No music lover’s taste bud goes untouched in Kalamazoo

From indie to rock, country and jazz, the music scene thrives under various venues

By Kris Hitchcock
Web Manager

One of the greatest benefits to living in a college town is the availability of great music for no cost or even for free.
Coupled with some of the best local brews in Michigan, enjoying music in Kalamazoo is completely affordable and totally satisfying.  All you need is a comprehensive guide on where to go!

18 and up venues

Louie’s Trophy House Grill
440 E North St. | All ages
Louie’s is a hidden gem in the Kalamazoo music scene.  Located on the north side of town, about two blocks past Bell’s, Louie’s has been overlooked by much of the student population.
But step inside and it will change your mind. With music Monday through Saturday, and some of the most talented players in the area, it’s hard to beat.
Monday night’s open mic night with Eddie Robinson and Jordan Lunardini allows a chance for local pickers and songwriters to share their talents, and the duo comes back on Wednesday nights to demonstrate their monstrous talent.
Eddie is the eclectic leader of the Eddie Robinson Band, and can do things to a guitar that probably are not legal, while Jordan is excellent singer and great guitar player as well.
The rest of the week contains a rotation of hot blues, jazz and the occasionall country act.

Papa Pete’s
506 S Burdick St. | 18+
Papa Pete’s has a great reputation for two reasons: great pizza and great music.
The latter happens three nights a week (Friday thru Sunday), and features some of the best in college rock, jazz-rock fusion, indie and blues.
Within a close walk of the student ghetto, the location is great.  Most nights there is a cover charge that includes all three bands for the evening.  Many of the bands include WMU students, so you’ll be sure to see familiar faces in the crowd and onstage.

The Union
125 S Kalamazoo Mall Dr. | All ages
A little Windy City jazz in Kalamazoo?
The Union brings exactly that, with the added twist that the performers are WMU faculty, alumni and students.
The atmosphere is high class, with fine wine and great food on the menu, and an electrifying stage environment featuring the grand piano and jazz ensembles.  WMU’s Gold Company performs there regularly as well.
Best of all, every show is free (although you’ll need to order something to eat or drink). If you want to impress a date with great music and a high roller environment, The Union is your place.

The Strutt
773 W Michigan Ave. | All ages
Kalamazoo’s newest music venue is quickly becoming it’s busiest.
The Strutt (formerly Dino’s coffee shop, now with a fully stocked bar) offers all kinds of music on their 3-level stage and flying soundboard, but especially the acoustic rock type music that is popular on WIDR and in the area.
However, the Strutt refuses to label itself, offering genres like punk, indie rock, country, classic rock, bluegrass and jazz on their schedule, as well as a live open mic night every Monday.
The Hard Lessons from Detroit recently headlined a night, as well as Grand Rapids’ Nathan Kalish and the Wildfire.
While this venue is still being discovered, the prices are good and the chance to see a larger regional artist performing with a young local band make it a great venue.

411 Club
411 N Westnedge Ave. | 18+
The 411 is a modern version of older blues clubs, but the atmosphere has a modern retro feel, like listening to a great record player through a set of Bose speakers.
The club presents the blues, live, loud, and available for all listeners.
Thursday night blues jams led by the Out of Favor Boys allows local shredders to moan the blues along with a great band, and Friday and Saturday nights feature great blues groups from the Kalamazoo area, from Louisiana and Delta Blues to Chicago style.  There is a cover charge which differs with the performance, but the Thursday night Jams are free.

21 and up venues

Harvey’s on the Mall
416 South Burdick st | 21+
Harvey’s on the Mall offer’s another location for Kalamazoo area musicians and bands to play.
With a commitment to reserving time for local music, Harvey’s has a great local atmosphere and following.  The music varies, but follows the Kalamazoo trend of great indie music, acoustic rock, modern punk and bluegrass.

Bells Eccentric Cafe
355 East Kalamazoo Ave | 21+
The King of Kalamazoo beers also provides some of the best music for the acoustic, bluegrass and jazz crowd.
With music up to 4 nights a week (Thursday through Sunday), and frequent visits from regional acts from Grand Rapids, Ann Arbor and even outside the state, Bell’s provides a great environment for high quality music.
These aren’t your college indie rockers either; Bell’s hold’s a high standard for their musical acts, and doesn’t really stray outside their genre of anything good on acoustic instruments.
Be sure to check out their shows in the Beer Garden during the summer as well.

Monaco Bay
300 E Michigan Ave | 21+
Lets be honest, you know the name because of American Idol finalist Matt Giraurd and his amazing singing and playing, but Monaco Bay was boasting great talent before the young crooner became a household name.
Featuring dueling pianos Thursday through Sunday, playing a request based set of rock, pop, sing-along, jazz and anything else patrons ask for, Monaco Bay straight up delivers.
The cover charge of $5 also covers entrance into Wild Bull two buildings over, and with their drink specials to go along with it, this venue is a great spot for the 21 and over crowd.

Wild Bull
139 S Edwards St | 21+
Wild Bull is made for country; with the mechanical bull operating all night long, acoustic country beginning at 8, and live country at 9, this Saloon offers a little twang in the city.
The Bull features touring and regional country acts on Friday’s and Saturdays, and live DJ on Wednesday and Thursday.
With their live dance floor and three bars, the Wild Bull is built to keep things flowing.
Kalamazoo hometown country star Frankie Ballard made Wild Bull his home before signing his record deal with Sony, and other up and coming country stars are frequently seen on the corner stage.

Corner Bar and Grill
1030 E Vine St. | 21+
The Corner Bar might be off the beaten path for most of the WMU to Waldo’s or the Grotto crowd, but its well worth the 10 minutes from campus.
The Corner Bar is one of the premier locations for local music, allowing student bands and Kalamazoo groups the chance to play to an established crowd and get paid.
Mostly a rock scene, the Corner Bar also plays some country, blues, jazz-rock and even occasionally hip-hop.  There is a $5 cover charge, but this money goes to the bands to help support local music.

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Posted by HeraldAdmin on May 27 2009. Filed under A & E. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

Cody Kimball
Web Manager: I'm a Communication Student at WMU, a SCUBA Diver, Boater, Ordained Minister, Notary Public, Web Designer, Film Maker, DJ, and of course a Journalist. Born and raised in Port Huron, MI and a graduate of SC4. http://www.codykimball.com