Re: Concert Disaster In Rhode Island

[Sven Franklyn Weil <sven@gordsven.com>]

On Fri, 21 Feb 2003, Aaron Read wrote:

> and will never spend a dollar when ninety-nine cents will suffice.   Hence 
> why you usually see clubs that have disgusting facilities; it's kept dark 
> in a club not just for "atmosphere" - it's so you can't see the peeling 

This is true.  A lot of New York City clubs I would qualify as unfit for
use.  The world-famous Palladium (a gorgeous old vaudevill house) slowly
went to seed during its tenure as a club. During its last days,
moisture-related blisters would form on the plaster walls and even chunks
of wall would be missing.  

The building was torn down four years ago to
make way for new NYU dorms (eerily named the "Palladium Residences" - like 
any of the current generation of college pukes are going to remember what 
that place was).

Webster Hall consists of a bunch of old row-houses (former office or
apartment buildings, I don't know) all interconnected.  Facade is in awful
shape, windows are boarded up.

I could go on....but I'm probably breaking format here. :-)

> said facilities are rarely cleaned, and why the sound systems stink and the 
> sound quality is lousy (too many poorly-trained board ops).

Well...think of the environment the equipment is subjected to.  
Electronics don't like a smoke-filled, sometimes un-heated or un-air
conditioned, and un-ventilated space where drinks are placed and spilled
on speaker boxes, underpowered amplifiers are driven to the max, records
are played with worn needles and water from squeeze bottles dribbled on
them to "lubricate" the grooves.

The deejay and his cronies are usually also smoking in the booth and also 
drinking.  Spills and stray ashes are unavoidable.

Exits in these dumps are always sealed by the bouncers to discourage 
cover-charge evaders.

--
Sven