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A new Hollywood nightspot that looks like your grandparents' attic has its frills in all the right places.
What we mean is, Genesis is not a craft cocktail bar themed to look like a speakeasy playing obscure, un-danceable music and demanding you wear your nicest shoes. But aesthetically speaking, Genesis looks great.
Genesis began as a pop-up bar on top of Sassafras. Last night was its first official night, and we stopped by for a little investigative drinking. Guests enter by walking up a staircase lined with candles and once at the top, you're in an open space covered in old paintings, taxidermy and mismatched furniture with a disco ball in the center.
Founder Jeremy Fall said he was looking to make a space that was somewhere between a bar and a nightclub, somewhere relaxed where people could just dance—a bar that wasn't a 2,000 capacity nightclub or concerned with mixology.
"Genesis was inspired by the mentality surrounding the club kids movement and Limelight in NYC in the '80s," he said. "It was just about taking over a space whether it be a donut shop, a semi truck or a basement and just throwing a party. I've always thought that all you need is four walls to throw a party."
To test the concept out, he had five pop-up nights at Genesis, then decided to move forward in making it a standard nightspot with regular hours after positive response from the first three pop-ups.
There's no dress code and no need to RSVP (though you can for priority entry). Fall says he sees nightlife as an "art installation" for creating memories in, and that they shouldn't limit people by imposing those kinds of rules. "I know it might sound like a lot for it being 'just nightlife,' but if you take a look at any major societal movement or event in history—whether it be the fight for the equality of women, the death of Andy Warhol, the liberation of homosexuality, an economic depression—it's always translated into a creative movement in nightlife fueled by self-expression."
The music last night was mostly soul, though we're told that the bar doesn't stick to a specific genre. If it's dance-able, they'll play it. (Fall's list of potential artists included Katy Perry, Madonna, Kanye West and Fleetwood Mac.)
"I'm a huge music enthusiast and love underground indie bands, but no one wants to turn up to Alt-J," Fall said. "People want to go out and dance." In September, the New York rock act Semi Precious Weapons will start a DJ residency.
Fall will next focus his attention on The Golden Box, which is what he's putting into the old Writers Room space in Hollywood. "The aesthetic is a grungy disco inspired by Chinatown in NYC in the late '70s and early '80s," he said. This bar will also be not quite a nightclub and not quite a bar—and no drink list.
Genesis. 1231 Vine St., Hollywood. Thurs.-Sun., 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. RSVPs are not necessary, but you can RSVP to rsvp@wtfisgenesis.com to get on a priority list for entry.
