Spin looks at Sound Strike, the boycott of Arizona by musical acts and other artists in response to Arizona's new immigration law:

Curtis McCrary, general manager of Tucson's 90-year-old Rialto Theatre, doesn't know how much longer he can last. Since Cypress Hill canceled a show at his venue in May to protest the controversial Arizona anti-illegal immigration law known as SB1070, which, pending legal challenges, was due to take effect this month, McCrary has seen about a half-dozen other bands drop the nonprofit theater from their touring plans. "It's been a drip, drip, drip thing," he says. "There's a very real possibility that it could drive us out of business."

So far, the most visible effect of efforts like Zack de la Rocha's Sound Strike — which has rallied such artists as Kanye West, Conor Oberst, and Massive Attack to avoid Arizona until SB1070 is off the books — has been to frustrate the state's club owners, concert promoters, and music fans who oppose the law. But, boycotters say, pain has always been part of solidarity movements, ranging from Artists United Against Apartheid in the 1980s to the recent politically motivated shunning of Israel by the Pixies and Elvis Costello. "It's a combined voice saying we will not tolerate bigotry," says System of a Down singer Serj Tankian, who's aligned with Sound Strike. "Justice sometimes has to be served in putting aside profits."

State Sen. Frank Antenori weighs in:

"If these groups don't want to come here, fine, we'll bring someone else who will entertain us and take our money," says Republican Arizona State Senator Frank Antenori. "My decisions are made on what's the right thing to do, and the right thing to do is to enforce the law."

Read the whole thing here.

It's Wall Street Reform Day! As you might expect, Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is cheering the signing of the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, while her GOP opponents don't like it one bit.

You can find details in this week's Skinny column.

BTW, Republican candidate Jay Quick's comments didn't make it into the print edition, but here's what he had to say via e-mail on the legislation:

It's ironic that Congress is suddenly trying to reverse the 20 years of Congressional de-regulation that caused the financial melt down in the first place but we can be confident that Wall Street is already figuring ways to get around the new regulations and it won't be long before the investment bankers convince Congress that the new regulations are too tough. It will be business as usual withing a couple of years.

Jonathan Paton, Jesse Kelly and Brian Miller will be onstage from 6 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, July 21, at Desert Christian School, 7525 E. Speedway Blvd.

Janos Wilder has detailed the painstaking process of designing his new restaurant, Downtown Kitchen and Cocktails, on his blog, but there’s been little mention of the food it’ll serve—until recently.

From the newest post on Wilder’s blog:

I wrote the first menus three months ago. DOWNTOWN will serve the food of what America is today. We will serve you the flavors of the New American melting pot. My grandparents came from Russia, my parents are first generation Americans. They were not unusual, that wave of immigrants came from all over Europe. Earlier waves came from England, Spain and France. The history of immigration is the history America. We have always been the place people from around the world could come to find safety and a new chance.

Following a tradition as old as human migration, today’s immigrants bring with them the foods from their homes in Indo-China, the Middle-East, China, Latin America and Africa. We will be choosing the dishes from those and other sunny regions around the world where the climates are similar to our own so that we can grow many of the ingredients we’ll cook. DOWNTOWN the food will be full of flavor, it will excite your taste buds and nourish your soul.

We’ll be serving lunch, dinner, a bar menu and late night. Our prices will beaffordable(sic). We know what the economy’s doing to everyone’s discretionary income. We want you to be able to come often. Have a bite at the bar one time then come back before or after a performance and return again when you have time to enjoy a few courses. As the name implies, we’ll also serve you some the best and most exciting cocktails you’ll find in Tucson.

Read the whole thing here.

• Republican Senator Al Melvin

Melvin recently told the Weekly he would not debate his Democratic contender, Cheryl Cage, before the 2010 election because he is too busy. But in a statement on his website, the freshman Senator wrote, “One of the ways we are educating the voters is by participating in a number of debates with Ms. Cage, and those public appearances and comparisons will be very helpful.”

The problem is, the “debates” he is referring to are not quite debates.

For example, he tweeted about a recent candidate forum in Oro Valley, saying it, “had candidates for many offices, including mine, debating one another.”

But it wasn’t a debate, according to forum organizer Conny Culver, a former Oro Valley council member.

• Democratic Senate candidate Cheryl Cage

“In a debate the candidates have a chance to go back and forth with each other,” she said. “We were never trying to be a debate.”

When asked about his use of the word at the Oro Valley candidate forum, Melvin said, “I consider this to be in the league of a debate.”

His competitor disagrees. “Forums are not debates. (At the Oro Valley forum) we had 12 minutes, we had two questions and there was no rebuttal.”

• The photo of the 2008 debate Melvin posted on his website

“It’s incredibly disingenuous,” she said. “I think he’s trying to make it look like we have had some debates… and to have this kind of constant disingenuous approach from him is disappointing and I think it’s disrespectful to the voters.”

Chef Matthew Stricker (aka Chef Mattie) from Monkey Burger says the restaurant’s downtown location is on track to open in mid-August.

The new location is going in at the former Burger City spot at 47 N. Sixth Ave., right across the street from the Ronstadt Transit Center. Stricker said the building has been remodeled and now features a bar that takes up about one-third of the space. It will serve the same menu as the original Monkey Burger at 5350 E. Broadway Blvd., Suite 128.

Stricker said the new location will be open during the day most of the week, with extended hours on weekends.

Democrat Gabrielle Giffords debuts her new ad today in her bid for reelection to the CD8 spot in Congress. Guest starring in the ad is Cochise County rancher and environmentalist Warner Glenn.

An alert reader, Travis, tipped us off to the fact that the city of Seattle has banned exhibits—like the Bodies display currently at the Rialto building—unless the exhibitor can prove it has the consent of the deceased or the families of the deceased.

According to The Seattle Times:

Seattle residents — from anatomy professors to museum directors — have voiced concern over the ethics of such exhibits, specifically because Premier Exhibitions, which sponsors the "Bodies" exhibit, says it can't verify where the bodies are from or that the deceased on exhibit consented to such display.

Read the full article here.

The brand-new Empire Pizza and Pub is open at 137 E. Congress St. On the menu: pizza (slices and whole pies), sandwiches, hot wings, salads and a couple of desserts. Order at the counter, and take a seat at one of the outdoor tables up front, or head to the back room where the bar is. No alcohol yet, but an employee said the liquor license should be approved in two to four months.

Check out the menu here.

Close Encounters with the Sixth Kind with Eddie Gallego
By Blair Kurland

The vanishing cowboy pays a visit to the Old Town Artisans.

After noticing our earlier post on their candidate's links to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramhoff, Team Hayworth suggested we note U.S. Sen. John McCain's ties to fundraiser Scott Rothstein, who was sentenced to 50 years in prison last month for running a billion-dollar Ponzi scheme.

Here's the story from Jonathan J. Cooper, via HuffPo:

A now-disbarred Florida lawyer who admitted to orchestrating a huge Ponzi scheme gave more than $180,000 to Arizona Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign, contributions that McCain's Senate rival is now making an issue in their competitive primary.

Scott Rothstein was sentenced Wednesday to 50 years in prison after he confessed to running a $1.2 billion fraud using faked legal settlements.

Rothstein also was a key contributor and fundraiser who bundled more than $500,000 in campaign contributions for McCain's 2008 race, according to the campaign finance watchdog Center for Responsive Politics.

The exact amount he raised from others is unknown, but Rothstein boasted to the Wall Street Journal in 2008 that he raised as much as $1.1 million for McCain.

The campaign of former U.S. Rep. J.D. Hayworth, who is challenging McCain in Arizona's Aug. 24 Republican primary, demanded that the four-term senator account for and donate all of the money connected to Rothstein.

"McCain can't have it both ways. He can't be the champion of campaign finance reform one day and then take more than a million dollars from a convicted felon the next day," Hayworth spokesman Mark Sanders said.

Read the whole thing here.