Seattle Fenix Night Club to Re-open New Years Eve 2013

Fenix (Seattle, WA ). Grand Opening Weekend at the New Fenix in Pioneer Square, featuring The Beatniks (Seattle, WA) on Friday, January 3rd, 2014. Doors are at 8pm. 21 and over. Tickets are $10 in advance or at the door. Seating will be limited.  124 S. Washington ST in Pioneer Square- Seattle, WA. www.fenixseattle.com

Beatniks at the Fenix re-opening.

The New Fenix (Seattle, WA) will open on New Years Eve, December 31st, 2013. Owner, Rick Wyatt, has resurfaced with what could very well be perfect timing. It has now been close to a decade since the last incarnation of the Fenix (109 S. Washington) closed it's doors. Prior to that, Wyatt literally crawled from the rubble of it's successful predecessor, the former 315 2nd Ave S. location of the Fenix, destroyed by the Nisqually Earthquake in 2001.

The Nisqually Earthquake of 2001 was the first in a series of events that was hell bent on taking out the post-Grunge Seattle live music and nightlife scene, especially Pioneer Square. Throw in the Seattle Mardis Gras Riot that happened 12 hours earlier, the fall of the Twin Towers, the start of the Aphganistan War later that year, and then Initiative 901, the smoking ban passed in 2005. Collectively, this amounted to a less than ideal atmosphere to run a nightclub in. What the above could not finish, the economic crash of 2008 did.

The aforementioned symphony of doom would eventually be fatal to what is arguably the most recently recognizable “era” in the local Seattle Music and Nightlife scene. By the latter part of 2007, the Pioneer Square of the 90s, and the Seattle Club Scene that played host to "Rock and Roll's last stand", was down and out on Skid Road.

Will there ever be a ressurrection of the beloved Pioneer Square of the 90s? Maybe in your dreams. In this case the movie "Singles" may as well be "American Graffiti". Rephrase that question, Is there a future for Seattle Nightlife and Live Music in the wings?  

Fact of the matter is that we are talking about a Historic district of a Major US city that has for most of its recent history has been home to a sustained and vibrant local live music scene (or scenes), long before the late 90s, 80s, 70s, 60s and even 50s.  You don't have to hope for some kind of “New Wave” (that one is already taken). It's already in the making. Look out, it could be right next to you. I'll never forget a friends own brief but surprisingly accurate summation of the word, “era”:

"Watch out! Those damn "era" thangs are sneaky m@ther F_ckers! Usually they been there the whole damn time - one part past, one part present and one part future. Watch out! If you ain't smack dab in the middle of one, it'll fly right by you, ya know, like some crazy ass Bird!"

Time does fly. The smog that choked out the local Seattle night club and live music scene of the 90s seems to be clearing, at least enough to make sense of what's left, what to take from it, and what to leave, and where to go in the future. Initiatives to revitalize the business community in Pioneer Square have been underway for a while now, with some coming successfully to fruition. City of Seattle Employees agree that nightlife is an important factor in the economic health of Pioneer Square and the greater Seattle area. Others think of it [nightlife] as more of a key ingredient. The only ones left to chime in the subject are those that are willing to put their money on it. Listen. Do you here it? Ahh, maybe that was just a bird.

Although there are many definitions of the term Fenix, let’s consider a disambiguation of the term, spelled PHOENIX, the etymology of which is rooted in Greek Mythology and even earlier in Ancient Egyptian Mythology:

"phoenix or phenix (Ancient Greek φοίνιξ phóinīx) is a long-lived bird that is cyclically regenerated or reborn. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor." -(Wikipedia) .

Is it possible for a nightclub to inherently possess such regenerative powers? Not in the real world, but we're not talking about the real world.  In the “real world”, there was that one guy that survived 3 consecutive incarnations of the same venue, crawled out of an earthquake that took the 4^th , and then fired up the 5th one down the street. Yes the doors had to close, as did many others shortly thereafter.

Mr. Rick Wyatt is back for Round 6. Do you think he forgot the Resurrection Spell of the Fenix?  Well we'll see on December 31st, 2013. 

Bottom line: A New Fenix can't really lose,- at least for 500 years according to mythological accounts, and who wants to be around that long anyway? 
The Beatniks shall perform during Grand Re-Opening Weekend of the Fenix, on Friday, January 3rd, 2013. Doors at 8pm. Tickets are $10 in advance, or $10 at the door. There have been rumors of acrobats in the air and other fun stuff. LIMITED SEATING. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.fenixseattle.com. For reserved seating or custom packages, call 206-748-9738.