Shawn Pepper had parting words for his favorite place to work: “Man, I hated this place.”
Ichabod’s opened its doors for the last time this past Saturday night to a crowd of more than 650 people who enjoyed discounted drinks and local music. Local bands played in tribute to the bar, and included Brother, Shagg Tribe, Judge Genius and 3 Ring Circus. Open for three years, the bar shut down, leaving local original bands such as these with one less place to play.
Scott Frye, one of the former owners, cites his and fellow owner Eric Broussard’s “youth and ignorance” of running a new business as the main reason for the bar’s closing.
“It’s sad to see that people only come to Ichabod’s on its last day of existence,” said Ray Castillo, lead singer for 3 Ring Circus. “I think they under-value what [Frye and Broussard] did for local music and shedding light on talent that local bands have to offer.”
Many agree that Frye and Broussard greatly influenced the local original music scene in Baton Rouge. In a city where cover bands rule, Ichabod’s was the place for original bands to play.
“For the past three years the only bands that they’d ever book were original bands,” said Patrick Johnson, bassist for Poor Harvey. “It’s unfortunate that the original bands in town can’t pull the same amount of people in that cover bands can. It’s easier for cover bands to pull people in because it’s more comfortable for people who already know the music. They don’t have to think about it, they don’t have to try to decide whether or not they like it. It’s kind of monotonous to say the least.”
“The closing of Ichabod’s will limit where and when local bands can play, because of the lack of bars that cater strictly to local music and the increasing amount of original bands in Baton Rouge,” Johnson said.
Frye and Broussard have helped struggling original bands get on their feet.
“We tried to help a lot of people out,” he said. “Musically, I’d book any band as long as they were playing local original music, tried to give them a head start. We’d book no-name bands or bands that really weren’t that good. I wanted to give them that opportunity.”
For the past nine months, Ichabod’s struggled to stay open, with each month possibly being its last, Frye said.
“It’s just disappointing to see a local business go out of business,” said David Remmetter, owner of Chelsea’s Cafe on West State Street. “Those guys worked hard over there, they were there for three years, it just didn’t work out for them. I think this is a deprived area of campus, more so than the new area on Burbank or Tigerland. It takes a lot of work to get business over there.”
Frye said the Chimes Street area is neglected, mainly because of a bad history.
“Seven or eight years ago, old people such as myself remember back when Chimes Street got really ugly,” he said. “I think that was the beginning of the downfall, the stores started shutting down, and it just never rebounded.”
When The Bayou — another former original music outlet — burned down in 2002, it hurt business at Ichabod’s. When The Bayou was open, patrons often went from one bar to the next. Although it seemed like competition, they actually helped each other, Johnson said.
The crowd Saturday night was the biggest Ichabod’s has had for months, according to Pepper, who worked the door that night.
“If we would have had this many people interested when we were open, we wouldn’t be closing,” he said.
Broussard had parting words for the crowd Saturday night.
“We really appreciate all the support you’ve given us,” Broussard said on stage. “We’re sorry we have to go.” The future of the building on Chimes Street is still unsure. Frye said that he and Broussard are moving out of state to pursue other opportunities.
“Ichabods was nothing but a gift to us all and those who took advantage of what they had to offer got more than just a great place to play,” Johnson said. “Everything from start to finish, Ichabod’s was just one good experience after another. I thank them for giving us the opportunity.”
Last Call
March 4, 2004