Of other interest for us Sloopers here are some observations about the place:
For those of you who moved to the South Loop because that condo was too good a deal to pass up, there's The Shrine, a new club for "culturally aware urbanites."
I like The Shrine's smaller, behind-the-bar stage because it gives the shows an intimate feel. More important, it might keep entourages off the stage and away from the mic. As much as I love hearing five nobodies yell into the mic, I prefer hearing the original artist sing the song alone.
A trendy, diverse crowd was on hand for the performance -- and by trendy, I mean it wasn't just dudes in dress shirts and jeans. I saw a few vests, fedoras and driver's caps.