Live music clubs with an edge are popping up like angry pimples on the ass of west Phoenix, mining a built-in audience and demographic that has been largely untapped until recently. While you’ll hear more thumping from tricked-out cars in the vicinity of Camelback and 17th Ave. – the location of the Tupelo Tap Room – there are also lots of young punk/garage music lovers in the area that previously had to make the trek to parts east to get their mosh on.

It was evident from the packed strip mall parking lot of the Tupelo Tap Room that people were ready for a new live music venue, especially one with an eye toward harder edge stuff. I’ve only once seen the lot as packed, and that was before 11 p.m. When I rolled in it was about 12:30 and the pit was going full boar and the table and bar area was packed. With the recent opening of the Rogue West, written about here and the Tupelo Tap Room conversion to punk rock, the West side is giving the east a run for it’s punk rock dollar.

The Tupelo Tap Room first graced this blog back when it was a neighborhood dive making a sloppy attempt at being a blues bar. In a harsh little write-up at the end of a disappointing musical travelogue, I wrote that on three different occasions I had tried to catch live music there and found the bar shut down at midnight, while nearly all music venues stay open until at least 1 a.m. weeknights and 2 on the weekend. This was awhile back and the bar has since changed ownership and management, with an eye toward draft swilling proletariat punk rock westsiders and normal music venue hours. It’s a change for the better to my mind.

About a minute after we walked through the door and started to be able to hear again over the furious noise that was the mosh-inducing racket produced by locals the Mongoloids, I started seeing familiar faces from a bar I used to haunt called the Hidden House. After seeing a few of these people, whom I’ve never seen anywhere but the Hidden House, I was a little confused. But I quickly understood the reason when I saw Jennifer Salazar behind the bar, who for years was the bar manager at the Hidden House.

I was very surprised to see her and then put two and two together, that she must be the Jennifer S. listed as the contact number for the bar. I knew she had taken a better job in the liquor industry, something to do with distribution, and has quit the H House long ago, so I was surprised to see her back behind a bar. She told me she hated the other job and decided to go back to bartending to pay for grad school.

I was a little surprised that she was booking the bands, while I’ve been aware that she liked music I didn’t really know she was a huge punk fan, which is what I’ve seen listed for live music at the Tap room. If the band that we heard on Saturday, the Mongoloids are any indicator, she has good taste, at least in dudes in punk bands, since she later told me her boyfriend is in the band.

I also saw Bam Bam, a true Phoenix Punk rock Legend, a kind of younger, less drug-addled punk rock Ozzy. He was the drummer for JFA, arguably the most successful first generation Punk rock band to come out of Phoenix. His new band the Black Pelicans played before we arrived, but again if this is any indication of the kind of shows they will have it’s good for the hardcore hungry west side punks that no longer have to drive 20 miles to commune with their kind.

For now, much like the Rogue West, the interior is still dive bar circa 1970. And while they have a slight advantage over the Rogue in that the been having live music for a couple of months now, the bar doesn’t have a stage or lighting, just an impromptu area very near the all-window front of the club, which makes the patron have to pretty much walk by the band to get the to bar area. I hate to predict such destruction, but when I visited I was just waiting for some sweaty person to spiral out of control from the pit and sail through the window, Sid style.

Just to take care of a quick little bit of business: before I generate comments about ignoring west side venues that have been around and often have punk shows, I recently tried to call the Complex, an all-ages-all-the-time venue located at 27th Ave. and Glendale, but the phone was disconnected. It seems the space has shut down. I will mention The BrightStar, a new venue way the hell out on 81st Ave. and Thunderbird, which is inside New Life Community Church, so I’m assuming it’s booze free and probably all-ages, which depending on what you like from live music, might be a benefit or a detriment.

Spaces come and go, but I take the opening of these two bars, two unusual venues in the place of run-of-the-mill dives as a good sign for Phoenix as a whole and a definite boon for the West side punkers. While punk isn’t my favorite daily musical meal, I would much rather drink booze and feed quarters to the jukebox in a bar that features The Pogues and Iggy rather than Creed.

I talked with Jennifer Salazar about the new musical direction for the bar and musical plans for the future.
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JB – Please explain the chain of ownership since changing over from CBS lounge to the Tupelo Tap Room.
Jennifer Salazar – There are six owners. They are great guys. Jeff Miller is the main guy.

JB – How did you get involved?
JS – I worked there nine years ago it was my first job when I came to Phoenix. One day I was driving by and realized it had changed names went in and met with the new owners they liked me and I though it was good opertunity to get a new bar going. I also really liked the new owners.

JB – I’ve know you for a long time and for most of that time you were working as a bartender to pay your way through ASU, but the Hidden House isn’t really a live music venue. How did you start booking bands?
JS – I started booking bands at the hidden house. The owner really was not into making it into a venue so it really never took off. I made a lot of contacts doing it from there. Then I started managing bands like, The New Romantics and Dephinger. So I had to learn how it all worked in order to get shows and make contacts. I really enjoy supporting local music.

JB – Is there music on weeknights?
JS – On Mondays we have open mic night. It is really fun because there are all types of artists that show up. You never know what your in for. We may start to extend the live music to weeknights.

JB – Why punk rock?
JS – I love to support original music and punk/garage seems to be whats hot right now. I’m very involved with that scene because the bands I represent. It is the music I am most connected with.

JB – Is the place going to change physically to more resemble a punk venue, like the Rogue West the place still feels like a normal neighborhood place.
JS – No. I want a venue for everyone. I still like to support all types music so I am open to music. I would like to start a rockabilly night there. I want something for everyone.

JB – Why is this a good location for Punk?
JS – It is central Phoenix. We need more venues in central Phoenix. It seems like everything happens in the east valley. I love central Phoenix and would like see moe things happening here.

JB – What other types of music do you plan on bringing in?
JS – I am very diverse in the type of music I like so I would like to be diverse in the type of music we have at the bar.

JB – Goals for the future music wise?
JS – I am hoping to put together a Latin Jazz night on Sundays. The band I had in mind to do it went on tour with Los Lobos. So it is a matter of finding a band that is good enough to do it. I also would like to start booking more out of town bands and bigger acts.

JB – Good upcoming shows?
JS – Check our Web site at www.tupelotaproom.com it has our monthly calendar up with all the show for the month. But some shows I would recommend seeing this month would be the Wrongsiders on Feb. 25 or the New Romantics on Feb. 26.

JB – Will there still be blues?
JS – Yes. When I took over the booking I really wanted to bring in new blood so I do not book as many blues acts but once in a while you can catch a good blues band there.

JB – Name change any time?
JS – I do not think so. One of the owners is in love with Elvis so it will stay the Tupelo.

JB – For the readers describe what a patron could expect on a good nigh at the Tap Room?
JB – You can expect great food, decent drink prices, a cool jukebox, good service and an easy going atmosphere. There are never any fights or trouble there. On weekends you can expect good music and there is never a cover charge. I have seen a new and improved bar emerge.

JB – Along the same lines why should someone come to this bar as opposed to let’s say the Emerald or the Rogue West once they start having bands?
JS – Well, we do not charge a cover and our drink prices are cheaper than both places. I think that people need to come out and support new venues so we can continue to have them.

JB – How do you feel about the space and the location? Do you plan to build a stage/PA, lights etc?
JS – The space is great it is a small intimate venue. I really like supporting local buissiness I do not like the big corporate chain bars. The location is great too because it is centrally located. We are planning to build a stage soon. We have lights and a great PA already.

JB – Anything I might have missed/anything you would like to add?
JS – On Tuesdays we have Artie DJ, we call it trash turntable Tuesdays. He plays everything from punk to polka.