From small acts just happy to be on stage to national tours with 15 buses of costumes, the Syracuse music scene is booming. Local venues both on and off campus provide hubs for head bangers, ravers and jammers alike. The Pulp staff compiled the pros and cons of these local hotspots, and why you should check them out.

And if you want to see an upcoming concert take a look at these upcoming shows on Pulp’s music calendar.

The Westcott Theater

 

Pros: The spacious but intimate venue allows audience members to closely interact with acts onstage. A food truck may be stationed at the courtyard for some events, but there’s always a full bar available for those 21 and over.

Cons: It’s a short 15-minute walk from campus, but seeing as most events end pretty late at night, you might want to make sure you have a ride home before attending an event at the Westcott Theater.

Mike Summergrad, former intern at Westcott Theater and F Shed at the Market, first year graduate student in audio arts master’s program: “I think it’s just our campus venue in terms of close-to-campus location, it is the place to go. It is a 700-people theater with a full bar, huge stage, so much room. It’s just the best place to see a concert in Syracuse. It’s where all the mid-range bands come, it’s where you are going to see the most concerts.”

F Shed at the Market

 

Pros: Larger than the Westcott Theater, this venue has allowed concert promoter UpstateShows.com to bring more popular acts to Syracuse, including major electronic dance music DJs Skrillex and Hardwell. In the warmer months, the sides of the building can be opened to make the venue partially open-air, which is necessary when you pack nearly 3,500 dancing bodies into one place.

Cons: The F Shed is far from campus, near Destiny USA and the Regional Transportation Center, which means that freshmen without a car would need to take a bus or a taxi to get to events. Also, the venue is known mainly for its Electronic Dance Music concerts, so if you are looking for another genre, know that they are a rare occurrence there.

Said Summergrad: “The F Shed is more of a specialized venue, there’s not many concerts there, but when there are concerts there, they are big concerts. Like the Safe In Sound Festival coming on September 11, there are like five big DJs, or like (The) String Cheese Incident or the Disco Biscuits, those are both heavy hitter bands in the jam band community. For a 3,500 person venue, that is the place to go. It is just a big open space, where you can have a lot of people, there is a lot of parking.”

Funk ‘n Waffles (University Hill)

 

Pros: Catering mostly to the college musician, the entrance to this old-school alternative venue is located on a street that resembles more of an alleyway. Walk down the graffitied stairs into the homey underground restaurant, sit back in a booth or a vintage lazy boy and munch on a sweet or savory waffle as you watch locals during genre-specific nights. Open mic nights offer the chance to perform or play your own vinyl tunes on a record player.

Cons: You won’t catch any big names in this purple-walled, black-lighted music venue. Since most of the performers are either locals or students, your current favorite band may never stop by, but your future one could.

Adam Gold, owner of Funk ‘n Waffles: “When I went to school here, there wasn’t a place for students to see live music, and that’s one of the reasons we opened it. It’s an all-ages venue. We do serve beer and wine for those that are of age. Three days a week there are free shows: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We got organic and local food, there’s always great music playing, and it has the best ambiance on the Hill. Only place to get funky and eat dinner. Oh, and I own it and I went to Newhouse. So come on down, you don’t even have to pay a lot of money.” 

Schine Underground

 

Pros: This venue’s biggest appeal is its location in Schine Student Center. It’s right on campus and accessible to all students. Plus, because events here are usually hosted by Syracuse University organizations like University Union, you’ll be able to get in for a reasonable price.

Cons : It’s not tiny, but it’s definitely no Carrier Dome. Schine Underground would make you feel stuffy if it were filled to capacity. Be sure to buy tickets early for these events, since not many will be available in the first place.

Alli Reich, public relations co-director for University Union: “Our capacity for Schine is about 350 people, so what’s great about that venue is that it allows us to book really small, up-and-coming acts that are really on the rise. Acts students may not get to the chance to see in such an intimate space later on.”

Funk ‘n Waffles (Downtown)

 

Pros: New and freshly opened last spring, the downtown Funk boasts an elevated stage, two separated dining areas and a more modern, less grungy interior than its predecessor. Shows here span multiple genres, including indie and punk. Now, enjoying a waffle while watching people moshing has become a reality.

Cons: If you’re going for food only, there’s no point in taking the Connective Corridor all the way to downtown Syracuse when you could just walk to the University Hill location.

Sam Levey, general manager Funk ‘n Waffles Downtown: “We do music seven nights week, which is probably our most unique feature. The big difference [between both locations] is we have a full liquor bar and we do music seven nights week, and we do have longer hours. On the weekends we’re open until 3:30 [a.m.], so after you’re drinking, you can come on in and check out Funk ‘N Waffles. It’s an intimate setting, it’s a 180-size capacity room, you’re up close and personal with the artists and you can eat. No other venues I know of in town can you sit down and have waffle at while you’re watching a band.”

The Carrier Dome

 

Pros: Location, location, location. Regardless of where you’re living on campus, getting to the Carrier Dome for any event is as easy as getting to classes during the week. It’s the biggest on campus dome in the United States and draws attendees from across the region. Concerts at the Loud House can hold up to 35,000 people, so any event under the inflatable roof feels like it is the biggest in school history.

Cons: The irony that the Carrier Dome is named after an air conditioning company without air conditioning is a pretty well-circulated fact by now (no pun intended), but it really means that events held before the Syracuse winter kicks in will be fairly sweaty. The Dome is due for renovation in the near future, and it needs it pretty badly; the bathrooms are disgusting and while the acoustics are great for football, it’s not so much the case for concerts.
Said Reich: “For the Carrier Dome, our capacity is right around 10,000 for Block Party, which is really cool and is a huge chunk of the Dome. And this last year we did increase the floor capacity due to popular demand and I think that went over pretty well.”

The Oncenter War Memorial Arena

 

Pros: This historic Syracuse venue offers an arena experience in an intimate setting, with an event capacity of just 7,000. It’s got a great location too, being just around the corner from Armory Square, Syracuse’s lively downtown area– meaning it won’t be too difficult to find a great place to grab a bite before your show. They’ve got a pretty wide range of acts as well, featuring recent performers like David Guetta and Tiësto.

Cons: The arena was built in 1951, and it shows; the place has a pretty dated design and even during concerts it feels more like the minor-league hockey arena it mainly serves as, rather than a concert venue. However, the arena was expanded for the Syracuse Crunch hockey team this summer, and while the facilities weren’t designed with music in mind, they may be the most well-kept in Syracuse.

Jackie Kiechle, public relations director The Oncenter: “A lot of times, there will be group discounts or student discounts depending on the show, so you can always check with the box office to see if anything’s available,”

The Skybarn

 

Pros: University Union has held only one concert at Skybarn, and the venue was perfect for the event. A high ceiling, wide room and easy outdoor access make Skybarn a more appealing campus venue than Schine Underground.

Cons: Unfortunately, the Skybarn is located on South Campus. It’s convenient for those living on South, but for many who live on main campus or the surrounding neighborhood, taking the bus might not be worth it.

Said Reich: “Skybarn is a really interesting space, we had never really used it before this past year. We thought why not utilize the space, it’s on South Campus. So we created a Skybarn series to add to our mix for students on South Campus. So that capacity is around 400 and it is a really cool interesting space especially for EDM artists because it’s this big hollow space.”

Skytop

 

Pros: Juice Jam is one of the most talked about weekends of the year. From the indie bands you missed while doing shotguns in the shower to the headliners that you brag to your high school friends about, JJ is a great way to kick off the school year. The outdoor venue has a music festival feel complete with two stages, inflatables and lots of girls wearing flower crowns.

Cons: The great outdoors can be your best friend or your worst nightmare. Expect to see lots of bros with gnarly basketball jersey sunburns, large lines to use the port-a-potties and never enough water to quench your thirst at the free water station. Your view of the acts is hit and miss. If you get there early you will get an up-close and personal music experience. Get there late or leave to wait in line to pee, and hope to get a good view of the big screen.

Said Reich: “Skytop’s capacity ranges from around 8,000 to 10,000, so it’s a really great opportunity to really feel like a music festival has been brought to them if they didn’t get a chance to go to those really big music festivals throughout the summer.”

Compiled by Feature Editor Jacob Gedetsis, Asst. Feature Editor Katherine Sotelo, Asst. Copy Editor Delaney Van Wey, staff writer Clare Ramirez and music columnist Brett Weiser-Schlesinger.

Published on August 25, 2015 at 10:50 pm