Despite the economy, new clubs are opening all the time, so we update this page on a regular basis. Apologies for the occasional typo, and the weird spacing in places. The gremlins go wild every time this gets updated, so please be patient - we’ll fix the whole thing sooner or later.
And a word about the subway directions here: if you’re relying on the subway to get you to a club and then home, it never hurts to check the NYC Transit website (make sure to check both the weekly travel advisory and the weekend summary), especially if you’re traveling on the weekend or after midnight. If you’re visiting New York, the weekly, $25 unlimited-ride subway card is your best buy: for the price of one cab ride from Manhattan to Brooklyn, you get unlimited rides on both the subway and bus for a full week.
9 Great Jones St. just east of Lafayette
under the excellent Acme New Orleans-style restaurant
B/D/6 to Broadway-Lafayette/Bleecker St.
Vastly underutilized downstairs space, formerly Acme Underground, no longer operated by the upstairs restaurant. Big stage with excellent sound; long, wide room with a few tables along the right side; cheap cover; small, expensive drinks (no draft beer). Musicians like playing here, but they hardly ever have good bands: it’s mostly wretched grunge/metal stuff, since the PA is powerful and the sound is loud. Every now and then they’ll have a good country music night. No Nazi factor to speak of, and if you’re hungry you can always go upstairs (brave souls should try Acme’s cajun martini: it’ll scorch your insides for hours afterward).
Ave. C and 7th St.
L to 1st Ave., walk south and east; F/J/M/Z to Delancey, walk north and east; or M14D bus which stops at 10th St. and Ave. C
This place just makes you want to laugh: their website lists events like “Jessica’s bachelorette party” (probably not open to the public – but who cares). A couple of years ago, it was one of the places where just about any band, no matter how bad or unpopular, could get a gig. And who wanted to play here, anyway: drinks were expensive (no draft beer), the sound sucked and there was always a throng of out-of-state yuppie puppies lined up at the door after the bands were finished, waiting to pay a cover to get in and listen to Eddie Money, Boston and Air Supply piped over the PA. From the looks of things, it doesn’t look like new ownership has changed things much: bands still play on the balcony facing the front door, the bar is still along the left wall, the sound is still loud and often frightfully bad, and drinks are expensive. And they really bumrush you out of there after the music is over and the yuppie puppies are lined up and panting at the door.
16 Beaver St., financial district
2/4/6/A/C/M/Z to Fulton St., walk south along either Broadway or William to Beaver
Although relatively little-known to the general public, this Arab cultural center is very popular with immigrants from every corner of the diaspora and fills up quickly: early arrival is highly recommended. They don’t have music every night, but when they do, it is outstanding, a mix of traditional sounds, jazz and even experimental stuff. They also host a wide variety of literary and dramatic events. Admission is cheap ($10 or $15, typically), considering what you get here, with a student discount available. You come off the elevator and immediately you’re in the space, which is set up like a small auditorium. Seating is not reserved. Beverages or light snacks are available in the office to the left as you walk in. The staff here are uncommonly professional and helpful. This is a great place to see groups or performers with a wide following in the Arab community who may be flying under the radar otherwise.
Orchard between Stanton and Rivington, east side of the street
F/V to 2nd Ave.
Midsize music venue in the old Bar 11 space. You’d think that simply by default, it’d be an improvement on what used to be here, but no. High ceilings; you walk into the music room with a bar to the right and one in the front around the corner from the stage. The sound is lousy, and earsplitting: it’s by far the loudest venue in New York, as loud as the Continental used to be, maybe more. Drinks are expensive and the place is the LES’ trendoid hangout du jour. There was recently a flyer on the door advertising the owner’s twentieth anniversary of his New Jersey bar mitzvah, which pretty much says it all. The staff here are rude and obnoxious, and bands are treated with disdain. Most good acts won’t play here for obvious reasons.
Stanton between Orchard and Ludlow, south side of the street
F/V to 2nd Ave.
There’s a small bar as you walk in, with the music room to your left and down the stairs. This place has the potential to be an excellent-sounding room but seldom is, more a fault of the sound personnel rather than their excellent system. This isn’t really a hangout (other than the adjacent bar which becomes a tourist trap on the weekends). Drinks are on the pricy side although they have shot-and-shitbeer specials, and the bartenders are nice. The Nazi factor depends on who’s working the door. They can get really nasty here. The quality of the acts who play here has taken a turn for the worse: sad, because this place had a regular rotation of solidly good New York bands when it first opened over ten years ago. Lately they’ve tried things along the lines of flip cup competitions and all-girl jello wrestling for the fratboy contingent, a good indication of how fucked up the neighborhood has become.
Artland
no website
609 Grand St. between Driggs and Roebling, Williamsburg
L to Bedford Ave., go down Bedford to Grand and hang a left, or J/M/Z to Marcy Ave., walk north on Havemeyer past the bus depot to Grand and hang a left.
This dingy little bar has occasional music, from jazz to acoustic acts to the occasional rock bands who play in the back of the club after they flip the pool table up on its side. The PA isn’t very powerful, but it’s a small space and the crowd surprisingly comes to listen, more often than not. This is a laid-back place where everything you can sit on looks like it was rescued from a dumpster. Drinks aren’t cheap (no draft beer), but the staff is nice.
Surf Ave and W 5th St., Coney Island
Any train to Stilwell Ave; the closest actual stop is W 8th on the F line. Walk away from the Cyclone, or if you’re getting off at W 8th, the aquarium
Free outdoor concerts are held here on Thursday nights in July and August, mostly nostalgia acts from the 50s to the 80s. The stage is huge and the sound projects well, so you can hang in the back and still hear ok. The place will be crawling with cops, so keep that bottle well-concealed: they have quotas to make. It’s free if you bring a blanket or stand on the lawn or along the side of the park, but they charge admission if you want to sit in the area where the chairs are. Be aware that bills that include more than one artist may give the opener or the supporting acts only a few minutes onstage, so it may not be worth coming out here if that’s who you want to see.
155 Bleecker at Thompson St.
A/B/D/C/E/F to W 4th St.
Actually not a bad place to hang out at, if you must kill time in this neighborhood. They have cheap beer and a surprisingly nice bar staff. The music is typically Bleecker St. lame, usually singer-songwriters doing covers on the stage to the right of the bar. The sound isn’t bad, but it doesn’t really make a difference, considering who’s playing.
W 3rd between MacDougal and Sullivan, downstairs
A/B/D/C/E/F to W 4th St.
This dingy Bleecker St.-style blue-collar tourist bar, formerly the Sun Mountain, closed its doors in May, 2008.
Balanza
no website
426 Lorimer St. at Ten Eyck, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
L/G to Lorimer St. and walk south about 3 minutes, away from Pete’s Candy Store; J to Hewes St., walk two blocks along Broadway, left on Union, right on Ten Eyck, about a 7 minute walk.
This neighborhood Spanish bar has occasional rock bands on the small stage in the back. Drinks are surprisingly expensive (no draft beer), although the staff is nice. The sound is dodgy, but they don’t charge a cover and it’s a laid-back, old-school Williamsburg vibe.
Banjo Jim’s
Southeast corner of Ave. C and 9th St.
L to 1st Ave. or 6/N/R to Union Square; you can catch the M14 crosstown bus if you want a shorter walk. Look for the M14D which goes down Ave. C. and stops a block north.
For better or for worse, this tiny little corner bar, formerly country outpost 9C has become the place in Manhattan to see acoustic music. They’ve removed the railing that used to enclose the space where the bands play, to the left as you walk in; the bar extends along the right and in front of you, with a couple of small couches in the right corner. Booking has gotten really good here lately, with country, jazz, oldtimey and even world music in addition to a usually good crop of songwriters, many of whom have fled the Living Room in disgust. Because it’s so small, the sound is good and often excellent, and to the club’s credit, they keep the piano in tune. Drinks are priced to the suburban contingent, although they have cheap canned beer. It’s not a hangout but will become one if the owners stay on track and keep booking good talent. Despite the neighborhood, there are no little Hitlers to be found anywhere, and other than the occasional night when they have Jersey/Westchester American Idol wannabe types playing here (some of the hacks who follow in Snorah Jones’ orbit basically use the club as a rehearsal room), the tourists who clog this neighborhood on the weekends go elsewhere. Be aware that on nights when the most popular acts play here, it can get very crowded; early arrival is advised.
444 7th Avenue
(corner of 15th Street & 7th Avenue), Park Slope, Brooklyn
F to 7th Ave.
This small, dark, boxy bar used to be a punk rock joint, now it’s an acoustic place. They don’t have music every night. Not reviewed as/of 5/08
Bar on A
no website
170 Ave. A at 11th St.
Laid-back neighborhood bar with occasional music on the stage to the left of the U-shaped bar where they have tables and couches: go left when you enter through the working door, on the bar’s south side. The PA is pretty primitive, so when they have music - not every night - it’s usually singer-songwriters. Nice bar staff, absolutely no Nazis to be seen anywhere, drinks aren’t cheap but they aren’t super expensive either, and the tourists have yet to discover this place other than on the weekends.
Bar Tabac
the club’s website is useless
128 Smith St., corner of Dean, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn
F to Bergen St.
Owned by the same people who brought you Jules, Le Singe Vert and Cafe Noir, this pricy, popular corner bistro has Belgian beer, mediocre faux-French food and occasionally jazz acts (Michael Arenella’s bracing Sunday brunch show, starting around half past noon, is reliably good) who play in the window by the door. The staff is nice and there’s absolutely no Nazi factor, but be aware that in the summer, they frequently leave the doors open, so it can get uncomfortably hot here.
***RATED BEST BROOKLYN VENUE 2008***
corner of 6th Ave. and 9th St., Park Slope, Brooklyn
F to 7th Ave. and walk downhill
Believe the hype: there is a good act playing here virtually every night, something no other New York area venue can boast. Basically, this is what Tonic used to be, relocated to Park Slope. Day in, day out, Barbes books more exciting music than any other venue in town (maybe anywhere in the world, outside of Beirut or Cairo, anyway), a diverse bunch of jazz, oldtimey, Americana, gypsy and world music acts from every corner of the globe (basically the same people that used to play Tonic, minus some of the outsider jazz guys and the trendoids with their laptops and hand-held video games). The theme here is Gallic: the place is named after Barbes-Rochechouart, a formerly seedy, rapidly gentrifying Arab neighborhood in Paris. The back room here is tiny, smaller than even Pete’s Candy Store and just a tad bigger than the Rockwood, and the bands who play here always fill it. Consequently, it’s best to show up early (about 15 minutes before showtime) if you want to get into the music room, especially if you want a seat. Since it’s cozy back there, the sound is usually superb. They frequently pipe the music from the back room in over the bar, but it’s generally inaudible, whenever the bar is crowded (like it usually is) Like Tonic, Barbes draws a mixed crowd: jazzcats, trendoids, neighborhood folks and friends of the bands who play here. Drinks aren’t overwhelmingly expensive and as you’d expect from a place run by Frenchmen, they have a good wine list. The Nazi factor is nonexistent. Although the waitress will very strongly suggest a $10 contribution to the bands’ tip jar on nights when there is no cover charge, your donation is strictly voluntary if you’re low on cash. The house band, Chicha Libre - practitioners of chicha, an intoxicatingly danceable blend of surf, psychedelia and traditional Peruvian cumbia music - play here every Monday night around 10 and are deliriously fun (the band is taking a break in August, 2008; they’ll be back here on Mondays in September.)
1/2/9 to Bowling Green or 4/6/A/C/J/M/Z to Fulton/Broadway-Nassau, walk south and east about 10 minutes
There are occasionally free shows here during the summer, including an annual 4th of July show. Attend at your own risk: parts of the park are fenced off for no apparent reason other than to severely limit the amount of space for concertgoers. As a result, you have to show up ridiculously early to get in, or take your chances and wait forever in a ridiculously long line that reaches almost all the way around the park. You may not get close enough to the stage to hear much. There will be only one entrance/exit, further complicating matters when it’s time to leave. Not the funnest place you could be on the 4th.
237 West 42 St
B/D/N/R/1/2/9 to 42nd St., or walk from the A/C/E or the 6
Despite its Disneyland location – and the fact that the King of the Blues has no more to do with this than Roy Rogers had to do with all those fried chicken places - this isn’t a bad place to see bands. Booked by the same people who own the Blue Note, they surprisingly draw some good acts: soul music, metal, reggae and even hip-hop. It’s a pretty big space. The space is downstairs, a long bar to your left as you walk in, tables toward the front, and plenty of standing room between them and the bar. Drinks are predictably pricy, the food is lousy, but the staff won’t hassle you and the sound is excellent. Beware: some shows are obscenely expensive, $75 or more. They also have free blues, pretty much nightly, at the adjacent, smaller Lucille’s bar (use the door on your right).
74th and Broadway
1/2/9 to 72nd St.
Not a bad seat in the house at this excellent-sounding, big-ticket old Gilded Age theatre. If price is an issue – orchestra seating is frequently even more expensive than the peanut gallery – choose the peanut gallery. Acts who play here are mostly older national touring rock bands and singer-songwriters. Tickets are predictably expensive: advance tix, available M-F 11-5 at their box office are absolutely necessary, as this place usually sells out, sometimes fast. Don’t try to bring alcohol or other beverages in here: you will be frisked. Bootlegging, on the other hand, is possible if you are discreet about it (keep that little red light hidden). Don’t waste your money on the tiny drinks they serve in little clear plastic cups. There is only one way in or out, through the front doors; you might want to station yourself close to an exit at the end of the show to beat the crowd. Be careful not to fall onto the tracks at the 72nd St. subway station: it’s the narrowest platform in the entire system.
315 W 44th between 8th and 9th Ave.
A/C/E to 42nd St/Port Authority
Legendary, pricy restaurant row jazz club named after Charlie Parker. Swanky as you can expect: table service, expensive drinks and mediocre, overpriced food. Strangely, they only book jazz here about half the time these days; otherwise, it’s a gay cabaret club. Most of the big-name acts who play here are priced beyond the means of most working people, but they’ll sometimes have niche acts for about a $25 cover, sometimes even less. The sound is outstanding as you would expect for the prices they charge. The staff are surprisingly nice, absolutely no Nazi factor, but the Vanguard is still your best bet for marquee-caliber jazz in New York.
Bleecker between LaGuardia and Thompson
A/C/E/B/D/F to West 4th St., take the exit on the south side
The stage is to your right as you enter, with tables in front of it and then beyond it all the way to the back of the club. Being on the Bleecker St. strip, this place books mostly out-of-town suburban acts lost in the 70s: lots of James Taylor and Foreigner wannabes. Which is a shame, because the sound has the potential to be excellent (it isn’t often, though, perhaps because the stage monitors aren’t positioned properly, and they feed back). There’s a cover: people don’t just come here to drink and hang out. The staff here are surprisingly nonchalant: if you aren’t an obvious NYU student with fake ID, you won’t have any trouble getting in. Not that you’d want to, considering the kind of acts who play here. Drinks are predictably Bleecker St. expensive. Once in a blue moon they’ll have a good New York songwriter or rock act.
Southeast corner of Metropolitan and Havemeyer, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, across the street from Luna Lounge. L/G to Lorimer, walk alongside the BQE slightly downhill past the pizza place and under the overpass, the club is on the left about 5 blocks from the subway.
It’s a Middle Eastern restaurant with good if somewhat pricy food in front, a bar and music room off to the side. The sound isn’t all that great and kind of loud for a pretty small room with just the bar, a couch and a few tables, but it isn’t really a music venue. Rev. Vince Anderson (a New York institution whom you should see at least once in your life) plays here on Mondays, and there’s sometimes music on Tuesdays but not on the weekends. This is a trendoid hangout, so drinks are on the pricy side: it’s not a place you’d want to make your local. Although the waitstaff and bartenders are nice. As you’d expect at a Brooklyn place, there’s no Nazi factor. Other than Rev. Vince on Monday nights and the occasional band, they don’t have much music here anymore.
38th St. just west of 5th Ave, next door to where Cedars of Lebanon used to be
N/R/B/D/F to 34th. or 6 to 33rd.
Midtown Irish pub/restaurant basically just like the others in this local chain…except that this one has live music on the weekends. Go figure: it’s not set up to be a venue (although there is a high stage in the back) and the sound is loud and awful. And shows run way behind schedule here, as much as a couple of hours. And the promoters don’t have a clue: they’ll put a Boston heavy metal band on for a whole hour, while a New York band’s crowd is waiting patiently for their friends to go on. And then the New York band will get barely a half hour onstage, sometime after midnight. The staff here is uniformly nice, the food is ok, but drinks are midtown expensive and there are innumerable other venues that don’t come with all the geographical and logistical hassles that are seemingly built into this one.
W 3rd just east of Sixth Ave.
A/C/E/B/D/F to W 4th, take the southside exit
The sign over the entrance should be in Japanese, since that’s the crowd that comes here these days. This place was a great jazz club, most likely before you were born, and vestiges of that remain: the sound is superb. But the prices are beyond the reach of the average New Yorker: cover, dinner and drinks will set you back over $100 apiece, and the food is lousy. Even “bar seating” – which means that you’ll be on your feet for the duration of the show, and will have to crane your neck to see much of anything – will probably set you back at least $50 if you include the two-drink minimum. And the booking here is a mixed bag, with Pan-American or European performers and the occasional jazz legend interspersed among Lite FM-style elevator jazz acts. Occasionally they’ll have a rock act. On Friday and Saturdays nights, after the main acts are done, they have funk and fusion at reduced prices. Surprisingly, there’s no Nazi factor: the harried waitstaff has a hard enough time squeezing through the crowds of tourists to make sure everybody gets their check.
Delancey St. just east of Bowery
J/M/Z to Bowery or F to 2nd Ave., walk south and west
New York’s best-sounding midsize venue, a big, high-ceilinged space with a horseshoe-shaped balcony and bar upstairs, a spacious bar with couches downstairs, through which you go to get into the main room. After the bands are done the downstairs bar is open to the public: it’s a great place to be away from all the tourists in the wee hours. National touring acts and the most popular New York bands play here, so the crowd depends on who you’ve come out to see. Drinks except for beer are pricy. The door people and staff look imposing but are actually nice. If you have to choose between seeing a band here and a similar-sized venue like Irving Plaza or Webster Hall, go to the Bowery Ballroom show. Note that this place frequently sells out: advance tickets are a must, available at the Mercury Lounge before 7 PM.
308 Bowery, across the street from where CBs Gallery used to be
6 to Bleecker St./B/D/F to Broadway-Lafayette, J/M/Z to Bowery
Music is becoming more of a staple here: they have shows about 50% of the time, rock as well as hip-hop, jazz and the occasional singer-songwriter. The stage is angled to the right, in back, with rows of folding chairs. There’s a makeshift bar, as at the Nuyorican, but drinks are small and expensive. The sound is actually pretty good, better than you would think in this comfortably dingy, warehouse-ish space. Cover is cheap if not free and there are absolutely no Nazis to be found anywhere, impressive considering the neighborhood. They also have also excellent, inexpensive, premade sandwiches available in the fridge on the right, just as you walk in
30 Lafayette Ave., Brooklyn Heights
The closest train is actually the G to Fulton St.; BAM is only half a block away. Otherwise take any train to Atlantic Ave.
Ironically, BAM has mostly movies these days although they frequently have free concerts upstairs in the spacious, high-ceilinged BAM Cafe. The performers are usually first-rate, drinks are expensive, Nazis conspicuous in their absence, and the PA is underpowered: find yourself a spot in the alcoves along the left wall, where nobody will hassle you as long as you don’t stand in front of the metal grates between them. The big, main space has tiered seating; the excellent sound and high ticket prices (advance tix from the BAM box office are a must) are comparable to the Beacon Theatre.
Brooklyn Bridge Park Tobacco Warehouse
Plymouth St. at Dock St., Dumbo, Brooklyn
F to York St. or A/C to Cadman Plaza - walk down Jay all the way to the water, then take a left on Plymouth and go straight about four blocks (the entrance on Water St. is now closed due to construction).
The old warehouse is something of a misnomer, since its roof was taken off. Free concerts are held here under a tent, throughout the summer. Lately the space has been turned over to the booking agents for various Brooklyn venues, who bring their favorite acts: the Barbes folks do a night of world music, the Jalopy Café people book an oldtimey jazz night, Union Hall brings a bunch of loser trendoid bands. Doors are at 6; there are very few seats, so expect to stand. The sound is dodgy. Draft beer and overpriced food are available, but why bother: bring your own, it’s completely hassle-free, no Nazis to be found anywhere, just be discreet. There are also free movies and other things going on here when they don’t have music.
Brooklyn Lyceum
The club’s website is useless
Right at the Union St. R train stop (exit at the front of the train if you are coming from Manhattan), otherwise take the F to 4th Ave. and walk back toward Brooklyn Heights about 9 blocks, past the UHaul place.
During the day, this space-for-hire has many functions. Downstairs, it’s a gym, frequently rented out for theatrical events. Upstairs is a makeshift coffeehouse. The owners don’t seem to involve themselves in anything other than renting out the hall. At night, they frequently have bands in the bare, brickwalled, spacious downstairs area and, generally once a week, there are singer-songwriters in the small upstairs room. The sound upstairs is actually quite good; downstairs is hit-and-miss since the club doesn’t have their own PA. Absolutely no Nazi factor (you could probably sneak in if you really put your mind to it); bottled beer and wine are available in small plastic cups upstairs, but both are pricy. Several promoters use this place for classical music, jazz and rock. Unfortunately, the woman who books the singer-songwriters in the upstairs room always plays a set of her own music before the scheduled acts, and because she wants to play to a captive audience, she never specifies what the order of the acts on the bill will be. Which makes it difficult to figure out when you should get here: if your favorite singer/songwriter sends you an email about a gig here, you might want to think twice before shlepping all the way out here because you may have to sit through the booker’s set plus several other lame acts before your friend gets to play.
228 W Broadway at White St.
A/C/E to Canal St.
Every now and then this shi-shi Tribeca champagne bar has live music, usually jazz or some variant thereof. Bands play to the right of the door as you walk in. The PA is primitive, so the sound can be iffy: it’s not really a music venue. There are magnums and magnums of champagne everywhere, even up in the rafters (how do they keep it from going bad in the heat?). Since the vibe is totally swankazoid, you might want to stick to beer: they have a surprising number of bottled European brands. You might also want to take a table toward the front of the bar if you’re there for the band. There’s no Nazi factor, and a surprisingly nice bar staff.
35 W 8th St.
A/B/C/D/E/F to W 4th St., north exit
Like Smalls and the Jazz Gallery, this is a nice, laid-back place to discover up-and-coming jazz talent. The sound is good in the small back room past a long, rectangular bar. Very cheap cover; this place is a real bargain, although drinks are predictably expensive. No draft beer. The staff are friendly; service is refreshingly casual. As the name implies, Brazilian jazz and tropicalia are the house specialities although booking here is adventurous and covers a lot of ground. A welcome addition to the NYC jazz scene.
433 7th Ave. at 14th St., Park Slope, Brooklyn
F to 7th Ave.
An “Austrian comfort food” restaurant catering to the Park Slope monster-stroller crowd. Ten years ago this place would have priced itself out of the neighborhood in six months. Alas, no more. It’s cramped, noisy, and the occasional screaming rugrat does nothing to enhance your experience. Music is usually Sundays and Wednesdays, mostly jazz and old-timey acts with the occasional country performer. As you may have surmised, it’s also an afterthought; nobody listens, the PA doesn’t have the juice to drown out the crowd and besides, nobody comes here for the music anyway.
115 MacDougal St. between Bleecker and W 3rd St.
Talk about living off your reputation: Hendrix played here frequently, forty years ago. Apparently the owners also own the building, because the place is still here. Not that it needs to be: this stuffy little tourist bar caters strictly to an out-of-town crowd, and late at night and on the weekends, an unsophisticated black clientele for whom rap apparently never happened. Expensive drinks, overzealous door crew, clueless bar staff, overly loud, generic funk and cover bands phoning it in on the little stage. Ugh.
32 Jones St. off Bleecker (west of 6th Ave)
A/B/C/D/E/F to W 4th St.
This singer-songwriter joint has upped the ante with jazz and world music lately. Not reviewed as/of 4/08.
Ludlow between Stanton and Rivington, east side of the street, next to the Living Room
F/V to 2nd Ave.
You could live here. There’s a bakery/coffee shop as you walk in, used record store in back and venue downstairs. The sound is consistently good and often excellent. Somehow they make this bodega basement work. The crowd depends on the band: there’s a cover charge. It’s a very gay-friendly space. Drinks are cheap and they always have some kind of special, and if you buy a drink and an album you get another drink free. Good album prices, too. They’ve managed to avoid the Nazi factor entirely, pretty impressive for a Manhattan venue, particularly in this neighborhood: nobody will give you a hard time here. The quality of the acts here has sadly seen a decline lately: occasionally they’ll have a good garage or punk rock night. Be aware they’ll sometimes start blasting the disco music over the PA right after the bands are done, which will reliably drive the crowd out of the club.
285 W Broadway, corner of Canal
A/C/E to Canal St. or 6/N/R/J/M/Z to Canal St. and walk west
Formerly known as Shine, this swanky room generally serves as a hip-hop disco, the type of place where they try to induce women to come in via reduced admission at the door. Occasionally they will have corporate singer-songwriters or Hot 97 style corporate black pop acts. Not reviewed as/of 4/08.
On the water along the middle edge of Battery Park
1/9/2 to Bowling Green or A/C/E/4/6/J/M/Z to Fulton/Broadway-Nassau and walk south and east about a dozen blocks.
At 5 PM during the summer on show days, park personnel will distribute two free tickets per person to everyone on the line which forms along the benches leading to the old stone fort, meaning that you need to sneak out of work to get here no later than 4:30 PM and a half-hour earlier than that for more popular acts. The show will probably start at around 6:30 or 7. Since it’s outdoors, don’t expect great sound. Overpriced canned beer is available inside. Be aware that your bag will be searched as you enter (although lately they’ve been pretty cursory, and it’s been possible to bring beverages in). Also be aware that they will throw away any beverages they catch you with. You have to show up early to get a seat, although there’s always ample standing room in back behind the rows of plastic chairs. Since the music plays while the sun is setting over the river, wear a hat and shades. The acts here vary: NPR folk and country stuff with the occasional indie band.
Central Park, 72nd St. entrance, closer to the east side
6 to 68th St.
Most-improved venue of 2008 by a mile, a dubious achievement considering where it started, at the very bottom. Gone: the wire-fence holdings pens for unsuspecting concertgoers; the phalanxes of rent-a-pigs searching everyone; the labyrinth inside and the no-man’s-land of fences keeping visitors at a considerable distance from the arena. Most of the interior space has been reopened, and most of the bleachers in the back are once again open to the public. You still can’t bring in any kind of drinkables – your bag, if you have one, will be inspected – and your best bet is still to plan on arriving when the space opens, i.e. 3 PM even if the act you want to see doesn’t hit the stage til five. But the sound isn’t bad for an outdoor arena, and the vibe has reverted to what it was about ten years ago, everyone taking picture, making videos and bootlegs and nobody hassles you. The tents serving beer and food are predictably overpriced; there’s also a bank of porta-potties back by the bleachers in case you need them. Volunteers will still make sad-puppy faces at you as you enter, begging for a donation, but don’t be fooled: all this is paid for with taxpayer money and donations from corporations who can well afford it. If you get there too late and the place is sold out, you can still lurk on the perimeter and pretty much hear anything, although you won’t be able to see. Be aware that the ever-increasing number of ticketed shows here are not worth your while: all the acts who play those kind of gigs here always end up playing somewhere else with better sound and air conditioning, i.e. Bowery Ballroom. Concerts typically run from early June through early September, an eclectic mix of world music and rock, emphasis on the multiculti.
on the boardwalk at Coney Island close to Stilwell Ave.
Take any train to Stilwell Ave., walk to the boardwalk and take a left
Grimy, old school Coney Island bar with a clientele who look like they were all extras in the French Connection, 35 years ago. Surprisingly, they have good bands here during the summer, an adventurous mix of punk, ska, country and indie rock. Drinks aren’t overwhelmingly expensive, and if you’re drunk enough and don’t mind the seediness, it’s big enough – lots of tables in the back – that you could actually hang out here and enjoy yourself. The sound is iffy and LOUD: if you really felt like it, you could camp out on the boardwalk a block away and not miss much. Nathan’s is next door if you get hungry.
Corner of Bedford Ave. and N 7th, Williamsburg
L to Bedford Ave.
The bar – Williamsburg’s first music venue - has reopened, although it’s much the same as it was before, minus the sour-faced old man who would accost you the second you walked in the door: “You have to buy a drink!” Now run by the same people who brought you the Alligator, you get a free slice – a slice, not a pie – when you buy a drink. They don’t have music every night. Bands still play in the walk-down space in the front of the club, booths along each side, standing room in the middle. Sonically, it’s still a work in progress although better than it was in its previous incarnation. Booking is a mixed bag: because it’s on the dreaded Bedford Ave. strip, it’s mostly trendoid bands playing to random tourists from out of town along with the permanent-tourist class who’ve come to stay for a few years until their trust funds kick in. You’ll probably enjoy yourself more down the block at Spikehill.
numerous locations; the branch where they have live music is 121 W 45th St. between 6th Ave. and Broadway
N/R to Times Square or any train to 42nd St., walk east or west as necessary.
This local chain of Irish bars no longer has music at their location on 46th St. between Park and 5th Ave. Black 47 do a lot of dates here and pack the place, otherwise, it’s a grab-bag of New York acts, with the occasional Celt
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