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Monday, June 22, 2009

Opinion / News Thoughts on The Fillmore

Posted By on Mon, Jun 22, 2009 at 11:00 AM

So, Friday night was the opening of the new Fillmore here in Charlotte which means that both of the new venues are now open. I thought I'd share a few thoughts on both:

The Uptown Amphitheatre

I haven't been to the new amphitheatre yet, but have heard mixed reaction. Some people said it's awesome, some said it's too packed when the show is sold out. However, the biggest complaint was about beer prices. To these people I ask, "Have you been to Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre? The prices are the same there." A smaller venue doesn't mean smaller prices. Instead of people complaining about the prices, and then continuing to pay for beer at $8 and $11, why not stop buying it? If people stopped paying for it, they'd have to lower costs to sell it. You may complain, but if you keep buying it, you have nothing to complain about...

The Fillmore

I went to see Corey Smith on Friday night and was immediately impressed by the vibe of the location and the fact there isn't really a bad "seat" in the house. With four levels, you can see the stage from practically anywhere inside the venue. A 16-ounce beer costs $6, which is closer to the average price at any bar around town. The lighting and sound systems are fantastic and the air conditioning works beyond well. In fact, it was nearly freezing in there and the complaint I heard the most was that it was too cold.

The bathrooms are located up front at the venue, which means that security is there to keep a lane clear for an easy pathway. Not the best choice for location of bathrooms, but there's not much choice. It just means you can't stand on the far side of the stage. Meanwhile, on the other side, when the sun is going down, you get a really bright reflection off of the floor and into the venue. Maybe they'll put some curtains up or close the doors until the sun goes down.

One of the biggest complaints going on around town is that the new venues, especially, the Fillmore will ruin business for local clubs such as Amos' Southend and the Neighborhood Theatre. Shows that previously sold out those smaller venues have now gone up to The Fillmore — The Black Crowes and Corey Smith, to name two. However, I'm not so sure that this will be the end of those clubs. Bands become more popular — acts that previously played at The Double Door or Evening Muse have moved up to Amos' or the Neighborhood and those places survived. So, why would bands leaving Amos' or Neighborhood and going up to Verizon, The Fillmore or Uptown be the end of them?

I would like to think that our music scene will grow and thrive with new venues and attract more bands to the city instead of bands skipping it for Atlanta or Raleigh. I understand complaints about the service fees, etc., but I would like to think that there are enough bands and people in this town to help support all of the music venues. I think it's more likely, in some ways, that if the new venues didn't exist, we wouldn't be getting some of the acts to perform in Charlotte. Chickenfoot and Heart wouldn't have schedule their shows at the Uptown Amphitheatre... It's likely that The B-52s and Motorhead would have skipped us, as well.

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