Holocene (Portland, Oregon)

Holocene was established in June 2003 in a former auto-parts warehouse, located at the intersection of Southeast 10th and Morrison, in Portland's Buckman neighborhood.[1][2] The venue is "dedicated to the avant-garde of the Portland art and music scene, with an über-modern interior".[3][4] Jon Shadel of The Washington Post described Holocene as a "music and art club with an avant-garde bent... inspired by the minimal techno scene in Berlin".[5] He wrote, "the bi-level venue in the Central Eastside hosts an eclectic range of independent DJs and genre-blurring musicians, although most lineups tend to focus on up-and-coming sounds in electronic, R&B and hip-hop."[5]

The 5,000-square-foot[6] venue has a "stark industrial feel" with two large rooms, a bar, high ceilings[7] and a sunken dance floor, which has been described as a "living room in the midst of a gritty industrial loft".[4][8] According to Willamette Week's Sophie June, Holocene offers "boozy slushies" and "indie-rock shows that often tend toward the psychedelic or the threateningly abrasive".[1] The bar has cocktails called Claire's Knee and Kiss Kiss Bangkok.[1]

In 2020, Holocene curated Going In, a twenty-track compilation featuring local electronic musicians. The collection raised funds for contributing artists and the venue during the coronavirus pandemic.[9]

Events

The venue hosts a variety of events, ranging from concerts to weddings.[10] According to Willamette Week's Sophie June, Holocene "began as one of the only spots to bring national-caliber electronic acts to Portland following the fast demise of the B Complex".[1] In her guides to Portland, Rachel Dresbeck said the venue hosts many "musical experiences—secret shows by famous artists, up-and-coming bands that will be famous shortly, veteran and nouveau DJs, house music, shoegaze, modern soul, and other musical attractions keeping hipsters crowding the place".[3][4]

The Builders and the Butchers performing at Holocene in 2007

Musicians who have performed at Holocene include Against the Current,[11] Lauren Aquilina,[12] Au/Ra,[13] Beach Fossils,[14] Ryan Beatty,[15] Kadhja Bonet,[16] Clairo,[17] Crumb,[18] Matthew Dear,[19] Duckwrth,[20] Future Generations,[21] Tommy Genesis,[22] Chuck Inglish,[23] Japanese Breakfast,[24] The Japanese House,[25] Jonna Lee,[26] Milk & Bone,[27] Shy Girls,[28] Sasha Sloan,[12] Snail Mail,[29] Tove Styrke,[13] Avey Tare,[30] and Zaytoven.[31] The venue hosted London Grammar's first concert in Portland.[28] In 2018, Holocene hosted a "Club Kai Kai Pride" event featuring drag performer Aja. The event was part of the "Club Kai Kai" series, which caters to the LGBT community and features "a rave-style club scene with plenty of drag royalty, voguing and butterflies for the stomach".[32] The venue has also hosted writers, including Shayla Lawson.[33] In 2019, the Portland-based literary magazine Tin House hosted an event in conjunction with the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) conference, featuring readings by Hanif Abdurraqib, Erica Dawson, Morgan Parker, and Tommy Pico.[34][35]

Allison Crutchfield of Swearin' performing at Holocene in 2013

Monthly events include "Double Down" (described as a "hot and sweaty queer-friendly dance party")[8] and "Slay", a "queer-centric" hip-hop event catering to an "intersectional crowd".[7] Recurring dance events include "Cupcake" ("devoted to 'fat folks and allies'")[36] and "Snap!", a 1990s music party "designed to evoke middle-school dances".[4][37] Others include "Candi Pop" (bubblegum pop),[38] "Emo Nite",[39] "Gaycation",[28][40][41] a Rolling Stones-themed party called "Sympathy for the Disco",[42] and another dedicated to the Talking Heads.[43] The venue hosted StorySLAM monthly as of 2018.[44]

Holocene hosted the "Ping Pong Pandemonium Party" in mid-2010; participants included Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss of Sleater-Kinney.[45] More recent tribute events have included "Beyoncé Nicki Rihanna Night", "Holla!: '90s vs Early '00s Rap & RNB Night",[46] "This Party Is Killing You: All Robyn All Night"[47] and "Cake for Drake", where cake was served for Drake's birthday.[1] In 2018, the venue was decorated to resemble the Sunnydale nightclub from Buffy the Vampire Slayer as part of a Halloween celebration[48] and hosted Jo Ann Hardesty's election-results viewing party.[49] Holocene hosted Girl Fest the following year,[50][51] and was one of several venues screening films as part of the Portland Oregon Women's Film Festival (POW Fest).[52]

In 2003, The Oregonian's Grant Butler wrote, "Holocene is anything but a hollow scene. The name of this cavernous eastside nightclub isn't an ironic statement about the state of Portland's nightlife. In fact, it relates to a prehistoric geological era. Maybe there's some deep meaning at work, but what's certain is how rock-solid this place is as an after-hours hangout."[53] He said Holocene hosted Bill Shannon's post-performance party during the Time-Based Art Festival, and wrote of the venue:

Even when there's not a party going on, Holocene has sexy allure. DJs spin electronic magic while projected digital images fill the two-story walls. As cocktails flow, sleek-looking and elegantly garnished dishes come out of the kitchen. Back in the smoking lounge, smartly dressed scenesters lounge on puffy couches and drink in that room's ever-changing art installation.[53]

David Greenwald of The Oregonian wrote in 2014, "If there's a dance party in Portland, it's probably happening at Holocene, which is routinely home to laptop experimenters, DJs spinning hip-hop classics and LGBT-friendly events such as the monthly Gaycation."[28] Queerty included the venue on its 2016 "5 Nightlife Gems You Can Only Find in Portland" list.[40] Willamette Week readers named Holocene the city's "Best Place to Dance" in 2017.[10] The newspaper's Sophie June wrote:

Holocene is maybe the best spot to go for some bump-and-grind—especially outside the Old Town zone. There's a photo booth and tall white ceilings, and it's really one of the only appropriate places in the city to do Molly on a random Saturday night. Beware that it's sweaty and you'll probably see the younger sibling of someone you went to high school with, which isn't always great.[1]

In 2018, Willamette Week's Walker MacMurdo wrote: "Fifteen years in, whether Holocene is hosting a dream-pop trio, a live podcast or its birthday party for Drake, it still feels like the coolest place in Portland."[2] According to the newspaper's Shannon Gormley, Holocene "feels like an intimate warehouse party on any given night".[7] Willamette Week has also reported that the venue "regularly feels like a warehouse party if warehouse parties were kind of cozy."[54] In his 2019 local guide of Portland, The Washington Post's Jon Shadel wrote, "Among concert halls in Portland, Holocene presents the most timely survey of the local scene. And with a calendar full of themed dance nights — such as the queer- and BIPOC-focused Slay — there's something going on nearly every night of the week."[5] Holocene earned second place in the "Best Place to Dance" category of Willamette Week's "Best of Portland Readers' Poll 2020".[55]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Holocene (Portland, Oregon).

• Official website
• Holocene at Portland Mercury