Sunday, March 22, 2009
Bars / Business Just Curious: What Do You Think of the New Crocodile?
Posted by Christopher Frizzelle on Sun, Mar 22, 2009 at 12:05 PM
To be discussed: the gleaming bathrooms, the balcony of show posters of shows past, the new front entrance (the old sign is still in place at the corner), the long stripe of windows above the bar, the dark-red walls, and the intimate and yet so-much-larger-than-before main area.
(All photos by human? in the flickr pool.)
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2
Hey the Croc...why not? They've resurrected Ken Griffey.
Pretty soon it will be 1995 all over again...remember that great year Grunge Rockers?
And everything will be nice and pretty and great...no need for change or progress.
Hey the Croc...why not? They've resurrected Ken Griffey.
Pretty soon it will be 1995 all over again...remember that great year Grunge Rockers?
And everything will be nice and pretty and great...no need for change or progress.
3
Personally.... I forward the thought that we need more of the old establishment like the Crocodile to remind the young punks and old stoics why they don't get away with real-estate swindles and "tell your friends you didn't ditch them" pop songs.
If you want meat loaf and mash potatoes... go to Royal Fork and have a
heaping bowl of yum yums.
Watch for the David Bossie campaign finance movie ad perp walk high court tooling soon.
If you want meat loaf and mash potatoes... go to Royal Fork and have a
heaping bowl of yum yums.
Watch for the David Bossie campaign finance movie ad perp walk high court tooling soon.
5
For the most part, I like it. I give it a thumbs up.
The good: I really like how the space has been simplified and opened up. It sounds really good in there, and I expect the sound to get even better once Jim gets everything dialed in. The sightlines are great; I can stand in the back of the room and still see the bands and not just the backs of other people's heads.
The bad: If you're not in the back already, I imagine that it'd be hell of hard to work your way through to the back and get a drink. I think maybe they blew it a little bit by painting the walls maroon instead of green. The biggest concern that I have, is that as a musician, I'm afraid of playing there unless we were supporting a really big band. It seems that unless there was a crowd of 150-200 at the very least, things'd seem kinda naked and awkward there. The room is just that much bigger.
I can see the new Croc becoming one of my favorite places to see a show in town. I don't know quite yet if it's going to replace the Sunset or the Funhouse as one of my favorite places to play. Maybe if we get like, really huge.
It also reminded me of the "rock club" that people often go to in movies. Like in Serial Mom, when Kathleen Turner rushes the stage at the L7 show.
The good: I really like how the space has been simplified and opened up. It sounds really good in there, and I expect the sound to get even better once Jim gets everything dialed in. The sightlines are great; I can stand in the back of the room and still see the bands and not just the backs of other people's heads.
The bad: If you're not in the back already, I imagine that it'd be hell of hard to work your way through to the back and get a drink. I think maybe they blew it a little bit by painting the walls maroon instead of green. The biggest concern that I have, is that as a musician, I'm afraid of playing there unless we were supporting a really big band. It seems that unless there was a crowd of 150-200 at the very least, things'd seem kinda naked and awkward there. The room is just that much bigger.
I can see the new Croc becoming one of my favorite places to see a show in town. I don't know quite yet if it's going to replace the Sunset or the Funhouse as one of my favorite places to play. Maybe if we get like, really huge.
It also reminded me of the "rock club" that people often go to in movies. Like in Serial Mom, when Kathleen Turner rushes the stage at the L7 show.
6
From a musician point of view, the new Croc is already one of the best places to play in the city (if they had reserved parking like Chop Suey or Tractor it would easily take the cake). Here are the improvements that have been made that make it awesome for the bands-
1. No more post in the middle of the room.
2. No more diagonal stage
3. Easy backstage load-in off of 3rd Ave.
4. An actual backstage area where you can sit and watch the other bands
5. Actual greenrooms
6. A bathroom with the greenrooms
7. A great sound system
8. An even bigger stage
9. Remote control monitors so Jim can be front of house and back of house
10. A nice hallway through the kitchen leading from greenrooms to the restaurant for easy maneuvering through the building.
The things that are the same that are awesome-
1. Jim
2. Eli
1. No more post in the middle of the room.
2. No more diagonal stage
3. Easy backstage load-in off of 3rd Ave.
4. An actual backstage area where you can sit and watch the other bands
5. Actual greenrooms
6. A bathroom with the greenrooms
7. A great sound system
8. An even bigger stage
9. Remote control monitors so Jim can be front of house and back of house
10. A nice hallway through the kitchen leading from greenrooms to the restaurant for easy maneuvering through the building.
The things that are the same that are awesome-
1. Jim
2. Eli
7
Seems like an easy space to navigate, save for trying to get to the balcony in a packed show. The sound was awesome & the sight lines were a huge improvement. Minimal pinch points. Not enough garbage bins toward the front of the room. Overall, satisfied.
9
Eli is a great guy and has great taste in music. Even if he doesn't like your band, he's still savvy enough, and realizes that he can't always book his fave bands.
Re: the space, as a former employee (00-03) the new space is incredible.
Re: the space, as a former employee (00-03) the new space is incredible.
10
Reminds me of Via Tribunali’s meets Neumos, and it lacked a giant 20ft paper mache crocodile hangin from the ceiling… other than that the sound is HUGE! and I officially christened the the pristine lavatory with the first band sticker right on the mirror, and with a friends help the girls bathroom wall!
15
DOESN'T ANYONE ELSE NOTICE THAT THE SOUND IS TERRIBLE????
The old Croc was my favorite venue. I loved the separate bar, the actual places to sit (not the token three tables in the back of the room), the chill out and hang with the band attitude, and most of all, THE SOUND. I have been to two shows thus far, Kay Kay and Portugal, and both times the sound was just awful. It was too loud even standing all the way by the door, that cringe-inducing tinniness was ever present, even during quiet vocals. I tried. I really did. I even came armed with earplugs, thinking maybe I'm just getting too old, but it was to no avail. To make matters worse, the only decent place to rest during opening bands, off to the right of the stage, had an echo that made the already too loud tinny awfulness five times worse. Oh, and the balcony was closed. For no reason. Just closed. It would have been nice to be able to find SOMEWHERE in this new venue to just sit and relax before the main band, or after the band I came to see. But there was nothing. And for the record, who gives a s**t about marble bathrooms??
This place does not deserve to keep its name.
The old Croc was my favorite venue. I loved the separate bar, the actual places to sit (not the token three tables in the back of the room), the chill out and hang with the band attitude, and most of all, THE SOUND. I have been to two shows thus far, Kay Kay and Portugal, and both times the sound was just awful. It was too loud even standing all the way by the door, that cringe-inducing tinniness was ever present, even during quiet vocals. I tried. I really did. I even came armed with earplugs, thinking maybe I'm just getting too old, but it was to no avail. To make matters worse, the only decent place to rest during opening bands, off to the right of the stage, had an echo that made the already too loud tinny awfulness five times worse. Oh, and the balcony was closed. For no reason. Just closed. It would have been nice to be able to find SOMEWHERE in this new venue to just sit and relax before the main band, or after the band I came to see. But there was nothing. And for the record, who gives a s**t about marble bathrooms??
This place does not deserve to keep its name.
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