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Post by Ryosuke on Aug 9, 2006 20:19:52 GMT -5
This is the thread where people talk not about live shows, but live venues. Most of us live in different cities of course, so there might not be much point talking about specific venues, but I thought it would be nice to talk about what sort of places that people like.
What's the ideal capacity for people here? I probably like mid-sized clubs the most, somewhere in the 500-800 range. I go to plenty of smaller clubs too, and the intimacy is really nice, but I think there's something to be said about the buzz that larger clubs generate pre-show. Something about the collective feeling of anticipation in the air that I really dig. If it gets to be over 1,000, then it's a little too large for me, and I do get a bit turned off when a show is held in those kind of places. Also, and maybe this is just limited to Tokyo and doesn't apply elsewhere, but I think the really larger clubs tend to be more bland and personality-less. But obviously for some bands, tickets would be practically impossible to secure otherwise.
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Post by skvorisdeadsorta on Aug 10, 2006 10:34:04 GMT -5
Small. Give me small with 800 at the most. I HATE festivals though. I can't find anything more miserable in the world.
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Post by rockysigman on Aug 10, 2006 10:48:17 GMT -5
I've had a great time at some festivals--it's nice to be able to see a large number of good bands, especially if the price is low--but yeah, it sucks to be stuck in such a big crowd, especially if it's really hot out, and sometimes the bands end up playing much shorter sets than they would otherwise.
I can deal with a larger venue so long as I'm way up close. It's very rare that I can really enjoy a show when I'm hundreds of yards away. It's happened, but it has to be a really great show. I definately much prefer smaller venues.
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Post by skvorisdeadsorta on Aug 10, 2006 11:32:04 GMT -5
Sound at outdoor festivals is bogus at best. I did have a good time seeing the Pixies at ACL a couple of years ago, but I was WAY up front. It was still so hot and miserable and way too many people that I haven't been to a fest since.
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Post by Ryosuke on Aug 13, 2006 1:23:20 GMT -5
I saw the Pixies too when they came here last year, but I wasn't able to enjoy it as much as I had hoped, because of the distance to the stage. They played at the Zepp Tokyo, a ridiculously large club (capacity of about 2,500), and I couldn't make it there until right before the show began. There was no fucking way I was going to fight my way through all that mass of people, so I was pretty much in the back of the area, trying to dig the show as much as I could. The distance really hurt though (but I got the ticket free so it's not like I have much cause to complain).
I did, however, see Quruli once at the Budokan (capacity of about 8,000 perhaps?) which I enjoyed a whole lot in spite of the distance. A seated venue of course, and our seats were atrocious - we were literally to the side of the stage, except we were way up high, so we actually go a nice view of the drummer from up top. And the playing was pretty great, so I left the place a pretty satisfied customer (well, except when they played songs off of their new and kind-of-mediocre album, which unfortunately were many because that was the album they were touring for).
Is it strange by Western standards to have clubs located on like the 6th floor of a building? Some American guy I know thought that was really weird.
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Post by lunatic96 on Aug 13, 2006 1:52:11 GMT -5
that is kind of weird. Most clubs in San Diego at least are on the ground floor. In Portland there are a few clubs that are on an upper floor. In fact, one club in portland is kind of cool in that if people start going a little wild the floor seems like it's rolling up and down.
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Post by limitdeditionlayla on Aug 13, 2006 1:54:34 GMT -5
Is it strange by Western standards to have clubs located on like the 6th floor of a building?
Its not strange so much here as it is just uncommon. We have space, so we can have giant superclubs & huge bars etc. Melbourne, more than Sydney, has a few out-of-the-way bars located in buildings like that.
re venues: I don't really have a preference. It depends on the band. I like festivals. Sure, the sound is hit & miss, there are jacked up aggro assholes everywhere & you pay $6 for half a can of beer. But the vibe at festivals cannot be beat.
I like venues with a -1000 capacity, those shows are always great, though that might have to do with the fact that the bands you're seeing there are usually smaller, rawer & more energetic than say, Pearl Jam in a superdome. (no disrespect to PJ, I love them, but not in a superdome).
Massive venues have their place. I don't love them & the nosebleed section always sucks balls, but being in the same room as thousands of other people all there for the same one reason, thats pretty cool.
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Post by Ryosuke on Aug 13, 2006 2:02:29 GMT -5
In fact, one club in portland is kind of cool in that if people start going a little wild the floor seems like it's rolling up and down. The Liquid Room used to be like that before it relocated. While it is kind of fun admittedly, there's something scary about floors that bounce. |
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Post by phil on Aug 13, 2006 6:40:54 GMT -5
 This is the best outdoor venue in Québec city ... Situated in the Old Port, facing the St-Laurence River it has 7000 seats and the sound system is excellent ... |
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Post by Ryosuke on Aug 15, 2006 0:16:14 GMT -5
I hate outdoor venues. And I hate even more the dumb promoters who book them in June. Hello, rainy season?
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Post by luke on Aug 15, 2006 1:35:02 GMT -5
I love festivals, but they can be grounds for disaster if the stage placement isn't right. Personally, I'd rather see a new/underground/indie band under a tent with about twenty other people who've never heard them at a festival then in a club with 200 hipster assholes. Fuck that shit.
Nothing is worse than stadiums, though, agh.
I'd say my favorite is small clubs with no more than 200 people. Followed by small stages at festivals. Anything bigger and I just get annoyed. Live music is rarely about the music for me, it's about achieving the ultimate soundtrack for an experience, and I'd rather just be at home listening to a CD than all cramped up and shit.
I saw the Pixies at ACL the same time Skvor did, and it was DEFINITELY too cramped. But shit, Pixies in fucking Austin? What's to be expected?
But then I saw them a month later in New Orleans at VooDoo Fest, onstage right after Sonic Youth. They were on a main stage with only a few hundred people there at that point. I was sitting on a blanket on the ground, popping Lortabs, smoking weed, and drinking straight Southern Comfort with my not-yet-wife and some close friends, about twenty feet from Frank Black, in the gorgeous October weather. With tons of space to move around. Both them and SY one after another in that same environment, and easily, EASILY my favorite live experience ever.
Until Radiohead at Bonnaroo this past year, anyway.
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Post by Ryosuke on Aug 16, 2006 1:28:31 GMT -5
Just out of curiosity, why do the hipsters annoy you so? Are they particularly rude?
Small clubs are nice for their intimacy, but a packed 200-capacity club is much more uncomfortable than a packed 800-capacity club IMO. Going to the bathroom in between sets can be extremely, extremely aggravating at those type of places, and we all know that a stress-free bathroom experience is crucial.
And they tend to not have lockers, so you have to find your own near the station, which can provide some difficulties on a Saturday night in a place like Shibuya or Shimokitazawa.
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Post by luke on Aug 16, 2006 10:22:23 GMT -5
Just looking at them, I get all pissed off.
And I've never heard of lockers in a club. I'll second Rocky's "wtf" on that one.
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Post by limitdeditionlayla on Aug 18, 2006 2:32:43 GMT -5
If you want to fuck with a hipster & make him cry, you should mess up his hair. Or spill your wine all over his expensive Diesel jeans & his brand new Nike Onitsuka Tiger trainers. Oh no!
I once did that, 100% purely by accident/having someone fall over me & push me backward. The hipster dude actually started to tear up & at one point raised his hand as if to hit me. Whiny bitch. It wasn't even red wine & it wasn't even my fault. Plus, Nike promote child slave labour. Go to hell, hipster bastard.
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Post by luke on Aug 18, 2006 11:27:42 GMT -5
The ones in the girl jeans are the ones that REALLY piss me off. I didn't even realize their subspecies was thriving in this town until an old acquaintance published an article about them in the local arts/entertainment magazine. Fortunately, he also listed their favorite venues, so I may go burn them down. It'll be like the White Lion incident, but with Panic! At the Disco playing.
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