Recher Theatre

Nice small local venue that attracts some good acts. Lighting and audio isn't up to par with a place like Ram's Head - but it's charming. Home of All Time Low - so there's that :)

I was here with my wife on a couple of occasions recently to see her brothers band play.  It's really sad what this venue has become.  The place is filthy.  The carpeted floor is nothing but gum stains, the cloth on the walls is stained and falling down, there is a nasty fish tank in the back, just collecting bacteria, the beer selection is poor at best, the bathrooms were flat out NASTY, just to name a few.  Besides the fact that they are doing nothing to upkeep this place, the staff is awful.  The bartender is a complete jerk unless you are a skinny blond (save your tip money), and the manager is nowhere to be found.  Like a previous post said, the sound guy runs this place, and he isn't good at it.  He will cut bands off in the middle of a song if he believes their time has expired (when usually it hasn't).  The other night, people were screaming for an encore from the last band that went that night.  Even before the band could thank the crowd for coming out, he had cut their mics, and refused to allow them to play an encore.  Here is how stupid this place is.  There were about 100 people there, having a great time, buying drinks from the bar.  They wanted to hear another song or two, and many probably would have bought another drink.  He refused, and the place was completely empty at just after 10:00PM.  Really??  You have a band that wants to play, a crowd that wants to stay and hear more music, and buy more beer, and you refuse.  I honestly can't see this place staying in business much longer.  I will be back to support family if they decide to play here again, but I can tell you this, I won't buy a single beer, or grab a dinner at the Rec Room.  I'll save my hard earned money for a place that cares about it's patrons.

I could write an essay on all the horrible things this club has done, but I'll try to keep it short to a few key points from my most recent trip.

I was booked to play a local music spotlight. From the second we got in there, the sound guy, Keith from Speedoo Sound, made up his mind that he didn't like us. He spoke to us in a downright condescending manner. He also was making decisions that were completely illogical. It was clear that, no matter what we did, he was going to treat us like the scum of the earth. When doors opened, someone who bought a ticket to see us went over and casually asked him one question. Keith blew up, they got in a verbal altercation, and Keith cut us 5 minutes before our set.

Yes, the sound guy cut us. Because of an altercation that he sparked with someone not even in the band. The sound guy. Not the owner or the manager. The sound guy decided that he had that authority. Turns out he did. The manager, Buddy, was too busy hanging out on the venue's patio talking to his buddies to even enter the venue and resolve the issue. We didn't know who he was until someone pointed him out an hour after we were kicked out!

We went home and looked up Keith to file a complaint. Found his Facebook, filled with nasty statuses about our band, and well as dissing so many other local bands. A middle aged man dissing a bunch of kids on Facebook. And he was posting this while we were still in the venue, a.k.a. while he was at work, getting paid. The owner, Scott,  was called right away. Apparently, Keith's side of the story was that we, as a band, threatened to beat him up and were calling him horrible names. A bunch of kids. Two of us are girls. It was explained that we have a score of witnesses who saw otherwise. Scott's final word? "Well, I've known Keith for over 10 years so I'm taking his word over yours."

I wish I was making this up. I just can't believe this is a real story. The belittlement, rudeness, apathy, and ignorance were absolutely unbelievable. I can't believe they're still in business. Turns out Keith screws over a lot of local bands. The stories I've heard are just as ridiculous. But since it's a corrupt buddy system over there, nothing ever gets resolved. There are so many amazing venues in the area. This one is not worth any local band's time, especially if Keith is mixing you.

Oh yeah, one more thing - the restrooms. Flies everywhere, sticky floors, stained toilet seats, HUMAN FECES on the floor. Before anyone was even in the venue. Think about that next time you're looking for live music.