While Baton Rouge has a plethora of local musicians trying to make a name for themselves, the city still seems to lack the smaller, in-between venues to host the blossoming scene. This is where Kerry Beary’s Atomic Pop Shop comes in.
Upon first glance, the bright teal storefront facing Government Street catches your eye immediately. Inside, stacks of records and eccentric decorations welcome you. Yet, many visitors are unaware of the performance space beyond the front of the store.
Located in the far back of Atomic Pop Shop is one of the city’s only all-ages music venues. The space is relatively small with simple embellishments, but the unassuming spot plays an important role in the network of local musicians and creatives.
The store has been open over six years, and for most of its existence the Atomic Pop Shop been just that — a record store. Over time, touring musicians expressed interest in playing shows at the shop. Through trial and error, the store started hosting performances after hours and on the weekends — though it was ineffective as a venue at first.
Enter Matthew Polito. A psychology senior and fellow local musician, Polito came up with a solution: to add local groups to the shows at Atomic Pop Shop to help draw crowds for touring artists. After introducing his idea in the summer of 2015, the shop’s “backspace” evolved into the venue it’s known for today.
“Once we put ourselves out there as a venue that caters to mostly local artists, the demand was apparent,” Polito said.
Going from the awkward, loud and cramped shows in the front of the store to the open and intimate backspace made a world of a difference for shows. The progression came together naturally, Polito said. The backspace that was once a dusty storage room now had a stage and a quality sound system.
What sets Atomic Pop Shop apart from other venues is that it’s an all ages venue, including the performers themselves. Younger, fresh bands that don’t have pull yet and high school bands limited by their age had no platform in Baton Rouge until the shop transitioned into a venue. The Shop is a place to encourage new talent.
Polito was inspired by his own beginnings in the local music scene as a teenager trying to get his band out there, he said. He modeled the backspace in the shop after a spot in local thrift store “Here Today Gone Tomorrow,” where he and many other high school bands started out. Polito hopes Atomic Pop Shop can offer a leg up for upcoming artists like his old spot did for him.
“There was this gap left in the music scene where younger artists weren’t able to get their start,” Polito said. “There was no starting place if you weren’t already established. I tried to capture the same feeling.. For it to not be some high-stakes, huge venue. This is where you come to learn how to be a band and a performer in a way where you’re not judged based on your ability.”
The way Polito puts it, you could be the best band of 15-year-old’s ever, but you won’t be able to land a gig at The Spanish Moon or the Varsity Theatre. The Atomic Pop Shop is one of the few live music experiences you can find around the Capital City for underage folk.
“These [high schoolers] might have the audience, but just need the space,” Polito said. “That’s where the Pop Shop comes in. It’s like a middle ground between a house show and a full venue.”
Polito describes the shop as a space with a more reliable setting than a house or backyard for the younger crowd. The “first step” is often the hardest for bands, and this venue hopes to provide an avenue for younger bands to get that initial step accomplished. The Atomic Pop Shop tries to provide the most available and easiest entry into the music scene.
High school age bands like The Sun Room, a jazz fusion neo-soul group, and indie band Mr. San Francisco have approached Polito about hosting shows at the shop. The turnout for these performances was huge — upwards of 80 people. The demand had made itself clear.
To find bands or artists to perform in the backspace is an easy feat. Local acts approach Polito, but he also prides himself in knowing most artists within the city limits that have been playing for at least a few of months, he said.
“Everybody is only one degree of separation from any other person in Baton Rouge. Once you know one person, you stumble into someone else involved,” Polito said.
Live shows are either curated by people with a knack for creating a successful lineup, such as duo Seaux La, or put together by Polito, as the booker for the Shop.
“I can make an educated guess on who would fit stylistically and who would balance out a crowd [on a lineup]. If there’s a new band, [I might] put an act on the bill that I know will bring a crowd. It’s all about pairing people off that I think if you like this one band, then you’ll like the other,” Polito said.
The Atomic Pop Shop is a venue for music and musicians.
“Unless you want to buy a vinyl record at 10 p.m., the only real reason [people] are there is to see the band,” Polito said. “The crowd is tremendously more engaged than a bar-oriented venue.”
Polito hopes that patrons who leave the show will return as new fans, and that they can say they’ve discovered new bands and talented performers they might have not found elsewhere.
“The overall feeling of a show with a good crowd, makes you feel like you’ve done a good job.” Polito said. “I want the Atomic Pop Shop to be an inviting hub of creativity and culture in the community. Our end goal will always be the same, to provide that space for the forgotten demographic.”
Joshua Henderson, member of the band TheSmoothCat and the 9th Life, raps on Friday, Oct. 13, 2017, at the event "Live From Da Swamp" at Atomic Pop Shop on Government Street.
