Look nowhere else!
A new music venue and arts space in Bushwick — Elsewhere — boasts two floors of stages, bars, a cafe, and an art gallery. The three owners of the Johnson Avenue venue previously ran the popular but now shuttered Glasslands Gallery in Williamsburg, and say they applied the lessons of that space to build their ideal new digs, said one of the owners.
“When we were running that, we realized there were a lot of things that we wanted to add to the project,” said Jake Rosenthal, who lives in Bushwick. “We wanted the art gallery component. Elsewhere spoke to the history of what our last space was all about.”
The owners set up Elsewhere’s different rooms to encourage movement through the building, said Rosenthal.
“We thought critically about how people are going to flow through the space — it’s very exploratory,” he said. “You can sort of get lost there.”
Downstairs, the space has a two stages where bands can play: Zone One, an intimate 200-person room for small shows, and The Hall, which can hold up to 700 viewers. On the second floor, which has its own entrance, a cafe will serve coffee and food during the day and cocktails at night, and an art gallery will feature a rotating selection of local artists. The owners also plan to open a rooftop bar in the spring to give guests even more space to wander.
In terms of music, Elsewhere aims to have something for everyone, with an array of gigs covering all musical genres, said Rosenthal.
“We do stuff all across the board, style-wise, got everything from rock shows to sort of folksy-bluesy,” said Rosenthal. “We have rap shows on the books, electronic shows at night Friday and Saturday night. We’ve got everything.”
This weekend will feature chiptune band Anamanaguchi on Friday, a dance party on Saturday, and glam rocker Jake Shears, from the band Scissor Sisters, on Sunday evening.
Elsewhere was originally scheduled to open its doors in 2016, but bureaucratic red tape and construction delays set back the kick-off party to this year’s Halloween. But it was worth the wait, said Rosenthal.
“It’s surreal to see it all in action after four years of planning,” he said. “We’re still learning the space and learning the crowd and sort of just getting used to having a venue again.”
Elsewhere (599 Johnson Ave. between Gardner and Scott avenues in Bushwick, www.elsew
