The New Year Brings A New All-Ages Venue

The marquee of the Pioneer Square Theater still says "Angry Housewives," a new-wave musical that ran for a long time a long time ago. For years the Second Avenue theater has gone largely, sadly, unused. But that's changing.

Partners Brian Marin and Paul Nikolaisen have taken over the venue and are turning it into an all-ages concert facility. The space has 250 seats and standing room for another 150, and Marin says they are hearing not only from local bands but national acts.

"We'll be officially opening New Year's Eve with Tad, Sleep Capsule and Flake," Marin says. "Our first Friday show on the 5th will be Super Deluxe and Pond and that will be a Young and the Restless production with The End. We have the Fallouts, Gas Huffer, Juned, Goodness and Sky Cries Mary coming up and we've only been working on the booking for a week. We seem to have what people want." The partners have revamped the stage, leaving more audience room in front, and are upgrading the lighting and bringing in a state-of-the-art sound system.

All-ages venues have never been really popular with the powers that be, but Marin says they get along fine with the city.

"When we first started booking some shows here a couple years ago it was when all that teen dance ordinance uproar was going on with the Oddfellows Hall. The city officials all came over here and checked us out, too, but because we have fixed seating, weren't too loud and met all the requirements, we were OK. And everyone in the neighborhood likes the fact that the theater is lit up again. We plan on being here for the long haul."

The New Year's Eve show gets under way at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10. For more information, call 343-5704. -- Other New Year's Eve shows:

The Bitch is back. That would be 7 Year Bitch, which spent a fair chunk of 1995 in San Francisco recording its new album, "Gato Negro." The band is returning to Seattle to play RKCNDY New Year's Eve.

"We just finished mastering," lead singer Selene Vigil said last week from Los Angeles. "I'm coming back up tomorrow, which means I get to put all my stuff in storage again. I seem to do that every two months." Vigil said that after working together so long on the album, everyone needed a vacation from one another. "We were sick of each other. Then we got back together to rehearse and, phew, not good. But we'll be fine in a week, we'll be ready to play. How hard can it be to play for a New Year's Eve crowd? I think it'll be fun. Besides, now I have something to do for New Year's."

Diamond Star Halo will join Shoveljerk at the Ballard Firehouse. Portland's Sweaty Nipples will share the China Club stage with Pleasure Elite and Abusement Park. It's a theme show.

It'll be an R&B NYE at the Scarlet Tree with the Shades. The club is also offering a dinner deal so give a call.

Duffy Bishop returns to Seattle to do the year-end honors at Doc Maynard's, and the 21 Club will be featuring the classic rock of Rudy and the Tubeshakers.

-- Enough New Year's. Tonight, Moe's is hosting a Home Alive Benefit with Solid State, Whipped, Portrait of Poverty and Bristle. It's a good cause. Tomorrow it's Flood and Gravel Pit.

-- At the Off Ramp it's Neverman with Bonita Dream, Dreaming I Am and Harvey Danger. The Crocodile is doing a Croc-a-Billy show tomorrow with Flapjacks, Disrupters and Hot Rock Trio.

-- Down in the Square, it's hot Southern rock 'n' blues with Smokin' Gun at the Central tonight. At Larry's it's Vampin' Hos. Across the street at the New Orleans, Ham Carson continues on.

-- And Portland pianist Tom Grant is at Jazz Alley Tuesday through Saturday.

Send club information to Clubs, c/o Tempo, Seattle Times, P.O. Box 70, Seattle WA 98111; or fax to 464-2239.