The intimate Brooklyn club Warsaw now has a new owner, as the booking rights for the venue have just been purchased by the largest concert promoters Live Nation. The news comes just two months after it was revealed that Bowery Presents, which operates a number of venues in NYC, had been bought by AEG Live, the second-biggest corporate music promoters.
Live Nation currently operates Irving Plaza and Gramercy Theatre in NYC, as well as The Westbury Theatre. Now Warsaw will join that list, and will be operated by the House of Blues division of Live Nation. “Warsaw was the next logical move for us in New York. It is a vibrant music market with a huge population base that we think can be even better served at the club and theatre level.” said Ben Weeden, COO of House of Blues Entertainment.
Warsaw most notably hosted Prophets of Rage recently, after the cancellation of their last-minute performance at Governors Ball. The 1,000 person venue is well known for its acoustics, its punk-fueled scene, and, of course, its pierogies. Sean Striegel, senior vice president of Live Nation New York and New Jersey, had some more personal words to share about the venue in a statement. “From the first time I stepped foot in Warsaw, I knew it was something special… The time has come for us to plant a flag in Brooklyn, and we couldn’t think of a better place to do this at.”
With Live Nation and AEG Live competing against each other in the New York market, let’s just hope that it’s not the fans who will lose out.