That was precisely the scene outside Club Contact on its opening night, April 4. As the Friday night crowd grew larger and more electric with anticipation, it broke into spontaneous applause as Grace Perry walked by. Perry is the owner of this club and its rad sister, Gracie’s Tax Bar, an eclectic and reliable fixture of downtown nightlife.
“When I first opened Gracie’s eight years ago, I thought it would be a place where 10 people would come play D&D and drink cheap beers,” she said in a March 7 Instagram post announcing the new club.
If she was under any illusions that Club Contact would have a low-key start, those were dashed before the doors even opened. Hip and pretty and cool and fashionable and funny and flirty people mobbed the new space at 747 W. Van Buren St., distinguishable from its past life as Thundercat Lounge (RIP to a real one) by the newly installed satellite dish outside reading “CONTACT.” Roll up Wednesday to Sunday from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. They charge a $5 cover beginning at 9 p.m.
Inside the main room you’re met with a retro-themed checkered dance floor, one of the few pieces of decor to survive from Thundercat. On opening night, DJs rotated in and out, giving the dark, low-slung room a strong EDM vibe played at ribcage-rattling volume. Like any good clubber would, I push closer to the center of the crowded floor as the music pulses. When the house lights hit the ceiling — tiled with smooth mirrorball halves for an effect like a fly’s eyeball — the room explodes with color and light.
Energetic and unpretentious, Contact’s main space is an instant fit in the Phoenix club style.
When I hit up the bar by the dance floor, everyone's making friendly conversation. A young woman named Vena explains the difference between each EDM subgenre to me faster than I can keep up. I offer suggestions for strong drinks to a man waiting in line. When he gets his vodka cocktail, he offers me a quick “You better be right about this, B!” before downing it in a gulp. Along the walls, groups of friends pose together for photos.
Down the hall, just before you reach the patio, a staircase leads down to a cozy, vibey underground lounge space ringed with wraparound seating. Lit by glowing block tables and a starry ceiling, and insulated somewhat from the booming music upstairs, this room makes for a tidy hideaway for you to sneak down to throughout the night.
The third space at Contact is the most reminiscent of Gracie’s. The club’s spacious outdoor patio holds a separate DJ, a taco stand and plenty of hightop tables to gather around. Thumping bass echoes throughout the patio as people smoke, talk and relax in the open air. Though the patio is secluded by faux-plant-covered walls, and the tops of nearby taller buildings are in view, it has a free, open feeling. (Over one wall, you’ll notice a towering parking garage where you can park at no cost. Cruise into it from Seventh Avenue or from Adams Street.)
The ceiling above the dance floor at Club Contact gives the space a strangely celestial mood.
Chel Hicks
The outside of Contact is a chill contrast to the inside, but that’s not to say it was low-energy. During my visit, a mysterious leather-clad clubber dances slowly next to a speaker, smoking a cigarette while he sways alone. Sam, one of the girls ordering food next to me, watches and grins. “I like his style,” she says.
As for styles: Bring yours. The crowd at Contact has a distinctive lack of conformity. The fashion reflects Phoenix’s diversity — gothic, Kawaii, Y2K, camp and all kinds of streetwear. You never know what sort of stranger you’ll get to chat up next. One I approach, a behavioral technician named America, says the jumble of aesthetics reminds her of the scene at Gracie’s on any given night. “I feel like that’s why Gracie’s is so popular, because it’s all different people coming together,” America tells me. “Club Contact has the same vibe.”
In a place where everyone can arrive as themselves, the vibes skew strikingly positive. “Everyone is super nice here!” a young woman shouts as she races past me. “Definitely club vibes,” a 22-year-old named Ava tells me. “But more chill.”
By the end of opening night, that was the emerging consensus: The place has the fun and glamour of Phoenix nightlife, but with an amiable vibe that other nightclubs might stifle. Raul, an event photographer who has worked at many such clubs around the Valley, tells me Contact is the “most peaceful” of them all.
Downtown Phoenix has an abundance of places to dance and drink. Plenty of other relaxed, cozy venues invite you to simply hang out. The city expresses its diversity in its nightlife, with clubs of different styles and cultures. Contact fits as a dance-party Goldilocks, more upbeat than a regular bar, less hectic than other nightclubs. The early crowds already have created a comfortable atmosphere missing at other venues. Look for Contact to become a staple for club-hoppers, especially as a fun pregame spot before walking to Stardust or heading up farther to Charlie’s.
While the success of Gracie’s helped to launch Contact straight out of a cannon, the club isn’t going to replicate its sister bar. Over the years, Gracie’s did a tricky thing — it became a local favorite by organically growing a culture of its own. Just in its first few days, Club Contact has signaled that it likewise intends to go its own way. The early returns show immense promise.
