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The Roxy Is Closing It’s Doors On Atlanta

February 10th, 2008

The Roxy - Atlanta

Say it ain’t so! I went to see Switches and The Bravery last night at The Roxy after hitting up the Attractive Eighties Women in-store at Criminal Records. Five minutes after I walked in the door, I hear the news. LiveNation (aka Clear Channel) is shutting down The Roxy.

The Roxy can be found at 3110 Roswell road in the middle of Buckhead, right at the Peachtree Rd / Roswell Rd split. The old theater turned concert hall holds 1000 people between the downstairs standing room area and the upstairs seated balcony. With the closing of the Cotton Club, The Roxy has been offering 1/2 show set ups for smaller bands wishing to play in front of 600-700 people.

The Roxy - Atlanta

Upcoming Shows:
Mon, 02/11/08 Serj Tankian
Wed, 02/13/08 From the Jam
Thu, 02/14/08 Edwin McCain
Wed, 02/27/08 Gavin Degraw
Wed, 03/05/08 Wailers
Sat, 03/08/08 Jim Norton
Wed, 03/12/08 Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Mon, 03/17/08 Banff Mountain Film Festival
Fri, 03/21/08 The Gutter Twins

But why?
LiveNation has been progressively closing their small to mid-sized venues over the past five years or so. (Remember the Cotton Club? Now serving as The Tabernacle’s smoking section and a rental location.) For huge companies like LiveNation, it just isn’t as profitable for them to host smaller shows as it is for the larger shows. The more people they can fit in a room, the more opportunity for incremental profit.

How will this affect the Atlanta music scene?
For local artists, the only impact you will feel will be the increased demand by larger touring acts at your staple smaller venues. This could mean less opportunity for shows depending on the booking agent or inversely, it could offer you more opportunities for greater exposure by opening for these larger acts.

For touring artists, the market is going to be smaller and more competitive. Atlanta will likely see an even further decrease in touring artists coming through the city. Markets like Nashville and Charlotte could take the larger acts touring through the South on limited dates tours. The next size-comparable venues are The Loft and Variety Playhouse (and potentially Vinyl). They will feel the impact of this the most.

Big business trying to adapt and float. I would be curious to see what Clear Channel and LiveNation are doing to attempt to maintain relevant and dominant during the recent shifts in the music industry. Touring isn’t down nor are concert sales. I hate to see The Roxy closing. It was never my favorite venue in Atlanta but it is definitely one I was always remember when thinking of Atlanta. I have attended some absolutely fantastic shows there. Peter Conlon has been using the upstairs of The Roxy as an office for some time. I expect they will either try to sell the building or use it for rentals as well. This is pretty disappointing.

Here’s Louis XIV “Finding Out True Love” from The Roxy last month:

[mp3] Switches - Every Second Counts
[mp3] The Bravery - Believe
[mp3] Attractive Eighties Women - Pandemonium
[mp3] Louis XIV - Guilt By Association
Posted in Artist, Atlanta Events, Atlanta Links, Concert/Festival, Local Music, MP3 Download, Music

7 Responses to “The Roxy Is Closing It’s Doors On Atlanta”

  1. John P Says:
    February 11th, 2008 at 11:56 am

    According to some sources, the real reason for the closing is that the people who actually own the building (not LiveNation, they just lease it) want to completely renovate the Roxy and turn it into a “mini Fox Theatre.” What that actually means, I have no idea, other than to likely cater to a more upscale clientele. So LiveNation may still be able to book shows there in the future, but you won’t be seeing the likes of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony or The Bravery there again.

    Given the lack of other 1,000 seat rooms for LiveNation to book (and after a failed attempt to get into the Hilan Theatre), my guess is they may possibly open back up the downstairs of the Tabernacle as a separate venue (Cotton Club reopens per se) OR they could just have smaller shows play at the ‘Nacle, but only leave the general admission floor open and close off the balconies. But that’s just my theory.

    Personally, I’d love to see them renovate and open up the Madison Theatre in East Atlanta. But the Echo would probably open back up before the Madison ever would…

  2. Ben Grad Says:
    February 11th, 2008 at 4:03 pm

    I was discussing the closing with a prominent local architect (my dad) just the other night. He mentioned being asked to design a new venue two years ago. He didn’t take the project (most of his work is residential), but, last time he heard, the client was still working on putting together a new venue.

    It doesn’t sound like the thing would be finished any time soon, but it could be a replacement for the Roxy in a few years.

  3. Tessa Says:
    February 12th, 2008 at 12:04 am

    What a friend sent me about this on MySpace:

    Whomever is writing this stuff should not panic… plus, they should do ALL their homework… The Roxy shutting down is NOT PERMANENT… it;s only for about a year or maybe even less than that…. they are going to removate the building and all the other changes being developed on that section would cause havok if we had shows…. it would not very condusive to safe environment to have a rock show with 1000 people or more within a construction zone…..

    Tell whoever is writing this crap to get their facts straight before they publish something,. It;s just bad business. I’m not angry at you for sharing, just want you to relay the message….

    THE ROXY CLOSING IT;S DOORS IS NOT PERMANENT BUT ONLY A TEMPORARY RENOVATION WHILE THE BUILDING OF CONDOS AND NEW SHOPS TAKES PLACE THERE… THE ROXY WILL REOPEN WHEN THIS IS COMPLETE… AND THE ROXY WILL HAVE A NEW THEATER MAKEOVER…..

  4. Thomas Wheatley Says:
    February 12th, 2008 at 2:03 pm

    I’m willing to bet the all-caps typist is correct. Buckhead is slated for a major redevelopment with high-end high-density living. An upscale entertainment venue would be a centerpiece for attracting and maintaining interest, I bet.

    This took me by surprise, though:

    Wed, 03/12/08 Bone Thugs-N-Harmony

    Wha?!?!

  5. Tessa Says:
    February 12th, 2008 at 6:09 pm

    @Thomas I agree. It will be interesting to see what Buckhead turns to, especially after growing up just down the street from a lot of the development and changes that are happening up there. Have you heard anything as to when they are projecting development of those strips to be completed? They were quick about tearing down the clubs but seem to be slow in the rebuild. The only new business to the area I’ve heard of is Taco Mac and Urban Outfitters (stand-alone location) which don’t exactly evoke images of a high-end retail/residential district.

  6. John P Says:
    February 12th, 2008 at 7:49 pm

    I still say they’re going to keep the renovated theatre all “high fallutin’” and not bring in shows that will bring in the riff raff.

  7. Leila Says:
    February 15th, 2008 at 5:31 pm

    just spoke to peter conlon for a small piece in southeast performer’s april issue. he says the venue will be closed for 9 months to a year for renovations which will only be making the venue nicer. they’ll still be having the same kinds of bands. basically expanded lobby, seating, nicer loos, changing rooms for bands. but it’ll still be the roxy with the same booking.

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