Though our headquarters are currently in the Mecca of tech and startups, the San Francisco Bay Area, we have our roots firmly planted in two wonderful cities. Los Angeles and Providence are home to The Troubadour and Lupo’s, where our founders spent many evenings at shows “researching music”.
Overhead.fm was founded in Providence, Rhode Island’s bourgeoning technology scene. Providence is the state capital, the second largest city in New England, and home to leading research universities. Though the city keeps a relatively low profile, it is home to a diverse industry portfolio from tech startups to Fortune 500 companies like CVS Caremark.
Overhead moved its headquarters to Los Angeles in late 2012 to be at the epicenter of the entertainment industry. It is the hotbed of undiscovered young talent playing in trendy speakeasies and the world’s biggest stars selling out The Greek, The Hollywood Bowl, and Nokia Theatre “L.A. Live”.
Thrillist came out with a list of America’s 7 Best Rock Clubs and two of our favorites from our old homes made the list (along with the Great American Music Hall in our new home, which deserves a blog post as well). This got us talking about which venue offered us more enjoyment while we were in each city. The Troubadour is an American icon and likely the most influential rock venue in the world. As a small sample of it’s impact, The Troubadour is where The Byrds got their start, The Eagle’s Don Henley and Glenn Frey first met, and Cheech and Chong’s comedy was discovered. As a result, the tiny venue attracts some of the biggest names in music at affordable prices. For example, OK Go will perform for a capacity crowd of around 400 for 20 bucks this July. But perhaps the venue’s greatest strength are the shows with relatively unknown performers. The likelihood that you are experiencing the early days of next big thing is high because this is where the next big star is created and found. At The Troubadour you can enjoy a few drinks at the friendly front bar, before an intimate performance with immensely talented performers on some of music’s most hallowed ground. So how is it that we debate that Lupo’s is just as important to the Overhead team? Providence is approximately an hour drive from Boston. With over 1.5 million residents in its metropolitan area, it has a significant population and yet is often forced to play second fiddle to its larger neighbor, Boston. While Boston hosts baseball’s Red Sox and hockey’s Bruins, Providence county has the minor league baseball affiliate “PawSox” in Pawtucket and the minor league hockey affiliate Providence Bruins play at “The Dunk” in Downcity. Buffalo, New Orleans, and Oklahoma City all have smaller metro areas than Providence, which indicate that the city does not always benefit from being so close to a larger neighbor.
Music is one case where Providence has distinguished itself. Lupo’s books some of the biggest names in music. It benefits from big tours that swing through Boston’s stadium-sized music venues like TD Garden or The Wilbur as well as the many smaller ones. Lupo’s offers a more intimate and affordable concert experience surrounded by fellow Rhode Islanders. In Providence, we got to enjoy the big names that play in Boston in a friendlier and more honest environment, plus it is walking distance to excellent restaurants, bars, and your car. The importance of having a truly top-class live music experience in the city is profound on the entire community, and makes Lupo’s an integral part of the Providence experience.
It is difficult for us to decide between the historic Troubadour in the entertainment capital of the world and the identity forging, latest-hits performing Heartbreak Hotel. We imagine this discussion will only become more complicated as we become regulars at even more great venues. We suggest you give both clubs a try and tell us what you think!