Restless Leg Syndrome

Image taken from Boston.com

As briefly mentioned in our Rocktober calendar, Harper’s Ferry in Allston Rock City is closing (after 40 years! THAT’S A LONG TIME) at the end of this month. Now, Harper’s was never my favorite Boston venue, and I know their closing was actually a long time coming. It has to do with the enormity of their space, the high rent on Brighton Ave (especially so close to Harvard Ave), some booking technicalities and of course… dun dun dun… THE ECONOMY. Still, the announcement that this checkerboard-floored dive bar with all those pool tables and pin ball machines in the back is closing its doors was met with a twang of sadness.

During these past three years of college fun and games, I’ve become particularly fond of the small(ish) venues in Boston. The Middle East, TT the Bear’s and Great Scott, to name some favorites, are impressively independent and have a flavor all their own. Admittedly, House of Blues and the Paradise often bring some excellent bills to this city, and thus I attend, pay too much for drinks and scoff at the ridiculous “non-denominational” decorations inside (HOB, I’m looking at you). But I resent them. That’s why I was confused when while compiling the Rocktober calendar, something became clear… ALL THE GOOD SHOWS ARE AT THE ROYALE. And this year, as the mammoth success story that is the Bowery Presents has extended it’s reach from New York City to the upper Northeast, instead of gravitating towards the muraled intersection of Mass Ave and Brookline Street in Cambridge every weekend, I keep ending up in the fucking theater district.

BOWERY... PRESENTS... BOSTON

Now, to back track, I can’t hate too hard on the Bowery Presents. They started out as pretty serious underdogs, and in 2007 the New York Times wrote this article about the Bowery Presents expanding from the depths of Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn all the way up to Radio City Music Hall and the historic Beacon Theater, kicking the far worse Live Nation’s ass out of the way of their uptown arch. They waged their takeover honestly, with a love for live music, and that’s really all you can ask for in a huge expansion project.

The worst part is – the dudes at the Royale are doing a good job. As far as big-ish, commercialized venues go, the Royale ain’t too bad: the stage is wide, the lighting is good, the room is swanky and the sound is pretty fantastic. It’s easy to go to their box office, the prices aren’t too bad (usually), and the shows are starting on time and are executed quite well.

Still, I have to remain indignant. For the majority of the ’00s, ever since that damn internet phase never phased out, record labels glared at music lovers who downloaded music illegally, traded songs over the internet among friends, and even streamed music from Last.fm. They went cross eyed from looking over their spectacles trying to figure out how they could continue to make money off those damn kids, who, for the most part, just wanted to listen to and spread the word about good music because it was what they loved, not because they wanted to rip off the bands. All the lawsuits, the impositions of higher fees on iTunes, Rhapsody, etc… it was all, in a sense, a panic that continues to sweep over every industry affected by the internet. And that’s a whole lot of industries.

Alas, fear not, corporation-mongers, sleep tight, swill merchants. Bands discovered that touring became the only way to make money these days, which led to the rise of concerts at affordable prices, and music lovers happily forking over cash to see shows. Therefore, it was only a matter of time before independent venues had to start competing with the booking power and money of something like Bowery Presents. Not so suprisingly, the Middle East, TT’s, Great Scott and all the other little guys seem to be feeling the damage. It’s sad, really, because everyone I know who goes to shows in Boston would much rather spend their money at the bars in Central Square and Allston than in the club-infested downtown area. The shows at the Royale are over by 10 p.m. on weekends, and when all the concert-goers walk out, the Pauly D blowouts and skintight mini dresses/too-high heels walk in. Who wants to see that? Not me.

So what will happen? I don’t think these small venues are really in grave danger yet, but there is a striking difference between where I’m seeing shows this fall versus last. There are still full bills at the independent venues almost every night, but bands like Menomena, Suckers and Real Estate (who would have been shoo-ins to play The Middle East a year ago) are going straight to the Royale.

Unfortunately, we only have so much time and money to spend on shows, and priority usually goes to the band we want to see, regardless of where they’re playing (unless they’re playing the Orpheum, because really? Fuck that shit). But at the same time, it’s important to keep supporting these independent venues, so if there is a show I want to see in good ol’ Central Sq. I’ll be there with bells on.

Oh and I’m ending this with a video of Hornets! Hornets! by the Hold Steady, because I just saw them at the Royale and it was awesome. And the title of this post is from the song. And the rest of the multimedia in this is just photos of clubs… and because I want to.