I wish I could give this less than 1 star. The security here is the most ridiculous thing I have ever dealt with after 20 years of concerts. Get over yourself! You are a crap little venue in a city full of much better places to see a show. If you happen to get stuck with this place as your venue for a show, I'm sorry cause it is going to suck. Flat floor, crap beer and the worst "power tripping I have a chip on my shoulder because I was unpopular in high school and couldn't get into college cause I'm too stupid and the police academy wont take me cause of the restraining order from my ex-girlfriend but at least I'm large in size so I'm able to bounce at SoDo Showbox" security guards. To Showbox Sodo Security Guard, I'm sorry your life has reached its peak. Yup, that's it. You have nothing more to offer this world except your ability to be a little bit bigger than most people. Your security shirt and walkie talkie ear piece make you think your better than everyone else. Guess what? You aren't! Just know that most people at those shows have much better lives than you. That's why they are able to GO to concerts on weekends instead of having to work at them. That's right, you work for these people, they pay your crap wages. Even the stoned high school kids have more promise than you do. Face it, you are in your mid 30s with an ill gotten high school degree and no future. Enjoy pushing around people smaller than you because it is the only thing in your life that gives you purpose. To anyone reading this, I don't rant and write crap reviews because I have nothing better to do than rip on people on the internet. No, I genuinely dislike this place and it is the reason I decided to get a Yelp account just so I could let people know how very very terrible some of the security guards are at the Showbox SoDo. If you have to go. Im sorry! read more

Why in the hell won't you leave me ALONE, SoDo? Just stop it. Look, I like you because parking is easy here. But I hate you because you make it impossible for me to get drunk here. Why can't I drink and go to the front of the stage? You're making me have as crappy of a time as my designated driver, and that isn't cool. The whole point of having a designated driver is so that I can get wasted. But, no. You cut me off and leave in the bar area or in the very back of the venue like an ass. Quit it. Let me indulge in beer and rock and/or roll like an AMERICAN, you fucking Commie bastards. Oh, and while you're at it, could you make the sound here not suck? Because, I dunno...Has anyone told you that it sucks? And has anyone told you that you need to have a more efficient line to get into you because my Floridian ass does NOT like standing in the rain or SNOW/? Work on this. Also, take me off your damn email list. I hit "unsubscribe" on the last email you sent me, but I'm still getting them. Leave me alone, this relationship is going nowhere and you need to realize that. Cheap beers though. But seriously. read more

Showbox SoDo is a pretty good venue for general admission, standing-only rock/metal/hip hop shows that cap out at about 1000 fans. Its acoustics are excellent and its sightlines are also really good--a large, well-elevated stage with almost nothing structural to block your view (compared to, say, Studio 7 where there are obstructions galore and you might be forced to look at a column or a rafter rather than the band). Showbox SoDo has a wide open floor that is big enough for people who just want to stand and watch the show and also for the hard-rockin' dudes who want to run into each other over and over again. At the metal shows I've been to here, it's seemed to me that the security staff seems to know how to let said rockers have their fun and vent all of their pent-up middle-class first world aggression, but they are also good about drawing the line on knuckleheads who are trying to take over the floor. There are also two large bar areas with cool bartenders and all manner of the strong drink. From looking at other reviews, it appears the bathrooms are among the nine layers of hell, but I actually haven't had to answer the call here; I suppose a bathroom that faces a constant supply of hundreds of sweaty, buzzed adult mammals over the span of four hours is going to come out on the losing end. Nobody has developed a solution for that, as far as I know, but whoever does invent the self-cleaning bathroom is going to be a zillionaire. read more

-5 stars actually Crap acoustics, rude barstaff and the worst of all: Here is an outline of my experience with one of ther employees at the door of Showbox Sodo that was shocking, and the worst I have experienced in Seattle by far. We arrived for the concert, and proceeded through the will call window as we were on the list with tickets from the family of stations I work for. I received the stamp, and proceeded to the door. I noticed the woman & man in front of us were not asked about their purse/pockets and let through the door. I said hello and how are you to the doorman, smiling as I was excited about the show. The doorman gave us a horrid look up & down, then asked to see inside of our purses, and he proceeded to look in the every corner of crevice and pocket like TSA. He was very gruff as he opened a small REI aluminum pill container on a keychain that contained my friend's blood sugar medications for diabetes. He asked "What is this?" loudly and accusingly, she advised it was Glipizide for diabetes. He said "Get rid of it, my father is diabetic, that is not fucking diabetes meds, I don't know what that is". We advised I have the bottle in the car for proof, we could go back and put them away. He let us know he "didn't care, I don't know what the hell those are, give them to me". She advised she could just take them as she was scheduled to in 2 hours anyway, and put them in her mouth, he said "Ha, now you cant fucking come in! You better spit them out!" She spit them out into my hand, and he then yelled, "PUT THEM ON THE FUCKING GROUND AND FUCKING CRUSH THEM, NOW! I SAID FUCKING CRUSH THEM! NOW!" It was terrifying, as he was a large & loud man. We threw them on the ground and crushed them. I was shocked, and I asked for his name as he moved us along, to which he advised "You don't need my fucking name" and mumbled something else, which sounded like Jerome. When I repeated Jerome, he said, "Yeah, fucking Jerome" . Turns out he said something derogatory about us, the man behind us said. I noticed he did not look in the bags of the people behind us either. We then contacted the manager, and explained the situation we had at the door. His response was I could "go get my bottle of medicine and bring it in to take it and show them" which I understood as an attempt to be helpful, however, I could have just been sent to my car in the first place by the door person to take them or put them away, like we suggested. I explained I was not questioning the medicine rules/regulations of the venue. I completely believe it is a venue's right to ask people to identify medication, but it is not necessary to destroy them or attack the customer. I let him know my concern was with the abusive nature and what I felt was an unnecessary verbal assault and treatment by the doorman. He said he would speak to him, and went about his business, it was very busy that night. I have never experienced someone so intent on cursing at a customer, belittling them loudly and accusing them of trying to deceive him. It was also surprising that he then proceeded to treat other entrants without swearing in their faces or searching their belongings or person. Perhaps it was a racial issue, or we reminded him of someone he dislikes, no matter what, no one deserves to be treated like that. We ended up leaving early as the marijuana smoke was overwhelming, and it was surprising so much of that drug got through the door when a pair blood sugar tablets did not. I was on the air yesterday, and recalled the fear I felt while announcing your venue information for a performance by someone on our playlist. Due to this experience, I would hesitate to personally recommend anyone attend your venue. I'm dismayed that I would never feel safe there, after the way we were treated. Ideally, it would have been nice to see reimbursement for the medication that was destroyed, but most important would be assurance that the employee never does this to anyone again. The management didn't care and defended the violent employee when this was sent. Be very careful around their "security" staff. read more

Showbox SoDo - violent and angry bald security guard - beware these guys if you see a show here. - Music Venues Near Me - Seattle, Washington

Oh God... it's just time to come out and say it... Showbox SoDo, I DO NOT LIKE YOU. Yeah, I'm short... but it's especially tormenting here. I can't freaking see anything at this place. It's even worse if you are 21+ and want to drink (clearly half the reason I even go to shows), they either corral you in the back drink-pen where you can't even see anything and it's super crowded, or you have to go in the actual bar area to the side, where you are separated from the music by windows so the sound is pretty crappy. Basically I hate all-ages shows, but what can you do when good musical acts are going to all-ages venues? You have to brave it and endure being packed like a can of sardines in the booze-friendly areas. Ugh. Plus parking is slim, however if you don't drive yourself there's never enough cabs so you end up standing around in the cold waving in vain forever after the show gets out. Also, there's not much else to do in the area. ALSO the staff has been generally unfriendly and/or condescending the myriad times I've patronized this venue... lame lame LAME. The sad truth, though, is that I will continue to make the journey down to SoDo when it hosts shows I want to see. Life is so unfair sometimes. To say something good about Showbox SoDo: it kinda reminds me of a barn, and who doesn't like to pretend they're seeing live music IN A BARN!??!? Awesome. read more

You guys only get one star from me because negative stars aren't available. Last time my group and I used this venue for our concert their staff was complete assholes to us. They treated all our volunteers like dogs, ordering us around, and gave us all attitude. They told our supervisors to "calm the volunteers down" because "we formed our own line" when they told us to form the line to begin with... that makes absolutely no sense to me. Overall, the staff at Showbox are all assholes. We didn't even get to go through with most of our event ideas because the staff refused to cooperate with us and they were just assholes. That's all. Never working with them ever again. read more

Sound quality is not great, I wish I had more love for the sister of one of my favorite venues but the I have indeed, lost that lovin' feelin' when it comes to this space. The bar set up on the N side of the stage running along side makes for AWKWARD space design, and the few shows I've seen here have been 'less than' I would have expected for the 'Showbox' brand in relation to the sound and 'vibe' of the room. I would say it's a pass for me if a band plays here, I'll likely skip it. read more

That 5th star is an intentional attempt at counter-attacking all those lower reviews. I really, *really* don't understand some of these hater reviews. At all. Having been to both Showbox locations in as many weeks this month. I've got some fresh memories to compare (since that seems to be the popular thing to do and not let SODO stand as a venue of it's own) It is set up to accommodate all ages shows. Which Seattle DESPERATELY needs to maintain. Some of your favorite bands hit it big before they were 21, you jackhole. And my teen years would not have been the same if I needed my fake ID and rape kit for EVERY show. If you don't want that scene DO NOT GO TO THIS VENUE ON AN ALL AGES NIGHT/SHOW. The staff IS THE SAME as it is at the market location! They rotate the entire staff of bouncers and "tenders to BOTH. So, your comparisons of how one venue is nice guys and the other are douches is also shot down. And none of them were rude to me once, at *either* location. Not when I wasn't wearing my "i'm with the band" sticker properly, not when I tried to enter wrong door, not when I parked in reserved spots, not when my wrist stamp washed off in the venue bathroom, NOT ONCE. If everyone is rude to you, remember that you're the common denominator in that equation. Sound was better at SODO show @ stage level than recent show at market. The same band opened both, so it's a pretty good comparison. Sound in the closed off bar is sh*t @ SODO. They need to come up with some ideas there. In that particular area I agree with the rest of you. But, really, do you have to have a drink in your hand *all* night long or during the show you're there to see? Really? I'd rather you not be spilling your drink on me down front and center, thanks. Between Open door time, opening bands, sound checks/stage changes and what not, you can get plenty hammered before the main event starts and not miss a single note, I promise. Food is better than I would have expected and priced competently on par with every other venue/bar in town that doesn't have it's head up it's ass. Now, I have not been to SODO during a *OHMYFUCKSOLDOUTSHOWOFTHEBESTBANDEVER* night, but I'm going to hazaard an experienced guess that I wouldn't feel a damn wit different about this location on that night than I did on the times I've been there, including earlier this week. EVERY venue suffers when it's a night like that. read more

Showbox, man. I really... I have no words for how disappointed I am. I was here for the Alesso concert just over a week ago, and I'm still a little distraught over how poorly that night went. While I concede that there are some great things they do well (e.g., it's a giant warehouse, so the focus is on the artist and not on anything else; it's spacious; concessions are always pretty cheap; security is not afraid to call people out on shitty behavior; they book great artists; light shows are INCREDIBLE), there are a lot of things that Showbox could have done better for that night, and failed to do so. First: Showbox oversold the venue, pure and simple. Even if they stand there and deny it, you cannot tell me that the venue was built for the 1700-1800 people who were there, because it's just not. I was about halfway back with my friend, and there was nowhere for us to move. As in, even if we shoved and pushed people out of the way, it would have been impossible. What if someone has a panic attack? What if something actually went wrong and people needed to get out of the venue quickly? It would have went poorly. If Showbox wanted to make a higher profit on Alesso's performance, they should have charged higher prices on the tickets (instead of the insanely cheap $45 for the concert), which would have hopefully weeded out the tiny high school students who really should. not. have. attended this event. I'm all for the younger kids getting involved in these concerts and having the time of their lives. GREAT. Exposure to this music is awesome, and I'm a huge advocate for the #PLUR lifestyle. But really, with all the drugs being passed around, why didn't security at Showbox SoDo do more? I'll tell you why. Because they oversold the goddamn venue and nobody could get through. Which leads to young high school students (we're talking 15 and 16 year olds) getting high on drugs that they really shouldn't be taking. I'm all for total de-criminalization of everything, but that is far too young to start. Finally, because Showbox SoDo oversold the venue at such cheap prices, the trashiest of the trash came out that evening. I cannot tell you how many scratches and bruises I woke up with the next morning from people (girls AND guys!) grabbing my neck, clawing at my waist, hips and arms, pushing, shoving, and digging their longass nails into my back in order to haul their trashy asses up to the front (where there as, again, literally no more room). It only got better when the high school students finally hit their goddamn curfew and left, but at that point my patience had already worn thin and I was getting more of a headache. For all the Showbox does right (yay, Showbox at the Market!), they went horribly wrong that night. I'm hesitant about going back here again, because as much as I want to see my favorite artists, I could do without the bruises, thanks. Maybe one day. read more

I hate how all the good R&B / Rap artist are booked here. The venue is small for General Admission in my opinion. It always gets super packed and it gets way too hot in there. No Air Conditioning which is horrible. I have been here to 3 different concerts and I am not a fan of Showbox SODO, I refuse to go back. *** FOR MY LADIES OUT THERE You cannot wear heels or boots because your feet will hurt not even half way through the night because the floors are concrete read more

My bf and I went there for the HH, the price and the burgers were AWESOME! I had the The Bleu's Burger with all the works - red onion, lettuce and tomato and my bf had the peppered bacon burger, came with crispy-crispy fries and a pickle spear. We downed it with an Alaskan Amber. YUMMMMMMMMM-MERS! All for the price of less than $15.00 (HH price - an order of those delish burger with fixin's and ale times 2)!!! EXCELLENT!!! This was my very first YHH and I chickened out to introduce myself. "Hi, my name is Nori and I'm a CH!CKENSH!T for not introducing myself to my fellow Yelpers!!!" There is a next time and I WILL put myself forth to let my fellow Yelpers know it's me...Nori! =) A MUST GO! =) read more

What? What was that? How was the concert last night? Sorry, I couldn't hear you; my ears are still ringing. I think I'm an old lady trapped in a 25-year-old body. I don't like loud rock music, I don't like mosh-pits, and I don't like hundreds of sweaty bodies gyrating in my personal space. All that aside, I *did* enjoy the bands. We saw Third Eye Blind, with Low Vs. Diamond as an opener, and neither were in no way too loud and rock-y for my taste. However, as other reviewers have said, the sound quality was not great. I could hardly ever make out the lyrics because it was all drowned out by other instruments. We watched the opening act from the 21-and-older section, which was great. It wasn't too crazy loud and there was no need to strain to see over the six-foot-three, three hundred fifty pound guy standing in front of you. Then we decided to go into the main floor for the headliners. It was a little hotter, a little harder to see, a little more uncomfortable, but we chatted it up with the Big Guy and I was able to elbow my way to get a perfect line of sight to the stage. And then we rocked. All was completely fine until about one song into the encore, when I started to feel a little...woozy. The lack of a single breath of air moving about the building was kind of making me light-headed, and a small bout of claustrophobia set in. Anyway, long story short, I had to beeline it for the back before I fainted. Luckily there was more of a breeze out of the crush of the crowd, and I stumbled around through my starry-eyed haze until I found a stool. The set ended about 30 seconds later, and I felt a little silly. Would I go back here again? Yes. But next time I'd probably choose to hang back farther from the stage and sacrifice the view. I don't need to have any more medical traumas, thanks. read more

***Updated 5/4/08*** Went to see Devotchka last night and the sound quality was even worse, making what could be one of my favorite bands a huge disappointing experience. Next time I visit the Showbox SoDo will be nothing short of the second coming of Christ, or maybe Bangers & Cash, whichever comes to Seattle first. ****************************** When comparing the Showbox SoDo with the regular old Showbox, there is no comparison. In my opinion, the original Showbox is one of the best venues I've had the privilege of seeing many shows at. With that said, to slap the Showbox label onto this quasi-new, but old venue offers up a false sense of greatness. Now, I'm not going to say this place was bad by any means. It was easy to find parking, the staff was very professional and well organized, and overall, this place is a well oiled machine, top to bottom. Unfortunately, it's a giant old warehouse that lacks the intimacy of the music that the regular old Showbox seems to offer up so well. But, what it lacks in musical quality, it more than makes up for in the concert-going experience. I guess it all depends on what you're there for, or better yet, who you're there to see. It's hard to compare the two. For me, the differences really stood out going to see Ghostland Observatory on Friday night at the Showbox and then to see the Black Keys on Saturday night at the Showbox SoDo. It was a totally different experience, one that makes me sad that Devotchka will be playing at the Showbox SoDo instead of the plain old Showbox. Damn it, when's the Crocodile going to finally reopen? read more

The venue SUCKS for live music. Unless you're RIGHT in front of the stage, the music is mumbled. I was up in the bar, and couldn't understand ANY of the lyrics. I brought my camera, and it was taken from us due to it being "professional"... it was NOT professional. I've taken this camera to EVERY concert I have been to. This TOTALLY ruined my night!!!! The staff are punks!! But even beyond that, I will NEVER return to the place, that's how bad the sound quality is. Other than that, the bartenders do NOT watch who they are serving, there was vomit flying EVERYWHERE. **sure, go ahead and serve the already shit faced drunks.. why not** There were fights in the pit, which is not unusual of course, but when we walk out at the end of the night, and the police and ambulances are there for a man who was STABBED in the back, for a fight in the pit...it's a little ridiculous. Maybe a metal detector would be a good thing??? But yeah, never again. Couldn't even enjoy watching Chevelle... oh wait, it's because I couldn't see them PERIOD, much less enjoy the garbled music coming out of the speakers. read more

I hate this place. Gettin' my negativity on bullet point style: - Dreadful will call lines. Always. Seriously, guys? You get will call lines like this all the time but you still only put one or two people on the list? Awesome allocation of staff. -Drinking pen. Just because I want to drink does not mean I want to be fenced into a shitty little corner with too many other people in it. -Staff. Not everyone, mind. The bar staff is usually pretty friendly, and occasionally the door staff will be nice. Most of them are rude as hell. And hell is super rude. -Prices. WAY TOO HIGH. What the hell, SoDo. -The sound is awful. All concrete and echoing and terrible. The worst sound at any venue in Seattle. -This one isn't their fault, but I'm not wild about the location or the parking situation. They get the occasional good booking and it always breaks my heart because I loathe coming here. They really need to focus on getting shows I don't care about and letting the Showbox Market snap up all the quality events. read more

It's a damned good thing I'm a rock star. Because I like 'rock star' parking. Which, last night to go see the Black Keys, I got. Let's see if my diagram can demonstrate: . . .Bar. . . . . . . Main Door __|----|_______|-------|________ _|__|__|__|__|__|__|__|__|__|__Sidewalk +3 min parking+. . . | My Car | . . . Hell yeah. I love driving a tiny car. So we got there early, ate down the street, then headed back before doors were open, about 7:45 or so. There was a line that snaked down the street, and we joined in. We discovered that if you get there an hour or more before doors, they'll let you into the bar entrance and you can hang out inside and drink. However... they close that up in that hour before doors. So click that 'useful' link and consider yourself warned. Sucked to be us. We discovered someone had let their dog take a massive crap right on the sidewalk where the line was. Fortunately the folks in front of us stepped in it and we were suitably warned. Sucked to be them. I grabbed a discarded plastic cup sitting in the ivy in the lot adjacent to the sidewalk and covered the poop with it. We got about 5 feet away, and just as my buddy was saying, "I wonder how long it will take for someone to kick that?" We heard the distinctive sound of a cup being kicked, and the groans of the folks around as dog crap was flung in the air. Oops! Sucked to be them! We headed in. The bouncers checked bags quickly and efficiently; the staff had electronic ticket readers and the line moved fast. Inside, they have barricades set up to split the back of the room and bars off for the over 21 crowd. Walking in, you walk past the merch tables. Awesome placement. As a rockstar, I know how critical it is to have a GOOD spot to sell merch. High traffic+high visibility=high sales. Gas money. Not that the Black Keys need it so much, but the opening band probably did. The bartenders were fast, efficient, and super friendly. I mean, for a high volume place (both sound and people), you'd think there'd be some flustered folks back there, or that they'd be deadly serious and focused. Not the case here. Bartenders were really cool! i tended to head back to the same tattoo'd lady, but we also got drinks from a blond dude that was really friendly as well. Sound quality was great. We brought ear plugs, but I found I didn't need them. This could be because I'm already partially deaf thanks to over-eager drummers I've played with in the past who started whaling on their drums before I could get my ear plugs in. Or just years of rocking the crap out of people has made me deaf enough that I didn't notice volume. But sound quality was really great, and volume wasn't painful by any means, yet loud enough that you could still really feel the energy. Stage props were cool. I know that's a function of the band, but that meant there was enough room on stage, plus support, plus willingness by the venue, to allow something like a humongous knobby truck tire to fill the entire back of the stage area. Lights were cool too, though there they strobed the audience enough that one of my friends had to sit out a piece of the show from the headache she got (sensitive eyes). I wish light guys would understand that strobe lighting should really be used as little as possible. Give an accent to the opening song, or the biggest hit single, for like a second, and then lay off. Oh well. Smokers -- you can head out and smoke out front, but if you head out the main doors, you have to be stamped by the drinking area guy, and then you have to enter back in through the bar. Not sure how under-21/over-18 smokers would fare with that situation. One thing -- the place got HOT. Holy crap! By the last couple songs we were heading back toward the doors to get relief from the heat. I felt air kick on, but by that point it was too late. That's a big venue, with big names coming through and filling the house. They should be prepared to keep excited dancing happy people cool. I can't imagine how hot it must have been on stage for the performers under those lights--usually stage is ten degrees hotter than the rest of the venue, and when you're up there bouncing around playing music... yeah they must have been baking. Anyway, with ample parking, a couple bars nearby, and a pretty great sound system and bar, this was definitely a great venue to see a show in. If they can get the air conditioning worked out, it'll rate 5 stars. read more

It's not that bad of a venue really, if only maybe half of the people showed up. They defiantly over sold the Devils Makes Three show, with bone crushing crowds. The biggest problem though is the bathrooms, everyone has to go up one small flight of stairs, it is virtually impossible. They could easily redesign this venue and put bathrooms on both sides and open the walls to allow more than person to pass at a time. Shouldn't sell beer and not have enough bathrooms. Acoustics aren't great, but just could be the crowds. The security are actually very good, not overbearing but solid when things get a little cray cray. I am to old for this standing room only crap, so I probably would not go back unless it was someone I really really needed to see. read more

A fellow Yelper was the bartender so there is definitely a little bias here. I was there for happy hour. The beer was inexpensive and the onion rings I got were hot & crispy. Topics discussed: stalkers, crazy people (in real life and on Yelp), amateur porn (HUMP!), getting drunk at the library, The Pogues (who are playing here in October), the acoustics of the room, the bitchin' chandelier in the main room, the Mariners, the lack of women at certain bars/clubs, favorite horror movies, drugs, etc, etc.... and that was just from 6-9! Cool place, go drink or see a show so that this club lasts longer than the Fenix or Premiere. Don't forget to tip generously. UPDATE DECEMBER: I saw M.I.A. play here and it was awesome. I have to deduct 1 star, because once a concert starts up the room becomes like a gigantic sauna. I was covered in sweat, some of it mine, most of it other people's. read more

The worst acoustics I've ever been subjected to. Showbox Sodo's horrible rep for sound was found to be, sadly, well earned when I saw My Bloody Valentine last Wednesday with my gf. It was my first show there and will be my last. Not only does the sound system turn music into aural sludge, but the bouncers, or whatever they are called, are sullen apes. My gf hates the place and now I know why. You are herded like cattle into the "alcohol pen". If you want to use the bathroom, then show your wrist stamp and drink up, or the toilet monitor/bouncer won't let you pee. Yeah, it's that kind of place. Just a real bummer, but at least the atmosphere sucks. read more

This is a decent spot to go to a concert at. I have been here 2 times. The good things about this place are: -Lots of space -Different sections to view like in the crowd, seating on the side, 21+ area, side walls The downside is that the further in the back you go, the less you hear, they don't have speakers set up in the back, so in order to enjoy the music you have to be with the "crowd" and be up close. I do wish they had some fans for cooling, that would be nice. This place is a decent venue to go and really nothing is bad about it, it has a lot of potential, but I don't see it getting any better. read more

This venue is located directly next to Qwest Field, so if there happens to be a game the night of your show, it's impossible to park or walk without encountering 800 Yankees fans streaming towards you. And WTF is with all the Yankees fans in this town? Troglodytes. When you finally arrive at your destination, harried and frowning, you find that the show is "all ages." This means that if you want a drink you have to go into a special cordoned-off section near the back, and every time you want to move out of the drinking area, you have to show your wrist stamp to a bouncer. Lame lame lameness. This isn't the county fair, I shouldn't have to go into the "beer garden." Segregate the under 21-year-olds if you must, or just make them wait until they're older to appreciate acts like TV on the Radio. They're barely people! I tried to order a Stoli & Tonic. They didn't have Stoli. My mind blanked on other brands of vodka, so, in my confusion, I blurted "Absolut" (even though it sucks), and they didn't have that either. WTF? What DO you have? What kind of slap-dash joint is this? The sound wasn't that great either. The only way I'd go back to this venue is if i LOVED the band in question. Oh yeah, and it was freaking impossible to catch a cab when we got out of the show. read more

All I have to say about this place is that their staff have huge chips on their shoulders and don't know how to communicate to their patrons. I was asked to leave the venue since one of the staff heard me vomit in the bathroom stalls. Even though it was because I had some bad fish that night, the chick was nice enough (apart from banging on the stall repeatedly) and I generally understood it was their policy. It made me feel great to see the chick pointing and making signals about me to the other staff members. I took my time cleaning up and leaving the bathroom since I didn't think I deserved this treatment. Before exiting, I asked my husband to get me the glass of iced water at our table and that's when the staff got ugly. The first chick handed me off to another bouncer (boing boing) to escort me out and he acted like I was a common hooligan and tried to bully me out the door. I calmly stated at the top of the stairs that I was waiting for my husband to bring me water and he kept pushing me out the door saying there was water by the door....room temperature bottled water. Yech! That really appealed to my queasy stomach. Regardless, was I making an unreasonable demand? Then when I was out the door, he demanded to see my wrist. I was already out of the club per their request and he wouldn't tell me why he needed to see my wrist so I refused. He even grabbed my arm to take a look. Then he got pissy that I didn't obey his direct orders and pulled the asshole sour grapes maneuver of "well, I was going to let you back in but...." Maybe if he wasn't such a jerk from the very beginning and explained that to me, I would have been more compliant to stroke his gigantic ego atop his gigantic body. He claimed I was giving him attitude. Right....just to prove him wrong, I showed him what REAL attitude from me looked like. I should have projectile vomited on his face, but he might have enjoyed the snack. I then talked to their boss, Jabba The Bouncer (why are they all such fat messes?) about how horribly the situation was handled. Apparently, being "asked to leave" isn't the same thing as being "asked to go outside". He said this with a straight, bloated face. How the hell am I supposed to know that? I thought I was kicked out. It seems that they train these power hungry oinkers very well on policy and enforcement, but their customer relation skills, communication skills, and overall tact was severely lacking. They all had something snide to say. One chick took out her workplace frustration on me. Sorry, but I actually made it into the bowl and cleaned up anything that didn't so don't get mad at me because you work at a venue that serves alcohol and you wield the mop. Tough shit. Get a real job. read more

Not as beautiful and charming as the downtown location but a lot more room. We came here to see Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. I'd been wanting to see them play for years and was overjoyed they were coming to Seattle. I didn't even realize Showbox had this other location. We also ended up here on a baseball night, which can be a madhouse. At least the parking was cheap nearby and if we had been really cheap we could have parked a few blocks away. Even with all the baseball traffic, there was still room. Finding a bite to eat beforehand was a bit more difficult than downtown too. You really don't have a lot of choice. Though there was good ghetto-style BBQ nearby. The venue itself lacked some charm. Looking at the rafters made me feel a little like I was at a steakhouse. But the bar stage tried to have the look of the downtown speakeasy. Needless to say, it could do with a bit more decor. The bartender we kept going back to was incredible. (Thank you mustached man!) He poured stiff and with a smile. We decided not to maneuver the old-timers at the stage bar and simply grabbed our beverages from the back of the room. Plenty of room to dance. A great crowd that was into the music. And even clean bathrooms. If their shows here are like this, I'll probably be back soon. read more

Yeah, pretty much what MOST Yelpers have said is true. The way the place is set-up is no bueno for the bar patrons. You can't see the stage from the bar unless you lean over one of the windows. It's pretty lame. Especially when that's the only excape you have from annoying "little kids." I HATE all-ages shows. But whatever. I went here on 11/17/2011 to see Big Sean. Big Sean is an awesome performer but the venue did him no justice. The acoustics in the venue was a no-go. I wish the show stayed where it was originally suppose to be held at, Showbox at the Market because I keep seeing about how much MORE BETTER that venue is. If I ever buy another concert ticket to Showbox at the Market & it gets moved to SODO, believe me when I say this, I will sell my tickets. Okay, I'm done now [= read more

Yes, the best thing about this place is parking! The parking by this venue is great, and this is why there are 2 stars not one. We went there not for the bar but for a concert - Floater. So, the whole bar and drunk atmosphere was a bit surprising... To clarify, bar scene isn't my most favorite (specially when it's so generic - not great, not horrible) so not much to talk about in that department. I can't remember last time I had such weak drinks poured for me, hardly any alcohol, although the waitress was cute and polite. Floater's concert was late more than 2 hours but that's not the venue's fault... However, this gave the crown enough time to get pretty blasted, (don't even ask me how on such weak drinks, perhaps that's my head that's so strong!). The acoustics are not the best, and the farther you are from the stage the worse it gets, also keep in mind that if you're less than 6 feet tall and this is a major concert you will be struggling to see anything. I don't think we'll be coming back there anytime soon... Unless, a band comes that I absolutely love and this would be better than nothing. read more

I went with my two friends to see the My Bloody Valentine show here a couple of days ago. We drove down from Vancouver and were super excited and had spent a lot of money on the trip... little did we know what was to later take place... First impressions of the venue - OK, not horrible, kind of weird being pent up like a zoo animal if you wanted a drink. Like some of the other reviewers have said, the guy that was checking ID's took a good couple of minutes looking at my ID and then at my face - not sure if he was trying to be intimidating or very very thorough. I get that liquor laws are strict so I kind of blew it off. Drinks were over-priced and pretty strong, but the bartenders were friendly enough. One of my friends accidentally took his beer out of the cage and instead of the bouncer telling him no or making him throw out his beer, he kicks him out - and this is before the headliner even came on to play. He spent the whole concert with his ear to the door while in the parking lot. Friend #2 had only had a couple of drinks and was standing on the outside of the huge crowd of people listening to the band, minding her own business, and a woman asked her to come outside. She was then escorted by a huge bouncer and told to sit on a chair by herself in the parking lot and drink some water, while they were asking her "WHAT DID YOU TAKE? HOW MUCH HAVE YOU DONE???" Later she heard them telling some other obviously inebriated girl that they were giving her a 'sobriety test'. OK i get it -if people are being loud, obnoxious, and obviously drunk and out of control, it's a good thing to get them out of the venue so they don't ruin anyone else's time there, but neither of my friends were even close to that, having had only a few beers. So after spending basically the entire concert alone, not being able to hear any of the vocals at all ( but I guess that is somewhat expected with a band like that) combined with the horrible acoustics and having my ears still ringing two days later (probably my own fault that I didn't wear the ear plugs they offered)......I can safely say that being at this venue was a truly unpleasant experience. The thing that sucks the most is that if there's a band you really want to see you don't have much of a choice. Regardless, the people that are in charge of this place/ who work here really need to check themselves and stop power-tripping. read more

I planned on giving Shobox SoDo three stars, just a solid a-okay. But... not so much anymore. Passing out on the floor because it's too freaking hot kind of takes the "okay" out of "a-okay." I've seen a few shows here, but I probably don't care to again. First of all - and I'm probably mean for saying this - it seems that a lot of their shows are all ages, which is sort of annoying. Not because I hate those young whippersnappers, but more because the bar areas suck, you can't hear well, and you can't see anything... but if you want to enjoy a beer (uh, wtf is with $4 PBR, by the way?), you're stuck there. Second of all, the sound isn't that great. It's either not clear enough, too loud, or the vocals are too loud to hear the music itself, or whatever. Third of all, I get that I look young, but I am almost twenty-four for goodness sake. The bouncer took my ID, scrutinized the hell out of it, and then started quizzing me on my middle name and birthday. Not especially nicely, either. I felt that the purse-check girl was kind of rude, too. Look guys, I am not a criminal and until I've actually done something wrong (using a fake, smuggling in illegal drugs, whatever), don't treat me like I have. kthanks. But the worst part, the part that solidified the two-star review? It was SO packed and SO hot and there were SO many douchey tall people (okay, that's not the venue's fault) that I couldn't get any air, to the point that I PASSED OUT ON THE FLOOR. If you are going to shove that many people into a small space, open some doors. Use some fans. Do SOMETHING. There are more important things than just the fire code; just because you CAN shove in hundreds of people doesn't mean you should. read more

Yeah, not feeling it... I've been here a lot for Seahawks pregame beers and it's ok because I've hung out with my fellow Seahawk fans but this review is for the Metric concert we attended last night. The Good: Big venue for top bands. Decent view if you are over 6' tall like I am. The Bad: Waiting outside for an hour in the cold night in not the best part of town for the club to open their doors and let you in. Also, terrible view. Especially if you are 5'-3" like my girlfriend the view is terrible, even with her 3" heels. I felt sorry for the other women at the concert last night wearing their stilleto heels, standing on the concrete floors for hours on end- even my back started to hurt. The negatives continue. What's up with the bizarre segregation of minors vs over 21 drinkers? And if you want to sit, you get the crappiest seats in the house- behind the window wall, where you can't even hear. WTF!!? And there are all those large plasma tvs hanging all over the place... So why not broadcast a concert on those, you know for us in the way back that can't see? Wow, there's a thought. Seriously, you guys haven't thought of that? Did you know Showbox and the Showbox Sodo are owned by the same owners? Seems like they are making a pretty nice profit. Wish they could make a few upgrades for us- the well paying customer. Yeah, we won't be back. read more

I'm not sure what they were thinking when they designed this place, but basically if you are under 6' tall you are screwed unless you manage to elbow your way up to the very front. A concrete floor in a warehouse with terrible acoustics sums up the Showbox SoDo experience. Because my poor wife couldn't see a thing from the floor, we headed up into the bar/lounge area and were able to watch the show through a smudged window which gave us a blurry view of the band. We could almost hear them from the lounge as well... it was like listening to music underwater. A terrible experience which I don't care to repeat... and I don't care how good the band is or how much I like them, I am not giving this place any more of my money, and will think twice about going to Showbox at the Market. read more

A) Terrible sound. Atrocious sound. This is a venue to see bands, so really that's all that matters. It's worse on all-ages nights when half the club is roped off and the "bar area" has even worse sounds. I'll allow one star instead of zero (if it was possible) because it sounds minutely better than Nuemos. B) Did I mention they rope off part of the floor and turn it into the drinking area? And then all the all ages kids start pits, so the option is to stand in the 21+ herd where the sound sucks, you can't see the stage, and the everyone is just chatting or out into the pit area where you get shoved up against some sweaty dude and really can't see the stage. d) Low stage, so you can't really see the band unless you are directly in front of teh stage, where some loser started a pit to a singer songwriter ballad. c) Everyone who isn't in the pit is just standing around chatting. Why the hell does anyone come to a show just to chat with their friends? Oh yeah, cause the sound sucks and this is more of a night out venue than a music venue. They stick really awesome bands booked to play the paramount here after people buy their tickets. It happens so often that I think it's a bait & switch. I would never purposely buy tickets to the Showbox Sodo, yet I keep ending up here to see bands I love. Then I walk away miserable. read more

I was here for the Third Eye Blind a few weeks back. My friend and I had driven around the building once in the quest to find a parking space, and as we saw the line stretch way down the street, we thought, "How will all those people fit inside that tiny building?" We both misjudged dramatically, because there was a *ton* of space inside. We laughed as we walked by all the people waiting in the immediate line to get into the 21+ space. We went straight to the back toward the stairs, where there was no line. This move also left us in closer proximity to a bar. I'm just saying, it was our first time here, and we figured this out in no time. Who was standing in that first line, anyway? The drinks were pricey, but strong, so it evened out for me. We took our drinks to the floor, but stayed on the 21+ side to enjoy a bit of breathing room. We somehow ended up under an AC vent, which was delightful when people started getting sweaty and hot. I recommend it, if you can find the right spot! Aside from the *clearly* under-21 crowd running away from Showbox security in the 21+ area, the venue was alright. A solid 3 stars. read more

Came here for the Social Distortion concert. FYI, Mike Ness can still hang and rock it! Rock and Roll has been pretty great to him, and he has been pretty great to Rock and Roll! The venue is very no frills. They have a 21+ area in the back where they serve drinks and expect them to stay. It is kind of a pain that you can't take your drink back to your "spot" to enjoy the music, but that is what it is. I blame the state for that, not Showbox SoDo. The neighborhood location allowed for some very interesting people watching. There was a drunk homeless guy yelling at the people waiting by the entrance. I couldn't help but laugh when he said "I bet nobody around here has any weed!" If I thought for even one moment that this man would be honorable and pay up, I would have bet my _entire_ net worth against *that* bet. As I mentioned earlier, I was at a Social Distortion concert. Even though I'm personally opposed to using that stuff, surely *someone* there would have been "packing"! :P One of the bouncers came out and ran him off a few times. It's a wonder that dude didn't get hit by a car since he was just standing in the middle of the street as it was getting dark. The bouncers handling business in front of the stage were pretty cool. They were spraying water onto the overheated fans and made sure the concertgoers holding off the mosh crowds stayed hydrated. All in all, it was a great concert. I appreciate the fact that they try to keep the ticket prices reasonable, even if it means the concert venue is as simplistic as it could possiby be. Special note to parents: I understand babysitters can get expensive, and they're even sometimes hard to find. Please, for the sake of your children, leave your under 13 year old children at home when it comes to concerts like this. If you insist on bringing them, at least make sure you have them wear earplugs to protect their hearing. Just because they allow people under 21 to enter doesn't mean you should bring Junior out here waaaaay past his bedtime when he's got to go to upper elementary school the next day. Consider yourself lucky if your kid leaves a Social Distortion concert without being moshed to bits. Morons. read more

One of Seattle's better music venues based on a scientific fun-to-money ratio. This place books some great acts and provides a much more intimate experience for less $$ than any of the larger 'arena' or 'theater' type venues. Parking and traffic usually aren't as bad in this part of town, either. Personally, I think the fact that Showbox SoDo is just a big room with an elevated stage up front and a bar on the side works really well. Lights, sound, and view of the stage are pretty damn good from anywhere on the main floor. Concertgoers are free to get as close to the front as they want or hang back for some breathing room at their leisure. Of course, the vertically challenged may have a hard time seeing anything from the rear... but really, what can be done about that (cyborg implants, perhaps)? There are no seats here, either, which is actually a plus: more people can fit on the floor and there are fewer injuries at the feistier rock shows. The separate bar area allows for all-ages admission in the main space, which I think is great. You shouldn't have to be 21 years or older to enjoy a rock concert. Yeah, the sound and the view of the stage aren't very good from inside the bar area-- but its adequate if you're just waiting for the main event and besides, you don't HAVE to remain in the bar if you're over 21. How many overpriced drinks do you really want to wait in line for anyway? I know, I know... too damn many. Sigh. As for the staff, I've never had a problem here. I think the trick is A) Don't try to bring shit in through the front door: ID, cash, cell phone, car keys and the like are fine... anything else should probably be left in your vehicle. B) Don't be a jerk. I'm sure these guys deal with drunken assholes every night and of course it doesn't take much to set them off. Don't give them any reason to, and try to ignore it and move on if you feel you've been slighted by them in some way. You'll have a much better time that way. read more

You are not Hell Angels at the Woodstock... Showbox Sodo Staff, are you all deaf? Not that there's anything wrong with it, but really...Are you? You don't hear the phone... I called all day to confirm that the internationally renowned band Ladytron would show up last, but no one answered. I relied on your ads and emails and assumed Ladytron would take the stage last. I showed up late and me and my three friends I dragged to the concert missed Ladytron at a Ladytron concert! You can't read lips either? At 11 PM we approached to the door. I tried to ask you where the"will call" is; you kept yelling at me,"ID ID ID ID ID ID ID ID ID!" At this point I wasn't trying to get in; I am just standing there... simply trying to ask you a question. I don't look like a punk or a drunk. There's nothing that would suggest that I need to be yelled at. The more I kept trying to talk, you kept yelling at me. In the end a friend had to scream at you "WILL CALL!" then you showed us where it is... Listen to me instead of yanking my bag please. So finally I got our tickets. We're about to enter. The security guard at the door reached out from behind and reminded me that he needs to check my bag. Ah, OK sure... I understand that you have to check my bag, and I am sorry I forgot to leave my water bottle behind. But please stop pulling my bag off of my neck; stop taking things out and putting them outside on the sidewalk. I am trying to tell you not to worry, my car is right there, I will drop my bag in my car so we both can relax. But no you kept yanking my bag until my friend yelled at you what I was trying to tell you. Couldn't you just listen to me? WHAT? WHAT? WHAT? And we're inside. I am showing my ID to the security guard waiting by the 21 + sign. He holds his flash light, looks at my ID, looks at my face. Looks at my ID, looks at my face... He keeps doing it. 5 times...7 times...And people are waiting behind me. I finally say, "Come on, I don't look that different from my picture." And the security guard starts yelling at me. "WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!?" I can feel his breath on my face, and then I ask, ; "Why are you yelling at me?" But he keeps yelling "WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!?" a couple more times. Then says "It's loud in here, I yelled because I didn't hear what you said." Well sir, you yelled at least ten times and didn't listen to me, how could you hear what I have to say? What is the point of this yelling? What is the point of this rudeness? You are not Hell Angels at the Woodstock... You are a bunch of bullies who forgot that you need to make the place enjoyable for your customers. read more

We came here to see Marilyn Manson. Which was an absolutely amazing show. I think it would've been even better if the stage was bigger and he had more room to move around. The butcher babies that opened for him were ok. I've never seen performers pose every 3 minutes while singing/screaming. I didn't quite care for this venue. The bar area was on the left side of the stage and while watching the show my neck was hurting and was beyond irritated with the pushy patrons. The line was too long to try to get food or a drink. If I wasn't so tired from a long day of work I would've beat the drunk red headed whore who was holding on to my husband's arm and body the whole night. But I didn't want to get kicked out before the show was over. I hate obnoxious drunks and was annoyed by the fight that broke out behind us and had some asshole stomp on my leg and interrupted the show for a few minutes. But it was amusing to see the two chicks punching and yanking each others hair on the ground and the one girl kicking the other in the face. Just another typical night in Seattle... read more

Showbox SoDo - Marilyn Manson 2.12.12 - Music Venues Near Me - Seattle, Washington

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Seattle has a lot of great venues to see live music, from the divey to the upscale. And I've been to a fair amount of them too, being addicted to live music as I am. That said, I wish I loved you, Showbox Sodo but I don't. I've tried too. I've had a long-standing affair with the Market location but you come up short. The space is large and cavernous. It's nothing special and depending on the band's sound mix, it can be an awful place to listen to live music. Their staff here can be surly at times. I'm not a rowdy patron but I've been on the receiving end of some rude treatment. At a show we attended, one of the bouncers grabbed my boyfriend by the back of his collar to get his attention as we were walking by. Unprovoked behaviour like that is simply unconscionable. Parking can be a nightmare here especially if there's a game at Safeco or Quest. Arrive early or be prepared to do some walking. The bathrooms were clean though and the drinks stiff. Skip the food unless you are very hungry because it's just standard bar food with nothing that stands out. My final verdict on this venue is go ONLY if you are obsessed with the band. Otherwise skip it. read more

I have been to Showbox SODO three times. Every time was pleasant except when I went for a concert. An absolutely atrocious live music venue. I have gone to many a concert in my time which in turn has helped my ears build up a resistance to loud pulsating noise. During the Santogold concert, with the pitch turned up as high as possible causing me to feel as if needles were being inserted in my eardrums, I had to get a pair of earplugs for the first time in my concert experience. Going to a concert there again will never happen. My first experience at Showbox SODO was for a charity auction. We were situated in the bar area which is actually a great location for a small event. It is long and wide enough for about, I'd say, 50-75 people to mingle around comfortably. The staff was approachable and the bartender even created two signature drinks just for the night. A few days ago my friend and I were going to a Mariner's game and had time to kill and decided we need food and beer to help with that. We get to Pyramid which was a huge mistake. It was filled to the brim with other baseball goers. No where to sit and I'm sure a long wait for any recognition from the servers. We had to get out of there and while standing out front in the pouring rain I remembered when I worked in SODO and seeing ads for the Showbox SODO promoting buffets and drinks before Seahawks games. Maybe they'd be doing that for Mariner's games? I had my friend look up the number and I called. Yes, the bar is open. Let's head over there! We head into the Showbox and need to take out our IDs for the door man. We walk up the few steps and are in the bar. There are ten other people there. Thank you, Jebus. We cozy up to the bar and are greeted by the bartender. We get our drinks and I ask for a menu. Minutes later they arrive. The menu is by no means extensive. Your choices are a few appetizers, sandwiches or burgers, and pizza. I wasn't expecting a wide variety of choices here. I decided to go with the pesto pizza and my friend ordered a sandwich. Our food came relatively quickly. My pizza wasn't bad and my friend didn't mind her sandwhich. One must know this isn't the place to come for gourmet dishes. This is the place to come drink and get a little food in your belly before the real drinking begins at the game. Showbox SODO is excellent for pre-game libations and get togethers in the bar, which is why I'm giving it three stars, but don't ever come here for a concert unless you want your ears violated. read more

I hope to update my review one day but for my first show at the showbox sodo it was a disappointing one. We came to see Coheed and Cambria and i ordered ada advance tix way ahead of time because i am physically disabled. When they showed us to the ada section it was disheartening to say the least. It is the worst view (if one can even consider it a view) i have ever seen at a venue. There is a giant load bearing beam in front of the whole section making it so no one in the section can see whether you are sitting, standing, flying, etc. To top it off there are bar tables all along the banister in front of the ada section with as clear of view of the stage as one could hope/ask for. What do you have to do for these perfect seats, you ask? Just show up and sit down, no need to meet any qualifications. If i knew these existed before i came i would have showed up extra early for one of these tables. On top of that top. There was a reserved section of tables for what was dinner tix for an additional charge. I didnt want these cause we were to eat before and didn't feel like spending the extra $ but once we saw how bad the view was we went over to the staff of that section and asked if any tables were left for purchase. That is how bad the seating is. We were willing to pay an extra $50 just so we could actually see the stage and enjoy the show. When you run a venue toy are responsible for making sure all views are just that... views. Of course some views are worse than others but the point is you can still see the stage in some respect, not a big load beating beam. Thanks showbox sodo. read more

This is by far the worst venue for music I have been to in my life. The acoustics and sound quality is OK if you can get front center, but good luck with that. Be prepared to stand on flat concrete, with no refreshments, air or space for 5 hours to see or hear the band you paid to see from the front. Your other option is to sit in the bar where you cannot see and the sound quality is horrible. The sound quality is atrocious anywhere from the sides or more than halfway back from the stage. After reading the other reviews, we got there two hours early to get a shot at a good place to stand (for 5 hours while waiting through two no-name bands for the headliner). I didn't make it and others around me were dropping form heat and stress. Evidently, ShowBox SoDo has never heard of the concept of ventilation. The "staff" is rude (except one bartender who I tipped nicely). I will not be wasting my time and money there again. I went to see and hear a great band. All I saw was peoples heads and their phones as they held them up to try to at least get video. All I heard was noise. Everywhere you turn in ShowBox Sodo, you see the results of owners who care only about how many people they can cram into the place. There is absolutely no consideration or effort of any kind to provide any level of comfort or even basic human needs. read more

"At first when I see you cry, it makes me smile... at worst I feel bad for awhile, but then I just smile..." Instead of Lily Allen, pretend you're listening to Alvin and the Chipmunks recording of the song, "Smile." That's what the SODO audio equipment made Natalie Portman's Shaved Head and Lily Allen sound like when I went to see them last week. They have so much going for them too -- they have polite security and plentiful street parking. But the audio sucks so much here it's unforgivable. I really want to like them, except I can't. And that makes me want to cry. read more