Just went my first time. True, an awful lot of conus, but it's very well run and just about as fun as an open mic can be. Truly GREAT, professional hosts and supportive crowd, MANY of whom are waiting to get onstage. I'll be back for sure.
Deep in the heart of hipster-ville lays the Silverlake Lounge, an actual rock club with an interesting punk rock history back in the 80's. It's a long room with a stage in the back big enough for a live band and a bar that stretches along the length of the wall. Everything is painted black, like most small rock clubs. The sound system is fantastic with a two mics, one wireless. It's a lottery, with the first half of the list 5 min spots and the second 3 min spots. Matt Champagne, a very funny and energetic host, runs it with two other comics. He only does about 3 jokes at the top then dives right into the list. He throws in a funny comment about the last comic, usually stemming from one of their jokes then brings up then next one with a quick improved intro, so the show really moves along. Parking is c-c-crazy. I had to pass the club 3 times before I got lucky and a spot opened up in the small parking lot attached to it. The only thing to note is: it's a rock club, so the acoustics can really echo around the room, and if even a couple tables in the back get chatty is fills the room with noise. I can see some nights it getting out of hand and you're up there trying to talk over the crowd roar. However, since it's 90% comedians in the audience it stays respectful. I also saw some cool experimental comedy mixed in with the straight stand up. It kept it fresh and interesting. This is a good one. - Brett Gilbert
i wasnt a huge fan of this place. i was around the 30th comic (of maybe 40) to go up at a night where no one seemed to be laughing at anything. granted, there were plenty of shitty comedians that night, and thats not the clubs fault, but it seemed like the audience was too focused on their set to pay attention to even the good stuff. matt champagne is pretty fun and energetic, but definitely not perfect. he forgot my name as he was introducing me, and made a few disrespectful (in my opinion, at least) comments about some of the comics after they went up. maybe i went on a bad night, but i dont think ill be going back.
A lot of working comics go to this mic and they will support their friends, but it is definitely a tough crowd for new comics. If you are somehow able to stop the audience from checking their emails and talking to their friends and then kill here you are really on your game and able to do what I haven't really seen any comic fully do here yet after going the last couple weeks.
This place achieved a combination of qualities I thought were mutually exclusive: silence and indifference. Even the very competent comics with funny material were getting frozen out; it seemed like the X factor was just loudness. Like telling jokes to a banquet hall full of dead relatives' ghosts. 2/4 stars.
This is a great place if you already know everyone there. Very cliquey. Super hipsters only here. Everyone has a holier-than-thou attitude. They only respond to jokes told by their friends. Just a bunch of wannabe alternative comics that would do a lot better if it were 1995. Not a single minority on any given night. Bunch of uninteresting rich white kids with no future in comedy. I love this place!
This is a weird place. I usually get hipster frowns because I'm not an alt-comic and I work pretty clean. Other times, I get bumped so much I end up having to leave anyway. On the bright side, some of the best comics in LA perform here so it's great to watch them work. I honestly would rather just hang out and watch here than go up. There's plenty of other places to do time on Friday with better audiences and hosts.
I've been going here as often as I can. It's a tougher crowd, but Matt is a damn good host and keeps things moving. This is a room of comics, for comics. You'll get your three and a bit minutes, and if you're lucky you'll get some laughs out of it. If not, don't take it as an insult.
While a lot of talented open micers go here there is still a lot of unfair bumping. I mean, you get that at almost any open mic, but it is so extreme here that it could ruin your night if you are trying to make more than one mic. I'd go and sign up see if you get up within the first two hours, and if not then leave and you'll still have time to make at least two more mics. Not bad people. Just a lack of consideration for other comics who they aren't close friends with.
I like this open mic quite a bit. If you're there by 630 you put your name in a bucket and they pull names immediately. Last night they pulled a little over 50 names. I was in the late 30s, so I didn't get up for a while, but I didn't mind. There's been no bumping the few times I've been there. Thing is though, there are working, paid comics who go to this mic on a weekly basis and they go up first, as they should. They also stay and socialize with the crowd, which is pretty cool. This is a mic where you can really kick back and enjoy yourself!
As much as it's a nice open mic to get up and get yourself on stage, but about #15 the rest of the room pulls a big DGAF and uses the room as a place to socialize. I guess that's fine considering it's a bar, but I've heard that some people avoid this room because of the lack of respect. For a supposed "alt" room (is there anyone who can actually define alt-comedy anymore?) I haven't seen anything daring in the last couple months.
The room is pretty popular however say a prayer before you go up that you are one of the few comics that has anyone listening. There's a lot of talking. It does ebb and flow though and there were a few people that, for some reason, captured the audiences attention. And it wasn't for funny material. The majority of the time someone was shouting or high energy. If you have a high energy persona or loud character POV then this room would be in your debt to show up and shout down the audience. I've seen many people eat sh*t on stage because they were too quiet. Often times the first 1-2 rows of tables can actually hear you. The mic won't reach past anyone beyond that when you are aren't screaming. This place is also a hipster haven so break out your skinny jeans and indifference.
The crowd talks over 80% of the acts. Sometimes paying attention to someone popular and sometimes paying attention based purely on random chance. Other times the first 3-4 tables will hear you. If your stage voice is loud than this would be a good room for you to try stuff out and practice wrangling in a talkative bar crowd. I wouldn't go there if you don't shout or rely too heavily on the mic. I've been here half a dozen times and seen far too many soft spoken comics get swallowed whole by the disinterested people. Most of them comics which is super shitty but, sadly, not unique to this venue. As for the vibe, it's Silverlake so everyone is a hipster but I've seen non-hipsters do well there. You will likely have to open strong and shout and there is a good chance you will get shuffled around in the order if you do managed to get picked.
As a non-comic, I really dig Friday nights at Silverlake Lounge. Happy hour can't be beat - the bartender, Mario, is fast and friendly - Matt Champagne is a great host and most of the comics are really funny! Also, this is a good place to have conversations with strangers... It seems like everyone here has something interesting to say. And it's a short walk from my house, which makes it easy to fully take advantage of the cheap drinks!
One of my favorite mics in Los Angeles. Matt is a great host and although there is some shuffling around with names, overall, people wait their turn. It's not a very good set up for a comedy show, so it's easy to get distracted from the comic on stage, but this just makes you stronger - if you can get people to listen, you're doing something right.
Warning, this is the neighborhood mic for a large group of comics who seem to be all in the same group of friends, which means it can be pretty easy to feel left out. I've awkwardly inserted myself into some of their conversations only to find out that most of them are very nice, just catching up with their friends, etc. But it's still kind of intimidating and keeps me glued to the wall if I am there.
I finally came in after reading the reviews for quite some time. I'll tell you my experience.
First of all the people seemed very nice. Yes its a big hipster/alt fest, but at least that means a few vegan chicks will show up in form fitting leggings. The people were all friendly and were very supportive. I also would like to add I did see some color, about 4 black guys and also an asian chick.
Alot of people wrote that there were some actual working comics here, I cannot possibly image who they might've been though. Most of the comedians, or at least the material was terrible and the chicks were just absolutely awful. I did hear some nice lines about the teen mom sextape as well as online dating and balls but overall this really isn't my lane. The crowd was very respectful and attentive but they only seemed to laugh at a) self-depreciating jokes about how depressed one's life is b) obscure references that only certain types will get and c) guys that just talked really, really loud. Seriously. And oh yeah of course d) people that were "in" with the other comedians.
In closing, if you're a club style comic, I'd say go elsewhere. Its a nice place to get on stage, try out some material, maybe try and toughen your skin a little but thats it. I wouldn't judge my material off a crowd like this. If you're alt/hipster though this is a great spot. Otherwise, I wouldn't make a special trip for it (like I did). If there's two extremes in comedy, one being the urban crowd were jokes usually must be dumbed down, this is the other extreme where they want you to snob it up and wont laugh if it doesn't reach enough of a wit or snark level. I prefer that big space in between.
Silverlake Lounge is the all encompassing friday night quintessentials of open mics, Atmospherically uncanny with a dichotomic array of contrasting comedians. My appreciation for this room is without a sense of irony, and although my social ineptitude makes me a victim of my own discretion, introspection pacifies me in solitude.
The friday night apex of energetic dynamics, a magnificent pivoting tool to cascade your evening into an ecstatic motion. Fridays nights lottery is quite unorthodoxly a mental ambivalence, positional ambiguity is a luxury you must afford, and a dark room latent with nothing more that aesthetic subtlety.
Must elaborate the host peculiar surrealistic spontaneity, which obliviously goes under the the radar, due to the array of sensationalistic phonological imagery, to which i find pervasive amongst mainstream humor.
I must mention my trivial infatuation for a stagnated non-rotating disco ball above the stage that gets my attention for no apparent specific reason, I found that observational cerebral incongruous resolution humor is contingent on visual idiosyncrasies and aesthetic peculiarities.
Female male comic said adelson 1st followed her home after an open mic and sat Infront her building texting her asking her to invite him up, I was like, did you give the dude your number? Se was like 'no' then how the fuck did he get it?.. Weird He takes all his clothes off on stage or he wears women lingerie and he's not even funny, just weirddddddddd as shit.
I don't seem him in silverlake anymore, maybe he got banned thereto, I heard he lives in his car, little strange since he's running all these advertisements on badslava. I think this guy is just crazy?..
Atelston lives in a car but has tons of badslava ads?? You stupid gullible anonymous illogical fucking senseless shit brain. The mans a comedic genius, what he does on stage is hard to explain but he's clearly a natural. In standup I learn there's two kinds of comic, the one that needs to write material and the natural one, this man is a natural truly a naturally funny person. Although I kind find him weirdish to talk to.
Comedic genius? You god damned dumbass 120 or 300 lb LA alt comedians fucking root for anything. This guy is trash. Whenever I see him perform he's either bitching about the audience, not being booked, or taking his manboobs out. The only real "bit" i saw him do was dress up like a woman, play "Big Girls Don't Cry" on his ipad, and start crying. And yes I laughed at how ridiculous the shit was. Comics have trashed other comedians since the beginning of time. But I forgot this is "niceville". LA really doesn't have comics, just a bunch of smug mofos in ironic tees and beards that think they're smarter and better than everyone in the room. This guy is trash and if you don't think so its because you're probably trash too. There's been much more talented comedians to get hated on than this guy. He's a natural what? Put him in front of paying customers and you can be sure those customers would never be back. Can you imagine him doing 20 minutes of that shit? This guy is the DEFINITION OF HACK.
A lot of details for someone you consider trash, lol ironic huh? Here's why adelson fizerald holder 2nd is a genius, simple scenario. He post 1 comment and got all you fools attention, that's his genius in the most simplistic way possibly. The man runs circle around you fools with his eyes clothes and he's funny so STFU.
A mic this popular shouldn't let so many people sign up that aren't physically there. People go to the can and fill out 3 or 4 slips of paper. If you're not going to reward the people that are actually there on time, you should just do signups on facebook or something. Then I can come in at my convenience and leave immediately after like some of these other guys.
Awesome hosts and awesome atmosphere. Really cool. A lot of slots, which means you could be going on 20th.
ReplyDeleteCheap beer. Bring some friends.
Just went my first time. True, an awful lot of conus, but it's very well run and just about as fun as an open mic can be. Truly GREAT, professional hosts and supportive crowd, MANY of whom are waiting to get onstage. I'll be back for sure.
ReplyDelete(An awful lot of COMICS that is, not CONUS.)
ReplyDeleteVery cool vibe. Only around 4 civilians, but they actually laughed. Motivated me to pursue my future dreams of performing on a cruise ship.
ReplyDeleteNot a pro prop comic vibe here. Thought they like ventriloquist.
ReplyDeleteDeep in the heart of hipster-ville lays the Silverlake Lounge, an actual rock club with an interesting punk rock history back in the 80's. It's a long room with a stage in the back big enough for a live band and a bar that stretches along the length of the wall. Everything is painted black, like most small rock clubs. The sound system is fantastic with a two mics, one wireless. It's a lottery, with the first half of the list 5 min spots and the second 3 min spots. Matt Champagne, a very funny and energetic host, runs it with two other comics. He only does about 3 jokes at the top then dives right into the list. He throws in a funny comment about the last comic, usually stemming from one of their jokes then brings up then next one with a quick improved intro, so the show really moves along. Parking is c-c-crazy. I had to pass the club 3 times before I got lucky and a spot opened up in the small parking lot attached to it. The only thing to note is: it's a rock club, so the acoustics can really echo around the room, and if even a couple tables in the back get chatty is fills the room with noise. I can see some nights it getting out of hand and you're up there trying to talk over the crowd roar. However, since it's 90% comedians in the audience it stays respectful. I also saw some cool experimental comedy mixed in with the straight stand up. It kept it fresh and interesting. This is a good one. - Brett Gilbert
ReplyDeletei wasnt a huge fan of this place. i was around the 30th comic (of maybe 40) to go up at a night where no one seemed to be laughing at anything. granted, there were plenty of shitty comedians that night, and thats not the clubs fault, but it seemed like the audience was too focused on their set to pay attention to even the good stuff. matt champagne is pretty fun and energetic, but definitely not perfect. he forgot my name as he was introducing me, and made a few disrespectful (in my opinion, at least) comments about some of the comics after they went up. maybe i went on a bad night, but i dont think ill be going back.
ReplyDeleteA lot of working comics go to this mic and they will support their friends, but it is definitely a tough crowd for new comics. If you are somehow able to stop the audience from checking their emails and talking to their friends and then kill here you are really on your game and able to do what I haven't really seen any comic fully do here yet after going the last couple weeks.
ReplyDeleteThis place achieved a combination of qualities I thought were mutually exclusive: silence and indifference. Even the very competent comics with funny material were getting frozen out; it seemed like the X factor was just loudness. Like telling jokes to a banquet hall full of dead relatives' ghosts. 2/4 stars.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great place if you already know everyone there. Very cliquey. Super hipsters only here. Everyone has a holier-than-thou attitude. They only respond to jokes told by their friends. Just a bunch of wannabe alternative comics that would do a lot better if it were 1995. Not a single minority on any given night. Bunch of uninteresting rich white kids with no future in comedy. I love this place!
ReplyDeleteAll open mics are bad, but if you're looking for the ABSOLUTE WORST in both talent AND environment then Silverlake Lounge is the choice for you!!!
ReplyDeleteAbsolute worst...I'm on my was,, cheap beer and bad comics....a dream come true, I'll fit right in.....can someone pick me up?
ReplyDeleteThis is a weird place. I usually get hipster frowns because I'm not an alt-comic and I work pretty clean. Other times, I get bumped so much I end up having to leave anyway. On the bright side, some of the best comics in LA perform here so it's great to watch them work. I honestly would rather just hang out and watch here than go up. There's plenty of other places to do time on Friday with better audiences and hosts.
ReplyDeleteI've been going here as often as I can. It's a tougher crowd, but Matt is a damn good host and keeps things moving. This is a room of comics, for comics. You'll get your three and a bit minutes, and if you're lucky you'll get some laughs out of it. If not, don't take it as an insult.
ReplyDeleteGreat Host and Great Crowd! Recommend it for every Friday at 6PM
ReplyDeleteWhile a lot of talented open micers go here there is still a lot of unfair bumping. I mean, you get that at almost any open mic, but it is so extreme here that it could ruin your night if you are trying to make more than one mic. I'd go and sign up see if you get up within the first two hours, and if not then leave and you'll still have time to make at least two more mics. Not bad people. Just a lack of consideration for other comics who they aren't close friends with.
ReplyDeleteI like this open mic quite a bit.
ReplyDeleteIf you're there by 630 you put your name in a bucket and they pull names immediately. Last night they pulled a little over 50 names. I was in the late 30s, so I didn't get up for a while, but I didn't mind.
There's been no bumping the few times I've been there. Thing is though, there are working, paid comics who go to this mic on a weekly basis and they go up first, as they should. They also stay and socialize with the crowd, which is pretty cool.
This is a mic where you can really kick back and enjoy yourself!
As much as it's a nice open mic to get up and get yourself on stage, but about #15 the rest of the room pulls a big DGAF and uses the room as a place to socialize.
ReplyDeleteI guess that's fine considering it's a bar, but I've heard that some people avoid this room because of the lack of respect.
For a supposed "alt" room (is there anyone who can actually define alt-comedy anymore?) I haven't seen anything daring in the last couple months.
The room is pretty popular however say a prayer before you go up that you are one of the few comics that has anyone listening. There's a lot of talking. It does ebb and flow though and there were a few people that, for some reason, captured the audiences attention. And it wasn't for funny material. The majority of the time someone was shouting or high energy. If you have a high energy persona or loud character POV then this room would be in your debt to show up and shout down the audience. I've seen many people eat sh*t on stage because they were too quiet. Often times the first 1-2 rows of tables can actually hear you. The mic won't reach past anyone beyond that when you are aren't screaming. This place is also a hipster haven so break out your skinny jeans and indifference.
ReplyDeleteThe crowd talks over 80% of the acts. Sometimes paying attention to someone popular and sometimes paying attention based purely on random chance. Other times the first 3-4 tables will hear you. If your stage voice is loud than this would be a good room for you to try stuff out and practice wrangling in a talkative bar crowd. I wouldn't go there if you don't shout or rely too heavily on the mic. I've been here half a dozen times and seen far too many soft spoken comics get swallowed whole by the disinterested people. Most of them comics which is super shitty but, sadly, not unique to this venue. As for the vibe, it's Silverlake so everyone is a hipster but I've seen non-hipsters do well there. You will likely have to open strong and shout and there is a good chance you will get shuffled around in the order if you do managed to get picked.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAs a non-comic, I really dig Friday nights at Silverlake Lounge. Happy hour can't be beat - the bartender, Mario, is fast and friendly - Matt Champagne is a great host and most of the comics are really funny! Also, this is a good place to have conversations with strangers... It seems like everyone here has something interesting to say. And it's a short walk from my house, which makes it easy to fully take advantage of the cheap drinks!
ReplyDeleteProbably the worst open mic in all of Los Angeles, I know many spots have been given that title over time, but it doesn't even come close
ReplyDeleteThat's a pretty harsh assessment, and you don't give any reasons for it. I bet your jokes are "written" in the same sloppy manner.
DeleteOne of my favorite mics in Los Angeles. Matt is a great host and although there is some shuffling around with names, overall, people wait their turn. It's not a very good set up for a comedy show, so it's easy to get distracted from the comic on stage, but this just makes you stronger - if you can get people to listen, you're doing something right.
ReplyDeleteWarning, this is the neighborhood mic for a large group of comics who seem to be all in the same group of friends, which means it can be pretty easy to feel left out. I've awkwardly inserted myself into some of their conversations only to find out that most of them are very nice, just catching up with their friends, etc. But it's still kind of intimidating and keeps me glued to the wall if I am there.
A+
ReplyDeleteI finally came in after reading the reviews for quite some time. I'll tell you my experience.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all the people seemed very nice. Yes its a big hipster/alt fest, but at least that means a few vegan chicks will show up in form fitting leggings. The people were all friendly and were very supportive. I also would like to add I did see some color, about 4 black guys and also an asian chick.
Alot of people wrote that there were some actual working comics here, I cannot possibly image who they might've been though. Most of the comedians, or at least the material was terrible and the chicks were just absolutely awful. I did hear some nice lines about the teen mom sextape as well as online dating and balls but overall this really isn't my lane. The crowd was very respectful and attentive but they only seemed to laugh at a) self-depreciating jokes about how depressed one's life is b) obscure references that only certain types will get and c) guys that just talked really, really loud. Seriously. And oh yeah of course d) people that were "in" with the other comedians.
In closing, if you're a club style comic, I'd say go elsewhere. Its a nice place to get on stage, try out some material, maybe try and toughen your skin a little but thats it. I wouldn't judge my material off a crowd like this. If you're alt/hipster though this is a great spot. Otherwise, I wouldn't make a special trip for it (like I did). If there's two extremes in comedy, one being the urban crowd were jokes usually must be dumbed down, this is the other extreme where they want you to snob it up and wont laugh if it doesn't reach enough of a wit or snark level. I prefer that big space in between.
Silverlake Lounge is the all encompassing friday night quintessentials of open mics, Atmospherically uncanny with a dichotomic array of contrasting comedians. My appreciation for this room is without a sense of irony, and although my social ineptitude makes me a victim of my own discretion, introspection pacifies me in solitude.
ReplyDeleteThe friday night apex of energetic dynamics, a magnificent pivoting tool to cascade your evening into an ecstatic motion. Fridays nights lottery is quite unorthodoxly a mental ambivalence, positional ambiguity is a luxury you must afford, and a dark room latent with nothing more that aesthetic subtlety.
Must elaborate the host peculiar surrealistic spontaneity, which obliviously goes under the the radar, due to the array of sensationalistic phonological imagery, to which i find pervasive amongst mainstream humor.
I must mention my trivial infatuation for a stagnated non-rotating disco ball above the stage that gets my attention for no apparent specific reason, I found that observational cerebral incongruous resolution humor is contingent on visual idiosyncrasies and aesthetic peculiarities.
Mega Magnificent Place....!
Atelston Fitzgerald Holder 1st
Mr Pregnant.....!
www.mrpregnant.com
www.youtube.com/mrpregnant
www.youtube.com/mrpregnantmusic
You that crazy black dude that taks his clothes of in Sliverlake? Wtf everyone says you are weird as fuck
ReplyDeleteFemale male comic said adelson 1st followed her home after an open mic and sat Infront her building texting her asking her to invite him up, I was like, did you give the dude your number? Se was like 'no' then how the fuck did he get it?.. Weird
ReplyDeleteHe takes all his clothes off on stage or he wears women lingerie and he's not even funny, just weirddddddddd as shit.
I don't seem him in silverlake anymore, maybe he got banned thereto, I heard he lives in his car, little strange since he's running all these advertisements on badslava.
ReplyDeleteI think this guy is just crazy?..
Atelston lives in a car but has tons of badslava ads?? You stupid gullible anonymous illogical fucking senseless shit brain. The mans a comedic genius, what he does on stage is hard to explain but he's clearly a natural. In standup I learn there's two kinds of comic, the one that needs to write material and the natural one, this man is a natural truly a naturally funny person. Although I kind find him weirdish to talk to.
DeleteComedic genius? You god damned dumbass 120 or 300 lb LA alt comedians fucking root for anything. This guy is trash. Whenever I see him perform he's either bitching about the audience, not being booked, or taking his manboobs out. The only real "bit" i saw him do was dress up like a woman, play "Big Girls Don't Cry" on his ipad, and start crying. And yes I laughed at how ridiculous the shit was. Comics have trashed other comedians since the beginning of time. But I forgot this is "niceville". LA really doesn't have comics, just a bunch of smug mofos in ironic tees and beards that think they're smarter and better than everyone in the room. This guy is trash and if you don't think so its because you're probably trash too. There's been much more talented comedians to get hated on than this guy. He's a natural what? Put him in front of paying customers and you can be sure those customers would never be back. Can you imagine him doing 20 minutes of that shit? This guy is the DEFINITION OF HACK.
DeleteA lot of details for someone you consider trash, lol ironic huh? Here's why adelson fizerald holder 2nd is a genius, simple scenario. He post 1 comment and got all you fools attention, that's his genius in the most simplistic way possibly. The man runs circle around you fools with his eyes clothes and he's funny so STFU.
DeleteA mic this popular shouldn't let so many people sign up that aren't physically there. People go to the can and fill out 3 or 4 slips of paper. If you're not going to reward the people that are actually there on time, you should just do signups on facebook or something. Then I can come in at my convenience and leave immediately after like some of these other guys.
ReplyDeleteThey no longer have an open mic here.
ReplyDeleteThey no longer have an open mic here.
ReplyDelete