Community Links & Events
This page provides info on our community business and events. Keep scrolling for current events, as well as a list of indie/community businesses we love.
The hoodlums at Hoodlums get out and get involved at the Tempe Music Festival.
We love it when you stay local!
Hoodlums is locally-owned and operated. We live in Tempe. Our kids go to school in Tempe. We have both been in Arizona for more than twenty years (click here for the whole rambling story). We love our community. Our vision is for Hoodlums to become a Tempe “fixture” in the community.
Accordingly, we support stores just like us throughout Tempe and the Valley, and we encourage you to do the same in your community.
Why buy local? As this fantastic list from our friends at Local First Arizona shows, every dollar you spend in your own community has a big impact.
Hoodlums Community Links
Here are links to just some of our favorite neighbors and friends. Please support local businesses.
Our neighbors at Tempe Square
Changing Hands Bookstore. The best indie bookstore in Arizona… but you probably knew that already. I assure you my wife and I and our band of book-loving kids knew it already. We are thrilled to be their neighbor, and we plan on “borrowing” every awesome idea they have.
Trader Joes. My wife and I buy at least six boxes of squeeze yogurts per week. Our recommendation is to freeze them and feed them to the kids when they get too loud. We recommend the wine if that doesn’t work (not for the kids… for the adults). You don’t suppose I will have to go shopping after work, do you?
Wildflower Bread Co. Excellent food, but as is the case with CH, you probably knew that. The fact the two are connected doesn’t hurt. They open a lot earlier than we ever will.
Efes Turkish Cuisine. Efes is right around the corner – same center – on the Guadalupe side of the center. Bob and Gayle swear by the place. Kris and Laura agree.
Mac’s Broiler and Tap. Tasty grub and lots of classic rock album covers on the walls. By the way, we can get you that Rush album (and wax poetic about seeing ‘em live… that’s right, I said “wax poetic” in the same line as I said “Rush”) if you need it… and we are right next door.
Heirloom Gallery. Our friend Dave at Heirloom is right around the corner and ready to frame up your art or document. He’s done some work for Hoodlums, so stop by the store and we can show it off for you.
Other Tempe Community Links
Local First. We are a charter member of Local First, an organization of amazing indie businesses throughout the Valley. Support ‘em if you are a customer. Join ‘em if you are a local business. Arizona’s indie businesses are important to Arizona’s future.
Arizona State University. Our former landlord and the cornerstone of Tempe. We are going to miss hanging out on campus… so please come and visit. The staff is loaded with Music Junkies, so we know some of them will be in. Go Devils!
ASU Child Study Lab. This fantastic facility is ASU’s community preschool, and a part of ASU’s School of Psychology. It has an amazing director (my wife) and staff and kids absolutely love it. If you want to meet their “handyman”, I’ll be at Hoodlums.
Here… on the corner. Sharla and Lisa are our buddies. They have not one, but two cool boutiques. One in the ASU Memorial Union, and one in the Mill Avenue area. They go on cool buying trips across the country to bring the funkiest, uniquest stuff back to Tempe (yes, we have teased them about how tough that sort of “business trip” must be).
Casey Moore’s. This is where Hoodlums has our “business meetings”. I put the quotation marks on there because my wife insists that the words “business meeting” mean something else in the record store lexicon (and to think we tease the Here girls). Look for the yellow Hoodlums sticker on the pipes above the bar.
Channel 8/KAET. We love our PBS. If you are a parent, you know that the kids stuff alone is enough to justify supporting this station… but that’s just the beginning. KAET offers the Tempe area non-corporate news, excellent nature, and really phenomenal music that you can’t find anywhere else. Plus, no commercials.
Supersigns. You like our web banner? How ’bout the business cards? Those, and almost every sign we’ve ever had done, have been designed and made by the sassy Krystina at Supersigns, and her crazy band of signmakers. If you are going over there, make sure and give her a hard time for us… she likes that.
House of Tricks. A really great place to have a nice dinner. Oh yeah, that bar under the tree is our second favorite place for “business meetings”… the fancy kind (you know, where we wear shirts with buttons instead of T-shirts).
Restaurant Mexico. For a zillion years, Kristian has been sneaking off to munch on the flour tortillas on Tuesdays. Another indie survivor… these guys have managed to make it in three different locations.
Bill’s Custom Frames. Bill’s Frames is the epitome of why we love Tempe. One-of-a-kind characters, friendly service, and great results. You don’t have to ask for Bill, Paul, or Brian – because it will be Bill, Paul, or Brian. That’s kind of how it is at a little record store like Hoodlums… you get to know the hoods if you hang around much.
Beyond Tempe
Arizona Commission on the Arts. We hoodlums are civilized. Our state and federal government are civilized too (sometimes) and this website provides all sort of links related to the arts in our state.
Arizona Central. This is the online version of the Arizona Republic, and it has a wealth of information about the Valley. This link is for the Music Section, but there isn’t much you can’t find from there.
Phoenix New Times. The New Times has been telling local hipsters the who, what, why, and when of Valley day and nightlife for seemingly forever. Art, music, sports, news, blogs… they have it all.
Eye Lounge. Eye Lounge is a collective, artist-run, contemporary art space committed to fostering emerging and established visual artists in downtown Phoenix. That’s what their website says. What we say is that our friend Cindy from Changing Hands is part of the collective… so even if the joint wasn’t as cool as it was… we’d link it just because we love her. Fortunately, it is cool.
Upcoming Community Events
Dom, Marla, and Justin give away free goodies at ASU Freshmen Orientation.
We love to get involved with our community. In the store, we have a flier rack and a posting area. Bands, promoters, organizations, and lots of customers just love to put stuff up there. This page is designed to serve the purpose on the website.
We can’t put everything up here, but if you want to submit an event that is related to the music, film, art, or insanity that we deal with – please submit it. We’ll try to get a bunch of stuff up here, and we can always put a flier in our store. There are lots of possibilities. Please contact us and we can talk about it.
Scroll down if you wanna see what’s going on in our neighborhood:
Community Movie Night continues to explore the issues!
Once a month, Hoodlums gets together with Changing Hands Bookstore and some of our other neighbors and present Community Movie Night. We show a free movie shown at Changing Hands, and Hoodlums and other vendors will offer special discounts to our customers.
A fair amount of people have been showing up for our recent string of documentaries (Wetback, Religulous, Weather Underground), so the Changing Hands gang and the Hoodlums’ gang have decided to keep pushing the boundaries with documentaries and discussions about the issues and politics that affect our community.
Does that mean we have to talk about controversial subjects, Steve? Well, it might. We don’t mean to bug ya… so if you aren’t in the mood to hear from all sides on one issue or the other, it might not be your cup of tea. But if you want to continue to see what the the fearless filmmakers have to say about things – and talk with others about the film or the issue – please join us.
Upcoming Films:
Plot synopsis (from allmovie.com):
A young man wrongly convicted of murder struggles to prove his innocence in this documentary from filmmakers Jeff Werner and Susan Koch. Mario Rocha was 16 years old and a student at a Los Angeles high school when he was charged with the murder of a classmate, Martin Estevez. During his trial, prosecutors suggested that Rocha had gang affiliations that would have provided a valid motive for the killing; however, after the fact, it was proven that Rocha was not a member of any gang. Despite this, Los Angeles city attorneys were eager to convict Rocha as part of a drive to “get tough” on gang-related crime, and a number of observers seriously questioned the competence of Rocha’s lawyer, Anthony Garcia, into question, factors which led to a conviction against the youngster. While behind bars, Rocha began honing his skills as a writer as he sought to find legal representation that would join the fight to give him a new trial. When attorneys from the respected law firm of Latham and Watkins agree to take on Rocha’s case free of charge, they successfully campaign for a new trial and then methodically gather the evidence that will prove Rocha did not commit the crime. Mario’s Story was screened in competition as part of the 2006 Los Angeles Film Festival.
Date: Friday, January 22nd
Time: 6PM
Place: Changing Hands Bookstore
Like we said, we’d love to have you join us. All movies starts at 6:00 and are FREE to attend.
Did we mention the bonus? Anyone who attends will be given a hand stamp for 10% off all regular prices at Hoodlums after the show.
Your hand stamp will entitle you to the following discounts on movie night only:
- Free topping with ice cream purchase at Baskin Robbins
- Free fountain drink with meal at Wildflower Bread Company
- 15% off total bill at Mac’s Grill and Bar (excluding alcohol)
- 10% off all regular prices at Hoodlums
- 10% off associated book at Changing Hands
So come down, watch a movie, and score big with the Tempe Square merchants. See ya there!
Have a beautiful day. Thanks for shopping local.
WE WOULD BE GLAD TO HELP PROMOTE YOUR COMMUNITY EVENT.
JUST SEND A WEB-READY GRAPHIC WITH ALL THE INFORMATION AND WE WILL POST IT FOR YOU!