The Capitol Theatre (note the new URL), located in Port Chester, NY, was built in 1926 and has been the home for a number rock concerts over the years, including shows by Pink Floyd, Janis Joplin, The Grateful Dead, and others. By the 1980s, the theatre began to book less and less concerts and more recently it has been used for events like weddings and bar mitzvahs. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Ex-Wetlands owner/current Brooklyn Bowl owner Peter Shapiro, in partnership with Bowery Presents, plans to begin booking shows there again, with a re-opening planned for mid-2012. According to a press release,

"The Capitol Theatre is a rock and roll icon and we are going to treat her as such," says Shapiro. "We are going to spoil her and give her the best of everything - the best sound, the best lights, and the best video projection technology of any theatre anywhere. Our plan is to turn the knob to 11 in every way possible."

"Since spending Thanksgiving weekend 1992 at the theatre with Phish, I've dreamed of promoting at The Cap' one day," says John Moore, partner at The Bowery Presents. "We are excited to partner with Peter on the reopening and introduce a new generation of talented performers to its legendary stage, as well as reacquaint some of the biggest names in music with the house. We look forward to creating memorable concert experiences and reestablishing Port Chester as a destination for music lovers."

The NY Times points out that there may be some competition from other local theaters:

The 500-seat Ridgefield Playhouse in Connecticut, which is about 30 miles from Port Chester and puts on about 100 concerts a year, insists that musicians not play within 60 miles for two months before a concert and one month after. The Paramount Center for the Arts, a 960-seat theater in Peekskill, N.Y., also about 30 miles from the Capitol, in recent years has presented shows with Gregg Allman, Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead, and the B-52s. It has even stricter stipulations: bands must not play within a 90-mile radius for two months before and three months after a concert.

The Paramount's demographic also differs from most Bowery Presents shows. Hopefully The Capitol will start bringing more interesting shows to Westchester, like fellow (but smaller) Westchester venue Tarrytown Music Hall has done with shows like Jeff Tweedy, Andrew Bird, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, and The Zombies (not that Tarrytown isn't also bringing in plenty of shows for baby boomers). We'll probably see a lot of similarities between The Capitol and NJ's similarly-sized and Bowery-booked Wellmont Theater which is also about the same distance from NYC in another direction. The Wellmont gets everyone from Chicago to Passion Pit to Dark Star Orchestra.

A picture of The Capitol's interior, Peter Shapiro at the Okayplayer holiday party, some old fliers and the full press release, below...

Continue reading "The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester to host live shows again (thanks to Pete Shapiro) (and Bowery Presents)"

Pitchfork reports:

Pitchfork, The Bowery Presents, and Killscreen are postponing FORMS, the NYC-based event series we collectively created as a way to celebrate the best of music, art, games, and the intersections in between. As the series took shape these past few months, we found it growing bigger and more complex in very exciting ways. We followed those threads, expanded the vision, and simply ran out of time. Pitchfork, Bowery Presents, and Killscreen have a history of throwing spectacular events and producing great content, and we have decided to give ourselves more time to ensure that FORMS is the best it can be. For now, we plan to take a brief pause and provide more information later.

Pitchfork Fest (more by Dominick Mastrangelo)

The online music magazine that runs the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago -- the influential outdoor showcase for indie bands -- has plans to start a new festival in New York City next February, teaming up with the one of city's largest music promoters, The Bowery Presents.

The new festival in New York will be called "Pitchfork Presents: Forms" and will include works by visual artists and game designers at galleries, museums and unconventional performance spaces around the city, along with four days of performances at clubs run by Bowery Presents, organizers said.

Christopher Kaskie, the president of Pitchfork, said his company had been seeking a way to do a festival in New York for several years, but did not think a large, outdoor event at a park, like the Chicago festival, would be successful in a city with such a crowded social calendar and so little public space.

"We never thought that kind of a model would really work that well in New York," he said. "We've been strategizing for a number of years on how we could come up and do a festival that was impactful and unique."

The decision was reached earlier this year to do most of the events inside at established clubs and to incorporate more visual artists and independent video-game designers into the mix, creating some multimedia events. "It's going to be more of an urban festival," he said.

John Moore, a partner in The Bowery Presents, said the lineup of bands for the concert had not been determined, but he expects to book between 50 and 75 acts, all in the indie vein. Passes to the entire festival will be available, but people may also buy a ticket to a single night of performances one of the promoter's clubs - The Music Hall of Williamsburg, the Bowery Ballroom, the Mercury Lounge and Terminal 5. The prices for tickets have yet to be announced. Those tickets will be in the $15 to $30 range. Some of the multimedia events at galleries, museums and unconventional spaces during the day will be free, he said. [NY Times]

words & photos by Colin Kerrigan

Rumors that Sean Agnew of R5 Productions was planning to open his own venue had been swirling around for a couple years now but were always denied by Mr. Agnew. However, everyone had a sense that it was bound to happen eventually. Earlier this year it was finally confirmed. Agnew/R5 Productions teamed up with NY promoters Bowery Presents and Avram Hornik and Mark Fichera of Four Corners Management to open a new Philly venue.

Union Transfer, which was most recently a gigantic Spaghetti Warehouse and was apparently at one time a train depot back in the day, had captured the attention of all the music lovers in the city prior to its opening. Everyone wanted to know what it was like and what the sound was like (R5 boasted that it would be the best sounding venue in the city). On Wednesday night they found out.

The space has very tall ceilings with chandeliers hanging down, both standing and seated balconies (with great sightlines), three different bars each with their own unique atmostphere, plenty of floor space and the sound lived up to expectations.

Even though the venue has had only one show so far but it's safe to say that the venue is one of, if not the best, venue in the city.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Polica played that first show at the the venue (one night after they played Bowery Ballroom in NYC). Here are some pictures from the show. They continue below...

Continue reading "CYHSY & Polica played the 1st show @ Philly's new Union Transfer (pics)"

a musician playing Mercury Lounge (more by Chris La Putt)

"The owners of famed New York City nightspot Mercury Lounge on Monday hit concert promotion giant Live Nation Entertainment Inc. and the club's former chief booking agent with unfair competition and contract claims, claiming Live Nation poached the agent." [Law 360]

Union Transfer rendering

Lots of interesting stuff to report in the world of live concert promotions...

NYC concert promoter Bowery Presents, who already has expanded to NJ, Boston, Maine, and Canandaigua, NY (not to mention MSG, Jones Beach, the Meadowlands, Radio City, etc), is opening a new music venue in Philadelphia this month. In partnership with Philly's one and only Sean Agnew of R5 Productions, and Avram Hornik and Mark Fichera of Four Corners Management, Union Transfer is...

... "named after the original train depot station that occupied the building [and] was developed by the group to meet Philadelphia's need for a mid-sized live music space and will accommodate 600 people. The general admission venue boasts a flexible capacity and can manage up to 1,000 people for larger crowds. Located at 1004-26 Spring Garden St, steps from Center City, Union Transfer is slated to open on September 21, 2011.

In perhaps less exciting news for Bowery Presents, Mercury Lounge talent buyer Jay Belin has reportedly moved on and started booking Irving Plaza, Gramercy Theatre and the new Paramount Theatre in Huntington, Long Island for Live Nation.

The Paramount Theatre is...

...located on New York Avenue a block and a half north of Main Street. The space is the former home of the nonprofit Inter-Media Arts Center (IMAC), which closed its doors in 2009 after 26 years of hosting jazz, folk and blues concerts.

The 1,500-capacity venue has been undergoing renovations for months. Among the changes, there will be a VIP lounge on the balcony and a member's only "Founder's Room" with a separate entrance in addition to the general admission floor.

"With both the architecture and the vibe of the venue dedicated to quality sound, hospitality, and experience, The Paramount is sure to be a hotspot for all of Long Island, and especially for Huntington," the founders said in a news release." [Long Island Press]

Speaking of moving on, Rock Shop booker Jack McFadden aka Skippy has moved to the music capital of Texas. He is still booking the Brooklyn club (and other NYC rooms) though. You just won't see him there as much.

Speaking of expanding, the race is on to see who can open in Chicago first. Will it be Brooklyn Bowl? or City Winery?

Speaking of Brooklyn Bowl, and last but not least for this post, the Wetlands is having a Class of '96 reunion at Brooklyn Bowl on Sunday (9/11). Ex-employees of the famed Tribeca club who will probably be in attendance include Rocks Off founder Jake Szufnarowski, Bowery Ballroom (and Union Transfer co-booker) Johnny Beach and of course ex-Wetlands owner and current Brooklyn Bowl owner Peter Shapiro. Brooklyn Bowl hosted a Wetlands get together of sorts in 2010 too, though that one was on a much sadder note, as it was to remember Wetlands' very first employee Dave Nolan who died of a heart attack last year.

poster art via Emblem Studio

WHAT. A. SHOW.

If I could have made it to any of the T5 shows (which I can't) it would have been TFF so I was so happy they played a bunch of tunes from that on Friday. They Ran had an incredible outro which some wailing falsetto. I've never been much of a Butch Cassidy fan, but this live version made me appreciate it so much more (the sounds Tommy was getting out of his bass were incredible). I was really hoping for a Dondante and it was great to hear this song after a few shows without it.

The encore was a thing of perfection for me, but hell the whole show was perfect! Phone Went West is a great song to "end" the show on before a rippin' One Big Holiday. I was right in front of Carl and got blasted with confetti during OBH, a great touch.

There was a point during the encore when I realized how wonderful my life was as I stood holding my woman watching my favorite band in the world play the best setlist I've ever seen.

LONG LIVE THE JACKET
[classicrocker623]

FIVE NIGHTS @ TERMINAL 5 IN NYC
10/18 - MMJ plays The Tennessee Fire, Dungen opens
10/19 - MMJ plays At Dawn - Hacienda opens
10/20 - night off, Carl Broemel plays Joe's Pub
10/21 - MMJ plays It Still Moves - Elvis Perkins in Dearland opens
10/22 - MMJ plays Z - Holly Miranda opens
10/23 - MMJ plays Evil Urges - Everest opens

You can also try your luck winning a pair of tickets. I have one pair to "Tennessee Fire" and one pair to the "Z" show. Details below.

Before Maine, like Gorillaz before them, My Morning Jacket played an hour set "Live on Letterman". Watch the whole thing below.

Between Maine and NYC, My Morning Jacket stopped by Levon Helm's Ramble (Saturday night) where they played a 10-song set in addition to jamming with Levon. The setlist from that show, the Maine show (with videos), the Letterman show (with video), and contest details, below....

Continue reading "My Morning Jacket kicking off 5-night run (win tix), christened Maine's State Theatre, played Live on Letterman (video)"

Deadmau5 & missing piece of ceiling @ Wellmont Theatre (via Baristanet)

Wellmont Theatre is temporarily closed -- and its scheduled show of Interpol Wednesday night [is definitely] canceled -- after a piece of the ceiling fell from the upper balcony during the Deadmau5 last week.

Louis Litvin, a Wellmont partner, confirmed that Robert McLoughlin of the Montclair buildings department had closed the Wellmont following the incident. Litvin added that one concertgoer was taken from the theater in an ambulance, but that the injury appeared to be minor and the victim was able to walk after being struck.

Litvin said that an engineering team with thermal imaging equipment is currently inspecting the entire building, ceiling and walls, and that management will do "whatever we need to do to protect the public."

"Once we do that and Bob McLoughlin is comfortable, the show will go on," Litvin said. The Wellmont hopes that all the repairs are done in time for the Lyle Lovett concert scheduled for August 15." [Baristanet]

...while performing onstage at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., electronic music performer DEADMAU5 (pronounced "dead mouse") collapsed, suffering from exhaustion. Medics at the venue took him directly to hospital where he is now under supervision.

DEADMAU5 is sad to inform his fans that on the strict advice of the doctors, he now has no choice but to cancel the next nine shows of his summer tour schedule to allow for his recovery. The dates affected are listed below. Meanwhile, his North American dates for October which include appearances at Austin City Limits, the Treasure Island Music Festival, Voodoo Music Festival and three nights at Roseland Ballroom in New York City are still on course.

Video of Deadmau5 collapsing, with the cancelled dates, below...

Continue reading "ceiling collapsed, Deadmau5 collapsed then cancelled, Interpol cancelled, Wellmont closed (for now)"

NYC promotion company Bowery Presents already has a presence in NJ, upstate NY, and as of recently, Boston. Today they've announced that they'll also be operating in Portland, Maine. Press release below...

Continue reading "Bowery Presents expands to Boston & Maine "

The Rock Shop

"[Today], Michael Winsch of the Bowery Ballroom will give the bi-level space that once housed Cattyshack a butch makeover. He's teaming up with Brian Harkenrider (a former Bowery manager) to open what you might or might not consider a sports bar -- "we're not necessarily going to call ourselves a sports bar," says Harkenrider, "but we have a bunch of flat-screens." Ten of them, to be exact. But sports won't be the only focus here: With a new stage and soundboard intact, the first floor will eventually host the sort of live bands you'd expect to see at the Bowery Ballroom's sister club, Mercury Lounge (the booker is Diane Perini, who's also responsible for the just-announced lineup of the 2010 Siren Music Festival).

Upstairs, a bar will offer nightly $3 drink specials, and Cattyshack's roof deck remains. In about a month, the Rock Shop will serve "simple bar food" (burgers, pizzas, panini, etc.) -- until then, you can score grub across the street at another newcomer, Oaxaca.

The Rock Shop, 249 Fourth Ave.; 718-230-5740"
[New York Magazine]

"Bowery Presents" is a complicated company. Michael Winsch is one of two owners of Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge which are part of Bowery Presents. The Rock Shop will not be part of Bowery Presents. How they coordinate remains to be seen. In the meantime, check out some videos taken inside the space when it was Cattyshack (RIP), below....

Continue reading "new venue opening in Park Slope (where Cattyshack was) "

view from the ferry in 2009 (more by Chris La Putt)

First Passion Pit & Tokyo Police Club, then M.I.A./Sleigh Bells, and then Local Natives (and I just noticed Michael Franti & Spearhead w/ Trombone Shorty). All of a sudden Bowery Presents is doing shows on Governors Island, a space that was booked last year by AEG & Highline Ballroom. Well, Highline Ballroom is still involved. I found this press release that was issued in February:

Continue reading "as you probably noticed, Bowery Presents does shows at Governors Island now..."

"The pinnacle of the 25th anniversary events will be a marathon week of music programming in July, called "SPIN's 25 Hours of Music." In partnership with the Bowery Presents, SPIN will produce five consecutive nights of concerts throughout New York City, featuring artists that have made the greatest music of the past 25 years. These ticketed events are being sponsored by VTech and Vitamin Water."

PREVIOUSLY: Hole are playing SPIN's SXSW party

The Boss @ Izod Center in May (more by Tim Griffin)

The Federal Trade Commission has settled with Ticketmaster over complaints that Ticketmaster used deceptive tactics to steer Bruce Springsteen fans to expensive scalped tickets last year. As part of the settlement, the company will pay refunds and, in a move that could have a wide impact on the multibillion-dollar resale business, make disclosures about the availability of the tickets it resells.

The settlement, announced Tuesday by the F.T.C.'s chairman, Jon Leibowitz, concerns 14 Springsteen concerts last May and June. Fans trying to buy tickets through Ticketmaster's Web site were pointed to a subsidiary site, TicketsNow. In what Mr. Leibowitz described as thousands of instances, brokers on TicketsNow -- an eBay-like resale marketplace with no price caps -- advertised tickets they did not have, and fans never got the tickets they paid for.

"TicketsNow.com sold phantom tickets without letting consumers know that the tickets did not exist," Mr. Leibowitz said in a statement. "Then the company held on to consumers' money, sometimes for months, when it knew those fans weren't going to see Springsteen. Clearly consumers deserve better. They deserve to know what they're buying, including the risk that their tickets won't materialize." According to the settlement, Ticketmaster must refund to fans who used TicketsNow the difference in price between the tickets' face value and the final amount. Mr. Lebowitz said those payments could amount to more than $1 million. In addition, brokers on TicketsNow must disclose when they are listing tickets they do not have in hand, and the F.T.C. is sending letters to about 10 large ticket resellers warning them to comply with the law.

Scalped Springsteen tickets have been a focus of news-media and political pressure on the concert industry since early last year, when fans for two Springsteen shows in New Jersey were directed from Ticketmaster to TicketsNow while tickets at face value were still available. Ticketmaster settled with the state of New Jersey over those concerts.

Last month Ticketmaster received approval from the Department of Justice to merge with the concert giant Live Nation. That merger still faces court approval. [NY Times]

"Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Md., has inked an online ticketing and marketing deal with Ticketfly. The deal marks the largest venue contract to date for the upstart ticketing company, which also handles ticketing for 9:30 Club in Washington D.C., among other venues. The 9:30 is owned and operated by independent promoter I.M.P., which also books and operates Merriweather." [Billboard]

Andrew Dreskin is the co-founder of Ticketfly, Inc., a next-generation ticketing and marketing company. He is the co-founder of the Virgin Mobile Festival, a multi-day music and arts festival. Mr. Dreskin was the co-founder, and president and C.E.O., of TicketWeb, the first company to sell event tickets over the Internet. TicketWeb was acquired by Ticketmaster in 2000. Prior to founding TicketWeb, Mr. Dreskin was the co-founder of Energy Media, an early web design firm. Prior to that, Mr. Dreskin was the executive vice president of Beserkley Records, an influential independent record label. Until its recent acquisition by Knitting Factory Entertainment, Mr. Dreskin was the largest outside shareholder in the Big Easy Concert House, a chain of concert venues in the Pacific Northwest. He holds a B.A. from Tulane University, where he is a member of the Dean's Advisory Council. He is also a member of the board of directors of Headcount, a non-profit voter registration organization.

Independent concert promoter Seth Hurwitz and the Maryland-based companies he co-owns, It's My Party (I.M.P.) and It's My Amphitheatre (IMA), have taken legal action against Live Nation.

In an 11-count lawsuit filed shortly after Live Nation and Ticketmaster announced their intentions to merge in February, plaintiffs I.M.P. and IMA allege that Los Angeles-based Live Nation "deliberately" and "unlawfully" acquired monopolistic power over promotion for the national concert market, and has used its influence to "coerce" artists from only appearing at amphitheaters and other venues the company owns, operates or books.
[Billboard - June 12, 2009]

What does it mean for NYC? How long until Bowery Presents (who probably sells more NYC tickets total through Ticketmaster than anyone else in NYC at the moment) moves to Ticketfly too? Ticketfly is already selling tickets for a few NYC venues: Brooklyn Bowl, Littlefield and Knitting Factory / Warsaw. Nothing on that list is as big as Merriweather, but Brooklyn Bowl is a Bowery Presents-booked venue (though important to note: Brooklyn Bowl were using Ticketfly before Bowery was in the picture there). And even before the TM/LN merge we learned that Bowery wasn't 100% committed to Ticketmaster when they started selling tickets to their NJ venue Wellmont Theatre through Tickets.com (though it is of course possible that they use tickets.com there due to some strange contract that came with the venue when they opened it.... regardless, anyone who has tried tickets.com knows that it won't ever be where Bowery moves permanently).

Meanwhile, Live Nation, who used to use Ticketmaster exclusively but then switched to their own LiveNation.com ticketing system, have started using Ticketmaster again. For instance, Crystal Castles' Irving Plaza show went on sale on Ticketmaster today. Shows that have been on sale for a while, like Ted Leo (and Obits and Screaming Females), are listed on Ticketmaster (its a redirect), but actually only on sale on LiveNation.com.

More details of the Baltimore story are below...

Continue reading "Ticketmaster has to pay refunds to Bruce Springsteen fans, loses Maryland's Merriweather Post Pavilion to Ticketfly"

Julian Casablancas @ T5 on January 15th (more by Natasha Ryan)

This has already come up in the comments, and has been posted on a few other sites. Just to be clear, Pollstar's venue ranking is measured in ticket sales. Terminal 5 sold the third most concert tickets of any "club venue" in the world in 2009. They were beat only by the 9:30 Club in DC and House of Blues in Boston (clubs who have more shows coming up in February than Terminal 5 has total on its schedule total right now). Pollstar writes...

When a New York City club that didn't exist three years ago showed up as No. 3 on the latest Top 100 Worldwide Club Venues, we had to take notice.

That's above names like The Fillmore, The Wiltern and every House of Blues in the country other than the one in Boston. It became a running joke in this office to ask, "What's Terminal 5?"

Of course, plenty of agents, artists and production crews are familiar with the venue by now. The 3,000-capacity facility opened in the New York island of Manhattan in the fall of 2007 and has become the new room for up-and-coming acts.

It is also the "next step" for Bowery Presents, which manages a series of well-known venues in the NYC area - the 250-capacity Mercury Lounge, the 500-capacity Bowery Ballroom, the 600-capacity Music Hall of Williamsburg and the 1,400-capacity Webster Hall.

Speaking of Terminal 5, tickets went on presale today for Sia and The Specials. The full list of 18 upcoming shows is at Ticketmaster (which recently confirmed they'd be merging with Bowery Presents' biggest competitor Live Nation).

The full list of 100 venues (that report to Pollstar), along with some videos, below...

Continue reading "Terminal 5 is the #3 club in the world (in sales) "

DOWNLOAD: The Wheel - Whimper and Wail (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Surf City - Records of a Flagpole Skater (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Surf City - Kudos (MP3)

Dent May

Sharon Van Etten

Cymbals Eat Guitars @ Brooklyn Bowl in August (more by Oren Loloi)

By the time Saturday, October 24th gets here, six BrooklynVegan shows will have come and gone. The first is on Tuesday. Then there are two on Thursday (night and day), and three on Friday (day, night, and night). Finally, the seventh and final BV party of CMJ 2009 (which is not technically part of CMJ) is happening Saturday at Pianos, and the 2-stage lineup is:

DOWNSTAIRS @ Pianos on the afternoon of 10/24/2009

1:15 Surf City
2:00 The Moondoggies (Hardly Art)
2:45 Local Natives
3:30 Still Life Still
4:15 Deastro
5:00 Cymbals Eat Guitars

1:00 Dave Godowsky
1:45 Sharon Van Etten
2:30 The Smith Westerns
3:15 Pete & The Pirates
4:00 JBM
4:45 Dent May
5:30 Nathaniel Rateliff and The Wheel

Not only is this show 100% free, there will be free Miller beer (High Life and Lite) and free Vitamin Water (first come, first served). Same free stuff at all three BrooklynVegan day parties this year (Thursday @ Pianos, Friday @ Fontana's, and Saturday @ Pianos aka this party). Flyer for this party, which was put together in conjunction with Bowery Presents who wanted the same space on the same day (Double Booked!), below.

We talked about Surf City who are from New Zealand, and a bunch about Pete & The Pirates from the UK.

For the Moondoggies, this is one of only two CMJ-time shows. Their other is the official Sub Pop / Hardly Art showcase at Mercury Lounge.

Two bands on this bill are playing two BV parties. LA's Local Natives are also in the loft. Denver's The Wheel are also Tuesday night at Music Hall of Williamsburg.

Still Life Still are that band that new Arts & Crafts band that just came through town. You know Dent May from the roster of Animal Collective's label Paw Tracks.

Dave Godowsky and Sharon Van Etten are both singer-songwriters making their second appearances at BV parties in the upstairs room of Pianos. You may have caught Dave when he opened for Dave Bazan at Bowery Ballroom on Sunday night. You may remember Sharon's voice from the new Antlers record (The Antlers are another band playing the BV show at MHOW).

Ghostly International artist Deastro has a tour coming up with Max Tundra in 2010. Don't wait that long to see him.

The Smith Westerns. You remember them. JBM too. And Cymbals Eat Guitars. Maybe another band TBA (probably). I'm too tired to keep writing. Flyer below!

Continue reading "BrooklynVegan & Bowery Presents were Double Booked! ...........(free Saturday day party during CMJ 2009 @ Pianos)"

Brooklyn Bowl and Bowery Presents are announcing today that they've formed a partnership. Josh Moore of Bowery Presents is now the head talent buyer (booker) for, not only Music Hall of Williamsburg, but also Brooklyn Bowl.

Brooklyn Bowl will continue to occasionally program its own events too, and continue to work with various promotional partners (for instance partnering with JellyNYC to make the bowling alley / music venue the official afterparty location of the Pool Parties this summer), but I think for the most part, Brooklyn Bowl will now appear to be part of the Bowery family.

"We watched Brooklyn Bowl grow from the ground up," says Moore. "The project was indeed ambitious but it was so well conceived and executed -- it just worked. We are also excited to be in business with our good friends, Peter Shapiro and Charley Ryan, who did an amazing job bringing the venue to life. After spiritedly competing on bookings over the past few weeks we mutually realized that we should work together, rather than compete against one another."

"This is an ideal development for Brooklyn Bowl," said Brooklyn Bowl co-founder, Peter Shapiro. "Even from the first few shows, the venue has developed a reputation for being one of the most unique live music experiences in New York. We've been thrilled with the response and want to take our momentum into this partnership with The Bowery Presents. We are very appreciative of the significant contributions that Mia Sladyk made to Brooklyn Bowl; she has been a key member of our team and we look forward to continuing to work creatively with her in the future."

Videos of The Drums and Cymbals Eat Guitars playing the recent Insound show at Brooklyn Bowl, below...

Continue reading "The Bowery Presents is now booking Brooklyn Bowl"

"Tickets for May 7 Junior Boys performance can be refunded at point of purchase.We are working to re-schedule this show and your ticket will be good for the new date. Check back for further updates and thanks for your understanding." -Bowery Presents

Black Book: What bars do you claim as your own these days?

Johnny T: Black & White, Niagara, Bowery Electric, Cabin Down Below, and Pizza Shop.

Continue reading "spotlight on Johnny T (recently opened Cabin Down Below)"

by Andrew Frisicano

A Camp, the trio fronted by Cardigans singer Nina Persson, has announced a full European tour and (so far) one US date in support of its second album, Colonia, out April 28th via Nettwerk. The band will be playing the Bowery Ballroom on Tuesday, May 26 (on sale Friday at noon, Am Ex presale on Wednesday) - which will be a hometown show of sorts for Persson and husband/ex-Shudder to Think member Nathan Larson (who, with ex-Atomic Swing musician Niclas Frisk, make up A Camp).

An article in the UK's Independent discusses Persson's life, The Cardigans, and the move:

[After recording The Cardigans reunion album Super Extra Gravity,] Persson finally spread her wings, moving to New York with Larson. "I was feeling positive, strong," she says. "It was a nice sensation."

Eighteen months ago, Persson and her husband decided to get on to Manhattan's property ladder. They couldn't afford much by themselves, so decided to go in with Larson's parents. They now share a four-storey brownstone in a part of Harlem that has yet to undergo full gentrification.

"We've been burgled three times in 18 months," Persson notes, "but that's just something that happens. And besides, the police are really helpful. They know us by name now..."

All tour dates, plus a live video/interview, below...

Continue reading "A Camp (Nina Persson of the Cardigans) - new album & 2009 tour dates (Bowery Ballroom)"

"Earlier that evening, one of the architects handling the restoration of the Wellmont Theater at 5 Seymour St., slated to reopen at the end of October or in early November as a live music and performance venue, also appeared before the commission.

The Rosen Group, a Manhattan-based real estate development company, bought the theater about a year ago and is in the process of refurbishing it.

Michael Costantin, the architect-of-record for the project, said the building, dating to 1922, is one of the largest halls in the nation. Now that many of the remnants of the movie triplex that previously occupied the space have been removed, the view of the house from the stage is "completely awesome," Costantin told The Times. The interior is rife with ornamental plasterwork, with many of the surfaces decorated with relief sculptures.

Work crews are now in the process of transforming the floor, which angles downward toward the stage, into two tiers that descend to the orchestra level. That main floor could be rented out for banquets and other functions, or provide space for about 800 removable, reserved seats for shows, Costantin said. But, more frequently, that area will provide standing room for concerts, while about 1,000 fixed seats will be up in the balcony.

The architects had been hoping they might be able to convert one of the rooms housing an 8-foot-high cast-iron fan, among the building's original exhaust fans, into a VIP lounge, with the huge fan as its centerpiece.

The tenants of the revamped theater, who include Montclair resident and promoter Andy Feltz and the principals of the Bowery Presents, who own the Bowery Ballroom in New York City, have signed a 49-year lease for the theater. The exact dates of the first shows, and who the first acts will be, had not been established as of The Times' deadline, but the lineup was expected to be announced soon." [The Montclair Times] (thx Danielle)

Continue reading "Wellmont Theatre opening 'end of October', initial schedule"

The historic 2,000-capacity Wellmont Theater in Montclair, N.J., will re-open its doors this fall under a recently formed partnership between the principals of New York-based independent concert promoter the Bowery Presents and longtime promoter Andy Feltz.

The new promotion company, Montclair Entertainment, was formed in September 2007 by the principals of the Bowery Presents and Feltz, who previously oversaw operations at New York's Beacon Theater and booked concerts into the city's United Palace Theater. The re-opening of Wellmont Theater, which will undergo a multi-million renovation, will be the first New Jersey venue to be managed and operated in part by the Bowery Presents...........

.........The Wellmont Theater opened in 1922 and was later converted into a motion picture theater. It then became a triplex before closing in 2006. Part of the theater's renovation includes the removal of seating from the main floor. Once fully renovated, the live music space will feature state-of-the-art sound, lighting and recording systems, which will have the capability to be used for Internet, television and radio broadcasts..... [Billboard] (thx all)

THE BOWERY PRESENTS TO OPEN TERMINAL 5 IN EARLY OCTOBER

The Bowery Presents, an independent New York concert-promotion company, today announced Terminal 5 will open in early October and will be the largest midtown venue to open in more than ten years. Terminal 5 will be located at 610 West 56th Street between 11th and 12th Avenues, and will provide a new 3,000-capacity midtown music, art and event venue.

The initial lineup for Terminal 5 is as follows:

OCTOBER
11: The National
19: M.I.A.
20: Justice
23-24: The Shins with Vetiver

NOVEMBER
1-2: The Decemberists
23: State Radio with The Beautiful Girls
30 - 12/1: Ween

Terminal 5 will be the newest venue to be managed and operated by The Bowery Presents, which currently manages and operates the Mercury Lounge and the Bowery Ballroom and will open the Music Hall of Williamsburg on September 4.

"Opening Terminal 5 allows us to continue providing better venues for bands and the best live experience for fans," said Michael Swier, a partner in The Bowery Presents. "We've worked with these bands as they've grown, and we're thrilled to be able to provide a larger venue for them to play."

And I guess they realized Justice could sell more tickets than people that can fit in teany-tiny Webster Hall. I guess it also explains why they've been weird with the exact details of that CMJ show.

Terminal 5 will now be competing with Hammerstein Ballroom and Roseland Ballroom for shows of that size. Let's just hope it doesn't suck as much (the description sounds better at least). Based on the initial schedule, it definitely looks like we'll (I'll) have a lot of reasons to want to go there. In fact, I think there are more shows already listed above, than either of those competing venues has hosted in a year (side note: why do Hammerstein and Roseland have so few shows a year?).

Let's also hope the concept behind Justice being moved from Webster Hall to Terminal 5 is not a trend. (even though technically we're not supposed to know that happened, so theoretically it didn't). What do you think?

More press release below...

Continue reading "TERMINAL 5 = new, big Bowery Presents venue (M.I.A., Decemberists, National, Justice, Ween...)"

the 2007 Coney Island Siren Festival (CRED)

If you were at the 2007 Village Voice Siren Festival in Coney Island yesterday, you may have noticed 'Bowery Presents'-sponsored messages connected to a plane that was flying over the beach. One of them advertised Interpol @ Madison Square Garden. Another I saw mentioned Modest Mouse @ McCarren Pool, and a third was the first announcement that LCD Soundsystem and Arcade Fire are playing together in NYC on October 6th. They left out the venue, but I can assure you that this show will in fact be at Randall's Island. Other known tour dates below....

Continue reading "ARCADE FIRE & LCD SOUNDSYSTEM playing Randall's Island + other 2007 Tour Dates"

Bowery Presents expands its empire into Union Pool on July 17th with a show by UK sensation - and friend of dangerous criminals - Jamie T. The show will have one opener, and is going to be acoustic. Tickets are on sale.

One minute she's closing a venue, and the next...

The Bowery Presents, an independent New York concert-promotion company, today announced the Music Hall of Williamsburg will open on September 4th with Patti Smith and Her Band. The Music Hall of Williamsburg will occupy the former space of Northsix, on 66 North 6th Street, and will provide a first-rate, mid-size venue for bands to play in Brooklyn.

Continue reading "Patti Smith opening Music Hall of Williamsburg (Sep 4)"