Blind item! What downtown venue was behind screwing over yet another band? We never did like blind items, so we'll just tell you through part of this letter we received from the disgruntled band behind the latest booking botch-up:We had a really bad experience at the Annex, on Orchard St. last night. Basically we showed up for a 5:00 load in to find out that our show had been canceled. The two other bands on......

The Lion's Den, which has hosted everyone from Ben Folds to jamband fan-faves Disco Biscuits since they opened in 1990 -- will be shutting their doors at the end of the year. And come January 2nd, they'll reopen...as a 345 capacity venue called Sullivan Hall. (Fear not explorers, the secret passageway to The Sullivan Room will most likely still be intact.) Why change the name? Maybe they want to leave their dank past behind,......

A few days ago The Apiary suspected that someone was out to get Rififi after reading some new comments on an old post about the multi-purpose venue, and hearing their liquor license was about to expire. One of the managers, Karin Stanley, quickly responded -- confirming the site's suspicions:Unfortunately you are correct, there is a smear campaign being perpetrated against Rififi by some of the tenants in the surrounding buildings. They are intent on ousting......

Well well well, when we reported in August that Lido Bar in Red Hook would be closing we were met with many emails and comments stating this was 100% untrue. Bar manager Molly Franklin even held strong that Lido Bar would remain open and that this was nothing more than "bar gossip." Earlier this week we received an email from one of the "insiders" stating "Lido actually *is* closing in the next couple weeks (next......

Last week demolition was underway at the former CBGB. At the time Racked put their money on a Duane Reade taking over the space, but today The Post reports that John Varvados will be opening a chic boutique in the old punk rock palace. With his eye on a Spring opening, it's unclear how much of the 13,000 square feet will be taken over by the designer. Before you get your black leather punk......

These days people tend to complain about Webster Hall more than they praise it. The drinks are expensive (even a water will set you back 4 bucks), the shows are too early and the nightclubs below the venue's main room are hopping with the B&T; crowd. On the other hand, the stage has hosted some great bands, and the lighting always looks nice...so it may just be time to pay some respect to the place......

Earlier this month the NY Post reported that Mo Pitkin's House of Satisfaction might be closing, which was met with a letter from the owners saying the Post "as usual, mixed fact with fiction." Last night a reader sent over the following letter, written by the same folks, which was sent to performers of the space:We're sorry to say, but Mo Pitkin's will be closing on October 20th, 2007, with a closing night party/performance......

The Village Voice is reporting that Hilly Kristal was a millionaire. Not really surprising considering the owner of CBGB, who claimed to be broke, ran more than just a venue. Just look at all those kids wearing their Urban Outfitters t-shirts with the club's logo on it. Those cost money! So does everything branded with their logo at their own store.Just weeks after the legendary former CBGB owner passed away, his heirs—who thought Kristal was......

Last night Bowery Presents new Brooklyn venue, the Music Hall of Williamsburg, was supposed to open with 'ol New York rocker Patti Smith. Perhaps it's fitting that the opening night didn't go as planned, and instead the new New York rock regime (Brooklynites Matt & Kim) will now christen the new stage tonight. At least...that's what they're saying. As of right now the venue will be opening in about 6 hours. But as of......

Did you hear about the new arts and music venue opening in Fort Greene? Well, chances are that all of the blood, sweat, tears and money (over $1M) that went into it may have been for nothing. Amber Art and Music Space was being built out of an old liquor store at Fulton Street and Ashland Place by three friends who are now being told they can no longer develop the space. At the end......

This really is turning out to be the year of the venue -- with more openings, closings, re-brandings, re-namings and articles written about the places we go see music than ever before. Now with the latest Bowery Presents venue (The Music Hall of Williamsburg) opening next week, there's another article in The Times. The piece starts out describing the complex acoustic design that one might "expect to see in a multimillion-dollar concert hall in Berlin......

Just as we were looking over amNewYork's story on CBGB, sad news has come in. Hilly Kristal, who opened the club in 1973, died yesterday. Battling cancer for some time, the 75 year old had quite the last year -- seeing many celebrate his legendary club upon its closing last October. Kristal, also a singer/songwriter, opened the club while it was only $600/month to rent out and he had visions of showcasing country, bluegrass and......

The ACMA (Alliance for Creative Music Action) is a group of musicians, artists and supporters of the arts who are joining together "as a pressure group to bring awareness about the needs of art in our communities." Tonight they'll be holding a Town Hall Meeting, demanding that the city provide "an adequate subsidized performance space in Manhattan." The meeting will be held just a block away from Tonic, a recent casualty amongst downtown performance spaces.......

In their quest to take over New York, Bowery Presents is opening yet another venue! Ask just about anyone (and we have) and they'll say that the Bowery Ballroom is their favorite place to see and/or play music - so who better to open even more spaces than the creators of that one? The latest establishment will be in Midtown and is called Terminal 5 (the old Club Exit). Currently there are no photos, but......

In 2005 fans of heavy metal were darker than usual when their mecca, L'Amour, closed up shop after a teenager was killed while diving into the mosh pit. The club had been going strong for two decades throughout which time they booked many rising stars - Metallica, for one. Any metal band worth their weight in black jeans and double-neck guitars soon stopped by to play, even after they had made it big (like KISS).......

The Copacabana, perhaps best known as the muse for Barry Manilow's song of the same name, is closing this weekend (the papers are reporting last night, however their website has a flyer for a Last Dance, tonight). The club has been around since WWII, and was at one point a staple stop in New York's nightlife circuit. Having already had to move three times, finding a new home isn't something new for owner (since 1976)......

North 6th Street has been quiet with music venue Northsix shutting its door in January, and with Galapagos pretty much closing its doors this summer. However, after murmurings of the upcoming Music Hall of Williamsburg opening, not opening, having problems opening...for months, there's finally a date to mark on the calendar for the venue, which has been slowly taking over the Northsix space (and thensome?). The Music Hall of Williamsburg will be run by the......

With brick and mortar sales declining, and the future of the music industry uncertain - at least live shows are always dependable. Sure, there are a lot of venues closing, but how about the ones thriving? The NY Times reports on some of the big players in the New York venue scene. In New York heated competition among concert promoters has driven a building spree of small and midsize spaces over the last two years.......

Knitting Factory has made it possible for concert-goers to purchase tickets via text message, through a partnership with ShopText. How does it work? Concertgoers first create an account using their mobile phone, an email address and credit card--and ShopText gives them a unique PIN for future transactions. Once they spot a Knitting Factory concert listing, fans purchase tickets by texting the event's unique show code to the number 467467 (GO-SHOP), using the PIN for payment.......

There have been murmurs of Galapagos moving from its current space for a while now. The Burg even did an entire episode about saving it. From that show: "Galapagos is many ways is the heart of Williamsburg, the oldest consistently operating bar in the area, it's been around for seven years - it's historic. And now I hear Clear Channel's trying to buy it." "I hate Clear Channel, first McCarren Park Pool and now this!"......

What will become of mainstay clam bar Little Charlie's once it closes shop later this year? The 5,500 square foot space at 19 Kenmare Street (which includes a basement and first floor) will turn in to a burlesque haven later this year, housing Ivan Kane's famous show Forty Deuce (originally named for 42nd Street). With tiered seating and a stage, the new space will be part of the transformation happening in the 14,000 square foot......

AMNY continues the ongoing story about clubs and venues in New York closing. They report on the irony of it all: "Images of edgy nightclub Sin-é are flashed on oversized plasma screens in the sales office of a new condominium development. Buyers, lured by the mystique of the Lower East Side's arts and music scene, pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to live at the center of it. A few years later that same edgy......

NY Mag recently talked about the unexpectedness of the High Line brand. Of course venues are rebranding more and more, but the High Line is taking it to a new level - as it is, and started out as, much more than just a venue. With a festival curated by David Bowie, a neighborhood with proposed condos that allow residents to park their car on an elevator right next to their living space, and of......

With all this talk about venues closing, opening, renaming and branding themselves...it's easy for the little venues that aren't so publicized to get lost in the shuffle. Perhaps that's good, because once you find a nice small (no drink minimum) jazz club, you don't want everyone to know about it. However, you want it to stay in business, too. Over In Brooklyn (the blog) has a list of jazz spots in the borough, and a......

Yesterday a press conference on the steps of City Hall was held in response to the eviction and closing of Tonic, the downtown venue that shut its doors after nine years. A committee of musicians, cultural activists, and supporters made a call for public and political intervention to protect new music/indie/avant/jazz in New York City and to ask the city to provide a minimum 200 capacity, centrally located venue for experimental music. From the press......

Ever wanted to know what it might be like to join Iggy and The Stooges on stage? Last night they played United Palace Theater, and some of those who made the journey to 175th Street were rewarded by being invited on stage with the band. Here's a video which describes the chaos more accurately than words could: United Palace Theater is of course the venue that has recently begun to host shows (mostly booked by......

It seems a week doesn't go by without more news of venues closing. This week The Real Deal reports that the 27,000-square-foot building that houses the roughly 11,000 square foot Knitting Factory, is up for sale. The sale, which includes the venue and 18 decontrolled residential loft apartments, is expected to go for $15 million or more. With last years announcement of Knitting Factories opening up all over the country (maybe even Boise, Idaho!),......

Recently at our show in Austin, the mayor of that city discussed the importance of keeping live music (and the venues it is played in) alive by supporting it (over, say, sports). You can watch his speech here. With that in mind, it seems New York has been losing venues left and right as of late. The latest word is that Mercury Lounge may be closing, though it's unconfirmed - and we're really hoping......

March 10th marked the last day The Roxy would open its doors. The club shut down after years of being a mainstay, especially in the gay nightlife scene. The Roxy was a rite of passage for many gay New Yorkers, and according to New York Blade writer Matt Kalkhoff, "an essential stop on any gay tourist’s agenda.” This past Saturday night the doors opened at 10pm, and the club ended up staying opened until......

We got an email from Northsix owner Jeff Steinhauser today, regarding the post we had written about the venue (or rather, the future venue Music Hall of Williamsburg). The post was pointing to an article on Brooklyn Record (who took down their post), which was referring to a Brooklyn Star article. The Brooklyn Star article was apparently vastly unresearched and for the most part, untrue (expect a retraction from them). Steinhauser has provided us with......