The Masonic

I was just at the Masonic for the RedBull Flying Bach and was super excited to see the show as I purchased tickets to celebrate a birthday. I bought tickets for premium seating versus going with groupon or cheaper seats. Should have stuck to cheaper tickets! I paid extra per ticket and ended up not being able to see half the show! The stage was elevated and we were seated to the right in row 6 and could not see any of the floor work and only able to see the dancers from the knees up unless they were right at the corner of the stage. I am so disappointed that this was our view from tickets that I paid extra for!
Besides seat arrangement, the show (from what I could see) was awesome!

As a San Francisco venue, I’d say this place is so-​so. Fast but tedious security with a three step process: body pat, bag check, and metal detector swipe. Then someone scans your ticket. Swift but… disorienting. The space is large, with clean bathrooms, and food on two levels. The acoustics during the actual performance were okay, maybe it was the audio engineer for this particular concert but I didn’t feel the sound was well balanced, not at all what I expected of such an expansive concert hall. Despite the friendliness of some staff members, the entire experience felt impersonal and someone pretentious. I’d much rather go to the Fillmore, Regency Ballroom, Great American Music Hall, or Bill Graham for a more enriched setting.

This is my second time coming to the Masonic, so I felt the need for a review. I enjoy this venue even though I loathe the drive up the hill to get to it. Call me crazy, but when feel that slip in your brakes or spin in your tires, don’t tell me you won’t panic a little.
Anyhow…I bought tickets to see the X– Ambassadors… with opening acts Savoir Adore and Seinaboo Sey. Crowd pleasers for sure… good thing cause the headliners bus broke down and we had to iwait an hour and a half for X-​Ambassadors to settle in and set up shop.
In the mean time in between time, I ventured into the lobby for some libations. ended up with a whisky sour and was very impressed by the bartending skills being showcased this time around and there was some good smelling BBQ in the building. Improvements from the last time I was here to see comedian Chris D’Elia. All in all. its a good experience.

The Masonic is great SF venue that has some decent acts every now and then. I feel the place isn’t too big, but small enough to still feel like a small crowd and intimate with the performer. The only thing I would say is that the parking lot sucks. I saw about 2 – 3 cars scrape against a pillar because the spaces were too small to maneuver… given that is driver error, but then again the parking lot is narrow.
All in all, this is a good venue that I dont mind coming out to every now and then to be entertained.

I have nothing but praises for the Masonic. Last night I was a drunken turd. I was bumped into and fell onto a large young lady. She was not happy.!She hit me then went to security. She could’ve handled it better but I have no idea what state of mind she was in. The staff was gracious and helpful. Rather then approaching me like assholes they looked at me with understanding and helped me from getting into anymore trouble.
Two female staff members escorted me into the lobby made sure I was OK and let me back on tothe floor. I appreciated fact that they removed me from the situation checked my ticket and let me go. Very professional ! Iggy Pop was awesome. The sound was great!

Nice theater, first time seeing a show/​concert there. Did the floor tickets, and since we arrived early I was able to get up front. Being 5’1 this was a big plus, because I usually have the 6 foot male standing in front of me. I could see great!
But you really couldn’t leave, my husband made one exit between bands to the bathroom and had to fight his way back to our place in the front. People thought he was just pushing his way through, and I heard other people near me complain of the same problem. At other venues I’ve been to you can usually exit from the sides, but this stage is so wide theres really no way to do this. And hey I understand, people get territorial about their spots. Some drunk chick pushed her way up during the warm up band (The Suffers from Houston-​Awesome!) and was breathing her alcoholic breath all over me and yelling in my ear. Luckily I had earplugs. ha!
When you enter they do have a grand mosaic design on the Lobby, and Im sure by the look of the seats above there really isn’t a bad seat in the house. It’s a very intimate venue, that holds a good size crowd. Would I go there again? If the right band was there to temp me, though I’d have my husband park somewhere else…$ 35 to park there seems a bit steep.

The GREAT: GA, No more seats on the floor! SOUND!!! ATMOSPHERE! Top notch! The Staff AMAZING!!!
The Good: Sierra Nevada and other GOOD libation choices and lots of fast lines.
The Okay: Parking, long walks to the bathroom, hipsters
The BAD: Paying extra for the «California Room» its FAR away, stuffy, doesn’t really have a «great» view just a view. and NO food!!! They specifically advertise food and there was NONE! So unless you want NO line and a LONG walk to get there and back OR a tv to watch instead of the opener then don’t bother.

Getting there:
The venue was not as easy to get to from the freeway as I would have hoped but it was VERY easy to get out of and back on the freeway fast, which was nice. A lot of stop lights and up a lot of hills, so maybe avoid driving a manual car there (like most of SF).
Parking:
The parking was great; initially I was confused because the attendant at the front told me parking was valet only by the time I got there but no one inside was visible or around to help me. Once I got to the very last level, though, there were lots of attendants (it wasn’t valet parking, but an attendant helped me back into an awkward spot, which was nice). I’m guessing since there were only a few spots left they were about to start doing valet parking and communication just wasn’t great between attendants on different levels.
Parking was expensive ($ 35) but not too bad for concerts these days and it is really conveniently located — just go up the stairs and you’re at the front entrance to the venue!
The Venue:
I really liked the venue and it is fairly elegant looking for this type of venue and had cool ceiling fixtures. I had seats in the balcony and the seats were relatively comfortable (velvety material); however, there was not a lot of leg room. They had free ear plugs, which was nice since we forgot ours! There was staff all around to help you in case you couldn’t find something or got lost and they were all really friendly. We got bottled water for $ 4, but it looked like they confiscated people’s water bottles upon entrance so hydrate beforehand if you want to avoid the cost. The view was spectacular from the balcony and it seemed like the venue is small enough that you get a good view from any seat. I saw a lot of previous reviewers complaining about the acoustics but I thought it sounded great (I’ve never been there prior to this event so I don’t know what it was like before the remodel). It was really easy and fast to get to the parking structure from the venue. I would definitely come back to see a show at The Masonic, this is one of my new favorite venues.
This will vary depending on the event (I went to a Metric concert), but the price for 2 tickets, pre-​paid parking, and access to the California Room (see below) was $ 200.
The lighting effects were awesome and really fun to watch! The only part we didn’t like was the the intensity of strobe lights and many of the lights panning the audience because they were blinding, but this may only be an issue in the balcony.
California Room:
This is my only complaint about the venue (why I chose 4 stars instead of 5). I totally fell for the «VIP California Room with Spectacular Views of SF» bullshit. The California Room had lots of seating, free communal trail mix or chex mix (I didn’t try any), and it’s own bar (prices for drinks were the same). There is absolutely no benefit to getting access to this room, unless you want a less crowded, quieter place to avoid a line at the bar (the bar lines in the rest of venue weren’t even bad, though) and maybe to avoid a bathroom line (I didn’t use any of the other bathrooms, so I’m not sure if the rest of the bathroom are better or worse). The view was NOT spectacular and I couldn’t see anything except the houses across the street, and the street. While there may be a good view during the day, I couldn’t see anything at night and the glare from the inside lights made it so you can’t even see outside the window. DO NOT PAY EXTRA FOR ACCESS TO THIS ROOM. There’s nothing inherently bad about it, it just was severely overpriced.
Overall:
Great venue, I loved the show! The people were fantastic and parking is convenient. For a 5-​star experience, avoid paying extra for the California Room (you will only be disappointed)

Man, I really enjoyed myself at this venue for the D/​C-​3eb concert back in 150 725.
Big 3eb fan, even HUGER D/​C fan. Had VIPdicated passes for a Meet-​n-​Greet/​Photo-​op and acoustic performance check by Dashboard Confessional. Chris was so cool. Let me get the record straight, don’t ever pass up the opportunity to meet your so-​called «heroes» no matter what impression everyone tells you. He shook my hand, signed all 3 of my CD inserts I had since high school and was more than eager to take multiple photos. Very organized line leading up to his area in the hallway.
The general admission floor for the Acoustic check was pretty spacious for a pack of 30ish lucky ones. I’m pretty sure Chris heard my brother annoyingly request a «WEEEZER~» cover as the set was a lot more mellow than what was to come that night. Plenty of room to drink and dance, nice dark wood paneling to absorb Carrabba’s Tele licks on the monitors. It reverberated well to our balcony seats later though.
We were probably 3 – 4 rows up from the edge of the balcony on the right side. Great view. Concertgoers were respectable enough to stay seated throughout most of the bands’ sets until 3eb brought the house down with ‘Semi-​Charmed Life’. Then again, who wouldn’t fuckin’ stand up for that song, it totally ruled your prepubescent life around the American Pie years. Like most concerts, the air got stuffy regardless of being on the 2^nd floor and «tha dank» if you know what I mean eventually crept up on us. We could care less though, we were already high off the music, man lol.
You can prob get the rundown of the rest of the venue from reviews here: real classy lobby area with upcharged drinks, fancy carpet hallway that circles the hall and the in-​betweens leading to the stage itself.
I’ll say hands down the best concert I ever attended. Doubt it’ll be topped by whatever artist I see next here. I’m still reeling.

Came here to see the Dave Chappell show. which was a GREAT show. super funny. The venue is also nice. Every seat in the house is good. Looking forward to seeing more shows here…

Poor acoustics at balcony level even with the speakers (Dave Chappelle show), sometimes hard to hear what he was saying.
Hard-​to-​find seat numbers in the dark, even the row numbers.
Useless ushers, hardly saw anyone assisting customers to their seats.

I’ve been to a handful of venues in the Bay Area and I can’t say I’m a big fan of the Masonic. I’d rather go to a show at the Fox Theater or Bill Graham Civic Auditorium before going here again.
I went here for New Year’s Eve to see the Decemberists so thankfully I didn’t have as bad of an experience with the line as bad as the Morrissey fans had a few days earlier. It’s true that the security staff don’t allow you to line up early near the venue entrance. The line for us was further back near the street corner directly across from Grace Cathedral. The security staff person who told us to line up there told us that if there was at least 30 people in line, he would be able to move us closer to the entrance or possibly inside the lobby of the venue. That guy was nothing but a big disappointment because after we did have that many people in line, he talked to his boss on his walkie-​talkie and didn’t do anything for us. It felt like it was at least 40 degrees outside with strong winds and it would’ve been nice to have been inside earlier.
When we were finally allowed to be inside the lobby, there was no bathroom to use until the actual doors were open to get to the stage. And the bathrooms are in the basement or something because it felt like a few floors down from the stage.
It’s a big free for all to get inside once the doors are open. They set up several lines in front of the doors so if you’re with a group of friends, it would be to your best advantage to have each person in your group in a different line if you’re concerned about being as close as possible to the stage. The whole stage setup sort of reminds me of the way the Joint at the Hard Rock Las Vegas is. It’s a wide stage and there’s several tiers in the floor that a person can stand at.
Don’t ever get a ticket to the California Room or VIP or whatever if you’re the kind of person that wants to be in the front row– there’s absolutely no advantage at all or any kind of early-​entry access. It’s only good if you want some free food and a separate bar area (drinks aren’t free).

They allow you to smoke in a balcony area once you’re already in.
Wouldn’t let me piss after the show though. And I really had to piss.

I attended a concert here on Dec 29^th. The night before the concert, around 50 fans began lining up. Sounds crazy, but the concert was general admission and a relatively small venue. So, if you want to be in the front row, which myself and many others really did, it makes sense to arrive as early as possible. The venue was not having it, for no other reason than «it doesn’t look good in this neighborhood. We are surrounded by multi-​million dollar condos». Okay. Then maybe if you book a major musician to play at your venue, then be prepared for the large crowd that it may pull.
On the day of the concert the line was herded into a strange underground hallway for hours. We were not allowed food or drink inside, and had a full bag check/​body search every time we re-​entered. In a way, it made sense, to shorten security check time upon entry. Entering the venue when the doors open was when things went truly wrong. We were instructed to go up several flights of stairs and then through ‘the nearest open door’. There were 7 doors, all opening at different times. People who had queued 24 hours to be front row were held and made to put on wrist bands at the floor entry. This made no sense, as only individuals with floor/​standing tickets entered through these doors.
Staff were in general obnoxiously rude, severely lacking empathy, sense of urgency, or awareness. There seemed to be a major lack of communication, and training of the staff. Everyone seemed very confused and as if they had never had a major musician at their establishment before. The lack of professionalism was appalling.
The venue itself was dated with mediocre acoustics. $ 18 for a top shelf cocktail, which I desperately needed after the stress the venue caused myself and many people around me. The artist himself was absolutely incredible, but it was actually difficult for me to enjoy the gig because of how shaken I was by the entry process. I hope that I will never return to The Masonic.

I was fortunate enough to check out Morrissey’s second to last show of 2015 at the Masonic. I had never been to the Masonic before, so I was excited to see how it worked as a venue.
The experience started off on the wrong foot, as the Masonic’s security/​door situation was terribly unorganized. As you walk into the building, you encounter several lines of people waiting to get checked by security. This is no big deal, as it is pretty standard practice at venues this large. However, as we finally get close to the security employees (after about a 10 minute wait in line), we (and the rest of the people waiting in line) start hearing them state that girls need to be in one line and guys in another. The security team will only allow male employees to check guys and female employees to check girls. In addition to this being sexist, the fact that there was no indication about this until you’re at the front of the line meant a scrambling of people, cutting other people and making concert goers get fiesty. If they insist on this dumb security policy, they should at least have employees herding people appropriately at the back of the lines.
After the security check we proceeded up a set of stairs to the main floor of the venue. Interestingly, and inconveniently, bathrooms were not located on this level. You had to either go a level down or level up. Seemed like poor design, but not a big deal unless you’re drinking a lot while there.
We had floor tickets and proceeded into this area, with a setup that reminded me of the Warfield. There was a back area with tables/​seating and then the open floor up front. Once we got down there, the venue was a lot smaller than I expected. The balcony that wraps around the room was not several tiers. Even if you were far in the back, it seems like you’d still have a decent view.
As for the sound, it was on par with most venues of that size. Nothing lacking, but nothing particular standing out as exceptional.
The one thing that did stand out to me about the Masonic was the beautiful view of the city from the food/​drink area. Of course, you probably won’t be spending a lot of time over there but it’s definitely worth a glance on your way in or out.
Nevertheless, since you don’t usually have a lot of choice in what venue you see a musician (that is, unless you have the flexibility to check them out in other cities), the Masonic fulfills its purpose just fine. Despite the annoyance getting in, it is, as Unilocal puts it, A-​OK.

I came to the Masonic to see Chris Brown and it was my first time at the venue. I like it a lot and love how intimate the space is but it is not stuffy and things like that. They also have a bar on each floor with at least 6 bartenders so getting drinks was a breeze. We had seats in the upper lodge and I thought it would be far back but it was actually perfect. The seats were comfy and it was way better than what it looked like to be squished down on the floor. Overall, I really enjoyed this venue.

The Masonic opened on September 29, 1958. It seemed like an older venue, so I just had to look it up. Not my ideal style of concert hall but Josh Groban was performing here, so I went to see him. Great AV and acoustics. It was easy to navigate and find my seat. No major complaints about staff or cleanliness… just did not fall in love with the old look and feel of the place. Personally taking note for any future music or art events that I host in San Francisco.

One of my favorite places for live music has been destroyed by an ill-​planned and horridly-​executed remodel. Gone are the comfortable seats on the main floor, replaced by folding chairs! The floor is now flat, with no rise to improve the view of those toward the back. The imposition of two rows of bar stools and high top tables at the back of the floor ensure more drunk talking tryout the show.
The parking remains as difficult as ever, the restrooms are dark and filthy fifteen minutes before the show. No additional bar service added on the main floor.
The stage seems smaller and more distant. If I hadn’t paid $ 35 to park my car, I’d leave now without seeing Glen Hansard. Sound system appears to be unchanged. Wish they had left much more unchanged.

Heart was fantastic.
I can’t believe how good they still are – from the vocals to the guitar playing! Such talented sisters. Their harmonies were spot on too!
5 stars for Heart!
4 stars for the Masonic. I really like this venue – the balcony seats are the way to go.
Unfortunately, the acoustics need some help!!!
The acoustic guitar portions worked very well as did the vocals, but things were muddy sometimes when the rest of the band kicked in. It’s 2015! Clean up the sound!
Great concert.

I went to my first concert here last night (Ed Sheeran, Train, and Christina Perri) with Lisa T. and it was an incredible experience!
We were on floor level but managed to nab a table (just above VIP seating) so we didn’t have to stand the whole 4 hours. At the same time, we had the freedom to move and dance if our heart desired while enjoying a nice view of the performers too so it was WIN-​WIN. I’ve read some reviews about the sound quality, but I personally don’t have a bone to pick with the acoustics. Ed Sheeran sounded fan-​freaking-​tastic.
Staff and security here are exceptionally friendly and professional. There’s a bar inside if you want to grab some bites although my friend and I opted to eat beforehand at Nob Hill Café. There are several other dining spots within walking distance so you aren’t limited as to options.
The Masonic sits atop a hill and offers a picturesque view of SF! The building itself looks very modern and has its own parking garage next door. We purchased a permit in advance for $ 35 but it was only $ 30 the day of so keep that in mind!
Overall, I had a memorable time and would definitely love to return here again for future concerts!