Thoughts on a Los Angeles Creative Music Venue

Thinking of interview questions I would ask some of the musicians who are involved with the Creative Music scene in Los Angeles. I want to interview some of the bigger names, but I would also like to interview some up and coming musicians to get a well rounded view of improvised music in Southern California.

One big topic on my mind is the idea of live performance venues. Los Angeles, unlike New York doesn't have its The Stone to allow artists room to play and a source where people can go to hear this music seven nights a week. We have a rag tag collection of coffee houses, libraries, museums, clubs, and galleries that musicians utilize, but there isn't any one central place that can build an audience, not since Cryptonights series at Club Tropical shut down. People have tried and there were some successful series for a good amount of time like Line Space Line and Dangerous Curves and such, but it seems to me that the players need their own venue which is run seven nights a week, is a hub for presenting their music, and is not dependent on outside business for it success or failure.

I'm wondering how to get this done. A space and a sound system. What else do you need?