Must See Music Venues in Each City

Written by Garrett Winslett

If you’re anything like me, you’ll do anything and go anywhere to enjoy a live music event. This love and this passion has carried me across the country to different festivals and venues that have been absolutely incredible experiences. As you continue to see more of this amazing country, take along this list of music venues that you should hit up, and what you can expect. Cities are listed in alphabetical order.

Austin, Texas

The Concourse Project

Austin is widely known as the live music capital of the world. On a daily basis, you can catch pop up shows of every genre on a random street corner, or in your local grocery store. As far as the dance music scene goes, it is a little behind other major cities, but has recently opened The Concourse Project. If you can imagine massive, sweaty, dark warehouse vibes, then you are picturing The Concourse Project. Home to headliners that have come through like Jauz, Chris Lake, Purple Disco Machine, and John Summit, Austin is being put on the map as the next hot dance music city. 

Chicago, IL 

Prysm

As the birthplace of house music, Chicago has one of the best and richest scenes for all things dance music. 

• Radius is a massive indoor warehouse that hosts major headliners such as John Summit, and frequently is host to crowds of 3,000 or more
• Prysm is an intimate 2 story club with a layered LED wall and high tech lighting to really put on a performance for each of its dj’s
• Tao Chicago is part high end Asian-cuisine and part time 2 story nightclub that plays host to Dom Dolla and other big artists

Denver, Colorado

Meow Wolf

Denver is known to many as the bass music capital. We’re all familiar with the magic that surrounds Red Rocks Amphitheater with the outdoor acoustics and the Denver skyline views, but the city is surprisingly home to a lot of other venues filled with multiple genres. A few other cool venues to check out include: 

• Meow Wolf, the mind blowing immersive art experience center, has a live music room attached to it
• The Church is an ancient 1865 church renovated into a multi-room dance hall
• Mission Ballroom is a concert venue located in the heart of downtown Denver
• Temple Denver is a dance club with LED walls on every corner. 

Las Vegas, NV

Omnia

Some call it Sin City, but to the dance community, Vegas is the home of EDC Las Vegas and some of the best dance music venues in the world. 

• Omnia Nightclub is one of the hottest nightclubs on the Las Vegas strip, with its iconic 22,000 pound LED Chandelier that will lower during the course of the night to beats from artists like Loud Luxury, NGHTMRE, & Alesso
• The Downtown Las Vegas Events Center is a cool outdoor space that many artists like Excision, Malaa, and Eric Prydz frequent as it’s uniquely nestled in the heart of Downtown Vegas/Fremont Street.
• Area 15 is a newer venue that is home to a variety of interactive art experiences, most notably Meow Wolf’s Omega Mart. But at night when the kids go home, the 200,000 square foot space hosts various live music events in smaller venues like the Emporium Barcade, within The Portal – where images are projected in 360 degrees to enhance the experience, and in the A-Lot which is its outdoor space

Los Angeles, CA

Exchange LA

The city of angels is also one of the most popular dance music cities in the country. 

• The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheater in the Hollywood Hills and was named one of the 10 best live music venues
• Exchange LA is a mega 4 story nightclub with LED walls, lasers, confetti cannons and is a tour stop for many major artists touring
• Academy is a massive 20,000 square foot warehouse with an LED ceiling that is the Hollywood home for Insomniac

Miami, Florida

With beaches and unbelievable weather, it’s no surprise that Miami is a hotspot for night life and music. Some cool places to check out are:

• Club Space, widely known for its parties starting at 9pm and running until sunrise if not multiple days later, is a hotspot for various house and techno artists
• Factory Town frequently changes out its themes to host all sorts of artists and match the ambiance created by this outdoor venue
• Treehouse is a very intimate jungle club setting
• E11even is a rooftop club with aerial performers and downtown Miami views
• LIV is conveniently located on Miami beach, with over 18,000 square feet inside the Fontainebleau hotel lobby

New York, NY

Brooklyn Mirage

Bright Lights; concrete jungle. New York City is one of the meccas for anything dance music related, with multiple venues across the city. 

• Brooklyn Mirage, the newly renovated rooftop club hosting all genres of music and mostly known for its 200 ft LED wall and acts running until 7am in the morning
• Webster Hall is a venue in East Village primarily known for hosting bass music artists Elsewhere, yes its called elsewhere, is a rooftop venue located directly next to the Brooklyn Mirage
• Elsewhere has different rooms within the venue who will run artists at the same time as one another

San Francisco, CA

Midway SF

San Francisco has absolutely found its disco (Dom Dolla pun) and is a large player in the dance music scene. 

• Midway SF is a 40,000 square foot interactive warehouse/exhibition center, hosting dj’s such as Chris Lake, James Hype, & Malaa
• 1015 Folsom is a 3 story nightclub including 5 different rooms for dj’s to play in, and plays host to dj’s the like of Matroda, Kai Wachi, & Dillon Francis
• Bill Graham Civic Auditorium hosts many artists who tour like Zedd and Kaskade in addition to full on festivals like Wobbleland and Breakaway where they transform the massive space into a dance floor for all

Seattle, WA

WaMu Theater

If you’re not bundled up inside or out hitting the numerous ski resorts, Seattle has tons of venues to check out. 

• WAMU Theater is an indoor music venue hosting festivals such as Boo Seattle, as well as tour stops for artists
• Showbox SoDo is a venue with a large indoor main hall as well as an intimate side lounge with its own stage
• The Gorge is somewhere you have to experience at least once. Whether it be for Bass Canyon, Beyond Wonderland, or an artist take over, vibing to great music with this beautiful nature backdrop is unlike anything else

So when you’re traveling and have an itch to catch some good dance music, I hope you’ll check out some of these venues. This list just scratches the surface, so tag @lunchboxpacks on your favorite social channel and let us know which venues you would recommend!