umm..930 Club? Hello?

Northsix?

Union Hall???? isn't it that Yuppie bar in Park Slope that has had a handful of shows in the last couple months? Does this venue really belong on the list with those others? That's like putting Blink 182 on the list of best punk bands ever. Whoever made this list of nominees is clueless.

as a touring sound engineer, having toured the states at least 30 times in the past 4 years, here are "my" glaring omissions:

1) Defnitely, GREAT AMERICAN MUSIC HALL in San Fran, (great sound/staff/backstage/sightlines, all without clear channel).

2) ONE EYED JACKS in New Orleans, (the only bastion of non tourist taste in the French Quarter with all of the above).

3) BOTTLETREE in Birmingham, AL, (ok, somewhat new, but def for the backstage airline trialer/backstage alone, but also for the incredible southern hospitality and real community feel).

there's more...

Plush in Tucson.

how can you take an event seriously that is supposed to be "independent music awards" then holds the event at a ClearChannel venue? stupid!

Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, NC (pretty much Chapel Hill) should be on these lists

Cake Shop?!?? Surely they jest. That's place is barely a bar much less a venue. Has anyone who's been to a show there ever actually SEEN the band they came to watch?

wow another national publication
with no clue
I bet a blogger from LA or something wrote the article

not a single Philly venue listed ?

I've caught one show at Cake Shop. It was a Death Disco NY (see bpfallon.com) event that included KRISTEENYOUNG (the duo). Kristeen Young (the individual) happens to be Tony Visconti's girlfriend, and he was there. During their set, she made numerous requests of the club's sound guy to change this or that. Tony Visconti told him to get it together (or words to that effect) at one point. I didn't think he was being obnoxious 'cuz I remembered reading (maybe it was a comment here on brooklynvegan.com) that very few sound guys in NYC have had formal trainging.

So, I'm saying that based on that one show, I'm surprised Cake Shop made these lists.

union hall couldn't hold union pool's jock strap

Mercury Lounge is the least comfortable venue in the world. I read somewhere that it used to be like servant's quarters and then a tombstone store. Hasn't improved much since then. Lifeless cramped slab of concrete that I avoid as much as possible. I wish good bands would stop playing there.

i like the sound at Mercury Lounge.

Cake shop has bad acoustics, and the venue layout is weird. It's just a long narrow passageway that slopes down to the "stage".

Cake Shop hasn't even gotten any big name bands yet, and it's also relatively new.

Pianos, Knitting Factory, Southpaw, Tonic, and Joe's Pub are all better smaller venues.

i totally agree with the previous poster
cake shop sucks.. im 6'8 and if i stand at the back of the floor i can barely even see the tops of the heads of the people in the bands and thats failing to mention the sound

where is southpaw ..its by far the best small venue in brooklyn... union hall is not even worth mentioning its barely been open and has not had any notable acts other than a few decent singer/songwriters come through its doors

and why not nokia theatre.. its got to be one of the best new sounding venues of the past year and a half
and has every option you could ever want for seating and anywhere you sit/stand sounds good

The E A R L!!!!!
Yes!

I can't believe that no Seattle venues made either list- the Showbox should definitely make the top ten - not to mention Neumo's.

Jeez ... how can Rockwood Music Hall be left from the list?

Ok, so it's tiny, but it enjoys TLC in its vibe and sound from the owner.

And as for people who play there? Well, there's been a few appearances from the likes of the Killers, Ryan Adams, Amos Lee, Norah Jones, Vienna Teng, and Rockstar Supernova himself Ryan Star. And audience members including Bonnie Raitt, Antony (he of the Johnsons) and the lovely Scarlett Johansson. But more than that, the music is just great there every night - for indie music in NYC is well and truly alive and kicking.

pianos must be pissed. i love it. ROCKWOOD !!

"Jeez ... how can Rockwood Music Hall be left from the list?"

Very easily.

You people need to seriously get over yourselves.

Rockwood sucks

The 930 Club definitely belongs on the list, tied with or above Black Cat.

While you're in DC/VA, you might as well add the NorVa in Norfolk, which manages to attract a very impressive array of artists given its small size and remote location. I spend most of the year down near there, and saw Death Cab a few months back, and the band commented right up front that even though it doesn't pay nearly as well, they perfer playing the small remote venues over anything in NYC.

You might as well also include the city of Charlottesville, which is even more remote and has managed to establish a thriving rock scene virtually out of nowhere.

Middle East in Boston rules, upstairs and downstairs. great sound, great atmosphere, cheap ticket prices (so much cheaper compared to NYC)

Cakeshop is lame, because they fired Stefanie.

40 Watt?

...."union hall is not even worth mentioning its barely been open and has not had any notable acts other than a few decent singer/songwriters come through its doors"...

Silversun Pickups
Sloan
Birdmonster
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
Margot & The Nuclear So N Sos
Snowden
Freedy Johnston
Bon Savants
Elf Power
Envelopes
Page France
South
Cassettes Won't Listen
Zach Galifianakis
Cold War Kids
Charlotte Martin
Earlimart
Frida Hyvonen
The Foundry Field Recordings
The Changes
Irving
The Circulatory System
Casey Dienel
The Cinematics
Tim Fite
Say Hi To Your Mom
Martin Carr (Boo Radleys)
El Perro Del Mar
O'Death
Jaymay
Evangelicals
The Lovely Feathers
The Harlem Shakes
Robbers On High Street
Black Tie Dynasty
Ollabelle
APB
Sam Champion

Huh? For a room that holds 100 people, I'd say that doesn't suck.

Here's the intro to Playboy's list. After reading it, the inclusion of Cake Shop makes more sense.

As the recent closing of CBGBs in New York demonstrated, inspiring music isn't always just about the people making it. It's also about the people and places supporting it. The right venue can become an incubator for talent and make its own deep mark in music history. Identifying the 10 rock clubs in America fulfilling this mission best was tough. Many cities have cool venues with distinct personalities that support local music, but the best also have adventurous lineups and exercise just enough pull to draw up-and-coming touring acts. After consulting with musicians, music journalists and industry insiders, we tagged these 10 sonic hotspots (listed in alphabetical order) as the ones booking the most exciting and forward-thinking acts. Stop by most nights and you'll probably end up saying, "I saw them when..." in the very near future.

all of the bands that have played at Cake Shop and Union Hall have also played at North 6, plus several hundred more.

MAXWELLS

Here's the thing: Once the aforementioned clubs are mentioned in a publication like Playboy, they immediately and irrevocably cease to be the place that they are claimed to be.

It's like showing up in a "Yahoo!" list. "Cool bands your kids like" or somesuch.

It's an objective truth.

Maybe union hall has had some decent bands since they've been open, for like 6 months. That place still stinks of yuppies. Southpaw has been going hard for 5 years doing shows with the likes of J Mascis, Frank Black, Gillian Welch, and motherfuckin Rocket From the Tombs. To be left off that list is an insult to one of Brooklyn's most notable contributors to the new york music scene.