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This weekend, Phoenix punks will pack into a holiday-themed free-for-all fueled by beer, noise and misfit energy. Legendary bands headline a packed lineup, and mayhem is guaranteed.
Are we talking about the Punk Rock Christmas fest in Chandler, an event mired in controversy over its promoter’s pro-Trump stance? Fuck no.
Instead, we’re talking about Saturday’s Toys for Tots AZ Punk Rock Party at the Phoenix dive bar Rips. Daniel Starbuck of Skeleton Army says the grassroots show is about charity and community first, unlike this weekend’s other Christmas-themed punk event.
“It’s absolutely the opposite of (Punk Rock Christmas),” Starbuck says. “Because we’re not trying to just raise money for profit while not giving anything back. We’re literally giving away our time and money for kids.”
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Phoenix musician Ethan Flint, who’s emceeing the Toys for Tots AZ Punk Rock Party on Saturday, is even harsher in his criticisms of Punk in the Park. The event, organized by Southern California-based promoter Brew Ha Ha Productions, faced backlash earlier this year due to its owner, Cameron Collins, providing financial support to Donald Trump.
“Punk in the Park and (Punk Rock Christmas) is a for-profit event to just kind of capitalize on the cultural excitement that is punk rock,” Flint says. “We wanna bring together each other as a community and help a charity. That’s what makes the punk scene so awesome.”
Additionally, the Toys for Tots AZ Punk Rock Party will feature musicians taking pies to the face. No joke.
Provided by Daniel Starbuck
‘A byproduct of getting your community to engage with itself’
Starbuck launched the Toys for Tots AZ Punk Rock Party in 2023 to help local kids and bring together Phoenix’s punk scene.
“One of the things I’ve always wanted to see in the scene is a benefit show like this,” Starbuck says. “I was a Toys for Tots kid when I was younger, and I have a bunch of friends in local bands. So we get a bunch of homies and people to donate and have a blast. It’s a community-driven show, and there are like 20 people helping put this together.”
Past editions took place at Phoenix’s Ground Zero Studios and the now-defunct Gilbert bar Taproom 120. This year, Starbuck and his crew moved the event to Rips.
This year’s lineup includes Skeleton Army, Asswipe Junkies, TOB, Sick in the Head, Idol Vice, The Jerk Officers and The Verdicks.
Starbuck, a guitarist and vocalist in Skeleton Army, says community is the heart of the show.
“The donations and the show are really a byproduct of getting your community to engage with itself,” he says.
That engagement includes throwing pies at the lead singers of local punk bands. Starbuck says donors who give $100 or 10 new unwrapped toys earn a shot at flinging a cream pie at him or the frontmen of Sick in the Head, TOB or Asswipe Junkies.
The stunt uses pie tins filled with shaving cream. No baked goods will be harmed.
“There’s no whipped cream, it’s so bad for the skin and you’ll break out in a rash,” he says. “I did real pies last year, and let me tell you something, that’s a tough thing to clean up. Shaving cream is the way to go.”
Other games skip the pie-throwing altogether. Starbuck promises family challenges tied to “fun Christmas-themed hijinks,” from unwrapping gifts while wearing mittens to blowing cotton balls into cups.
Flint says chaos is part of the appeal of the event.
“I don’t think words have been invented yet to describe what it’s gonna be like,” Flint says. “It’s gonna be fun. We have so many like miscellaneous hijinks planned for (between sets) because the point really is we want to do something good for the people.”
Toys for Tots AZ Punk Rock Party. 1 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 6, at Rips. 3045 N. 16th St. Admission is $15 or a donation of a new, unwrapped toy.
