The Catalyst
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Music: Live
- Best Nights: Fri, Sat
47 Reviews for The Catalyst
I can't give it 5 stars (yet) because I've only been once and that was awhile ago (1999, I believe). But it was the best 311 show I've been to! I was under 21 at the time, so I can't comment on the bar. I remember it being really intimate and having a great view of the band. Going to see Jason Mraz here next month, so I'll have an updated review by then!
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Update: 3 April 08
Came back for the 311 concert (coming back to see Jason Mraz tomorrow night), and had a blast. Had some drama with an older lady who "claimed" a section of the benches on the side. But c'mon. It's general admission, either you sit or stand or let others sit or stand. That's that way GA works. Oh well. Had a great time. Can't wait 'til tomorrow's show. More details about venue then.
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Great place to watch a concert. I've seen many Reggae bands here over the years. Watching Israel Vibration rip it up at the Catalyst in 1992 will go down as one of my favorite concerts eva!
The older I get the less I make the 45 minute drive that way, but all my memories of this place have been good ones. Well maybe Eek a Mouse stunk up the joint but the that's just one out of many.
Downtown Santa Cruz has gotten shadier and shadier as the years go by, and the parking is OK. But The Catalyst is still a sweet spot!
This review reflects my only experience at The Catalyst, on April 24, 2008, after spending half a day driving from Sacramento, walking the Santa Cruz wharf and sketching a pathetic sign that read: "I Need 2 Tickets."
I had only recently heard of the show. I was ecstatic and then crushed when I gave the Catalyst a call:
"I'm calling about the Collie Buddz concert."
"The show is sold out."
"But, do you think I can..."
"No, that's what SOLD OUT means." Click.
I was determined to prove her wrong.
My fiance and I made our way to Pacific Avenue in downtown Santa Cruz. After some detective work, I was able to locate the majority owner of local event tickets. It was an extremely difficult operation as I had to determine which of the three shady-looking Mexicans to buy from. I played it so cool that one of the vendors made his way to me.
Tickets in hand, I rejoin my beautiful Chinese fiance at an outstanding Italian restaurant located on the opposite-corner of the Catalyst. We finish our pizza and wine and are the very first to enter the venue at 7:10pm.
We enter the performance area and head immediately to the bar. I ask the new lady behind the counter, "Where's the best seat in the house, in the front below a six-foot stage or up on the balcony?" She points upstairs and hands me a double-shot of Johnnie Walker Black that was less than half-the-price of what every other bar in the world charges. I made sure it was real, as I watched her open the box, take out the new bottle and pour the delicious liquid into my ice-filled cup.
My fiance and I sat down at our very own table in the first row of a balcony that overlooked the stage. She looked at me with a look that I've come to know too well: Ch-Ch-Ch-China was disappointed that Broccoli Beef wasn't on the menu. We drank our drinks and the DJ worked her spinning magic. As 8pm approached, the sold-out venue began to fill with college students and clouds of ganja smoke. The college crowd was fun and extremely generous. The sound system was crystal clear, the drinks were cheap, the people were cool, the aroma was therapeutic and Collie Buddz tore the roof off.
The Catalyst loses a star because of the rude phone-service.
i haven't been to a live venue in a while but I came here to play pool with some friends. People smoke. I don't care for that at all!! Even when I was a smoker, I never cared for that quality in any establishment. The "chi" is kinda crummy up here, too, as the tables are incredibley close together and people are hard core up here. You actually have to play and win someone to get a table if its too packed.. Lame for me cuz I suck.. my friends won and got the table but I felt the tension to be high. The drinks were watery in my opinion and not worth the money. People were a bit odd, too. I think I typically like the people of Santa Cruz so I don't know if these were locals... because the girls kept having stink face in my direction. This gets me very tired and sleepy.. I don't know why but stuck up irritating people bore me very easily.. and I hate pool.. and smoke.. so upstairs gets a 1 but the second star comes from my friends having fun.
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known nationally for infamously rowdy mosh pits, this place is no joke. big enough to fit a lot of people in, small enough to still be intimate, this place is rad. stage is really high, so there is never a bad view. soundwise it is LOUD AS SHIT, so bring earplugs. not for the light of heart, cuz they are not joking about the pits. good place to get bruised.
fuck yeah.
awesome shows: GWAR, Face to Face, Good Riddance, Jetlag, No Use for a Name, Horse the Band, The Faction, Dropkick Murphys.
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a.k.a. - the Capitalist...
What a great place to go to see a band up close and personal...
I got to see the Violent Femmes, No Doubt, Dance Hall Crashers,...and a few others here...
There are always cool bands coming through SC... and if you're lucky enough to be there when that happens... You should take that opportunity!
BTW... don't be discouraged by the 18+ crowd... It actually adds to the overall ambiance of the place.
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There was nothing about going to an event here that really impressed me. While I'll be the first to admit I do enjoy much of the talent that gets brought in, the overall appeal of the place seems to be lacking. The bar is understaffed, understocked, and limited to the point where spending that much on any drink seems fruitless. The ambiance is very raw and seemingly dirty from unfinished lumber for the balcony to the lack of professional quality sound. Since Santa Cruz doesn't have a larger stage setup in the immediate area, crowds that would normally vary depending on the type of show are mostly dominated by the underage and college locals.
Overall, I would feel that the Catalyst is worth more to see the performers brought in and not the venue itself.
Salty.
That deserves a whole paragraph. Upstairs is dominated by bro-cals who will readily fight you because you didn't go to high school in Santa Cruz, and your dad isn't a contractor.
Downstairs is a meat market in the atrium. Hard to be aggressive enough to meet a slut there. Not that I want to.
Minus two stars for that...plus three for being a great small venue for all kinds of bands. Saw Toots and the Maytals and Devil Makes Three, amongst others. Sweet place to see some bands in an intimate setting.
P.S. Don't be tempted to eat any of the food there.
The Catalyst is a great place to catch acts that might be either sold out or in a larger venue in SF. The club itself is well put together, and has decent enough sound. Drinking is relegated to the balcony, so the floor crowd tends to stay pretty mellow, which can be both good and bad depending on how you look at things. For my part, given that I'm usually driving back to SF the same night, I'm perfectly fine not having alcohol easily accessible. If I lived in Santa Cruz, I think I might be a little miffed that I can't enjoy a beer and get up close at the same time.
I met Blake Schwarzenbach of Jawbreaker and Jets to Brazil fame here and thought I was going to die. I saw the Pharcyde be amazing here after thinking I was going to die from smoking really strong pot at my friend Ann's house and almost missed the show being passed out for three hours .I saw Modest Mouse here and when Issac sang BROKE I was close to tears. This is a cool little spot to see a show in Santa Snooze. No show goes past 12 on the dot though, kinda stupes!
honorable mention goes out to the now defunct PALOOKAVILLE, where i saw DJ SPOOKY ,BLACKALICIOUS, and my favorite ...I saw Kool Keith here and he pelted me with a piece of fried chicken during "GIRL I WANT TO TOUCH YOU THERE"-=TRUE STORY
Have you ever been torn between going to a sweat lodge or listening to live music?
Well by attending a show at the Catalyst you don't have to decide.
I mean seriously it was at least 90 degrees downstairs and probably 95 upstairs in the drinking corral. Yes they have drinking corrals so that this can be an all ages venue, stupid if you ask me as there are not 18 year olds that like Ryan Adams.
Oh and there is nothing sadder than seeing a sloppy drunk menopausal hippie lady, ewww.
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Matisyahu, why would you do this to me? I love you. You're coming here. I want to see you. So why are my options:
1). Skip a week of groceries, coffee, and all other sundries, so that I can see you OPEN for 311?! I haven't heard of them since I was in 7th grade and I sure don't wanna see them now!
2). Over the hills and through the woods to Santa Cruz I go, to break my vow that I would NEVER return to The Catalyst.
Dear Catalyst Owners,
The above-mentioned vow is the result of your utter ineptitude. How you lure such big names into your little dungeon of nast is beyond me. Though you apparently have no interest in public opinion, here's mine anyway.
DO NOT invite 16 year-olds to your shows. 18+ should be the minimum. I understand that you have a college crowd to accomodate, but the young 'uns will put up with your bull sh*t. We crochety adults will not. Relegate THEM to the balconies to swelter and smoke dope. WE should get to drink in peace within arm's-length of the performers because WE know better than to grab them!
Fans are cheap; use them (meaning, the kind that blow air; NOT the customers). Good bouncers exist; hire them. You can afford a decent sound system; buy one. Though I may be back thanks to Matisyahu's idiot booking agent, I won't be happy about it.
sloppy hippy hugs,
yet another grown-up with a wallet who does not like you
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Shooter Jennings,Buthole Surfers,Maceo Parker,Ministry, Hank 3, G Love, Robert Earl Keen, Sick Of It All, Devil Makes3, what more could you ask for in a dog $#@! town like Santa Cruz? If you go up towards the front the sound is good (Not Filmore,GAMH,War field) but it's better than sitting in some coffee house listening to a weak ass jazz combo.
You can smoke cigarettes upstairs,you can smoke reefer downstairs. What more could you ask for in sleepy little Santa Cruz?
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Only at a Santa Cruz venue would the surface area of my forearms be subjected to being entirely tatted up by a barrage of check point stamps, each ridiculously large enough to warrant their own zip code. Give me a couple more nights with the layers of bouncers working the Catalyst and I'm going to look like a freaking Yakuza.
Before I up and die of ink poisoning though, let me tell you, I spent two hours last night with a whole lot of granolas who would appear to have spent a rather healthy proportion of their adult life smoking something goooood. I have never seen such, ehm, interesting forms of dancing, but it was rad to see in the flesh.
On a whim, my buddies and I (the same ones who shared a delightful evening with me in the dungeons of Vive Sol) drove out to see Patty Griffin on tour. I had never heard of her before yesterday, except for the fact that up until about an hour before curtain, I was really hoping that it wasn't that one red headed comedian chick from News Radio...
Not. Even. Close.
Turns out, she's a folk singer with fiery red locks and a pure, but changeable voice. Itunes doesn't do her justice -- her voice is absolutely soulful and beautiful LIVE (despite the venue's demeritorious sound equipment), but one minute she's Norah Jones Gone Bluegrass, another minute she's a country rock star. I prefer the former since she tends to go really shrill when rockin out.
If you're looking for a kick back evening, Patty Griffin will be at the Warfield Friday 3/16.
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I have seen some pretty great show's here. So many memories Social D, Pepper, Mos Def, Slightly Stoopid, Dredg, Damian Marley and many more. I could never hate this place.
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This club is terrible. In general the people in SC downtown are kinda terrible too... Unless you are my friend Victor... then you are just a maggot.
Anyway, some of the features that should interest you:
No AC in the venue
2 bars and a TOTAL of 3 bartenders (for 1200 or so people)
Holding pens for drinkers
Mid-rangey PA
SC locals "dancing" (twirling around)
So anyway, this place is a dump, the people that work here are less than helpful (aside for the bartenders who were pretty cool) and you are likely to pass out from the heat after 45 minutes.... AND YOU GET TO PAY FOR ALL THIS.
From now on, I'm only going to gigs in SF proper.
After many years of trying to lovemy town's biggest venue (next to Moe's Alley), I have developed an informed opinion of the Catalyst. My advice: Avoid this venue for any and all reasons, if you can.
Sound Quality: The lowest of any "pro venue" I have ever been to. When I saw Lauryn Hill here, she almost walked off stage cause the sound was so bad she couldn't hear herself. Same with Damien Marley and Modest Mouse. The only good show I've seen here (out of maybe 30) was The Mars Volta.
Employees/Bouncers: The worst part of the Catalyst experience. The men who work the door walk around brooding, screaming and assaulting young show-goers. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I've seen them be absolutely sexist, rude, violent, offensively abrasive, and generally horrible and mean. Sounds dramatic, but I can't stress that part of it enough.
Ambiance: full of tension, egos, and really dirty and smelly. Even the "green room" which is supposed to be the nice part reminds me of a BART public restroom.
Shows: They book great acts! But shit, they never go on until about 2 hours after they're meant to. (Tracey Chapman started 3 hrs later).
Honestly, I've always left disappointed at the sound quality, which would be less irritating if the Ticket Prices weren't always way overpriced. None of this is to mention the endless mess-ups that Will-call has put me (and my credit card) through. The food that was there before Pleasure Pizza came gave me a stomach parasite. Yum.
My friend Lani Trock, a singer/songwriter from Hawai'i who lived in Santa Cruz and now live and performs in LA wrote a song about the ass grabber who helped himself to her behind when she worked as a cocktail waitress at the Catalyst's bar: "Super Booty Ass Grabber". Her MySpace: http://www.myspace.com...
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Yeah! The Catalyst is sweet! I have seen some of my favorite bands play here (shout out to Less Than Jake!! woooo). I love Santa Cruz, so going to the Catalyst is an awesome excuse to come to SC. The venue is good overall. Nice upstairs/downstairs combo. OK, I'm feeling nostalgic now ... I haven't been here in a while (I spent my freshman year of college at UCSC -- and only my freshman year here --- so I've got memories, man). But this place is way fun for shows.
Its always one of my favorites in SC. Upstairs you can smoke, which is great for my friends. And then I can still hang with them and my cocktail! Downstairs is better now that the ivy and rafters are cleaned up. I had heard (not seen) many stories about the rats in the rafters and ivy. Which made me refuse to sit under it.......until a few cocktails later that is! The back concert area isn't the best.....but its Santa Cruz for god sake! You would think that people would know by stepping foot in Downtown SC that the place wouldn't be up to par! But that is the charm of it. Gotta love it!! Especially for Superbooty!!!
I have never had a good experience here. I've been to a variety of shows (and they do pull in some great people) and every single time something lame has happened. Plus, the sound sucks. Spend the extra $ and drive to SF.
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Am I the only one who recognizes how horrible the accoustics and equipment set up is in the main room at the catylst? More than once I've seen an unsuspecting artist suffer with a totally baffled look on their face because they can't hear themselves properly. It's lame being cooped up in that pen if you want to have a drink, too. All in all I'd rather head to S.F. and catch an act at the fillmore than deal with the catalyst.
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This place deserves a few stars just because they do book some good bands, and I've seen some smokin' shows over the years here. It has a lot of drawbacks though, including the too-high stage, terrible acoustics, dickhead security, and wack crowds of drunken local meatheads... The atrium area is kind of nice though, and they occasionally have a good band playing for free out there, although the new ownership has turned it into a lame dance club most nights over the last couple of years. Upstairs is not a bad place to play pool when it's not too crowded. The pizza is decent too... I would often stop in here for a dollar slice of cheese and a beer on Tuesday Dollar Days...
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I'm admittedly biased in favor of this club because my now-defunct band played there a whole lot and we inspired the ass-grabbing without a doubt (I got some in myself, but mostly on stage). That said, I've also seen more than a few shows at the Catalyst and always liked it as a venue. It's huge, especially considering it's in Santa Cruz. It has good sound. It's got history. It's always been able to attract relatively major acts. It has several different areas to offer aside from the main floor.
Also, the crowd has always been great, at least for the shows I've experienced. From a performer's standpoint, I always found it amazing that we got our peace in the dressing room located above and across from the bar; I think there are lots of places where some yahoo would think it's a good idea to come upstairs and bug the band. In fact, there were nights when that room wasn't even locked (it is now, so don't get any ideas), but the people just knew to respect our space and privacy.
Amazing Revelation #1: George Clinton used to be a hairdresser.
Amazing Revelation #2: Kindergarten teachers love the Funk.
I LOVE George Clinton. Not Clinton as in Gap dress "Clinton," but Clinton as in Dr. Funkenstein. In fact, I love him so much that when I saw he was playing at the Catalyst in Santa Cruz, I immediately bought tickets for me and hubby to go. The evening was seriously funkadelic. I was funkin' with the funkers and we funked until the funkin' lights came up. It was AWESOME!
Ol' Clinton and his band was on fire. They played one song alone for at least 30 minutes, which freaked the crowd into a frenzy of sweaty, gyrating funksters, all of us singing along to the lyrics. So much so, I ended up memorizing the song...Double Dutch Bus.
So for the rest of the weekend, I had Double Dutch Bus going through my head...I couldn't stop (trying) to sing it.
"The Double Dutch Bus is on the street
You'd better get off the curb
Move your feet..."
Hubby was visibly perturbed. "You're DESTROYING that song for me, you understand that, right?" Hmph. Whatever. I sound tight when I funk.
I had a persistent earworm. I kept singing that song, even in the classroom, which seemed to entertain the kids, one in particular. There was this cute little boy that was in my class. He had a bit of a speech impediment, which made it difficult to understand him pretty much all the time. Everything he said pretty much sounded like gibberish. He was pretty good at hand gestures like, "I have to pee!" But that was about it. He eventually grew out of it in first grade, but It made for an interesting year in my K class.
Strangely, after the Clinton concert, the strangest things started happening with this boy. He came up to my desk one day and stared at me for a minute. He had the cutest little gruff mumbly voice. I could barely make out what he was trying to say, but it sounded almost like...
Lil' Boy: "Give me a HO if you've got your funky bus fare..."
Me: (thinking about it) "Huh? Wh...?"
Lil' Boy: "I say ssssssss-sugar..."
Me: (looking at boy) "Wh-what?" This kid looked at me, opened his tiny mouth and all I heard was...
"Bip, bomp, bam alakazam
But only when you're grooving
With the Double Dutch Man
Put on your skates don't forget your rope
Cause I know I'm gonna see you
At my Double Dutch Show
Rebecca, Lolita, Veshawn and Dawn
Everytime you do the Double Dutch you really turn it on '
Bilzarbra, Mitzery, Milzetty, Kilsan
Titzommy, Kitzerrance, Kilzommy that's my man
Come on get on my Double Dutch Bus
The Double Dutch Bus!"
I just stared at him for a minute. He stared back. But even though it was Funk-onics and not his usual Jodie Foster Nell language, I STILL could not understand what he was asking for.
I helplessly waved made-up signals at him in wild, exaggerated hand gestures: BATHROOM? He shook his head, no. CRAYONS? He shook his head, no. DR. SEUSS? No. LIGHTSABER? Nope.
Not knowing what to do next, I dug around the desk and found a bag of Goldfish Crackers and meekly offered them to him. To my great relief, he took them, smiled, and went back to his desk. I guess that's what lil' Funkmaster K wanted.
I have GOT to cut down on the Yoo-Hoo.
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So I'm on a pilgrimage to review venues I've seen shows at until I reach my 100th review. 5 more to go. I've only been to the Catalyst once to see Keller Williams (shocker). I had a great time and the venue had a lot to do with it. There's the open floor on the ground level for shaking your groove thing. It's surrounded by little tables and chairs for chilling out too. I went upstairs to the balcony level where there are more of those tables and chairs and I managed to score a primo seat near the front set of stairs that leads down to stage left.
I always heard that Santa Cruz was known for being super liberal, especially when it came to things like poking smot. So, I guess I shouldn't have been that surprised when someone standing next to me sparked up with one of the bouncers standing an arm's length away. It didn't even phase him as the whole place proceeded to go up in smoke. What a town. What a venue. I'd go back in a second.
Minus 1 star for both the venue and town being a little dirty. I'm no snob so this didn't really bother me, but I reserve the right to dock points from my reviews for such things. I also see this place is just a regular bar/restaurant and recall following a series of ropes through a bunch of rooms to the back where the concert was held. It'd probably be a cool place to hang out too.
Does anyone remember when Palookaville was around?? THAT WAS A GREAT VENUE. This is the place by default for concerts. I stopped going into the pit of the catalyst because I cannot stand the bitties and the brahs-- so I usually hike up the stairs and get a birds eye view of the show with no drama (or pushing). The drinks are mediocre-- kinda of like the sound system in its concert area in the back. Catalyst is kinda like a rite of passage if you are here in SC... its not an SC experience until you go...
One of the few alternative venues to those in SF that gets semi big acts in a small initimate setting. The place gets fairly crowded and stuffy and you're bound to get a contact high whether you like or not. Certainly a lot of the diverse acts are worth it though.
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Asshole security, sticky floors, bad sounds, awkward stage height, overpriced tickets.
Pretty much.
However since the death of Palookaville, it's the only place in SC to see mid-sized shows.
God I miss Palookaville.
The air inside The Catalyst at times smells of weed and pizza. Pizza because they sell it there by the slice, and weed because it's a music venue in Santa Cruz. The venue size to artist popularity ratio is good meaning you could see a pretty big band (ie The Mars Volta) in this pretty small venue. Not sure the venue alone is worth the drive to Santa Cruz. However, if a band I want to see is making its only Bay Area appearance at The Catalyst, you can count on me going.
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My first time there was in the middle of the day. I thought, "okay, they got a pretty cool stage. Some pool tables upstairs along with a full bar. Decent layout. Probably not a bad place to see a show. Huh, I can't believe some of the huge acts they get here. The stage is nice, but it looks kinda smallish."
Oh, you foolish man. The real venue down the secret hallway in the back was revealed to me the night of the concert. "OHHH!!! Hahaha, right. Ok. Duh."
Big stage. Big open floor. Really tall ceiling. Another bar. Balconies on both sides. Dark. Moody. 420-friendly. Well, not really but it was definitely there.
Upstairs for the 30 and over crowd (apparently their standing, moshing, flirting, and mingling days are over. How the hell are you gonna sit at a table with your apple martini like you're at the jazz festival? You're at a freakin rock concert!), and moshers, stage divers, and 20somethings on the floor. Pretty standard, really. I tried to mix it up a bit, and stand up close to the stage. I got bumped around a bit, so I went back for a beer and chilled out. My redhead showed up, and we watched the last set from the back.
You know, getting older doesn't mean having to make the distinction of what crowd you fit into. I saw a 50something business man in a full 3pc suit stage dive in an Everclear concert during the rock the vote tour in '96. It was outside in the San Francisco business district (i forget the name of the courtyard), but this guy must have seen the show from his skyscraper office and decided that he could totally put himself out there and have the time of his life. I will always remember how incredibly psyched the band and the crowd got when he launched himself off the stage and surfed on the hands of kids a third his age! I love it.
Chevelle rocks.
David Hasselhoff does not.
Guess which one I saw at the Catalyst?
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One of the best places to see a show in Santa Cruz, or just a place to hang out and have a beer with some friends. They have a seperate room for live music, plus a more general bar/hangout room up front. The main drawback is that for some shows they don't serve alchoholic drinks in the music room, you have to go out to the front and drink up there. Luckily that's not the case for all shows.
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I've always enjoyed the shows I've been to at The Catalyst.
You get the intimate feel, but it's big enough so if you're not feeling the music you can hang out in front area.
It is true - the air smells like pizza and weed. I haven't tried the pizza nor the weed at the Catayst but maybe next time!
The only disturbing thing is when I'm in line and rude people walking by ask who is playing and laugh because obviously they believe their taste in music is SOOOOOO much better. However, while I'm inside enjoying the show, I see them jumping up and down 3 feet away from me. asshole.
They say that the best things in life are free. And while the accuracy of that statement will be debated for years, I do know that you can get many great things for a dollar. At The Catalyst on "Dollar Wednesdays" you can get the a beer, a slice of pizza, and admission to a progressive indie concert, for a buck each. With its eclectic mix of hip-hop underground and santa cruz hippie funk, The Catalyst provides a great spot for people watching and a wealth of social opportunities. It also makes a great first date spot for that high maintenance girl who you suspect might have agreed to go out with you after you dropped coin on a bottle of crys up in the club.
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I saw a concert here the other night. COMPLETELY SUCKED. Let me count the ways:
1) HOT AS HELL. You would think that on one of the hottest days of the year, they would at least have the decency to get a fan or two. Nope. No AC, no fans, nothing...
2)...which brings me to my second point. - several hundred people dancing in a 100 degree cave makes the place smell like old sneakers covered in puke that have been marinating in the sun for weeks. Seriously, Catalyst, would it kill you to fucking plug in a Glade or something?
3) The set-up of this place is ridiculous. The show I went to was open to those under 21 as well as those over 21. And so how do they deal with this? They relegate the boozers to 2 tiny balconies and don't let you go into the main area with your drink! When I tried to take my cup of ice downstairs (seriously, the cup just had ice in it that I wanted to save since it was sweltering), the bouncer bitch grabbed my cup. I wanted to punch her....
4) ...which leads me to my next point - the bouncers that work here are JERKS! They sat there scowling all night, acted like dicks to anyone who even put one toe "out of bounds" with a drink, and were generally just complete waste of human space.
Overall, it was a HORRIBLE experience. I will never, ever go back here.
The only enjoyable part of the evening was the contact buzz I got from the people smoking j's around me....
when you live in Santa Cruz, its not like everday you can drive over the hill (Hwy17) to go see live shows in the city. therefore, i appreciated the fact this place booked some really good artists. Catalyst has over 25 years of history. when i went for the first time and saw a pic of Stevie Ray Vaughan on the wall, i knew this place had soul!
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This place fucks up downtown with traffic whenever something big and stupid plays. The only thing good about it is on Tuesdays they sell huge $1 slices of pizza at the pizza joint inside the place. I'd rather go to the Vets Hall to see a show.
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So PartyBot used to MC for Superbooty and they did two shows this year (Halloween and New Year's Eve) at the Catalyst. Not really my scene, the Catalyst feels cold and cavernous before shows. The band areas stink and the folks there like to tell me I can't drink my red wine that I bring for myself before shows...harrumph! Once things get going, the place kind of grows on me, though. Maybe it's the Santa Cruz crowd, maybe it's just that Superbooty fans are really super nice and friendly, maybe it's the vibe of the place itself, laid back and light, that makes it a really fun (if musty) venue. I also have found the Catalyst to be a great place to really whore it up and unleash my inner hussy, something I like to do on the rare occasion when it feels appropriate. It's a fun place, though I don't know if it would be nearly as much fun if I couldn't nap backstage when I drink too much or chill out in the back to chain smoke when it gets too warm inside. The people running the place are professional and mostly really nice and friendly too! Especially when I'm whoring it up. All in all, a decent place to get your bad girl on without having to worry too much about running in to any of these people again.
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This is one of my favorite concert venues, maybe the best. I love how small and intimate it is, and I love the set up- not a bad seat in the house.
I love the catalyst for many reasons- most of which is that it is multi-faceted. You walk in, to see a pizza shack to the right. I'm pretty sure you can buy pizza here at any time of the day, regardless whether the rest of the building is open.
Next, to your left is a small stage and bar, where local shows often are held. Up stairs in the front is a pool hall, bar and lounge. This is where you can come to kick it any night of the week- a relaxed, bar atmosphere.
Towards the back on the first floor is the real venue- the Catalyst concert hall. The venue is medium-small, but awesome. There is a center floor, long and narrow; balcony views on each side which fill up quickly, and a bar in the back.
It's kind of a pain that they don't allow alcohol out of the 24x24 foot area towards the back during shows (with the exception of the balconies, which fill up)... so if you want a drink, grab one early or forget about a view. Other than that, it's a great venue for a small show.
the acoustics are bad. and the stage is waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too high. but i have to say, this place has character.
I've always enjoyed the diversity in the bands that play at the Catalyst, but I really don't like the venue itself. To start, the sound quality is pretty crappy. Second, the way they set up the 16+ shows is a pain in the ass for those of us who are drinking. And last, the stage is way, way too high. I'm pretty short, so I like to stand in the front of shows to see. At the Catalyst this doesn't work because the stage is too high to see in the front and I'm still totally blocked in by other people to see further back. Meh.
