08/24/2025 09:47:54 PM
Early Saturday night, I was browsing my Facebook memories. Stumbled on a post of a once-famous music bar and right on the ear, that Cheers soundtrack was playing on my Spotify.
That suddenly became a trip back to memory lane with matching wipe-out slide transition playing in my mental monitor, especially when Gary Portnoy sings
the epic chorus line, “Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows
your name.”
The date was August 23, 2020, and Route 196 just announced their closure after more than 1 ½ decades of operation – and months of struggle to survive in the pandemic. This news disturbed the already-disturbed world of live music lovers of Manila, sending heartbreaking shockwaves to a deafening silence of that Sunday night.
It's been five years since that timely (or untimely, to many) demise, so whatever happened to the scenery? Well, first and foremost. it took us almost 2 years to feel the resurgence of our sound. And while we have seen the emergence of new venues around the metro (Unknown13, Imajin, Turning Tides, Lando's, Gighouse, Sari Sari), we also witness the short-lived runs of other places (Pit88, Rabbit Hole, USOK, 88 Fryer, Balcony) who tried playing around with them and the ones who still stood the test of time like saGuijo, 19 East, 12 Monkeys, 70s Bistro and Mow's.
Some people may think I'm just trying to relive the nostalgia through memories, but here's the thing: other folks have to understand that not everyone managed to hear the live sounds of other legendary places like Club Dredd, Mayric's, 6 Underground, and even Checkpoint. Hell, I got my first taste of live music in a bar setting was at then-Amos Cafe in Kamias, Quezon City. That said, for me, Route 196 appeared to be either a Dredd or Mayric's of my generation. I started going to the gigs back in 2015 in that house in Katipunan (just beside the gate of Blue Ridge) and became one of my go-to venues for pocket concerts – the very close one since I can walk going there and from my house. I got drunk there and ate two whole pizzas; I managed a show; I held the door (doesn't matter if it's 0 attendance or the fire hazard ones – I experienced both). I covered a couple events as a media there, too. I spent some dates and got heartbroken in some. Heck, I even tried scribbling around whenever I brought Darko (my laptop) in the venue.
Will there be a time Route would come back? I think, the spirit came back anyway with the scene being more alive by art (although still struggling on the business aspect), more artists making their names, and venues constantly staging shows almost every night. If we talked about the place, literally? I'm not hopeful, but hey, we'll never know.
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