Tempe Noise Takeover’s second of two nights

The Tempe Noise Takeover did just what the music festival said it would do on Friday, September 5, and Saturday, September 6 – have over 40 bands perform at three Tempe venues over a two-night span and let the public come for free.

As we reported prior to the two-day soiree, one of the organizers, E.P. Bradley, has said about this event that’s now a few years running, “We basically wanted to see how we could make a free festival. I wanted to make a thing where, you know, we were going to promote the hell out of it, get a good crowd, and get bands some good exposure.” Goal achieved.

Rocket Space, Yucca Tap Room, and Timeout Lounge were the designated stops for attendees to see full lineups nightly, featuring a wide variety of local bands representing different musical genres.

The annual event isn’t just a showcase of Valley music – it does a top notch job of doing just that -& it’s also a benefit to support one•n•ten, a Phoenix nonprofit that is dedicated to serving LGBTQ+ youth and young adults, ages 11-24. Sales from the art exhibition that coincides with the festival will include donations to the organization.

The Tempe Queer Takeover art exhibition runs through September 12 at Rocket Space Gallery and Timeout Lounge and coincides with the music festival. Organizations Tempe Arts & Music Coalition (@tempeartandmusic) and The Coven Phoenix (@thecovenphoenix) put together the art show that includes more than 100 pieces of original art. The former is a community hub curated by local artists and civic activists who want to bring members of the community together to create. The latter is an all-ages, DIY, LGBYQ-run inclusive space for shows and events.

Crowds were out in full force at all three participating venues and people weren’t just sticking to one spot – folks were hopping from one place to the next to catch a favorite band and to check out an act they hadn’t yet seen. A lot of what we overheard in the crowd and from people planning their nights was that they were excited to check out bands they’ve heard about but haven’t had the opportunity to see yet.

Here is a look at some of Saturday night’s action at the Tempe Noise Takeover: