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."

John Moore of Bowery events also had this to say:

"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 Capitol has a 1,835-capacity, 65-foot ceiling, a general admission floor, seated balcony, VIP seats, and six presidential box suites. Its Port Chester location is 22 miles from NYC and is accessible by I-95 or by taking the train from Grand Central to the Port Chester Metro North station.

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.

But Shapiro has said that he "would not make similar demands of acts, partly because he does not consider it necessary. The Capitol, he argued, is much larger than those other stages, so he can court a different caliber of band."

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)"

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.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah headline the very first show at the new space. Felice Brothers, Shellac, Mogwai, Tune-Yards, RJD2, Langhorne Slim, Little Dragon, CSS, Odd Future, Dum Dum Girls, Friendly Fires, The Black Angels, Boris, SBTRKT and many others are also already on the initial schedule.

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]

Upcoming shows at the Paramount include Rusted Root, Elvis Costello, The B-52's, Weird Al Yankovic, BB King, Willie Nelson, the Pixies, Brand New and Ray Davies.

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.

words & photos by Chris La Putt

On Friday night (7/10), Brooklyn Bowl became one of the newest concert venues in Williamsburg with Brooklyn band O'Death as the first of many bands to come grace its stage. Bowling and concerts don't necessarily go hand in hand (editor's note: yes they do! I think.), but the sound of the rowdy shirtless band and its fans easily overpowered the sound of the bowling balls crashing into the pins adjacent to the stage. With 16 lanes, multiple bars, wait service, and a booming sound system, this venue definitely gives other venues (in the 600-capacity range) ample competition.

As part of its green commitment, Brooklyn Bowl has implemented a number of eco-conscious designs to its building such as: a no bottle or can policy (you get beer in a glass!), recycled truck tires for the stage floor and the use of LED lighting for the stage which uses 90% less energy than the typical stage lighting. It's also one of the few buildings in Brooklyn that run on 100% wind-powered electricity.

Will it be a success? We hope so. Currently, there's not many upcoming shows announced aside from the 2-night Lebowski Fest. There's also a Clutch listening party scheduled to take place there on Tuesday (7/14) @ 6pm (Clutch's new album, 'Strange Cousins From The West,' is out this week on the band's own Weathermaker Music). The schedule will probably fill out soon though - at least partly with bands that have played Wetlands (which Bowl owner Peter Shapiro previously owned). Right now the venue is still in some state of 'soft launch'.

More pictures from Friday night's show with O'Death and after-party by the Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt, below......

Continue reading "O'Death & Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt @ Brooklyn Bowl (the new NYC bowling alley in Williamsburg) - pics "

Brooklyn Bowl owners Charley Ryan & Peter Shapiro

...Set to open "before the end of the year, hopefully by the fall" says Shapiro, [Brooklyn Bowl] will be at 61 Wythe Ave. in Williamsburg, behind Brooklyn Brewery, and two blocks from The Gutter, in an 1880s ironworks foundry....

...In addition to the 600-capacity music venue and the lanes, Shapiro said there will be a "major food component" -- one he wasn't at liberty to disclose just yet, but -- hint, hint -- it's a respected restaurant with one foot in Brooklyn already.

As for the music, Peter Shapiro wants to keep the vibe of Wetlands alive in the new space, but the music, booked by Mia Sladyk, who's worked with Bowery Presents, will be much more eclectic -- rock, electronic, singer/songwriter, jazz -- than the jam-band-heavy lineup at Wetlands. (Though Shapiro believes that was more perception than reality. He points out that Wetlands booked everyone from Pearl Jam to Oasis to Rage Against the Machine back in the day, and I myself remember seeing David Gray -- before he became so lame -- playing folk.)... [Gowanus Lounge]

Wetlands, RIP

Archival footage, soundboard recordings and the work of a dozen digital animators help to relate the story of celebrated Tribeca nightclub Wetlands Preserve, which fostered the music of the Dave Matthews Band, Phish and Ben Harper while simultaneously supporting a social and environmental activism center from February 1989 through September 2001.

The documentary is opening at Cinema Village in NYC on March 14th, and at Laemmle's Grande in LA on March 28th. More info, trailer & pics at the "Wetlands Preserved: The Story of an Activist Rock Club" website, and a related video & even more info, below...

Continue reading "Wetlands Preserved - the NYC venue documentary"