McMenamins’ new downtown venture is slated to open on Tuesday, May 3, expanding their downtown empire to the old Club Portland building, newly redesigned as the Crystal Hotel. To celebrate, they’re hosting a three-day bash with music, not just at their neighboring Crystal Ballroom but in the new Al’s Den, named after gambling overlord Al Winter, who opened the original Outlaw Club in the building during WWII. Al’s Den sees a five-night run of free sets from Minus 5 frontman Scott McCaughey, (Nate Lacy of Mimicking Birds performs a similar five-night run later in May).
But that’s not all: during opening week, the Crystal Ballroom hosts a three-night stand with M. Ward, who just may be becoming better known for his work with Monsters of Folk and She & Him, but is never better than when he performs as himself. And they’ve got some pretty great opening acts as well. Here’s the lineup for all three nights:
Tuesday, May 3: M. Ward / The Corin Tucker Band / The Lord’s Own Choir
Wednesday, May 4: M. Ward / David Bazan / The Lord’s Own Choir
Thursday, May 5: M. Ward / Doug Martsch / The Lord’s Own Choir
Corin Tucker, David Bazan, and the Built to Spill’s Doug Martsch? Sign us up.
Check out the full schedule for the Crystal Hotel’s grand opening here.
That seems WAY too quick to clean that place up. I’d really be more comfortable in there if they shut it down for a good year’s worth of scrubbing…
Yeah, I can’t get into his other projects and I was not enthralled by “Hold Time”, either, but everything before that is gold. Has it really been six damn years since “Post-War”?
@Reymont Looks like a complete gut job (isn’t that what the place was famous for?)
http://www.mcmenamins.com/CrystalHotel
I take that back
Dammit, the one McMenamins I truly enjoy (annex) will now be reliably overrun.
I don’t think the par 3 course at Edgefield counts as it’s own McMenamins, but if it did it would be on the list, too.
OK, Backstage is still reliably fairly quiet.
@CC, when I lived near St. Johns, the McMenamins pub there was also reliably quiet. Good place to drink and read.
Or, how about three nights of Burt Ward?
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_hC5TAf87deI/TMSQ…