When Now That’s Class owner Paul Shlach moved from New York to Cleveland several years ago, he had the chance to do what he couldn’t do in New York: He got to open his own rock club. Taking over a former gay bar (you can still see the homoerotic murals on the club’s walls, and Shlach says he has no plans to ever take them down), he’s turned Now That’s Class into a haven for experimental and noisy indie-rock acts that probably wouldn’t be able to book a gig anywhere else in town.
Bands like the Black Lips (a self-described “flower-punk” band out
of Atlanta) and the King Khan & BBQ Show (a grimy garage-punk band
from Montreal) played the club on their way up the indie-rock ladder.
The club has hosted numerous noise-friendly local artists too.
“I just wanted to expose people in Cleveland to these bands that
were skipping the city,” says Shlach one afternoon at the club.
“Cleveland was lacking a good place for the underground bands.”
Much like the now-defunct Speak in Tongues, Now That’s Class runs by
committee. Shlach says he’s not out to make a profit and gives the door
money directly to the bands.
“It’s not your typical business model,” he says. “We want to keep
the covers low and the drinks cheap. I’m just trying to provide a fun
place that’s more of a hangout. We want to have DIY attitude with a
good sound system.”
Perhaps most symbolic of what Now That’s Class is all about is the
upcoming Romantic Getaway festival. Now in its fourth year (it was
previously called Horriblefest), the three-day event features indie and
experimental bands.
“It’s now a fest of mostly garage and punk bands and some of what
you’d call noise-rock,” explains Shlach. “We have bands from all over
the country, and there are even a couple from Canada and Europe.
There’s a bunch of people who drive from New York, New England and
Boston. Half the people who come are from out of town. It’s like a
giant party.”
To enhance the “party” vibe, Shlach is bringing in a hot tub for the
weekend, and he’ll host a barbeque on the club’s patio. Among the
festival’s highlights: L.A.-based punk veterans the Stitches, who’re
flying in for their first Cleveland show in 10 years; the garage-surfy
Magnetix, coming all the way from France; and New Orleans redneck punks
Kajun SS. Parts of the show will take place on the club’s outdoor
patio; the music starts at 6 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Saturday. (The club
also offers a vegan and vegetarian-friendly menu to go along with the
homemade Mexican food it gets from the West Side Market.)
“In general, it should be a really good time,” says Shlach. “This
year, there’s the highest quality. We tried to get all the best bands
that we thought stand out. We went after the upper echelon in terms of
the genre, bands that are better than 95 percent of what everyone else
is doing.”
This article appears in Apr 29 – May 5, 2009.
Just to clarify – The Black Lips, and The King Khan and BBQ Show played the original Horriblefest (which took place at three different venues and booked by myself and Ryan Horrible), not Now That’s Class (which had not opened yet at the time).
From the second year onward, the majority of Horriblefest shows have taken place at Now That’s Class. This year’s fest is the first with the new name and was booked by myself, Paul from NTC, and Erin from Hot Trash Radio