by Isamu Jordan / Staff writer
When The Detour closed a month ago, it left a pretty big hole in the all-ages music scene.
For the past couple of years The Detour and its predecessor, Café Sole, 175 S. Monroe St., had been among the most reliable places to see an all-ages concert. The venue down the alley beneath the train tracks had a large enough space to fit a couple of hundred concertgoers, and it was one of the few – if not only – exclusive all-ages venue that offered a beer garden.
Yet with a number of recent developments in the all-ages circuit, the scene is continuing to expand – in terms of the number of bands and venues that support it.
One of the newer venues is one of the old venues resurrected, The Big Dipper, 171 S. Washington St., which is run by the nonprofit organization RAWK the Inland Northwest. Though RAWK is a Christian group, it often hosts shows with secular bands. The wildly popular RAWK Final Four band competition drew 700 spectators to its finals last year.
At The Big Dipper, RAWK is partnering with the Chase Youth Commission and TINCAN to provide a teen-tailored coffeehouse and Internet café on Thursdays that offers laptops for web surfing, playing computer games and blogging on TINCAN's Virtual Online Teen Center (votc.tincan.org) from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
The Dipper morphs into an open mike spot from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and follow up with a free local show. Bands are booked on a pay-to-play basis, which costs bands $50 for a 45-minute set. It also serves as a hub for the teen community. For example, while the roster is full for RAWK's Final Four, high school-aged bands can sign up at The Dipper for BOBfest 2005.
Given all The Big Dipper has to offer, it's surprising that traffic is still pretty light on Thursdays.
The open mikes have been pulling in about 100 heads since RAWK took over in late September, and many of them are college-age or in that transition. But the Internet café and concerts barely attract more than a dozen folks, according to Ryan Kalivas, 19, a volunteer who handles booking at The Dipper.
"You can't beat a free show," Kalivas said.
In addition to The Dipper – and not counting the numerous faithful coffee shops and bookstores that host live music – at least five other venues in town provide live shows that don't require you to be 21 or older:
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Fat Tuesday's Concert Hall, 109 W. Pacific Ave.: In the past several months, the old Gatsby's re-opened, closed and re-opened again. Its latest incarnation is the home of Fat Tuesday's, which celebrates its grand opening tonight with a free concert (see Nightwatch on page 6 for details). With a focus on local music, Fat Tuesday's offers a full-bar with ID and welcomes minors every night except Thursdays, which is college night.
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The Spike Underground, 122 S. Monroe St.: By converting neighboring space into a live music venue over the past few weeks, The Spike can comfortably host local and national bands throughout the week.
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Club Soda, 715 W. Sprague Ave.: Though Club Soda has been serving the scene since Café Sole was the hit, the frequency of shows has slowed there this fall. Still, the spacious venue has hosted some great national acts such as Pretty Girls Make Graves, Youngblood Brass Band, Tilly and the Wall and Pedro the Lion.
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The Shop, 924 S. Perry St.: Still one of Spokane's most intimate live music venues, The Shop stage has seen regional folk powerhouses such as national fingerstyle guitar competition champions Richard Smith and Bill Mize, as well as regional folk powerhouses including Jenn Adams and promising young local bands such as Lucia's Grey Dot.
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The Twilight Room, 112 S. Monroe St.: Sure, Twilight serves beer and wine and attracts a 20-something crowd of hipsters, but it's about the only all-ages venue that specializes in electronica.
Published November 12, 2004
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