Neighbors fumed about this new outdoor Boise venue. ‘Have fun,’ here’s another concert
Mila Perry has a good-natured suggestion for any nearby residents still possibly concerned about a concert next month outside Hayden Beverage Co. in East Boise.
Relax. Go see live music!
Alt-country band American Aquarium will headline Saturday, June 10, with guests Mike and the Moonpies, and Jesse Dayne and the Sagebrush Drifters.
“Especially after COVID, get out — have fun,” advises Perry, owner of Boise-based MB Promotions. “Enjoy fresh air. Hang out with your friends.
“We’re trying to have fun,” she explains. “A couple nights a year.”
That threat was enough to trigger a few neighbors last spring. Some balked in advance when drinks distributor Hayden Beverage revealed that it would make its public debut as an occasional outdoor music venue.
Pushback came from a handful of people on Perry’s personal phone and on the Nextdoor app, she says. There were two, in particular, she remembers, “that ripped me.”
Boise officials fielded pre-event calls, too, Perry says.
“I even got calls,” she adds, “from neighbors who were curious and anxious — but ended up being fantastic.”
When all was said and done? About 2,000 fans watched country-rock band Reckless Kelly perform on a Saturday in May. Police had no issues, Perry says. “Nobody got kicked out. No arrests. No vandalizing.”
No noise complaints afterward, either.
“I never heard a peep,” she says. “From anybody.”
Not that there wasn’t a lesson or two learned. “One thing that will be different this year is more bathrooms,” Perry promises.
So Hayden Beverage is cranking tunes again. Just not too loudly. Or late.
American Aquarium and Mike and the Moonpies have gigged in Boise before. They’ve also performed at the annual Braun Brothers Reunion in Challis. So they’ll have built-in fan bases ready to buy tickets, which are $45 (plus fees) in advance at Eventbrite. Kids 12 and younger cost $5.
Hayden Beverage is a surprisingly scenic setting for an outdoor show. Located at 2910 E. Amity Road, it has a sweet view of downtown and the Foothills.
Still, because it’s not far from homes below, proactive steps are taken to be “a good neighbor,” Perry says.
Live music will start at 5 p.m. and end by 9:30 p.m. “No parking” signs will be placed on Amity Road, she said, “so people aren’t just filling up Amity. And we create a 300-spot parking lot on the Hayden ground. There’s also Uber and Lyft turnarounds.”
There are no plans for Hayden Beverage to become even remotely busy as a regular Boise concert venue. It’s no Outlaw Field. Only two amplified shows are planned this summer, Perry said: This one and a private event.
She’s hoping that now that last spring’s concert educated people, American Aquarium will face little or no resistance.
After Reckless Kelly, Perry says, she received “far more support” than anything else. “The show went off without a hitch,” she says. “And the band was excited. The crowd was excited.”
Still, word of the American Aquarium concert is just getting out. Perry met with the city’s special events committee about two weeks ago.
“I will now go through and start contacting and sending out a neighborhood notification to all of the existing HOAs that I can find,” she says.
“I do my best!”
