The Ivy Room resumes live music with outdoor concert series
John Doe at The Ivy Room
Under normal circumstances running an independent music venue is not for the faint of heart. The math is unforgiving and unrelenting. A liquor license often eases the equation, but week by week, rain or shine, you’ve got to cover your “nut” — rent, insurance, staff salaries and guaranteed fees for bands — and there are only so many tickets to sell.
Lani Torres and Summer Gerbing knew from the get-go that 2020 was going to be a challenge at the Ivy Room, the intimate Albany club they turned into one of the East Bay’s most exciting and eclectic stages after taking over the venue in 2015. Gerbing entered the year by delivering identical twins, while Torres was wrangling a 5 year old and 2 year old. Since the pandemic shuttered the club some 14 months ago, they’ve fought on numerous fronts to keep the Ivy Room alive.
“What a ride we’ve been on,” Gerbing said. “It has been an absolute rollercoaster. There’ve been some really high, high peaks and some really low ones. One of the good things is that we had a moment to think about our club and what we’ve done for the music scene in the East Bay.”
Even though the Ivy Room remains closed to patrons, the venue is once again presenting live music, partnering with the Fireside Lounge in Alameda to produce the Tiny Towns outdoor concert series. The season opens May 21 with a sold-out show by John Doe and special guest Jason White (intermittent lead guitarist for Green Day and another East Bay punk band featuring Billie Joe Armstrong, Pinhead Gunpowder).
