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Wednesday, September 16, 2009

News Doug Fir Turns Five

Posted by Ezra Ace Caraeff on Wed, Sep 16, 2009 at 7:00 AM

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Ah, it seems like it was only yesterday that the Doug Fir Lounge swung open its doors and changed the landscape of East Burnside forever. No longer just a haven for prostitution and being stabbed as you fumble for your keys while parked outside of the Oregon Artificial Limb Co., the entire block changed as Doug Fir introduced Portland to a wood-paneled future of smoke-free shows, something called a "Fir Burger," and a place where the drunken stumble from bar to hotel bed (with a complete stranger) was a magical journey of only a few feet. (The shameful walk to your car in the morning, well, that took much longer.)

Anyway, before we get to the anniversary happenings, the mathletes at Doug Fir crunched some numbers:

- BANDS played the lounge : 4,290
- SUB WOOFERS blown : 12
- MIC STANDS destroyed : 42
- FIR BURGERS consumed: 119,445
- LOGGER BREAKFASTS eaten : 60,517
- BLACKBERRY COSMOS sipped : 30,119
- BOTTLES OF PBR downed : 257, 844

I'd like to take credit for at least 1% of those PBRs (and probably 63% of the Blackberry Cosmos). Starting this Friday, the Doug Fir will celebrate the "wooden anniversary" of year number five by offering up all sorts of deals on both food/drink and a series of special anniversary shows—Rosewood Thieves (10/7), School of Seven Bells (10/8), Federico Aubele (10/9), Mono/Maserati (10/10), Junior Boys (10/11)—where a $25 pass will get you in the door for all five nights (or you can just buy individual tickets like you normally would). Each ticket purchased will get an entry form (the pass is good for five entry forms) for a giveaway that includes the following:

GRAND PRIZE : 2010 SHOW PASS FOR TWO & $500 FOOD/BEVERAGE CREDIT - 1 AWARDED
1st PRIZE : 2 TIX TO A SHOW, NIGHT AT THE JUPITER HOTEL & $100 FOOD/BEVERAGE CREDIT - 1 AWARDED
2nd PRIZE : A PAIR OF TIX & $50 FOOD/BEVERAGE CREDIT - 5 AWARDED
3rd PRIZE : GIFT BAG OF ASSORTED DOUG FIR MERCHANDISE - 10 AWARDED

Not bad. If I won the $500 food/drink prize I wonder how many Blackberry Cosmos I could down in one sitting?

 

Comments (2) RSS

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1
I remember Quasi opening it up with the big skull like it was yesterday
Posted by jefforysimmons on September 16, 2009 at 8:36 AM · Report
2
that was also my first time seeing the joggers... woah.

"I showed up for soundcheck and was blown away. First, by the magnitude of architectural daring. Secondly, that people were still working, doing some pretty substantial last-minute details. The clarity of purpose was everywhere, and I knew that this was the 4-minute mile-the new standard by which venues would be measured in this town."-deejay Gregarious

The dawning of Portland's most promising club started off, well, fairly dim. The opening band, the Joggers, actually started at the set time of 9 pm. That early start was simply unheard-of in this town's nocturnal-leaning live-music world, which resulted in the band playing to a nearly empty room. By the second act, a typically transcendent set by Quasi, a sold-out crowd packed the floor and, afterwards, quickly emptied it, only to be replaced by the bright young things who follow DJ Gregarious. Still, the club itself was the star of the evening. Doug Fir didn't look like anything this town had seen before, and attempts to describe the place-Twin Peaks-themed casino lounge or a 22nd-century ski chalet disco as imagined from 1953-didn't adequately summarize the venue's peculiar blend of design and comfort. A variety of factors-from the exquisite sound, its eclectic mix of top acts, early hours and no-smoking policy-has helped the club regularly draw a diverse crowd, while subtly transforming local nightlife.
Posted by jefforysimmons on September 16, 2009 at 8:40 AM · Report

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