Message for the address. Pay what you can. Take what you need.
That’s the invitation to one of St. Louis’ newest music venues: NashPad, a Dogtown basement where local bands play to small crowds, bottled water and earplugs are free, and the goal is simple: make live music welcoming to everyone.
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Sadie Gutreuter and three roommates embraced that philosophy when they transformed the basement into a music venue earlier this year.
“I’ve always loved basement shows more than regular venues,” Gutreuter says. “I’ve found the community to be a lot more welcoming when it’s in someone’s home.”
Gutreuter says the space already had the bones of a venue: an open room that comfortably fits 50 to 60 concertgoers, a lounge area with sofas, doors leading to a backyard patio and bonfire, and an empty wall perfect for band flyers. Gutreuter added one more touch by stocking the basement pantry with bottled water, Powerades, earplugs, Ibuprofen, and other essentials beneath a handwritten sign that reads, “Take what U need.”
The resulting atmosphere is much different than what you might expect at a house party. “We’ve never really had a mess to clean up,” Gutreuter says. “We’ve been very lucky to have gathered such a respectful crowd, and we’re hoping that it stays that way, so we can keep throwing as many shows as we can.”
So far, the neighborhood has embraced it, Gutreuter says. The hosts haven’t received a single complaint since launching NashPad in late April. Instead, neighbors have cheered from a couple of houses down, and one parent even stopped by with their child to sit on the front steps and enjoy a performance.
The venue now hosts about two shows a month, welcoming genres from punk to folk and everything in between. This Saturday, the venue will host local bands Get Punk’d, Anti-Fashion, Buy Her Candy, and more. (Street parking will be available to visitors, and house rules can be found on the Instagram page.)
Depending on artists’ requests, there may be a set cover charge, but otherwise guests are simply asked to contribute what they can.
“Even though we’re trying to support the band and build supplies, all we care about is that people come and they have fun,” Gutreuter says. “If someone comes up and has zero dollars in their wallet—that’s fine. Come on in.”
For Gutreuter, affordability is only part of the mission. More important is giving people a place to connect—or disconnect.
“We think it’s very important for people to have a space to just be,” Gutreuter says. “During a show, there’s so much stimulation going on that we don’t even have time to think of anything bad going on.”
