERE: Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Avenue, Phoenix COST: Tickets start at $23 INFO: memphismayfire.com

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36

UPFRONT | CITY | TRAVEL | ARTS | DINING | BREWS & SPIRITS | CASINOS | SPORTS | FAMILY | MUSIC | NIGHTLIFE | IN CLOSING

SOUND THE ALARM

Sleeping with Sirens will throw new songs into its set list

By Alex Gallagher

A

fter two years off the road, Sleeping with Sirens rhythm guitarist Nick Martin says touring across the United States feels

new.

“It’s interesting because I think with having close to two and a half years off, we’re rusty,” says Martin, whose band plays the Marquee Theatre on August 2.

“Just the thought of being on tour is a new idea for us because we haven’t been able to do that.”

However, Martin says he is anxious to return to the stage alongside his bandmates — who he considers to be his brothers.

“We’re ready to have fun again,” Martin says. “As a band, we’re like brothers and we miss being able to do our thing as a family.”

Leading up to the tour, Sleeping with Sirens ramped up rehearsals and curated a set list that Martin says will bring vivacity into each venue on its twomonth jaunt.

“It’s a pretty high-intensity set,” Martin says. “We’re a band that likes to ENTERTAINERMAG.COM

put on a show that leaves fans feeling exhausted — in a really good way.”

Adding to the ante, Sleeping with Sirens hopes to include as much of its discography as possible into its headlining set. Martin also teased new music.

“We’re pulling out a lot of songs throughout our whole catalog and playing all of the fan favorites and we just might be playing a new song or two,” Martin says with a wink.

Martin is also eager to bring back songs off of the band’s most recent complete work, 2019’s “How it Feels to be Lost…”

“We only got to tour on ‘How it Feels to be Lost…’ for about three months and then that was it,” he says. “We’re excited to revisit that album on this tour but also potentially showcase some of the stuff that we’ve been working on.”

Although much of the past year has been devoted to writing and recording new material for its next album, “Complete Chaos” — which is due October 14 — Martin is excited to bring a nostalgic feel to the shows.

“It’s interesting because I love playing the old songs, like ‘If You Can’t Hang’

and ‘If I’m James Dean, You’re Audrey Hepburn,’ but being fortunate enough to play new material, it’ll be fun to showcase what we’ve been working on,” he says.

Even though Martin shares the mic with lead vocalist Kellin Quinn, who is notorious for his leggero tenor vocal range, he admits that his favorite voice is that of fans who sing along.

“I think it’s amazing when I can hear the voices of others when we’re playing,” Martin says. “I wear in-ear monitors, and if I can hear the crowd through that, it lets me know that the engagement is pretty crazy.”

To ramp up the crowd, Martin engages the audience — sometimes even by marching his way through the crowd.

“I do what I can at every single show to make as many connections as I can with our audience as possible,” he says. “It doesn’t matter if you’re standing in the back and chilling or if you’re the person in the front row jumping around and singing to every single song — everyone is different at shows, and that’s always an exciting thing to see.”

Martin says he hopes his stage persona and his band’s discography help to create

an inclusive environment for fans in attendance.

“People can expect (to have) so much fun,” he says. “We want people to walk away with a smile on their face and knowing that they can be themselves at their shows and that they’re a part of the Sirens family.”

After the tour, Sleeping with Sirens will celebrate the release of “Complete Collapse” with festivals like When We Were Young in Las Vegas.

“We’re focused on the new album, and we’ll tell people during the tour about the stuff we’ve been working on for over a year,” Martin said. “This music is extremely special and has a lot of surprises that I think people are going to be really excited about.”

Sleeping With Sirens w/Point North and Garzi WHEN: 6 p.m. Tuesday, August 2 WHERE: The Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Avenue, Tempe COST: Tickets start at $27.50 INFO: sirensmusic.co, luckymanonline.com

HARDER THAN IT LOOKS THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE JULY 2022

37

Simple Plan fetes debut’s 20 years on new tour

By Alex Gallagher Even though Simple Plan’s debut album, “No Pads, No Helmets…Just Balls,” is 20 years old, vocalist Pierre Bouvier is amazed to see how it holds up.

“It’s cool to see how much of an impact that record had back in the day,” Bouvier says.

“It’s nice to see fans coming out to this show in their late 20s to mid-30s and telling us stories about how this was the first record they bought or how it meant the world to them. It’s cool to see the lasting effect of that album and the impact of songs like ‘Perfect,’ ‘I’d Do Anything’ and ‘Addicted.’”

This is especially surprising to Bouvier, as the Montreal-born band felt it was taking a risk by unveiling an album that took the rhythmic sounds of rising punk bands and coupled it with vulnerable lyrics about mental health.

“Lyrically, our songs were at the begging of this era of bands that would dive into their emotions a lot more,” Bouvier says. “Back in the ’90s, it wasn’t all that common to hear bands get so vulnerable and talk about anxiety, depression and things that made them feel like they were out of place. I think that is why some of these songs resonated with that generation that was looking for that safe place to express their own emotions, which they could find in these songs.”

Although the album was a gamble, the album’s signature track “Perfect” — which lyrically addresses feelings of inadequacy kids feel toward parents — was a risk.

“When we first started, we questioned whether the song ‘Perfect’ was too personal and too straightforward,” Bouvier says.

“We even debated whether or not this song should see the light of day. But that was the right call, and because of that,

we realized that’s what sets Simple Plan apart from the rest.”

Since releasing its debut album in March 2002, Simple Plan sustained success with its follow-up record, 2004’s “Still Not Getting Any….” It recently brought back its signature sound for its latest work, “Harder Than It Looks” — which was released May 2, just in time for the band’s tour.

“It was definitely intentional to make a record that sounded like Simple Plan,” he says.

“In picking the songs that came out before the record, we wanted to make sure that those were songs that lyrically and musically would be appealing to our fans who had been waiting for this stuff.”

Because of this, Bouvier admits his job of curating a set list that encapsulates Simple Plan’s two decades of music to fill its 75-minute set is harder than it looks.

However, Bouvier says the secret to the perfect set list is two doses of new material to complement the 12 classics.

“Every night we play two new songs in addition to some of the other older hits, in addition to the ‘No Pads, No Helmets…Just Balls’ songs,” he says.

“We’ve played a combination of ‘The Antidote,’ ‘Congratulations,’ ‘Wake Me Up (When This Nightmare’s Over)’ and ‘Ruin My Life,’ and we’re about to start putting ‘Million Pictures of You’ and ‘Best Day of My Life’ in the set. We want to play some new songs for the real true fans that are out there.”

Although he is proud of his band’s first release and most current work, there is a little ditty off of “Still Not Getting Any…” that gets each venue bouncing appropriately titled “Jump.” “(‘Jump’) was never a single, but it’s been a staple at a Simple Plan show because it was written to get the crowd

jumping,” the frontman says. “When we were writing the song, we were jumping up and down to find the tempo to get the whole crowd jumping.”

“Jump” is often the climactic track to Simple Plan’s shows. However, the ideal way is wrapping them up with “Perfect.”

“We’ve always finished the set with ‘Perfect,’ and it would feel weird to not finish with that song,” he says.

The Blame Canada Tour w/Simple Plan, Sum 41 and Magnolia Park WHEN: 7 p.m. Wednesday, August 3 WHERE: The Van Buren, 401 W. Van Buren Street, Phoenix COST: Tickets start at $37.25 INFO: thevanburenphx.com, officialsimpleplan.com

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