"Elvis Room 20" concerts & exhibits honor iconic Portsmouth venue

(PORTSMOUTH, NH) – 3S Artspace is presenting Fly Spinach Fly, The Queers, Thanks to Gravity, Heavens to Murgatroid and other acts that fostered a blistering alternative music scene on the Seacoast in the 1990s in partnership with “Elvis Room 20,” a retrospective gallery art show and series of concerts being staged throughout October.

The World Famous Elvis Room, a coffee shop and music club at 142 Congress St. in Portsmouth, closed 20 years ago and the city has been mourning its loss ever since. That void grew deeper in April when one of its founders, Dawn-Marie Pierre, died due to complications from a stroke at the age of 59. To honor Pierre’s legacy, as well as the culture and community the Elvis Room fostered, a corner of 3S Artspace will be transformed into a nook from the coffee shop during the month of October - complete with the notebooks patrons wrote and drew in - and bands who performed there back in the day are returning to the Seacoast and, in some cases, reuniting.

Also as part of “Elvis Room 20,” The Press Room in Portsmouth will be hosting an exhibit of Elvis Room posters in October. Plans are underway to add more bands and venues to this month-long celebration, so follow elvisroom.com for the latest updates.

The 3S Artspace exhibit and music will kick off on Friday, Oct. 4, with a concert featuring indie/alt rockers Thanks to Gravity, beloved native son Dan Blakeslee, and special opening act, blues guitarist Bob Halperin, who was the first musician to play at The Elvis Room.

Legendary punk rockers The Queers will play Saturday, Oct. 5.

A portion of proceeds generated by “Elvis Room 20” will be donated to Pierre’s daughter.

“Elvis Room 20” organizer Curt Schulz worked with Pierre before her death, and then with her fellow Elvis Room owner Barbara Steinbach, to bring the retrospective to fruition.

“The Elvis Room is the place that gave me a life-long love of live music,” says Schulz. “Me, and countless other kids that grew up on the Seacoast, still talk about the venue even though it was only open for six years and closed two decades ago.”

Fly Spinach Fly, whose over-the-top, energetic live performances blended metal, soul and hip-hop, will be reuniting and sharing a bill at 3S with Heavens to Murgratroid, purveyors of heady power pop, on Friday, Oct. 25.

“Fly Spinach Fly, my first Elvis Room show in 1993, turned my suburban, cul-de-sac life in Stratham on its head,” says Schulz. “The music scene - alternative, punk, ska - was infectious and I found myself identifying with the young, counter-culture crowd. There was an energy and pulse to the Elvis Room that I have not found since it closed. I’m really grateful I could be part of that time and place, because if the Elvis Room never existed I wouldn’t be who I am today.”

Elvis Room co-owner Steinbach says she feels the same way.

“There is no doubt in my mind that I would not be the person I am today had I not experienced the Elvis Room: the music, the people, Dawn-Marie. I think of all of it, every day.”

Her goal for this event is simple.

“I want everyone to have a great time, hear great music and, for some, have an amazing walk down memory lane,” she says. “I don’t want to resurrect. I want to remind and inform. I think most people would agree that Portsmouth has changed a lot. The ‘90s were a special time. The Elvis Room was a big part of that. So for those that played their part during that time - remember, and for those that didn’t, look how cool Portsmouth was.”

Graham Smith of Thanks to Gravity says it’s an honor to be a part of “Elvis Room 20” because of the personal ties he had with the venue.

“Unlike a lot of places we played - out of town places obviously, but even local spots like Norton's, The Stone Church, etc. - the Elvis Room was a place where I actually hung out, drank coffee, played pinball, came home to,” he says. “I mean, I went to other places to see specific bands, but that place, and Dawn-Marie, Barb, all the other kids, it felt like playing in a friend's basement to a room full of friends."

Fly Spinach Fly’s Jon McCormack remembers the Elvis Room’s unique vibe. “It wasn't trying to be hip and cool, it simply was hip and cool because those who created it were open to letting everyone express themselves and their individuality,” he recalls. “That came across in the music of course, one night you might catch a punk band from Japan, the next night it might be Elliot Smith or early hip-hop, funk or emo. It was eclectic but with a unified, pre-internet feeling of youth, rebellion, coffee, cigarettes and art.”

“Elvis Room 20, A Retrospective Art Exhibit” in the 3S Lobby Gallery is on exhibit: October 4 – 27 with an opening reception on Friday, Oct. 4 from 5-8 p.m. It is free and open to the public. 3S is located at 319 Vaughan St, Portsmouth. These concerts are all ages. Doors open at 7 p.m./shows 8 p.m. Ticket prices vary. For more information, go to https://www.3sarts.org/ or check out https://elvisroom.com/

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