Saint Vitus Permanently Closes Bar in Brooklyn But Continues to Host Shows Elsewhere
The legendary metal venue Saint Vitus bar in Brooklyn, NY has officially closed its doors for good…ish.
You’ll remember back in February, the bar was shut down in the middle of a Mindforce show — actually during one of the opening acts, Balmora — by the Department of Buildings for violations in response to a complaint from some dude who sounds like the kind of guy who wears suspenders with a belt. Apparently the bar was in violation of a lot of city regulations, including not having a maximum occupancy sign and having the wrong Certificate of Occupancy needed for the bar to “operate as an eating/drinking establishment.”
That seemed like it was going to be resolved pretty quickly. I mean, they were essentially shut down for code violations. And the official statements from the owners used the word “temporary” to describe the situation. It would seem like they could just quickly fix these violations and reopen in a few weeks. But as the months have dragged on and Vitus has remained closed, it’s started to look like maybe the bar was struggling more than we realized and this closure might be something they simply aren’t in a position to recover from.
The statement came Sunday on the Saint Vitus Instagram account with a post of photos of the bar’s founders, George Souleidis and Arty Shepherd and booking manager David Castillo, and the following caption:
“1120 Manhattan Ave. 2011-2024
Saint Vitus Bar to be continued…
“Thank you to everyone who was a part of it. ????
“Love and Hails,
Arty, George, David”
That “to be continued…” part has led some to speculation that there’s a plan to reopen in a new location. Perhaps that’s more hope than any immediate reality. But, according to Variety, the organizers are continuing to put on “Saint Vitus Presents” shows at other nearby venues. So perhaps that’s what they mean when they say “to be continued..,” that Saint Vitus’ story is to be continued in a new chapter where the Saint Vitus brand means something else. Regardless, the building at 1120 Manhattan Ave., it seems, will no longer be Saint Vitus Bar.
Tributes poured in on Instagram from metal and hardcore artists from hardcore act Gel, to Suicidal Tendencies drummer Jay Weinberg, to Enter Shikari, to Scott Ian of Anthrax. But the most heartfelt comment came from Whores., who thanked the venue for giving them a chance, saying:
“I’m unable to sufficiently articulate the importance of this place to both the band and me personally. No one took us seriously until we started selling out shows at Saint Vitus. You guys took a chance on us, and we will never forget it. Thank you for everything.”
Hopefully, even in its new capacity as more of a booking company, St. Vitus will continue to find and help promote upcoming bands that someone needs to take a chance on.
