“The old is new again” is the tagline of the 2010 Grand Avenue Festival, but don’t expect the same attendee experience at the second incarnation of this now annual festival. Sure, there will be the requisite funkiness of our diagonal westside highway — the examples of adaptive reuse, the fiercely local live music, the hole-in-the-wall shops, the vast array of artwork — but Grand is a year older and a year wiser, and will host a pretty slick shindig planned for Saturday, September 25. Since there is so much to see and experience throughout the entire day, activities are broken up by category for easy browsing.
Live music
PaisleyTown (at 11th Ave. behind the Paisley Violin Café)
10 a.m. to noon: Frequent Kings
Noon to 2 p.m.: Smoot Mahooty
2 to 3 p.m.: J. Miller
3 to 5 p.m.: James Cowden
5 to 7 p.m.: Plague Party
7 to 9 p.m.: Dead River Review
9 to 11 p.m.: Severe Ted
Paisley Violin Café (at 11th Ave.)
10 to 10: Jazz all day
Gallery Marsiglia (at 10th Ave.)
11 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Folk all day
Tilt Gallery (10th Ave. & Fillmore St.)
Noon: Rob Arpino
Phoenix Fall Space (at Taylor St.)
4 p.m.: Azul
7 p.m.: Douglas Littlefield
Bandstand at Oasis on Grand (15th Ave. & Roosevelt St.)
6 to 10 p.m.: CRISIS, Mark Nowichi, Janelle Sheppard
Deus Ex Machina (at Taylor St.)
7 p.m.: The Bliss Kickers
The Trunk Space (15th Ave. & Roosevelt St.)
8 p.m. ($7): Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Michelle Blades, Otouto, Rough Tough Dynamite
Art galleries
Bragg’s Pie Factory, Jordre Studio, The Lodge, The Chocolate Factory, Deux Ex Machina, Palm Reader Pottery, Phoenix Fall Space, Serendipity, Urban Floral Art, Hugo’s Art, Lazy Lab Art Studio, Barry Sparkman Studio, Icaro Studio, Moderncat Studio, Studio 8, Chris Caufield Studio, R. Booker Studio, Sentrock Arts and Studio of Melinda Bergman will all be open during the festival. Consult the map below for locations.
ReDapt tours
Grand is full of examples of historic buildings that have been converted for modern usage. This year’s ReDapt tours examines buildings centered around the three-way intersection of Grand, Roosevelt Street and 15th Avenue, including the Rodriguez Boxing Gym, the Gonzalez Heating and Cooling building, La Luz Del Mundo Church and the “Grandevelt” complex, home to Bikini Lounge, Kooky Krafts Shop, Sweets & Beats and the Trunk Space. The tours will also stop at the future home of Oasis on Grand, the upcoming reincarnation of the old Oasis Motel. Tours are $10 and are scheduled for 8, 9 and 10 a.m. starting at Rodriguez Boxing Gym. Tickets are available on grandavephoenix.com.
Fashion
The bizarre fashion shows were the talk of last year’s festival, and this year there is a full day of alternative fashion exhibitions that may just top last year’s craziness.
Devious Indie Fashion Experience & Fashion in Motion at ShopDevious.com, 2 to 6 p.m.
ShopDevious.com pairs its collection of wigs and accessories with locally designed creations and makeup artists with a live, rotating fashion show that starts at 2 p.m. Stick around for live comedy and poetry and a shopping expo all afternoon.
Urban. Unique. It’s All About U. at Soul Invictus, 5 p.m.
Handcrafted jewelry and accessories in a variety of styles paired with Gallery Marsiglia’s off-the-wall style.
Untrashed Recycled Rubbish Fashion Show at Bragg’s Pie Factory, 5 p.m.
Wearable fashions made from repurposed and recycled trash displayed alongside the Trashy Art Show, also inside the main gallery in the Bragg’s Pie Factory building.
Local Boutiques Fashion Show at Bragg’s Pie Factory, 7 p.m.
The latest looks from Phoenicia Association, Butter Toast Boutique, Blueberry Deluxe and Dragonfly Boutique with tracks from DJ Kris the Fist.
Local Designers Fashion Show at Bragg’s Pie Factory, 9 p.m.
Stop in to see original fashions in a standing-room-only capacity. Wicked Wear, Arte Puro, Wiskc, MLE Jean and Sticker Club Girl will be shown to the music of DJ Jared Allen.
Food
You’re bound to get hungry (or thirsty). There are plenty of good spots around Lower Grand.
Asadero Torro (17th Ave. at McDowell Rd.), 10 a.m. to midnight
Azteca Bakery (7th Ave. at Fillmore.), 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Bikini Lounge (Grand at Roosevelt St. and 15th. Ave.), noon to 2 a.m.
Capitol Sports Bar (18th Ave. at Van Buren St.), 10 a.m. to 3 a.m.
El Mana (15th Ave. at McDowell Rd.), 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
El Norteño (7th Ave. at Roosevelt St.), 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Golden Moon (14th Ave. at Van Buren St.), 4 to 8 p.m.
La Canasta Capitolio (17th Ave. at Van Buren St.), 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Mel’s Diner (Grand at 17th Ave.), 6 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Oaxaca Restaurant and Cantina (15th Ave. and Van Buren St.), 9 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Paisley Violin Café (Grand at 11th Ave.), 9 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Sapna Café (Grand at McKinley St.), 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Valley Pizza (13th Ave. at Roosevelt St.), 11 to 11
Getting to Grand
The Lower Grand area encompasses Grand Avenue from Van Buren Street and 7th Avenue northwest to I-10. Parking is available along Grand and its various neighborhood side streets. For those light railing, the south side of the festival is approximately seven blocks west of Central Station, and the north end of the festival is approximately 15 blocks west of Roosevelt Station. Attendees are encouraged to walk, light rail or bike to the festival, if possible. If you are curious about transit along Grand Avenue, be sure to stop in to Motley Design from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. to learn about the proposed Grand Avenue Rail Project.
