Bloglander

Time to roll out the carpet for, yes, the seventh official name change in recent history for the venue at 230 W. Riverside Ave. I never tire of telling you all of them, so read in amazement: What was formerly Henry's, Mother's Pub, the B-Side, the Spread, Bricks, the Zombie Room and the Blvd is now … get ready for it…

The Seaside.

Owner Bill Powers says yes, he knows, there is no sea around these parts. It's a play both on the venue's former name, the B-Side, and the fact that it's on Riverside Avenue. Rivers and seas are both bodies of water.

The point is this: Powers, longtime Production Company booker, is the new owner and operator of the revolving space — shirking the obvious alcohol violations of the past owner with the name change and a new liquor license.

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Powers says he intends to do much of the same with the Seaside but has already unveiled a couple of unique touches of his own. Wednesdays are "residency" nights — which means you can see the same band each Wednesday there for a month. Right now Mon Cheri is in place through the month, with the B Radicals taking over in June and Jesi B. and the All Rites taking over thereafter.

The Seaside will also be a space for monthly art and music shows, as well as something Powers is calling "Mass Action." That's a one-night event that highlights a local cause — maybe Food Not Bombs, Invisible Children, or the Main Market Co-op, he says.

"Something I'm excited about doing [is] trying to get more involved with the community using the Seaside as a vehicle to introduce people to artists and causes, not just music," he says.

And that might be precisely the right way of thinking to keep the door from revolving again at the longtime music joint.

Check out his spiffy, up-to-date website at www.seasidevenue.com.