Music Box

Really intimate little venue with a cool bar and a huge sound system! I saw Opiuo there and it absolutely blow me away. I love this place so much. I want them to attract more electronic bands like Odesza and Disclosure. The bouncers are friendly as well as the bartenders. I don’t know how much the drinks are but they are strong and delicious. I want to see all my bands here because it feels so small but with an enormous vibe

We went for a going away party and although the food menu says the price, once you get your bill, be prepared for a couple dollars more. The street tacos were supposed to be $ 8 and the vegetable spring rolls were $ 6, but my bill said $ 10 and $ 8. Seems kinda shady, dishonest and I don’t like it. This was my first and lasts time here. There was about a group of 12 with us and none of us will go back. Don’t cheat us and raise your prices bc you think people are going to be drunk and not realize your mysterious up charge.

A group of friends and I attended an Ideal and Jagged Edge concert on a Friday night.
The venue is located between Downtown and Little Italy so we had no problems at all getting street parking very close to the venue.
We showed up around 9PM and there was no line.
The venue itself is very classy/​modern.
Being a DJ myself, I’m kind of a speaker/​lighting snob, so I’m glad to say that the venue had a very high end speaker system with great sound quality no matter where you are standing. The lighting throughout the entire venue was very up-​to-​date and high end as well.
The venue had two bars, one on the main floor and one on the third floor. Even on really crowded night, we had no issue getting our drinks in a timely manner. Cocktails are overpriced as anywhere else in Downtown, about $ 10 – 13 for a mixed drink. The cups are kind of small and they fill it all the way up with ice so you don’t get that much alcohol for how much you are paying; this would be my only complaint about the venue.
Overall, we had a great night at Music Box and I look forward to attending concerts here in the future.

I experienced one of the most amazing hip-​hop shows that I have ever been to at the music box. First of all this place looks so amazing and is Hidden in the heart of little Italy San Diego. I had an opportunity to attend Jay electronica live on stage at the music box. The waitress was simply amazing friendly and on point. We were treated a very nice considering we did not buy a bottle but we still have access to a table right by the stage. I only tried a few things on the menu so can’t really express how good the food is but I will be back for any hip-​hop R&B or simply great music live performances at the music box.

My friends band was playing here last weekend so I was excited to check it out! He said he put us on the guest list but then when we got there they got all flustered about it and didnt have our names at the door or at the box office. Tickets were only $ 8 so we just got them and went in, only to find out that my friend who was performing had already put tickets for us on hold AT the box office.
I told the guy working the box office the situation and he found them right away??? Why was that so difficult? Too late to worry about refunding our money so we took it as a loss and weren’t going to let it ruin the night.
Then we go upstairs and sit down in their awesome balcony for about 10 minutes before a guy with a headset tells us our spot is ‘reserved’. There were no signs to indicate this, otherwise we wouldn’t have sat down!
All in all the venue supports local artists which is great, but they still have a lot of kinks to work out.

Great venue to hear some great up and coming bands. I had no idea this place existed until last night when I went to see little hurricane and grizzly business (both amazing bands) on a Thursday night. Entry was free and the space was really cool. Three stories so you can catch the bands either from the floor or get a birds eye view. The crowd was pretty laid back and the décor was awesome with great funky artwork. In between sessions you got some fun dance music so all around entertainment and good location. I would definitely recommend this place.

This place seems a bit unorganized.
We went to see Chali 2na perform and didn’t. This wasn’t The music box’s fault, but the lovely San Diego.
This was my first time at the venue.
We didn’t get searched and that was my first flag.
There were lots of security guys running around for some odd reason.
We got a VIP booth and at first they couldn’t direct us to it so we hung out on the top floor for a couple of minutes and watched the band that was playing.
After we got settled and the main group started playing 2 random black guys came and sat in our booth, in front of me, and got on their phone.
Height of motherfucking rudeness I tell you.
I didn’t care at first, but after 5 min of this idiot on his phone messing up my experience (it was dark in there) I decided to tell him it was fine that he sat there, he just had to turn his phone off.
This idiot got an attitude w/​me and then the power went off. Mind you I remembered that this place didn’t search people so me starting anything with a stranger wouldn’t have been smart.
What a waste of money.
Almost like security there is getting paid to do nothing.
You guys hiring?
lol

Okay so I hope this review helps. Yes the drinks are pricey and yes there’s limited seating. I’m sure you’ve read that in other reviews of this place. But any avid concert goer knows that’s the norm with many venues.
I saw Citizen Cope last month and was disappointed that no one mentioned how loud it was in there. The sad thing is that the venue is not designed for musical acts. It’s almost a bar first, venue second. It’s layout makes it so that the entire bar area and the upper floor, unless you are front row, have NO VIEW of the stage. Which makes it more inviting for people to sit in the back and just talk during performances. Citizen Cope even mentioned it between songs that there was too much chatter back there. Why would a place like that have sofas in areas where you can’t even see the stage?
Cool place, cool area. Not very conducive to musical acts. Would not recommend it.

Venue was okay. One star is for the power trip bouncer outside. After I left I watched as one guy was waiting to get back inside to his friends, and the bouncer was making him play all kinds of games while he decided if he would allow that. «Stand over here, no now you have to stand over there to wait, man you’re too close to me now go stand over there, you’ll just have to be patient» meanwhile he was letting back in other people. The dude waiting was being incredibly nice putting up with his shit waiting for the bouncer to get over it. I took a photo.
The drinks are $ 13 and are served in airline sized cups. If you watch them pour it’s maybe .33 of a shot in each.
Avoid this place.

Just went to this venue last night for the first time.
I can honestly say that the vibes here were great.
This establishment is three stories high.
First floor — dance floor
Second floor — VIP area
Third floor — tables, chairs, couches, lounge
Pros:
1. You can find parking nearby at a parking meter on the street or pay for parking which is only $ 5 on the weekend!
2. Tickets are cheap! $ 10 a person.
3. Large dance floor!
4. Intimate kind of stage, because the DJ/​performing artists are super close to the crowd.
5. There are tables, chairs, and couches everywhere so you can sit and chill at!
6. There is a bar on the bottom floor and the top floor
7. There are bathrooms on the bottom floor and top floor as well.
8. There is a good sized smoking area in the front with couches and an ash tray!
9. The venue is REALLY well ventilated! I was not sweating at all and was actually cold in a lot of areas. Which is awesome. I rather be chilly while dancing rather than hot and sweaty and miserable.
Cons:
1. It is an 18+ up venue, although I find it weird that the 21+ bars are not segregated from the underage, so you can drink wherever you want, so I would assume that a lot of 21+ people probably be passing their drinks to the younger crowd easily.
2. The bottom dance floor gets REALLY wet and sticky because people leave their drinks everywhere and NOBODY cleans it or picks up the trash laying around.
3. Could definitely use better special lighting effects. The overall stage and lights are pretty ghetto.
Overall, this venue has a lot of potential, but could use some work. Has a pretty good crowd and good vibes. I would come back here again.

I had the most amazing experience last Sunday here at the Music Box.
My husband and I drove from Orange County down to San Diego and the whole time we were trying to figure out the set up of this venue.
My husband and I saw Citizen Cope and it was the most intimate setting. We got general seating tickets. We waited only a half hour outside before doors opened and got a front row seat. We contemplated buying a table (thinking they were better because they were more expensive) I’m happy we didn’t because there was nothing blocking my view of Clarence Greenwood. The tables were just booths along the perimeter? And I kind of feel like they felt left out and didn’t have the greatest view.
We didn’t have any food but when it passed by it looked delicious! we sure did keep the drinks coming though!
I’m almost positive they change the set up for each musician joining them. Some concerts may be standing room only. Ours was mixture of seating and standing on the second/​third level. Could actually see up a lot of ladies dresses, yikes.
A lot people were dressed up and there were some people that were casual!
I know a lot of people miss the old venue anthology? And I can’t stand when people give a low rating just because they miss something that used to be there. This place is fantastic! Give it a chance.

I have never been here before. Even when it was Anthology (?). So I was happy to finally come and check it out. I went on a Friday for the Talib Kweli and Hi-​Tek concert. Show time was slotted at 8pm but when we arrived we were in line outside and let in about 8:20pm. At the front next to matchboxes, they had ear plugs and guitar picks. I thought that was cool. There is the bottom level general admission (standing room), second level is VIP and then the third level for general admission (standing room) as well. We went straight to the top floor. There were 2 small stand alone bars and one main bar. Everyone was already leaning over the railing. There were seats but you had to pay to sit. Drinks are pretty stiff there too. Not a bad thing.
The venue is very urban and trendy. Definitely a smaller and more intimate setting. There’s a parking lot next door but we parked in the street.

I’m writing this review knowing very well that I’ll need to update it again really soon as I feel I only got to experience a sliver of what Music Box has to offer. I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed that little sliver though!
In a past life I was a touring musician. I have spent years on the road and have played the s#ittiest clubs with dirty bathrooms and sticky floors, but I’ve also tasted a little bit of the arena lifestyle with crazy production and absolute chaos. Somewhere in the middle is a certain type of club that you love playing and the crowd loves going to. These clubs were clean, well maintained, the sound was awesome and the grub was good. Music Box is one of these clubs.
Granted I look at clubs like this through a different set of eyes than most, but 26 year old Brad B would have been thrilled to play a place like Music Box. Now 30-​something year old Brad will enjoy Music Box as a fan watching young hopes and dreams crumble right before my eyes. Hey, it’s all part of the show and with Rachel and Alex pouring drinks, I’m loving every second of it!
Well done, Music Box! I’m a fan!

Last night my husband and I went to the music box for the long-​awaited Robert Delong show. I love seeing a new artist for the first time and I love checking out new venues. Truthfully, however, I was skeptical about the venue due to some negative Unilocal reviews (and I was not a fan of Anthologie, the music hall that used to be at this venue).
First, I was a little confused about show times, as the listings were unclear. The event listing stated that doors open at 7:30 and the show was at 9. The tickets simply said doors open at 7:30. I got an email from Ticket Web urging everyone to arrive early and said the show was at 8. I emailed the GM who did not have much info, but told me the show was at 9. So we decided to go to dinner in Little Italy, and walked a few blocks, arriving just after 8:30. Security was really friendly. A host gave us a tour and found us seats on the third floor to chill out and have some drinks. We did browse a menu (for future reference since we had just had our dinner) and saw that they do offer a few bar bites, but it was just sliders, fries and a few other things. I was glad we ate first. The cocktail waitress brought our drinks quickly. They were a bit pricey for the quality, not bad drinks, but not exactly «crafted cocktails» that they were claiming to be.
The opener started at 9, after which we went downstairs to hang out and wait for the show. There was a bit too much time between sets, but we had been sitting for a while so I didn’t mind a little wait. The downstairs floor did get crowded, maybe a little too tight, but we were able to still see and stand toward the back later on so we could have some space to dance and to breath.
My husband commented that the venue would be perfect for a show that is not so packed.
I thought the venue was very modern and inviting and the staff was very professional. There is a small outdoor area which would be nice for a summer night. I would definitely return for another show.

I never knew it when it was Anthology. My first time hearing about the Music Box was when I bought tix for Scott Weiland and The Turnabouts. I went alone & what an absolutely brilliant evening I ended up having!
Personable, high-​end evening. Ahhhmazing cocktails! I had the Time Bandit & the Ginger Rogers cocktails. I didn’t mind the price because of thee great quality. I’ve told a dozen people about the venue this week alone. I was impressed by the atmosphere, the food was pricey and soooo worth the $$. Beautiful food, beautiful drinks, beautiful show venue. I guess I even could have met Scott because it felt so face to face but I pussed out and left after the show! Haahah. I will return and spend hard earned cash for a high-​end awesome rock evening!!! Thank you soo much!!!

This place doesn’t get it. It’s a complete disgrace to a live music venue. It’s not going to get it. People in this town never cease to amaze me… they can fuck up anything. Get your act together Music Crotch.
It’s a waste of your time to go here. What was once Anthology, is now «The Music Box» or what I’ll call the shit-​box from here on out. And where as I was once excited to experience the remodel/​rework of the venue, they took what was once a great place, and barfed it up. People in this town love «design» they get all mesmerized over some shitty new shiny things, and ignore what’s important. Value, quality, and consistency.
Other than the intimacy of the venue, it’s just a complete flop. I ordered a Whiskey and Coke…13 dollars, thanks. What the fuck? And the bartender short-​pours it & puts it in a plastic airline-cup…2 sips, no joke. a waste of my time. This place did me a huge favor, from now on for the rest of my life; I won’t pay for a shitty drink like that. I’ll watch whoever pours me a stupid sized drink like this, and then say, «um no thanks I won’t pay for that» and just walk away. I suggest getting shots at this place if you’re forced to be here, it might be your only hope. A plastic cup? Really? That’s classy. So shitty. You charge someone 13 – 20 dollars for a drink and put it in a Southwest Airlines sized cup, actually it’s a tad smaller. Just put it in a damn glass. Also, doors opened at 7:30, the opener started at 7:30, and the main act didn’t start until 10:15…what? Open your bar… there was 40 people standing outside… that’s a 500 dollars for 1 round in 13 dollar shitty drinks… so poorly ran.
The layout has a little lounge feel in the front area by the bar. Once you enter the main standing room area, along the right side you’ll see a few bistro style tables & 2 chairs per, and these weird low sitting rolling padded cart-​like contraptions. Along the left side, the doomed design of what I’ll call the «failure-​bench» from here on out.
Some people stand on it, others sit on it, some lean on it… and then you see the ultimate fail, the people that order the food and hold their plate in their hands and lean forward and eat with their hands like animals. I’m gagging thinking of how white-​trash it looked. For many people, sadly – this is cool, this is their comfort-​zone, oh, no biggie, I’m just going to stand or lean and eat? They looked like scum leaning over and using those Costco style carts with steam-​punk wheels & leather cushions as their table. God help our society and business’s like this. The bar is set so fucking low these days, somebody thinks this place is great, sad.
Hey Music Box… Costco has tables for people to eat at, you can too. I’m not even asking this place to be an eating establishment, but it would be nice to have a place to set your beer or 2 sip drink. Have some dignity, I’ll never get how people accept shittyness like this.
And now… for the worst part. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the former owner designed this place especially for MUSIC. The bones of the place are simply-​put «built for music» here’s the sad part; the music box decided to say fuck all that… we are just going to turn up the music as loud as it can go… the acoustics are complete shit. It’s completely an amateur job.
I’ll never understand going to eat pasta at a pasta place and it is pure shit, they specialize in pasta, but it sucks? Or going to a bar for a beer, and it’s warm, flat and over-​priced? In the case of this joint, both the drinks are minuscule, over-​priced and the music cannot be enjoyed because someone, most likely an idiot is making the call that the sound should be maxed to ungodly levels. I love, and I mean LOVE LOUD MUSIC. But this venue is too small and they are ignoring how poor it sounds, they are going to have to fix these things. I am almost deaf in my right ear, and it was too loud… help yourself music-​box.
I live across the street, and it could be a place I could grab a show all the time, but no-​way. I’d like to mention that there are «VIP» areas on the second and third deck, dumb. Just sell tickets and fill it up and sling good affordable drinks. Once again, somebody in San Diego wants to be a gritty hard core music hall, a foodie fantasia (with barely enough space to eat it) and a high-​end douche bag club feel on the top floors with what looked like bottle-​service available… yes bottle service. As in that thing you did in 1999. Just fix it Music Box.

New, modern and nice music venue for small to mid-​sized concerts!
Acoustics was pretty good and you could actually get up close to your band since there isn’t much space between the stage and the audience. Guess that’s the benefit of having a fence there! It’s not really a big space so the music fills up the hall pretty well.
Bathrooms looked modern but weren’t too well-​kept. There was littering all over the floor. But at least the renovation was pretty decent I suppose so it didn’t look gross. The placement of the bathrooms was a bit weird though. The female was right next to the stage and the male was by the entrance.
The staff were all very friendly including the security people. The bar tender was friendly and efficient as well. The bar area on the ground floor was pretty long and was sufficiently staffed so we didn’t have to wait for our drinks.
Being in between downtown/​Little Italy, it wasn’t as hard to find parking in this part of town. On a Thursday night we were able to find street parking just 2 blocks away.
I don’t know much about the balcony and VIP stuff. True music fans don’t care about VIP seats. We are not here to feel fancy but to party with the musicians! But I get there’s a demand for this kind of service for a certain niche of people.
Overall great times here!

Was here on the 1^st of Oct for the Josh Heinrichs and Skillinjah concert. It was a great show, but this review isnt about the show.
This is a really good venue for concerts. It has 3 floors. The stage floor that has lounge seating around the walls, the 2^nd floor which is VIP only. And the 3^rd floor that has some bar stools and tables, a full bar, a sofa lounge, and there is also an outside patio lounge. I definitely recommend the 3^rd floor.
This concert didnt pull too much of a crowd, maybe because it was on a Thursday and not many people knew the artists. That was cool with us tho. We had multiple seating options.
They do have a kitchen here. However just like the bar, the prices are ridiculously inflated. $ 8 bucks for a small beer, not even a pint. It seemed dumb that they would charge the same $ 8 for an IPA and a BudLight. Seems dumb. Best tip ever, pregame before you come in. A super small jack and coke was also $ 8, it was pathetic.
I dont know if security is new to this but we didnt even get searched. Which is cool but I didnt want to get in a fight that night since someone might pull out a knife or gun.
Security was chill tho. I was worried we might have had a bad experience with them but they were pretty cool. They had to tell us a couple of times not to hang our drinks over the ledge but they were always nice about it.
Bathrooms are legit. Girls dont drink too much! Seriously! Bunch of girls running to bathroom throwing up. Im sorry it have been the food. We ordered the garlic fries but couldnt really eat them, that garlic was too much for us.
So yea this place is cool. The prices are ridiculous on drinks. The sound system is super legit, I highly recommend bringing ear plugs. Seriously you can permanently damage your ears here.

Event: Musiq Soulchild
There was no line to get in. We got there at promptly 8pm and got in within seconds. Came inside and it was full. They were playing all the old Jams so that was cool.
The Venue: nice decoration and the layout is pretty cool. There is three levels:
First floor: Main bar and dance floor and the stage of course. And bathrooms were located for both men and women.
Second floor: VIP Seatings Only! We asked how much it would be for a table and they said it was starting at $ 1300. That’s ridiculous?!? For a small venue that’s not really known. Uhmmmm… NO THANK YOU!
Third floor: there was a large couch and like 4 tables against the wall with 2 chairs at each table. The was a bar at this level and a balcony for smokers.
At this moment, we were at the first floor and everyone looked so bored just standing around and not dancing. I thought the DJ is suppose to get the crowd going before the main performance. Anyways, no one knew exactly when Musiq was suppose to go on and when he was suppose to end. So when he did go on, he did his thing on stage for about an hour and it ended at like almost 11pm. Well everyone started to leave afterwards. we didn’t know if it was going to turn into a club after or anything. I just thought my $ 45 was just wasted. It wasn’t worth that much of my money. The drinks were expensive and this is the kind of place I would just spend $ 15 for tickets.
I don’t know if I would try coming back here for anything else but we’ll just have to see.

I’ve never been to this place before even when it was Anthology (according to previous reviewers) so I can’t give a comparison, but I can offer my honest insight.
I came here to see Musiq Soulchild’s sold out show! My group and I arrived around 8pm and walked in easily because there was no line. I walked in and was impressed by the décor and vibe. The place itself is a lot bigger than many of the clubs in Downtown.
There are 3 levels to Music Box. The 1^st floor has a bar, the stage, main floor, restrooms, and a few bar tables along the right side. The 2^nd floor are VIP tables. During that night of Musiq Soulchild’s show, we asked one of the security how much it would be for a table and he replied ‘$ 1200.’ Mmmkay. bye! LOL. And the 3^rd level has seating, a small bar, and a small outdoor patio. Overall, I really liked the layout of this place. Very spacious.
A few downsides of that night:
— Although there was a DJ before Musiq to get the crowd vibin,’ no one had no idea when Musiq was actually going to be on stage. Someone on the mic would try to get the crowd hyped up, but he failed to inform us when we should expect the show to begin.
— No seating on the 1^st level. So ladies, if you’re going to wear heels, bring some flats. Otherwise, you can TRY to find seats on the 3^rd level.
— 1^st level bar service was slow. The bartenders need to learn to keep track of who was first. Two people from our group stood at the bar for a good amount of time before being acknowledged because the female bartender kept taking orders from the people walking up on the outsides rather than the middle. I think she took about 5 peoples orders before helping us when we were clearly there before those other people. Whatever!
— Order a shot of Henny Priviledge. Pay $ 25. DON’T FUCKIN DO IT!
— The large screen behind the stage did not provide a live stream of Musiq’s performance. I’m short so I would’ve like to see him perform, but instead I got a nice view of the back of people’s heads (even with heels on! FML).
I may consider coming here again to see what it’s like without an artist performing.