The Fenix

CLOSED. This was a good place back in the day. It moved a couple of times I think. Once after earthquake damage. John Corbett from Northern Exposure TV series was rumored to be a co-​owner a long time ago. All good things must come to an end.

i used to come here when it was called «Premier». i’ve thrown hordes of parties and events at this venue. so, for the most part… it’s all about fond memories and such. the owners of the venue happened to be former clients of my company– so we had a great relationship from the beginning. the entrance is one of the most un-​organized parts of the whole place. besides that, as you enter… it’s an «anything goes» atmosphere.
some nights there would be a indoor beer garden, with girls in skimpy outfits and go-​go dancers on mini stages. there would be dance cages where go-​go dancers, celebrities, and professional dancers would get their groove on– basically showing off to the crowd. they have extensive equipment, the space, and the vibe to do anything. besides the main stage, they would build other small stages around it– which would host random club goers dancing on them… or runway models during a fashion show.
the drinks were always strong and decent priced– i had good nights and bad… you can watch people from the lounge/​VIP area and have another DJ spinning in that room. it’s truly a great experience. i’ve had the opportunity to meet everyone from Kid Rock to Sean Paul– Kristin Cavalarri to Jamie Presley. at Premier, anything goes.

I’d never been here when it was the Premier (dubbed «shiny shirt club» by friends), but I’ve performed here since it’s been the Fenix as well as danced my ass off here… both to the same DJ. High ceilings, excellent sound, strong drinks, not to mention this space is HUGE. We brought hoops & even had room to use them w/​o hitting anyone, which was a big sell for us.
The only downfall is that if you come w/​people and you get separated it takes awhile to walk around to find them.

Just in terms of a venue (I can’t comment on crowd/​scene since I’ve only attended one show here) this is an AMAZING club. Wide open space, insanely high ceilings, no bottlenecks to squeeze through … the space reminded me of my old-​school warehouse party days, but with the addition of a really nice bar off to the side and cleaner floors. The club is so big that there was even room for me to hula hoop, and that’s really saying something.

It was the Premier, yes Brain. I think thats what most people still call it, so if youre looking for the other reviews, search for «Premier»
I dont remember any Fenix, except for that disgusting place in Pioneer Square, but regardless of name, this place is cool.
So I saw GWAR here. It was awesome. And ridiculous. Awesomely ridiculous. If you want to avoid the green jizz and blood spraying directly into the crowd, the bar area is large and off to the side, with plenty of crowd watching space. But if you want to get into the action, the room is huge, with another bar in the back. Sound is pretty damn good too.
BTW, Brain forgot to mention, he went back and apparently the drinks are strong… or maybe the bartender found him cute, who knows, but he was wasted. Wasted!

Back in the day there was The Fenix and Fenix Underground. It was a decent place, bringing in great bands and having a nice PA system… even if it did have the odd leather fetish nights and the décor was rough (but that was part of it’s charm right?). In 2001 an earthquake brought the place down (so they say… the band I was in at the time was one of the last bands to play there before the fall… I think we at least deserve credit for weakening the foundation).
So the Fenix «Underground» moved to a very above ground location in Pioneer square but this was no arising out of the ashes (or rubble) and things were very wrong. The layout was weird, it was too small, it was too nice, the bands weren’t as great.
Then, I recently was looking up a show that claimed to be both at The Premier AND at The Fenix depending on where I found the info… no more «Underground», just The Fenix… and I wondered how a show could take place at two different clubs on the same night, whence I found out that The Fenix had bought out the space that the Premier was in and moved out of their Pioneer Square location. So this review is partly for The Fenix (or Premier as the sign outside still says), and partly for the show I saw… I can’t really give the venue 5 stars yet as I didn’t visit the bar, but it appeared to be well stocked and I like that you could get your drink and still see the show (unlike El Corazon for instance) if you so choose. The room was large and with a concrete floor I didn’t expect great acoustics (as well as being told by a friend they weren’t great), but either they have treated the room just right, or the sound engineer for the Deftones knows his shit, because last night’s show was phenomenal. Having seen them several times (blown away once, disappointed once) it was nice to be completely in awe of a band again. So I don’t know if credit is due to Chino & crew, or The Fenix, but the show (lights, sound, etc) was flawless and I look forward to going back for a couple shows in the coming weeks…
Ok, update: have been back for a few more shows, and going to yet another this weekend… nothing to really upgrade from 4 to 5 stars. I verified that the amazing sound was due more to the Deftones engineer than the venue’s inherent sound characteristics… some of the bands I’ve seen since weren’t mixed or EQ’d well. But the possibility is there, given the right talent. And oh yeah, the drinks are STRONG. Supposedly you can get a double for just $ 3 more, but I think a wink is just as effective with the right bartender.

I wouldn’t want to go alone at night, but once you’re inside, this place is very cool. First of all it’s HUGE inside, so even with a big crowd, you aren’t getting elbows jammed in your ribs, which is always nice.
The drinks are STRONG. (I had to have the bartender add more cranberry to my cosmo twice!)
I last went there on a week night and got in for FREE and randomly saw Aquaduct a band that I love! So basically FREE = awesome in my book!
Also, the bar is kind of seperated from the stage area, you can sit and enjoy drinks, or sit and watch the stage, which is always nice. All in all, I’m a fan!

This is a sweet little venue for anyone who likes the warehouse atmosphere. There’s a bar behind a city streets façade and the drinks and people here aren’t bad. The acoustics are great really close and really far from the stage but inbetween that they kinda suck. Saw QOTSA here and they rocked!