December 09, 2006
Lights out at Mississippi Nights?
For the past few days, I keep running into extremely tied-in local scene types who are talking about this. And though I haven't seen an official announcement in local publication or website, the idea that Mississippi Nights is closing after New Year's Eve seems a good bet. Though an e-mail to the club's main employees hasn't come back with an affirmative, too many indicators suggest that the club isn't going to open door after December 31, not the least of which is a website that doesn't go past that date.
That's not a fun option to consider for many, myself included. Even though my attendance at Nights shows has slipped in recent years, with only a handful of trips to the Landing staple this year, what exists is still a memorable connection. There was a time when I could find myself at the Nights multiple times month, with so, so many memorable nights spent in the music hall, a thought that has to be true for many.
Among the national acts I can recall, simply top-of-head: Rain Parade, Souled American, the Dead Milkmen, Lush, Faith No More, Magnapop, Let's Active, Green on Red, Chris Isaak, Dramarama, Public Enemy, the Charlatans, Ani Difranco, Sonic Youth, Bob Mould, Screaming Trees, Majesty Crush, the Something Brothers, Veruca Salt, the Sounds and Tricky. It was the only place I ever saw Nirvana and Television. And was the home of the show that most sticks with me to this day, Ministry, then touring with a 10-man lineup and at the height of their impact. Hell, I even remember hearing the full-ska version of No Doubt.
Locally, too, so many bands stick out, for whatever reason: Uncle Tupelo, Small Ball Paul, Gravity Kills, Nov. 9th, the Nukes, the Stranded Lads, Ultraman, the Dazzling Killmen, Murder City Players, MU330, Enormous Richard, Tripstar, Black Sand Hand, Big Fun, Oliver Sain, Waterworks, Corporate Humour, the Finns, Blank Space, A Perfect Fit and Ulcer Inc. There were countless nights of dropping in for the Urge, the Eyes and the Unconscious. And special gigs like the Mississippi River Music Festival and the St. Louis Music Awards. Ah! The day of free admittance and free passes! Ah!
Admittedly, I have no final word to hang my hat on and, again, maybe there's something out already released or written that confirms this. Some skepticism deserves to remain until it's in writing from the club, rather than mused about on a blog.
An example: at the Royale, late last night, a musician who played the stage many times was dubious.
"I'll believe it when I see it," he said, literally slumping his head and shaking it. "I've been hearing for 20 years, 'this is the time.' Like I said, I'll believe it when I see it."
And though the current schedule doesn't have that KO-punch show that I'd like to catch before the end of the year, I feel the need to head down to the increasingly-isolated club. (After all, the MegaSino's wrecking ball has already claimed neighboring buildings to the north.) When it comes to the rumor of the club's demise: I do believe it and do, once more, want to see it.
of montreal february date here:
korkagency.com/na/html/tours.aspx#ofm
and
cartel/cobra starship date on pollstar and here:
myspace.com/cartel
Posted by pollstar geek on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 1:39 PMI've heard it'll still exist but at a different location.
that Ministry show was awesome. They had the fence up which you could climb and stage dive...oh man, what memories!
Posted by Dana on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 4:00 PMIt's funny you mention the Pollstar mentions. A friend of mine in the industry said that he inquired about those shows and they're not confirmed with the club, only with the agency. Again, there's smoke here, but can the fire be found? Sure would love to get some e-mail back from the club.
Dana: You were at that show? Oh, man, that was one of those set-in-stone memories, for sure.
Posted by thomas on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 5:45 PM"extremely tied-in local scene types" also say that cocaine is a good idea... that's all i'm sayin'
Posted by feelgoodhitofthesummer on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 6:10 PMApple, meet orange.
Posted by thomas on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 6:43 PMyes, confirmed with the agency and not the venue is pollstar's jam, true.
my point was that everyone fretting over the club closing should calm down, as it appears that people are still booking shows at the club -- wherever it may be. the sky is not falling.
heck, i'd prefer it to move someplace where parking didn't suck ass.
Posted by pollstar geek on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 7:29 PMI've heard from the management that it is *not* closing, but am really starting to lean towards the "new location" side of things. Or even a new name? The plot sickens...
Posted by James on Sat., Dec 9, 2006 at 9:08 PMi've heard that mississippi nights is going to be on the street level floor of a new parking garage that is going to be built in midtown near harris stowe and the new slu arena. this is not to say the garage will be connected to either of those institutions.
Posted by the wayward wanderer on Sun., Dec 10, 2006 at 1:18 PMDag. I've only been to Mississippi Nights twice that I can remember (I know, I know, I left StL as a youngun and have been quite broke since moving back), but man. This post made me sigh for my old beloved Fireside Bowl in Chicago, which teetered for years and years on the brink of rumored and threatened closure before finally being converted by a callous owner back into a bowling-only bowling alley. SIGH.
Posted by claire n-b on Sun., Dec 10, 2006 at 10:58 PMEven if it changes locations it will be a loss. Cicero's (for example) just wasn't the same after moving down the street.
Glad I stopped down for the New York Dolls the other night.
Posted by TedH on Mon., Dec 11, 2006 at 6:26 AMPollstar - there were new shows being added to the Hi-Pointe's calendar on pollstar a few days before it shut down. Pollstar is a bit like wikipedia in that sense... then again, no official word, so who knows. Hopefully it'll reopen somewhere, because there would be a huge booking whole in the region if it didn't...
Posted by Jeff on Mon., Dec 11, 2006 at 9:03 AMIt would surprise me if this were true, it doesn't seem to really fit in with all the redevelopment that is going on in that area. The rest of the block that it's on has been leveled for new construction. I bet the owners of MN were the last hold outs.
Posted by Bill Streeter on Fri., Dec 15, 2006 at 9:55 AMYou know where it should move? I'd be fine if it took over the space at the American Theatre/Robert Orpheum. The Roberts Brothers book that place terribly and it's an awesome venue.
Posted by STLMike on Fri., Dec 22, 2006 at 11:33 AMis it too soon to say "BING0?"
RFT:
"After months of speculation and rumor, it can finally be said: Mississippi Nights, a concert club favorite since 1979, will close its doors after one last jam session takes place on Friday, January 19.
But the popular venue at 914 North First Street may live on elsewhere in St. Louis.
Mississippi Nights’ co-owner, Rich Frame, says he’s looking at several locations, with the current front-runner a completely new building to be constructed at Olive Street and Compton Avenue, two blocks away from the new Saint Louis University arena. Frame says he’s in contract negotiations and says there’s a 50-50 chance the venue will end up there. If that happens, Mississippi Nights’ new digs will be on the first floor of a mixed-use complex that also includes retail, a parking garage and condominiums. Capacity will remain roughly the same (1,000 people), with a projected opening date of November 2007.
“That area is going to get nothing but better,” Frame says of the intended locale. “We’ll have plenty of parking, and we’ll be two blocks away from the new arena.”
Pinnacle Entertainment, a Las Vegas-based owner and operator of casinos worldwide, obtained the property on which Mississippi Nights sits from the city in 2005. “Pinnacle came to us and said they’d lease it to us — that they’d lease it to us for a year, and more than likely we’d probably be there close to two years, because they didn’t really see any need to take us down,” Frame says. “Then they had a change of heart for some reason.”
Pinnacle representatives could not be reached for comment for this article.
Losing Mississippi Nights, a mid-size venue that filled a gap between the smaller Creepy Crawl and larger Pageant, will likely affect the kind of acts that tour St. Louis. Recent years have seen well-attended shows from Built to Spill, Wolfmother, Sleater-Kinney, the Decemberists and the New P0rn0graphers. In its heyday, Mississippi Nights put St. Louis on the national concert map. Nirvana played its only St. Louis date there, while seminal artists such as the Police, Hüsker Dü, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Joe Cocker, Dead Kennedys, 311 and Lucinda Williams graced its stage.
Before the venue closes, however, Mississippi Nights’ booker, Tim Weber, is putting out a call for musicians to play the January 19 jam session, which begins at 8 p.m. and will celebrate the last 27 years of music at the club. Interested parties can e-mail tweber@mississippinights.com or call 314-421-3853. We’ll leak performers as we know them."
Posted by the wayward wanderer on Thu., Jan 4, 2007 at 1:20 PM