The Rave/Eagles Club

This was my first time here on 12.10.15 to see Weezer. I had a great experience, but I could see how navigating the venue would be hard for those with physical limitations.
The concert I saw was on the 4^th floor, which meant 4 flights of stairs. This didn’t bother me, but it was a pain at the end of the night getting out of there. One exit, 4 flights of stairs and thousands of people.
As previous reviews have stated; you will go broke buying beverages here. $ 8 for a beer. $ 5 for a cup of water. Not a bottle, a Solo cup. This was ridiculous. At the end of the night security started passing out free water bottles, so that was a positive.
$ 25 to park in the venue’s lot. We parked about 4 blocks away on the street and walked. The Rave is located in a semi-​sketchy area, so if you’re parking and walking don’t leave any valuables out in plain sight in your vehicle.
I would come back here again. Being from NW Chicago the drive was just over an hour.

First the good: Skinny Puppy had good show and despite the poor sound, I had a good time.
The buzz kill: I asked the bartender for a glass of water and she told me the cost was $ 5.00. I only had 3 in my wallet and I’m feeling irate and I told her, «I have to drive myself and my friend home and I’m thirsty.» This made me freaky mad. I buy my tickets, I pay the fees, I’m doing the right thing and driving sober and this place makes it all but impossible to get a square deal.
I’ll go back but this place has a really jacked-​up idea of responsible service.

Hard place to rate. It’s like taxes: it’s a necessity. I hate it, because the drinks are so overpriced it’s bordering on rape, or molestation, or something really bad, so fuck that! Three out of four stages have bad or dicey (at best) sound. The best sound is in the bar, ya know, where yer friend’s band plays at 5:30… And the bouncers are dicks, so it’s pretty cut and dry: I have to go there, because everyone keeps playing there. If at all possible, I’d love to go anywhere else. In fact, I have to go there Monday. Rats!

Horrible experience. The bourgeois have chairs roped off in the balcony, but remain empty through the entire show. $ 5 for water. Acoustics are so poor, you can only hear the audience singing.

The main problem I had was that it was simply the worst sound mix I’ve heard. Truthfully, I don’t know to blame it on Danzig’s sound crew or if it was house sound running the show, but you couldn’t hear the singer at all and there were mixing issues all night long. Poor experience.

Worst venue in Milwaukee. Location is unsafe and not downtown or anywhere near anything for public entertainment. Prices are outrageous. 9 dollar beers with minimal selection. Not to mention security is stricter than air port security and their service is unfathomably terrible. I avoid attending this venue at all costs. I’ve been to the rave at least ten times and this has been my experience every time

We came here the other night to see a concert. The only really good thing about this place is the people that work here. They were very friendly and helpful. I also like that it was a smaller venue (at least the room we were in) so we were able to get up close and personal with the band.
However, there are so many things wrong with this place. We took a cab instead of driving, so I can’t speak to the parking situation. Everything is cash only — no credit. They have an ATM but there is a nice $ 4 fee. I don’t know what they have against tap water and fruit for drinks… but they don’t have any. Only bottled water is sold (and it gets HOT in there… so that’s dumb). I can’t get a vodka soda with lemon… because they don’t have lemon. Dumb. Drinks are expensive, but we were expecting that.
Then the bathrooms — what person creates STEPS going up to the toilet?! Weird. And it was so dark in there you could barely see.
It was cheap compared to Chicago prices, but I’m sure there are better venues in the area.

I would not come back anytime soon… basically it’s more money if you plan on drinking there than it is for the music itself. They do not sell beer on tap, so you can only buy a bottle that the bartender pours for you in a plastic cup — $ 8. Then, if you want a simple cup of water (in a plastic cup) that will cost you $ 6. Ridiculous.

Wish I could leave less than one star! This place blows! I’ve been to dozens of concerts at both The Rave & Eagles Ball Room. The acoustics suck, drinks are outrageously priced & the place is filthy. Last Thursday’s Dinosaur Junior & Primus concert have compelled me to write this review.
Upon entry we were groped thoroughly by security, just short of a rubber glove inspection! Hands in places they shouldn’t be. They need to invest in metal detectors if this level of screening is necessary. TSA’s secondary screening doesn’t give you this extensive of a rub down.
Don’t bother with the VIP tickets they mean NOTHING… it just allows you to go up on the balcony & be further from the performance which makes no sense. Pay over $ 100 for VIP tickets, you would expect that we would be able to sit anywhere, correct? Nope! The section of the balcony that directly overlooks the center stage is blocked off, and we had to sit near the right of the stage, despite showing security proof of our VIP tickets.
I see much better customer service from our venues. The drinks are more reasonably priced and they care more about us attendees. Rave /​Eagle’s is more concerned about making $ 5 off of tap WATER.
Love the historic nature of the building and all of the quirky architectural details. Too bad it’s becoming so dilapidated.

One of the worst venues I’ve been to for a show. I came here last weekend to see Rise Against and Killswitch Engage. Normally, I would have seen them when they were in Chicago, but my Wisconsin friend wanted to go, and this date worked better for her, so I figured, eh, why not. I like Milwaukee and we can spend the day there beforehand.
We walked to the venue, so I can’t comment on the parking situation. Not the best neighborhood, though, for walking. We got there, got patted down, tickets scanned, and then were given a small piece of paper stating «No moshing.» Yeah good luck with that.
The «ballroom» is very big and open, with a few balconies on the perimeter. Plenty of room for sweaty, smelly people to stand. The sound is atrocious. Truly. I’ve seen Rise Against about five times at various venues and they put on a great show. I couldn’t tell what freaking song they were playing until about halfway through because the sound sucked. I felt like I had to concentrate and listen really hard to discern what it was, and then I could rock out, but by that time it was just about over. Even when they were talking I couldn’t hear anything. The only cool thing is that I was incredibly close to them. But that’s it.
It was so hot in there, so I bought a water, given to me in a cup, for $ 5. Cash. I guess they don’t really care too much if you pass out from the heat. If I can help it, I’m never coming here for a show again. Months before the show, The Rave sent me four free tickets to see The Offspring. I thought that was suspicious, since that would have been an awesome show to go to for free if I wasn’t busy. And on the way out of the show, they were handing out free tickets to see Social Distortion. Well, now I know why the tickets were free: they must have a really hard time getting anyone to come, even if people really like the band.

So they finally fixed the flaking plaster and updated the women’s bathrooms so you didn’t feel like you were trapped in a third world country… points for the Rave. There are a couple of concert spaces in the building but most likely you will be in the Eagles Ballroom.
The drink prices will make you want to join AA because a small beer will make you take out a home mortgage. The pricing almost encourages you to try to sneak in booze like you are in high school. It was odd because security patted me down like a felon but NEVER checked my huge purse. I could have hid a liter in there but I wouldn’t count on it because typically they check all bags.
The acoustics really depend on the band and their sound technician. I have seen shows where the sound was awesome like Kraftwerk and others where it was spotty. The Rave does get some good shows so you sometimes don’t have another choice. Also, the VIP area is a joke… don’t pay the extra money because it isn’t worth it. Another tip is to watch for free tickets but understand that «free» can mean a drink minimum which may end up more expensive than purchasing tickets.

My husband and I saw Ministry at The Rave on Saturday. We had never been there before and were expecting the show to be in the larger Eagles Ballroom, so we were (pleasantly) shocked to discover the show would be in the tiny The Rave. We arrived with no expectations other than to enjoy Ministry/​Uncle Al, and that is exactly what we did.
The sound could have been better. There was something off about it but I am hard of hearing and couldn’t pinpoint what. We saw Ministry at the House of Blues in Chicago on ⁵⁄₈ and my husband agreed that the sound there was much better.
I had one major pet peeve. We arrived early to get a spot up close, at the rail. This was easy to do and we stood here for a half hour before the opening band started to save our place. But once the opening band started, this wasted chick with short pink/​purple hair wandered out in front of us and hung out in the gap between the railing and stage, dancing drunkenly and making goo-​goo eyes at the musicians (who either completely ignored her or shot her ‘WTF’ looks) and randomly asking «who farted» because the place smelled like popcorn.
My husband said she was wearing a photographer’s pass but we didn’t see her take a single photo (unless you count a couple selfies with the band in the background). As a photographer that has an idea of what goes into concert photography, I know that generally photographers cannot stay for longer than the first 3 songs unless they are official band or venue photographers. The Rave’s security staff did NOTHING to get her the hell out of there – if anything they just made small talk with her like it was no big deal.
She didn’t leave until Uncle Al’s own crew made the security staff kick her out so he could personally thank his fans during the encore. And even then, the staff was all apologetic towards her when they made her leave.
We will come back but we better not see that shit again.

The only downside to this place is the price of a drink. Went to see the Replacements and the band hung out at the little bar behind the hotel across the street where I stayed. Nice people here. The bars near the venue are the right place to drink. The show was in the hall on the second floor, and I believe it is largest stage in the building. It reminds me of the Great American Music Hall in SF, but ten times and big with the same deco interior and feel, including the balcony.

I hate that I have to give this place even 1 star.
We drove up from Chicago for Sam Hunt’s concert and have VIP tickets. First of all, VIP tickets here mean NOTHING… it just means you can go up to the balcony and be FURTHER from the performance which makes no sense.
If you want bottled water, it’s 5 bucks and they pour it into a cup. Yep.
What REALLY SUCKS HERE? The sound system is TERRIBLE. Unless you knew the words to the songs the acts were singing (thankfully I did, but all of my group did not), there was no way you could understand the singers as the sound was muddled and just terrible. You could not hear the announcements either.
Will not go back.
It’s also not a clean place.

After loving them for more than a decade, I finally saw Taking Back Sunday at The Rave last night! We had tickets for the VIP/​Balcony area and a perfect view of the band and the floor. It was fun to have a birds-​eye view of the moshing and crowd surfing.
Staff is friendly and helpful.
Drinks are expensive — I got a whiskey ginger and my husband got a beer for $ 8 each.
It’s not a clean or upscale place, but that’s not what I want in a concert venue, anyway.
Would and will return.

I may be a little biased since this was previously my hometown venue, but after going to many venues around the country I can say the Rave is a just dandy place. I’ve seen a show in every room of this building and they all have their pros and cons, so starting with the bottom up…
The basement: Literally, it’s a basement. You go downstairs and it’s a small venue. Some pipe obstruct certain views but overall this is my favorite room in The Rave. The merch is easy to get to as is the exit. Basically, it’s exactly what a venue should be.
The Rave: This is the next step up from the basement both in terms of levels and capacity. I think most rock/​indie bands, unless they are mainstream, end up playing this room. There’s a balcony which is nice, and a small barricade. Much like the basement, I think this is a great room in terms of size and ability to see the stage.
The Rave bar: Really small bands play this room, which is just a rinky dink stage on the way to being let into the Rave. It’s fine for what it is.
The Eagles Ballroom: The Ballroom is the mecca of Milwaukee venues and I guess you know you’ve made it when you started in the basement and now play in the ballroom. A lot of big tours end up being in the ballroom, and mainstays like Fall Out Boy are always there without fail. The fact that there’s a balcony is nice, but ballroom shows kind of blow just because they’re way too crowded. I do have a preference for small venues, but the floor here is so vast with zero organization that it’s difficult to get around. A rail and elevated level (beyond the small elevated portion in the back) might be nice here, but hey, I’m not an architect.
General experience: I’ve never had a sound problem in any of the rooms and the staff here is actually quite nice. Leave it to the Midwestern hospitality, although I’ve heard of a few instances of guards being dickbags (let’s be real, though, they’re usually provoked). The location leaves something to be desired but it’s not a place I’ve ever felt unsafe. Street parking for free is an awesome bonus, but there’s paid lots too if you get there late and can’t find anything. My favorite bonus, however, is the line often being let inside shortly before doors when it’s cold out. Turner Hall does that as well sometimes, and it’s nice to know there are venues willing to keep fingers and toes warm for the die-​hards. Overall, the Rave is a great place. Anyone who has problems with it probably hasn’t been to many venues outside Milwaukee.

Man, this is a tough one to sort out… I can’t even begin to count the number of shows I’ve seen here over the years — going all the way back to 1994-​ish… Megadeth, Marilyn Manson, Staind, Kid Rock, Korn, Static X, Disturbed, Coldplay, Slayer, Lamb of God… the list goes on. Suffice it to say, I’ve seen more than my fair share of good shows here.
+ If you get there an hour-​or-​so early, you can usually find free street parking
— «Official» parking lot charges $ 20 per car? Really?
+ Easy entry; security personnel are quick, friendly, and efficient
— Don’t force me to walk through the other bars before I can get to my seat/​main floor
+ Love the historic nature of the building and all of the quirky architectural details
+ Main floor of the ballroom is fantastic; can usually find a good vantage point
— Balcony is over-​rated… the sound is poor, the seats are pricey, and if you plan to stand upstairs, don’t, unless you’re 6’8″ or taller (I’m 6’4″ and if someone is standing in front of me on the balcony, I struggle to see clearly)
— Hate the general layout; bathrooms are difficult to get to and generally small
— ATMs are located in one spot (on the floor below the Eagles Ballroom)
— Speaking of ATMs… $ 4 service fee? Wow. They should include a mask and a handgun — talk about robbery
+ Sound is generally decent, especially for the main act
+ Lights and effects are super exaggerated because of the small space
So, all-​in-​all, not so bad, until… These are two major dings, IMHO:
— Drink prices. $ 9 for a bottle of beer, poured into a plastic cup? Are you kidding me? $ 9? I know this is a concert venue and all, but come on. And, to add insult to injury, it’s cash only? And the only ATMs are on the floor below the ballroom? Really? If they were $ 6, I’d buy two. But at $ 9, I’ll buy exactly zero. I just can’t justify it, no matter what.
And the biggest negative?
— The attendees. I’ve never been around more obnoxious meatheads in my entire life, especially at the last show I saw, Chevelle. Chevelle doesn’t typically attract your typical «mosh pit» or «d-​bag» type of crowd. But at this most recent show, I encountered so many obnoxious, oblivious, over-​served, smarmy people, I almost left early.
I saw two middle-​aged men, one in his muscle-​shirt, with buzzed hair, and a spiked necklace; the other in a members only jacket and sporting the creepiest porn mustache this side of Ron Jeremy, try to roofie two young (under 18) year-​old girls. They offered to buy them drinks, and when they did, I clearly saw them slip something into the drinks. The girls wisely refused. These two monsters then proceeded to oggle and bump into them, while copping a feel or two along the way. The girls left the area, and the guys followed them, only to return to my area and try to seek out new prey. I walked over and told security, but they did nothing.
I also had more wanna-​be thug-​types push into me, blow e-​smoke, try to fist-​bump me, and what not, then I ever have at a show, including Slayer, Pantera, and Band Camp shows. I also observed two separate couples all but have intercourse near me (neither couple was worth watching). Ugh.
What is it with Milwaukee concert attendees? If these knuckle-​dragging mouth breathers can’t behave, can we at least sterilize them?
But seriously, those first two dudes were serious predators that need to be stopped.
I love the Rave/​Eagles Ballroom, but yikes. It’s sort of scary, even at tame shows.

I loved the space of this venue and seeing GrizMatik on Halloween… But the security and the attitude of the venue entirely ruined my experience.
#1 they separated boys from girls to intensely search our body, then after my friend and I got through the guy’s line, we were trying to wait for our dates and security would not let us stand around, they physically pushed us away from the waiting area up into the crowd. We lost them for 30 minutes.
#2 they charged people $ 5 for a single plastic cup of water. They didn’t sell us their water bottles because they thought people would cause problems with them. Some people were so thirsty that they were attempting to fill things from the bathroom sink; the security cards took the cups from them. They were not letting people drink water.
This venue made me feel like a mistreated cow in a slaughter farm. I was herded around and wasn’t able to keep myself hydrated. Its unfortunate that a space so beautiful could be soiled by terrible management and customer service. I understand that venues need to be strict on certain things to keep people safe, but this venues practices are Unsafe.

When I was in high school, I treasured the trips I was able to make from my hometown of Green Bay to The Rave in order to see my favorite pop punk bands that would never get booked any further north. I swore by this place as some sort of punk mecca in the state, followed them on Twitter, was on their email list, etc. And I am now much wiser than I was when I was 16.
The worst thing about this place is the sound, which is [not at all] funny because its a concert venue. I’ve had the worst luck in the ballroom. The acoustics are terrible and I can never hear anything with any sort of definitive crispness. In the rave part, its smaller so the sound doesn’t have as much space to echo around in, but the sound guys are not cutting it. I was there last night and even the bands knew that the sound check they were given was very inadequate. This is fine at dive bars – as a musician, I have played many venues with poor sound. However, I am not in a nationally touring band. The cool thing about messing up a sound check is you can fix it during the performance! I don’t think anyone employed here knows that. Vocal balance is always off. Additionally, one of the sound guys left the loop on for a vocal track for a punk band last night. Be attentive and do your job.
My second complaint is that you have to pay $ 4 for a cup of water. This has been a pretty consistent thing throughout my years of attending events here and it is bogus. You can charge for water bottles, and if you really want, I guess you can charge a couple bucks for a cup of water, but I have seen people (myself included) go to the bar on the verge of dehydration requiring medical attention, and they won’t help you out unless you can pay them.
Neutral points: Don’t pay to park, just drive around and find street parking. If you’re in the city, take the bus. The neighborhood isn’t scary. I’ve never felt in danger.
Alcohol is regular venue-​prices. Pregame or don’t drink.
The last few times I’ve been here, the bathrooms haven’t been disgusting, just inadequate.
Positive things about this venue: on the 30 bus route, which is convenient for me and can get you pretty much anywhere/​to a transfer stop to get you anywhere.
Near a Taco Bell and McDonalds if that’s your thing.
They’ve been doing a lot of BOGO deals recently.
I think my teenage self found some sort of solace in being around a bunch of other teenagers who liked the same music and didn’t really care about anything else. I avoid this venue at all costs now.
*******pop punk/​rock bands that usually book here should book at Turner Hall if that’s not too small! I am in no way affiliated with them, but its my favorite venue in Milwaukee.

Where do I start? Even before I arrived I hated it — I called in to ask a question about a specific thing to bring in (by the way, the amount of things you can bring in here is very limited. They don’t allow outside food and beverages) and the employee who answered the phone retorted out replies and was extremely rude. When my friends and I arrived at the Afrojack & Dillon Francis concert, I disliked the venue the minute we walked in — you are separated into 8 lines where boys and girls are in different lines and the security check your bags, wallets, purses, etc. then proceed to pat you down from shoulder to toe. There are multiple employees throughout the building «guiding» you to where you need to go, and sadly a lot of them are quite disrespectful.
Moving on to the restrooms… In the women’s restroom on the bottom floor, there are two stalls with no lights illuminating the inside. Now, I don’t know about you, but I enjoy knowing where the toilet paper and the flush handle are inside the stall! The women’s restroom right next to the bar on the second floor has an attaching «comfort room» equipped with chairs and tables. The actual restroom has 5 stalls, and once again with no lights inside the stalls (the actual light source is from the bulbs above the mirrors).
Another downside is the balcony seating arrangement. Paying over $ 100 for VIP tickets, you would expect that we would be able to sit anywhere, correct? Nope. The section on the balcony that directly overlooks the center stage is blocked off, and we had to sit near the right of the stage, despite showing security proof of our VIP tickets.
The sound system is the epitome of the word «loud». During the opening act, I proceeded to plug my ears with my handy dandy earplugs. Unfortunately, they barely blocked out the sound. I could hear everything with clarity, but I couldn’t understand a word the lead singer was saying because of the sound system.
My friends and I decided to go down to the floor section shortly after Afrojack started his set, and we were greeted with drunk people falling on us, a floor doused in beer as well as littered with beer cups, men spilling alcohol on our heads and older teenagers openly smoking weed. I guess it’s just the people, not the venue.
All of the jumping around makes one thirsty, so I went to the «bar» section to get a bottle of water. What I paid $ 4 for was actually not a bottle of water, but a plastic cup filled with half a bottle of water. I can buy 4 water bottles with what I paid for half of one at this place.
I’ll add that the fact that most of my favorite bands are going to be playing here in the near future makes me want to rip my hair out.
The only good things about the night were the music, the light show and the bass. Props to Afrojack for making the night just a bit more bearable.