Ed Masley

The Republic | azcentral.com

There are 32 shows in our guide to New Year's Eve here in the Valley, from jazz at the Nash to Playboy Manbaby, the Phoenix Symphony to Fairy Bones, Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra to Authority Zero. Is there something here for everyone? That's hard to say. Some people's greatest thrill is not enjoying much of anything at all, in which case maybe there is something here for them as well.

The day before this guide was set to run, the opportunity arose to talk to Roger Clyne. And given that this holiday is all about reflection, you would be hard pressed to name a more reflective local hero with a larger audience than Clyne, who spent 2016 looking back on 1996. And so it came to pass that this year's guide includes a rather lengthy interview with Clyne, who also weighed in on ELO the very day it was announced that they would be inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Here's what he had to say, and below that is more details about assorted new year's celebrations.

Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers

As Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers were approaching the end of a year spent playing the Refreshments’ “Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy” everywhere they could in celebration of the 20th anniversary of an album that became their leader’s U.S. breakthrough, someone in the inner circle jokingly suggested a 40th anniversary celebration as their next move.

Trouble is, they weren’t releasing music 40 years ago.

As Clyne recalls the conversation, “I said, ‘Well, what happened? “Fizzy Fuzzy” came out in ’96, so what happened in ’76?’ And we were just sitting around and looking at the music and there’s so much great stuff. So I was like ‘OK, let’s do it.’”

This is how they came to learn a dozen songs released in 1976 to perform as the opening set of their New Year’s Eve performance, as suggested by the fans, who were encouraged to pitch a cover when they purchased tickets to the show.

“I think we picked about our Top 18 or 20,” Clyne says. “Then we had make sure we could actually play them or that they were in our vocal range. And we culled it down to about a dozen, maybe 13. It just came as kind of a lark.”

It’s been a fun experience for Clyne, who says the songs – by artists as the Ramones and ELO, the Sex Pistols and KC and the Sunshine Band, even Kiss and AC/DC – “bring me back to when I was a kid, listening to AM radio. So many good records came out that year.”

Asked which artists’ songs presented the biggest challenge, Clyne says, “They’re all so diverse. The most fun was the Ramones’ songs because they’re so basic. The Ramones have so much spirit and not necessarily a ton of skill but it just oozes so much life and vitality. The most challenging? I think the ELO song. It’s got a lot of nuance that a lot of rock bands don’t employ so we’re having to make sure that we find that gear.”

It’s pointed out that ELO was just announced as part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s new class of inductees.

“You know, they so deserve it,” Clyne says. “They’re amazing. Jeff Lynne is one of my favorite songwriters. Nobody can turn a melody over weird chord changes like that guy. He’s got a strange magic.”

For the record, yes, I do see what he did there.

The Peacemakers are joined at the Celebrity Theatre by Andrew Hagar, whose father, Sammy, just played Alice Cooper’s Christmas Pudding on that very stage.

“Sammy gave me a quick call,” Clyne recalls, “and said, ‘Hey, my son’s available and he’s really talented. He doesn’t sing at all like me. I think he’d fit well if you have a slot.’ So he’ll be there. Sammy jokingly said, ‘He’s not at all like me. You might actually like him.’”

To read the rest of the interview with Clyne, including him talking about new music for 2017, click here.

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St., Phoenix. $43-$53. 602-267-1600 ext. 1, celebritytheatre.com.

Decadence Arizona EDM Dance Party

Decadence Arizona isn’t content with being the biggest New Year’s Eve dance party in the Valley. Instead, organizers are aiming to have the grandest year-end celebration in the country. The two-night “super-club” event is an adults-only blowout that promises a combination of elegance and sophistication, as well as a variety of booming beats courtesy of EDM artists such as Deadmau5, Disclosure, Arty and the Chainsmokers.

Details: Dec. 30-31. 6 p.m.–3 a.m. Friday and Saturday. Rawhide Event Center, 5700 W. North Loop Rd., Chandler. $160-$349. 877-318-4540, relentlessbeats.com.

Dirty Heads

Hailing from Huntington Beach, Calif., the Dirty Heads blend elements of reggae, ska, hip-hop and punk. "Any Port in a Storm," their 2008 debut, included guest appearances by Billy Preston, Slash, Avenged Sevenfold singer M. Shadows and Rome Ramirez of Sublime with Rome. It was the track with Ramirez, "Lay Me Down," that gave these guys their breakthrough, topping the rock and alternative-songs charts. Subsequent hits include "Spread Too Thin" and "My Sweet Summer."

Details: 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe. $38.50-$75. 480-829-0607, luckymanonline.com.

NYE3

There may not be something for everyone, but there’s probably something for several different types of people in the mix at an event they’re claiming is “the best Las Vegas-style party in Scottsdale and Phoenix.” There are three party spaces: Room 1 features Wanted: A Tribute to Bon Jovi (9-10:30 p.m.), followed by DSB: A Tribute to Journey (11 p.m.-12:30 a.m.) Room 2 is Discolicious. And Room 3 has DJs Jen Jones (7 p.m.), Tranzit (9) and Bad Boy Bill. The dinner package includes a buffet, entertainment, a champagne toast and a balloon drop at midnight. The party package includes six drinks, entertainment, a champagne toast and a balloon drop at midnight.

Details: 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Talking Stick Resort, Loop 101 and Pima Road, Salt River Reservation. $150 dinner package; $125 party package. 480-850-7734, talkingstickresort.com.

All That Glitters NYE Gala

In the event that you found yourself saying "I just wish there could be one more way to greet the new year while engaging in a little friendly wagering at Talking Stick Resort," well, you're in luck. SuperHero, "your favorite crazy dance band," will be bringing in the new year at Talking Stick for Raven Events' eighth annual new year's celebration, along with DJ Mr. P Body. This is a black-tie event, so please, no cargo shorts.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Talking Stick Resort, Loop 101 and Pima Road, Salt River Reservation. $50. 480-850-7734, talkingstickresort.com.

Cleveland's Breakfast Club

Looking to ring in 2017 as though the '80s never ended? Look no further. Cleveland's Breakfast Club have promised no less than "the ultimate tribute to one of the best decades in modern music ... the 80’s!" It's right there in their band name. Why Cleveland's Breakfast Club? That's where they hang their spandex. According to their Facebook page, their repertoire includes the work of Journey, Duran Duran, Rick Springfield, Bryan Adams, the Cure, U2, the Cars, INXS, J. Geils Band, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, Guns N' Roses, Van Halen, AC/DC, Night Ranger and Motley Crue,

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Fort McDowell Casino, 10424 N. Fort McDowell Road, Fort McDowell. Free. 800-THE-FORT, fortmcdowellcasino.com.

Straight No Chaser

These a cappella Internet sensations are ringing out their 20th anniversary year while ringing in 2017. They've changed a few members since getting their start as students at Indiana University. They even took a nine-year break and came out of retirement in 2008 after a 10-year-old video of them singing "Twelve Days of Christmas" went viral. They've had more than 20 million YouTube views since then, signing to Atlantic Records, through which they've released six albums, most recently "I'll Have Another ... Christmas Album." The $160 VIP package includes a pre-show dinner and New Year's Eve toast, with an exclusive appearance from Straight No Chaser performing a few special songs before the show.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St., Mesa. $49-$160. 480-644-6500, mesaartscenter.com.

Wild Horse Pass New Year's Eve Showcase

Cory McCloskey of FOX 10 News is your host for a party that starts with Mirage: Visions of Fleetwood Mac (a spinoff of the Stevie Nicks-approved Bella Donna – A Tribute to Stevie Nicks) before making its way through a second tribute by Mick Adams the The Stones (led by the only Mick Jagger impersonator to be endorsed by Ryan Seacrest and Mark Cuban) and ringing in the new year with high-energy dance tunes by 34 North.

Details: 8:45 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino, 5040 Wild Horse Pass Blvd., Gila River Reservation. Prices vary. 800-946-4452, wingilariver.com.

Steel Panther

There’s a thin line between tribute and parody. These LA rockers have managed to make a career out of blurring that line as they salute the glam years with a knowing wink and hilarious lyrics while rocking the Sunset Strip. They have three charting albums to their credit, the latest of which, “All You Can Eat,” was hailed as “Steel Panther's most deliciously dirty release yet” by no lesser an authority on all things metal than Kerrang! If you're going, don't miss the opening set by CO-OP, a local group fronted by Dash Cooper, whose dad is a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer named Alice and whose mother, Sheryl, has been dancing at his father’s concerts since the ’70s. Their sound is something they call “desert hard rock,” and the frames of reference cited on their Facebook page range from Corrosion of Conformity to Cooper’s dad, who they've been known to back.

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Livewire, 7320 E. Indian Plaza, Scottsdale. $42. 480-361-9783, livewireaz.com.

Blaine Long and Jon Rauhouse

Looking to make an early night of it? Blaine Long, the local singer-songwriter who topped the iTunes rock chart earlier this year after winning a spot on Team Blake on “The Voice,” is playing Tarbell’s with Jon Rauhouse, a local multi-instrumentalist whose latest album features guest appearance by members of Calexico, Andrew Bird, the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Iron & Wine, Rachel Flotard of Visqueen, Billy Bob Thornton and more. Rauhouse, whose instruments of choice are pedal-steel guitar, banjo, guitar and Hawaiian guitar, has worked with Neko Case since 1999 and toured with other artists such as Iron & Wine with Ben Bridwell, Jakob Dylan and Thornton. They’re playing as a duo, which will more than likely sound amazing.

Details: 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Tarbell’s, 3213 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix. 602-955-8100, facebook.com/tarbellsrestaurant.com.

Crescent Ballroom New Year's Eve block party

Crescent Ballroom is hosting its biggest New Year's Eve block party yet. The club is blocking off both Second and Third avenues outside the venue with entertainment by Kalliope & the Walter Show, DJ Sean Watson and Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra.

Crescent owner Charlie Levy says, "Every year, New Year’s Eve at Crescent gets bigger and bigger. This year, we’re expecting thousands of people and the thing that makes it exciting for us is all the different experiences under one roof."

Most of the action is actually under one sky, taking place outside the venue.

"We’re getting the guys from Walter Productions to bring all their fun, crazy art cars from Burning Man to take over the back parking lot and Third Avenue with their artistic direction and Burning Man sensibility," Levy says. "So we’re gonna have a really fun dance party in the back lot. Inside Crescent, we want to kind of keep it a little more relaxed and quiet, where if you want to go and have a cocktail and sit at a table and have maybe a little bit more of a quiet evening, you have that going on. And then we’re closing down Second Avenue to have Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra play outside with some really fun DJs. Plus, with the balcony now, you can sit on the balcony and watch them do their thing."

Levy says there's something very special going on at midnight in that back lot.

"I can’t tell you what it is," he says. "But everyone is gonna have their cellphone out taking pictures of this."

Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra's David Marquez says, "It's going to be an Apocalyptadelic-it's-the-end-of-the-world-so-lets-go-crazy vibe with human capital, flames from the depths of the earth, and the most raw/primal grooves to dance the night away!"

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $17. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.

Paperback Writer: A Tribute to the Beatles

Why Paperback Writer? They've taken the name of the newest song the Beatles featured on their final tour in 1966 as a fitting title for their tribute show. And the set list spans the length of the Beatles catalog, from the British Invasion they staged in 1964 with a little help from Ed Sullivan through the psychedelic genius of "Strawberry Fields Forever" to the final rooftop concert shot for "Let It Be." The Los Angeles Times has proclaimed it a "sensational show for all ages," thereby assuring the public their production will be second to none.

Details: 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Vee Quiva Hotel & Casino, 15091 Komatke Lane, Gila River Reservation. $30; $25 in advance. 800-946-4452, wingilariver.com.

MORE MUSIC: 50 best songs of 2016 | Phoenix concert announcements | Local music news | Concert guide for this week | Winter concert guide

Rebel Lounge New Year's Eve Party

Could they have assembled a more diverse selection of talent from the local gene pool? I'm thinking that's not very likely. Sara Robinson headlines with what promises to be a set of very bluesy rock and roll, preceded by the neo-psychedelic prog-by-way-of-jazz excursions Captain Squeegee promises. Japhy's Descent are on a harder-rocking trip, incorporating elements of funk and blues in their riff-heavy mix. And the Haymarket Squares will set the tone with a crowd-pleasing set of political punkgrass for the people.

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Rebel Lounge, 2303 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. $10. 602-296-7013, therebellounge.com.

Jim Brickman: A New Year's Celebration

Ring in the new year with the best-selling solo piano artist of our time. His Tin Pan Alley sensibility, uncomplicated melodies and down-to-earth nature have taken him from the Grand Ole Opry to Carnegie Hall, from Disney World to the White House. You can hear his music on CBS Sports and "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" as well as in several PBS specials. He also hosts his own radio show "Your Weekend with Jim Brickman," now on its 19th year and heard in over 80 cities.

Details: 6 and 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. MIM Music Theater, Musical Instrument Museum, 4725 E. Mayo Blvd., Phoenix. $43.50-$58.50. 480-478-6000, mim.org.

Soul Power Band

These locals bring a blues edge to their funk and Motown covers, promising rich harmonies and smooth grooves. They’ve been known to cover the Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, the Ojays, Teddy Pendergrass, Lou Rawls, Sly & the Family Stone, Rick James, Cameo and Parliament/Funkadelic. The cover charge includes a champagne toast and party favors at midnight.

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Rhythm Room, 1019 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. $15. 602-265-4842, rhythmroom.com.

Orkesta Mendoza feat. Salvador Duran

Joey Burns of Calexico had this to say about these Tucson heroes: "Orkesta Mendoza is one of the best live bands out there. Their music delves into a myriad of directions, rhythms and moods, big band orchestrations mixed with lo fi electronica, vocals en Español together with moving instrumentals.'Vamos a Guarachar' is epic and soulful; it captures that positive spirit of the Southwest.” For further praise, we go to the words of Camilo Lara of the Mexican Institute of Sound: “Sergio Mendoza is probably my favorite musician of this time. He has the cumbia and mambo in his DNA, but he has the power to make it sound like today. His Orkesta is as punk as the Sex Pistols and as violent as Perez Prado." Also playing: FPLA Rumba Flamenca, Marco Rosano Quartet and DJ Vex.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Valley Bar, 130 N. Central Ave., Phoenix. $30; $26 in advance. valleybarphx.com.

The Best New Year Fest

To really get a feel for what it would be like to ring in 2017 at Joe's Grotto, I humbly defer to this quote from the Facebook event page: "Salutations, #MotherTruckers! The new year is upon us! Please join us to #RuleTheNight for the last time in 2016! Shake off the old, welcome the new, tilt a few back and do what you do! We couldn't possibly thank y'all enough for the crazy support we received all year long from #THEBESTFam... So, we decided to get some rad bands together and throw a dang party! Together with Sinn Magazine and Joe's Grotto, The Best Clothing Company and Phoenix Amazon Entertainment present THE BEST NEW Year Fest!" Which rad bands are we talking here? Inept Hero, Sons of Providence, the Half Japanese Girls, Malo de Dentro and Primagen.

Details: 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Joe's Grotto, 13825 N. 32nd St., Phoenix. $8. 602-992-1007, joesgrotto.com.

New Year's Eve with Banana Gun

These local rockers like to keep you guessing, effortlessly shifting gears from Princely funk to banjo-driven bluegrass jams and back again with skronking saxophone and occasional flashes of punk or maybe post-punk in the mix. Their RevebNation bio says their "sound is described as bluesy, jammy, eclectic, and jazzy. But, we all know that 'jazzy' is a catch-all musical term too many music critics use when they don’t know how to describe a band that incorporates so many influences." See? There's a reason I didn't say jazzy. They're joined by Ruca, Corey Gloden of Wyves and Marc Norman of Ghetto Cowgirl. There's a champagne toast at midnight.

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Last Exit Live, 717 S. Central Ave., Phoenix. $5-$10. 602-271-7000, lastexitlive.com.

New Year's Eve with Tony Martinez

Martinez's sound is old-school hardcore country. As he lays it out on "Help Me Up (So I Can Get Down)," the kind of song it would be easy to imagine Waylon Jennings having done, "Yeah, I grew up on bar time, hard times and country music / My daddy played those honky tonks damn near five nights a week / I saw firsthand how a cowboy band could rowdy up the atmosphere / Make people wanna dance in their Wrangler pants and drink up all the beer." The show is being billed as Martinez and friends, but there is no indication who those friends may be yet.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Yucca Tap Room, 29 W. Southern Ave., Tempe. Free. 480-967-4777, yuccatap.com.

Time is an Illusion: A Shady Park NYE

Dance into the new year with a night of techno, house and funk, provided by the likes of DJ R3D, Elwer, Nathan Reeser, Bass4Breakfast, Briggs, Rolando Hodor, Grackle Beats and Champagne Problems. This event is free for the first 150 people who RSVP to the link on the Shady Park Tempe Facebook page.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Shady Park Tempe, 26 E. University Drive. 480-474-4222, facebook.com/ShadyParkTempe.

NYE 2017 at Pho Cao

This is a great local showcase, with Fairy Bones taking the stage at 11 to ring out the old year and Paper Foxes following at 12:05 to get the new year started right. Does that mean Paper Foxes will be setting up their amps and tuning their guitars when midnight strikes? Or will Fairy Bones play until midnight? Someone should be playing, right? And either band would be just be just about perfect in that midnight slot that doesn't seem to actually exist. But I digress. The point is, this is an amazing lineup. It starts with Clint Stevens and works its way through These Are Villains, the Woodworks, Fairy Bones and Paper Foxes. Plus, it's free, the food is great, and there's a complimentary champagne toast despite the fact that you got in for free.

Details: 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Pho Cao, 7436 E McDowell Rd, Scottsdale. Free. 480-947-2608, phocaoaz.com.

Moonlight Magic

Moonlight Magic is a Phoenix-based lounge combo playing instrumental '60s-style exotica, bossa nova, samba and lounge music. And if you follow local music, you'll probably recognize some of the players: Jaime Paul Lamb (guitar), Andrew Jemsek (organ and accordion), Ruth Wilson (bass) and Eddy Detroit (drums and percussion). Still not sold? Check out their "Artists we like" on Facebook: Martin Denny, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Burt Bacharach, Luis Bonfa, Les Baxter, etc. They're joined by N.M.T. (a sax/bass/drums jazz trio) for an early show that ends at 9 p.m. And you're welcome to stick around after the show for Rock the Casbah with Adrian Flanagan (Neon Nights) and DJ Manchester (Shadowplay/Decades) spinning '80s New Wave, Brit Pop, indie, darkwave and more.

Details: 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Rip's Ales & Cocktails, 3045 N. 16th St., Phoenix. 602-266-0015, www.facebook.com/rips.bar.7.

The Coconauts

This would be the perfect place to greet the new year if your evening started with a stop at Rips for Moonlight Magic's instrumental '60s-style exotica. The Coconauts are a local trio who describe their sound as "reverb-drenched out-of-this world instrumentals." And the guitarist plays a Fender Mustang. But first, the Dry Surfinis, whose name should tell you almost everything you need to know, will get the party started with a set of instrumental surf-rock. As the chick from Missing Persons once suggested, "What are words for when no one listens anymore?"

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Lost Leaf, 914 N. Fifth St., Phoenix. Free. 602-258-0014, thelostleaf.org.

2017 Flannel Ball

Why Flannel Ball? As explained on the Facebook events page: "While other cities bring in the new year in their down jackets and fuzzy furs, we celebrate the mildly cold winterfront in the fabric of various fineness: Flannel. No one will look too nice, too shabby, too warm, too cold — flannel is the perfect fabric for a night out under the desert stars." Sounds about right. In addition to live music by the likes of Man Hands, Apeface, K Dangerous, Nostrum and Iconic, they'll have beer, an art show, flannel clothing, food trucks, lawn games, a photo booth (with props!), a champagne toast, a midnight countdown and piñata drop. Flannel Ball is presented by Lawn Gnome Publishing, Bud's Glass Joint, Roosevelt Growhouse & GROWop and Roosevelt Row CDC.

Details: 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Lawn Gnome Publishing, 905 N. Fifth St., Phoenix. $15 until Dec. 24; $20 Dec. 24-30; $25 day of event. 602-682-5825, facebook.com/events/858610180905964/.

Suck It 2016! at ThirdSpace

Celebrate the much-anticipated dying breath of a year a lot of people I know declared the worst year ever at one point or another in a Facebook post at Suck It 2016, with music from Barefoot & Pregnant, Grave Danger, and Gerald Collier of Best Kissers in the World, a man blessed with one of the greatest voices that ever graced the alternative airwaves of the 1990s.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. ThirdSpace, 1028 Grand Ave., Phoenix. $5. 602-258-1536, facebook.com/pg/ThirdSpacePhx.

Maybe 2017 Will Be Better

In keeping with the spirit of the sentiments expressed in the naming of Suck It 2016!, Maybe 2017 Will Be Better puts a cautiously optimistic spin on things with a party at the Compound. Hosted by Phil Freedom, it features live performances by Playboy Manbaby (whose forthcoming album could do much to make 2017 a better year), Party Time Excellent, DJ Just Chris, Baby Scoops, Djentrification, Alhhla Hezazz, Meet the Sun and Freako Bzzarr. There's also what promises to be a fairly massive art show, with dozens of local artists displaying their work. And maybe 2017 would be better if you bought a piece of local art or two and hung it on your wall. Also: Coffee by Jobot!

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. The Compound, SE corner of University Drive and Farmer Avenue, Tempe. $10. facebook.com/events/1814296718827246/.

Pete Pancrazi Trio at the Nash

The local guitarist and vocalist will lead his trio (Todd Johnson on bass, Filip Tipei on drums) in a set of familiar jazz standards to ring in 2017. There's a dessert intermission with your choice of champagne or another beverage. Pancrazi graduated from Berklee College of Music with a bachelor's in jazz performance and has been named by Downbeat Magazine as “one to watch” and a guitar player “deserving greater attention.” Pancrazi has released four CDs and is currently on staff at Mesa Community College, where he teaches jazz theory, jazz combo and guitar.

Details: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. The Nash, 110 E. Roosevelt St., Phoenix. $20 for students, $31.50 for seniors, $35 general admission. 602-795-0464, thenash.org.

Glitz & Glamour New Year's Eve 2017

Blue Martini’s Glitz & Glamour New Year's Eve 2017 includes live entertainment by the Ashley Red Band, alternative rockers from Vegas whose interests, as listed on Facebook, are "makin' great music for the soul." It should be pretty danceable. The influences listed on their Facebook page are David Guetta, Usher, U2, the Temper Trap and Taio Cruz. DJ Joshua “Q” Quintero takes over to close out the night from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. Cocktail attire is encouraged.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Blue Martini Phoenix, 5455 E. High St. $50. 480-638-2583, bluemartiniphx.com.

Xtra Ticket

These guys have been at it for 20-odd years. And by “it,” I mean the long strange trip that is being a Grateful Dead tribute act, using the same sonic template as the Dead with two drummers, a keyboardist and what they call a “Phil, Bob and Jerry.” How well have they managed to capture the musical essence of the Dead? In 2011, guitarist Dave Hebert was tapped by Jerry Garcia's longtime keyboardist Melvin Seals to be the lead guitarist and singer of the Jerry Garcia Band (JGB Band), taking his role as a Jerry to its logical conclusion. They're joined by Zeppapotapuss, a Zeppelin tribute act.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Cactus Jack's Ahwatukee Tavern, 4747 E. Elliott Road, Phoenix. $20. 480-753-4733, facebook.com/cactusjacksahwatukeetavern.

Monsters of Rock new year's tribute show

Ring in the new year to the headbanging sounds of a much older year with AZ/DZ cranking out the finest riffs in AC/DC's catalog (for those about to rock) and tributes to Van Halen and the Scorpions.

Details: 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Prankster's Too, 7919 E. Thomas Road, Scottsdale. $10. 480-990-1144, facebook.com/pg/PrankstersToo.

New Year's Eve celebration at Symphony Hall

The Phoenix Symphony and guest conductor Stuart Chafetz will ring in the new year with famous Strauss waltzes, seasonal classics and Broadway and contemporary favorites, served with a complimentary glass of champagne.

Details: 4 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Symphony Hall, 75 N. 2nd St., Phoenix. $25-$109. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org.

New Year's Punk Rock Eve

California punk sensations Face to Face and local heroes Authority Zero top the bill on a show being billed as "the biggest and baddest punk show in Arizona on New Year's Eve." They're joined by Strung Out, the Phunk Junkees, LightSpeedGo, Creepsville 666, No Gimmick, Four Banger, Hall 13 and the School of Rock Sugar Skulls. It's all ages (of course) with kids' activities and food trucks, plus a bar for those who can legally ring in the new year with their alcohol beverage of choice. And it benefits the WHOO Foundation, which raises money for firefighters, police officers and military families in times of need.

Details: 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31. Rusty Ranch, 1265 S. Gilbert Road, Gilbert. $53-$106. rollinrustgarage.com.

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Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495.Twitter.com/EdMasley.

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