Uncle Pleasant's

Postcards: 4"x6" - color OR original line drawing
Prints: 8.5"x11" - black and white line drawing

Around 40 years ago, a modest rock venue by the name of Uncle Pleasant’s opened up on Preston Street, right after the building that’s now home to Sunergos Coffee. It quickly became a hub for nationally touring punk and metal acts, hosting names like The White Stripes, High on Fire, and Iron and Wine. More commonly though, the stage was reserved for Louisville’s own: local legends like Bush League, Rodan, Kinghorse, Slint, and too many others to list. In the early 2000s, Uncle Pleasant’s briefly shut down, then reopened as The Crunch Zone, a short-lived rebrand that kept the music going for a couple more years. The venue operated for close to another 10 years as Uncle Pleasant’s before closing again, making way for a new chapter under the name of The New Vintage.

With cleaner bathrooms, less smoke, and a bright red paint-job out front, The New Vintage cracked open this shell of a historic local dive. It hosted countless local and touring bands, multiple festivals, and album release parties, keeping the spirit of Uncle Pleasant’s alive and loud. After selling out shows for 5 years, The New Vintage closed its doors in January 2017. Since its closing, the space has remained mostly vacant, except for a dance bar that popped up for a little while in 2018. Today if you walk past 2126 Preston Street, you’ll see faded paint, crumbling front steps, and plenty of rotting wood siding; but if you look up above the awning, you’ll see that old sun-faded black and yellow Uncle Pleasant’s sign, reminding us of the crowds, noise, and musicians that turned this old space into a hub and home for growing local musicians.