birchmere versus nine thirty

i'm sorry. i always cheat when i see a show at birchmere. i get a room in alexandria for the evening when i see a show there. that way i get my intoxications on before and after, and the blessed cabs, whom i all love, and the restaurants, and the drinking. now i must say, that the times i saw shows there, when i had already been there to get my ticket and lottery number, i came back and they started seating maybe an hour before the show. or maybe i had too much intoxications on. where's the "all power knowledge crew" with all the answers of any topic that some of the forum's finest possess, when i need them. bring me your advanced knowledge. I remember showing up and sitting with friends, ordering drinks and not waiting that long. but then again, i like watching hooker monkees on the sifl and olly show.

you know what i really hate: going to shows by myself; especially shows of "jambands" where all the "folks" think you're the undercover operator.

Originally posted by walkonby:
you know what i really hate: going to shows by myself; especially shows of "jambands" where all the "folks" think you're the undercover operator.

Once at an RFK Dead show this guy followed me around the parking lot for a while, telling everyone within earshot that I was a narc. That kind of sucked.

Originally posted by Bombay Chutney:
Once at an RFK Dead show this guy followed me around the parking lot for a while, telling everyone within earshot that I was a narc. That kind of sucked.

This story was funnier when I saw who posted it…So, what would motivate someone to do that??? You weren't wearing a tie, Chutney, were you? :p

I think I had a really short crewcut at the time. I didn't exactly blend-in with the crowd.

I'm coming into this conversation late, but there's no comparison between the two. 930 is a million times better (imho of course) The only advantage the Shushmere has over the 930 is free parking.

The staff, atmosphere and regulars all suck at the shushmere, regardless of who your going to see. You can enjoy yourself at an average show at the 930 but it has to be a terrific band to even tolerate the shushmere.

….but that's just me.

all i have to say is i went to my first birchmere show last friday and it freaked me out. we got there as the first band was starting and everyone was already seated and halfway through dinner. we sat behing the sound booth and had to listen to some fat guy gnaw on his sandwich. we were there to see minnie driver (who, by the way, is amazing) and the crowd was all people my parents age and older. it really weirded me out and minnie driver made some sort of comment between every song about how quiet and well-behaved the crowd was. of course none of that will stop me from going to see bands i like. there just aren't usually bands i like playing there.

Originally posted by prtybby:
really weirded me out and mini driver

<img src="http://shorts-welcome.tiscali.de/shorts/images/oktober2002/mini1.jpg" alt=" - " />
Was she really THAT good?
<img src="http://www.elexp.com/tools/0601m60.jpg" alt=" - " />

My biggest beef with the Birchmere is the way they try to trap you into eating their food…but I think the "shushmere" comments take it a little too far. Most "rock" shows they put in the bandstand where there is more leeway, and the quiet folk shows they generally have in the main room are better off for it, IMO.

The Iron & Wine show at Iota was really hurt by the obliviously chatty girl next to me who was twice as loud as the music.

It all depends on the band, but certain shows definitely benefit from the quiet.

For me, at least, the Shushmere nomenclature is more about the whole vibe of the place, not so much the actual level of quiet (or lack thereof). The whole vibe is very…calm, and a bit staid for the bands I'd usually want to see.

Though, the 'shush' part does come from the fact that if you do talk, you will usually be quickly and vehemently be shushed by a neighbor (and I mean quickly – be careful asking someone to pass the ketchup!).

That said, I'm astounded anyone was allowed to be a chatty Kathy during a main room show.

I tell ya, at the Beauty Pill show the other night, there was at least one beautiful moment nearly ruined, where the band was in a quiet stretch and doing some really cool vocal things, and a couple of assholes were screaming their heads off… some people need to be "shushed" with a punch in the face.

Originally posted by bellenseb:
The Iron &amp; Wine show at Iota was really hurt by the obliviously chatty girl next to me who was twice as loud as the music.

She must be a regular. :mad: She ruined my Ron Sexsmith/Griffin House show.

Normally some talking isn't a big deal for me, but Iron & Wine are *very* quiet performers. And since they sold out two nights at Iota, I'm hoping they'll make it Birchmere next time…

see a show on the other stage to judge the value of birch. and never go there to eat dinner; just order nachos, which rule . . . yeah, yeah, or the something else on the appetizer menu, which i forget, because their shiner bock on draught is killer. the only bad thing about the birch. is their bathroom. bring snapple bottles to pee in, if you don't like to wait, guys. the girl's room never seems to have a line though, for some reason.

A few thoughts on the Birchmere; it does seem like people get there at some ridiculously early time to get a good seat but as someone who trickles in to most shows at the last possible minute I have found that you can usually see and hear fine from the rear of the Birchmere…for some reason the crowd at the Birchmere always appears ancient and very square looking but on the other hand they are typically an appreciative and musically well versed audience…I don't have a car so when I can't get a lift to Virginia I find it's not to hard to "do" the B-mere.It is a short cab ride from Pentagon City Metro and there are plenty of cabs sitting outside the mall.After the show which typically ends well before the metro witching hour you can catch a bus going either way on Mt Vernon Ave. in front of the club which will take you to one of the closest Metro stops(they run about every 15 minutes at that time) or of course you can call a cab to pick you up at B-mere…in regards to the surrounding neighborhood being "bad" I guess it's all relative,as a former Alexandria resident I think of that area as not being particular bad or scary and certainly not as dodgy as some streets close to 9:30…lastly,the food I have had there was pretty mediocre standard bar fare but was made up for by reasonably priced(for a music venue) pitchers of microbrew
The truth is I know plenty of hipster music fans who have never made it out to this club and have all kinds of lame excuses but it ain't too bad but I will still cast a vote for the good ol' 9:30.

Originally posted by Bags:

Though, the 'shush' part does come from the fact that if you do talk, you will usually be quickly and vehemently be shushed by a neighbor (and I mean quickly – be careful asking someone to pass the ketchup!).

We were actually "shushed" before one show had even started. We had just gone inside and met our friends who had arrived early to get a good table for everyone. During our "hey, good to see you" routine, some big fat softball playing bitch told my wife to shut the fuck up. BEFORE THE SHOW HAD STARTED! They then continued to bitch if we even asked the waiter for another round of drinks…..then they complained to the manager about us, but people at other tables around us made a point of telling him we were not being loud at all. One of the lads in our group reminded the manager the two miserable cows were drinking water and we had all eaten full meals and drinking beer so who would he rather have as customers??? The two bitches were eventually offered seats in the back of the room. It was a beautiful moment. The show was Eileen Ivers so it wasn't like it was a quiet show anyway.

That was the worst, not only "shush" experience there, but it was the last straw, apart from Marianne Faithful which I couldn't possibly pass up on. Oh, then the Waifs, but I was being a good mate for someone who really wanted to go.

Basically it sucks, but could be a great place with different management and staff.

a thought just crossed my mind , though; what other venue, d.c. or not, offers this kind of forum for us to rant about which venue is better, and the such, to our fanciful delight? looks as if nine thirty is gaining the momentum to crush a dr. dre/ed lover groove on the birch.