Landmark cultural spaces in our daily lives don’t necessarily begin with a grand vision, meticulous business plan, or massive amounts of venture capital.
Sometimes it comes down to sensing a need, filling a niche, and acting on an inspired whim.
In the words of Erik Brown, if you’re present in life and pay attention when a door opens, that often is the moment when opportunity beckons.
That’s more or less how he and his business partner, Anne Mathey, found themselves launching their venue known as Lefty’s Live Music in 2015 in the heart of Dogtown, the entertainment district on the eastern fringe of Drake University in Des Moines.
A decade later, they’re feeling all the feels as they wind down their run as club owners and sell 2307 University Avenue, with the sounds of hundreds of rock, metal, country, jazz, punk, cowpunk, folk-punk, circus punk, (insert anything) punk, and countless other styles of bands still ringing in their ears.
A final run of shows culminates with a goodbye gig Dec. 20 (with Brother Trucker, Todd Partridge & the Whiskey Gospel and Jacob County & the Damaged Goods) and a “Merry Metal Christmas” Dec. 21 headlined by Absolute Power.
“We didn’t plan this,” Brown said of the Lefty’s decade. “It presented itself.”
Another coincidental (and inspired) choice: The venue was named after Mathey’s beloved dog, Lefty, a mix of beagle and German shorthaired pointer. A cartoon version of Lefty grins and winks on the venue’s sign out front, and he’s depicted alongside Ozzy Osbourne on the giant mural indoors.
Lefty already was missing his front left leg when Mathey adopted him from the local shelter in 2008. The poor pooch apparently was rescued from the middle of a frozen river after he broke through the ice and got his leg stuck in a logjam. He became a regular presence at his namesake club, whether he could be seen bellied up to the bar, splayed beneath a pinball machine, or taking in the show with his hearing protected by a pair of Mutt Muffs.
“As a woman, it’s a signal that it’s safe,” Mathey said of Lefty’s mascot presence. “At a place where they’re taking care of the dog, they’re taking care of the people, too.”
Lefty died in 2022 at the ripe old age of 15.
Forget bark vs. bite: Lefty’s spirit, at least through Dec. 21, still rings out louder than any other canine in our capital city.
From Bagg’s to Lefty’s
Mathey first set foot inside 2307 University to hear bracing all-female rock bands like L7 as a Drake student when the venue was known as Safari Night Club.
The building, dating back to 1960, housed a series of businesses and bars—by the late ‘80s a blues joint called Bagg’s, after owner David Bagby.
That closed in 1990 and was followed by Safari, which welcomed a steady dose of live reggae among rock and other styles. (I spent a couple hours of my 21st birthday at the Safari, and it has remained a sentimental address in my personal geography of Des Moines.)
Shawn Crahan of Slipknot fame briefly owned Safari. As a young music journalist I helped judge band battles there featuring Slipknot and witnessed lead singer Corey Taylor’s debut with the what became Iowa’s most famous musical export.
Then came a sequel version of storied music venue Hairy Marys (its original location in what is now High Life Lounge). There was an Irish bar, the Dublin.
Most recently, Lefty’s.
‘Be curious and find new art. Gather in spaces and connect.’
Mathey made her way to Lefty’s after a career pivot from media to the bar biz. She had been an alt-weekly entertainment editor when she joined the staff of the former House of Bricks—briefly at its Merle Hay Road location, then in the East Village in the space now occupied by Garden nightclub.
She met musician Brown at House of Bricks, where he signed on as doorman after moving from Colorado in 2009. That venue’s conversion to a restaurant prodded the pair to become unlikely entrepreneurs and open their own place, supported by a staff of fewer than 10.
They adopted a mission to evangelize local talent as well as “good music from out of state that nobody knew.”
Here they are a decade later, having curated a space where an act as curious as the “Vaudeville debauchery” of the Tinderbox Circus Sideshow lingered after its performance to teach Mathey how to walk on a bed of nails.
Brown never will forget the blaring triple bill of Faster Pussycat, the Supersuckers, and the Rumors.
Lefty’s eked by during COVID. Mathey and Brown’s goal had been to at least “break the seven-year curse”—outlasting the tenures of previous occupants. They outlived their beloved mascot.
They had been wrestling for most of this year with the decision to close.
It was time.
Lefty’s joined the scene in 2015 among a rash of closures of other longtime music venues: Hull Ave. Tap, Blues on Grand, People’s, etc.
It leaves as xBk Live still thrives just a block away, and newcomers take root such as Locals Bar & Stage downtown.
“People should be sad about it,” Brown said of Lefty’s closing, “but there will be a phoenix.”
The co-owners posted a message on social media that included these lines: “To all the patrons, be curious and find new art. Gather in spaces and connect. Hold each other close.”
I’ll add one more: Be like Lefty and fetch live music often, and don’t forget to protect your ears.
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative Holiday Party
If you’re a paid subscriber to at least one member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative (it doesn’t have to be me), you can attend our upcoming holiday party for free. Otherwise, cover charge is $35 at the door. Other details:
What: Iowa Writers’ Collaborative Holiday Party
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 17
Where: The Harkin Institute, 2800 University Ave., Des Moines
Who: Mingle with members and fellow supporters of the collaborative, and hear the wonderful music duo Weary Ramblers perform.
RSVP: Reserve your spot by Dec. 5.
Iowa Writers’ Collaborative
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