MUSIC ON THE MENU: Rockstars: Ready for re-launch

Rockstars re-launch weekend (1266 Sans Souci Parkway, Hanover Twp.). Fri.: Absolution / Stuck In Chaos / Von Kull, Sat.: Black Ice / The NonRefundables / Pave The Way / Ashfall. Cover: $5. Info: 570.208.0304, myspace.com/rockstars1266

by Alan K. Stout
Music Columnist

Rockstars nightclub in Hanover Twp. will host a re-launch party this weekend. The club — now under new management — wants to clean the slate and start anew. It’s got a fresh attitude, it’s bursting with enthusiasm, and it’s got a strong desire to provide patrons with great rock ’n’ roll.

Tammy Hulsizer, who began managing the club in November, says that, unfortunately, those qualities haven’t always been the case at Rockstars.

“Basically, the previous manager messed things up,” says the refreshingly candid Hulsizer. “Anything you can possibly think of to do wrong in business, he did.”

Hulsizer says she was asked to run the facility by its owner, Roberta Brothers, who is a close friend. Brothers bought the club in 2007 when it was still known as The In Between Lounge, a gentleman’s club. She kept it as such for a short time but then converted it into a rock club. Hulsizer says Brothers later became unsatisfied with previous management and wanted to make changes.

So far, so good.

“We’ve given it a better attitude,” she says. “I have a great new staff, and I make sure that when people come in, they have a great time and they want to come back for more. When I first started, no bands wanted to work here. The first band I worked with was Absolution, and they contacted a large group of bands and told them, ‘You will want to work with her.’ They started calling, and I actually had to stop booking bands because I was booked through June.”

Hulsizer says bands aren’t the only ones that should notice a change. Customers should as well. She says people are always greeted with a warm “Welcome to Rockstars!” as they enter the club and that such greetings can come from her, the bartenders, the bouncers or all three.

“We all want this to work,” she says. “We all love music, and we all love feeding off the crowd and the great energy that we all have when we’re all together. People say it’s the best party. And believe me, it wasn’t that way when I first got here. It’s slowly coming along, and it’s getting better each week. More people are noticing the difference.”

Live bands play Rockstars on Friday and Saturday nights. The club is also open on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. There is a dart league on Tuesdays, DJs on Wednesdays and karaoke with a DJ on Thursdays. Hulsizer says she enjoys hearing the cranked-up amps on the weekends.

“We have a nice mixture of original bands and cover bands,” she says, naming Absolution, Pave The Way and Ashfall as some of original projects and Destination West and Black Ice as some of the cover bands that have hit the stage. This Friday, Absolution will help kick off the club’s grand reopening and will be joined on the bill by Stuck In Chaos and Von Kull. On Saturday, Black Ice, The NonRefundables, Pave The Way and Ashfall will perform.

Hulsizer says she’s well aware of how NEPA’s rock clubs have struggled in recent years, particularly over the past decade with the closings of once-thriving nightspots such as The Station/Market Street Square, The Staircase, The San Souci Lounge/Jimmy’s Nightclub, Jitterbugs/Nightcaps, The Voodoo Lounge and Murray’s. Still, she says Rockstars has pushed forward and has done so with a plan. One reason she thinks it’ll succeed is simply the size of the room.

“I think our club is the perfect size,” she says. “It has a more intimate atmosphere, which makes it easier for people to have a great time, to be with their friends, and meet new people. It’s nor overly big, and it’s not real small. People feed off of each other. The bands feed off the crowd, because we are a more intimate place, and the crowd feeds off of them. It’s amazing how everything clicks. The bands love playing here, and people love that no matter where they’re standing or sitting, they can see the stage.”

Obviously, the staff at Rockstars is hoping people will stop in this weekend for the club’s re-launch, which Hulsizer says is being done to celebrate of the new vibe and new attitude.

“I’m not in this for the quick fix,” she says. “I absolutely love music and love sharing that with people. I want to bring in all different types of rock and roll — original bands, cover bands — I love seeing new talent. The re-launch is to reintroduce the staff and the bar to everybody so that people can see that whatever they saw months ago is gone. You’re going to come in, you’re gong to have a great time, and you’re going to come back.”

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