R.I.P. The Anti-Club

Sometime in the last couple weeks, the old site of the Anti-Club was torn down. It was never really the greatest music venue since you had to buy drink tickets if you were underage, but they booked some great shows in the late '80s and early '90s. For a year or two, I probably saw combinations of ALL, the Chemical People, and Big Drill Car on their tiny stage every two or three weeks (with the Hard-Ons and very early Jawbreaker mixed in for good measure). I went often enough that during one Chemical People show Jaime pulled my brother and me onto the stage to sing back-up to “Black Throat” with Jack Baker on guest vocals!

There are other memorable shows. Two that stand out are The Mentors (El Duce arriving late because he was in jail in Mexico) with the Love Dolls opening (and the McDonald brothers from Redd Kross serving as go-go dancers) and St. Vitus. Now it's gone, just like Raji's, while The Coop at UCLA and Jabberjaw on Pico are pretty much unrecognizable… Kind of sad, but not totally depressing since there are so many newer venues in town (The Echo, The Smell, and sometimes even Spaceland…) providing spaces for new bands, outings, and memories.