On Monday, December 31, the 2720 Cherokee Performing Arts Center will go live, if only for a single night. Since the dissolution of the collective that ran 2720 Cherokee earlier this year, a few one-off events have been held there. Another in that series of temp shows has been hatched for the lucrative club night of New Year’s Eve, with 2720’s former principal operator, Joshua Loyal, enthusiastically at the helm of this one, which hints back to 2720’s glory days.
Featuring a night full of DJs and bands, including headliner Aaron Kamm and the One Drops, the evening is a return to Loyal’s former stomping grounds, inside a room in which Kamm and his group have appeared at the previous two NYE’s. In each case, there have been variations to the full night’s lineup, in order to bring some “wow” factor to a competitive New Year’s Eve landscape. Loyal says that this year’s gig was simply born of opportunity, availability, and a desire to see a burgeoning tradition find traction at a familiar venue.
“I’ve been doing a New Year’s Eve show there for so long and nobody else was doing it, so why not,” Loyal says. “The band was into it, the venue was available. Why waste a good space? ... This year, we’re kind of just mixing in my favorite DJs, with some new acts that people haven’t heard of yet. You gotta keep some surprises coming to keep it interesting.”
Loyal estimates that about 90 percent of a working club remains in the venue. When the previous collective sold off some holdings there, things like chairs and other furniture were sold, but nothing has left the space that would take away from the basic vibe of the room. He suggests that a few days of tweaking will be enough to put together a fun, functional room. Even the second floor, which was the original home of RKDE (a video games and pinball facility, which later decamped to nearby Blank Space) will be brought back to life as a “mindful bar,” aka a non-alcoholic room; this makes sense, as Loyal’s been busy helping build the WellBeing Brewing brand of N/A beers around town since his departure from 2720.
He believes that the night will serve a primary purpose—as he says, “a great party”—as well as serving as a showcase for the room. It’s owned, as in the past, by WJL Companies, under the auspices of Cherokee Street developer Will Lieberman. Since 2720’s closure, there have been rumors of this group or that group taking on a managing role in the facility, but nothing’s gotten to the point of leases and contracts, Loyal says; that noted, a site’s been recently active, not only giving a sense of upcoming events, but playing to the interests of the former clientele. Tracking it all has been a touch confusing.
“For the most part,” Loyal thinks, “the landlord is hoping to continue the space as it was, a performing arts venue. At this time, there’s no one in line. I think there was someone that he was talking to for some months, but now that’s not happening. So there’s an opening in the discussion; a new person can come in and make their pitch, to enter the gauntlet of running a live music venue there. It takes a rare bird to do that, but we’ve got plenty of those in St. Louis. So who will it be?”
The desire to re-attach himself to the venue isn’t there, he swears. Of late, he’s had the WellBeing business to help grow, while taking on a resurgent role in his family’s long-standing bar on The Hill, Pop’s Blue Moon. He’s also had an interest in a variety of local businesses, whether a managing partner or lifestyle ambassador, and he’ll keep those roles active. (You can check the web pages of Pop’s Blue Moon and Loyal Family for myriad details on his evolving projects.) Even tonight, there’s newsworthy action at the family bar, with two members of the world-famous Parliament Funkadelic appearing at an open funk jam from 7 to 9 p.m. at the tiny room on Pattison Street.
Still, holding jam-packed shows at a small venue is a different animal that blow-out shows at a big one, a feeling that he enjoyed more than once at his old haunt on Cherokee. He admits that “it’s possible in the next few days, or week, that I’ll have those feelings. But, honestly, there’s a different feeling that I’m enjoying now, and that’s one in which I don’t necessarily have to worry about [the space]. It’s a one-off. There might be more to prepare for by doing it that way. The place’s not a well-oiled machine right now; it might be rusty after being closed for a few months. But the idea of being able to do something there and walk away, not having to do it every day and every week, hasn’t gotten old to me yet.”
So, in short: there will be a party, entitled Good Vibes!, at 2720 on New Year’s Eve. There’s still a chance the venue will be something… else, and soon. And Loyal’s still active, though at his original home base of Pop’s. But there’s just something about 2720 that’s always brought a surprise, or two, over the years. We’ll be sure to let you know if that’s a surprise that arrives before the calendar changes.
