ATTN: Music-Lovers — HELP SAVE THE BRASS LANTERN

Due to the relentless recession, the steady decline of patronage, and for various other reasons (any thing that could possibly break in the last year, HAS), the Brass Lantern joins the long list of privately owned companies in serious danger of closing its doors forever!!  The venue is currently on the market and will continue to be, until sold or until their business begins to thrive again.

The Brass Lantern has been a landmark for live music in Reading, Pennsylvania since around 2001, hosting prime national touring acts such as Melvin Seals & JGB, DJ Flow (of the Chappelle Show), The Recipe, RAQ, and Michael Glabicki (of Rusted Root), just to name a few.  More importantly, it has been the “stepping stone” venue for hundreds of smaller jam bands, building solid fan foundations for bands such as Lotus, Pnuma Trio, Quagmire Swim Team, Juggling Suns, Frog Holler and many others.

These bands played (and some are still playing) multiple shows at the Brass Lantern in order to capture the hearts of Reading live music fans and create the “travelling music fan” in an era where live shows (and turnout for live shows) is in direct proportion to keeping each band travelling and performing, thus keeping the band together.  Some of these bands have moved on to bigger venues and large festivals largely in part to building their fanbases at the smaller clubs across the country like the Brass Lantern.

By consistently providing the quality live music stated above, and using mainly word-of-mouth promotion with bits of Internet blogs and posts by its proud staff and satisfied patrons over the years, the Brass Lantern has gained the reputation as “PA’s Best All-Around Small Venue“, and truly is a hidden gem (although scuffed) nestled in the city of Reading.  People connect at the Brass Lantern, whether it’s over a fine craft beer or a top-end mixed drink, over a game of darts or pool, or over some top notch live music;  all patrons, whether it’s their first time there, or they’re a regular customer, are assured a safe and fun time.  It is for this reason that people want to come back.   Many patrons who come in from out of town remark, “this bar reminds me of my hometown bar” and it’s because we treat bands and out-of-town concert-goers so kindly and with open arms (yes, this is still possible in the heart of the city).

Simply put, the Brass Lantern is the reason PlusVibes Productions was even created.

So, I plead with you to KEEP THE BRASS LANTERN ALIVE.

Come in and spend a little money – have a drink or have a bite to eat, catch up with good friends and good people, see the best live music that Reading has to offer, and TELL SOME FRIENDS ABOUT the Brass Lantern.  We honestly have some of the best food & drink specials around the city and we absolutely need all the business we can get, plus we love seeing new faces!

I actually bartend every Tuesday evening from 5pm until 2am, with our $1.25 Taco special (chicken, beef, or beans, 7-10pm) along with $6 domestic pitchers.  I am also usually playing some of the best Brass Lantern live show recordings from over the years on our soundsystem.  Do you have a request? Do you want to talk about good music?  I would love to chat. 

Is there a live show from the Brass Lantern that you would love to have a copy?  I personally extend an invitation to anyone wanting a copy of a live recording to come in, have a couple drinks, maybe eat some tacos, write down the show you want, and I will personally make you a copy for free(first come, first served).  It will be ready for pick up  the following week (there, I got ya’ for two visits).  All I ask is that you buy a drink or two each time you stop by!

I thank you for your continued support of live music in the city of Reading, Pennsylvania, and I hope to see you soon.

Chris K

   Founder, +VIBES Productions
   Entertainment Director, The Brass Lantern

More information, including a full band schedule can be found here.

The Brass Lantern
1350 North 12th Street
Reading, PA  19604
610/372-9311

Hours:  Mon thru Sat 5pm-2am

End of an Era: The Brass Lantern To Change Ownership

Purchased by John and Ginger Ortiz in 1999, the Brass Lantern, located in the Northeast section of Reading, Pennsylvania, started off as your typical neighborhood bar and restaurant, with a standard American-style menu but focusing mainly on the [at that time] growing fascination with microbrews, which is simply another term for handcrafted beers produced in limited amounts (which varies by region).

The Brass Lantern featured seven different beers on draft and a massive bottled beer selection from microbreweries around the world.  If you wanted a “good” beer in town, you came to Northeast Reading.

After building a successful clientele in a short amount of time, the Brass Lantern became a pioneer in the live original music scene in the Berks County area.  They purchased an entire sound system, built a stage, and began showcasing the best musical talent in the area, such as Frog Holler, The Worms, The Youngers, Hexbelt, and Dakini.  All these bands built a large part of their fan base at the Brass Lantern over the years.

With talent like those bands listed above, the Brass Lantern quickly fit the bill as “Berks County’s BEST Original Live Music” and they established themselves as THE venue to play in the area.  This, in turn, brought the Brass Lantern to the attention of touring bands nation-wide, and they began to receive press kits and demos from bands around the country (so many that they filled an entire coat closet full of demo CDs!).

Acts such as Brothers Past, Townhall, Fat Mama, RAQ, The Recipe, and Lotus all had multiple successful shows at the Brass Lantern in the early part of the millenium before becoming headlining national touring bands.

By 2003 the Brass Lantern had caught the attention of NATIONAL touring acts and hosted maximum capacity shows with Michael Glabicki (of multi-platinum record selling band, Rusted Root) and Melvin Seals & JGB.

It was shortly after these shows when +VIBES founder, Chris Kratz came on staff at the Brass Lantern as a bartender and, by the end of that year, took over the booking responsibilities from the co-owner, John, who had booked all the phenomenal shows up until then (those were some big shoes to fill).

From there, it was full steam ahead for live music at the Brass Lantern, with shows two, three, four, and sometimes fives days a week for several years. It showcased THE premier artists (of ALL genres) in the jamband circuit, including Quagmire Swim Team, Alchemy, Jazzam, Cabinet, Living Earth, Future Rock, Jah Works, Pnuma Trio, BioDiesel, Boris Garcia, Kris Kehr & Julie Edlow, Juggling Suns, Family Groove Company, Natural Breakdown, U-Melt, Mike Miz, Codename, Bodega, Ronnie Penque (of New Riders of the Purple Sage), Jeff Bujak, David Cullen (Grammy winner), Marco Benevento, and many more.  It is roughly estimated that, through the years, the Brass Lantern has hosted over 1500 shows with over 200 bands with over 600 individual musicians.

Those numbers demand respect, especially in the fact that 90 per cent of those bands performed their own original material and not just a night full of cover songs (with the exception of the Grateful Dead and “reggae nights”), so every night was its own unique show.

It was undoubtedly evident that the Brass Lantern had established itself as a landmark for live original music in Reading, Pennsylvania.

But while the music flourished over the years, Father Time had taken his toll and danced his heavy boots all over the Brass Lantern property, leaving a trail of evidence – a leaky roof, a pothole-ridden parking lot, a shattered front marquee, broken tables, chairs, & bar stools, broken beer coolers, and many other little tedious broken things throughout the  building. 

Showing the utmost respect to what it had become in the music scene yet having its demeanor not going un-noticed, people have even called it the “Brokedown” Lantern, in reference to a Grateful Dead classic.

So these extra repair bills and responsibilities, in addition to a city with a rising crime rate, as well as a declining national economy (which hurts the overall patronage to the venue) and that equals a financial liability for the current owner, who has a family including a newborn to worry about, and also a thriving interior & exterior renovation business.

Understandably, the business was put on the market in 2009, and it is now official – the Brass Lantern has been SOLD!  The final day of the current ownership is tentatively Thursday, April 29th, 2010.

Although deeply saddened by the situation, PlusVibes Productions keeps its head high in knowing that it has provided the best hospitality around to all the artists, the crews, the patrons, and our beloved Brass Lantern “family” of regular customers, and also, that it has been such a positive experience for everyone involved – the memories, the lasting friendships made, the laughs, the tears, the smiles, and most of all, the MUSIC! 

It will NEVER be forgotten.

After speaking with the NEW owner, he has stated that he wants to give the Brass Lantern a much needed makeover and improve the general security inside and outside the venue, but keep the overall vibe the same.  Upon the urging of his wife, who ironically worked in the building when it was a seafood restaurant, he plans to simply name it, the ‘New’ Brass Lantern.

We are very anxious to see what the future will bring for the landmark Berks County venue and hope that +VIBES will be able to continue to provide the same quality live music to our beloved community of music lovers at the Brass Lantern.

Stay tuned for information on that as the changeover approaches.

In the meantime, +VIBES has put together a proper lineup of music from now until April 30th, with some of the artists that have been our true friends throughout the years.

Please be sure to catch one of your favorite acts before the changeover, and say goodbye to the current owner.  In honor of the years past, we are encouraging patrons to write down on a small piece of paper, a positive experience or good story about the Brass Lantern and attach it to our band wall.

Here’s the final lineup of the ‘old’ Brass Lantern:

3 on the Tree
9pm, Thursday 4/8

Three’s Company feat. DJ Gregg Nyce, DJ Evolution, & VJCA
10pm, Friday 4/9

I Yahn I Arkestra
10pm, Saturday 4/10

Cloud Party
9pm, Thursday 4/15

Good Lovin’ Jamband
10pm, Friday 4/16

DJ Alpha Zulu vs. DJ Spacecase
9pm, Saturday 4/17

Bodega
10pm, Thursday 4/22

Frog Holler
10pm, Friday 4/23

Quagmire Swim Team with Ben & Josh (of Alchemy)
9pm, Saturday 4/24

FINAL SHOW OF THE OLD BRASS LANTERN
Jah Works
9pm, Thursday 4/29
Kitchen CLOSED this evening!

For all show information, go to http://www.thebrasslanternlive.com/.

And KEEP POSTED to http://www.plusvibes.com/ for information on FUTURE shows at the Silo Upstairs Lounge, Trooper Thorn’s, possibly the New Brass Lantern and other venues near you. 

And we are ALSO sponsoring four festivals again this summer.  More information on that coming soon.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF LIVE MUSIC & ARTS!