Ultra Violet Social Club

Fuck. This. Place.
ZERO stars. I’m only giving it one because, as well as know, you can’t give zero. But, this shithole is definitely a qualifier if you could.
I bought tickets for a concert I’ve been feverishly anticipating for the last couple of months through their website. A website which is poorly maintained, rarely updated and in disarray. Even though I had the tickets held at will-​call, they still charged me $ 5 for shipping & handling. Whatever. The band I was to see hasn’t played L.A. in 7 years, and they rarely ever play shows as it is.
The recent rainstorms were pounding So Cal with such ferocity that even Ike Turner took notice, so I made sure to leave with plenty of time to navigate through the abyssal plane known as The 5. Just before leaving, however, I received an email stating that the venue has refunded my money for the tickets via PayPal. This can’t be good. I pulled up their website and called the main #. It’s no longer in service. I called the manager, and her phone just rang and rang and rang with no voicemail options. I called someone associated with graphic design for the site. He answered, but had no idea what was going on with tonight’s show, but he did tell me the main # doesn’t work and that I should call the manager. I told him her # isn’t working. He didn’t know what to tell me after that. I pulled up the event page and everything looked normal. You could even still buy tickets for the show. I figured this had to be some kind of error, so I decided I’d drive up and get this all squared away.
TWO HOURS in traffic later, I arrive. It took me a while to be sure since this is a nondescript warehouse located near the train tracks. Doors are supposed to open at 7pm; it’s not 6:35 pm and I don’t see much activity inside. In fact, I see none. A wave of concern crashes over me. I walk around the perimeter — nothing. Eventually, a couple of fans show up and we talk about what the deal might be. For all we know, the show has been canceled with no explanation. I check for info on my phone, but come up with nothing. We decide to call it after a good 30 min. of this and I leave to go eat before my drive back down to OC. After I get home, I do some more in-​depth sleuthing since I need to know what happened. Apparently, the venue was changed at some point, but the promoter here decided to not only wait until the last possible minute to refund everyone’s money, but they also chose to not clue everyone in on this crucial fact. The show was going on somewhere else as I read this information — my blood was boiling. I posted as much on the band’s Facebook page, and they apologized for the mix-​up but said it was the duty of the promoter to get word out. I’m normally on top of this kind of stuff, but I’ve never had a band change venues for any of the 120+ concerts I’ve been to in the last 16+ years. So, now I missed the band play (hopefully they come back before 2017) and I wasted a lot of my time, gas and money on a pointless excursion. All of which could have been avoided, and my night would have been fucking killer, had someone from this shithole given a heads up to everyone who bought a ticket.

This place is tucked away by the train tracks between LA & Pasadena, right off the 110. I hadn’t heard of it before, but the latest Noche de los Psychos was being held there & Koffin Kats was headlining. Anyone who knows me, knows I love Psychobilly, and anyone who knows Psychobilly knows that Koffin Kats are fantastic. So, the night before Halloween I had to be there!
This is a great space for live music. This is not a superpopulated area, so the line outside was organized & flowed into the venue well. The building is a large warehouse, but only about half of it was used for the space, I’m not sure what is in the street side of the building. We entered through a gate into the parking lot on the right side, and walked to entrance, which was at the back of the building. The stage was at the far end from where we entered. The room was a pretty good size, although I don’t really know how to judge the capacity. There was enough room on the floor for a sizable pit & people standing to watch the band around it. Then there was a raised area at the back of the room where they had the soundboard, most of the band merch & a bar. This wasn’t a balcony, it stands about 3 – 4 feet off the main floor, and has steps on each side. The back area was just a little small for all five bands to display their merch, so one had theirs set up on the main floor on the way to the restrooms, which are located stage left. I stood in the raised area for most of the show, as it gave a clear view of the stage, but isn’t too far away from the action.
If you smoke, they had a smoking area set up outside the entrance at the back of the building. They didn’t, however, seem too keen on having you leave that area to go to your car. Parking was on the street, but we found a place right in front of the venue, so no issues there. Oh & they were taking everyone’s pens away, because I guess they don’t want you tagging their nice space… so just leave the pens at home or in your car.
One of the things that I really liked about this venue was all of the art on the walls… hanging, as well as painted directly onto the brick walls. This, combined with the vaulted ceilings, made me feel like I was at a MICA (Baltimore Art School) loft party, rather than a concert. It felt more intimate.
The sound wasn’t the best I’ve ever heard, but the vibe was amazing. I’ll definitely revisit the U.V.S.C. in the future if they have more shows worth seeing.