Wednesday Nights at Madame Wong's

Last night, I was invited to an intimate show at the legendary Madame Wong's. It was the "Wavves" record release party. Pt and I grabbed a quick delicious dinner at Loving Hut and made our way to Chinatown in LA. We met up with my friend Nick and his girlfriend and I somehow ended up inside a Jazz Bar next store which happened to have a dub-step night going on. We ended up finding the correct venue next door, only to discover it was an actual loft, fully equipped with bedrooms, a dining room, a living room and a bathtub. Esther Wong was the original owner in the 1970's when it was a Chinese cuisine restaurant with a Polynesian dance floor-show. She was pushed into becoming a punk rock and new wave music promoter and Madame Wong's quickly became a showcase for unsigned, un-bookable punk bands such as The Police, The Go-Go's, Oingo Boingo, The Wild, The Kats/The Nu Kats, Gun's N Roses, Black Flag, Fear, Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Ramones. This was one of the very few venues these types of bands could perform at. Thus this leading to her nickname as the "Godmother of Punk". The venue was closed down in 1985 due to a fire and re-opened in 2009 with acts such as Vampire Weekend and Devendra Banhart. I was sad to discover this historic venue will be closed for good on August 14th, but ultimately grateful I was invited to the last show before it closes.

Read more about Madame Wong's here.

Located in the Rice Bowl Restaurant

Modern Day Madam Wong's (green building)

Images via google and gogonotes.