Good venues don’t die, they’re re-incarnated. And if they’re like Neumos they remember something about their past lives, taking the best parts of each and ensuring good karmic inheritance. Take the framed show posters that line the walls at Moe Bar like a music history text come to life - they aren’t just some random selection but originals from when the address was home to Moe’s Mo’ Roc’ N Café and bands like Radiohead and Pavement sent the place into a knicker twisting tizzy.
After Moe’s gracefully expired, subsequent clubs filled the space but not the musical void until Neumos Crystal Ball Reading Room (just Neumos to their friends) was born in 2003. Fun fact - the crystal ball catchphrase is an owner favorite and has become a bit of a staff joke considering that Neumos’ ball is pretty anemic compared to those at other venues. The “new’moe’s” was born smart, listening to the inherited ghosts of grunge and riot girl shows past but creating its own story. Alicia Amiri, the resident marketing coordinator, attributes much of the success to their two booking agents who “just work it better than a lot of bookers at other clubs. They both have different styles of music that they are into and are on top of what’s current.”
Thanks to this booking all-star duo, Neumos has become one of Seattle’s premier clubs by focusing on the best talent in all musical genres rather than limiting themselves to rock or indie-pop. What’s your pleasure? Punk, alt-country, electronica, hip-hop, world pop? It’s a safe bet that something on the schedule will satisfy your need for dueling banjos, didgeridoo, slash guitar, or Casio riffs. Many bands return to Neumos tour after tour simply because the booking staff was willing to schedule them without the backing of hit singles and big audiences. Investment like that has brought bands like MGMT, Band of Horses, Justice, and The Kills to the stage more than once. By the way, along with Department of Eagles, Amiri rates The Kills show as a personal favorite.
Other times it just depends on luck. Amiri explains, “We don’t do a lot of shows that involve such a huge production like Simian Mobile Disco with their light show. Usually those shows go to the Showbox. We have to bring in extra power for the lighting, and it takes all day to set up. Sometimes we can get bands right before they cross over to that next level like Yeasayer, which sold out in a month, three months before the show. That was a huge production, and we were really lucky to get and sign the deal before they could have moved to another place.”
Neumos isn’t just about music though. Recently they hosted a World Cup party during the England vs. USA game that was so packed out, a few hundred people had to be turned away. And when rainbows sweep down Broadway during Pride, they burst through Neumos for a fabulous dance party. Everything from presidential debate coverage to a snowboarding movie premier is fair game for a party - especially if it’s for a good cause like Drink for Kids or a Vera Project fundraiser.
So any chance of more all-ages shows? That depends. “A lot of things go into it. Part of it is the audience, the draw, if the band have a big all-ages following, it wouldn’t make sense not to do it, but it ends up being so much more expensive to do an all-ages show that it doesn’t always make sense,” says Amiri. She continues, “It just costs more in security and set up. Bands take a huge majority of money made off tickets so the only way we stay open is the bars. It means we have to charge a higher ticket price and charge the band more, and if it really makes sense in terms of draw, then we will do it. We totally support all-ages music, but you just can’t stay open and do all-ages shows. It doesn’t work [financially], which is why all-ages venues do fundraisers and get government money and work with volunteers - if you want to have a business, it is really hard, and that is why we don’t do that many.” Keep your fingers crossed, kids.
