the Clarendon yuppies who pay to get into Iota for a place to hang out and talk, rather than seeing the band.
this is easily the worst true stereotype of a dc crowd seeing a show.
everytype of people do this everywhere in everytown for anyshow. get away from the home nest more, and stop blaming the town/types of people. they all suck at what they do.
I think it depends on the venue. IOTA definitely looks/feels like an "after work hangout bar", where the 9:30, Black Cat, etc., really feel more like music venues-- and so the crowd tends to act accordingly. Sure, we've all been to plenty of shows at the Cat or 9:30 where people in the audience were talking, but they tend to segregate more, so the talkers end up in the back, vs. IOTA where it can be almost impossible to hear the band unless you're right up under the stage. (Exception: Bowerbirds at the Black Cat earlier this year, where the yakking was so bad I almost left early.)
But no, IOTA is certainly not the only venue with this problem, nor is Clarendon the only neighborhood where people wander in to a bar after work on a Friday and talk loudly over the band.
