![]() |
From The Masquerade Facebook Page |
It’s
a little difficult to contemplate the fact that tomorrow night (last
Thursday to you people in the future) could be the last time I attend
a show at The Masquerade.
I’m
not here to go into details because you can find them plenty of other
places:
The
short version is that some real estate developer has purchased the
land that The Masquerade sits upon and are, quite obviously, going to
urban renew the shit out of it. There’s only so much they can do
since the core building – the old excelsior mill – is a historic
site, but in all likelihood all of the additions will be destroyed
and I doubt very much that it will remain a music venue.
Here’s
what Masquerade management had to say on their Facebook page:
“We
really appreciate the outpouring of support and concern we have
received over the past two days.
The
O4W neighborhood has gone through a ton of changes over the past
number of years and we are glad to be a part of the growth.
For
those concerned about The Masquerade leaving Atlanta, rest
assured, we aren't.
We
will release specifics as soon as we can. We are continuing with our
booking through 2016 and all shows are going forward.
In
the mean time, please join us on August 8 and 9 as we celebrate our
25th anniversary in Atlanta with over 60 tremendous bands at The
Wrecking Ball ATL.”
That
suggests to me that there is some sort of plan in place. I don’t
know if it involves relocation or what, but the bottom line of all of
this is that The Masquerade will never be the same again, and that’s
a tough pill for me to swallow. A massive portion of who I am and a
large number of my life experiences come from that filthy old
shithole. I don’t want to rage against “The Man” developing the
land because change happens. I don’t want to debate the rightness
or wrongness of what’s happening because, quite frankly, I don’t
care about that aspect. I don’t live downtown and I don’t feel
that I’m qualified or appropriate to speak about the changes
happening down there.
What
I can talk about is the role that The Masquerade has played in my
life and how much it means to me.
The
first show I saw at The Masquerade was on March 13, 1994. I went to
see Green Day, The Offspring, and Pennywise with some friends. At
that point in my life I had only seen shows at places like the Omni
and the Astrodome in Houston. I had never been to a rock club. At
seventeen, I hadn’t yet gotten to the point where I would sneak out
or do anything in direct violation of my parents’ rules. As such, I
had no idea what to expect from this mysterious place.
I
can’t begin to describe how cool I felt upon entering. I can’t
think of another place I’ve been that felt so immediately unique.
Walking into that lobby (is it a lobby? I dunno) on a busy night is
an assault on the senses. Chances are there will be heavy bass
pounding out of the open doors of Hell to your right (the downstairs
venue that used to serve exclusively as a dance club), loud
conversation and prerecorded music echoing out of Purgatory to your
left, and a layer of dirt and grime over everything. Not necessarily
tangible everywhere – but the place looks aged. Directly ahead is a
staircase leading to Heaven – the main live music venue.
I
didn’t know any of this at the time. All I knew was that I had
walked into a place that seemed more mystical and forbidden than any
music venue I had seen in the movies or on TV. My parents would never
come here. And that was fucking awesome.
I
don’t remember much about that night other than marveling at the
dirty and old vastness of the club. Green Day and Pennywise were
great, but I couldn’t stop glancing around at the interior of the
place and the strange mishmash of textures and materials that it was
made up of.
The
stone walls were uneven and rough. The wooden floors looked more like
something out of one of the fantasy novels that distracted me from
the misery of high school. And the ceiling was all metal ties and
beams and rafters, with visible electrical components and vents all
over. It seemed like such a strange contrast to the old-world
construction of the floors and walls.
I
just remember being somewhat overwhelmed and a bit afraid. Over the
years I have come to love The Masquerade and find comfort within its
walls, but that first night it seemed filled with the unknown and
even just a bit of menace. I wasn’t entirely comfortable at any
point that evening. It was a feeling that I wasn’t used to, and
while I can’t say that I enjoyed it, it fascinated me.
The
next few years saw me return to The Masquerade many times. Bands I
saw included The Urge, Mephiskapheles, The Toasters, Social
Distortion, Prong, Bjork, The Business and I don’t even know how
many more.
The
first time I ever “hit on” a girl cold happened there. It was at
a Dance Hall Crashers show and it turned out it was Karina Denike –
one of the singers. Needless to say it did not work out for me.
Me
and my friends fell asleep on the wall by the bathrooms during The
Skatalites – the most boring musical show I have ever seen in my
life.
I
was, at one point, mistaken for John Feldmann of Goldfinger. This
lady with purple hair walked up to me and asked me what I was
charging for t-shirts. I was utterly confused, and the best I could
come up with was, “Huh?” She leaned in closer and yelled the same
thing again. I think I told her I wasn’t in a band and I’m pretty
sure she didn’t believe me.
Side
Note: I wouldn’t discover this until later, but she was asking so
that she would know how much money the venue could extort
expect from the band for merchandise sales.
I
played trombone on the stage of The Masquerade. I did not actually
know
how
to play trombone, but my good friends the Tone Deaf Pig-Dogs needed
someone that didn’t know how to play trombone, but that had access
to a trombone, to accompany one of their livelier tunes, Jerkin’
Da Gherkin.
It was a big moment for me.
To
this day I do not know what possessed me to apply for a job at The
Masquerade. I'll save the story of my employment there for Part 2
next week. It could very well be Parts 3 and 4, as well.
Thanks
for reading. If you have your own Masquerade stories to share, do it
in the comments below, join the Needless Things Podcast Facebook Group, or drop me a line at
phantomtroublemaker@gmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment