
As one of the few writers reporting on this that has actually been to downtown Eau Claire, Wis., I can attest: there's pretty much shit in terms of musical venues. But Eau Claire's favorite indie-rocker son, Justin Vernon, is planning to open a new musical venue in downtown, called Union College. Vernon and his brother recently had their plans for the renovation of a downtown building approved by the city, and he has four months to get funding and shore up the plans. Apparently the building will feature a first floor performance venue, and space in other levels for A/V production. Whether or not the venue can attract bands coming between Madison and Minneapolis is probably the biggest concern right now. [Pitchfork]
There is a great article on the Vernon's project in Eau Claire at volumeone.org. Included are sound bites from the interview with Nate Vernon. Good stuff expected for Eau Claire!
Mindy