( Editor’s note: Some quotes have been condensed and edited for brevity and clarity.) Phoenix New Times has assembled an oral history of The Works in honor of Schulz returning to the Valley this weekend for a performance at Shady Park in Tempe. “I really think fondly back at the days at The Works because I would try different things and see how it felt, whereas in a lot of places I wouldn’t have been able to do that because you’re judged right away,” says Schulz. The latter artist, who served as The Works’ resident DJ until its closure in 1998, says it prepared him for EDM superstardom. It also helped launch two of the biggest DJs to come out of the Valley, Eddie Amador and Markus Schulz. They all came to dance, party, and go wild. I gave them a platform for that.”Īfter debuting in 1992, The Works was a hangout for local club kids and ravers, a destination for the LGBTQ community, and a safe space for weirdos and outcasts. “People tell me stories about the club all the time, like ‘I met my wife there.’ It’s just weird to build a nightclub and find out how it changed their lives. It wasn’t my biggest financial success, but was important for myself and others,” Rogers says. It’s known as Rogers’ most famous project - an influential spot that was unique for its time. Rogers eventually comes upon a collection of light fixtures that hung from the ceiling of The Works, the defunct Scottsdale dance club from the ’90s he co-owned with former business partner Greg Walker. “I’m sort of an organized hoarder,” Rogers says while walking through the collection. That’s immediately evident when visiting the central Phoenix warehouse filled with remnants of the numerous bars and clubs he’s opened in the past three decades. Nightclub owner Steven Rogers has a hard time getting rid of things.