Skip to main content
The best place to begin the story of Holocene, the beloved Southeast Portland venue celebrating its 20th anniversary this month, is in 2002, with co-owners Jarkko Cain and Scott McLean standing in a muddy trench.
At the time, McLean was coming off years of working behind the scenes at Universal Music and music startup Uplister, while Cain was ready to leave his job in advertising. Both had the dream of creating a Berlin-style night spot in their hometown and set about finding a space, crisscrossing the city for weeks before stumbling on a former auto parts warehouse that stood across the street from the recently opened strip club Sassy’s.
They would have been happy with a much smaller room, but they saw so much potential in the high ceilings, vast interior, and perfect location—close enough to downtown but far enough away to feel like a destination.
Still, the spot at Southeast 10th and Morrison was a fixer-upper. The roof needed to be replaced and the building had to be retrofitted with plumbing to accommodate bigger restrooms and a bar and kitchen. Which is how McLean and Cain found themselves digging a trench for pipes in the unfinished space, creating a mountain of dirt that was becoming a mountain of mud thanks to the rain coming through the half-finished ceiling.
“You could see the sky through the slats, and it was pouring,” Cain remembers. “All the mud we were digging out was melting and running back into the trench. There were 19 different things like that. We were only able to do this because we were too dumb to know what we were getting into.”
They wised up quickly and, mere months after opening the doors, the venue became a hub for dance music of all stripes, indie artists on the come-up, and the still vital local scene. Gina Altamura, who joined the team in 2008 and remains the head booker for the space, has been key to keeping Holocene far ahead of the creative curve.
Holocene welcomed Billie Eilish to its humble performance space well before she ballooned to arena-sized fame. Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon had what he called “a dark night of the soul” at the club and wound up naming a song after it. SZA, Damian Lillard, M83, Grimes, Portugal. The Man, the Raincoats, Vampire Weekend, Gayle—the list goes on.
“Curiosity has always been a driving force,” says Altamura, who saw her own listening habits move from noise music into future pop and R&B in the years since coming to work at Holocene. “We’re curious about what’s happening in town, what’s happening in music nationally. What’s bubbling up? That continues to guide us and push us into new avenues.”
Important as those concerts have been, what has consistently kept Holocene afloat is its weekend dance parties. Friday and Saturday nights are devoted to a rotation of club nights helmed by DJs both local and international. And without seeking some kind of plaudits for their efforts, Altamura and the team have cultivated Holocene into a truly safe space for LGBTQIA+ Portlanders by making sure the venue has a few events each month catering to that community, such as the upcoming Brat-Worst event that will feature drag king performances.
Looking at their accomplishments over the past two decades isn’t something Altamura, McLean, or Cain seem to indulge in much. The trio seems constantly focused on what’s next, which this week is a run of shows celebrating Holocene’s birthday.
The eclectic lineup is a perfect encapsulation of the venue’s aesthetic: a night of solo piano performances by Alela Diane and Luke Wyland (June 7); performances by experimental electronic artist Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and reunited disco dance band Ancient Heat (June 8); and DJ sets by Detroit dance music pioneers Inner City, plus a performance by local legend Ben Tactic (June 9).
“I’m often working and have been setting a show up, so it doesn’t hit me as much,” Altamura says. “But if it’s a night when I’m not working and I’m just walking into it with all the lights and everything, it’s magical. You get a little sense of what it feels like in the audience. Like, ‘Ooh, what a vibe.’”
SEE IT: Holocene 20th Anniversary events play at Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison St., 503-239-7639, holocene.org. Wednesday-Friday, June 7-9. $25 each night. 21+.