Music Venues in Phoenix

1300 S. Country Club Dr. Mesa

480-779-7716

Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Arizona Event Center has been known to host everything from music festivals to rowdy raves. The 30,000-square-foot former nightclub and big-box store has three stages, a full bar for 21-and-over types, and even a mechanical bull (a holdover from a brief stint as a country bar). Its tiny smoking area often gets a little too crowded but allows rave kids the pretense to get closer to partygoers of the opposite sex and offer to clean off some of the excess paint, fake blood, or foam.

27 articles

ASU Gammage

1200 S. Forest Ave. Tempe

480-965-3434

Theaters, Performing Arts Venues, Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

In 1957 then ASU President Grady Gammage called on famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright to help create a unique auditorium for the university. Originally Wright had the design that would eventually become Gammage Auditorium in mind for Baghdad, Iraq but ended up placing the opera house in Tempe instead. The 3,000-seat performance hall is 80 feet tall and measures 300 by 250 feet, flanked on either side by giant pedestrian bridges. The construction of the $2.46 million building – the only public building Wright designed in the state of Arizona – took 25 months and was completed in September 1964. The multifunctional auditorium can be used for opera, musical and dramatic productions, symphony concerts and lectures. And today, Arizona State University's Gammage is one of the largest university-based presenters of performing arts in the world.

34 events 142 articles

ASU Kerr

6110 N. Scottsdale Rd. Paradise Valley

480-596-2660

Music Venues, Performing Arts Venues, Best Of, Sponsor

8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays-Fridays

11 events 13 articles

Clubhouse Music Venue

1320 E. Broadway Rd. Tempe

480-968-3238

Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Sponsor, Slideshow

67 articles

Fear Farm

6801 N. 99th Ave. Glendale

Attractions and Amusement Parks, Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Spread over a dozen or so buildings of various sizes and 25 acres of cornfield, this attraction will give you a full night of entertainment. The old-school haunted house is well worth the drive from wherever you're coming from since, unlike most other haunted houses these days, Fear Farm is almost 100 percent real people doing the scaring. They aren't relying on any of that animatronics stuff here. Look forward to chainsaw wielding clowns, a blood-splattered asylum and plenty more. And these actors and talented too. They're willing to go the extra mile to make sure you and everyone you're with gets completely scared out of your minds. For example, we've seen a dude with a chainsaw chase a victim, er, guest all the way out to the parking lot.

42 articles

Holgas Gallery

821 N. Third St. Central Phoenix

602-475-8519

Art Galleries, Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor

In the mid-2000s this spot in Downtown Phoenix was the place to hear up-and-coming bands play informal front yard shows. Nowadays there's still plenty of art to be seen at Holgas Gallery but it's usually not the music genre. It's an apartment complex for the poor, starving artists types where each living space also doubles as a gallery. On First Fridays visitors can meander through the complex checking out each resident's work in a truly intimate – maybe even almost too intimate – setting. Though it may no be much to look at on the outside (the building was built in the 60s as a hotel) you can bet there's plenty to see withing those gray concrete walls.

2 articles

Lo-Fi Coffee

105 W. Main St. Mesa

Coffeehouse, Tea, Coffee Shops, Music Venues, Sponsor

7 articles

Maya

7333 E. Indian Plaza Central Scottsdale

480-625-0528

Bars and Clubs, Dance Clubs, Music Venues, Sports and Recreation, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Either by design or happenstance, the cluster of bars and clubs making up Scottsdale’s most popular portion of its downtown entertainment district on Saddlebag Trail is centered around Maya. It makes sense, considering that come the weekend, most clubgoers are likely heading to the combination dayclub and nightclub. Aimed squarely at the young-and-beautiful crowd, it’s been a spring and summer destination for sunshine-soaked swim parties within its 17,600 square foot pool area, which features fancy cabanas and daybeds, the Valley’s biggest LED video wall, a taco stand, three bars, and a stage for EDM artists both local and national. The indoor nightclub, however, packs ‘em in year-round for bottle-popping fun and dancing centered around a vortex-like dance floor awash in trippy colors and tipsy revelers.

150 articles

PHX Arena

201 E. Jefferson St. Central Phoenix

602-379-2000

Music Venues, Sports and Recreation, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow, Readers' Choice

Valley can-do man Jerry Colangelo built it in 1992, and they've come in droves to watch pro sports (including the NBA's Suns and the WNBA's Mercury ), concerts, monster truck rallies, religious revivals and other touring events at the 17,071 -capacity facility.

46 events 486 articles

Pub Rock Live

8005 E. Roosevelt St. South Scottsdale

480-945-4985

Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Formerly known as Chasers, this Scottsdale bar has hosted live music for more than 20 years. Before the name change and facelift, Chasers hosted acts like The Lawrence Arms, Cobra Skulls, and Steve Ignorant of Crass. As Pub Rock, this Scottsdale bar continues to host a good share of the touring punk bands that come to Phoenix, including Polar Bear Club, Nerf Herder, and Jello Biafra, formerly of Dead Kennedys. The bar also doubles as a broadcasting studio, where KUKQ is headquartered for SkaPunk Thursdays for a weekly live broadcast and a series of live shows.

191 articles

Rockin' R Ranch

6136 E. Baseline Rd. Mesa

480-832-1539

American, Barbecue, Steakhouse, Attractions and Amusement Parks, Music Venues, Sponsor, Menu

2 articles

Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art

7374 E. Second St. Central Scottsdale

480-874-4666

Museums, Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Tue-Wed, Sun 12pm-5pm, Thu 12pm-8pm, Fri-Sat 12pm-10pm

344 articles

Showroom at Casino Arizona

524 N. 92nd St. South Scottsdale

480-850-7777

Music Venues, Sponsor

11 events

Stargazer Pavilion at Cliff Castle Casino Hotel

555 Middle Verde Rd., Camp Verde Outside the Valley

800-381-7568

Casinos, Hotels and Resorts, Music Venues, Sponsor

State Farm Stadium

1 Cardinals Dr. Glendale

602-379-0102

Music Venues, Sports and Recreation, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

6 events 125 articles

The Underground

105 W. Main St. Mesa

480-559-5859

Music Venues, Best Of, Sponsor, Slideshow

Punk and hardcore shows have returned to downtown Mesa, as local indie concert promoter Mantooth Group has resurrected the old Nile Basement and transformed it into The Underground. There's an old school spirit to the place, as dozens of posters and fliers from Phoenix shows from the last two decades have been pasted up around the subterranean venue. Huge graf art-style murals painted by Valley tattoo artists also adorn the walls and behind the stage. Just like it did back during its glory days -- when bands such as Rise Against, AFI, and Tsunami Bomb performed here -- the spot hosts a killer mix of both nationally known and locally grown bands.

11 events 33 articles

910 Live

910 N. McClintock Dr. Tempe

480-966-0707

Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Slideshow

Way "back in the day" (specifically, from 1991 until 2002) this eclectic Tempe club functioned as a home base for the Valley's music scene. Back then it was called Boston's. Fast-forward to today and you'll discover that the place is still rocking, although the ramshackle decor has been ditched in favor of tasteful nudes and choreographed lighting. It's once again an epicenter of live music, however. Much like in its heyday, the joint is still a haven for live music. While the front portion functions as exotic club Elite Cabaret, the open-air portion in the back boasts a large outdoor stage that regularly hosts al fresco performances from band and musicians of the local and nationally touring variety and is ringed by posh cabanas for VIP types to catch the shows.

40 articles

The A.R.C.

4635 N. Black Canyon Highway North Phoenix

623-252-1771

Music Venues

Agua Fria High School

530 E. Riley Avondale

623-932-7300

Music Venues

Aguila's Hidaway

1235 N. Dysart Rd., Goodyear Avondale

623-932-9394

Bars and Clubs, Music Venues

Know before you go: The entrance to Aguila's Hidaway is located behind Dysart Liquor in Avondale. That’s the first “hidaway” part. The second part is that this neighborhood bar — once Wendy Jack’s Hideaway, then just Hideaway, now owned by Javier Aguila, who decided to drop the “e” — is a former bomb shelter that opened as an underground bar in 1962, back when Avondale was a dry city. (Aguila says the bar got away with serving booze in those days on the technicality that alcohol was being served below the premises.) An above-ground bar and kitchen, where pool, darts, karaoke, arcade games, and drinks are in supply, was built in 2006. But the underground lives on, too, as the bar-nightclub The Bunker.

1 article

Ahwatukee Country Club

12432 S. 48th St. Ahwatukee

480-893-1161

Sports and Recreation, Music Venues, Menu

Ahwatukee YMCA

1030 E. Liberty Lane Ahwatukee

480-759-6762

Health and Fitness, Music Venues

AJ's Fine Foods

20050 N. 67th Ave. Glendale

623-537-2300

Music Venues, Retail

The ultimate gourmet grocery in Arizona, AJ's Fine Foods has eleven locations throughout the Valley in Scottsdale, Chandler, Glendale, and Phoenix. Each one stocks a choice selection of artisanal cheeses, meats, baked goods, produce, and deli fare. Whether you're hunting for a nationally acclaimed specialty item like Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams, looking for a local favorite like cookies from Barb's Bakery, or browsing through enticing display after enticing display of delicious goods, AJ’s is the prime destination. In addition to groceries, you'll find an Italian bistro with pizza and pasta dishes, a coffee bar, made-to-order sandwiches, fresh sushi, to-go dishes like meatloaf, and a large selection of beer and wine. While you're there, be sure to talk to the expert butchers, bakers, and staff members who can help you select the right ingredients to make your ideal breakfast, lunch, dinner, or holiday meal. There's only one downside: the total when you bring your bounty of delectable finds to the register.

6 articles

Ak-Chin Circle Field

15406 N. Maricopa Rd., Maricopa Out of Town

480-802-5000

Casinos, Music Venues

All Saints’ Episcopal Church

6300 N Central Ave Central Phoenix

602-279-5539

Music Venues

Alwun House Gallery & Gardens

1204 E. Roosevelt St. Central Phoenix

602-253-7887

Music Venues, Art Galleries, Performing Arts Venues, Best Of, Slideshow

Having debuted back in 1971, the Alwun House arguably sired the entire downtown arts district. Housed in a historic two-story built in 1912 home, owners Kim Moody and Dana Johnson the joint as both a gallery and studio for themselves and local artists. There's also an ample stage area in the back that has hosted fetish balls, poetry slams, fire-dancing, experimental music, and performance art.

87 articles

Amphitheatre of the Gardens

101 Easy St. Carefree

480-488-3686

Music Venues

Amsterdam

718 N. Central Ave. Central Phoenix

602-258-6122

Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Best Of, Slideshow

Whether they're classic, fruity, or just plain dirty, Amsterdam's martinis are made to please. Sip one alongside the here-to-be-seen crowd, mingling and bouncing to techno beats within a sultry Greco-Roman interior, or on one of the swanky outdoor patios, where smoking divas sit back and survey the scene.

15 articles

Anvil

2424 E. Thomas Rd. East Phoenix

602-334-1462

Adult, Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Slideshow

5 articles

Apache Greyhound Park

220 S. Delaware Dr. Apache Junction

Music Venues

Apache Junction Performing Arts Center

2525 S. Ironwood Dr. Apache Junction

480-982-1110

Music Venues

1 article

Apollo's

5749 N. 7th St. Central Phoenix

602-277-9373

Bars and Clubs, Gay Bars and Clubs, Music Venues, Slideshow

A longtime favorite of the Phoenix gay scene, Apollo's is the kind of bar where you can have a few beers and hang with a diverse selection of drinkers. From jockish preps and fabulous drag queens to big cuddly bears and roughneck biker types, they all gather here for the camaraderie and cute bartenders. If your peepers get tired from all the people watching, there's karaoke from Thursday through Saturday, and the infamous "Greek God Revue" strip show on Sundays.

36 articles

Arcosanti

13555 S. Cross L Rd., Mayer Outside the Valley

928-632-7135

Attractions and Amusement Parks, Music Venues, Best Of, Slideshow

You probably think of those clever little copper bells whenever you hear the name of this place, but Arcosanti is about much more than rusty musical souvenirs. This high-elevation experimental town began construction in 1970 in central Arizona (about 70 miles north of Phoenix) by architect Paolo Soleri, who used a concept he dubbed “arcology.” His plan—to prove that local urban conditions could be improved while minimizing the negative impact of city-dwelling on the earth—combines adaptive reuse and “green” ecology long before either was considered fashionable. The ongoing construction of this never-ending city is home to between 50 and 150 people, but visitors come from around the globe to visit the tilted concrete panels cast in a bed of desert silt on which this popular tourist attraction rests. They ogle the bronze-cast apse, built in the form of a semi-dome; the intricate and organic architecture; and the fun-and-educational five-story visitor’s center, café, and gift shop (where you can snag a bagful of those Arcosanti bells!). Also worth seeing: the community’s oddball home elevations, storefronts, and stunning outdoor amphitheater. Too tired to head back to town? A two-bedroom "Sky Suite" is available for overnight guests.

37 articles

Music Venues in Phoenix

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