Andy Warpigs - The Lost Leaf - 3/16/14 (VIDEO)

Andy Warpigs Album Release Party The Lost Leaf 3/16/14

Andy Warpigs has officially taken a step up from DIY phenomenon to full-on local rock star following Sunday night's raucous release party for his debut album, Folk Punk Yourself. The album is an eight-song ode to juvenile humor, drug use, and profanity, and the release show matched the album every step of the way.

For the show, it seemed Warpigs and labelmate Hot Rock Supa Joint, who also performed, went out of their way to bring in every oddball act they could get, including nerdcore punks Nerdzerker, super-funky wild men Bacchus and the Demon Sluts, rappers Dadadoh and Orangubang, as well as DJ Scapegoat, who kept the music going in between sets.

But, obviously, it was Warpigs who was the center of attention, and the ultra-eccentric cowboy definitely held the spotlight. Sunday night's was easily the best set that Warpigs, along with bass player Jackson Bollocks, guitarist Jellyroll Jenkins, and drummer Justin White, have ever played. But it is also easy to say that because the folk punkers have only really played four or five shows together.

Andy and his band went through the entire album, but did so out of order due to Warpigs' level of inebriation. It didn't really matter that the band was drunk; the people were at the show to lose their minds to a mixture of punk and hip-hop and celebrate one of the more involved members of the Phoenix music scene.

And the losing-their-minds part seemed to come pretty natural to the crowd at Lost Leaf. Fans took turns jumping into the pit in the bar's minuscule performance area, and it wasn't just guys either. Female Warpigs fans and Nerdzerker fans alike hit the pit just as hard as any of their male counterparts.

The pushing and shoving went all the way from Nerdzerker, past Bacchus and into Andy Warpig's set, and only stopped when the weed man Hot Rock Supa Joint nicely asked the crowd to stop pushing and shoving to allow for his silky smooth hip-hop antics.

The night may have belonged to Warpigs, but it was also a coming-out party of sorts for Hot Rock Supa Joint and his 56 Street Records label. Warpigs' new album is a 56 Street Record release and Nerdzerker also will be dropping a record through the label. So while Warpigs celebrated his album, Supa Joint was able to watch as his newly acquired stable of artists tear it up at a venue that is an absolute staple of the Phoenix music scene.

If packing a release show full of friends and contemporaries was something on Warpigs' bucket list, it is now something he can certainly cross off. Because the room may have been small, but the crowds level of energy and passion for Warpigs was enormous. Fans were devotedly singing along, and not just to the lyrics of "Shut the Fuck Up."

Warpigs is one of Phoenix's hotter acts right now and as long as he can maintain the high-energy shows and erratic behavior, things are going to stay that way for awhile.

Critics Notebook:

Personal Bias: I knew Andy Warpigs before he had a band and he was only playing open mics solo on ukulele. Seeing him release his album is sort of amazing

Overheard: "I want to fuck that guy," "I think he has a boyfriend," "I'll fuck her too.

One More Thing: DJ Scapegoat is one of the best hip-hop DJs in Phoenix, if you see him on a lineup, go to that show.

Find any show in Metro Phoenix via our extensive online concert calendar.

9 Tips for Using A Fake ID To Get Into A Show Here's How Not to Approach a Journalist on Facebook The 10 Coolest, Scariest, Freakiest Songs About Heroin The 30 Most Disturbing Songs of All Time