Features
The Goodbye Pointe
After nearly 20 years of shows and thousands of bands passing through its doors, St. Louis nightclub the Hi-Pointe closed September 3rd.
The 200-capacity club was reportedly sold and is in need of extensive repairs.
The self-described “best dive in town,” which hosted a wide variety of genres – punk, garage, rockabilly, R&B, hip-hop, alternative rock and stoner rock, to name a few – posted a “sold” sign on its door August 25th, depicting crossbones and a tombstone reading, “R.I.P. Hi-Pointe – October 8th, 1987 to September 3rd, 2006.”
Manager Lisa Andris thanked in a statement the “thousands of colorful characters that have drifted through the front door and … the music agents and independent promoters who took a leap of faith in our less-than-perfect venue.”
Andris said she joined the Hi-Pointe four months after its inception, as the venue was transforming from an “old school, old man bookie joint, to a late ’80s, post-new wave hangout.”
The club transformed over the years, but managed to keep an attitude in par with the sign painted over the bar reading, “We still don’t care what you want to hear.” A typical week’s lineup could feature anything from hip-hop open-mic nights to DJs to Andris’ self-professed favorite, the “fried chicken flinging Southern Culture on the Skids.”
The club hosted several names that would soon outgrow its size, such as
The Hi-Pointe wrapped things up with performances by the NonProphets comedy troupe and Nintendo video game cover band