Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
This New Bar In Hollywood Feels Like You're Having A Dance Party In An Attic
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.
Support for LAist comes from
"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.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity. -
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
Best of LAist