By Cory Kibler According to Jeremy Buckley, former Box Awesome employee and current Bourbon Theatre employee, Box Awesome’s last show was a stunning success.
“$1,200 [was] donated at the door, all paid out to bands. 689 people came through the doors. The old record was 340.”
I almost didn’t go. It was a Tuesday night and I was tired, having played a show myself the night before. But when I cruised up on my bicycle to the building at 815 “O” Street, I was glad I decided to get out of the house.
I almost didn’t go. It was a Tuesday night and I was tired, having played a show myself the night before. But when I cruised up on my bicycle to the building at 815 “O” Street, I was glad I decided to get out of the house.
Instantly, I saw many faces I recognized. I ran into countless friends, as well as others who I’d seen in the past at the Box and other venues. From the time I got there until the place closed at 1 a.m., there was a constant line of people waiting to get in. At any given point during the night, there seemed to be a hundred people (if not more) outside, talking, smoking, and commiserating. And this number paled in comparison to the immense party happening within.
The show-goers must have been feeling philanthropic. The show was free and there was no specific suggested donation price, yet, they still pulled in $1,200 at the door. I threw in five dollars, figuring a lot of other folks who showed up were college kids who wouldn’t be able to donate. Apparently, I was sorely mistaken.
The vibe was admittedly bittersweet. It felt like I was at a wake of sorts--each of the attendees had a different personal history with the recently (or nearly) deceased. Some of us had played its stage; others of us were there two or three times a week supporting local music. Some of us had shown art there; others of us were only casual acquaintances. Throughout the night, I heard and overheard people expressing the same sentiment: now that Box Awesome is closed, a hole will be left in the heart of Lincoln’s music scene.
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the show was the sheer variety of the concert-goers. It was extremely interesting to see how the various sub-scenes overlapped and blended with one another. It might have had something to do with the wildly non-homogeneous line-up of Triggertown (folk), Plack Blague (one-man weirdo sampler beats), and Somasphere (rock/dance hybrid electronica).
Either way, hessians, hip-hoppers, indie-kids, hippies, and folksters alike banded together for Box Awesome’s send-off, and in doing so, they formed a big, strange, loving circle of support around the Box and the people behind it. Was it sad? Certainly. Was it a big crazy, loud, fun, buzzing, smoky rock and roll party? Absolutely. Could the Box have asked for a fonder “farewell”? I think not.
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