Southpaw's owner tells us why they're closing, and what Park Slope's music scene will be missing without them. more ›

Is Park Slope mainstay Southpaw closing in February? According to Brooklyn Vegan, the venue—which opened in 2002—will shut its doors on February 20th. One of the bookers at the club Tweeted, I can't believe I'm writing this. Southpaw will be closing its doors for good Feb. 20th. The venue's been sold." Which currently seems to be the main confirmation. more ›

The only thing this writer personally knows about the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York is that on November 28th, 1992, Phish played a killer version of "Harpua." It included some narration by Trey Anastasio, where he gave a humorous nod to all the liquor stores in the neighborhood. Anyway, we still have it on cassette somewhere! Before that night, however, the theater housed many other legendary musicians and moments. And last night a publicist emailed to let us know they're ready to open their doors again in 2012, with booking by Bowery Presents and Brooklyn Bowl's Peter Shapiro. more ›

Silent Barn (located in Ridgewood, Queens on the border of Bushwick) needs your help, and not just to clean the bathroom. The venue has spent seven years accumulating equipment, tools, and artwork to create a DIY space in the community, but over the weekend they were robbed. They say $15,000 worth of audio equipment is gone, along with personal belongings, adding: more ›

Is this rollercoaster ride going to end the same way CBGBs did? At the end of March nightlife mainstay Don Hill died, leaving behind his club, Don Hill's, on Spring and Greenwich streets. Though Paul Sevigny and Nur Khan fully took over operations, the real estate vultures seemed to be circling the one-story building sitting on a prime plot of land in Manhattan. By the end of April it was announced that Don Hill's would close, and a developer would take over the SoHo spot. But now according to the Villager, Don Hill's isn't going anywhere... yet! more ›

Earlier this month East Village locals rallied against the UCB Theater's Hot Chicks Room, a bar attached to their new comedy venue. The name was discarded, the sign was taken down, and the NIMBYs target heart rates went back to normal... until the red curtains came up. more ›

Silent Barn, the dirtiest venue in New York (unsubstantiated!), recently got a little cleaner. A little. The DIY music venue/art space located in Ridgewood, Queens has one of those bathrooms that make you contemplate adult diapers—it is not a pretty sight. In exchange for a video shoot there, one band "paid" the powers-that-be in one bathroom cleaning. This important moment, which like a total solar eclipse probably won't happen again for another 360 years, was documented: more ›

JellyNYC—perhaps fed up with the politics and their "fake non-profit" overlords hassling them at their home-away-from pool, AKA the East River Park Police State—are on the cusp of announcing a new summer concert series. (Yes, the Big Show will still go on at the state park.) There aren't a lot of details yet, but it sounds like they're trying to get back to their roots of laid-back semi-DIY free shows. more ›

Just as the sun comes out for the season, word comes in that the BKLYN Yard has been forced to shut down not one week after they kicked off the season with a weekend of opening events. Following yesterday's appearance in the NY Times, the organizers of the outdoor space on the Gowanus Canal have announced on their website that they're being forced out by their longtime landlord. more ›

Rickety stairs, shaking floors, bathroom doors that never shut, impossible to avoid smoking rooms, sound delays, teenagers, getting screamed at for being within 50 feet of the front door... there have been plenty of times we secretly wished Market Hotel (run by Todd P) would get raided when we were inside. But in reality, news of an actual raid which seems to have shut it down over the weekend isn't good news at all. Before getting down to the dirty details, here's what John Norris told us this afternoon regarding the importance of DIY venues like this: more ›

The folks who run Bowery Presents certainly have some of the best music venues in New York City, but where would you rank their superclub Terminal 5 on a list of best venues in the world? more ›

Is the world’s first steampunk bar (according to owner Andy Heidel) at risk of shutting down before it even gets started? The Brooklyn Paper reports that Prospect Heights' Way Station has high hopes of becoming a live-music venue... but can't seem to get a liquor license. more ›

Adding to the mix of venues and restaurants in the neighborhood, a new (gorgeous) space combining space focused on food has opened in Williamsburg. The Rising Tide is a new culinary and events loft that was built over the summer and is now open to the public. This is the same space that will soon be seen on IFC's Dinner with the Band (starring chef Sam Mason). "The Rising Tide is a unique production and events studio, located in a two story loft in Brooklyn." Measuring in at twelve-hundred square feet, if you aren't looking to film a show (because, you probably aren't), it can even host dinner parties for up to forty people. more ›

The Knitting Factory has officially left Manhattan for Brooklyn, taking over the old Luna Lounge space on Metropolitan in Williamsburg. And it looks fly. They completely overhauled the unnecessarily vast room that served as Luna's main space, and split it into two spaces: the live room and the bar (from which you can see the stage). The design playfully evokes a low-budget basement recording studio, with classic pegboard walls backing the stage, and a glass window embedded stage left, where the sound engineer's room would be. The venue officially opens tonight with Les Savy Fav; and here's their upcoming lineup. How will they fare in such a venue-heavy neighborhood? more ›

An interesting police strategy is described in this otherwise "non-story" on Free Williamsburg, which overall delves into a rumor that someone is out to bring down the Market Hotel, a Todd P venue in Brooklyn. The promoter has now addressed the rumors that were in the original story, which focused on a "raid" that took place last Friday and included baseless accusations that he was "being brought up on a slew of charges including weed and underage alcohol distribution." more ›

You'd think over-charging for drinks (including water) for all these years would have given them a nice financial cushion...but allegedly Webster Hall is in debt and in danger of closing. DBTH reports that "the club is in serious arrears to the City, State and vendors, and may be on the verge of declaring bankruptcy." It's the usual story of overdue rent, bounced checks, back taxes, bills piling up and creditors knocking on the door. "They are looking for some kind of bail out from the state (for the taxes issues) and the landlord (apparently they would like their rent lowered by half until things "get better")." Guess their new Studio venture hasn't been bringing in the cash, but maybe the bridge & tunnel crowd that pack into the place on club nights can help bring in the $600K they need. Nightclub shenanigans aside, it would be a shame to see the place shutter, considering it's been open since the late 1800s and hosting music since the 1950s. more ›

The folks behind Brooklyn Bowl have been sinking lots of money and time into their ambitious bowling alley/rock venue/restaurant hybrid, and the grand unveiling is coming soon...hopefully. The massive space boasts a 600 person capacity for concerts, 16 lanes, a stellar sound system (remember this place is brought to you by the Wetlands guys), a menu including french bread pizzas and burgers from Blue Ribbon, dining tables made out of old bowling lanes and aesthetic touches by one of the designers of Dressler. more ›

Rejoice Williamsburg residents, there's finally a music venue coming to your neighborhood. Okay, so maybe it's already saturated with sonic dens of slack, but why not add one more...with a roof! Eater has been on top of the goings-on at 4 Berry Street since March, and reports that the new venue/bar/restaurant/roof deck should be open by June (they'll be hosting a Northside Festival show in mid-June). "One of the owners tells us that they will have a large selection of European beers with an emphasis on their German selection and will serve 'beer infused menu items.' The lower level is 35,000 sq. ft. but the big focus here will be the 3,000 sq. ft. roof." Most recently they noted the roof fencing was in, and the bar is being built. To top it all off, it's under 450 feet away from the Gutter! [via Brooklyn Vegan] more ›

With every venue that shuts down in Manhattan, a new one seems to pop up in Gowanus! We first heard about Littlefield last September, and now the performance and art space is ready to open this Saturday, May 16th! more ›

No one likes to see another music venue shut down, but it's happening again, people. Grub Street declares, "We hear an off-Ludlow music venue with high ceilings, a mezzanine, a basement, and a capacity of 300 is trying to sell off the remaining eleven years of its $15,000-per-month lease. The tavern-club hybrid, once a destination among rocker-hipsters as well as the young glam set, comes equipped with cabaret and liquor licenses." This has to be Fat Baby or the Annex, but have either actually ever been a destination for rocker-hipsters? Maybe in a "we could see it being used as a generic backdrop in Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" or a "the cast of the Real World Brooklyn may have gone there" kind of way. Anyway, LES, take either as your sacrificial lamb, just keep your greedy paws off of Cake Shop. more ›

It used to be that only Phish and Dead fans got to hear live recordings of the shows they attended, thanks to the band's many taping fans. Now the NY Times reports that, following building a recording studio downstairs, Webster Hall will give fans the option to buy a freshly pressed CD of a show after the curtains are drawn. "This downtown New York club, a haven for indie rock bands, has reached an agreement with Best Buy to sell recordings of live shows at the chain’s stores in the New York area. Performances will also be available through iTunes and Webster Hall’s own Web site. Bands that choose to take part will receive half the revenue from the recordings and be exempted from the cost of recording and producing discs, with the right to pull out if they don’t like the way they sound." Could this kind of idea save the sinking music industry? more ›

Who can keep up with all these Studio B rumors! Last we heard the Greenpoint venue was definitely, maybe closing forever-ish. Then on December 23rd, creative director Chris Love (if that is his real name) emailed us that "Studio B is not closed and will be open at least until the beginning of February for sure. Mid February the decision will be made to weather [sic] or not the club will keeps its doors open." And now NYMag is reporting that promoter Dave P, and his partner Josh Houtkin are taking over by managing, running, and booking the joint. Houtkin declared, “We both feel this is the best club in New York.” Har har. He really said that! Other things neighbors can look forward to: regular shows and parties coming in March, the illegal rooftop finally getting legalized and fully opening, and patrons under 21 allowed to partake in all the festivities. It's like it died and came back three times as powerful! more ›

Designated a landmark in 1979, the 2,800-seat Beacon Theatre has undergone a $16 million restoration, and earlier today the final look of their 7-month-long project was unveiled. Thanks to the work of thousands, the venue "is back to its original 1929 grandeur, fulfilling the commitment the company made to New York when it acquired the theatre in November, 2006." A full list of restorations can be found after the jump, and the NY Times has a cute story about an old gold-painted coffee tin discovered during the facelift and found to be the fixture supporting "the principal ornament at the tip of the 900-pound chandelier in the rotunda" (pictured here). more ›

It's been nearly two years since the rumor-mongering surrounding Mercury Lounge's future began. Back then, word was spreading that the 217 E. Houston Street venue would soon lose out to real estate development, but the rumors lasted about as long as Tapes n' Tapes hype. more ›