09/01/09

Best place to be in North Hollywood

by theruiner663

First off I love the place, I love horror theme night clubs! I would go more often if LA had more local bands that didn't have an ego and could actually play music! Some of the people that go there are rude, if they bump into you they don't say sorry. Just goes to show you the type of people those crappy bands bring to see their crappy music. The bands don't care about sound quality just how loud they can be. I saw this band play with japanese girls once and it was just horrible, they took forever setting up, and about the time they went on I was ready to go home! I love this place but I wish they would find better talent!!!

• Pros: Great venue, love the decor.
• Cons: The crappy bands that play there, they are all too loud for

06/15/09

JERKS JERKS very very very RUDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by varnr

BANDS!!! DO NOT PLAY HERE!!!!!

1. YOU HAVE TO "Tip" the sound guy to mic the kick drum. hahaha. he doesn't do ANYTHING but the 3 mics for vocals. He(Justin) even said "if you tip me, I will mic the kick drum but i only have mics for vocals, it is going to sounds horrible anyways because I don't care" ........ what the hell???? so pointless. just they want to be BAD BAD PEOPLE

2. YOU ALSO HAVE TO TIP THE GUY TO CHANGE MUSIC ON THE FLOOR. COST YOU $20. ASK THE OWNER BOB HE COULD BE REASONABLE.

3. BE CAREFUL with JUSTIN, CARL at the place. They are the worst people you will ever meet. I was shaking by how rude and heartless they are.

4. Bands only get water. ha!

5. DON'T EVER NEVER PLAY THIS PLACE. the place looks great. but it doesn't worth anything to deal with these AMAZINGLY HORRIBLE PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!

• Pros: place looks great
• Cons: RIP OFF, Jerks, unprofessional, horrible treat to bands

05/30/08

BANDS BEWARE!

by babieshay

This venue may look 'interesting' but it's a RIP OFF and the owner is a SLEEZE who will LIE to get people into the door. BANDS BEWARE!

• Pros: looks cool
• Cons: everything else :(

07/24/07

get it in writing!

by redhalo

Myself and some other bands tried to book here and were successful in doing so; unfortunately the owner, carl, doesnt offer contracts. BE WEARY! The establishment was extremely hard to initially contact, and they generally are only operating during the weekends. This is definitely a venue for bands with the ability to pay to play, however, if not; DO NOT BOOK HERE! write down everything the owner says, as he speaks rather quickly. He was incredibly rude to the management of our bands that booked to play here. So, needless to say the show was cancelled and the bands nor the management plan to gig here, ever.....unless new management at CIA takes in effect. The owner seemed very unprofessional and yelled at managers that came in 2 weeks prior to the show. The band finally hired managers and the managers knew they couldnt afford to play here. no contract was offered and the band management finally asked for one. when they got one the band realized they COULD NOT meet the requirements. Lesson Learned: Ask for contracts, or offer them from the get-go to avoid "wasting peoples time".

• Pros: the venue looks cool.
• Cons: the Owner, Carl

04/20/07

Funky freak show for fanatics

by pointofinfo

This club is really bizarre. But it's cool like that. There's a clown's skeleton. That should attest to the general collection of stuff at the CIA. The whole thing is very carnival fun house, and the path to the bathroom has a distorted hallway thing. Anyway, it's a real trip just walking around there place, and that can add up to a half hour by itself. If you need to escape the small main viewing area which gets extremely loud during rock band performances, head onto the patio to watch a cult film or music video / classic film montages. The bands are definitively independent and local. I've been to 4 shows so far, 3 of them with my friends as part of the bill. The club owners are quite friendly, and the social scene is quirky like the club. The people you meet have a common interest in either the strange or the type of music, and so the crowd is united at least somewhat, giving people at least one thing to talk about, assuming the decor isn't interesting enough. It also gets decorated like The Haunted Mansion at Disneyland for certain holidays. The bar isn't cheap, but the CIA is basically the worst place to get drunk anyway. It's not the best (or worst) neighborhood, so if you're leaving at 1 or 2am, walk in a group. The club is a good one, as has waaay more character than other all ages clubs in LA. The cover is worth it (if you get in for 8 dollars, you can catch a movie and a show) and the music is pretty solid.

• Pros: Zany atmosphere, awesome shows, Plenty of stuff to keep you busy, Interesting people
• Cons: Not the best neighborhood, Main concert area can get rather loud if a rock band doesn't use discretion in their amp settings

03/26/07

Cool Creepy Scareland for Rock n Rollers and Classic Film and Music Buffs

by evaproducer

I am a music supervisor and independent film producer. I attended a show on Friday with such bands as Rover's Pinky, Radioactive Chickenheads, Rosemary's Billy Goat and LosDuggans. This venue and the bands together were like popcorn at a circus. The bands fit well at the venue, is what I mean. It did have a bit of a freak show feel as a beautiful freak with a scary mask and plastic bikini danced to a slow, creepy punk song. (There was also some incredible guitar and drums and vocals) The dancer in the Borat speedo and the giant Ninja Turtle head was an extra bonus. It seemed to me as if punk has evolved into this new slower and creepier form of expression through music. I really thought it was cool as I am the biggest Tim Burton fan ever and am ever inspired by the creepy and creative. The venue is amazingly decorated and they even have a two headed baby. Some care has obviously been taken to make this a creative place of expression for the bands and attendees alike. Thanks for the great show.

02/08/07

An experience to try....

by imstarbound

This palce is extremly unique! Though I'm not a fan of rock music in general I had a great time! It was full of oddities and interesting things to look at.. It's a must try if you like rock music or the strange.

DON'T BOTHER GOING IF YOU AREN'T OPEN MINDED OR A FAN OF ROCK. I went with a few friends who are hip hop, like me but I'm more open minded, ... they hated it. I guess they didn't understand the beauty of the strange. :D

• Pros: Unique, Quirky
• Cons: Not for the closed minded.

04/18/06

Freak-show asthetics and underground music join forces at this NoHo all-ages club.

by Tara Lis

The Scene
Located in an industrial area of North Hollywood, the California Institute for the Abnormalarts (CIA) is a strange circular maze of funhouse decor and bizarre relics. Somewhere between the shrine to a dead fairy, the skull of the smallest Freemason and the body of fishboy, one begins to question if it's really a live music venue or artifacts from Ripley's Believe it or Not museum. Co-owner Carl Crew is a lifelong lover of the unusual, and an ex-mortician; both traits are evident in his carnival-like club, which he refers to as a "multidimensional art space."

The Draw
The majority of the crowd falls into one of two categories: Under 21 or circus performers. Expect to see many of the former outside smoking. Booking policies celebrate indie music, but genres range from rock to electronic, along with cult artists like Girlie Freak Show, who can emit 20,000 watts from her body.

04/12/06

Best bar in California

by samualbarret

If you don't like evil clowns and dead perserved things on display while you drink your rolling rock. This might not be the best place for you. But if you like the dark. This is the top choice. It's my favorite bar to go every weekend. They also have a projector outside. Where they play a lot of random movies or concerts. Perfect to take your drink and smoke outside and relax.

• Pros: Everything
• Cons: Serve only beer

01/10/06

Welcome to the C.I.A!

by mr_shadow

i have attended shows and have also played shows with my band at the C.I.A on numerous occasions.......this is one of NoHo's best kept lil secrets!!!the atmosphere is great the people are great and sum really great acts have been booked there.I highly recommend checking out the C.I.A,although on the nights they host Fright Night it does get really packed in there....but they do have really great bands and performers,the staff is really friendly and great,if you are into the dark and mysterious then this club is definately for you!