House of Blues Preview

Outside the new House of Blues on Lansdowne Street

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We knew the Blues would be back one of these days. The House of Blues' flagship venue in Harvard Square closed back in aught 3, and the HoB brass have been promising a return to the Boston area ever since.

Now the organization has returned with a venue nearly 10 times larger than the intimate Cambridge joint, in the former location of the Avalon/Axis/Modern club complex. The shiny, new and huge House of Blues opens its doors to the public next Thursday with a concert by the J. Geils Band.

When Bostonist stopped by a few days ago, the building was abuzz with preparation. While a pack of new employees went through orientation in the venue's 80-seat restaurant, construction workers put finishing touches on the rest of the HoB's three levels.

But how to make such a sprawling complex feel homey? With folk art, naturally—lots and lots of it. From the echoing, three-tiered music hall to the 80-seat Southern-style restaurant to the VIP lounge, the HoB is coated in artwork.

The man behind this massive undertaking is HoB art curator Scott Smith, a North Carolinian with a yen for outsider art. He's brought a wealth of gallery-quality pieces to the club's 19 venues across the country, and the new Boston locale is no exception. The sprawling collection even includes 40-odd pieces culled from the Cambridge location.

Most of the outsider art on display hails from the American South, but the vibe changes dramatically once you hit the Foundation Room. Here in the HoB's exclusive lounge, the aura is distinctly Indian. The walls are covered almost entirely in Gujarati hangings, elaborate beaded patchwork textile from western India. Smith has also included century-and-then-some-old paintings and statues, combined with work by the HoB's own team of artists.

Whether it's the roadhouse or maharaja feel you dig, there's something to whet all manner of whistles at Boston's latest concert hub. And though much of the paint is still drying, Lansdowne's House of Blues will be up and rockin' before too long.

Post contributed by Jenna Scherer. Photos taken at House of Blues Boston by permission of House of Blues Entertainment, Inc.