Bleugene
Re-re-opened, Taboo reopens as The Blue Print
by Shaun O’Dell
This weekend, the former club Taboo gets a new name, a facelift and an addition of a dedicated 18 and over upstairs section. The Blue Print, the new 21 and over downstairs club, will continue to sell drinks and have a steady stream of live bands and DJs encompassing a fairly wide spectrum of musical genres, including pop, rock, reggae, top 40, classic surf and R&B. The 18 and up upstairs section of the club, The Attic, will offer entertainment options for the sober set looking for a place to bump and grind. A new theme for the space will be unveiled at the club’s reopening.
Jeffrey Lowe, Jim Bacheldar and Kenny Morris (aka DJ Tekneek) have purchased controlling interest in the club. Lowe has been a part of keeping Taboo open for the almost four years it’s been running, and he’s experienced with taking a club through a name and identity change — he was one of the original owners of Taboo when the venue (then The Jungle) was purchased in 2005. Morris has been a performing DJ at Taboo since it opened and is also a regular DJ at John Henry’s Wednesday night “Reefa Madness” shows.
With the ownership turnover the site at 23 W. 6th Avenue has experienced in the last decade — the space has had at least five different identities and almost as many owners — a healthy understanding of what makes a great club will be necessary to keep patrons coming in and parking butts on bar stools. Part of this might be due to the club’s location, sandwiched between Joe’s Bar and Sixth Street Grill, and many clubs’ dependence on college students returning to Eugene in the fall. The new venue kicks things off with two days of opening celebrations: a private party Sept. 11 and a grand opening at 9 pm Sept. 12. The public party features Kaci Battaglia, C3, Starbucks and a host of DJs. Admission is $5 to either part of the club, but The Attic’s admission rises to $7 after the first 100 people. For more information, see www.myspace.com/theblueprint90
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