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Tris McCall

Thirteen Places in Town to See Live Music Now

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It’s time for another update of our list of music venues in Jersey City, and alas, it isn’t a happy one. Since the last time we rounded up performance spaces, the town has lost a cornerstone: FM, the comfortable, decent-sounding downtown venue that was, for more than a year, the most reliable local spot to catch an independent act. FM had a real stage and lights and a dedicated PA system run by soundmen who took pride in their skills. It was a true rock club in the time-tested style, booked by people with roots deep in the community and a clear vision of the kind of venue they’d like to run and scene they want to cultivate. Its closure, which was covered here by our own Melissa Surach, leaves a void that won’t be easy to fill.

Anthony Susco, one of the prime movers behind FM, isn’t sitting still (he never does). He’s already announced his first bill at a new space above Barcade (163 Newark Ave.), which’ll either be called “Dancing Tony’s House of Fun” or “High Score.” The four-band show happens on Saturday, March 14, and the cover is eight bucks. It’s too early to add the spot to the roster of Jersey City music venues, but Tony’s projects tend to get traction quickly, so there’s reason to be optimistic. By the next JC Fridays, it’s our hope that there will be every reason to include Susco’s club on the list below. In the meantime, we’re also adding the SMUSH Gallery, which has made a commitment to booking live music alongside art exhibitions and dance performances.

By no means is this meant to be an exhaustive list. These are spaces that have caught our eye and that we think you ought to know about, but it’s just a sampling of what’s going on around town. We’ll add to it regularly as new spaces open. If there’s one in the region that you know about and think we should be featuring — or if you’re playing a show yourself — go ahead and let us know at info@jcitytimes.com.

DEDICATED MUSIC VENUES

White Eagle Hall

There are many places in town to catch a show worth your time. But any discussion of live music in Jersey City begins with White Eagle Hall. The restoration is gorgeous, the sight lines are good, the floor is comfortable even when it’s packed (which it often is), the stage itself is world-class and the room has been very reliably booked with strong acts with national profiles — mostly pop-rock, emo, and rootsy stuff but occasionally hip-hop and R&B performers, too. And although the large capacity means that White Eagle Hall is primarily a room for touring acts, they’ve managed to keep things Jersey, booking state favorites and local heroes and periodically handing the hall over to area promoters with big ideas. Outside of NJPAC, which doesn’t host contemporary bands too often, this is the nicest, sharpest, most impressive live venue in the state. And it’s ours, so direct yourself here immediately. (337 Newark Ave., www.whiteaglehalljc.com)

Fox & Crow

Enildo’s set, courtesy Fox and Crow’s Facebook page

For better or for worse, most of the action in Jersey City happens downtown. But the stretch of Palisade Avenue near Riverview-Fisk Park has become a destination in its own right, and Fox & Crow is one of the main reasons why. Like the neighborhood it’s in, Fox and Crow punches well above its weight: The tiny showroom stays booked with an impressive array of regional-level talent, aspirational local artists and the occasional name headliner. While the velvet curtains and black tables suggest speakeasy-like intimacy, this is not just a place for quiet singer-songwriters. We’ve heard some glorious rackets coming from Palisade and Congress. Best of all, audiences here are genuinely attentive and musically curious, which makes it a great place for ambitious writers to try out new material and new ideas. Night owl alert: Shows here often start late, so consider it a nice after-dinner option. Grab a bowl of pasta at Corto, and swing over. (594 Palisade Ave., www.foxandcrowjc.com)

Monty Hall

The shadow of the famous club on the corner of Washington and Tenth in Hoboken hangs over every music venue in Hudson County — and maybe New York City, too. The standard set by Maxwell’s is intimidating, but it’s given club owners something to shoot for. It’s safe to say that any room that’s hosted bands in Hudson County has had some elements meant to be reminiscent of Maxwell’s built into the design. But nobody has gotten it quite as right as Monty Hall, the Maxwell’s-sized club run by radio station WFMU, which is itself a local institution helmed by people who certainly knew their way around the Hoboken scene of the ’80s and ’90s. The black-box space looks, sounds and even smells a little like its legendary forerunner. Bookings tend to be bands that would have played at Maxwell’s if Maxwell’s was still booking bands: adventurous groups consistent with the WFMU aesthetic and its unswervingly free-form sensibility. If you like WFMU (of course you do), this is a place you’re going to want to visit. (43 Montgomery St., montyhall.ticketfly.com)

AN ART GALLERY THAT REGULARLY HOSTS MUSIC

SMUSH

The friendly, intimate SMUSH is best known for what’s usually up on its walls: adventurous, emotionally provocative, playful visual art. But Katelyn Halpern, the curator of the gallery is a dancer with a taste for multimedia experiences, and she sees the room as an interactive performance space as well as a den of visual delights. To that end, she’s steadily booked musical acts — and to her credit, she’s drawn to styles that aren’t always well represented on stages in Hudson County. That means jazz and electronic music, a little hip-hop, some pure sonic experimentation. It’s a lineup that looks and feels like Jersey City, and that’s something that bookers downtown might do well to learn from. (340 Summit Ave., smushgallery.com)

BARS AND RESTAURANTS WITH FREQUENT MUSIC NIGHTS

Pet Shop and PS Wine Bar

Yes, indeed, it was an actual pet shop. Before its transformation into a home away from home for local punk rockers, the building on the well-trafficked corner of Newark and Jersey was home to a … well, let’s not get too deep into it. Instead, it’s probably best to concentrate on what the building has become: a handsome, dark, pleasantly rough-hewn space capable of hosting musical events on its two levels. Upstairs is for the punk bands; downstairs PS Wine Bar can accommodate punk, too, but it’s also provided quiet acoustic singer-songwriters a suitably candlelit setting. Pointedly, the menu is vegan. Let’s just say they’ve got some ghosts to exorcise. (193 Newark Ave., www.petshopjc.com)

Porta

The capacious Porta Pizza used to put rock bands on the roof. There’s still plenty of music here, and some of it is even live, but the pizzeria has changed formats. These days, it’s mostly deejays spinning electronic stuff, though there are still occasional performers in the main space and jazz musicians during Sunday brunch. Porta was originally an Asbury Park brand, and they’ve been true to it: This is more of a Shore-like scene than what you’re likely to get outside of the Downtown pedestrian plaza. And by that, we mainly mean electro-beats, the sonic equivalent of thick mozzarella. (135 Newark Ave., www.pizzaporta.com)

The Factory

Speaking of places that can be a bit of a scene, The Factory on Communipaw is certainly not designed for wallflowers. But because of its regular Latin nights, it’s become an essential part of musical Jersey City. Some of the groups that’ve played here, bless them, have made no attempt whatsoever to cross over. You’re likely to hear real salsa and bachata here alongside the DJ-driven club music, and accordion and sax next to the synths and turntables. The frequent Sunday brunch entertainment has been particularly exciting and might leave you wondering why there aren’t more local places that host music of these styles. The Factory demonstrates that the talent is here. (451 Communipaw Ave.)

South House

Many bars and eateries north of the Mason-Dixon line affect a southern style. But few in New Jersey take it quite as far or are as meticulous about the details as South House. That means chicken and waffles and grits on the menu, Carolina-style swings out front and, periodically blues, R&B, jazz and Southern rock inside the restaurant. For instance, this summer, South House brought trumpeter Shamarr Allen up from the ninth ward of New Orleans; local blues harmonica champ Vin Mott led his band through a set in early September. In another extension of Southern hospitality, shows here tend to be free. Chasing regional authenticity might be hard in a place as polyglot as Jersey, but that doesn’t mean that the race isn’t worth running. (149 Newark Ave., www.southhousejc.com)

Corgi Spirits

Corgi is a local company that manufactures gin, whiskey and vodka and packages its products in very appealing bottles. The brand’s distillery isn’t easy to find: It’s at the southern end of the Lafayette neighborhood, right in the middle of an industrial zone and across Caven Point Ave. from the light rail headquarters. Nevertheless, Corgi has attracted some intriguing acts to the lounge, not just the jazz you’d expect to find in a room built for cocktails but some local pop-rock, too. It’s possible to imagine the music series at Corgi’s becoming a Jersey City mainstay. For the moment, it’s a pretty well-kept secret (which you’re now in on.) (1 Distillery Dr., www.corgispirits.com)

The Hutton

This friendly, low-key restaurant and bar in the middle of the Heights feels like Fox & Crow’s modest and somewhat bashful cousin. The musicians who play here are the sort who’d otherwise appear at the Fox and Crow parlour: acoustic singer-songwriters, jazz players, folk acts, Irish music, anybody who doesn’t need heavy-duty amplification to get their point across. At times, booking activity at the Hutton has been as heavy as that in any room in town. Early this summer on any given night they were open, the bar was likely to have a strummer or a singer in the back. Unlike Fox & Crow, there’s no extra room for shows, but the main space is so pretty that we doubt you’ll mind. (225 Hutton St., www.thehuttonjc.com)

The Archer

The Archer is located on the Newark Ave. pedestrian plaza, but the bar and restaurant has taken pains to cultivate a personality sharply different from that of the bigger clubs. It’s dark, there’s a heavy-duty hunting theme, the sliders are made from bison meat and the vibe in the room is resolutely grown-up. The unusual qualities of The Archer extend to the live music, which is provided by the Go Bailers. They’re a bluegrass band with serious skills and a deep repertoire, and they’ve made this bar an attractive Wednesday night stop for anybody with a taste for traditional country music. (176 Newark Ave., www.archerbar.com)

Madame Claude Bis

Much like The Archer, Madame Claude Bis is a place you’d go to see the house band – but what a house band it is. Manouche Bag is as close to a local musical institution as Jersey City has got: a tireless, crackling French gypsy jazz outfit led by the owner of the restaurant, making songs that pair perfectly with wine and crepes. Those who remember the jazz nights at the warm but tight original location of Madame Claude will agree that the outfit has only gotten better as it has migrated into its new digs behind White Eagle Hall. This is a quintessential Jersey City experience and one that ties the current bustling iteration of the city’s music scene to its D.I.Y. past. (390 4th St., www.madameclaudejc.com)

Headroom

June and the Pushas at the Headroom, Jersey City Times file photo

The downtown warehouse district seems like an obvious place for a live music club. Yet since the end of Uncle Joe’s, a closure that still stings, all these years later, there hasn’t been much music reverberating around these cobblestoned streets. Headroom is trying to change that, and those who remember the space when it was called Transmission know that it’s got everything necessary to be a dedicated venue. There’s a stage, a big backroom and a large bar where patrons can wait before going in. They’ve already enlisted a worthy ally: singer-songwriter Debra Devi, a superb guitarist and local blues mainstay. She’ll play at Headroom again on March 26, and she’s bringing some pleasantly noisy friends along. (150 Bay St., www.headroombar.com)

Are you regularly booking live music at your establishment? Think the stuff you’re hosting has artistic merit?  If so, we want to hear from you. Let us know, and we’ll visit your place and add it to the guide.

 

Header:  Patrick Stickles of Titus Andronicus at Monty Hall, Jersey City Times file photo

Melissa Surach

Death of a Venue: What Does the Future Hold for Live Music in Jersey City?

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Fun doesn’t last forever, scenes die, everyone gets old.

On Feb. 1, FM, a beloved, yet struggling venue, presented its final show and took its final bow.

Although only open since May of 2017, FM felt so important to its fans, including this one. Downtown, where it seemed there was a dearth of music venues, FM filled an unmet need, with its unique mix of genres including indie, hip hop, country, and singer-songwriter. Certainly, the club had its ups and downs. Some nights it was so packed it was almost a fire hazard, other nights were so empty that shows got cancelled and the entire place closed early. But in the larger picture the closing of FM demonstrates the difficulty of operating a club downtown amidst changing demographics and high rents.

FM’s closing was a packed night. The majority of the bands were from Hudson County. You could hear it proudly in their accents, and you could hear it when the crowd chanted, “Dancing Tony! Dancing Tony!” Rounds of applause for Dancing Tony erupted throughout the night.

“Dancing” Tony Susco is credited by some for making Downtown Jersey City fun. He is the man behind “Rock-it Docket,” the events and promotion vehicle for many of the music events in town. Its motto is “We run fun,” and it bills itself as “The original source for arts and entertainment in Jersey City.” While some might disagree with this grandiose claim, there’s no doubt Susco had a big influence. After running 58 Gallery, gradually moving on to bigger projects  such as Groove on Grove and Ghost of Uncle Joe’s, and having a hand in nearly every free event that has a stage or books bands across town, it seemed inevitable that he would become the face of FM as the booker, general manager, and part-owner.

In spite of the closing, Tony was optimistic. “Music in Jersey City isn’t ending, bands in Jersey City aren’t ending, good times in Jersey City aren’t ending,” he addressed the crowd in a farewell speech. “We’ve got one last fire for you.” A few moments later, Corey Zack, sound engineer, walked across the stage with a lit baton and stood with it precariously burning for a dangerously long time until he could get it to the bathroom. Later, Dancing Tony, who never crowd surfs, “because he’s too tall,” threw himself into the eager hands of the crowd. It was a hot packed room, with a sticky floor, pulsing with Jersey City pride and accomplishment, pushing against an inevitable end.

Later, Tony told me, “Tonight was like burying a live person.”

Another short-lived venue that evokes heavy nostalgia is Funhouse at 32 Center Street, which was live from 2015-2017. Originally a biker club, Xylo-punk band Crazy and the Brains used the location as a practice space and eventually turned it into a DIY venue. Everything they did was fun and community driven,even politically and socially consciou, (although not necessarily legal vis a vis permits and licensing).

According to front man Chris Urban, “Funhouse was open for two years. It was an all-ages, DIY music venue/rehearsal studio/art collective/safe space. We hosted musical artists of all genres, typically punk, hip-hop, folk and metal, plus stand-up comedy, spoken-word poetry and movie screenings. We organized benefit shows for Liberty Humane Society, Boys & Girls Club, Christ Hospital, Liberty State Park, to name a few. Our main goal was pretty simply to give DIY punk energy a presence in the area we lived in. We lived in an apartment literally around the corner. We put on the type of shows that we wanted to go to. Funhouse ended because the property was sold, and we were kicked out.”

Why do some venues in Jersey City struggle? Is it because the acts aren’t good enough? Is it lack of interest? Astronomically high rent? Is it because the wave of gentrification flooding Downtown drowned out local culture? Is it simply the kind of music offered? Or is Jersey City over as a scene for the kind of music FM championed?

Or maybe it’s just about having a room. Todd Abramson, WFMU’s “Todd-O-Phonic Todd,” booker of White Eagle Hall, Landmark Loew’s, and former manager of Maxwell’s in Hoboken, said, “One thing that Maxwell’s had that worked well was separate rooms. I think that is very advantageous for a number of reasons, but it is not always logistically possible.” FM did not have a separate room.

“It’s not that you can’t ultimately make money from it, it is just not going to likely be the easiest or most lucrative way to do it. The current rents as well as the cost of a liquor license do make trying to open a new venue here somewhat daunting as in most major cities. But, I don’t think it’s impossible.”

Photo: White Eagle Hall by Melissa Surach

However, there are plenty of other venues that are keeping the fire alive. Jersey City has other rooms for sure even if not all of them have stages. Headroom Bar and Social, a cavernous space with a full backline (including a piano) and no-frills bar is quickly becoming a go-to for music showcases and open mics. (A backline is an enclosure for amps and speakers.) Fox and Crow has a lovely, intimate room in the heights; McGinley Square Pub has hosted a comedy festival in its tiny back room; Bright Side Tavern regularly has musical and comedy acts in its dining room (which is separate from its bar); Pet Shop hosts basement shows and second-floor festivals; Journal Square Lounge has basement performances; White Eagle Hall, the esteemed music hall on Newark Avenue, a block away from FM, has a capacity of 800 people, and according to Abramson, it’s doing fine.

Despite FM’s demise, many bookers in town remain optimistic about the future of live entertainment in Jersey City. Margo Parks, who produces the Jersey City Jazz Festival, books Fox and Crow, and organizes events in the Heights like Vault Allure and River View Fisk’s Music in the Park says, “We can’t assume it is the music that is responsible for a club closing. There are a couple of new and reopened venues such as Moore’s Lounge and Headroom. So as far as the future of live entertainment, to me it feels like it is thriving.”

Parks does acknowledge that “music venues and musicians can’t survive if they are the only ones supporting each other.” Indeed, she calls for “the entire community to be our audience and support the arts.” But to get the recipe right, presenters will need to experiment. “Music tastes are so diverse … it’s playing roulette to try and guess what will consistently bring folks out,” she states. Perhaps the biggest factor is quality. “It is unreasonable for us as presenters to expect community support unless we keep presenting music that is both interesting and quality.”

Abramson agrees. “I know some venues have either closed (FM) or stopped most of their music programming (Monty Hall). A lot of people feel things are looking grim, but I’ve found that generally speaking there tends to be an ebb and flow, and I am hoping things pick up again soon. I know there are a few things loosely being planned, and I hope they pan out.”

Meanwhile, Moore’s Lounge, a longstanding jazz lounge for nearly 50 years, at 189 Monticello, quietly reopened in early January after a year of renovations. Winard Harper, Moore’s resident jazz band leader, orchestrated a big show there on Jan. 19. The club is also planning to reinstate its “Meet the Artist” series soon.

Urban is also optimistic. “Regardless of what the reason or reasons may be that cause music venues to struggle, I think it’s extremely important that new ones continue to open whether it be legally or illegally. I’m happy to see venues have a long lifespan, but even those that are open as little as six months have an impactful influence on the culture and art community. I hope someone is working on opening up a new music venue right now.”

Header: Dancing Tony at FM’s closing. Photo Melissa Surach

Monty Hall Stage
Tris McCall

Thirteen Places in Town to See Live Music

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Five years ago, a column like this one wouldn’t have been possible. Not that Jersey City didn’t have the bands, or the talent, or the vision; those have always been here. Shows, though—those weren’t on the calendar. Writing about music in Jersey City meant coming face to face with a performance-space shortage that was as inexplicable as it was frustrating. A city of a quarter million people simply didn’t contain many reliable and regularly booked music venues.

All of that has changed. Jersey City is singing again; dreaming big, too. Pick a busy intersection in Jersey City, and there are probably two or three people scheming to open a new venue there. A live music fan now has a respectable range of options.

By no means is this meant to be an exhaustive list; rather, these are spaces that have caught our eye and that we think you ought to know about. We’ll add to it, regularly, as new spaces open. If there’s one in the region that you know about and think we should be featuring—or if you’re playing a show yourself—go ahead and let us know at (editor@jctimes.com).

Dedicated Music Venues

White Eagle Hall

There are now many places in town to catch a show worth your time. But any discussion of live music in Jersey City begins with White Eagle Hall. The restoration is gorgeous, the sight lines are good, the floor is comfortable even when it’s packed (which it often is), the stage itself is world-class, and the room has been very reliably booked with strong acts with national profiles—mostly pop-rock, emo, and rootsy stuff, but occasionally hip-hop and R&B, too. And although the large capacity means that WEH is primarily a room for touring acts, they’ve managed to keep things Jersey, booking state favorites and local heroes and, periodically, handing the hall over to area promoters with big ideas. Outside of NJPAC, which doesn’t host contemporary bands too often, this is the nicest, sharpest, most impressive live venue in the state. And it’s ours, so direct yourself here immediately. (337 Newark Ave., www.whiteaglehalljc.com)

FM

If White Eagle Hall is the face we show to the rest of the world, FM, which is basically across the street, is the face we wear at home. This relaxed, congenial space primarily books local and regional bands, but the busy schedule makes room for some out-of-state ringers, too. Despite its modest size, FM has a real stage and lights and a dedicated P.A. system run by soundmen who take pride in their skills. The decor suggests absolute dedication to music: There are records everywhere, pop culture detritus artfully scattered around, and a Rhodes electric piano strategically mounted on the wall. In short, this is a true rock club in the time-tested style, booked by people with roots deep in the community and a clear vision for the kind of venue they’d like to run and scene they want to cultivate. Should you want to immerse yourself in local music, this is probably the best place in town to hang. (340 3rdSt., www.fmjerseycity.co)

Fox & Crow

For better or for worse, most of the action in Jersey City happens Downtown. But the stretch of Palisade Avenue near Riverview-Fisk Park has become a destination in its own right, and Fox & Crow is one of the main reasons why. Like the neighborhood it’s in, F&C punches well above its weight: The tiny showroom stays booked with an impressive array of regional talent, aspirational local artists, and the occasional name headliner. While the velvet curtains and black tables suggest speakeasy-like intimacy, this is not just a place for quiet singer-songwriters. We’ve heard some glorious rackets coming from Palisade and Congress. Best of all, audiences here are genuinely attentive and musically curious, which makes it a great place for ambitious writers to try out new material and new ideas. Night owl alert: Although some Fox and Crow concerts begin in the early evening, many of the shows start at 10 p.m. In either case, they’ll provide you with a full menu to munch from while you’re watching the musicians play. (594 Palisade Ave., www.foxandcrowjc.com)

Monty Hall

The shadow of the famous club on the corner of Washington and Tenth in Hoboken hangs over every music venue in Hudson County—and maybe New York City, too. The standard set by Maxwell’s is intimidating, but it’s given club owners something to shoot for. It’s safe to say that any room that’s hosted bands in Hudson County has had some elements reminiscent of Maxwell’s built into the design. But nobody has gotten it quite as right as Monty Hall, the Maxwell’s-sized club run by radio station WFMU, which is itself a local institution helmed by people who certainly knew their way around the Hoboken scene of the ’80s and ’90s. The black box space looks, sounds, and even smells a little like its legendary forerunner. Bookings tend to be bands that would have played at Maxwell’s if Maxwell’s was still booking bands: adventurous groups consistent with the WFMU aesthetic and its unswervingly free-form sensibility. If you like WFMU (of course you do), this is a place you’re going to want to visit. (43 Montgomery St., montyhall.ticketfly.com)

Bars and Restaurants with Frequent Music Nights

Pet Shop and PS Wine Bar

Yes, indeed, it was an actual pet shop. Before its transformation into a home away from home for local punk rockers, the building on the well-trafficked corner of Newark and Jersey was home to a … well, let’s not get too deep into it. Instead, it’s probably best to concentrate on what the building has become: a handsome, dark, pleasantly rough-hewn space capable of hosting musical events on its two levels. Upstairs is for the punk bands; downstairs PS Wine Bar can accommodate punk, too, but this lower level also provides quiet acoustic singer-songwriters a suitably candlelit setting. Pointedly, the menu is vegan. Let’s just say they’ve got some ghosts to exorcise. (193 Newark Ave., www.petshopjc.com)

Porta

The capacious Porta Pizza used to put rock bands on the roof. There’s still plenty of music here, and some of it is even live, but the pizzeria has changed formats. These days, it’s mostly deejays spinning electronic stuff though there are still occasional performers in the main space and jazz musicians during Sunday brunch. Porta was originally an Asbury Park brand, and they’ve been true to it: This is more of a Shore-like scene than what you’re likely to get outside of the Downtown pedestrian plaza. And by that, we mainly mean electro-beats: the sonic equivalent of thick mozzarella. (135 Newark Ave., www.pizzaporta.com)

The Factory

Speaking of places that can be a bit of a scene, The Factory on Communipaw is certainly not designed for wallflowers. But because of its regular Latin nights, it’s become an essential part of musical Jersey City. Some of the groups that’ve played here, bless them, have made no attempt whatsoever to cross over. You’re likely to hear real salsa and bachata here alongside the DJ-driven club music—and accordion and sax next to the synths and turntables. The frequent Sunday brunch entertainment has been particularly exciting and might leave you wondering why there aren’t more local places that host music in these styles. The Factory demonstrates that the talent is here. (451 Communipaw Ave.)

South House

Many bars and eateries North of the Mason-Dixon line affect a Southern style, but few in New Jersey take it quite as far or are as meticulous about the details as South House. That means chicken and waffles and grits on the menu, Carolina-style swings out front, and, periodically, blues, R&B, jazz, and Southern rock inside the restaurant. For instance, this summer, South House brought trumpeter Shamarr Allen up from the Ninth Ward of New Orleans; and local blues harmonica champ Vin Mott led his band through a set in early September. In another extension of southern hospitality, shows here tend to be free. Chasing regional authenticity might be hard in a place as polyglot as Jersey, but that doesn’t mean that the race isn’t worth running. (149 Newark Ave., www.southhousejc.com)

Corgi Spirits

Corgi is a local company that manufactures gin, whiskey, and vodka, and packages its products in very appealing bottles. The brand’s distillery isn’t easy to find: It’s at the southern end of the Bergen-Lafayette right in the middle of an industrial zone and across Caven Point Avenue from the light rail headquarters. Nevertheless, Corgi has attracted some intriguing acts to the lounge—not just the jazz you’d expect to find in a room built for cocktails, but local pop-rock, too. It’s possible to imagine the music series at Corgi’s becoming a Jersey City mainstay. For the moment, it’s a pretty well-kept secret (which you’re now in on.) (1 Distillery Dr., www.corgispirits.com)

The Hutton

This friendly, low-key restaurant and bar in the middle of the Heights feels like Fox & Crow’s modest and somewhat bashful cousin. The musicians who play here are the sort who’d otherwise appear at the F&C Parlour: acoustic singer-songwriters, jazz players, folk acts, Irish music, anybody who doesn’t need heavy-duty amplification to get his or her point across. At times, booking activity at the Hutton has been as heavy as that in any room in town: Early this summer, on any given night they were open, the bar was likely to have a strummer or a singer in the back. Unlike Fox & Crow, there’s no dedicated room just for shows, but the main space is so pretty that we doubt you’ll mind. (225 Hutton St., www.thehuttonjc.com)

The Archer

The Archer is located on the pedestrian plaza, but the bar and restaurant has taken pains to cultivate a personality sharply different from that of the bigger clubs. It’s dark, there’s a heavy-duty hunting theme, the sliders are made from bison meat, and the vibe in the room is resolutely grown-up. The unusual qualities of The Archer extend to the live music, which is provided by the Go Bailers. They’re a bluegrass band with serious skills and a deep repertoire, and they’ve made this bar an attractive Wednesday night stop for anybody with a taste for traditional country music. (176 Newark Ave., www.archerbar.com)

Madame Claude Bis

Much like The Archer, Madame Claude Bis is a place you’d go to see the house band—but what a house band it is. Manouche Bag is as close to a local musical institution as Jersey City has got: a tireless, crackling French gypsy jazz outfit led by the owner of the restaurant, making songs that pair perfectly with wine and crepes. Those who remember the jazz nights at the warm but tight original location of Madame Claude will agree that the outfit has only gotten better as it has migrated into its new digs behind White Eagle Hall. This is a quintessential Jersey City experience and one that ties the current bustling iteration of the city’s music scene to its D.I.Y. past. (390 4thSt., www.madameclaudejc.com)

Headroom

The Warehouse District seems like an obvious place for a live music club. Yet since the end of Uncle Joe’s, a closure that still stings, all these years later, there hasn’t been much music reverberating around these cobblestoned streets. Headroom is trying to change that, and those who remember the space when it was called Transmission know that it’s got everything necessary to be a dedicated venue. There’s a stage, a big back room, and a large bar where patrons can wait before going in. It’s lucky enough to share a building with Bucket & Bay (and Departed Soles) too, so there’s no shortage of foot traffic. They’ve already landed an impressive booking: singer-songwriter Debra Devi, a superb guitarist and cornerstone of Hudson County blues, will appear at Headroom on Oct. 26. If you were going to bet on a space’s becoming an important part of the scene, there’d be worse places to lay your money than right here. (150 Bay St., www.headroombar.com)

Are you regularly booking live music at your establishment? Think the stuff you’re hosting has artistic merit? If so, we want to hear from you. Let us know, and we’ll visit your place and add it to the guide.

Jersey City Times file photo