Blender Theater at Gramercy is located on 127 East 23rd Street, Manhattan, between Lexington Avenue and Park Avenue South. It is a relatively new venue, having only opened on March 7th, 2007, with stellastarr*. Unlike many ‘new’ venues, Blender Theater was never previously a rock concert venue. But like more and more venues in New York, the theater was just ‘Gramercy Theatre’ at its opening, before the corporate naming rights were sold to Blender, Maxim’s music magazine spin-off.
Situated on the busy 23rd Street, just north of such established venues as Webster Hall and Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza, Blender Theater is somewhat smaller, but unfortunately has a distinctly ‘cavernous’ feel, like a grand old-time theater whose large balcony section has been removed. There’s a sloped seated section in the back, but given its distance from the stage, and relative small size, it is a poor substitute. Blender Theater also keeps with the New York tradition of large indie-rock venues, being more sparse and dusty than shiningly clean. It is also remarkably cold in temperature, but that actually can work in its favor, once the floor is packed and active.
A Live Nation venue, Blender Theater features a diverse collection of acts, from indie-rock like stellastarr* and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah to mainstream like Dashboard Confessionals, as well as classic rock/jam bands like Foghat, and even comedy like Gallagher. The alternative bands do tend more towards the indie-dance, whether electronically influenced groups such as VHS or Beta, or more straight-up party groups like Architecture in Helsinki. On Mondays, Blender Theater hosts "Monday Night Music Club", which features undiscovered, emerging talent from New York getting a chance to play on a much larger stage, for only $7. During CMJ, the venue was also the location for ‘Blender Late Night Sessions’, wherein acts that were headlining big CMJ shows, such as Spoon, Band of Horses, and Coheed and Cambria, would also play special late night shows at Blender Theater, with the doors opening at midnight (and the main act would usually hit the stage at 2:00 AM).
Capacity: 600
all ages/wristband
Address:
127 East 23rd St. (Between Lexington Ave. and Park Ave. South)
By subway:
6 train to 23rd St. - walk 1/2 block west on North side of street R & W trains to 23rd St. - walk 1 & 1/2 blocks east on North side of street
