Hawthorne Game Exchange Opens Monday with an Acoustic Rock Show

The successor to the recently-shuttered CD Game Exchange hopes to double as an all-ages venue in the future.

Mo Troper, owner of Hawthorne Game Exchange. IMAGE: Courtesy of Bandcamp.
By Daniel Bromfield

We learned last month that local musician Mo Troper bought the original Southeast Hawthorne location of Portland music and video game retail chain CD Game Exchange and re-branded it as Hawthorne Game Exchange.

The new business now has an official opening date: Monday, December 9. And to celebrate, it's throwing a show with several local artists.

DJ Yousef Hatlani will open the show at 5 p.m., followed by rock bands Growing Pains and Phone Voice at 7 p.m. Both bands' sets will be acoustic, as the store has not yet installed the soundproofing required to host louder shows in accord with Portland's noise ordinance laws.

"It's right in front of a residential block, so we just don't wanna disturb any neighbors," says Troper.

Troper hopes the store will be a regular space for all-ages shows. A December 21 show with local band Boreen, also acoustic, is currently in the works.

"My goal is to be compliant and be able to have real rock shows," says Troper. "But it's just a lot of work we don't have time for right now. It'd great to be a real all-ages venue."

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