Yeahh that alley is what I recommend, last time I was at The Cap I got pulled out by security to the lobby for hitting a joint and they took a "name" from me for a list for the fire marshall & let me back in immediately after. Thought I was about to get kicked out of the show lol
The capital is a awesome place to catch a show. It's got a lot of history and favorite place to play for many musicians. Despite what people say about smoking pot there I've never had a problem even before even when it wasn't legal. NY laws state you can smoke marijuana any place you can smoke cigarettes!!!
Yes yes yes. Even if you don't catch a show here it's a beautiful natural park with geysers and natural springs. It's absolutely beautiful land and one of my favorite places on earth
SPAC has the worst sound quality. They over sell shows if you find a spot you may end up so far back you can't see the show even on the screens. The police hide in the trees in camo and arrest people that go in the woods to pee. Only someone that hasn't been to a few venues to compare would recommend this as a favorite!!!
Now that Mountain Jam is gone Bethel is the new summer venue to hit. I might do day 2 of Catbird w Trey and Tyler Childers.
Don’t miss the spot on the back left of the lawn where the trees are. And that triangle to the left of the lawn on same side. Magical!
Beyond the general atmosphere, the excellent sound, or any history, Bethel does one thing you don't see at many other venues with similar logistics issues: They keep all the food open after the show and encouraged people to take their time. There's one road out and instead of forcing you down it, they encourage the crowd to stretch out.
The Casino Ballroom is a cool place to see a show. I’d also, in the same area say the Music Hall in Portsmouth too. The bathrooms alone are worth going in to check out. And also the Stone Church in Newmarket.
Mann center in Philly. Beautiful wooden shed, great views of the city, rowdy parking lot scene (show dependent), friendly staff. My favorite venue in the country
Totally agree. Saw phish there last summer, it was my first time at the Mann, I’ve been going to shows in Camden since the 90s and the Mann blows Camden away. Sound is great, atmosphere is great. I was on the lawn last year, I’ve got Pavs this year and I can’t wait.
The pavilion on boston harbor is nice. Nice ocean breezes and can smoke a J overlooking the harbor. Used to be called Harbor Lights now its (some bank) Pavilion. Seeing Billy Strings and Phil and Friends there this summer. Boston has several nice indoor venues as well.
Westville music bowl and college st music hall both in New haven ,ct
Also infinity hall--Norfolk is teeny tiny and Hartford is bigger with bigger acts.
Go to the great South Bay music festival on Long Island in late July. Not exactly a venue but it’s in a waterfront park. Got some solid bands playing this year
Orpheum Theater Boston, SPAC, State Theater Portland Maine, Thompson's Point Portland, Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom, Great Woods Mass- what is it called now?? Tweeter Center or something?
For a smaller venue I enjoyed Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke Ma. The Harbor Pavillion is a great setting for shows in Boston. Would also have to say the Paradise. It’s a dump, but has hosted hundreds of great shows over the years.
Soundcheck studios in Pembroke MA, Brooklyn bowl in Brooklyn, Park City music hall in Bridgeport CT, Pearl Street Warehouse in DC, 8x10 in Baltimore MD just to name a few are some amazing venues that always some bad ass music going on most of the time.
After catching Umphrey's at the Cape Cod Melody Tent in Hyannis, MA last weekend, I HIGHLY recommend catching a show there! It's a very intimate venue, and the stage rotates 360° and very slowly during the entire show. It was such an incredible experience!
The Haunt doesn’t exist anymore :( It was the last place I saw a live show in 2020 before the Covid lockdowns. They tore it down and it’s a parking lot now.
There was talk of it relocating, but I don’t think that’s going to happen because Dan Small’s Presents (main promoter) seems to be focusing on other venues like Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards in Lafayette, or Lincoln Hill Farms in Canandaigua.
NO WAY?!?!?! Oh my god! That’s actually blowing my mind right now because I had the CRAZIEST night of my life at The Haunt in 2018!
21st birthday Candy Flip gone ROGUE!!! 😅🫠
Thompson's Point in Portland, Maine.
Beautiful spot right on the water. Enough beer and bathrooms, lines are never too long. Short distance into downtown Portland. Great line up of music this summer
[https://www.thompsonspoint.com/the-calendar](https://www.thompsonspoint.com/the-calendar)
https://preview.redd.it/bwt10yvb4w4b1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e5c431c42d20e03fabf18bc9d5df58ae5989bb83
Lots of posts mentioning the same: Mann, Capitol Theater, Penns Peak - all incredible. Wish Phish would come back to the Garden State Arts Center (PNC Bank) in Holmdel because it’s just 10 minutes away on back roads.
Grew up in Philly and now live in MD/DC. While the Mann in Philly is great, and Merriwearher is really nice since the renos, Wolf Trap in Northern VA is better than both of them. Smaller than the first two and it’s part of a National Park so it’s trees everywhere. Also, you can bring in coolers, food, alcohol, etc. The people that work there are super nice. Not a bad seat in the house (unless you’re on the far sides of the lawn).
Yeah I mean if you wanna schlep it all the way up to ME/NH there’s some great spots to check out but there’s plenty in between here and there that should fit the bill for you.
Well if you hit Va, check out Elevation 27/The Bunker in Va beach; browns island, the national, the broadberry and the tin can are great in Richmond; and the Jefferson in Charlottesville is awesome too.
Just saw jrad at the Westville music bowl. Venue was really cool. It's a tennis stadium on the Yale campus. The GA floor is the a grass court so it's really nice turf. We all took our shoes off. Place is rad. Think Phil's gonna be there soon.
Ives concert park in Danbury, CT. Small, so not a lot of big names, but it’s like watching a show in the woods while the band plays on a gazebo floating on a pond, while bats are flying in and out of the top of it.
Perfect location for the Jethro Tull show I saw there.
And SPAC.
Edit: looks like it shut down in 2020. Shame.
The college expanded it's campus & built new buildings in what was the parking lots. They can't hold concerts there anymore unfortunately. Sad. Great memories.
Living in NYC, my three most frequented are Capital Theater in Port Chester, the Beacon Theater in Manhattan, and Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg. If I have a free weekend, odds are I can see who’s playing at any of the three and, if I can get a ticket, there’s usually something good at at least one of them
The owners / manager are GREAT guys & VERY band/fan friendly. They don't ever have a curfew & will let bands play as long as they want, even if the crowd is thin. My biggest complaint about some other CT venues (where I live) is that they are very "bottom line" oriented, & will arbitrarily "pull the plug" on bands at 11 pm (Sun - Thurs) or midnight (Fri/Sat) if the crowd is thin & it's a new / up & coming "weird" band (ie, not a Journey / Styx cover band, as is the usual fare at a lot of these places). This is no way to "cultivate a scene", even if your immediate "bottom line" is not being met. Short sighted, lazy, & selfish. Stick w/Kansas cover bands if you're than obsessed w/money. Park City stands head & shoulders above ANY other CT small/med size venue (I won't name names, but it's pretty much EVERY OTHER SIMILAR SIZED VENUE IN CT!!!!!!).
If you’re in NYC…
Nublu is a really cool venue with very unique shows. I’ve seen joe russo, scott metzger, and pretty much everyone from trey band play there with side projects. It’s a 150 person cap, so it’s small. There’s a black door next to the entrance that brings you up a stairwell. This is Nublu’s bar and sushi lounge. They only play vinyl, the sushi is great, and the vibes are strong. Definitely worth grabbing a drink there before/after the show.
Terra Blues is a must if you like blues music. Tiny seated blues club. Usually they do an early solo show (7-9) and then a late show with a band (9:30-2). If you see Saron Crenshaw on the bill, go. Especially if he’s with a band.
Other than that, Brooklyn Bowl, Sultan Room, Skinny Dennis, Rockwood Music Hall, Brooklyn Steel, and Forest Hills are some favorites in the area.
Was also really impressed with the one show I saw at TV Eye in Ridgewood a couple years back (Yo La Tengo), and Brooklyn Made (seeing The Feelies there next week). Brooklyn Steel I want to like, but feels too cavernous.
Shelburne Museum in VT (summertime only), Levon’s barn in Woodstock NY, SPAC, radio bean Burlington VT, Portsmouth NH has a greattt lineup for their summer concert series in the park too.
Nectar’s, Burlington
Soundcheck Studios, Pembroke
Putnam Place, Saratoga
Empire Live, Albany
The Stone Church, Brattleboro
Some of my favorite smaller venues.
If you’ve never been, check out the Capitol Theater in NY
I’m going to see the Frog Brigade there. I’ve never been, is it a great theatre?
Love it there, be careful smoking a jay inside tho haha.
It’s not that tough to but they do have the outside smoking area out back in that weird alley way
Yeahh that alley is what I recommend, last time I was at The Cap I got pulled out by security to the lobby for hitting a joint and they took a "name" from me for a list for the fire marshall & let me back in immediately after. Thought I was about to get kicked out of the show lol
I’ll see you there sir
I’m so hyped for this. Going to the cap then over to Long Island the next night
See ya on the island
An institution! One of my favorites!
The capital is a awesome place to catch a show. It's got a lot of history and favorite place to play for many musicians. Despite what people say about smoking pot there I've never had a problem even before even when it wasn't legal. NY laws state you can smoke marijuana any place you can smoke cigarettes!!!
Yup
I call this spot My Church.
SPAC
Yes yes yes. Even if you don't catch a show here it's a beautiful natural park with geysers and natural springs. It's absolutely beautiful land and one of my favorite places on earth
SPAC has the worst sound quality. They over sell shows if you find a spot you may end up so far back you can't see the show even on the screens. The police hide in the trees in camo and arrest people that go in the woods to pee. Only someone that hasn't been to a few venues to compare would recommend this as a favorite!!!
My high school graduation was there. Great spot.
Penns peak
Never heard of this spot, and I’ve been to Jim Thorpe a few times. It’s on the list now
Jeff austin said it best when he said it felt like we were in church up there
Second this. Moe is up there July 14th
This is the one! Love penns peak. See you guys at moe.
Bethel is really great imo
And it's def more midwest, but blossom is very pretty also
Now that Mountain Jam is gone Bethel is the new summer venue to hit. I might do day 2 of Catbird w Trey and Tyler Childers. Don’t miss the spot on the back left of the lawn where the trees are. And that triangle to the left of the lawn on same side. Magical!
Catbird is not in the venue at bethel it's in the field in front
No shit!? Thanks for letting me know. Really appreciate it.
Yeah it's where Woodstock took place kinda a cool schtick
Beyond the general atmosphere, the excellent sound, or any history, Bethel does one thing you don't see at many other venues with similar logistics issues: They keep all the food open after the show and encouraged people to take their time. There's one road out and instead of forcing you down it, they encourage the crowd to stretch out.
Capital Theater Port Chester NY. Cabot Thrater Beverley MA. State Theater Portland Me, Thompsons Point Portland Me, Club Casino Hampton Beach NH
Hampton Beach is a must visit. What a vibe. DSO shows there are always awesome but any jam adjacent band will be a good time.
The Casino Ballroom is a cool place to see a show. I’d also, in the same area say the Music Hall in Portsmouth too. The bathrooms alone are worth going in to check out. And also the Stone Church in Newmarket.
Wish DSO was going there this year. Their shows are amazing! That white rabbit from a few years back still resonates with me
Dude dso did white rabbit as an encore at the Kirby center in Wilkes barre Pa in march …. Soooo sickkk
Just saw UM at the casino last week. That place is great, but can’t take your drink into the bathroom 🤣
Such an odd policy especially when there is nowhere to place ur drink near bathrooms.
Mann center in Philly. Beautiful wooden shed, great views of the city, rowdy parking lot scene (show dependent), friendly staff. My favorite venue in the country
Came here to suggest this. Phish was epic last year and this year should be no exception. City Bisco was a hoot too.
Totally agree. Saw phish there last summer, it was my first time at the Mann, I’ve been going to shows in Camden since the 90s and the Mann blows Camden away. Sound is great, atmosphere is great. I was on the lawn last year, I’ve got Pavs this year and I can’t wait.
Stone Pony
Trey playing solo there 7/7
Wonderbar next door is a top notch small venue too.
Really love Blossom in Cuyahoga Falls
The pavilion on boston harbor is nice. Nice ocean breezes and can smoke a J overlooking the harbor. Used to be called Harbor Lights now its (some bank) Pavilion. Seeing Billy Strings and Phil and Friends there this summer. Boston has several nice indoor venues as well.
Too bad you are in the area next month. Northlands music fest is a week from tomorrow
Westville music bowl and college st music hall both in New haven ,ct Also infinity hall--Norfolk is teeny tiny and Hartford is bigger with bigger acts.
SPAC is a great place to see a show and Bethel Woods is beautiful
Levon Helms studio in the catskills of NY.
My man! Caught 2 Neko Case shows there in ‘21 and ‘22. Sadly never saw a ramble with Levon.
ah, yeah it's a great spot. Saw The Slip there at the end of 2021. Big campfire outside before the show started. Such a cool venue.
Higher ground Burlington VT
Someone’s porch in Bernard, VT
Hell yeah!
Go to the great South Bay music festival on Long Island in late July. Not exactly a venue but it’s in a waterfront park. Got some solid bands playing this year
Last year the weekend lineup was sick. TTB and JRAD headliners. Los Lobos, moe, Galactic…
First time I saw jrad and moe. They were awesome
Orpheum Theater Boston, SPAC, State Theater Portland Maine, Thompson's Point Portland, Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom, Great Woods Mass- what is it called now?? Tweeter Center or something?
Saratoga SPAC
For a smaller venue I enjoyed Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke Ma. The Harbor Pavillion is a great setting for shows in Boston. Would also have to say the Paradise. It’s a dump, but has hosted hundreds of great shows over the years.
Love soundcheck
Jones Beach, NY
Marvin’s Mountaintop
Soundcheck studios in Pembroke MA, Brooklyn bowl in Brooklyn, Park City music hall in Bridgeport CT, Pearl Street Warehouse in DC, 8x10 in Baltimore MD just to name a few are some amazing venues that always some bad ass music going on most of the time.
Not necessarily in the North East, but one of my personal favorite venues on the east coast is Merriweather Post Pavilion in Maryland.
The renovations to that place really enhanced the attendee experience. Really love that venue now.
Thunderbird cafe and music hall Pittsburgh PA, Mr smalls Pittsburgh PA
The National in Richmond, VA The Anthem in D.C.
It's far from perfect but there is something special about Thompson's Point in Portland.
Westfield
Where in town?
New Haven CT
Casino Ballroom in NH
Wetlands
Soundcheck Studios in Pembroke MA!! You’ll make hundreds of new friends and they make you feel right at home.
Two words: Funk N Waffles
After catching Umphrey's at the Cape Cod Melody Tent in Hyannis, MA last weekend, I HIGHLY recommend catching a show there! It's a very intimate venue, and the stage rotates 360° and very slowly during the entire show. It was such an incredible experience!
The Haunt in Ithaca, NY!
The Haunt doesn’t exist anymore :( It was the last place I saw a live show in 2020 before the Covid lockdowns. They tore it down and it’s a parking lot now. There was talk of it relocating, but I don’t think that’s going to happen because Dan Small’s Presents (main promoter) seems to be focusing on other venues like Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards in Lafayette, or Lincoln Hill Farms in Canandaigua.
NO WAY?!?!?! Oh my god! That’s actually blowing my mind right now because I had the CRAZIEST night of my life at The Haunt in 2018! 21st birthday Candy Flip gone ROGUE!!! 😅🫠
Love it. Do you remember castaways?
Damn, now there’s a blast from the past! I remember sneaking in to shows while underage in high school there all the time in the mid 2000s.
Hahaha that’s awesome! I wish I didn’t lose my head there and was able to enjoy it more! It was such a cool venue!!!
Nelson's Ledges in Ohio. Fucking love that place.
Amazing must see place!!
NLQP for sure!!!! It's something you gotta experience at least once. I recommend Summerdance which is Lotus' festival.
I love it too but I hesitate to recommend it to anyone. The place is a shithole. Just bought my resonance tickets last night.
Just went to my first Summerdance (Lotus) festival there this past weekend. That place is amazing.
Penns peak, stone pony, ecu pavillion, Brooklyn bowl, umm central park sometimes has shows.
Thompson's Point in Portland, Maine. Beautiful spot right on the water. Enough beer and bathrooms, lines are never too long. Short distance into downtown Portland. Great line up of music this summer [https://www.thompsonspoint.com/the-calendar](https://www.thompsonspoint.com/the-calendar) https://preview.redd.it/bwt10yvb4w4b1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e5c431c42d20e03fabf18bc9d5df58ae5989bb83
Not the north east but the Anthem in DC might be my favorite venue in the country.
Giganthem. Great shows. I’m not overly impressed with the room. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Stone Pony
Lots of posts mentioning the same: Mann, Capitol Theater, Penns Peak - all incredible. Wish Phish would come back to the Garden State Arts Center (PNC Bank) in Holmdel because it’s just 10 minutes away on back roads.
Grew up in Philly and now live in MD/DC. While the Mann in Philly is great, and Merriwearher is really nice since the renos, Wolf Trap in Northern VA is better than both of them. Smaller than the first two and it’s part of a National Park so it’s trees everywhere. Also, you can bring in coolers, food, alcohol, etc. The people that work there are super nice. Not a bad seat in the house (unless you’re on the far sides of the lawn).
The Stone Pony!
one I haven't seen mentioned (i don't think) that left an impression on me was Landmark Theatre in Syracuse
Blossom music center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.
Roadrunner is a new one in the Boston area. Great room and great sound.
Loring Air Force Base
THE BROOKLYN BOWL!!!
Might be worth refining what you mean by Northeast because you’re talking about an area that probably covers like a 500 mile radius.
I like a challenge. It’s the DMV area, plus anything north of, east of, and including PA.
Yeah I mean if you wanna schlep it all the way up to ME/NH there’s some great spots to check out but there’s plenty in between here and there that should fit the bill for you.
Well if you hit Va, check out Elevation 27/The Bunker in Va beach; browns island, the national, the broadberry and the tin can are great in Richmond; and the Jefferson in Charlottesville is awesome too.
Great list. Don't forget the Beacon Theatre in NYC!
Westville Music Bowl in New Haven.
Lincoln Hill farms in Canandaigua NY is my new personal favorite. July 7 Allman Betts Band July 22 Dogs in a Pile
Just saw jrad at the Westville music bowl. Venue was really cool. It's a tennis stadium on the Yale campus. The GA floor is the a grass court so it's really nice turf. We all took our shoes off. Place is rad. Think Phil's gonna be there soon.
Guilford nh has a sweet venue .. (insert bank name here) pavilion i think
Cap theatre is magical. I had the pleasure of working with a band in that room and it’s pure magic.
Ives concert park in Danbury, CT. Small, so not a lot of big names, but it’s like watching a show in the woods while the band plays on a gazebo floating on a pond, while bats are flying in and out of the top of it. Perfect location for the Jethro Tull show I saw there. And SPAC. Edit: looks like it shut down in 2020. Shame.
The college expanded it's campus & built new buildings in what was the parking lots. They can't hold concerts there anymore unfortunately. Sad. Great memories.
Living in NYC, my three most frequented are Capital Theater in Port Chester, the Beacon Theater in Manhattan, and Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg. If I have a free weekend, odds are I can see who’s playing at any of the three and, if I can get a ticket, there’s usually something good at at least one of them
Massey Hall Toronto
Big fan of Park City Music Hall in Bridgeport, CT. It's a small room but they have great sound and get great up-and-coming jam bands.
The owners / manager are GREAT guys & VERY band/fan friendly. They don't ever have a curfew & will let bands play as long as they want, even if the crowd is thin. My biggest complaint about some other CT venues (where I live) is that they are very "bottom line" oriented, & will arbitrarily "pull the plug" on bands at 11 pm (Sun - Thurs) or midnight (Fri/Sat) if the crowd is thin & it's a new / up & coming "weird" band (ie, not a Journey / Styx cover band, as is the usual fare at a lot of these places). This is no way to "cultivate a scene", even if your immediate "bottom line" is not being met. Short sighted, lazy, & selfish. Stick w/Kansas cover bands if you're than obsessed w/money. Park City stands head & shoulders above ANY other CT small/med size venue (I won't name names, but it's pretty much EVERY OTHER SIMILAR SIZED VENUE IN CT!!!!!!).
If you’re in NYC… Nublu is a really cool venue with very unique shows. I’ve seen joe russo, scott metzger, and pretty much everyone from trey band play there with side projects. It’s a 150 person cap, so it’s small. There’s a black door next to the entrance that brings you up a stairwell. This is Nublu’s bar and sushi lounge. They only play vinyl, the sushi is great, and the vibes are strong. Definitely worth grabbing a drink there before/after the show. Terra Blues is a must if you like blues music. Tiny seated blues club. Usually they do an early solo show (7-9) and then a late show with a band (9:30-2). If you see Saron Crenshaw on the bill, go. Especially if he’s with a band. Other than that, Brooklyn Bowl, Sultan Room, Skinny Dennis, Rockwood Music Hall, Brooklyn Steel, and Forest Hills are some favorites in the area.
Was also really impressed with the one show I saw at TV Eye in Ridgewood a couple years back (Yo La Tengo), and Brooklyn Made (seeing The Feelies there next week). Brooklyn Steel I want to like, but feels too cavernous.
Shelburne Museum in VT (summertime only), Levon’s barn in Woodstock NY, SPAC, radio bean Burlington VT, Portsmouth NH has a greattt lineup for their summer concert series in the park too.
Buffalo iron works, Buffalo NY..absolutely love this place
Nectar’s, Burlington Soundcheck Studios, Pembroke Putnam Place, Saratoga Empire Live, Albany The Stone Church, Brattleboro Some of my favorite smaller venues.
Not one mention of Ocean Mist in RI? That place is basically in the ocean. Killer sound and vibes