Aisle 5 to replace the Five Spot, could open next spring
'To keep it as a live music venue was an uphill battle.'
The building once home to longtime Little Five Points music venue the Five Spot is expected to reopen next spring with different ownership, major renovations, and a new name: Aisle 5.
Last March, owner Bryan Aust closed the 12-year-old venue and sold the building to Brian Deerfield, Nick Weinberg, and Richard Edge. Deerfield and Weinberg, who work for local promoters Reverb Entertainment Productions, have previously booked shows at venues such as the Apache Cafe, Five Spot, Georgia Theatre, and Terminal West.
Deerfield tells CL the new venue will be a "multi-genre room where locals artists can hone their craft," will remain open to national touring acts, and occasionally host stand-up comedy events.
"We want to make it nicer, but keep the spirit of the place alive," he says.
They've pooled together cash for the purchase and found a few key investors for the upgrades to the building's A/C unit, bathrooms, and floor plan. It'll also make the venue ADA-complaint for the first time. So far, they've raised around 80 percent of their goal and are looking to raise another $55,000 through a recently launched Kickstarter campaign.
After purchasing the building, the new owners have worked on improving the look and feel of the venue. They had spent the past several months gaining approval for their plans from neighborhood groups and obtaining a liquor license. Deerfield says Aisle 5 plans to hire the contractors responsible for Terminal West's construction.
"To keep it as a live music venue was an uphill battle," he says. "We had to convince the neighbors to keep it as a music venue."
Ally Stevens, the Five Spot's former talent buyer, will continue to book artists for Aisle 5's shows. The venue's tentative opening date is scheduled for sometime in mid-March 2014.