MGH! envisions 303 Columbia as a community hub
As MGH!, Jason Sulyma has been playing the party circuit around town for over a decade, whether blasting a blend of punk and rap at an East Side warehouse, streaming out dance hits for a sunbaked crowd at Squamish Fest, or rolling out the Rihanna remixes at Glory Days, the peach-body-spray-scented, Pabst-soaked bacchanalian bump ’n’ grind held weekly at the Biltmore Cabaret.
Though he isn’t giving up his DJ gig anytime soon, the Vancouver music figure is shifting to a more behind-the-scenes role at the moment, acting as both talent buyer and a partner in the newly opened 303 Columbia club.
Situated at the edge of Gastown, the building holds a lot of history for Sulyma. Back in the mid-Aughts, when the club was called the Columbia, he and his friends DJ’ed here and booked concerts for acts like MSTRKRFT and Flosstradamus. Adjoined to the Columbia Hotel, the shell remains the same, but Sulyma and the rest of the 303 team are in the midst of redefining the spot, from design choices to its open-format programming schedule.
Wearing a flipped-brim ball cap, two-day stubble, and an apple-cheeked grin, the boisterous Sulyma invites the Straight inside on a sunny afternoon to talk about the changes. Intentionally distancing itself from the aesthetics of many clubs, 303 has bright-white walls, a nod, Sulyma says, to the city’s smaller art galleries and underground after-hours scene.
“We don’t want to be associated with nightclubs or club lifestyle, those are all failed lifestyles,” he says, calling the space a “community hub” to avoid the trappings of long lines, high drink prices, and weekend-warrior binges associated with nearby strips. They’re also ensuring their crowd respects the neighbouring Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre
“You need to realize that it’s not a playground outside,” Sulyma opines.
Launched at the beginning of August, the room is an ongoing project. During the interview, a worker is handcrafting wooden benches in the middle of the room, his saw blazing within earshot of the panther-black leather sofa on which Sulyma’s sipping an iced tea.
“We’re always adapting,” he says. “There’s going to be a phase one, a phase two, a phase 1,000. If we see things, we just want to fix it. If you think that you’re just done once you open, you’re insane.”
Likewise, Sulyma plans an ever-evolving schedule. Though the club is currently anchored by the R & B–geared Sing Sing event on Fridays, where homegrown DJs like Rico Uno and Genie3 pack the hardwood with people dancing to Miguel remixes, Sulyma notes each season will bring a revolving series of events. In addition to DJ nights, 303 has already hosted shows with indie rockers Dirty Spells and a group photo exhibit; plans include a series of fall concerts curated by music-video director Owen Ellis and food programming. The goal is to cater as much as possible to the hometown crowd.
“It’s 99 percent local,” Sulyma says proudly. “We’re not going into this arms race with all the other promoters that want to pay $2,000 for someone that plays worse music than our local DJs. I want to put $2,000 into local promoters’ and artists’ hands. That’s the idea with this place: giving all of the artists as much of the door as humanly possible, besides covering your basic expenses.”
While ensuring acts are well-paid, the venue is also trying to keep costs low for the crowds. Tall cans of Coors will cost you under five bucks, and Sing Sing offers a $2 pre-midnight cover charge to anyone who emails ahead of time.
“It’s a toonie! You lose that in the couch, you put that in your laundry machine to clean your fucking clothes. If you’re giving money to the drug dealer, the liquor store, or all these other suss things and you can’t support a local, then you’re just basic. If you want to cry about it, we’ve got nice benches outside.”
The business venture comes over a dozen years after Sulyma really started to promote his scene. After abandoning a job at a Granville-strip sex shop, he started handing out flyers for House of Blues. Later, he promoted parties at underground spots and established venues alike as part of the Kids and ½ Alive, and he’s spent the last six years doing Glory Days. In 2008, he cofounded the Olio Festival, which spotlighted acts ranging from locals Ladyhawk to big leaguers like Dinosaur Jr. The festival shut down in 2013, right about the time a trio of silent partners approached Sulyma about opening a new venue. After checking out a handful of possibilities, they snapped up their current home base, last known as the Whiskey Bar, and rebranded it as 303.
Despite his constant devotion to promoting Vancouver arts and culture, Sulyma is self-deprecating when asked about his many accomplishments.
“I’m just an uneducated kid who’s been working for 12 years on the East Side,” he says. “I’m not smart, I just don’t stutter when I talk.”
That said, Sulyma’s beaming over 303 Columbia, as well as the burgeoning cultural climate of the city. In addition to 303, he praises recent openings like the Fox and Mount Pleasant bar the Lido, among others.
“If you try a little, there’s so much greatness in the city; if you ever complain that there’s nothing to do, you should just move to a hole in the ocean,” he posits, driving home the point that Vancouver’s long outgrown being No Fun City. “If you can’t see the opportunity here, you can go starfuck another city. And guess what? If you think it’s really unique to move to another city, there are also millions of other people thinking that exact same thing. Why don’t you brave up and rep your city?”
Comments
2 Comments
Nathaniel
Aug 29, 2014 at 3:10am
Definitely appreciate this guy and the crew for making things happen in this city
Matt
Sep 19, 2014 at 4:13pm
A community of rich white kids