ARTICLE BY K SEAN LONG

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY THE HOT SPOT

Waynesboro’s premier venue for original music is literally known as The Hot Spot. Since opening in August 2012, over 300 different acts have come through to play, and the venue has been bringing original music to the Shenandoah Valley ever since. Owner A.B. Garrod books the bands, runs sound for the venue, and runs the bar, so any discussion of The Hot Spot must begin by delving into his life. Before The Hot Spot became a music venue, it was originally a muscle shop for cars, and the garage door is still part of the feel of the restaurant today. It’s just painted over to give a more unique vibe.

At 18-years-old, Garrod spent most of his time attending music festivals and going to local shows. This is where he would become infatuated with the live music scene. In his free time, he did photography and wrote for online music magazines. When he was not doing this he would be working 60 hour weeks at different restaurants, developing 10 years of restaurant experience.

When Garrod opened The Hot Spot, he hoped to get out of the restaurant business and into the music business, but he quickly realized that when it came to running a music venue in Virginia, both the restaurant and music business are very much intertwined. When people go out, there is an expectation for alcohol to be present to enjoy the evening; however, Virginia law requires that for a place to serve alcohol, food must also be available. Therefore, all of the menu options are named after various bands such as THE MAD ANTHONY’S and THE JUDY CHOPS

Within the first week of opening, Grammy award-winning artist SNARKY PUPPY performed. To help build a local scene, there are open blues jams on Tuesdays to increase community between local players. The venue is all about giving a great place for musicians to come together and perform. Skerik of SKERIK’S BANDALABRA, from Seattle, said, “This place isn’t supposed to have this much of a vibe yet,” to which Garrod replied, “You come back in a year!”

There are several challenges that The Hot Spot currently faces, and first and foremost is the low attendance at shows. Waynesboro primarily has an older demographic that is more conservative than other parts of Virginia. The scene in Waynesboro finds it odd to pay a cover to see a band they have never heard of before. The reason for this kind of population in Waynesboro is the lack of younger people. There is no college to attract the usual crowd of hip, 18- to 25-year-olds to stay in the area. However, the city of Waynesboro has plans to try to make the area more inviting to younger people, and Garrod is excited to be on the forefront of it.

For more updates on The Hot Spot, be sure to visit their website, “like” their Facebook page, follow them on Twitter, subscribe to their YouTube channel, and visit their Yelp page.