The Mercury Ballroom

Address:	611 S 4th St, Louisville, KY 40202, USA
Phone:	+1 502-583-4555
Site:	mercuryballroom.com
Rating:	4.2

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 8

Nicholas Johnson

Mercury provides a decent venue for medium sized acts wanting something more than a local dive bar, but not able to fill arenas and stadiums. They do bring a variety of good bands to town, but they are lacking in their execution. While the facility itself is a decent industrial-inspired standing-room-only event space, its not without its flaws. The first problem upon arrival is finding parking in the area. Not a fault of the venue, per-se, but nonetheless a significant obstacle to attending shows there. The security staff are uncomfortably aggressive about admitting patrons, as entry includes being yelled at and berated by ego-inflated bouncers to stand strictly in line and show identification for entry, which is usually accompanied by unwelcomed physical groping without warning or request of consent. This policy is ostensibly aimed at preventing weapons from entering the facility, which is unfortunate as it does not permit off-duty Louisville Metro Police officers to attend any events there. Once inside, you will be confronted with limited viewing angles, so get there early to get to a spot where you can adequately see the band. If youre hoping to drink, be sure to pregame beforehand as the drink prices are exorbitant, the shots tiny and outrageously priced, and the bartenders will not open a tab. Come for the music, but dont stay for the hospitality or the drinks.

Nick Dalton

Update: A nice venue with an intimate crown to stage setting. Saw two of my favorite bands there. One for cheap and the other for free because I won tickets. A good place even though they could still use a better phone system. Also additional ticket fees go to upkeep however Im pretty sure it was only an additional $2 per ticket as opposed to the $7 it was trying to charge online and over the phone. Ive been trying and TRYING to get a hold of someone to talk to on the phone but their automated system is so automated it is virtually impossibly to get a hold of a living breathing person to talk to. I attempted to buy tickets online to which I was being charged a $7 fee per ticket. The same went for attempting to purchase them over the automated phone system. If a ticket price is $20 there is no reason I should be paying any kind of extra fee if I am attempting to do it over the phone. Now I have to go down there to purchase the tickets in person in advance but dont even know if Ill be able to since its impossible to ask a simple question over the phone and I doubt there will even be anyone there even though though theyre supposed to be open for another 2 hours.

Dylan Hillerich

My sister and I went to this venue the other night, and I was carrying my small messenger bag and she was carrying a purse. Ive been to enough shows to know the drill: open your bag for security to inspect. The security guard briefly glanced in my sisters purse, but held me back before entering. He proceeded to physically put his hands in my bag, open all the zipped compartments, pulled all items out of my bag, and threw away what he thought was "trash" (old wrappers, receipts, and stuff like that, but who was he to determine what was "trash" in my bag?). As the security guard was rifling through my bag, a staff member stood by me and mocked me, commenting, "What are those? Condoms or something? You didnt find any weed? No drugs?" I have never felt so violated, disrespected, and humiliated. Whether these occurrences were because I am a man carrying a bag (which is easier that having stuff crammed in you pockets all night) or it was a homophobic reaction, I wont be back to this sexist/homophobic venue.

Ashley Jackson

I loved this place! Im from Nashville and have been to quite a few small venues across the east (Nashville, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Louisville, and more). This was one of my favorites so far. The building has a cool vibe and it’s in a good location. It’s an easy walk from restaurants and parking was extremely reasonable. There’s a parking garage right behind the venue and it only cost $2 for me to park from 5:30 until 11:30 or so when the show was over. The venue manager was active the entire night, making sure everything was running smooth and he was super friendly to guests. I was in the first 20 or so people who arrived and waited for about an hour before doors opened. The manager walked through the line and gave the early arriving people a drink ticket to get one free drink from the bar (can’t beat that!). All staff was friendly and security was active but not invasive (contrary to what the other reviewer stated). I’ll definitely be going back to a show at this place – they’re doing it right!

Rob Farmer

Venue is decent in the sense that its in good condition, its in a good location with easily accessible parking, and food all around. It has potential. However I just recently saw my absolute favorite band here... This is the 3rd time Ive seen them, in the 3rd different location. They have been absolutely electric everytime until the Mercury Ballroom. Heres why: There is NO WAY this place has a 900 person capacity. Maybe 600. 700 is pushing it. Overselling is the worst thing you can do at a concert. So many people were talking about how terribly crowded it was. It was way too hot, everyone was visibly sweaty before the bands even began. And the place of the merchandise stand literally ON the floor was just a terrible decision. There was literally no way to enjoy the music, between the pillars on the floor being in the way, and everyone being crammed like sardines. I will not go back. I do not care who is playing.

Ben Davis

Went for purity ring concert last night. First time in Louisville and probably wont be back. Bands were great. Acoustics were good except under the balcony area. Drinks were very expensive. Not well set up to have bathrooms on the sides in the front, constantly moving to let people through. People in general were rude, shoving through us constantly without saying a word. Even had a staff member physically shove through me without saying anything to the point I was about to elbow him until I saw his staff shirt. There was also a guy running circles around the venue running through people, yelling randomly and kicked my wife twice. This is the only bar Ive ever been to where Ive seen someone act so disrespectful and not be talked to or kicked out. It seemed clear this is not a place to go to if you really want to have a good experience seeing bands you love.

Daniel Smith

Saw Markus Schulz there 4/2014. Where to begin? The venue itself is little more than a garage with a disco ball in it. Notwithstanding this fact, there were about 20 security guards, in addition to 5 police officers present. This would not have been all that strange, but considering the total turnout for the event was under 100 people, it felt like dancing in a prison yard (not that I have been to one, but I would Imagine thats how it would feel like). Absolutely nothing was allowed inside. I mean no gum, no glow sticks, no flashlights... you name it. The security pretty much stripped searched you on you way in. Best part? You are not allowed to go out and come back in either. Worst venue for an EDM even I have ever been to.

J S

Ive seen a few shows at this venue and Ive always had a great experience. My only critiques are that on show days people start getting in line early because its a GA venue but there are no signs to direct people to the VIP entrance or regular entrance. They have signs, but they dont put them out until around an hour before the show and by then, there are usually already tons of people all confused about where to go. Second, all the staff are very friendly and helpful except for one. There is a woman with short red hair who is not the nicest person. She can be curt and frankly, rude and Ive had run-ins with her on multiple occasions and all have been unpleasant. Just avoid asking her questions and all should be fine.