Music
Roadrunner, owned and operated by The Bowery Presents, can accommodate 3,500 people.
Roadrunner is The Bowery Presents Boston’s newest live music venue, opening soon. Jonathan Wiggs / Globe Staff
In 1976, The Modern Lovers sang “I’m in love with Massachusetts.”
The song is called Roadrunner after the Plymouth car. It’s also the name of Boston’s newest music venue.
The new 3,500-seat venue owned by The Bowery Presents Boston has many seats that pay homage to its location and the artists who hail from here.
From a mural of a Plymouth Roadrunner to skateboards hanging in artists’ dressing rooms, adorned by musicians who started their careers in Boston, in addition to The Modern Lovers – The Cars and Donna Summer, to name a couple.
The venue is tucked away in the Boston Landing complex in the Alston-Brighton area.
For those looking to head out to the concert – perhaps for the first time since the COVID-induced lockdown – Roadrunner will open on Tuesday and Billy Strings will take the stage for the first time.
And, apparently, Roadrunner is ready. Ready for the fans to gather and drink beer in one of the six bars. Ready for that electric moment of anticipation as the lights go out and the artist appears on stage.
“It’s amazing to see how it all adds up,” Josh Bhatti, vice president of The Bowery Presents, said in an interview with Boston.com on Monday. “The staff, the contractors, everyone just rallied to make it happen. I’m very excited about the first show, the second show, and the 100 show. They’re all coming soon.”
Heading to the institution, the fans immediately meet the namesake of the institution. A bright red Plymouth Roadrunner graces the wall on the left as it races down the highway out of the city skyline.
Immediately behind it is the 60-foot stage, with its cavernous space ahead, ready for the fans. the bar shines with newness.
Even though The Modern Lovers’ song is heavily inspired, the tiles, concrete floors and other elements create a field house feel, which can be appreciated given the location of the venue.
Going upstairs, the main staircase has a wooden skateboard ramp against one of the walls. Directly at the top of the stairs is another bar and seating area, a place to take a break from the crowds, sit and enjoy a drink. Behind the bar, “Roadrunner” is depicted with the help of street reflectors.
Going to the mezzanine, Bhatti noted that perhaps the best seats are those in the center of the hall, facing the stage. The lines of the venue were taken into account throughout the space, and the designers wanted to make sure there were no bad seats in the house, which is refreshing for those who may have lost their concert excitement when they found out their seats were partially blocked by a pole or barrier. . There are also dedicated ADA areas on the mezzanine.
What fans won’t see, but what artists can appreciate, are four locker rooms – all with bathtubs and showers – and a couple of washer-dryers. Skateboards hang on the walls, stacked together to represent a Boston artist.
Nearby is a rental pub with its own bar. “I’m in love with Massachusetts” written in bright light along one wall.
When Billy Strings takes the stage on a Tuesday night, it’s kind of a milestone in his career. According to Bhatti, he once played in front of 200 people at Great Scott. Its success then grew to venues such as The Sinclair in Cambridge, which is owned and operated by Bowery and can seat 525 people. The Bowery invited him to play a 1200-seat Royale, but then the pandemic hit.
According to Bhatti, the appearance of Strings as the first performer on the site was not an accident.
“We were always looking for artists that we had worked with before, when we were in the stage of developing these artists from the smallest venues to the biggest,” he said. “Having such an artist who grew up with us was very important.”
The Khruangbin trio will play two nights, Thursday and Friday, in the next hall. They also played Great Scott, Sinclair and Royale.
“They put on a huge tournament in the Bowery,” Bhatti said.
While COVID has killed some Boston venues like beloved Great Scott, Bhatti said he hopes more smaller establishments will reopen given how heavily the area is influenced by the arts.
“Those [smaller venues] suffered the most, but for me it’s also just creating a culture of going to concerts, going out and enjoying the music,” he said. “So having this seat here hopefully opens up the possibility for another hall nearby, maybe it’s a 200 seat hall.”
subscribe to news
Stay up to date with all the latest news from Boston.com