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Skippy leaves Union Hall & the Bell House

Skippy @ the Bell House (more by Jonny Leather)
The Bell House

As you may have heard, Jack “Skippy” McFadden has parted ways, presumably not on great terms, with the Brooklyn venues he booked: Union Hall and The Bell House. Skippy essentially was the man behind the music at Union Hall. He then went on to help build the Bell House from scratch, giving him a “small” and “big” venue to play with for both local and touring bands, comedians, burlesque and other local events. He’s even part owner of the Bell House.

It was his eclectic taste and encyclopedic knowledge of indie rock that helped him compete in a Bowery/AEG/LiveNation world. His accomplishments include Peter Bjorn & John’s first NYC show in the basement at Union Hall, a large amount of money raised for Haiti at the Bell House and too many shows to count over the past four years (by the likes of Vampire Weekend, Yeasayer, Animal Collective, Fleet Foxes, Andrew Bird, Nada Surf, The Thermals, The National, Charlotte Gainsbourg and many more). His upcoming shows include two nights of Unrest.

He won’t say much at the moment, presumably for legal reasons, but he would tell me that he’s “grateful for the opportunity and some really wonderful times” and that it’ll be one of his “life’s biggest regrets that it didn’t work out given the amount of effort I made. At both venues.” Good luck Skippy.

What the future holds for those venues is unclear, but it seems some shows are already jumping ship to Littlefield and elsewhere. Stay tuned for more details.