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Heidelberg's Club Above rocks Ann Arbor

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

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Ann Arbor

A2's Heidelberg continues to be known for a lot more than its German food and beer.

Excerpt:

Ann Arbor finally has a new rock club.

The Club Above -- the third level of the Heidelberg restaurant -- has had many personalities over the last few decades, since first opening in 1961. In the '80s and '90s, the Club Above functioned as a successful rock venue -- Nirvana even played there in the band's early days -- but it became a dance club around the millennium, leaving the nearby Blind Pig to hold a monopoly on the Ann Arbor rock scene.

Earlier this year, Heidelberg owners Ray and Monica Kouza started looking for someone to bring back the successful live music. Soon, they were directed to Claudia Leo, a musician and long-time Ann Arbor resident -- she moved there from her native Buenos Aries, Argentina, in 1992, at age 19 -- who has extensive experience with local bands and even runs a local record label. Leo herself had been looking for a new place for local rock bands to play.

"It's great! The opening night (May 16) was a big hit," says Leo who swayed the Kouzas to overhaul the upstairs sound system and add lights and a backstage area for bands. "It's been the talk of the town, and the feedback I'm getting from the local community is great. People are saying that rock is back in town."

Read the rest of the story here.