Herbs Hideout-Venue of the Month
by Ryan Edwards
Photo from web
On one random Saturday night, I walked into Herbs Hideout with a few friends of mine. None of them had heard of, or knew where the venue was. And one of them said it best, “This is it? I thought this was a liquor store.” While it’s not easy to see, and maybe overlooked because of the Marquis Theatre and the Irish pub Scruffy Murphy’s across the street, Herbs has been around since the ’70s, and might be the only venue that dedicates most of its time and energy to local musicians, with live music six days a week, and DJs on Mondays. “I want to give them work, I want them to have gigs to play,” said Robbie Lorr, co-owner of Herbs commenting on why most of the bands are local.
Lorr has a wide appreciation for Colorado’s local music and welcomes any genre to come in since he’s been running Herbs the last 11 years. Lorr has also allowed local bands to audition on Sundays to see if they would be a good fit to play on busier nights of the week. On two of those busy nights, I walked in to speak with the local musicians that are attracted to this unique venue.
Adam Robinson is in the band Kinetix and is a well-respected regular at Herbs. I’ve spoken with Robinson about other venues in the past, and wanted his thoughts on Herbs and why people should check it out. Robinson commented that he loves the staff, the drink specials, and the solid PA system for a small stage, but also admires the other musicians that come and go. “There are always good musicians on stage,” he said. And when I asked him about how he feels about playing at Herbs? “The most fun I have playing at any bar in Denver.”
Going off of that, I felt inspired to go in again that week and speak with the band Jump the Shark. The Denver locals found themselves playing at Herbs for the first time, and had fresh thoughts about the venue after they performed. While they like the vibe of the crowd and felt the PA system was legit, they wish there were better drink specials for the band that plays that night. But despite that, when I asked band member Johnny Schleper if they would play at Herbs again? “Pretty sure we have a date there in May already booked.”
Category: Buzzworthy2
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