As ChrisB of Three Imaginary Girls points out, losing your job sucks. Losing a job that meant a lot to you sucks more. And losing all that during the holidays? Well that just blows a goat.
So what do you do to help out these fellas who so unexpectedly got canned on Sunday afternoon? If you're former Croc booker Pete Greenberg (now at Chop Suey), you organize a benefit show to help these guys pay some bills until they find new jobs.
Via TIG:
12.30 Sunday Chop Suey Presents
"UNSCREW THE CROCODILE EMPLOYEES BENEFIT SHOW"
with members of Fleet Foxes, Peter Parker, Siberian, Pale Pacific, J.Tillman, Damien Jurado, Pleasureboaters, and many more!
Come down, hear some songs, share a story, get a chance to say goodbye...
$ TBA
7pm doors
21 & over
Compared to some other Seattle blogs, we've been somewhat mum on the subject of the Croc's demise. Seattlest Tom waxed poetic a couple days ago, concluding, in a nutshell, that perhaps it's for the best. Seattlest Seth made some bold statements about the changing Seattle music scene by trying to compare it to minor league sports. Not sure how successful he was since we know nothing about the latter.
But we think they've missed the point.
The Crocodile wasn't just another music venue. It also wasn't simply a nostalgic shrine to a bygone era. Sure, that was part of it. But what's so wrong with that? Buildings maintain an aura and not a single visit to the Croc has occurred without us closing our eyes for a moment and imagining our heroes on stage before us. Tom made some good points about venues not becoming stagnant or "caricatures of themselves", but the Croc is neither. By all accounts from people close to the club, things had been as vibrant as ever, right up to the moment it closed this weekend.
What unfortunately hasn't been noted by many is that this is a huge loss for local musicians. As Josh from Seattle band BOAT mentioned on Tuesday's The Conversation [kuow], the Croc has always been something of a benchmark for local musicians. When bands book the Croc for the first time, it's really something.
As for the nostalgia factor, take it from a guy who grew up listening to Seattle's music from the pale stone walls of Green River, Wyoming: This is a monumental loss for those of us who have (and will) come to Seattle to one day dance or simply have a drink in the very space where it all happened.
Photo: "Lights" by Joseph Peter, a member of our growing Seattlest Flickr Pool.
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hey guys.... as a Brit and a newcomer to Seattle, I hadn't paid too much attention to the venues that made Seattle great. Is there anywhere you'd recommend I can get a potted history of the Croc?
Here's the P-I's Croc history on the occasion of its tenth anniversary.
I agree with Jack -- the Croc had a lot of history behind it, but it was no shrine to times gone by. I was there quite a bit the last two years, for a lot of good shows. I'm not sure why it was losing so much money, but I'm not willing to speculate about the fate of the Seattle music scene based on this one instance.
I'm glad to see that at least one of the Seattlests has a heart w/r/t the Croc.
Well said, Jack. I admit my interest in the Croc was almost solely nostalgia--it was amazing to just be there, knowing its history. I don't dig a lot of new music, but I suspect I represent the minority there. The Croc should be around to make more history.