New halls and
wrecking balls

by JOHNSON CUMMINS

About a month ago, I was taking in a crisp autumn walk and decided to reroute my hike past the ol’ Spectrum so I could pay my last respects, just before it would fall to the wrecking ball, this past Oct. 18—almost 26 years to the day since it first opened. At that point, there was already a pile of rubble taking up the corner of Bleury and Ste-Catherine. It surely must’ve been torturous for the 1,200-capacity concert hall to be staring at the neighbouring rubble, its bricks and mortar probably trembling in their foundations during their numbered days.

I don’t know why I felt such an attachment to this hallowed hall but the memories contained within the faux-starred walls just got me downright misty-eyed. I won’t get too sloppy here and list off all the life-changing shows I witnessed there, but once I started on the wrong way down memory lane, the floodgates really opened up for even more memories of all the deceased live venues in Montreal. Tricky Woo at the Monkey House (now a butcher shop), the Sadies and Jon Spencer killing it at the Main Hall (still dormant for live shows for well over a year), Jesus Lizard playing to 15 of us at Jailhouse (now an import/export shop), Melvins deafening the Woodstock crowd, Fear playing amidst the violent chaos at Purple Haze (now Saphir), An Albatross at Electric Tractor and so on. Not to mention all of the venues peppering the Main that have turned into dance bars and, more recently, the off-the-beaten-path DIY venues that have been consistently muscled or simply squashed with antiquated permit laws.

GET YOUR MOTOR RUNNING:
The United Steel Workers of Montreal

Thankfully, this isn’t just an obituary notice, albeit a little bit of a tardy one. There is a new venue and one reborn that should ease the passing of the mighty Spectrum. After fighting the good fight in court, the Green Room is finally emerging from its 20-day forced closure and has finally earned a permit to once again feature live shows. Hats off to these perseverant good folks for sticking it out and making it out the other side. Things actually got so stupid for the Green Room that not long ago, the club found itself in a Footloose nightmare, with “the Man” actually outlawing dancing there (?!). The room will return as a live venue on Dec. 1, so keep an eye out here for upcoming announcements.

As I had reported here a couple of months back, the new venue Il Motore finally opens its doors after a little bit of a false start. Located in Montreal’s burgeoning new hot spot in Park Ex, Il Motore is owned and operated by the fine folks behind Blue Skies Turn Black, Casa del Popolo and la Sala Rossa. With a comfy, 250-person capacity, this room, located at 179 Jean-Talon W., should prove to be a definite asset to the city and is sure to turn into a regular haunt for any concertgoer. Kicking things off for Il Motore will be the United Steel Workers of Montreal on Friday, with the official opening party happening on Saturday.

MORE SONGS ABOUT FOOD AND BUILDINGS…JONATHAN.CUMMINS@GMAIL.COM