The Espee welcomes back San Antonio live music fans
Live music fans who crowded close to the stage to hear John Waite, Al Green or Liz Phair a couple of decades at the Lonestar Pavilion at Sunset Station might not notice much of a difference.
The big, open-air pavilion at the venue now known as The Espee still provides an upclose-and-personal concert experience only occasionally marred by the glare of the setting sun.
That was clear at All Aboard, the new music festival designed to reintroduce The Espee to San Antonio with a multi-genre lineup that included the Head and the Heart, Danielle Ponder, Grupo Fantasma, Upsahl and the Golden Dawn Arkestra. Saturday’s festival was the first event at the venue under a new deal with the Ambassador
Theatre Group, the company that operates the Majestic Theatre and the Charline Mccombs Empire Theatre downtown.
The big difference was away from the stage, outside the pavilion and the areas immediately surrounding it, where it once felt like you were milling
about in the neighborhood of a concert but not quite part of it.
That section farthest from the stage has been landscaped with several patches of thick artificial turf, creating a more parklike atmosphere. It’s a big deal at this mostly standingroom-only venue (some shows will have seats in the pavilion) that patrons now have a place where they can sprawl out away from the stage – or kids can dance around where the music isn’t too loud.
The Espee has a stated capacity of about 3,200, and most of that is in the area designated as the plaza, outside the pavilion. All Aboard catered to people in the plaza with live art exhibits, several full bars, a vendors’ market in one of the venue’s indoor meeting spaces and food stands featuring local fare from The Jerk Shack, The Board Couple and the Dakota East Side Ice House.
There also was a DJ stage where indie musician Bartees Strange played classic soul music such as “Do You Know What You Feel” by Chaka Kahn and Rufus.
The scene was so cool on the plaza that bands playing early in the evening had to coax people to come down to the pavilion.
“Come dance with us, it’s fun down here,” said Upsahl, an angsty alt-rock singer whose songs like “Drugs” and “People I Don’t Like,” would be a good fit for the “Euphoria” soundtrack.
She was followed onstage by Grupo Fantasma, the Latin funk band from Austin, which had festivalgoers of all ages dancing under the pavilion.
“Come a little closer to the stage so we can see you,” a band member said. “This is a family thing – la familia.”
It was a welcoming message and a welcome return for the underutilized concert venue.
Upcoming concerts at The Espee include pop singer Sabrina Carpenter, Christian music star Michael W. Smith and guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela.