Venue Spotlight: The Trocadero

This Week’s Venue Spotlight is on The Trocadero in Philadelphia. In my opinion, there are a few standard things that make a random building a good venue for enjoying music, I call it the “LASR” (pronounced Laser) Method. If you’ve been reading the blog, you’ve seen it before!

Location, Location, Location: The Troc is in a great location in Old China Town! The area is perfect to grab a bite to eat pre- or post-show and there is ample affordable parking in the area. One thing to remember, do not park in the lot directly next to The Troc! It is unattended and there are break-ins every day. There are also men who wander the lot and take your money as if you’ve paid for the spot, but they are not employees of the lot and your car will be towed.

Ambiance: The Ambiance at The Troc is very nice. It has that same classic, 1920s appeal that The Tower in Upper Darby (http://delcolocalmusic.tumblr.com/post/17264817624/weekly-venue-spotlight-the-tower-theater). There is seating up stairs but its only available to you if you’re over 21, so be ready to stand!

Sound Quality: The acoustics in The Troc are not as good as some of the other places I’ve reviewed. Honestly, I expected a little more from it. It is still a very good venue to catch a show, but it wouldn’t be my first choice. I have seen a few great national acts there, my favorite of which was Ludo. At their show, the engineers had the sound system dialed in perfectly and I could hear every note.

Refreshment:The Troc has a good venue bar up stairs. The drinks are pricey, as they are at all the Philly venues. Don’t buy a ticket to a gig in Philly if you aren’t ready to shell out some dough for drinks and food. In the front lobby the also make some snacks and candy available to you. I would recommend you eat before you arrive, and maybe do a little pre-gaming if you want to drink (of course you better be taking a cab if you’re going to, NO DRUNK DRIVING!)

My verdict: The Troc sells affordable tickets and provides a good-enough experience. The sound quality and refreshment selection aren’t the best around, but if your into indie bands, The Troc is your venue. They don’t get traffic from the biggest nationally touring bands, but they do get some of the best alt bands, and early in their careers! I’ve seen a few local bands there including Vilebred (www.vilebred.com).

From their website: “The Trocadero Theatre was first opened in 1870, offering musical comedies and traveling minstrel shows under the name Arch Street Opera House. Later, vaudeville and burlesque came to its stage with notable professional showgirls performing burlesque during the 1950s. The Theatre was refurbished in the late 1970s for use as an art house cinema and fine arts theatre. In the 1980s, the Theatre was remodeled as a dance club and finally for its current use as a concert hall and live music venue.

Although the Theatre has undergone many notable changes, the utmost care has been taken to upkeep and modernize the facility while retaining its historical character. The Trocadero is the only 19th century Victorian theater still in operation in the United States. It is listed on the U.S. Register of Historic Places.”

Info:

Less Than Jake at The Troc

Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. $20 

1003 Arch Street, Philadelphia PA 19107

Links:

http://www.thetroc.com

http://www.facebook.com/TrocaderoTheatre