Just Announced: The 5th Annual Phoenix Rock Lottery – January 27 at Crescent Ballroom

If you’re familiar with the format of the Phoenix Rock Lottery event held each January in downtown Phoenix, you already know that every year the lineup is full of musicians from diverse backgrounds and musical styles. These musicians deliver a totally unpredictable experience for fans at each lottery due to the unforeseeable circumstances behind the event: the participating musicians wake up on the morning of the event each year with no idea who will they will be in a band with that night or what style of music they will be playing. This creates a totally unique show for fans that only get the full experience by witnessing the show for themselves.

On the morning of January 27th, 25 of the best musicians in Phoenix will congregate downtown, and names will be drawn at random to create five brand new bands. Those bands will then have that day (and that day only) to write and rehearse a set of songs to perform live in concert that night at Crescent Ballroom. Each band will have to write three original songs and choose a cover to perform. 

The 5th Annual Rock Lottery will feature an entirely new group of musicians. No musicians from the previous four lotteries were included, although a number of performers come from bands previously represented in years past, like AJJ, Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra, Jared And The Mill, Wyves and Dent. Jimmy Eat World’s Tom Linton’s participation will mean that every member of Jimmy Eat World will have now performed in a Phoenix Rock Lottery. 

“A lot more time and discussion went into this year’s line up than past years,” said the event’s producer Stephen Chilton. “There was a real effort to make the line up more diverse, both musically and with the performers themselves. In past years I have selected everyone myself, but this year I had a lot of conversations with past performers, and other influencers in the music community to get their input in putting together this year’s lineup.” 

Some newer faces include Anna C. from Willetta, Eamon Ford from Pro Teens, Seth Smades from Luxxe, Raquel Willand from Panic Baby, Brenden McBride from Wyves & Hyperbella, Jack Vanderpol from Sunday At Noon, Amelia Kestner who performs as Amelia, Tru Vonne, and Tindal Muzic. 

In just four shows, including two sell outs, the Phoenix Rock Lotteries have already had quite an impact on Phoenix’s music scene and local community. The 1st Phoenix Rock Lottery, held at Crescent Ballroom on February 9th, 2014, was named “Best Club Show in Phoenix 2014” in the Phoenix New Times “Best Of Phoenix” issue, describing the event as “yielding goods that had Phoenix feeling pretty damn great about its music scene.” The 2015 solo 7” series by Jimmy Eat World’s Jim Adkins included the song “Love Don’t Wait”, originally written during that first lottery. In 2016, the band Wet Lab, formed in the 2nd Phoenix Rock Lottery, released formal recordings of two of the songs they wrote together on cassette via the new local label Saint Joseph. The single was prominently marketed nationally as part of that year’s Cassette Store Day. 

A video recap of the 4th Rock Lottery can be seen here.

A video recap of the 2nd Rock Lottery can be seen here.

For the 5th year in a row, the proceeds of the Phoenix Rock Lottery will benefit Rosie’s House, a local non-profit organization that delivers the underserved youth of greater Phoenix the gift of music education by providing instruments and free instruction. “Funds raised by the Phoenix Rock Lottery provide music education training to youth from low-income backgrounds. Specifically, the funds underwrite our Beginning Guitar Class for 12 students providing free instruction, a loaned instrument, curriculum and performance opportunities,” said CEO Becky Bell Ballard. “We are so thankful to local musicians, Psyko Steve and Crescent Ballroom. Thank you for paying it forward and supporting young people in their pursuit of learning to play a musical instrument.” 

Paul McAfee (The Stakes)