RTP-area local music and culture

[local506 AT gmail.com]

>>"It was," Palmer concludes with a sigh, "quite a learning experience."

I was just having this conversation with someone last week - one of
the reasons clubs often close is that it's a huge learning curve
(which booking agent's to trust, what local band's draw, etc.) that
most venue's can't sustain that pace very long...glenn

>From David Menconi's blog:

http://blogs.newsobserver.com/beat/index.php?title=hideaway_soon_to_hide_away&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Hideaway soon to hide away

Just before midnight Monday, as Southern Culture on the Skids played
for a packed house at Raleigh's Hideaway Music Hall, the electricity
cut off for about 45 minutes. Power was eventually restored and new
year's eve festivities continued. But maybe that was an omen, because
word has come down that Hideaway is closing. The Hideaway restaurant
is already shut down, with the live-music operation soon to follow
after a few more weeks of shows.

"When I started this place, I used to joke that I was tired of going
to music venues that were dirty boxes," says owner Palmer Stacy. "Now
I realize why that is, so that the overhead is not as high as mine
ended up being. But we had a good run and we'll try to keep it going a
few more weeks with the music. From the beginning, it was a mismatch
between the cost of running the place and the amount of people coming.
We had some great shows and some good crowds, just not enough to
support a building of that size and expense.

"It was," Palmer concludes with a sigh, "quite a learning experience."

Hideaway opened on Capitol Boulevard in October 2006 amid high hopes,
a barbecue joint that did country and twangy roots rock shows. Wayne
"The Train" Hancock (scheduled to return on Jan. 25), Bottlerockets,
Blue Mountain, and Billy Joe Shaver were among the acts to play there.
But Hideaway struggled to break even and rumors swirled around it for
the past year. When booker Marianne Taylor left for South by Southwest
last March, Palmer told her that Hideaway might not be open when she
returned. Still, she had hopes the club could hang in there.

"It's upsetting," Taylor says. "The first four months or so, there was
no soul to the place. Then last January, the vibe got good and it
started to feel like home. I'm still holding out for a miracle of
someone stepping up so my music can stay at Hideaway."

Taylor guesses Hideaway will be open the next three weekends. Beyond
that, she'll move Hideaway shows to other clubs in the area. Upcoming
Hideaway shows that might be in search of new venues include Don Dixon
on Jan. 26; Asylum Street Spankers on Jan. 29; Malcolm Holcombe on
Jan. 31; Unknown Hinson on Feb. 2; Jason Ringenberg/Farmer Jason on
Feb. 8-9; Jesse Dayton on Feb. 16; and NRBQ pianist Terry Adams on
March 15.