The 9:30 Club, originally named Nightclub 9:30 and also known simply as the 9:30, is a nightclub and concert venue in Washington, D.C. In 2018, Rolling Stone named the 9:30 Club one of the 10 best live music venues in the United States.
The club opened on May 31, 1980, on the ground floor rear room of the Atlantic Building at 930 F Street NW, in Downtown Washington, D.C.Du Lac, J. Freedom. (April 18, 2010). "Misfits, new wave icons and giant rats: A history of D.C.'s 9:30 Club" (page 1/5). Washington Post Magazine. Retrieved August 12, 2016. with a legal standing capacity of 199.Kiger, Patrick. (November 11, 2014). "The Epicenter of the 1980s Alternative Music Scene in DC". Boundary Stones. Retrieved August 14, 2016.Du Lac, J. Freedom. (April 18, 2010). "Misfits, new wave icons and giant rats: A history of D.C.'s 9:30 Club" (page 3/5). Washington Post Magazine. Retrieved September 11, 2016. In 1996, the club moved to a larger location at its current location at 815 V Street NW, where it anchors the eastern end of the U Street Corridor.
The 9:30 Club's name was derived from its original street address, which was also the reason to set the venue's original opening time of 9:30 p.m.Du Lac, J. Freedom. (April 18, 2010). "Misfits, new wave icons and giant rats: A history of D.C.'s 9:30 Club" (page 2/5). Washington Post Magazine. Retrieved August 12, 2016. Early advertising on WHFS radio featured the club's slogan, "9:30 – a Place and Time!"
History Nightclub 9:30
Nightclub 9:30 was founded by artist and dancer Dody DiSanto and her husband, Jon Bowers, a local real estate developer and music enthusiast who purchased the Atlantic Building, located at 930 F Street NW, just around the corner from Ford's Theater, in 1979.Harrington, Richard. (May 27, 2005). "25 Years Later, It's Still 9:30". The Washington Post. p. WE06. Retrieved August 14, 2016.Andersen, Mark; Jenkins, Mark (Soft Skull Press, 2001). Dance of Days: Two Decades of Punk in the Nation's Capital. Fourth ed., 2009. Akashic Books. . p. 59. The Atlantic Building was full of artists even before it became the 9:30 Club.
On May 31, 1980, the venue hosted its first show, featuring New York City-based jazz-punk band the Lounge Lizards and local new wave band Tiny Desk Unit as the opening act.Andersen, Mark; Jenkins, Mark (Soft Skull Press, 2001). Dance of Days: Two Decades of Punk in the Nation's Capital. Fourth ed., 2009. Akashic Books. . p. 60. The Fleshtones were the first band ever to be booked at the club.
Since its founding, Nightclub 9:30, which allowed fans as young as 16-years-old to enter, was known as a progressive venue noted for its talent in discovering up-and-coming acts. During the early 1980s, it was the home for alternative music in Washington, D.C., just as the genre was beginning to blossom. On May 21, 1981, Washington, D.C. music programmer and writer Tom Terrell was instrumental in masterminding the U.S. premiere of reggae band Steel Pulse on the night of Bob Marley's funeral, which was broadcast live worldwide from Nightclub 9:30.
Over the 1980s, the club largely featured local bands, including from the punk, hardcore, and go-go genres. James Blood Ulmer played in 1982.Boo Browning. (January 8, 1982). "Ulmer Defies The Easy Categories". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
In 1986, after six years of operating the club, Bowers and DiSanto sold it to Seth Hurwitz and Richard Heinecke of It's My Party (I.M.P.), the Maryland-based concert promotion company they co-own.Freed, Benjamin. (October 28, 2014). "How the 9:30 Club’s Seth Hurwitz Built a Live-Music Empire". Washingtonian. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
The venue also became a regular stopping point for punk and new wave bands touring the East Coast.Andersen, Mark; Jenkins, Mark (Soft Skull Press, 2001). Dance of Days: Two Decades of Punk in the Nation's Capital. Fourth ed., 2009. Akashic Books. . pp. 59-60.
Over the following years, as the club's prominence and lineup were growing, the need for a bigger space was becoming increasingly evident. In preparation for the move, the owners purchased and extensively renovated the former WUST Radio Music Hall at 815 V Street.
The old Nightclub 9:30 closed its doors on December 31, 1995. The club's final shows at the original location were memorialized on a two-CD set released in 1997 and entitled 9:30 Live – A Time, A Place, A Scene. This live CD, recorded between December 28, 1995, and January 1, 1996, includes local music from the Urban Verbs, Tiny Desk Unit, Mother May I, the Insect Surfers, Tru Fax and the Insaniacs, and Black Market Baby.
In 2023, Hurwitz opened The Atlantis, a small club designed to evoke the original Nightclub 9:30.Travis M. Andrews. "Rock-and-roll circle of life brings Foo Fighters back to D.C. on Atlantis opening night." Washington Post. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2023. In the opening ceremony, the Mayor of D.C. designated May 30th as "9:30 Club Day".
9:30 Club
Prior to its reopening, the club owners organized a "christening" show for media and friends featuring the Fleshtones and Too Much Joy. On January 5, 1996, the new 9:30 Club opened to the public with a show that included the Smashing Pumpkins.
The club has a distinctive wheeled stage mounted on rails, which can be moved back and forth as needed. This way, the place can feel as packed with 500 people in attendance as it would during a sold-out 1,200-person show.Du Lac, J. Freedom. (April 18, 2010). "Misfits, new wave icons and giant rats: A history of D.C.'s 9:30 Club" (page 5/5). Washington Post Magazine. Retrieved August 12, 2016.Greenberg, Rudi. (December 31, 2015). "As the 9:30 Club turns 35, we explore some of its biggest secrets". Express. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
In the early 21st century, Government Issue, Iron Cross, the Slickee Boys, Urban Verbs, Chuck Brown ("The Godfather of Go-Go") played in 2005. In 1999, Foo Fighters played there.
During the band Cake's two-night run on May 30 and 31, 2009, the 9:30 Club introduced the official 9:30 Cupcake, made by Buzz Bakeshop of Alexandria, Virginia. The 9:30 Cupcake is a devil's food cupcake with chocolate frosting and the club's italicized "9:30" logo on the top in white icing. The club is known for giving cupcakes to all performers at the venue.
In January 2016, 9:30 celebrated its 35th birthday by opening its doors for an interactive exhibition detailing the club's vast history, the "9:30 World's Fair". This exhibition highlighted the pieces of the old 930 F St. location that made the trip to 815 V St., while taking fans through the dressing rooms and items like the hair dryer purchased specifically for James Brown.
In February 2016, it was announced that the 9:30 Club would produce a new musically-centered variety show for PBS, featuring five acts per episode alongside a variety of comedy and short films. Live at 9:30 debuted in May, with a mix of contributors and hosts including Henry Rollins, NPR Music's Bob Boilen, Hannibal Buress, Jill Kargman, Ralphie May and Tony Rock
Notable shows 20th century In July 1999, Emmet Swimming played one of the first shows at the new 9:30 on a snowy night and recorded part of their live concert CD Earplugs 50¢ at the venue.Joyce, Mike (July 2, 1999). "emmet swimming: "Earplugs 50 Cents"; Screaming Goddess". The Washington Post. On December 3 and December 5, 1997, Bob Dylan played shows while he was in Washington, D.C., to receive the Kennedy Center Honors. Dylan returned for an unannounced show on April 2, 2004, before scheduled dates at the Bender Arena and the Warner Theatre. On June 12, 1998, Red Hot Chili Peppers performed a surprise eleven-song set at the club. The show, which was the band's first at the new venue (they had previously performed at the old 9:30 Club five times from 1985 to 1987), was their first public performance since reuniting with guitarist John Frusciante, who had quit the band in 1992. The 9:30 Club show was seen as a warm-up for their performance the next day at the Tibetan Freedom Concert, which was held at the RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.; when bad weather cancelled their set at the concert, Pearl Jam shortened their own set so the Chili Peppers could perform a few songs.
21st century On November 23 and 24, 2001, O.A.R., whose members grew up in nearby Rockville, Maryland, recorded the live album Any Time Now at the 9:30 Club. On June 2 and 3, 2002, Jimmy Eat World, an Arizona band, recorded their live DVD Believe in What You Want at the nightclub, following the release of their album Bleed American. The video was released on November 26, 2002. In 2003, local band the Pietasters released their first live video DVD, Live at The 9:30 Club. On October 7, 2005, Bob Mould performed at the club, and released a subsequent DVD of the concert called Circle of Friends. On November 24, 2007, Hawthorne Heights guitarist and screamer Casey Calvert was found dead of a drug overdose on their tour bus, which was parked outside the club. On December 28, 2009, Clutch recorded their DVD Live at the 9:30, performing their self-titled album, Clutch, in its entirety. On May 31, 2010, the 9:30 Club celebrated its 30th anniversary with a lineup stretching its history, including Tiny Desk Unit, the Fleshtones, Tommy Keene, the Slickee Boys, the Psychedelic Furs, Marti Jones and Don Dixon, Clutch, Trouble Funk, the Evens, Justin Jones, the Pietasters, Pete Stahl, Ted Leo, Bob Mould, and Dave Grohl. The event was hosted by Henry Rollins. In June 2010, Courtney Love and the newly reformed Hole performed a disastrous set described by The Washington Post as a three-hour epic train wreck. A barely coherent Love stumbled, complained and stripped through an entire set composed mostly of incomplete versions of the band's songs. Most members of the audience left before the set ended. On July 30, 2010, house music producer deadmau5 collapsed on stage in the middle of a set and was rushed to the hospital. He had been suffering from exhaustion and vomiting. This collapse led to the cancellation of the nine shows which followed the event. On February 24, 2012, the Soul Rebels Brass Band were the subject of an NPR national broadcast of their show with Galactic live from the 9:30 Club. The broadcast was syndicated on NPR and through other affiliates across the United States, as well as webcast on NPR.org. On June 12, 2013, Animal Collective performed a set of songs previously released on their LPs and EPs. The show was documented on the album Live at 9:30. In 2013, hardcore punk supergroup, Off!, released the limited edition vinyl album, Live at 9:30 Club, which featured their performance from June 25, 2011. On January 27, 2016, Jack's Mannequin returned to the road to honor the 10-year anniversary of the album Everything in Transit. Playing just weeks after the death of David Bowie, Andrew McMahon also performed an acoustic rendition of "Life on Mars". On August 24, 2016, ZZ Top performed for a sold-out audience, the "Surprise! At the Club!" performance having only been announced two weeks prior. Jonny "2 Bags" Wickersham of Social Distortion opened the show, which saw ZZ performing all of their classic hits before concluding with a cover of Elvis Presley's "Jailhouse Rock". December 14, 2016, Jimmy Eat World returned to 9:30 Club for another "Surprise! At the Club!"