Alrosa Villa

Great live sound. Great bands. Parking is not an issue. Security was never bullying. I have never drank here so I dont know how the drinks are. I have seen Six Feet Under/​Immolation, Obituary, and Cannibal Corpse here. I wasnt here the night of the Dec 8 2004 tragedy, but I was in the area and wondered why all the cops were flying up the street.
RIP Dime.

The Alrosa is a dump. There’s really no nice way to put it. Everything inside and outside is neglected and run down. Things have been in this state for some time and I don’t understand why no effort has gone into renovating the building. I truly think the Alrosa has much more potential than this.
The bathrooms are unspeakably horrid. It’s as if the toilets are just designed to fail after 2 or 3 uses because from that point on they are clogged and gross. The last time I was in the bathroom, there were no locks on the stalls and there was no toilet paper either.
I attended a rap show here once and was subjected to HOURS (no exaggeration) of awful local rap groups before the headliner. It went on and on and on, not unlike torture. If I had left, taken a nap and come back, I wouldn’t have missed anything. But of course, I couldn’t even go out to my car to get some Tylenol for my resulting headache because they don’t allow reentry. Just because someone CAN be on stage shouting into a microphone, doesn’t mean that they SHOULD.
I hope that some work goes into fixing up the Alrosa soon. Some better booking for rap show openers would be great too. I’ve had friends turn down my offers to attend shows here because of how bad it is.

Came for the Revolver tour on 2÷28÷14. For a rock venue outside of the city this place isn’t too bad. Staff is slightly rude and off putting but I guess I really shouldn’t expect smiles and rainbows. 7.50 for a basically a big gulps worth of beer… mixed drinks lacked alcohol and size.

I came here to see Taproot in October 2012. First, I like the size of the venue. Although I definitely did jump into the mosh pit, it seemed like even those who were further back had a good view of the bands that played that night. With a venue this small, I was actually somewhat surprised that I was subject to a more-​than-​cursory pat-​down by security. It wasn’t invasive and it was over pretty quick. I suppose that’s the legacy of being the venue where Dimebag Darrell of Pantera was shot and killed in December 2004.
I rated this venue with three stars primarily because it was ill-​prepared for me as a customer. My biggest disappointment was that there was no easy way for me to get money to buy drinks at the bar. The ATM machine in the venue was out of order. I was informed that the nearest ATM was at a gas station rather far away. Also, I was informed that I was not allowed re-​entry (I had left some cash in my car). Thus, all I can conclude is that the venue absolutely did not want to make any extra money that night. That seems like the only reasonable explanation and it’s their loss, not mine.
I definitely enjoyed the show and was impressed that the venue was able to get a band like Taproot to play there. I’ll also note, here, that Taproot made some extra money off of me as they came equipped with a Square reader and my friend had his debit card with him. I found it rather amusing that the band was more prepared for customers than the venue. Seems a little backwards to me.

This is where you go for the metal shows.
Cheap beer that flows quickly.
All kinds of acts, big and small.
Great flow through the place to get from the door (with «security») to the floor.
Great viewing from just about every angle?
It’s no dimmer than the Newport, no dirtier, either.
All in all, it’s what you expect for a heavy metal bar.
Wusses need not apply.

The last time I went to the Alrosa Villa was 22 yrs ago. Nothing has changed. When you own a business you have to put $$ back into it. It looked abandoned. The outside had grass that hadn’t been mowed all summer. The inside was a little too dark for me. Their website looks like a kid put it together. Very obvious no $$ is being put back into the business to make it look and be the professional venue it has the potential of being. As of right now… it just isn’t what it COULD be with a little $$ put back in the business & building.
On a more positive note, its a great place for young bands to be seen & get recognised. If the building was kept up, lawn mowed & a professional website… I think these young band members would get a lot more exposure & the establishment would get a lot more business.
The website says something like, «We’ve been here for 20 some years! We must be doing something right!» made it an even bigger let down when I got there… REALLY?! LOL.
I don’t like the fact the building is not handicapped accessible. Again… put some $$ back into your business. They’re charging to get in, they make good $ on the drinks so in my opinion they should clean the place & make it more appealing & accessible to people with disabilities. It’s 2011 and no… you’re not doing a whole lot of things right.

Okay so Alrosa gets a bad rap sometimes, because Dimebag got shot here back in 2004. However, this is a pretty awesome concert venue! Security has stepped up aka you will get patted down. It is dark and kinda dingy, but it’s no worse than the Newport or Bogart’s. There is a sitting area and there are also TVs around the venue. They actually put the OSU (Vs Miami) game on during the show.
The band’s really have a great time and you will see big names as well as local stuff. We saw 10 Years here on ⁹⁄₁₇ and it was awesome! Tickets are always reasonably priced and the booze isn’t too overly priced (for a venue). Twenty ounce draught beers are $ 6.50. Killians, Miller Lite and Bud Lite are on tap. P. S. they do not accept credit cards at the bar. There is an ATM, but BRING CASH!!!
Overall, Alrosa is an experience. Inexpensive tickets, reasonable booze prices, wide arrange of bands (that usually come greet the crowd afterwards), and a historic landmark are all-​in-​one place. There’s nowhere like Alrosa Villa!

I used to love Al Rosa as a teen & early 20 something. Now I don’t really have patience for the lack of parking, the frisk & purse dumping at the door (and then there being no other security!). The absence of an ATM and fact that the bar doesn’t take credit cards makes no sense. The place is an inferno all year round and the bathrooms are unbearable.
There is a good show maybe once or twice a year, other than that it’s usually one hit wonders like Mr. Big or just bands nobody has ever even heard of.

I think it’s kind of a shame that the Alrosa Villa has such a bad rap. Anybody who ever hears about it thinks of when Dimebag, a former guitarist from Pantera, was shot and killed here a few years back. I mean, I guess that was a pretty big deal, but I think it’s sad that that’s this venue’s claim to fame. It’s also weird to think about a nationally known musician coming to Columbus and someone shooting him while performing on stage. I’m not a Pantera fan, but I know a lot of people who are still really upset about that whole incident.
I guess there’s really something to be said for security at concert venues. But if you think about it, other places in the city don’t always do any security checks. The Newport doesn’t and LC Pavilion usually doesn’t. The Alrosa didn’t because it was such a small venue, but it’s changed. I came here to watch my friend’s band perform and they have definitely upped the security. There are police officers and you will get searched when you enter the building. I don’t mind it, and I guess it’s kind of nice to see that they are taking such precautions. Something like that happening twice in this place would shut it down for sure. I’m not sure that the one incident has stopped the people from coming, but I know some people have said that they are nervous about seeing a show here. My response is that Alrosa probably has the best security out of any venue in the city now.
Alrosa Villa is sort of out in the middle of nowhere. It’s north of Morse Rd. but still inside 270. I don’t even remember how to get there. But there isn’t much around it, and it doesn’t look like much from the outside. It’s small and dingy and I’d never give it a second though driving past it if I hadn’t heard of it before. Very popular bands do not play here. It’s just not big enough for a large crowd. But sometimes they do feature bands that you may have heard of, like Cold or Taproot. But what I think is cool about this place is that local and struggling bands typically play here. Like my friend’s band. It gives them a chance to play in front of an audience and be heard. And it was really nice to see my friend perform onstage and be so close. I’ve never seen any other show here but his, and that’s because Alrosa, from what I’ve heard, mostly features metal bands. I’m not exactly into that sort of thing, but if you were, you’d probably love it here.
The night we went to my friend’s show, we found our way out here and the parking lot was covered in snow. We found a spot but no one could see where the lines marking each spot were, so we had to guess like everyone else. When we went inside we had to show our tickets at the door (our friend had given them to us) and go through security, which consisted of a pat down and a quick look through our purses. They also checked our IDs and gave us bracelets. Then we were in. And man, this place is kinda scary. It’s dark and dirty and small. The front area where you walk in has the bar to the left and a seating area to the right with tables and chairs. Straight ahead was the stage and a big open floor for the audience in front of that. It was really dark in there, but it was lit up more towards the front.
We went around talking to friends since most of the people there were people we knew, and decided to grab a few drinks at the bar. But my friend that was driving was a bit nervous about getting anything to drink since those cops were right there, so he limited himself to one. But as it turned out, the rest of us did too, because the drinks were not cheap. I supposed they were typical of any concert hall, but still, we decided to go out somewhere else later instead of blow all our money there.
My friend’s band was playing after a few other bands, but I didn’t really feel like going down towards the stage and watching them. They were all heavy metal bands and people were moshing and getting all crazy by the stage. And there weren’t that many people there. Maybe 40 or 50. It looked sort of silly seeing such a small crowd of maybe 6 or 7 try to start a mosh pit. I don’t know if that’s what it’s like at most shows here, but I don’t like that kind of environment. I don’t understand. You come to a live show to see a band and enjoy the music, not to thrash around and hit other people, right? I guess that’s exactly why some people go to concerts, but for me, it makes my experience quite a bit less enjoyable when I’m trying to watch a show.
And when my friend’s band came on stage, that’s sort of what happened. We got right up to the stage since the crowd was so small, and my sister and I were taking pictures of him onstage so he could see them later. Yes, they did let us bring our cameras into Alrosa. And then you had these crazy people moshing, screaming and thrashing all over the place. Several times I was bumped or hit and almost dropped my digital camera. And if it was that bad with a crowd so small, imagine with a big crowd! It was a good show, but not really my style.

In all fairness, The Al Rosa Villa is not half as bad as it’s cracked up to be. The security here is lax enough that they look the other way when you and your buddies start bonging PBR tallboys in the parking lot a good four hours before showtime, which has to be worth something. Unfortunately, The Al Rosa is not warmly known as the place that lets you get wasted in the parking lot on their watch. It’s simply known as «That place where Dimebag Darrel [former lead guitarist of Pantera] got shot by some crazed ex-​marine for no reason whatsoever.» I’m not gonna lie: the clientele that the shows here attract definitely skew towards the «extreme» side of the social barometer, and the inside looks more like a murky Daytona Beach strip club than it does a rock venue, but I had one of the most righteously unforgettable evenings of rockin’ when I saw Guided By Voices play their final Columbus show here, and for that I am eternally grateful. By common rock club standards, everything that made that show awesome (besides the drunken rockstar antics that made GBV one of the greatest indie bands of my time) was courtesy of the people running the show: the sound was skillfully mixed and made each guitar solo shine like a beacon in the shroud Bob Pollard’s boozy fog, the bartender was quick and skilled in the art of draft pulling, and the stage couldn’t have been construct more perfectly. And yes, the security guards could not have given two shits about the balls-​to-​the-​wall behavior of my friends and I as we showed up a good three hours before the show to get in «the zone» for what we anticipated to be one of our finest moments in rock fandom. It’s unfortunate that all this place can book these days is crappy nu-​metal groups and whatever reggae band is hot on CD101’s «Island Riddims with DJ Trevor» at the time. At least I have my memories, I suppose.