Dive into some fun at Mr. T's Bowl from Pasadena Star News Article 09/05/2008

Dive into some fun at Mr. T's Bowl

THE PLACE:

Mr. T's Bowl in Highland Park is a dive bar steeped in history and tapped into the underbelly of the music scene. It began as a bowling alley (hence the name) and as the sport faded, owner Joe Terresa (Mr. T) decided to turn it into a club. In the early '90s, some of the lane seating was removed to make room for a stage and a dance floor, but if you peek backstage, behind a large flow of curtains, you'll see the alleys are still there.

Mr. T is deceased, but he has left a legacy in the wake of the bands that have performed on his stage. Groups like Arlo, Ninja Academy, The Mormons, The Randies and Go Betty Go are just a few examples of the many bands that appeared regularly at T-Bowl before getting signed and touring the world.

THE PRICE:

Most nights there is no cover charge for Mr. T's. Saturdays it is usually around $5 and for special events, such as the burlesque show on the third Thursday of the month or a popular band, you might pay up to $10. Drink prices are average and the bartenders know how to mix just about anything you'd like. There are also drink specials on Mondays and Tuesdays.

If you have a birthday or anniversary coming up, give booker Gus Hudson at least two months advance notice and he will enlist up to four of your favorite bands to perform. This service is free if you are willing to keep the event open to the public. The T-Bowl can also be rented out for private functions, especially on Sundays.

There's live music every night at the T-Bowl. Most of the grooves are courtesy of local bands that could be pegged as rock, but often boast fringes and influences of everything from jazz and folk to punk and experimental. And often the night's lineup is an eclectic mix in itself. Hudson has a knack for finding hidden gems, as well as the heart to give stage time to a band that might not land a gig somewhere else.

In between bands, soundman Arlo Aldahl spins records which reflect his own unique musical tastes and are often a nice surprise. There also are deejays, variety shows (such as Club Flotsam on the last Thursday of every month), karaoke, trivia contests and more. Expect the unexpected.

As for volume, it really depends on where you sit or stand. Nearer the stage, the louder the band. But you can curl up in the bar area or swing down the side section of booths for easier conversation. If you still are uncomfortable talking inside, there's a bench outside the door. It is intended for smokers, but it's mostly used for swapping good stories.

THE FOOD:

No food is served, except for an occasional potluck. There is an assortment of eateries in the area, but I would dine first, as many of them close before you'll be done partying.

THE VIBE:

The back door serves as the main entrance and the dark steps going down into the venue belie the friendly vibe within. Mr. T's has its regular patrons, as well as people who pop in just for a certain band or event, but it's never dull. Don't be surprised if a stranger strikes up a conversation with you while you're waiting for your drink. And after you return to the venue a few times, you're family. The T-Bowl is truly a place "where everybody knows your name."

As for the staff, the bartenders are amiable and will even change the TV channel for you if you ask nicely and there's no dissent from the other patrons. Hudson and Aldahl are pleasant and often have a joke or story to share. They're also happy to answer your questions about the club's history (or music history for that matter) and even suggest other places you might like to go.

AGE GROUP:

The crowd at Mr. T's has a broad age range and varies according to the evening's lineup. I recommend that you base your visit on your musical taste rather than what's "age appropriate." It's not unusual to see just-21s chatting away with seniors, the very same seniors who later cheer on a punk band. You'll find people dressed in all styles and fashions, but comfortable is the most popular.

BEWARE:

It's a little tricky to find parking for the T-Bowl at first because it's not obvious. From Figueroa Street take 57 Avenue west and you'll spot a lot on the south side of the street, as well as the venue's boldly marked back door. The parking lot may look a little dicey, but I've never had a problem there.

GO:

Mr. T's Bowl is at 5621 1/2 N. Figueroa St., Highland Park. Call (323) 256-7561 or visit www.myspace.com/mrtsbowl. It's open 6 p.m.-2 a.m Monday and Tuesday, 8 p.m.-2 a.m. Wednesday, 5 p.m.-2 a.m. Thursday and 8 p.m.-2 a.m. Friday and has varying extended hours Saturday and Sunday and for special events.

MY RATING:

I give Mr. T's a 4. There's always something going on and someone to talk with. It's the kind of place that easily becomes a favorite watering hole and, who knows, you might get the first listen of future music history.

michelle.mills@sgvn.com

(626) 962-8811, Ext. 2128

RATINGS: (1- 5: 5 is really really hot; 4 is hot; 3 is fun, loose, low pressure; 2 is cool, relaxing; 1 is just OK, sorta cool.)

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Come join the fun at Club Flotsam @ Mr T's Bowl
Category: Parties and Nightlife

Come join the fun at Club Flotsam
By Michelle Mills, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 05/23/2008 05:43:38 PM PDT

Songwriters Polly Klemmer of Arcadia and Kate O'Neal of Culver City had been collaborators, performing as a duo and with their band Out of Town for years, but that wasn't enough. They wanted a regular monthly gig.

"One day we realized that it might fun to produce a monthly variety show featuring our band plus others. We approached Mr. T's Bowl and they liked the idea, so we hold Club Flotsam there," O'Neal said.

Since January, on the last Thursday of the month, Mr. T's Bowl in Highland Park turns in to Club Flotsam, a quirky spot for an evening of vaudeville-styled entertainment with an "in your living room" feel.

"We've had everything from comics to jugglers and ventriloquists and we're trying to open it to filmmakers, maybe have them bring in a 10-minute short film, performance artists and of course the bands. It all surrounds the actual bands that play and in between the other acts we do," Klemmer said.

The women also perform comedic skits and do an interview segment with the audience members as the part of Flotsamville residents. To top it off, there's an ongoing free raffle for "Jetsam" prizes.

O'Neal has sung since she was a child and has a degree in music. Klemmer began playing guitar at age 12 and was writing music by her teens. She has studied music at Long Beach City College, Cal State Northridge and a clutch of specialized music schools.

The two of them have had some of their songs performed in films,
most currently in "Lady Magdalene's," directed by J. Neil Schulman and starring Nichelle Nichols of "Star Trek" fame.

"Polly and I have taken a number of fun trips in the desert and old western ghost towns, composing songs as we go. We each contribute to each song, sometimes with one of us coming up with a tune, or writing lyrics to hand to the other person to complete," O'Neal said.

"We have started songs based on topics like celebrities, mistakes of our mothers, people we've met on trips. We usually create two songs simultaneously, since we give ourselves the same assignment and then trade to complete the song," O'Neal said.

Most of their music makes the stage via their band Out of Town. Klemmer plays piano/keyboard, O'Neal offers percussion and the group is rounded out by Jim Wright on Warr guitar and Jim Miller on drums. Their tunes range from pokes at middle age to the tragic tale of a person who fell off a cliff in Yosemite.

"We are in the process of writing a Club Flotsam theme song. We have a little dance routine we do, so we want to have some music for it. But the songs we're doing now are songs we've written on our desert trips. We were really inspired by the landscape. They're the darker side of looking at life with a humorous bent," Klemmer said.

This month Out of Town will be joined at Club Flotsam by Seeing Thingz, Hearts of Gold and Renfield. Comic Ave Quihuis is also slated to perform and there will be other surprises.

Other upcoming shows will include more skits, a belly dancing act and more bands.

"Mr. T's has been nice to let us work out the bugs in the show and develop it. Our ultimate goal is to turn it into a cable show," Klemmer said.

Club Flotsam is always seeking new acts. The women suggest it is best for interested entertainers to attend a show with their package and talk with them directly, otherwise you can visit www.myspace.com/outoftownoot for more information.

"It's such a great vibe there at Mr. T's. It's a really fun place for people to come check out anything new. It's not just four bands that get to play, you get to see a real variety show.

"And we want to encourage not just musicians, but artists to check us out because we might want to have some art there. We're looking for anything interesting and we're trying to create a little community of artists and musicians who come together once a month," Klemmer said.

michelle.mills@sgvn.com

(626) 962-8811, Ext. 2128

Club Flotsam

9 p.m. Thursday

Mr. T's Bowl, 5621 1/2 N. Figueroa, Highland Park

Free

www.myspace.com/outoftownoot

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Promoting your gigs at Mr T’s

Promote your gigs. Once you get a gig with us, you want to make sure people show up. We may get the info on the gig too late to get it posted in the weeklies... Put up posters, notify your fans, update your web site--do whatever it takes to let people know about your show. If people see that you can bring a crowd you're more likely to get asked back to play again, and you're more likely to get other gigs...and please send us a jpeg of the poster or flyer that can get put up in the club and used on the myspace page...send it to the comments section of this myspace page or send it as attachment to mrtsbowl@gmail.com e-mail...

Please don't post flyer or posters on public property such as Telephone
poles along Sunset Blvd in Silver Lake, Echo Park or anywhere in Los
Angeles city...Mr T's gets ticketed everytime one gets taken down by
Bureau of Street Services...members of band must be 21 and over...

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LAs best sound guy at clubs
Category: Music

L.A.s best Sound guy.

Sounding off on L.A.s best and worst sound guys. by Glenn Dugan LA Alternative 7/30/06 Some people will tell you that if you find a soul mate who understands you, never let them go. I dont know much about that. What I do know is that if you find a good sound guy, hold on to him for dear life. Whether youre a band member, a club manager or part of the paying audience, a well-manned sound system is your best friend. (Pardon the man heavy jargon, I simply cant bring myself to utter a phrase as inane and vague as sound person, no matter how politically correct it might be.) Sound guys are rocks gatekeepers; ideally they should make a band sound as good as they are, but a squealing microphone, a guitar you cant hear, or a feed-backing amp that sends the crowd ducking for cover will do it every time. Heres a guide to the best and worst. Silverlake Lounge Theres a lot to be desired of this bare bones establishment, but it mostly has to do with the drinking environment. As for sound, the Silverlake Lounge gets an A in my book. The place is shaped like a sound mans wet dream: low ceilings and the long, rectangle-shaped room make it perfect for funneling sound waves straight into a packed crowd on the cheap. Whats more, the constantly drunk, goateed Asian dude in the top hat who manages most of their shows knows how to work it. If you plug in and tune up and you dont see anyone behind the board, dont worry. Hes a ghost twiddler. And by the time you strike that first perfect chord, hes already down at Little Joy picking up chicks. Spaceland Whether you buy into this places aging, hipster cult status or not, youve got to admit that the dudes at the soundboard (which is ample!) know nothing about rock and roll. Sure, theyre schooled in funky-clothed, twee-imitation indie rock. And they can pull off an acoustic folk bill, where all they have to do is mic a trumpet. But when it comes to handling a real reverb-laden guitar band, Spaceland just isnt equipped. Ive seen local bands like the Warlocks totally humiliated with a shit-sounding set, and even bigger, well-rehearsed acts like the Raveonettes lose it. The main sound guy, Christo, who works the big bills, is a nice enough dude, but Ive heard tales of three-hour sound-checks that actually make a band sound worse than their average spur-of-the-moment rehearsal. Thats not good. The Troubadour Considering this venue remains one of the most visited clubs among A&R sleaze, youd think theyd make it a priority to sound professional. Instead its hit or miss. Your best bet here is to see the kind of diva that throws a fit if their monitor isnt perfect. For anything else, this revolving door of sound engineer dorks couldnt care less about the average concertgoers experience. Ive not only walked out on a show because of the sound (the Walkmen four years ago), but Ive seen bands walk out on their own show (the Scene Creamers three years ago). This is no place to see music unless you have no choice. Mr. Ts Bowl Ten years ago, this dive-bar bowling alley turned dive-bar music venue had a renaissance, and much of it was thanks to their tradesman, Arlo. One look at him, and youd have no idea that hes worked the knobs for everyone from Kim Deal to Beck. Nowadays, he deals mostly with crusty open mic addicts and a good deal of gin and tonics, but the man knows his sound. He puts musicians at ease, hes down to earth and is most likely entirely deaf from his time behind the board. But he comes from an age when a sound man was responsible if shit didnt work. Theres a reason an old L.A. indie grunge group named themselves Arlo: To play under him is a pleasure. The Smell Knocking the Smell for having shitty sound makes as much sense as buying ripped jeans for a hundred bucks: The place is what it isa punk club. And your $5 donation does not buy a full-time sound guy. What it buys is the commitment of an incredibly generous, and probably very bored, volunteer who spins a Smiths record between sets and tries to make sure that the cavernous echo doesnt obscure most of the bands cheap distortion pedals. Play here only if you know how to work your own amp.

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Germs played at Mr T's Fri April 14th

Shots I took when they played a surprise gig Fri April 14th...they were getting ready to play on the Warped Tour...

-gus
just click on the picture and the slide show plays...
http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=14nzjkwp.gzymbht&Uy=-takmz
l&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0

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