Criterion Concert Hall

[TheTravellers]

Yes I have and you still pay a service fee at the box office. It is less than the online service fee.... I think it was $5 when I purchased Jason Isbell tickets at the box office.

I think the box office hours are from noon to 5 PM on non show days.

Yep, my experience too with EITS tickets. Called them before I went to make sure, but still had to ring the bell a few times...

[Roger S]

Yea I have gone during the advertised hours. But still haven't seen any sign of life, even after ringing the 'service bell'.

I wanted to get tickets for a couple upcoming shows, so thought I would save on the service fees, but I did not know they still have their own. Oh well, may end up just taking the convenience of the online route since I can't get any luck on the sidewalk.

Yeah... I was kind of frustrated that I still had to pay a service fee after taking the time to drive over there..... That was pretty much the only reason I bothered..... It's the second time I've been charged a service fee when purchasing a ticket in person.... Guess service fees are just unavoidable any more.

[OkieHornet]

Interesting to see 3 Criterion shows being listed for sale on Ticketstorm:
http://www.ticketstorm.com/venue/the...omacity/14215/

I would guess the Criterion is now just renting it out to whoever wants to book the venue, and they sell tickets wherever/however they want to?

[Urbanized]

^^^^^^
Those are just shows sold through Ticketstorm. Other shows are available via LiveNation: https://www.livenation.com/venues/30758/the-criterion

Sept 24 - Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit
Sept 28 - Young the Giant: Home of the Strange Tour
Oct 1 - Yelawolf
Oct 12 - The XX
Oct 27 - Conor Oberst
Oct 28 - Chase Rice - Lambs & Lions Tour
Nov 5 - Kari Jobe: The Garden Tour

Obviously not a packed schedule, but there are some legit shows coming up.

[OkieHornet]

For sure, yeah, they've got some good ones. I just thought that the Criterion had Levelland promote/book shows through LiveNation exclusively? I guess not.

[bchris02]

^^^^^^
Those are just shows sold through Ticketstorm. Other shows are available via LiveNation: https://www.livenation.com/venues/30758/the-criterion

Sept 24 - Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit
Sept 28 - Young the Giant: Home of the Strange Tour
Oct 1 - Yelawolf
Oct 12 - The XX
Oct 27 - Conor Oberst
Oct 28 - Chase Rice - Lambs & Lions Tour
Nov 5 - Kari Jobe: The Garden Tour

Obviously not a packed schedule, but there are some legit shows coming up.

Not packed but that's definitely an improvement over the one show per month the venue has been getting lately. Still very sparse compared to what is going on up the turnpike.

[KayneMo]

Not packed but that's definitely an improvement over the one show per month the venue has been getting lately. Still very sparse compared to what is going on up the turnpike.

I counted roughly 150 concert events in OKC and 120 in Tulsa from now until 31 Dec 2017 across various venues. Unless I'm missing some here and there (I did this quickly), it's quite the contrary to "vary sparse" compared to Tulsa.

[Bullbear]

I counted roughly 150 concert events in OKC and 120 in Tulsa from now until 31 Dec 2017 across various venues. Unless I'm missing some here and there (I did this quickly), it's quite the contrary to "vary sparse" compared to Tulsa.

he is speaking specifically about this venue the Criterion. when you consider that Cains in Tulsa has 47 shows on calendar through Dec and if you combine the 7 at the criterion with the 19 at the diamond you are still at 26.. that's kind of sad.

[KayneMo]

^ Gotcha.

[Timshel]

I counted roughly 150 concert events in OKC and 120 in Tulsa from now until 31 Dec 2017 across various venues. Unless I'm missing some here and there (I did this quickly), it's quite the contrary to "vary sparse" compared to Tulsa.

In my opinion, it's comparing the frequency of quality (admittedly, an incredibly subjective criterion) shows, not just the total amount of shows. For example, in a one week span this month Jason Isbell, Father John Misty, City and Colour, and Ben Folds are all playing at Cain's. And Ed Sheeran (not my cup of tea but a big name) and Buddy Guy are playing at the BOK and the Brady, respectively, within a few days of that same week. OKC's music scene is definitely improving but I'm not sure OKC has had a week with that many good shows in my lifetime.

[Bellaboo]

In my opinion, it's comparing the frequency of quality (admittedly, an incredibly subjective criterion) shows, not just the total amount of shows. For example, in a one week span this month Jason Isbell, Father John Misty, City and Colour, and Ben Folds are all playing at Cain's. And Ed Sheeran (not my cup of tea but a big name) and Buddy Guy are playing at the BOK and the Brady, respectively, within a few days of that same week. OKC's music scene is definitely improving but I'm not sure OKC has had a week with that many good shows in my lifetime.

Garth Brooks had 4 shows and Sir Paul 1 in 4 days. Around 80,000 attendance, just a few weeks ago. Big time.

[Bellaboo]

Double post

[Timshel]

[/B]

Garth Brooks had 4 shows and Sir Paul 1 in 4 days. Around 80,000 attendance, just a few weeks ago. Big time.

I thought about this just after posting what was intended to be a fairly hyperbolic comment. And I agree that was big time and hopefully we continue to get shows that have historically gone to Tulsa (IIRC, McCartney was last in Tulsa/OK in 2013 and Garth, who hadn't been to OKC in 20ish years, was in Tulsa in 2015). But I don't think stealing the once-every-few-years arena shows from Tulsa will turn OKC into an equal or better music town. In my opinion, it will take the Criterion and other nice similarly sized venues getting high quality shows of all genres to come on a very regular basis to where almost every week or every other week there are concerts that a sizable portion of the city is excited to see. And I don't think its unreasonable to say that OKC significantly lags Tulsa in this regard.

[Timshel]

Double post.

[Urbanized]

I thought about this just after posting what was intended to be a fairly hyperbolic comment. And I agree that was big time and hopefully we continue to get shows that have historically gone to Tulsa (IIRC, McCartney was last in Tulsa/OK in 2013 and Garth, who hadn't been to OKC in 20ish years, was in Tulsa in 2015). But I don't think stealing the once-every-few-years arena shows from Tulsa will turn OKC into an equal or better music town. In my opinion, it will take the Criterion and other nice similarly sized venues getting high quality shows of all genres to come on a very regular basis to where almost every week or every other week there are concerts that a sizable portion of the city is excited to see. And I don't think its unreasonable to say that OKC significantly lags Tulsa in this regard.

While I think these statements are mostly fair, they really only acknowledge OKC's up to this specific moment in time. I think the argument can be made that we have reached an incredible tipping point in our music scene, and time will tell in this regard. It isn't proven of course, but if you ONLY look at what is on the books - though not concentrated in one or two venues like Tulsa - the gap has been closed to an incredible degree. When you factor that two of the venues - Jones and Tower - have yet to be able to capitalize on a good industry reputation (yet to be earned), I think the sky is the limit.

A few things to consider:

• Criterion's much-publicized problems are not at all a reflection on the market OR the venue itself. By most accounts, the operator/promoter over-extended itself and also had a disagreement with LiveNation, who they were counting on for their bookings. The LiveNation thing appears to have improved, as there are now some nice LN shows on the books. Hopefully their bookings improve. The venue itself hits a sweet spot for medium size shows and is an excellent room. If the owner/operator can't get it together I have no doubt that someone else would emerge and be able to do really well. The shows that have been there have sold very, VERY well.
  
  
• Jones Assembly has hit the ground running. Pretty impressive shows right out of the gate, and based on raves from the stage the other night, word will get around in the industry that it is a very artist-friendly venue. They also are working from, effectively, a bottomless bucket of money. Although it will never be a high-volume venue like Cain's, I would expect it to get shows that probably shouldn't even be in a venue that small (not that it is especially small). But for instance, this venue would not be big enough for Criterion-level shows like My Morning Jacket or The XX. Sellouts there and good reputation among artists and booking agents is going to be good for the entire market.
  
  
• The Tower has not even had it's first show in the main room with a touring band yet. Essentially, they just opened this past Saturday. Throw out everything that happened with the prior operator, who never even finished build-out, much less booked a single show. They were obviously focused on Criterion and other issues. The new operators are well-funded, super smart and motivated, and though none of them have been in this game specifically for a while (one of the three promoted shows years ago), all are extremely connected in the industry. They are looking to do some amazing things, and I believe they will. The house sound system is going to be better than any venue in the market. Also, the artist experience backstage will be better than any other, and probably better than all but a very few tour stops for most artists. Their reputation is going to build exponentially, and I would expect that this will become the high-volume venue in this town (regularly featuring multiple shows per week) and consistently punch above its weight (based only on capacity) in artist quality.
  
  
• Diamond Ballroom has seriously stepped up its game after feeling the heat from the new venues. Everyone loves to hate on Diamond (yeah, the location sucks and it looks awful from the outside, plus artist amenities are pitiful), but Diamond is actually not a terrible place to WATCH a show, and more importantly it is owned by the most successful promoter in OK, the same guy who for years put most of those great shows into Cain's and Brady. If he pays only half the attention to OKC that he does to Tulsa - which he should because he actually OWNS this venue - it would combine with the others to make this market a good one. Even right now, in addition to his always-present metal shows - he has Toadies, Old 97s, Texas Hippie Coalition, Against Me!, Band of Horses, Mastadon, Run the Jewels, Lords of Acid and others.
  
  
• I still hope a good promoter starts taking an interest in maybe the nicest big-ish venue, the Chevy Bricktown Event Center. The Alt-J show I saw there after the remodel was just outstanding. But I think they mostly rely on DCF, who is obviously expending their energy elsewhere.
  
  
• Other venues add to the mix, sometimes also punching above their weight capacity-wise. The Opolis, 89th Street, ACM@UCO (Foxygen playing there tonight). If you run down a list of the bands that have played those places in the last decade you'd be stunned. But they are off of the radar of all but the most devout music-lovers.
  
  The McCartney show and some of the other recents (Iron Maiden, etc), at Chesapeake happened and are happening because we are now on LN radar in a way we never were before. This should be a boost for large shows. We'll see.

Anyway, I think that judging the OKC scene based on what has come before ignores our brand new reality, as far as openings and how these new venues are driving change. Let's regroup this time next year and compare notes regarding OKC shows vs. Tulsa shows.

[Anonymous.]

Don't forget, OKC also has Lost Lakes venue and the Farmers Market - which both pull legitimate EDM artists. And although EDM is a pretty niche genre, OKC's EDM scene is actually really solid for artist's tours.

[Timshel]

^

Generally agree with everything here and my comments aren't intended to be overly pessimistic. I'm very optimistic about OKC's music scene, which I agree has improved dramatically and is getting better and better every day, but I'm not entirely convinced we've reached an actual tipping point to take OKC to the next level. However, I think that time could be coming in the near future and I would be ecstatic if I am wrong. Very excited about the Jones and hope it continues to punch above its weight (which I think it will fwiw). 100% agree about the Chevy events center - I think it's a space with incredible potential for bigger shows. I also agree about the quality of our small venues (which are typically my favorite places to see a show). I would also throw the Blue Note and the Deli in that mix as well.

[Pete]

The Criterion has financial problems which is limiting their bookings.

That is the controlling factor, not the demand for live music in OKC.

The shows they've actually hosted have been very well attended.

[Richard at Remax]

Pretty fascinating they are two years old, give or take, and have financial problems.

[Pete]

Pretty fascinating they are two years old, give or take, and have financial problems.

The people involved have had financial problems off and on for years.

[Timshel]

^

100% agree. But I would posit that the financial health of a city's music venues and the quality and effectiveness of venues' promoters and operators are important factors in analyzing the quality of a city's music scene.

[OkieHornet]

The Criterion has financial problems which is limiting their bookings.

That is the controlling factor, not the demand for live music in OKC.

The shows they've actually hosted have been very well attended.

When you say they've got financial problems, are you talking about the owners? If so, who actually owns it?

[Pete]

When you say they've got financial problems, are you talking about the owners? If so, who actually owns it?

I'm talking about the operators, Levelland Productions.

[OkieHornet]

I'm talking about the operators, Levelland Productions.

Ahh, got it. that would make a lot of sense. Maybe it's time for a new promoter to step in?

[TheTravellers]

Ahh, got it. that would make a lot of sense. Maybe it's time for a new promoter to step in?

Been time, for a while... I think we all thought that Levelland getting out of the Tower contract and closing the Wormy Dog would free up funds/time/whatever for them to concentrate on the Criterion, but that just hasn't happened yet. Seems like Levelland needs either a large infusion of cash, or to just get out/get pushed out of the Criterion (not sure how easy that would be due to contracts) and let someone that can do it do it.

Also wanted to thank Urbanized for your post, nice way to sum it all up, just wish it would all happen sooner than it is (seems like it's been a version of "Free Crab Tomorrow" every single day for months and months).