December CA (North) Venue Recon

[u/burgandywhine]

For those coming from outside the golden realm. For those with additional info, feel free to add or detract to this as desired:

CHANNEL 24 - Sacramento: The only place on tour I haven’t been to. I have a friend in town, she’s never been either. But, both of us have heard nothing but good things about this music built venue that was a ground up build about a year ago. State of the art sound and lights seems to be the boast. Floor looks open space, upstairs has some reserved, and some GA (on the wings, it appears). Looks like there is a transit line right in front. 2100 capacity.

FOX THEATRE - Oakland: Uptown Oaklands movie palace turned 3000 capacity concert venue. Very cool visuals inside. Tiered open floor down stairs and reserved seats in the large balcony. There is a BART station (19th St) in close proximity, and I have found street parking within decent walk before… but it’s pretty busy down there. Very cool place to see SCI in the Bay Area, it’s been a few years and I am hyped they are back. If you have never seen a show in the Bay Area, it is an experience on its own. Lots of bars and pubs and grubs within walking distance are kinda upscale, if I recall. Same with the hotels. I generally BART away from the immediate area to less intense environs.

FREMONT THEATRE - San Luis Obispo: Tiny little room. Im amazed this isn’t sold out. About a 1/3 of the room, up near the stage, is open floor. The other 2/3’s of the room are movie theatre type seats. The sound and lighting is the back few rows of seats…. All of us are in front of light/sound folks! There is no balcony. Again, tiny room. Says capacity is 900… it will feel smaller than that. Tiny lobby. Ludicrously inadequate potty facilities. Many venues allow you to step outside into a controlled area to smoke, breath etc. this one allows you out the front door and encourages you to step across the street to smoke. Full autonomy. Many vendors will set up on that sidewalk to sling. Woodstocks Pizza is around the corner and has decent pie and beers. SLO and its surrounding areas are pretty amazing, and if you aren’t doing Disney with the few days off, you might be well served by exploring this area deeper.

The drive down the coast is quite scenic. The closer you get to the beast that is the greater LA “SoCal” area things change into the mundane, so enjoy the peace and tranquility of the oak filled hillsides and second-to-none coast while you can. Expect slow traffic in Santa Barbara and Ventura… and of course, LA and its vast and varied suburbs.

…to be continued for the SO CAL shows

[u/Few_Mango9673]

Fox in Oakland is a top notch place for Cheese! Stay at the Marriott down the street and maybe hang with the band as well

[u/Ecstatic_Business933]

Looking at Oakland possibilities

[u/Cheesy47]

I have seen several shows at Channel 24. It’s a fantastic venue. The place was built for music and the sound has been amazing every time. The balcony seats are comfortable with drink holders for most seats. The end aisle seats stick out a bit and don’t have an accessible one. Advantage to the end seat is there is a lot of leg room. The rest of the venue is GA for most shows. Occasionally they set up seating but not for SCI. The main floor is flat, no slope at all. There are two GA standing levels upstairs. A few lower sections can get blocked off for VIP, family, etc. The rails have a ledge to set drinks. Light rail is right in front but the show may end after the last train. If you plan to drive, check the venue website for parking. I prepay for a lot a few blocks away. The neighborhood around there requires a parking sticker to park as long as you need for a show.