The scene in Jax is dying...

Thee Imperial is closing.

It wasn't the most upscale venue in Jax (The AC never worked, toilet paper was an unknown concept, the doors on the bathroom stalls were curtains, no soap, no paper towels, the smell of sweat and cigarettes could stifle within seconds, the speakers were murder on your ears, etc)
But still, it's a local venue.

I saw The Casualties there.
I saw The Adicts there (in all of there glitter-throwing violin-playing madness)
That is the only venue in Jax that can make a good circle pit (Fuel ain't got nothing on Thee Imperial kids)
The kids used to bounce off the walls.
Bands would play, and it didn't matter if half the crowd got on stage and sang along.
Everyone was equal, and it was all about having a good time.
I didn't know the names of most of the people that worked there, but every time mom and I went to a show, they'd say "Haven't seen you here in a while. How have you been?"
The walls are old and crumbly. Painted over who knows how many times.
There was a pine tree air freshener hanging from the ceiling.
They had one of the dustiest disco balls I have ever seen.
But Thee Imperial was keeping the punk scene alive.
It was the ONLY thing keeping the punk scene alive.

The scene in Jax has gone to shit.
Now the trend is to overcharge pre-pubescent middle schoolers to see radio bands at Freebird.
Fuel has a monopoly on the rock bands. They can charge whatever they want because they booked Brand New. Can they invest some of that money into some decent air conditioning so we don't fucking pass out when they sell too many tickets and cram us in like sardines? No, of course not.
Don't even get me started on Plush. Biggest bunch of assholes I've ever encountered in my life.

Jack Rabbits is the only thing holding the scene together.
I will always love Jack Rabbits.
It's zebra couch.
It's towering speakers which are always in danger of toppling on to the audience.
The AC which only blows cool air directly in front of the left speaker.
The non-existent lighting.
The stage lighting that makes everyone red.
Sold out RJA local shows, where the temperature was so hot your clothes were soaked with sweat.
Employees that don't even have to ask to see an ID, because you come there so often.
Security guards who are nice (unlike the dickwads at Freebird).
Random sing-a-longs to "Roxanne" during set changes.
Inspection 12 shows where they bake cookies and pass them out to everyone.

I guess you could say this is a call to arms.
Save the fucking scene.

XMeganX