Jun 19 2008
Bohemian Caverns
This Saturday night Michael and I visited The Bohemian Caverns, on U-street in Washington, DC.
I’m a live music junkie. Back when I had a lot more friends in the area, I was attending local concerts probably once or twice a month. Let me assure you all - I miss it. I love dive clubs, I love going to see a local metal band shred it, I love watching the crowd smoke cigarettes and pound each other at hardcore shows, and I love grooving to someone mainstream like John Mayer while all the teeny-boppers watch me in disgust. I don’t care if the show is in a basement, in a dive club, at a big theater - I love live music.
While I love live music, I have a hard time finding anyone who will attend most shows with me. See, Michael, bless his open-mindedness, has no tolerance for a lot of the music I listen to. He gave a lot of it a shot, but he’s not a metal head and he regards people like Tori Amos as making pretentious music, which he can’t stand. I don’t disagree with his evaluations, but I like what I like.
Well, we found a commonality with jazz. He invested in some vinyl from a couple Japanese piano trios, and we’ve been listening to those and Coltrane pretty consistently on the record player. So I told him, I’d love to go to a jazz bar, sit down and just chill out with some live music. He found the Bohemian Caverns and we went last weekend to see Monday Michiru.
The Bohemian Caverns has a load of history associated with it. It dates back to the 1920s, and plenty of jazz greats played there. Coltrane, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie… the list goes on and on (seriously). They revamped the place recently since it had fallen into disrepair, and it’s an interesting space. There’s a very clean and modern restaurant upstairs, and the actual jazz lounge is downstairs, underground. It’s been designed to look like a cave, and the atmosphere is instantly relaxing. There are tables and couches, the servers are friendly and jocular, they don’t stiff you on the alcohol in your drinks, the other customers are pretty friendly, and the music was good.
Maybe I’m getting old and don’t want the blaring speakers busting my eardrums with guitar solos anymore. Actually, that’s a lie, I’d still enjoy that. But there is something so cool about watching people improvise together, constantly interacting with each other and with the crowd.
I recommend the Bohemian Caverns wholeheartedly to anyone looking for some live music. They happen to showcase a lot of local artists, and they do hip-hop in addition to jazz. Take a look at their website, if you’re interested. There is a photo gallery, but it doesn’t do justice to the space.
So you’re telling me you ENJOYED those With Anger shows??
mmmmm…yummy jazz. I will have to check this place out at some point. I’m sure Erin would enjoy it with her taste for jazz.
Remind me to send you the song that Ihsahn did with Akerfeldt. At some point.
I loved those shows. This is actually totally lame, but when Michael and I went to The Caverns I was thinking, ‘Mikhail and his girlfriend should totally visit here sometime.’
Ihsahn + Akerfeldt = totally awesome. Lay it on me!
Well I’m glad you loved them! I know I want to visit at some point this summer and she has expressed interest to come with me when I do so it could still possibly happen.
Perhaps I will e-mail it to you? if that would work best.