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2017 Best of Olympia: Obsidian

Writer's Pick: Best Live Music Venue

After just over two years, Obsidian has established itself as an indispensable venue. Photo credit: nocleansinging.com

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It takes a hell of a lot of work to keep a music venue going strong, especially one that incorporates all-ages shows and makes risky booking decisions. Even a city as vibrant and artistically-minded as Olympia can fall victim to lackluster attendance, acts of God, and financially ruinous emergencies that can dissolve even the most robust of venues. Recent years saw the loss of the Northern, and with it a big chunk of musicality for Olympia. Places like Le Voyeur, the 4th Ave Tavern, and McCoy's Tavern have endured, but a little spark was lost with the vanishing of the Northern.

In late 2014, though, Obsidian came into being. For a while, as it established itself as a dependable cafe and bar, Obsidian flew under my radar as a burgeoning venue of vital music, art and comedy. It only caught my attention when they managed to snag a performance from Janeane Garofalo in February of last year. Since then, a weekly check of its events calendar has been an exciting, mandatory activity for me, as I assume it has been for so many of Olympia's arts scene devotees.

The booking for Obsidian - an underappreciated job that requires an ungodly amount of patience and a surplus of talent - has been inspiring to watch. Deftly balancing local talent and national gets, Obsidian has erred toward the ambitious, drawing in the likes of Screaming Females, Frankie Cosmos, and Eskimeaux (along with consistently interesting national acts that might get less attention), interspersed with the regular shows that frequently showcase a wide variety of genres. What might not occur to some, though, is that it's not terribly difficult to get a big act to come to your spot, if you've got the money; the biggest badge of Obsidian's success is that this caliber of acts keeps coming back. Treat a band like crap, or short-change them, and that sort of thing gets around.

Part of what has kept open-minded and socially conscious artists returning to Obsidian, and has kept similarly progressive audiences attending these shows, is Obsidian's anti-harassment policy, which explicitly bans sexist, racist, homophobic and transphobic language and behavior. Believe it or not, having a bar or venue take these transgressions seriously is still a notable achievement, even in this day and age. If anything, having a venue provide an unequivocally safe space, and mince no words about doing so, is even more important in a time when acting out against "the other" is threatening to become socially acceptable.

Obsidian's back room continues to invite exciting artists from around the world, while its front room has only grown in quality, offering delicious coffee and cafe eats during the day, and innovative cocktails once the sun goes down. For a business just a little over two years into its life, Obsidian shows no signs of slowing down. In bursting out the gate as self-assuredly as it did, Obsidian is doing its part to keep Olympia weird, forward-thinking, and steadfastly uncompromising.

Obsidian, 3 p.m. to 2 a.m., Monday-Friday; 10 a.m. to 2 a.m., Saturday-Sunday, 414 4th Ave. E., 360.890.4425, obsidianolympia.com

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