Tower Theatre

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^
Amen regarding Tower and Stephen and Chad. Exactly what I have been trying to say in my posts; their rapid progression as venue management and bookers is playing a huge role in the undeniably improving overall scene, and I can only imagine what they will be bringing a year from now. It’s just going to take time for the market to be where we all want it to be.

Instead of sitting at home on the Internet complaining and denying that we are making any headway as a market - despite indisputable progress - I’d invite anyone who truly wants better live music in this town to go to one of the many excellent shows the Tower is bringing with regularity; and certainly few if any of them are bro bands or frat rock. In fact feel free to join me there this very week at The Black Angels/Black Lips show or The Dead South - just the type of shows we’ve had a hard time seeing with regularity in this market - and I’ll buy you a beer. The surest way to more great shows is to develop a reputation for strong sales. Period.

Also by the way should be noted that Scott Marsh is involved in the management and booking of Jones Assembly (still also working with Levelland).

[Uptowner]

Your quote there at the end also demonstrates why Jones in getting shows like the pixies and spoon. They have an agent with inside connections and relationships in the industry vs true upstarts.

[Urbanized]

Yes, that and REALLY deep pockets.

[Roger S]

Well something must be starting to work in OKC because up until last year I was pretty much exclusively travelling to Dallas or Tulsa for the handful of shows I would see a year. Last year was the first year since I was a teenager that I saw more shows in OKC than I traveled out of town to see and there were a couple I even had to pass up seeing here due to scheduling conflicts.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^
Exactly. I think a few people have already forgotten how bleak it was just a couple of years ago, and for decades before that. It’s still not by any means a strong live music town but we’ve made great strides recently and will continue to do so thanks to Tower and Jones, and hopefully the picture clears up a bit for Criterion and Chevy BEC, which are really excellent venues that only need a bit more promoter love.

[PhiAlpha]

Well something must be starting to work in OKC because up until last year I was pretty much exclusively travelling to Dallas or Tulsa for the handful of shows I would see a year. Last year was the first year since I was a teenager that I saw more shows in OKC than I traveled out of town to see and there were a couple I even had to pass up seeing here due to scheduling conflicts.

Don’t say that too loud...someone might think you’re saying that after one year of the tower, criterion, and jones assembly being open that OKC’s live music offerings have now surpassed Tulsa and Dallas combined!

[Roger S]

Don’t say that too loud...someone might think you’re saying that after one year of the tower, criterion, and jones assembly being open that OKC’s live music offerings have now surpassed Tulsa and Dallas combined!

HAHA...I'll keep it in the down low.

And actually I only considered Tulsa twice last year. The Magpie Salute only played Cain's and Old 97's played Cain's and Diamond. So I considered going to Tulsa to see them two nights in a row but it was a weeknight so I didn't pull the trigger on it.

[OSUFan]

Cain's and the Brady are still getting great shows but this past two years have been the least I've wanted to go up there for shows. Even the maligned Criterion gets killer shows the one or two times a month they book them.

I'm in no way saying OKC is beating Tulsa because we aren't. I just don't see how someone can not be excited about how far we've come in a pretty short amount of time.

[Urbanized]

Went to Black Angels last night and saw an incredible show. The opener was Black Lips, who were also excellent. The show was essentially sold out on the floor level with balcony closed. Really great turnout and great show for a Tuesday night. Maybe it's not the show that the bellyachers are looking for, but SOMEBODY likes these bands.

Going to The Dead South tomorrow night, and it is also tipping close to sell-out.

[Uptowner]

I think every night this week is close to or sold out

[HangryHippo]

How did the shows of bands going to Austin do? Anyone know?

[baralheia]

How did the shows of bands going to Austin do? Anyone know?

I'm curious about this as well... Really wanted to go check out the 405 Pitstop on Saturday night but I was unable to due to prior obligations.

[Heysloth]

I'm curious about this as well... Really wanted to go check out the 405 Pitstop on Saturday night but I was unable to due to prior obligations.

The wife and I went for a few hours on Saturday. There was a moderate sized crowd. We had fun. I hope it becomes a yearly event. It seems like the kind of thing that would get better with more time if they do it right. Plus it gets younger up and coming bands into the venue. One of the reasons Tulsa get more high quality shows is that they have places like Cains that people know and want to play at. Developing that kind of reputation at The Tower can only help future bookings.

[Urbanized]

Went to The Dead South last night. GREAT SHOW. Packed house.

[soonerguru]

I just looked at the calendar for tonight, a nice weekend night off for me, to see what we have for live music. In the process of determining there is literally nothing of interest, I visited the Criterion website. I encourage all here to do the same. In the entire month of March, there are THREE EVENTS. THREE. This is a month when literally every band in North America and beyond is traveling through our state on I-35 to attend SXSW.

I'm a big fan of boosterism, and yes, there have been a handful of good shows in OKC this year. But I'm not about to kiss the ground and celebrate because the live music scene is a sad approximation of what it once was in this town -- when OKC pretty much sucked all around.

So, YAY to the three or four great shows! WOO! That's like one a month! We've come a long way baby! Let's have the CVB and Chamber put out a press release!

[Urbanized]

You’re basing the relative strength of the OKC scene on the performance of Criterion? Tower had sell-outs or near sell-outs this whole week.

Have you been to the Cain’s website lately? Between now and November there are 3 or 4 shows worth being jealous over. Beach House, Lord Huron, Fleet Foxes, Sylvan Esso and..? And we have had shows here in the past year that have been every bit as big as those or bigger. The XX, Alt-J, Spoon, My Morning Jacket, Sturgill Simpson, on and on...

The rest of the schedule is chock full of tribute bands, “battle of the bands,” acts made up of leftover members of backing bands for people like B.B King, plus a bunch of act who have also played OKC recently or who are scheduled to play soon at Tower or Diamond or somewhere else. Melvins (I’ve seen them in OKC twice in recent years), The Sword (same, at Diamond at at ACM, and I think they’ve been here at least one other time recently), Marty Stuart (Tower), Black Tiger Sex Machine (Farmers Market), John Moreland (just played Tower, already scheduled to play Diamond), American Aquarium (coming to Tower), Junior Brown (I saw him at Wormy Dog but know he’s played elsewhere here since), Dr. Dog (ACM Performance Lab), Of Montreal (ACM Performance Lab, several other shows, they play here often), Band of Horses (Diamond), Robert Earl Keen (Jones Assembly), Tech N9ne (Diamond), Mountain Goats (ACM Performance Lab), Shakey Graves (coming to Tower), Jimmy Eat World (multiple Diamond shows), Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox (Criterion).

In fact, after going to the Brady website and seeing a very few shows and a similar mix of bands who’ve been here recently combined with some junk, I have to say Tulsa’s scene is struggling a bit itself. I’ll take the past six months and next six months in OKC straight-up vs the same timeframe in Tulsa.

[jonny d]

Man, the hard rock/metal fan in me has ABSOLUTELY ZERO FREAKING CLUE what you guys are fighting over. Diamond gets quite a few shows I go to. But I guess since I don't listen to indie music, my opinion on the music scene doesn't matter, so I will stay in the shadows.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^^
Well, I think that’s just the thing. If your tastes are narrow and you’re looking for metal you’re pretty good, but if they’re narrow and skew punk/classic alternative with an indie bent (which is where I’m pretty sure soonerguru is since believe it or not he’s actually a longtime personal friend of mine) traditionally it has been very disappointing for years in OKC. In part because that’s a genre swath that was almost completely ignored by radio in this town. It’s one of the reasons I’ve said David Byrne was a great get (and soonerguru agreed). That’s an area where Cain’s has traditionally beaten OKC up badly. But we are making inroads thanks to the new venues. That’s where bands like The XX, Alt-J, My Morning Jacket, Beach House, Local Natives, Tame Impala, etc. live. The Tower had a great show in this category this past Tuesday with Black Angels.

Cain’s also gets a ton of great country and especially alt-country and Red Dirt acts. Traditionally OKC does pretty well here too. It’s an area I don’t know well, but I’ve become more and more interested and so glad to have decided to see shows like Sturgill Simpson or The Dead South. Great music is great music.

But like you said, Diamond has a strong rep for heavy stuff (though they also do quite a bit of country and are booking more quality alt/indie shows lately...probably because of pressure from the other venues). It’s not my first go-to but I’ve also seen plenty of great metal (or at least heavy-ish) shows there; most recently Mastodon. Also some good hip hop shows like Run the Jewels (which was same week as Mastodon). Tower is also doing high-quality hip-hop (he’s not my personal taste, but Ty Dolla $ign is a big act and perfect example).

The point I was making in my post is that nearly every single one of the acts on Cain’s upcoming shows either HAS played OKC recently or is ABOUT to. Just between current upcoming shows at Tower and Diamond there are maybe 8-10 acts that are upcoming at Cain’s (I’m tired of abounding around between all of the sites but I’d encourage anyone who cares about the debate to do the same and see for themselves. Point being Tulsa and OKC shows are currently pretty comparable (I feel like Tulsa is down a bit though, compared to normal level of bookings). I PROMISE that between Tower, Jones, Criterion, Diamond and the odd shows at places like Opolis, ACM et al we currently have far more good shows booked than does the Cain’s/Brady combo. BTW just checked Opolis’ site and saw they have Electric Six and also have Melvins (yet ANOTHER parallel booking to Cain’s (and two more shows I’ll be seeing).

You may have to go to more venues, and it helps to have wide-ranging tastes, but all of these bands mentioned are excellent bands and there are currently dozens of good shows on the books in this town. DOZENS. That hasn’t been the case for the 30+ years I’ve lived here, until the past couple of years. Is there lots of room to grow? Of course. But acting like it’s no different than the years that came before is ridiculous.

[T. Jamison]

Just some anecdotal evidence, but when I was in high school (in the Tulsa Metro), I drove to OKC for several heavy shows and could almost guarantee I would see other people from Tulsa as well. There was a heavy show at the 89th Street Collective (which was sold out) and a good friend of mine from Tulsa drove to see it on a Thursday night. Myself and others always loved coming to OKC for shows. Even if the quantity or quality isn't always what some may hope for, it still bring people from Tulsa to OKC and vice-versa. One of my first experiences in OKC was when I was 17 headed to a show at the Diamond Ballroom in 2011. We drove by Devon, and I had no idea what it was, but it was the only time in my life I had seen a building that size being built in Oklahoma. It had a small but meaningful impact on me, and the next year I moved to Edmond to go to UCO. 6 years and a degree later, I have no intention of ever going back.

[Urbanized]

Yes, Conservatory/89th was doing lots of good heavy shows. Plus there was an excellent window when they did some great indie and caught some excellent bands on their way up and if you were paying attention you could see bands like Band of Horses, Rogue Wave, Arcade Fire etc before they got big. Well, Rogue Wave never got “big,” but what a great band. Even recently I saw Mike Watt of Minutemen. That crap hole was the first place I saw Melvins. Remarkable number of great bands came through there, but for some time that place and The Opolis were the only places doing punk/alt/indie to any substantial degree. That’s changed.

[BG918]

Point being Tulsa and OKC shows are currently pretty comparable

Agree seems pretty comparable. You might have to occasionally drive from OKC to Tulsa for a show, and vice versa. It’s only an hour and a half drive each way.

[TheTravellers]

Agree seems pretty comparable. You might have to occasionally drive from OKC to Tulsa for a show, and vice versa. It’s only an hour and a half drive each way.

I've only driven back from Tulsa a few times after a concert, but there's not much that kills an after-show buzz than having to drive 90 minutes back home when you're on that high from the show and tired 'cos you've been up all day and had to drive 90 minutes to get there too.

[Dustin]

I've only driven back from Tulsa a few times after a concert, but there's not much that kills an after-show buzz than having to drive 90 minutes back home when you're on that high from the show and tired 'cos you've been up all day and had to drive 90 minutes to get there too.

That's why you go with a bunch of friends so you can talk about how awesome it was the whole drive back.

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^^^
Truth. Also to keep you from nodding off.

[catch22]

^^^^^^^^
Truth. Also to keep you from nodding off.

If only there were some kind of transportation option that went from city to city, where you could purchase a seat and had the ability to doze off and not worry about crashing. There could also be restrooms on board and maybe a wifi signal. I don't know if that will ever be technically viable though.