Gilroy
– Gaslighter’s Music Hall, the city’s downtown refuge for
fledgling rock bands and the under-21 crowd, will hold its final
show tonight before handing over the stage to a group that plans to
host Christian rock bands.
Gilroy – Gaslighter’s Music Hall, the city’s downtown refuge for fledgling rock bands and the under-21 crowd, will hold its final show tonight before handing over the stage to a group that plans to host Christian rock bands.
“Not every song has to be about Jesus, but it has to have a positive message,” said Tony Fleege, senior pastor of Global Harvest Bible Church. The non-denominational group, which for several years has operated out of the store front adjacent to Gaslighter’s, has already held three Friday night events at the venue, located at 7430 Monterey Street. The group also holds weekend services at Gaslighter’s.
Fleege said he has received positive feedback from local pastors and reverends about his Friday night events. His immediate plans for the club involve holding two weekend shows each month, featuring rap and rock groups, as well as comedians. The other two Fridays will be reserved for auditions and religious testimonials.
The church group will sublet the property for 18 months the Gaetanos, who sold Gaslighter’s to a local developer after 12 years in business.
“It is sad for us because we’ve been there a long time and we see a lot of the teenagers that used to come there and they’re all grown up now,” Susan Gaetano said. “It reminds us of what a fun place it’s been for many years. There is a certain sadness in that.”
The couple named Gaslighter’s after the family’s original venture in Campbell, Gaslighter’s Theater, which opened more than 30 years ago. When the Gilroy venue opened in 1993, it offered a mix of children’s theater, live rock shows and its most popular draw – country western music and line dancing.
“Every Friday and Saturday, it was packed with kids,” Gaetano recalled. “It became just the place to go, especially on Friday. And then in the meantime we were doing the bands, some hip hop shows and DJs. Country just died out one day, but the bands have continued and they’ve always been kind of the mainstay from day one.”
Gaslighter’s offered a home to young bands looking for their first gig and to area teens locked out of age-restricted venues.
Matt Reed, a Gilroy native and lead vocalist for rock group Rivals, got his first taste of music at Gaslighter’s at the age of 13.
“Seeing (Papa Roach) when I was younger definitely inspired me to become a performer,” he said.
At the time, the band was beginning to make a name for itself by playing at Gaslighter’s and other small venues, which has served as a testing ground for a number of bands that later went on to wider success, including Deftones and Incubus.
Reed sees the closing of Gaslighter’s as another blow to the regional music scene.
“There’s almost like this nothingness taking over the scene from the bottom up,” he said. “The underground California rock, metal and hard-core scene is going to be ignored or disappear into garages, kind of like a speak-easy thing.”
The closing also has upset local parents, according to Gaslighter’s house manager Barb Smith.
“Parents are concerned now where their kids are going to be able to go, be with friends and listen to their favorite music,” she said. “The main premise behind the Gaslighter has always been the kids.”
Fleege, who said he will rename the venue “The Globe,” plans to operate for the term of his 18-month lease.
In the long term, new owner Gary Walton plans to convert the building into a parking lot.
“It’s really not functional to have buildings that deep,” Walton said of the building, once a warehouse facility for local businesses. “The parking would be more valuable to the property in terms of getting tenants, rather than having a 200-foot long building. Most retail goes from 60 to 90 feet.”
Walton, a driving force in the city’s efforts to revitalize downtown, is responsible for a number of projects downtown, including the retail-residential building at the corner of Fifth and Eigleberry. He will soon begin work on another mixed-used project with a Spanish-mission theme on the corner of Fourth and Monterey streets.
Neither Gaetano nor Walton would disclose the sale price for the Gaslighter.
The venue’s final show tonight will feature five bands: Allen Poe, Our Name is Robert Paulsen, Sonic Mirth, Vindictive Tomorrow and Rivals, as the closing group.
For Jim Azevedo, the drummer for Rivals, the final night is a bittersweet reminder of the band’s humble beginnings five years ago. Only family and friends turned out for the first few shows at Gaslighter’s.
“On show number 10, there was a little magic,” Azevedo recalled. “We had just completed a demo CD and some kids in the area got their hands on it. As we were setting up, a bunch of kids came up to the front of the stage and they started singing our songs. From that point on, we started considering the Gaslighter our home venue. It had a special meaning for us.”
The final show at Gaslighter’s begins at 7:30pm. Tickets cost $8 at the door. For more information call 848-3488. To learn more about The Globe, contact Fleege at the church office’s at 582-5880.
