The Folk Punks at the Trunk Space
The Trunk Space for over a decade has been one of the best DIY venues in Phoenix. When it was announced last year that they would be closing down the old space due to the landlord, the local scene took a hit. It had been there over a decade. What I loved about it was that it gave musicians a place to play that other venues wouldn’t always book. I knew going to a show there I would see great things and sometimes new, interesting performances too. Stephanie, who owns it, kept it going as pop up shows through last summer and with a little public funding support, got it reopened over at the Grace Lutheran Church. It is now located just off of Third Street, north of Roosevelt. I finally made my first visit to the new location this night for some folk punk with Out of System Transfer paying Phoenix a visit.
Opening up was Mister Owl. This solo act writes great punk tunes played on a banjo and ukulele, blending in a kazoo and harmonica time to time. He sings witty and somewhat silly tunes, while still getting political in others. Like most punks, has an obligatory anti cop song too. All sang with a smile, and an awesome punk vest covered in patches on. Mister Owl is great to watch, so I hope to catch more performances.
After that, we were followed up with Eli Kluger and a puppet at first. He was shaking a little rust off, but funny engaging the crowd. Following that, he did the musical act he calls The Slackers Agenda. Eli sang songs of humor and wit, including one about people looking at their phone in which he calls out people on their phone. It was shorter set, but entertaining nonetheless.
Up after him was our touring duo from New York, Out of System Transfer. They normally are a four piece, but two had to stay back due to job requirements. Out of System Transfer usually includes an additional trombone player and bass player. Not a damper on the set one bit, as Jesse, on guitar, and Danielle, ukulele, brought the personality and energy for the songs. From singing about baptizing cats to the politically critical person named Eliyahu, it was a fantastic set of songs. I hope this high energy band comes back, and gets the other two to make the trek to the desert next time.
Closing out the night was our always entertaining, Andy Warpigs. His brand of banter and personality is just a trademark that makes any set he plays just another notch awesome. An example, is a mid song conversation discussing if Timmy the Tooth was a punker wearing the teeth of his enemies around his neck. His brand of political folk punk is always a favorite to catch, and it made for an entertaining way to end the show on. Be sure to go check out all the musicians’ music above, and you can always go support the Trunk Space by donating over on their Razoo to keep this awesome venue open for more great shows like this.
