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Beloved Brooklyn bar's abrupt shutdown sends bands scrambling to book new venues
By
Jaclyn Jeffrey-Wilensky
Published Feb 19, 2024
Modified Feb 19, 2024
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By
Jaclyn Jeffrey-Wilensky
Published Feb 19, 2024
Modified Feb 19, 2024
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Members of New York City’s metal scene are racing to rebook shows after the unexpected shutdown of Greenpoint music venue Saint Vitus Bar.
City officials arrived on the scene of New York hardcore band Mindforce's show on Friday night before staff closed the club down in the middle of a set by Connecticut metalcore band Balmora. The closure forced other bands scheduled for that weekend to shift their shows to nearby venues, including TV Eye in Ridgewood, Queens and The Meadows in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
It’s both a logistical headache and a source of heartache for members of the underground music scene, for whom Saint Vitus Bar has been a reliable mainstay in an otherwise-volatile live music landscape for more than a decade.
“Stuff is shutting down all the time,” said Brooklyn resident Jon Ehlers, keyboardist for the band Splinternet, which he said will likely have to find a new home for its March 1 show originally slated for Saint Vitus. “DIY spaces come and go. But Vitus has been, since 2011 when they opened, a pretty important staple to metal.”
He added, “It’s definitely iconic.”
Friday’s closure came after repeated complaints to the city alleging that the club didn’t have the right paperwork to host large shows. Different versions of the same complaint were submitted more than a dozen times over the summer, DOB records show.
“I will continue to make this complaint on a daily basis until either the Department of Buildings performs an inspection or until Saint Vitus Bar can remedy their situation,” the complainant wrote on June 28.
It also came months after Mayor Eric Adams said the city would scrap a late-night raid strategy in favor of a new approach that gives owners a chance to resolve problems before authorities show up.
Department of Buildings spokesperson Andrew Rudansky said inspectors found the venue operating as an “illegal eating and drinking establishment” in a space that was only to be used “for a commercial store and for the storage of machinery.” He told Gothamist the city “issued a violation to the property owner for operating the unpermitted place of assembly, contrary to the legal occupancy of the building,” but “did not issue a vacate order at the building.”
Video footage from the venue on Friday, however, shows Saint Vitus staff halting a live performance and informing concertgoers that the show had been canceled.
Staff at Saint Vitus Bar did not immediately return requests seeking comment. But venue staff posted a statement on Instagram claiming it was the Department of Buildings that pulled the plug.
"On Friday February 16th in the middle of a scheduled show, the DOB shut down all operations at Saint Vitus," the Instagram post said. "We are saddened and deeply frustrated by the circumstances and are working to remedy the situation as fast we can. This closure is temporary, but we want to address everything that directly affects our community of artists and fans alike. Please be patient as we work through this, and thank you for your continued support."
City Councilmember Keith Powers posted on social media that his office was in touch with Saint Vitus staff and working to ensure the venue opens its doors again soon.
"One of the best independent music venues in New York City. We’re going to fight to keep it open," Powers said on X.
Many acts scheduled for February and March are either rescheduling their shows or waiting with bated breath to see if the club will reopen in time.
Mik Grendze, who fronts the Irvington, N.Y. death metal band Death Island, said their Feb. 21 show would be postponed until spring. He said he and his bandmates were upset by the sudden closure.
“[Saint Vitus] really has become a pivotal venue for New York's underground music,” Grendze said. “It does kind of feel like an attack.”
It can sometimes be difficult to find a new location for a concert on short notice, because venues get booked up months in advance, said James Jones, member of the band Sarmat and founder of record label and promotion company Powerstone Arts.
“Having to scramble to find new venues for shows in the next one to two weeks has created a perilous situation for bands,” he said, adding that even summer tour plans could be affected, depending on the length of the shutdown.
It’s unclear when Saint Vitus will reopen. John Scanlon, a booker with Miles to Go Presents, who also works in construction, said some DOB issues take just days to resolve — if you have the help of expediters.
“There is a chance that everything will be fine soon,” Scanlon said.
In the meantime, he said, Saint Vitus has been taking the lead on getting shows rebooked elsewhere.
“The people at Vitus have been very on top of the situation,” he said. “They’ve been reaching out to the venues themselves.”
David Brand contributed reporting.
This story has been updated with comment from the city Department of Buildings, City Councilmember Keith Powers and a statement from Saint Vitus.
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Music
brooklyn
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Jaclyn Jeffrey-Wilensky
Jaclyn is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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