It was a bit before my time.

The Underground was a truly legendary Boston rock club that opened in February 1980 and was brought down on Sunday evening, June 21, 1981. That night when the Neats swung into a cover of the 13th Floor Elevators' "You're Gonna Miss Me," audience members decided to take the closing into its own hands, pulling down ceilings, tearing off wall fixtures, blowing up toilets, and generally having a good time. The mayhem continued through "Another Broken Dream." That performance was recorded and released on the Propeller cassette anthology (cassette, Propeller, 1981). -- "Talk about capturing a moment..." -- Michael Hafitz, Boston Rock, November 5, 1981, Issue 23

and

One of the things we're going to have to fight for is more Undergrounds, that little Allston club that can be credited with spawning around 40 Boston bands within the last year if only because it gave them a place to play. 20 of those bands are good to great, and the local scene has been turned around because of it. As 'BCN's Oedipus says, "We're finally seeing bands that aren't derivative of past successes." For a city about 1/15th the size of LA, New York or London, where you're guaranteed a fair number of rock mutants on the basis of numerical probability alone, Boston has produced an amazing list of new bands over the last year or so.

The Underground gave Boston its first taste of the better Brits (Cure, Joy Division...) as well as providing a place for New Yorkers to visit (Bush Tetras, The Dance, Raybeats, Lydia Lunch...). But the big names weren't the real attraction. It was the club's attitude toward nurturing musicians with ideas, and the fact that on just about any night you could walk in and have your feet and brain moved by some locals. And these locals aren't just "promising" any more, they're good now. Unlike most "progressive" clubs, the Underground wasn't closed down for lack of success. Instead the land barons of Boston University simply had to have the basement club for a dorm launderette and their high-powered lawyers made sure that it turned out that way. So start looking for a laundry to turn into a club.
--- Tristram Lozaw, "Backyard Hijinx," Take It!, Grand Slam Issue [No. 4], 1981.

Is there an address? They mention Allston, but the cartoon on the second link was defintely Kenmore Square (and I don't know of any BU dorms that are actually IN Allston).

I'm not sure. I think it was on Comm. Ave. in the BU area.

Just listened to the new Siouxsie solo album. Lots of fun. Less spartan than the Creatures, but not quite like Banshees stuff either. "Here Comes that Day" really seriously needs to be the music for a Bond movie - it fucking ROCKS in that heavy production way. Seriously.

Just listened to the new Siouxsie solo album.

Oh, I am SO jealous. I can't wait to get it.

I saw Joy Division at the Underground -- it was indeed in Allston, on Harvard Ave, I think. It was pretty much an unadorned basement, with the band up on a foot-tall platform at the back of the room. I remember looking aroudn and wondering what would happen if a fire broke out, since I could see only the one door.

I saw Joy Division at the Underground

In your dreams, maybe! They were supposed to play the Underground, but the US tour was cancelled when Ian hanged himself. Unless I'm wrong.

Er, excuse me -- I meant New Order? I think the fact that the article referenced the other band confuzzled me. Or it was the drugs.

Trailer for Todd Haynes I'm Not There.

And a clip with David Cross as Allen Ginsberg, Cate Blanchett as Dylan.

There's a long and interesting article about the film in the NY Times Magazine today. [link]