As a reference for touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information, requests, or complaints feel free to CONTACT US
The Ottobar reviewed by Curtis Crispin 2549 North Howard Street
Baltimore, MD 21218-4506 http://www.theottobar.com/
Pros: Great sound and performance area, good merch placement, decent band drinks; in-town venue with non-shitty parking
Cons: If you have a crappy show, it’s your own fault
The Dirty Marmaduke Flute Squad has been blessed with several opportunities to play at The Ottobar. Like The 8×10, The Ottobar hosts a mix of major national acts and local bands. We’ve played supporting and headlining bills there, including a show with Duff from Ace of Cakes, and opening for national touring act World Inferno Friendship Society. Also, probably to their regret, we’ve even been asked to organize our own show. Our most recent, and probably most memorable show at The Ottobar was Super Art Fight 6 last January. We were the musical support for an improv street-art cage match (a valuable lesson: be open to non-traditional shows and alternative ways to showcase your band; the Super Art Fight crowd was very receptive to our unique brand of nonsense.)
As you would expect from a dedicated music venue featuring national touring acts, you’ll get excellent sound support. The stage area is great too: sufficiently large and elevated, with good, unobstructed views for the crowd. The band drink deal isn’t lavish, but with two drink tickets per band member neither is it stingy. The Ottobar excels on the merch front. Unlike some of the major venues in town, they don’t make you hawk your wares in the basement. The bands get a nice stretch of table space across from the bar and adjacent to the bathrooms, ensuring good traffic by your merch.
Parking is a real plus. The Ottobar has its own free lot behind the venue. It does fill up (unless nobody’s coming to your show, of course), but since you’re a professional and you’re showing up at the appointed time for load-in, it won’t be a problem for you. It’s one of the few places we play in the city where we know there isn’t going to be some kind of hassle with parking.
If you get an opportunity to play The Ottobar, there are not a lot of drawbacks. However, you need to be diligent with your promotion. Although the venue is beloved and is a place where people will randomly drop in to check out the music, there’s not a lot of restaurant/bar foot traffic like you’ll get in Station North, Fells Point, or Federal Hill. You need to get your fans out, and call in your favors. Unless you’re incredible dumb-lucky like us, you won’t get asked back if you don’t bring people in.
If you get a chance to play The Ottobar, step up, get your fans out to support you, and be ready to kick some ass. It’s one of the best opportunities you’ll get in Baltimore to feel like a rock star.
*** If you like this post check out:
Venue Review: Fletchers – Where we openly bash one of the shittiest, now defunct, clubs Baltimore has ever known.
Venue Review: The Windup Space – Where we praise (and secretly wish to play again) one of Station North’s best multipurpose spaces.
As a reference for touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information, requests, or complaints feel free to CONTACT US
Pros: Great sound and legendary venue. Awesome green room and treatment of the bands.
Cons: Pricey cover makes it hard to get people in the door. Merch placement is remarkably terrible.
In Baltimore,The 8×10 has been a staple of the music scene for many years. Starting as a bare-bones venue that featured bands of all genres it soon grew into a place that hosted national touring acts. Some people who were in the midst of The 8×10’s hey-day fondly recall the fabulous drink specials, intimate shows, and great variety of music. Sometime in the early 00’s The 8×10 re-branded itself as The Funkbox and started featuring bands of the jammier variety. A few years later The Funkbox closed down and re-emerged as The 8×10 yet again.
The 8×10 is a bit of an anomaly these days. For example, while the venue doesn’t draw nearly as many national acts, it’s still tough for a local band to book a show. While it rests dead-center in the manically crowded Federal Hill bar scene, it still has a tough time getting people in the door. And while there are nearly 100 competing bars with no cover within walking distance, they still insist on charging something like $10 to $12 to see mostly unknown bands.
Playing at The 8×10 is a great experience if you can step up to the challenge of packing the place. Given the expensive cover (dictated by management) and lack of any real drink specials, it’s a tough sell. One thing that can be said to The 8×10’s legacy is that they care about how the music sounds. So if you play here, your band will be delighted by the sound system and supporting staff. Both on and offstage it’s one of the most technically legit places in the Baltimore region. And at the end of the evening the sound guy/girl will give you a CD of the board mix, which you can use to repeatedly revel in how (hopefully) great you were that night.
Another plus is that they are straight-up with the money. I can’t remember exactly how they paid the bands, but it seemed to be some sort of split of the door. It’s always nice when you don’t have to chase the manager down to get paid, so it’s to The 8×10’s credit that this process is streamlined. The band green-room (one of the best in town – it’s clean, there’s a shower, and the fridge is stocked with complimentary beer and bottled water!!!) is right next to the office. At the end of the night you simply walk over to the office and get your cut. Simple.
DMFS Plays Innocent Night @ The 8×10
Our only major beef with The 8×10 has nothing to do with the onstage experience. Rather, it’s that they insist that bands set up merch downstairs at a table right next to the bathrooms. This is a real debilitating thing for bands who depend on making some extra cash by selling merch. Not only is the established merch area out of eyesight of anyone watching the music, it is completely away from anywhere people hang out. So it’s really hard to convince some friends to staff the table, because they’ll be sitting alone by themselves all night next to a bathroom.
While the Flute Squad has only played The 8×10 twice, we can’t say it’s become one of our go-to venues to book a show. The reason for the fence-teetering is that while we love playing at venues with great sound and straight-up management, we really love playing at venues that have free or cheap cover charges and some decent drink specials so the crowd can get tipsy with us. Basically, our fans, like most people these days, aren’t exactly rolling in cash. So while they think we’re awesome and know they’ll have a good time at our shows, it’s tough to convince them to pay a $12 cover and $8/each for drinks (not to mention the hassle of finding parking in Federal Hill) at The 8×10 when there are three different venues at Station North with a cheaper cover charge, great line-ups, $1 Natty Bohs, and plenty of parking.
Here’s to hoping that that The 8×10 ups its game by developing a new business model similar to some of the newer happenin’ places around Baltimore.
*** If you like this post check out:
Venue Review: Fletchers – Where we openly bash one of the shittiest, now defunct, clubs Baltimore has ever known.
Venue Review: The Windup Space – Where we praise (and secretly wish to play again) one of Station North’s best multipurpose spaces.
As a reference to touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information CONTACT US
We were a pretty young band when playing at Sonar seemed like a big break. None of us knew much about the club, so when we walked in, and saw all three stages, it even felt like a big deal. They stuck us in the lounge area, which is still pretty impressive in terms of size and scope. So it’s important to say that if you’re planning on playing Sonar and don’t have a decent plan to get people in the door, don’t be surprised when the floor at the club looks pretty empty if you don’t produce a decent turnout. The place is built out of a warehouse, it’s freakin huge.
A lot of “What the…” moments happened to us for the first time at Sonar:
They set the door price at $10. It was a Wednesday night. There were no other events happening in the entire club that night.
They gave us tickets to sell. I wouldn’t expect Ticketmaster to write and record an album, so I’m not sure why it’s expected of bands to sell tickets. I am fundamentally against selling tickets to my own show, but I didn’t know this at the time.
After setting up and getting there super early (1-2 hours before) we set up our equipment, soundchecked and relaxed. Sometime passed after the show was actually supposed to begin and the sound guy was mysteriously missing. Soon after, we were told to “hit the stage.”
At one point in our set we hear in our monitor: “One more song guys.” A not-so-gracious heads-up. Come on, give us two maybe three more songs to wrap this bullshit up!
At the end of the night, I asked the door lady, “So did we make any money tonight?” Her: “No the club actually LOST alot of money tonight”
Alot of my gripes with Sonar was with the money situation. If a club is worried about making their nut, then for the life of me I can’t figure out why they will hire three security guards/doormen for a Wednesday night concert featuring local rock bands. Charging $10 at the door for the same type of show seems counter-intuitive as well.
With that being said, the sound was good both on and off the stage. And we managed to entertain a few of our friends. The drink policy was less than gracious towards the bands. I think it was something like two drinks per band. But what made it worse was that there were absolutely no drink specials that night, making Horsepower the wise one for bring his own Shiner Bock.
Sonar does a lot of things right: sub-mainstream rock shows, club DJ shows, even mainstream hiphop shows. So the point of this review is not necessarily to bash Sonar but rather to warn small bands. If you’re playing a BIG club, you’re not going to automatically turn into a BIG band. You’re just gonna look like a BIG asshole when you go ask for money at the end of the night. Make sure the show you’re putting on makes sense to the place where you are putting it on.
(Note: Sonar now includes The Talking Head Club as part of their venue which was not the case when we played this club. The Talking Head Club is meant strictly for smaller, local, and subversive music.)
***
If you like this article, check out:
Venue Review: Fletchers – Where we openly bash one of the shittiest, now defunct, clubs Baltimore has ever known.
Venue Review: The Windup Space – Where we praise (and secretly wish to play again) one of Station North’s best multipurpose spaces.
As a reference to touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information CONTACT US
Fletcher’s is one of the city clubs that has a bloated ego because it booked nationally touring acts back in the day, but is currently dying a slow, painful, and laughable death. (UPDATE: This post was written months ago, and alas FLETCHER’S IS DEAD)
We’ve played here on numerous occasions, usually paired with some sort of “event” like 98 Rock’s Noise In The Basement or the lame Baltimore Music Conference. While there are many stories to tell about those event shows, I’ll save them and just talk about the venue.
Besides the fact that the sound and the actual size of the venue are actually really nice compared to most Baltimore venues, Fletcher’s is pretty much a big waste of time. They make you show up WAY too early (5pm for a show where the doors open at 8pm? What is the point of that!?). There is a complete lack of accountability management-wise. When you go ask for your money they make up some excuse about having to pay the soundman or something. I’ve heard these lines a million times, and they never cease to put a bad taste in my mouth. Want a band tab? You got it, as long as you are willing to pay in full on your credit card because these guys aren’t cutting you a break.
Oh and one more thing. For some reason there is ALWAYS about 2 or 3 big surly bouncers at this place even on the emptiest nights. This is bad for two reasons:
The fans that actually come out will have the looming fear that they are going to get their asses beat.
These guys are standing around and eating up the money you made from the door.
Too many of these management trends plague clubs that had their hey-day in the early 90′s. The unfortunate thing is that instead of adjusting to a more freewheeling business model (ie: no cover, paying bands a cut of the bar) they continue to raise door prices and treat bands as entertainment cattle. Unfortunately for Fletcher’s, it looks like it’s a race to the bottom. (UPDATE: IT DEFINITELY WAS!)
As a reference for touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information CONTACT US
Three words why we always have a good time at The Windup Space: Dune. Rock. Opera.The guys from Bene Gesserit Witch keep inviting us to play at The Windup Space, and it’s that rare gig where we don’t have the most elaborate costumes of the night.
The Windup Space is at the high end of the non-dedicated music venues we’ve played at.There isn’t any backstage area, but they do have a decent sized stage area and the venue itself is fairly large. The PA and sound guy are solid (my personal experience has been good: he helped me kill the feedback on my acoustic bass) and the sound has been good for us and the other bands on the bill.
There’s always a good crowd, and while we’d like to take credit for that the real reason is The Windup Space itself and the heavy foot traffic in the Station North Arts District. I know performers are going to have a hard time with this, but try to show up early. Parking will fill up on North Avenue, so unless you want to park on the side streets under a blue light and lug your gear a few blocks, get there at the earliest time for load-in. Then go get a pizza at Joe Squared or some New York Fried Chicken and have a couple beers back at The Windup Space.
I rate the band-booze situation as above-average. They do a ticket scheme, I think 2-3 per member (we always seem to end up with more than enough), good for imports as well as swill. At venues that do drink tickets, Nikc will frequently offer his up to the first person who buys merch, or sometime just give them away, which makes a nice (although honestly not always effective) promotional tool.
As a reference for touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information CONTACT US
Sinix Rock Club reviewed by Nikc Miller 525 Eastern Blvd Essex, MD 21221 sinixrox.com
Pros: Good chance you will be playing music for people who appreciate seeing new live music. Big stage, decent sound system.
Cons:No bar tab. You might have an inexperienced soundguy.
Sinix (formerly Mac’s) is the kind of venue that you hate to book because it’s not in the city. But once you play the show you rethink your whole approach to booking gigs. The venue is an enigma. City media outlets won’t report on your show because it’s out of their jurisdiction (or because they’re just snobs, who knows?) Yet there is a dedicated built-in crowd on the weekends, and a pretty decent amount of people stroll through on the weekdays too. The built-in crowd is not something that comes naturally to Baltimore. Most popular music venues in the city will be completely empty on nights where there is not a major act on stage. But once you get out into the working class neighborhoods, the spot is the spot, no matter who is playing.The added bonuses of Sinix are the huge stage, the great sound system, and the feeling that you stepped into a time machine and landed at some cool rock club called “The Emporium” in the late 1980′s.
While the PA is great for the level of venue, the sound can be a little bit spotty. At the time of this review, we’ve played Sinix three times (twice when it was still Mac’s). Twice it sounded awesome, and the soundguys were very responsive to what we were doing. The other time we had a soundguy who for some reason didn’t turn up our lead guitar at all, despite explaining our setup beforehand and repeated requests during the set.
The times we’ve played at Sinix there was no band tab (pretty cheap if you ask me), but they were fair and gave us all of the door money. Odds are, a show at Sinix is not going to be a great payday. But if you believe in “respect-bucks” you can expect the locals to get pretty excited if you do something original. They will come up and tell you how awesome you are if they like you. I imagine they will tell you how much they hate you if they think you suck. At a place like Sinix neither response translates into very much in merch sales but it is a great feeling to play for a responsive crowd.
As a reference to touring bands we are attempting to create a library of reviews of the venues we have played. Most of these venues are in and around the Baltimore area. We attempt to review the venues from the perspective of a performing band (sound, environment, staff, money situation, etc.) For more specific information CONTACT US
Yes, it smells like cat piss in the basement. Yes, the bathrooms barely work, and the sink is more of a pipe sticking out of the wall. But to leave it at that is to completely disregard the accomplishments the Charm City Art Space has realized over its 7-year existence. CCAS remains as the longest-running DIY space in Baltimore City, with more than 500 shows to its credit. All this, without any paid employees, and having a strict “no-drugs, no-alcohol” policy in effect.
The performance area (the basement of the Baltimore rowhouse in which CCAS is located) is relatively small; while a four-member band should have no problem, it may be difficult to fit larger bands in there and the low ceiling prevents HorsePower from standing at full height. Before you go on, you store your gear in the basement’s back room, next to the sump pump and gas meter. The sound system, though small when compared to typical clubs, is adequate for the space’s size. You steady your equipment with the spare cinder blocks sitting around in the basement. Combine the cat urine smell with the lack of air conditioning and/or heat, and it can become rather uncomfortable for those who are environmentally demanding. It’s generally a low- to no-frills kind of performance space, and most gigs tend to be “nasty, brutish, and short,” as the man says regarding comparatively uncivilized spaces.
That said, there are a lot of things going for the CCAS. Nikc mentioned to me that they’ve always been straight when dealing with bands and the cash they’ve earned for the night. Sometimes the staff will buy dinner (pizzas from around the corner), and share with everyone, and STILL give you your door take. And the street-level space is comfortable, and serves as the home to one of the most comprehensive zine libraries I’ve ever seen. Although there’s no drinking in the CCAS, there are plenty of watering holes in the nearby blocks (such as “The Gallery” and “Club Charles”), and technically there’s no rule against rolling into the club already inebriated.
We’ve played there a couple of times, with varying levels of success. I personally love their space, and enjoyed our gigs there (though I’m more partial to old-skool screaming punk and DIY venues than pretty much anyone else in the band). It seems more like a house party than an official gig. I’ve been there a handful of times when the entire basement is literally packed with people and there’s barely room for space between the performers and the audience. If you’re just starting out, if you appreciate the DIY aesthetic, or happen to be on tour and need an odd weekday slot filled at last minute, CCAS is the place to be.
