The Bones of JR Jones Tomorrow 12/13 and Brooklyn Venues Closing

It seems like everyday another venue in North Brooklyn is closing. It’s a real bummer and unfortunately it’s not a new story; lots of establishments end up priced out of rapidly changing neighborhoods. We’ve been informed Brooklyn Rod & Gun will be closing its doors in the next few weeks. However, they at least have a pretty great 2nd to last ever show lined up for tomorrow to go out in style. I didn’t actually know about this place until recently. It sounds cool: a private social club frequented by fishing enthusiasts that also boasted music and community events. It lasted for six years at 59 Kent, but the end is nigh. They will host The Bones of JR Jones, The White Bark Pine, Free Advice, and Melaena Cadiz (a Greenpointers favorite we’ve written about several times). The show starts at 8:00 PM tomorrow 12/13. I didn’t know what a private club meant for the regular person who might want to go. Essentially, you can get a temporary one-night membership for $10 that entitles you to see the show and have a few drinks. Not a bad Saturday evening plan.

It saddens me that places like this are not able to stay in the neighborhood. I was at Glasslands the other night to see Waxahatchee (who was as excellent as hoped for…that voice!) and also to simply see live music in one of my favorite venues for the last time. Glasslands will be gone as of 2015. Over the past few years I got there a good handful of times to hear many great bands. It was the kind of place where a bigger act on the rise would come through (like the awesome EMA show in summer 2011, a major highlight for me) but where I got to see my friends in local acts play, too. It hit that sweet spot nicely. And it looked cool, just had a certain charm. The music and arts community are a little worse off without Glasslands and, though I haven’t been, Brooklyn Rod and Gun too.

The big picture is bleak. Death By Audio, Glasslands’ around-the-corner neighbor, is already gone. Spike Hill is going soon. What next?  Williamsburg still has venues, but this isn’t a great trend. I’m sure Greenpoint spots like St. Vitus and Matchless won’t be immune, either. These are part of  broader situation of urban development that isn’t something a regular person can easily reverse. But I hope we can still make sure to enjoy the spaces we have and find other outlets for community and socializing and the arts. Get out there as often as you can, because you never know when a place might have to shut its doors. The physicals spaces might disappear, but what you experience in them can’t ever be taken. Maybe not a huge comfort, but it’s something.

If anyone has any fond memories of these venues they’d like to share, wants to vent about the changes, has any interesting ideas to offer, or whatever else, leave a comment.