Background: On Monday, I wrote an opinion about Room 710 closing. It was posted both here and on Examiner.com. I noted that owner Asher Garber seemed to blame everyone but himself for the venue closing. You can read the article here.

The Fallout: Asher didn’t take too kindly to my opinion and told me so. We started a back and forth, and it didn’t go so well. Without any further context or opinions from me, I present the unedited email exchange that took place if only for the entertainment value. For clarification, when he mentions “Lisa”, he is talking about a commenter on the Examiner.com article.

Grab a beer or some coffee, the emails are below the break.

Asher Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 9:36 AM
To: tyler@twogroove.com

Hey, get it straight, Bro.

The first person I blamed was me. You should go back and re-read the Chronicle from June 18 (or around that time) and get some facts about me and my concerns. 5 factors, starting with me, and continuing with City, Competition, Economy, and then (hey, here’s a Finger) Really Bad Press.

9 years of rock on Red River and 710 finally gets press the last month we’re open. And we pulled in about $40,000 in sales? Interesting….. So many months of no press, pulling in $25-30,000, and digging a hole.

But I’m the asshole pointing fingers.

Good riddance? I devoted my life to this job. Kept people employed. Paid the State. The City. In short, I turned a crack corner into a rock joint, and made money for a whole lot of other people (including the developers of the Red River Flats), except for me.

What I get are uninformed folks like you feeding anonymous twits like Lisa some perspective that is totally jaded, practically fabricated, and therefore of shit.

You were more than welcome to ask me questions yourself. You chose not to. Remember that.

Thanks.

Asher Garber
Owner, Room 710

Tyler Groover Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 10:35 AM
To: Asher
Asher,

I commented back on Examiner. I’m happy to have a conversation there or here, especially if you feel I am uninformed. I’m not like Lisa and the anonymous posters; if I am wrong I’ll admit it. However, this was a commentary/opinion piece based on my experience and the interviews I linked to and articles I’ve read.

As I mentioned in my comment, I have had quite a bit of experience with the 700 block including 710. I also book for a music venue and am aware of the challenges that venue owners face. I’m not some kid just making stuff up to incite anonymous rabble on the Internet.

I reread a couple of the Chronicle pieces before Room 710 closed. In the first one (June 12), you blamed the smoking ban “We lost half of our business to that” first and there was half a sentence about your own admitted inexperience after you blamed taxes and property values. In the second (July 31), you said this: “There are a lot of clubs, and it’s hard to stay in business with that, but I’m more concerned with how the city values the property. I don’t see how the building is worth so much more than the amount of business I’m able to bring in. That’s the paradox. You can’t tell me this is Beverly Hills when I know it’s the fucking slums. That’s what the city is doing, and they’ve really had me bent over the last three years.”

I don’t really get the feeling that you pointed the finger at yourself equally as you claim.

Tyler Groover
www.twogroove.com
Musical Musings: www.twogroove.com/blog

Asher Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 1:42 PM
To: Tyler Groover
Tyler-

Thanks for writing back. It might help to understand that the Chron
articles do not include the entire interview. Each phone call lasted
15-20 minutes, and we covered a lot of topics. Austin Powell wrote
down his impressions. The fact that he didn’t directly “quote” me when
I said that I first point blame at myself (in the first paragraph of
his first article about 710′s closing) as some kind of proof that I
didn’t include myself in reasons for 710′s closing indicates not only
that you are cherry picking the situation, but that your reading
comprehension lacks some serious skills.

If you want to have direct information from me, you talk to me.
Instead, you picked quotes from other articles in order to write an
opinion (as if that carries much fortitude or validity to your
readers) that justifies your argument. Which is what, I don’t know.

9 years, Dude. I’ve put up with a lot. This piece of yours does more
than dance on the 710 grave. You’re basically inviting people to take
a shit on the freshly layed dirt.

Thanks.

Asher

BTW: If the Smoking Ban is a cop out, and property taxes are a cop
out, and the practices of our competitiion is a cop out, and the 14%
tax rate is a cop out, then you don’t really leave much room for
intelligent discussion on the matters of businesses who take on crack
infested neighborhoods to run bare knuckle operations that employ
people, entertain people, and more than quadruple the tax income for
the City and State from a location.

Tyler Groover Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 2:16 PM
To: Asher
I hope I don’t come across as someone inviting people to take a shit on 710s grave. I have an opinion about the venue and and outlet through which to share it. No one has to agree with it, especially yourself, and I have no illusions of my opinion carrying a lot of weight.

My opinion didn’t form just through reading those interviews, as I mentioned previously. It came from the poor interaction, promotion, and support that Room 710 provided. When I met you many months ago, you had no time for me. When a band of mine was just starting out and was happy to play Room 710, we were treated like shit. The band didn’t play the “right” type of music for your venue and were shunned because of it. The interviews and fact that Room 710 was closing led me to write a timely opinion piece on the closing using recent press as a foundation for the commentary, instead of writing a personal attack back when the venue was open.

Nowhere did I say that your reasons for closing are cop outs. In fact, I totally agree with you that there are lots of things working against music venues in this town. Every reason you listed is valid. My point was that every music venue faces the same set of challenges. Some succeed and some don’t.

The question then is: Why did Room 710 fail if it faced the same challenges as everyone else? I’m not asking to be a dick; I’m asking because I’m curious. Was it your particular building that was getting singled out?

Tyler Groover
www.twogroove.com
Musical Musings: www.twogroove.com/blog

Asher Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 2:56 PM
To: Tyler Groover
I don’t think anyone can make it doing this job in a capitalistic
system. That is the answer to your last question.

I’m not going back over your Examiner post, but when you say stuff
like I’ve got more reasons to blame the failure of 710 (subjective
term, quite frankly) than fingers to point, that’s taking a shit on
me. Do I really have to explain that? Especially when I listed myself
as the first reason for business failure? (And then you claim that I
didn’t say that? And blame me some more for not saying it explicitly
enough for you?)

I wouldn’t call it being a dick. I call it being a bad journalist.

The problem with the internet is that anyone– you, Lisa, various
Yelpers who claim we turn the AC off during shows and turn it back on
again when everyone stops jumping and dancing in 90 degree heat with
90 percent humidity– can write some bullshit to try to get it to
stick. Because you’re all geniuses who, if you had the money, the
timing, the whatever it is you’re lacking in life to be a bar owner
would do such a better job than me or anyone else who runs similar
establishments.

You’ve proven to me in this last email that you’re more on a
personal vendetta than anything. The “fact” that I didn’t give you any
time, or book your band because we don’t carry your type of music….
Can you be more specific? You sure that was me talking? Because I’m
rarely here at nighttime, and maybe, just possibly, you’re confused.
You know, as in wrong. About almost everything.

And, by the way, nowhere in any of my interviews did I claim that
this was specifically a 710 issue. So fuck you very much.

I will not respond to this any longer. Call me what you will in your
blog and Examiner articles. I am sure one day, when I’m bored, I will
do a search for me and/or 710 and your inabilities as journalist will
come through loud and clear, as your bitter, projective bullshit
flashes on the screen before my eyes.

Till then, Tyler….

Asher

Tyler Groover Tue, Aug 4, 2009 at 4:08 PM
To: Asher
If it helps you out to think of it as a personal vendetta, then go for it. I said I didn’t write a personal attack, instead I wrote an opinion piece on the venue closing. I said my opinion started to form about you (and yes, it was you) and the venue when a band of mine played there.

You can keep taking stabs at me as well. Bad journalist, poor reader, bitter, something missing in my life, whatever you want. One thing I’ve learned about the music business is that you need a thick skin and need to be able to brush off criticism. It’s something I thought you’d have developed in your nine years.

Tyler Groover
www.twogroove.com
Musical Musings: www.twogroove.com/blog