Britt Witt on September 14th, 2021

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The venerable Silverlake Lounge has rebounded from the pandemic with a modest makeover, new owners and a fresh attitude that acknowledges the room’s history.

Branding itself as “your local neighborhood watering hole, historic music venue, comedy club … and drag,” the Lounge seems poised to regain its footing as a small player in L.A.’s independent music scene under new owners Steven Acosta and Zack Negin.

In the Aughts, the venue served as artists’ steppingstone to larger rooms such as Spaceland/The Satellite and the Echo. Metric, Rilo Kiley, Elliott Smith, Silversun Pickups, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Devendra Banhart and the Bird and the Bee played there. Local Natives did their first residency at 2906 Sunset Blvd. Under the auspices of Scott Sterling’s booking agency the Fold in those days, it was home to Tame Impala’s first two North American shows. Vampire Weekend, Cold War Kids, HEALTH, Trail of Dead, Grouplove, Lord Huron, Kristin Hersh, Patrick Park are among the alumni, along with great L.A. bands of that era, such as Earlimart, Foreign Born, the 88, Great Northern, the Warlocks, Gliss and Giant Drag, to name but a few. Nathaniel Rateliff once played to 40 people there. One night, Imagine Dragons were the 9 o’clock band.

As a music hub, the room had lost its luster in recent years with the proliferation of venues in nearby L.A. neighborhoods and less consistent bookings. Now, with the Satellite shuttered for good, the Bootleg Theater morphing into the new multidisciplinary space 2220 Arts + Archives and the Hi Hat being reborn as the Goldfish with less emphasis on live music, the herd has been thinned a bit.

After six years of trying to pry the room from its previous owner, Acosta and Negin took the reins in February 2020. But only three days after they quickly spruced up the room, COVID-19 shut down venues.

Despite receiving no government assistance, the new owners were not deterred. “We wanted to take the rich history and bring that to the forefront, to also take this space which is underutilized by the community and open up to be more inclusive,” Acosta says of the Lounge, which dates to 1975. “We want to cultivate an environment that feels safe and warm and create a hospitality program that reflects our vision.”

Their heart is in restoring the Lounge to being a mixed-programming space that also honors the gay cabaret it was famous for in the 1990s, the secret bar rancheros came to cross-dress, the safe space rife with flair and queer glamour that photographers like the esteemed Reynaldo Rivera (whose work is currently on display at the Huntington and Hammer Museum) documented when Silver Lake and Echo Park were predominantly Latin neighborhoods.

The 160-capacity room is already garnering support from local peers, promoters and musicians — including L.A.-based singer-songwriter LP, who stopped by to see Joshua and the Holy Rollers in early August and openly praised the space. “To have that support feels really good … [the Silverlake Lounge] is too valuable of a space to let it go anywhere,” Acosta says.

Talent buyer India Coombs, a musician whose name you might recognize from her project All Things Blue, met Acosta through a mutual friend and they instantly connected. “Steven is the best person, easy to communicate with, transparent,” she says. “The residencies are what I’m most excited about, they’re booked up through March. Cool bands, different crowds, nice to have something [free] on a Wednesday night. We also have karaoke on Monday nights.

“Seeing the community, seeing [August resident and singer-songwriter] Jake Tittle on stage having a really good time is so cool. It was the first time I’ve seen a crowd like that in here. Everybody has been saying the vibe is so nice here. I think that has to do with the bar staff being so cool and so supportive. I feel extremely lucky, very right-place-right-time scenario.”

A quick glance at the calendar reveals an upcoming lineup that includes current Wednesday residents Jagged Baptist Club, STEEN, Reckling, the Gloomies, Daphne Gale and the Shaking Hands, among others. Comedy, improv and karaoke are also in the mix.

Appearance-wise, the Lounge now has a back patio featuring a new mural by Ella Rose Avery. The interior is lit by neon lights you may not have noticed under all the dust, and the walls host a special collection by local artist Tina Chavez (with proceeds directly back to the Silverlake Lounge). There is also eight feet of new space between the still-small stage and the bar, thanks to the owners having trimmed back the bar to allow more room for fans in the front.

Editor’s note: Besides her work as a writer and contributor to Buzz Bands LA and as an event producer, Britt Witt manages the band Jagged Baptist Club.