My friend Daniel Brantley selflessly worked his behind off for a couple months starting a venue in the town of Red Bank, TN so that local kids would have a place to come and play music and/or see their favorite bands play. He busted his ass trying to find a building he could rent for this purpose, then tearing down walls, cleaning up, getting plumbing and a bathroom, putting up sheet rock, building a stage, setting up shows and advertising (all to merely break even if possible, I might add). He did a fine job, and a lot of kids in the community were excited about it.
After just the second show, he was shut down.
As if that in itself is not enough reason to be aggravated to a migraine extent, guess what the reason was...
No, not the noise. In fact the location was prime for not disturbing any homes or businesses.
No, nothing illegal was taking place, even if you take into account the usual irrational causal relations that a grouchy person might allege between the venue and illegal activity elsewhere.
Yes, a certain prominent member of the community pulled some strings, got a strong petition together, and got it shut down.
Why? Well, because upon driving by the location on the night of a show, the parking lot was full of cars (yeah, and…?) and there was a lot of kids with spiked hair and black t-shirts (yeah, and…?). That’s it.
No joke. This is a true story. Remember it in case you're ever tempted to be that guy. Every last one of those people who backed him up ought to be ashamed.
But I guess it's not all that surprising for Tennessee.