So I wandered down to Madrid’s of an evening last night after work for the soft launch of Madrid’s Lounge room. That’s the smaller room up front, where they’ll be featuring a wide-ranging assortment of local bands and, I would imagine, an impeccably curated roster of touring acts, as well.
Speaking of local acts, did I mention that I’m playing there on Thursday, April 30? From 5pm-8pm, and that it’s FREE? Because I am, so mark your calendars now, folks, because you won’t wanna miss that one.
Anyway, your man Jonah Bruce was playing a solo set last night, and he’d DM’d me about it on one of the socials, so I went and I’m glad I did. Cam Jones, who’s doing marketing and promotions for Madrid’s, told me they’d had deejays in there before, but that he believed Bruce was, in fact, the first live musician to play the lounge. So now Bruce has got that going for him, which is nice.
Bruce sounded great. His solo set involves a lot of looping, and with looping things can get muddy fast, but the sound in that small room is something else, let me tell ya. It was exquisite.
Bruce and I got to chatting about it when he was taking a break between sets, and he was telling me that the sound system had just been installed and his set was a bit of a shakedown cruise in preparation for the Songwriters Showcase in the Madrid Lounge tonight, featuring Will Mallett, Toby McAllister, and Spose.
Talking with Jones about that showcase a bit later, he happened to mention that Griffin William Sherry would be on hand as well; curiously, though, Sherry’s not featured in any of the marketing materials, so who knows. (Ed. note — just heard from Griffin himself, and he’s not going to be there tonight.)
I can tell you this, though: either way, I’m gonna be there to find out.
But regardless of who does or doesn’t show, one thing is clear: Madrid’s has lined up some of southern Maine’s finest local acts to play there in the coming weeks and months, in both the Lounge and the Main Room.
I think I might have already mentioned it, but just in case, it’s worth saying again: I’ll be playing there in the Lounge next month, on Thursday, April 30, a Happy Hour special from 5pm-8pm, and it’s FREE!
Between now and then, though, there are some of my favorite local acts lined up to do likewise, including Cryin’ Caleb on Thursday, April 2, and Andrew LaVogue on Thursday, April 16. Beyond that, they’ve got more killer shows lined up in the main room than you can shake a stick at.
At the moment, the place is kinda sparsely furnished, the massive B&W photos by Portland shooter John Stafford Duncan notwithstanding; after all, they did just open, and it was a soft launch. But don’t you worry, Jones told me, in the coming weeks and months they’ll be adding more cocktail tables, some couches, and a few other atmospheric touches that’ll give the place that certain je ne sais quoi.
By the time they’ve pulled it together, I’m betting that Madrid’s Lounge will have a vibe not unlike the famous lounge upstairs at the old Fillmore in San Francisco’s Western Addition back in the day, before it got all relaunched as a techbro safe space for the 21st century: an intimate room with killer sight lines and even better sound – which it kinda already it is, but it’ll be cooler because, you know, couches.
So, yeah, get your tix for tomorrow night’s show, because the chance to see musicians like Spose, Mallett, McAllister, and Sherry in a room that size with a sound system that good doesn’t come along every day, and when it does, ya gotta Carpe Musicam, people, Carpe Musicam!
Seize the Music! That is, just show up. None of this works without you.
See ya there.