Venue Review: The Crowbar

When it comes to small venues that cater to a wide range of music, you can’t get much better than Ybor City’s Crowbar (1812 17th Street North, Tampa FL 33605, 813-241-8600). Long known as a Mecca for metal bands both local and touring, they’re really diversified in the last few years to include acts that appeal to a wider audience. The outdoor seating area and bar give open atmosphere to a previous dive bar, all while keeping the grit and cred you’d expect from a long standing venue like this.

I recently went there on April 4th for a ska show. 10 bands over the course of 8 hours pumped round after round of horn and guitar to an ever increasing crowd. As night broke, the place was really starting to fill up. I haven’t seen a small venue like this in a long time, but I’m glad I did.

The thing about the Crowbar that rocks is their commitment to great music. While Ska was the tune of the day while I was there, you can see by the continually updated calendar on their site that the scene changes daily. One day, you’ll find karaoke. Another day, you’ll find a cover band doing 90s alt tunes. Another day will bring hard rock or metal, the sound the venue is known for.

Here is a list of the upcoming show schedule:
Apr 10 REVIVAL III

Apr 11 WESZT, MR. BELLA, & UNCROWNED

Apr 12 CLOSED FOR EASTER

Apr 13 KARAOKE W/ STORMIN NORMIE

Apr 14 $5 LITERS OF BEER W/ SOFT ROCK RENEGADES

Apr 15 DA CYPHER

Apr 16 Josh Kelley, Ryan Cabrera, Tim Brantley & Brandon Whyde

Apr 17 SKULL & BONE BAND, HER NAME IS VICTORY, EMILY ROFF

To see more, check out their Crowbar Events page, updated regularly:
http://crowbarlive.com/events

Here’s some photos I took while I was there, both before and during the Ska show.

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