Play Station: Boston’s return, new club Live boost local music scene

Spencer Patterson

Friday, Aug. 8, 2003 | 8:24 a.m.

The sounds of hammers and drills rang out in the background when Austin LeDuc of local band Clockwise walked into the new nightclub Live on Tuesday afternoon.

LeDuc wasn't there to prep for a show. Live isn't scheduled to open to the public until 7:30 tonight, and Clockwise isn't yet on the club's upcoming calendar.

The singer was merely there to chat with friends, eat his fast-food lunch and show his support for Las Vegas' newest music venue.

"So many of the clubs in this town are right off the Strip," LeDuc said between bites of his burger. "The overall vibe can't be as grass roots and sincere when you're that close to the Strip. This place is in the right spot."

LeDuc and his peers on the local music scene actually have two reasons to celebrate at the moment. Not only is Live set to open on the west side of town, but the Boston Bar & Grill recently reopened on the east side, giving area bands two new venues in which to play.

"I want this to be a locals place, the place where you see all your local bands become rock stars," said Kat Kellams, who handles publicity and booking for the Boston. "Right now, Vegas has a great local music scene, and a lot of people don't know it."

New-look Boston

The Boston, a longtime fixture on South Jones Boulevard, closed last year in part because the club's faulty air-conditioning system would have required expensive repairs. Instead, owners Rob Bassett and Mark Patel opted to relocate to the club's new home at 1030 E. Flamingo Blvd., just west of Maryland Parkway.

The building is somewhat difficult to spot, tucked away behind Paradise Pet Hospital, which fronts on Flamingo. But Kellams is confident music fans will turn out for the Boston's nightly shows, as they did for a recent bill that included popular local bands the Ill Figures, a percussive hard-rock outfit, and Corner Stone, which blends hip-hop, rock and funk.

"We're helping to grow the local scene, and I think we're going to get a lot of college kids in here," Kellams said.

The Boston's new space -- formerly home to a Mexican restaurant and a short-lived dance club -- features a large stage toward the back of the building, a bar area and adjacent television lounge up front and a dance floor in its center.

The facility, which is open 24 hours a day, also offers a full menu, which includes many Boston-style seafood, Italian and Irish dishes. Two dining rooms flank the stage and dance floor area.

"When I'm out drinking, watching bands, I want good music, good drink prices and when I'm done at the end of the night, I want good food," Kellams said.

Five weeks into the new Boston's existence, Kellams has solidified several nights on the 585-person capacity venue's weekly concert calendar.

For example, on Mondays, the theme is "Too Drunk to Punk," which couples performances by local punk bands with 50-cent beer nights. Thursdays it's "Ladies '80s Night," when women drink for free as '80s-themed bands -- including national headliners such as Missing Persons and Gene Loves Jezebel -- play onstage.

"I want people to come in for the drink specials and hear the bands, because what's new (musically) doesn't always have a following," Kellams said.

Concert prices run from $5 to $7, with shows open to anyone 21 and over. Underage fans can sit in the Boston's restaurant section, where they can hear their favorite acts play, providing they do so while eating.

Live and kicking

J. Ramzi, general manager for Live, shares Kellams' vision of a thriving off-Strip local music scene.

"I want to try to start a serious music scene in this town," Ramzi said Tuesday as workmen put some finishing touches on the club.

"We're four hours from Hollywood, and we're supposed to be the entertainment capital of the world, and basically our local scene is a bunch of bars with stages in the corners."

Located at 5150 W. Spring Mountain Road, one block west of Decatur Boulevard, Live occupies the space formerly home to the Barking Frog, a locals' pub.

The building's interior has been reconfigured so the main room is wide open for use as a dance floor, tiled with a black-and-white ceramic design. At one end of the room is Live's stage, the foot of which consists of eight 18-inch woofer speakers.

"We want to be a concert hall with a bar, not the other way around," Ramzi said. "We're not reinventing the wheel. We're just doing it in a bigger and better way."

The stage is also visible from the club's second level, a VIP area that features couches, a bar and eight of Live's 12 pool tables. Behind the large open room on the ground floor is another bar area, with sightlines to the stage.

Two 20-foot screens, one of which Ramzi plans to use as a curtain for the stage, will show music videos between sets.

The 21-and-over club will be open 24 hours a day, with admission set at $5 for local acts and more for nationals. The venue, which will hold around 600 people, also features a full kitchen, offering such musical-themed dishes as the Stage Dive Veggie Platter.

Live was originally slated to open Aug. 1, but construction delays pushed the grand opening back one week. Tonight's free party is open to the public and kicks off at 7:30, with the Ill Figures, college rockers Slow to Surface, the female-fronted the Day After and hard rock band Truth in Cliche scheduled to perform, with the music beginning at 10 p.m.

Wednesday nights at Live will feature a metal theme, Sundays will be "open jams" for auditions by new acts and Thursday shows will be held in conjunction with KXTE 107.5-FM ("Xtreme Radio"). Longtime Huntridge Theatre booking agent Tom Anderson has signed on to bring in most of the bands.

"It's a good place to develop talent," said Nicole Sligar, who handles public relations and marketing for Live. "I live on the west side, and it's nice to have a place like this in your neighborhood."