Music venue in Manhattan, New York City
The
Bowery Ballroom
is a
New York City
live music venue located at 6
Delancey Street
in
Manhattan
's
Bowery
neighborhood.
The venue has enjoyed a fabled reputation among musicians as well as audiences.
[1]
In 2013, industry insiders polled by
Rolling Stone
magazine named it the best club in America, describing it as "both intimate and grand, with consistently great sound and sightlines, and touches of old-school class."
[2]
Consequence of Sound
named it the second-best music venue in the United States.
[3]
It has a capacity of 575 people.
[4]
[5]
[6]
History
[
edit
]
The Bowery Ballroom was founded in 1998 by Michael Swier, Michael Winsch, and Brian Swier, who still own and operate the business. The club was the team's second music venue after
The Mercury Lounge.
The building at 6 Delancey Street was built to be a high-end shoe store and haberdashery just before the devastating
Wall Street Crash of 1929
. It stood vacant until the end of
World War II
, when it housed a series of shops. Over time the neighborhood declined.
[7]
In 1998 the building was fully renovated to become The Bowery Ballroom.
[8]
Cofounder Michael Swier told the
Village Voice
and
LA Weekly
that he and his partners' goals have always been about quality of sound, as well as giving the best experience to both artists and the audience.
[9]
Architect and cofounder Brian Swier designed the venue and directed renovations of the historic building with an eye to optimal acoustics for live music. Today the club is one of the rare remaining independent music venues, and continues to be regarded as one of the best for music purists.
Gothamist
and
Thrillist
have named it one of New York City's best music venues.
[10]
[11]
“From the beginning, opening the Mercury Lounge, it was all about the stage and the music ? for the band, for the people coming to see the bands,” Michael Swier told
LA Weekly
. “Whether it's the sound system, the acoustic treatment, the way the band sounds to themselves onstage, the sightlines ? it was all about that. That reputation of building really good clubs and treating both bands and patrons with the respect they deserve and putting the focus on that kind of grew out of those things."
[12]
A detailed scholarly account of the venue and its place in the wider music and cultural history of New York City was published in 2020.
[13]
Notable acts
[
edit
]
Patti Smith
performed New Year's Eve at the Bowery Ballroom for fourteen consecutive years.
[14]
[15]
The venue has hosted numerous acts of note
[16]
including
R.E.M.
,
[17]
Coldplay
,
[18]
Quicksand
,
Kanye West
,
[1]
Lou Reed
,
Joan Jett
,
Radiohead
,
Tony Bennett
,
The Roots
,
Lana Del Rey
,
Maneskin
,
[19]
The Black Keys
,
Red Hot Chili Peppers
,
[20]
The White Stripes
,
[21]
Metallica
,
[22]
Robert Plant
,
[23]
Arcade Fire
,
The Killers
,
Idina Menzel
,
[24]
Lady Gaga
,
Amy Winehouse
,
The Dandy Warhols
,
The Strokes
,
Broken Social Scene
,
They Might Be Giants
,
Lucky Chops
,
[25]
Yo La Tengo
,
[26]
Twenty One Pilots
,
[27]
and
Frank Ocean
.
[28]
In media
[
edit
]
The Bowery Ballroom is the namesake of
Joan Baez
's
Bowery Songs
album, recorded live at the venue on November 6, 2004.
[29]
It appears in the 2000 film
Coyote Ugly
as well as the 2008 film
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
.
[30]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"The 50 Best Concert Venues in America1. Bowery Ballroom"
.
Complex
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"The Best Clubs in America"
.
Rolling Stone
. March 28, 2013
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"The 100 Greatest American Music Venues"
. 2016-04-29
. Retrieved
2024-02-03
.
- ^
Sisario, Ben.
"A Small Strategy for Selling Concerts"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
November 21,
2014
.
- ^
Sisario, Ben (December 18, 2017).
"Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge Join With Live Nation"
.
The New York Times
.
ISSN
0362-4331
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
Sisario, Ben (August 2, 2017).
"Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge Split From Concert Promoter Bowery Presents"
.
The New York Times
.
ISSN
0362-4331
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"History of the Bowery Ballroom"
, Bowery Ballroom website (archived 2007)
- ^
Kemp, Rob.
"Bowery Ballroom"
.
New York
. Retrieved
November 21,
2014
.
- ^
"Michael Swier's Musical Manifest Destiny Reaches From the Bowery to Los Angeles"
.
www.villagevoice.com
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
Garofalo, Sadie Bell, Alex (March 6, 2019).
"The Best Live Music Venues in NYC for Every Type of Show"
.
Thrillist
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
staff/rebecca-fishbein (December 4, 2013).
"The 8 Best Music Venues In NYC"
.
Gothamist
. Archived from
the original
on September 21, 2019
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
Hughes, Hilary (July 13, 2015).
"Michael Swier Is the Proud New Yorker Behind L.A.'s Coolest New Music Venue"
.
LA Weekly
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
Holt, Fabian (2020).
Everyone Loves Live Music
. University of Chicago Press.
ISBN
978-0-226-73854-3
.
- ^
Gold, Daniel M. (January 2, 2012).
"Patti Smith Ends Bowery Residency"
.
ArtsBeat
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
Perpetua, Matthew (January 3, 2012).
"Patti Smith Ends New Year's Eve Residencies at Bowery Ballroom"
.
Rolling Stone
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge Split From Concert Promoter Bowery Presents"
.
- ^
"R.E.M. Setlist at Bowery Ballroom, New York"
.
setlist.fm
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"Coldplay Sings For Stars In NYC"
.
Billboard
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"The Maneskins at the Bowery Ballroom in New York (with Little Steven)"
.
Videomuzic
. 2021-10-29
. Retrieved
2022-02-24
.
- ^
"Red Hot Chili Peppers Live Archive"
.
Red Hot Chili Peppers Live Archive
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
The White Stripes - Backstage, Bowery Ballroom. New York 2002.
,
archived
from the original on 2021-12-21
, retrieved
September 21,
2019
- ^
"Events | Metallica.com"
.
www.metallica.com
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"Robert Plant, Patty Griffin & Band (Of Joy) played Bowery Ballroom (pics, video, setlist)"
.
BrooklynVegan
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
"Rent's Idina Menzel Tours Debut Album With NY & National Dates; Starts Nov. 3"
.
Playbill.com
. Playbill. November 3, 1998
. Retrieved
November 19,
2020
.
- ^
"Lucky Chops sells out Bowery"
.
NYlive
. Retrieved
September 20,
2016
.
- ^
"Yo La Tengo announce 2019 Hanukkah run at Bowery Ballroom"
.
BrooklynVegan
. Retrieved
September 21,
2019
.
- ^
Carter, Emily (2024-04-26).
"twenty one pilots are teasing a special New York show next week"
.
Kerrang!
. Retrieved
2024-04-28
.
- ^
"Music Is Love, and Love Is Music"
.
NYTimes
. Retrieved
October 16,
2021
.
- ^
"Bowery Songs, Joan Baez, Music CD - Barnes & Noble"
. Music.barnesandnoble.com. November 6, 2004. Archived from
the original
on March 23, 2012
. Retrieved
August 7,
2010
.
- ^
Previous post Next post (October 2, 2008).
"Review: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist Strikes Sweet Chord | Underwire | Wired.com"
. Blog.wired.com
. Retrieved
August 7,
2010
.
External links
[
edit
]