WELCOME TO THE FAR EAST

The Pitch

A Problem Worth Solving

Despite clear proof of concept, a loyal core audience, consistent media accolades and singular achievements -- individual music scene businesses in the East end of the Fremont District have struggled to achieve profitability and sustainability. 

 Our Solution

Consolidate these beloved local music institutions into The Far East:  a symbiotic culture and lifestyle marketplace to better realize the revenue, marketing and operational opportunities afforded by their physical and thematic connectivity. 

The Far East

Culture that Thrives on the Edge

A Proposal During the Time of a Pandemic

We are intimately aware of the impact of the COVID pandemic, which is currently rewriting reality for the entertainment, hospitality, and retail industries to which we’ve dedicated our lives. 

The disruptions in our industries caused by the pandemic will leave a new normal in their wake.  Time-tested business practices and strategies can no longer be trusted as true.  For example, touring will be a different proposition for performing artists of every genre and at every level from bar bands to arena headliners.  

While this state of flux and uncertainty is causing many stakeholders to tap out or seek the nearest exit, we recognize the need and the opportunity to do just the opposite.  

Our society as a whole is experiencing a cathartic moment. There absolutely will be changes. Moments like these find powerful expression in art and music. Put another way, hard times have always been good for rock and roll. The infrastructure for the connection between artists and their audience will only increase in importance in the days ahead.  

We propose a new model for the block at 11th Street and Fremont which, by actively embracing the disruptions and their implications, creates solutions to challenges in our industry that existed even before the pandemic. We are building a model for sustainability as unique as Las Vegas. 

We believe this model represents potential for growth, reach, and profitability far beyond the sum of its parts. We anticipate a world in which rock bars, a record store, a recording studio, and a music festival brand also serve as a multimedia production campus, generating exclusive, brand-reinforcing content on a daily basis.  We see opportunities for digital subscriptions to incentivize both online sales and real-life engagement, while simultaneously marketing an authentic countercultural destination experience to customers from among Las Vegas' 40 million annual visitors as well as a dedicated local market. 

An entire industry of touring artists and their audiences are eagerly awaiting the green light. We propose to be ready for them, but not just in picking up where it all left off when the hammer fell on us in March. 

We envision a future of intimate performances in small authentic venue settings by internationally renowned artists, streamed worldwide. A world in which shaky cell-phone YouTube videos are replaced by broadcast quality content that markets the location and the experience as much as the artists, with their audiences worldwide encouraged to exit through our online retail. 

The pandemic has shown us the necessity of creating symbiosis where there was only separation between our physical and online lives, and that opportunity lies in connecting content, experience, and commerce in a new way.

Are you ready?  Read on.

One Complete and Coherent Vision

Our vision for The Far East is simple: Unite the 11th Street music businesses into one company, to concentrate and centralize the multiple revenue centers available, serving a broadened customer base at all hours of the day. 

We propose that this "music campus" model will maximize these businesses' natural thematic and existing physical connectivity, and under a single management team with a cohesive mission, generate far more perceptual and commercial impact. Put simply, vastly increased revenue potential with streamlined operation representing profitability far beyond what would be possible separately. Truly, a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Digital content generated by activities at our physical locations will drive online sales revenue, and by the same token attract to the physical locations a customer base no longer limited to locals, but also from among the 40 million worldwide visitors to Las Vegas who are soon to return.

The 5 elements of The Far East project:

The Bunkhouse Saloon:  Repurposed as an all day and late night hangout bohemian cafe, programming diversified in both style and scheduling, with product and entertainment offerings generating revenue from 7am into the night, its entrance redirected from 11th to Fremont Street, through an inviting outdoor seating area. In addition to the epic live music offerings that Bunkhouse has became famous for, programming will feature seated songwriter shows, Jazz, comedy, poetry slams and much more.   

11th Street Records / National Southwestern Recording: Site of the recording of the Killers' first worldwide #1 album, recognized in a myriad of local and national press accolades, and named one of the Best Record Stores in the United States by Vinyl Me, Please, downtown Vegas' record shop has become a true center for culture.  Currently occupying two thirds of its building, expansion into the remaining space will allow the operation to evolve into a comprehensive lifestyle retail/culture cultivator, with a reimagined and diversified product offering appealing to music fans who might not collect records, but whose music taste is central to their identity.

A complete record shop in the tradition of Amoeba Records (LA) or Waterloo Records (Austin), 11th Street will leverage its physical record store authenticity into worldwide online retail sales through digital content marketing. A live radio studio visible from the street will become the broadcast center for content created across our footprint, mixed into 11th Street's highly curated music selection and connecting us to a worldwide online audience.  What has been simply playing records all day in the store will become hours of programmed, podcasted radio marketing everything we do, every day. 

The Far East: A new dive bar and music venue in the unoccupied laundromat building bears the flag of this new vision. Cool. Edgy. Minimalist. Iconic and iconoclastic at the same time. A fantastic mid-century structure oozing the sort of age and authenticity that the Las Vegas creative class find irresistible, which we would carefully preserve with economy. The Far East provides twice the ticketing capacity of Bunkhouse Saloon.

The Courtyard: A natural courtyard (Las Vegas loves a good beer garden -- witness the outdoor crowds at Gold Spike) will serve as an everyday, park-like space of shade trees and cafe tables evoking a European / New York plaza setting. Thus far underutilized and undeveloped, once formalized with gray hexagonal pavestones, clusters of spreading umbrella-like Mesquite trees shading chess tables and park benches, the courtyard will enjoy constant use for outdoor events; Art walks, craft markets, food truck events, concerts and festivals -- notably our own Neon Reverb festival brand.  Entering from Fremont Street between The Far East and 11th Street Records, culminating at the Bunkhouse's outdoor cafe seating and outdoor stage, the courtyard will connect all of the onsite experiences.   

The Neon Reverb Festival:  DTLV's original, beloved music festival brand is an authentic, grassroots organization.  Held in high regard throughout the community, Reverb was memorably shouted out from the LIB main stage by Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons as instrumental in building the scene that gave him his start. Our team holds ownership interest in Neon Reverb.  The brand had fallen dormant until we joined forces with original organizers and produced its successful relaunch. 

The entire campus will operate as a multimedia content production facility, generating digital content all day, every day, with full-format programming offered worldwide and monetized via subscription.  In addition to creating an additional revenue stream and magnifying marketing efforts, the ability to broadcast performances is going to be a key component of the "new normal" for live music in post-pandemic America.  

It's important to note that this isn't the first time this vision has been proposed. These concepts have only benefited by hindsight of what has happened in the Fremont District in the last five years, and what hasn't. 

Elements of this plan existed in DTP's original approach to the remount of Bunkhouse in concert with the launch of 11th Street Records and the Writer's Block book shop -- quickly dubbed as "Analog Alley" by the local press who recognized the synergies and potential coming into focus.  Our team presented versions of this proposal several times over the years. The concepts have only been refined and informed by observation of neighborhood since -- concepts and ideas whose time has come. 

Why Us?

We have dedicated our careers to live music and its surrounding culture, gaining decades of specific, hands-on experience working in the exact market sector we seek to serve.  Both of us came to the live music industry as artists and have worked our way up the ladder, learning invaluable lessons and building comprehensive skill sets.  We are lifers.

Paired with this dedication to music culture, we stand on our track records as passionate, hard-working advocates for downtown Las Vegas.  

In particular, we have a unique and valuable perspective on our particular, beloved block at 11th Street and Fremont.  Mike Henry is the only person who has worked in the trenches under all three Bunkhouse operators since the 2014 relaunch and his programming has spearheaded a dramatic increase in the frequency of national touring artists visiting DTLV on a regular basis.  He worked hand in hand at Bunkhouse with Entertainment Director Ryan Pardey, a Vegas native who has worked at the heart of the local music scene for decades, including serving as tour manager for The Killers during their epic rise to fame.

And there is no individual who has spent as much time working day-to-day on our block as Ronald Corso.  He is the walking definition of a front row view of the evolution in the East end of the current Fremont District.  In addition to his role as a 20-year veteran of the music scene with bonafides built on years of meaningful contributions to its development, Corso’s genesis of 11th Street Records demonstrated an ability to bring a unique concept to fruition on time and on budget with minimal supervision.

This is not a new discussion for us.  We have been here for all these years, working the problems, living in the culture, testing and re-testing the vision we wish to forge for the future of The Far East.  We are undaunted, and never more sure of our path that we are today.  We love this block and we want nothing more than to help it realize the potential we see.  

And finally, this is far more than just something we recognize as a lucrative business opportunity.  The community we wish to serve is our own community.  The dream that we want to build and bring to the world is born from the core values that have driven our decisions for our entire adult lives.  We love music and we believe in its power and place in the human experience -- that it is essential and worth fighting for.  

Market

The Far East is designed to serve a large and dedicated subculture, one that exists worldwide and is present among the millions of annual visitors to Las Vegas as well as within our local community. 

Our customers want to go to bars where great local bands play, and where they can also see their favorite touring artists perform.  They care about art, culture, and music.  In addition to their desire to buy a ticket to a show, they also want to meet their friends and hang out in the places where independent music lives because it is where they feel comfortable.  

They want to be a part of the scene.  They want to hang out in the record store, get coffee and co-work with a friend in the same building where they saw a great show just last weekend.  

While exceptionally strong with a young demographic, our customer base extends into music fans in their 40's and 50's.   They spend money on tickets, records and music-related merchandise. 

They also develop a high level of loyalty to the businesses that provide these important experiences for them. 

These centers of culture and commerce exist in so many great American cities:  Seattle, Austin, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and many more.  Las Vegas deserves an epic, legendary district of its own.  

It is a timeless, tried and true market share that builds community and sustainability.  

Competition

We can't state this strongly enough:  there is extremely minimal competition in Las Vegas for the market share we seek to attract, in particular when framed in our specific business model.

This may seem odd to the untrained eye.  Isn't Las Vegas one of the top live entertainment meccas in the world?

We have a better understanding of our market.  While it is true that Vegas offers a plethora of opportunities for the entertainment dollar, most of them are focused on mega-stars and artists who bring thousands of audience members to magnificent -- and expensive -- concert halls.  There are countless time-tested options ready to serve the needs of tourists, each one bigger and more fantastic than the last.  

That said:  there is a remarkable lack of small to mid-capacity live music venues focused on independent and emerging music.  It is an astonishing hole in the market for a city of Vegas' size and stature.

Our closest competitor for the market we serve is Brooklyn Bowl.  While we share the same customer base, their large capacity size and operating costs make any event that attracts under 1,000 people a losing proposition.

There is a tremendous amount of revenue potential existing in events that will bring hundreds of customers to our doors on a daily basis.

For evidence of this opportunity, one has to look no further than Bunkhouse.  Since its relaunch in 2014, Bunkhouse has dominated the Vegas market share for top touring shows in its venue size.  These are high impact revenue producing events, and by adding additional infrastructure and support, we can make them far more frequent.  

A Brief History of the Far East

As we share our vision for the future of The Far East, it's important to know the storied history of our favorite block in downtown Las Vegas.

The Bunkhouse Saloon

The Bunkhouse opened at 11th St and Fremont in 1953 and operated continuously for more than 50 years -- during a period of steadily declining fortunes for Downtown Las Vegas -- before being adopted by artists and audiences alike in the early years of the new millennium as the central live performance venue for original music in Las Vegas. 

The venue's role as a central focal point gave rise to a sort of Golden Age in the local music scene, fostering organic growth of performing and recording collectives, micro-labels, homegrown music festivals (Neon Reverb as the most notable example) and creating a fertile creative environment which fostered legendary Vegas artists including The Killers and Imagine Dragons.

Individual shows at the Bunkhouse during that time are still remembered as "legendary nights" more than a decade later. Ask anyone who was there -- it was palpable. It was a time of intense creative energy and excitement that reached its peak around 2009, as the Bunkhouse thrived during another economic low point for Las Vegas. It is important to note that this growth in creative and commercial activity in one of the "worst" locations in the city began in the wake of the tech bubble crash and reached its height during the housing bubble crash. Hard times have always been good for rock and roll. 

More important than any remembered glories of the past, though, are the exciting implications for the future represented in the creative community's clear foresight -  Big changes were coming to Downtown, but what cannot be denied is that this scene was there first...anticipating and driving the cultural evolution of this singular city. 

The Bunkhouse's unquestioned position as home base for that energetic community directly led to Downtown Project's purchase of the property and ensuing efforts to build upon that legacy. The venue closed for a year-long period of major physical renovation and expansion, including the addition of improved staging and sound, new bar and kitchen facilities and increased outdoor space. 

Perhaps most importantly, when the venue relaunched in 2014 it featured an upgraded programming platform focused on adding performances by popular touring artists to the calendar, as well as supporting the emergent DTLV local music community. A new era of those legendary Bunkhouse nights was born.  Local bands enjoyed new opportunities as support acts on bills featuring their musical heroes. The frequency of touring artists expanded the venue's reach and audience base, and successful partnerships with festivals like Punk Rock Bowling and Life is Beautiful were made possible by the upgraded facilities. 

11th Street Records

By the same token, 11th Street Records, another DTP investment in local music infrastructure, opened next door to Bunkhouse in April 2015.  Featuring both an expertly-curated all vinyl record shop and a world class recording studio -- National Southwestern Recording -- the new operation also demonstrated a tireless commitment to the cultivation of the local music scene.

Quickly evolving as beloved haunt for local music fans as well as a tourist destination, 11th Street Records found its way to virtually every "Best of Vegas" list and became the focus of plentiful local and national press coverage, including a recent hardcover book feature as one of the Best Record Stores in the United States (Vinyl Me Please, 2019).  

Birthing a steady stream of well-received recordings featuring local and national artists, the studio also produced The Killers' 2017 release, "Wonderful Wonderful,' which debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts.  Maintaining its focus on community, the same space used to create that hit record also served as the site of numerous underground all-ages performances serving the local scene, cultivating the next generation of customers for Downtown taverns and restaurants among the city's youth, a demographic almost entirely excluded from the cultural (and commercial) fabric of the city. 

Audience Development

Programming Strategy

The Far East draws upon a rich history of programming dating back many years into the history of the Bunkhouse Saloon, exciting and innovative curation in studio at 11th Street Records, and in recent years numerous festival style activations such as Neon Reverb and the annual Punk Rock Bowling weekend which brings thousands of music fans to the block.  

While the backbone of programming will continue to build upon the brand momentum that has been established over the years, steeped heavily in popular indie rock acts, we will continue to diversify the calendar both by mixing genres and styles of music and by expanding the inventory of entertainment offerings at non-traditional times of day such as early shows, happy hour shows, double-bills, weekend brunch shows and more.  

Most importantly, the key to our programming strategy is to curate and schedule the shows across all the properties on the block so that they work in collaboration with each other instead of in competition.  The block will feel and function like a perpetual energy machine offering a carefully crafted calendar of entertainment that will appeal to a broad fan base.  

•       Bunkhouse will be free for at least 50% of the nights in a given month.   The remainder of the calendar will be programmed alongside The Far East schedule in order to maximize results. 

•       For example, on nights when The Far East has a sellout show, we want Bunkhouse as a free pregame and overflow option.  Currently those sales are ending up down the street at Atomic.

•       Some nights we may program the two venues together with bands in similar genre / style, creating a mini-festival experience. 

•       Or sometimes we might program them with two different kinds of shows that will still be attractive to a particular audience -- see a great indie rock show at Bunkhouse, then dance the night away to a great indie DJ set at The Far East. 

•       We will run a nightly "reverse happy hour" program -- as soon as the last band finishes, happy hour pricing kicks in at both venues.  

•       The possibilities are endless, and working the two venues as one programming concept under one talent buyer gives us a rare opportunity to better cultivate our own nightly scene.  

Content Strategy

The most important adaption that we can make in the post-pandemic world is to realize this important truth:  in today's digital society, if you are not creating and offering compelling digital content, you are simply standing still and watching the train leave the station.

By utilizing modern videography technology and techniques, we will pre-build video capture systems into each of our spaces and stages, augmented by in house content creators and a resident video crew.

Capturing plentiful content that can be broadcast on social media and shared across a variety of online platforms has significant benefits in terms of brand building and marketing, which serves to build interest from a broader audience that will in turn visit our block IRL.   

Even greater value can be found in collecting and building a catalogue of video content that can be offered as a monthly subscription model to a global audience. 

To establish our content offering we will first build a YouTube channel where free content can be shared and build our audience.  We'll always continue to post the free content, but after we have built both a significant viewership and a robust backlog of content, we will launch the monthly subscription model utilizing existing third party platform(s) such as Vimeo.  We anticipate launching the subscription channel no later than six months into operation. Attractive membership incentives -- which can be used IRL at our physical locations -- will further cultivate subscriptions among our local customer base. 

The potential for leveraging this virtual look into our authentic, street-level world into major online retail is enormous. Customers at 11th Street Records (and at every indie record store in America) constantly bemoan the bad feelings they experience ordering records from Amazon.  Why? If it's the record they want, and it shows up promptly, what's to feel bad about?

The truth is that record stores hold a place in our customers' imaginations and in our culture that is different than any other retail shop. There is a "Record Store Day" to celebrate and raise awareness of the significance of record stores. There is no "Barbershop Day" or "Butcher Shop Day."  Our customers feel that they should buy from an indie record store.

Casting a net of consistently released, authentic content that visually brings customers into our record store and the vibrant scene that surrounds it -- coupled with product offering expertly curated to that audience -- creates an online shopping experience without the guilt. We present an experience which is emotionally remunerative, rather than deflating. With this approach, we see a future in which we grow into major online retailer of records, turntables, and music scene lifestyle merchandise. 

The Vision

Welcome To Analog Alley

This Is Where We Live

The footprint for The Far East resides between Fremont Street and Carson, bordered by 11th Street on the east and by the alley that runs adjacent to 11th Street Records on the west.  

In addition to the three primary facilities -- Bunkhouse Saloon, 11th Street Records and the repurposed laundromat building, we will  build out the entire block in terms of everything from landscaping to experiential design.  

Additional structures will be constructed to provide necessary storage and support operations.

The existing bungalows behind Bunkhouse, following additional due diligence to determine the extent of necessary repairs, would serve as much needed talent accommodations for both the venues, and the recording studio. 

While we seek site control of the entire property, we want to make it clear that we are fully dedicated to collaborating with our neighbors.  A prime example would be the Market in the Alley series.  We are big fans and we believe we can support the efforts of the market team to make them even more successful.  

One of the facilities that bears some further description is the repurposed laundromat building at the corner of the block, which will become a new bar.  .  

The Far East is a dive bar, in the same spirit that neighboring institutions Bunkhouse and Atomic Liquors also proudly wave the dive bar flag.  More specifically, it is a dive bar designed for our specific customer base:  live music fans. 

This culture wants a cool, unpretentious, shadowy haunt to hang out in before and after the show.  Minimalism and authenticity are key here.  We will take advantage of the features existing structure -- finishes like exposed brick and wood are the order of the day. We will preserve its mid-century glass block facade and worn, aged appeal. Downtowners will enjoy cheap drinks and great music (curated by 11th Street Records) playing in the background.  This is a great neighborhood bar with low barrier for entry and a place that doesn't impose anything on you.  It's a good hang.

Connection

One key component by which technology can maximize our impact is by fully integrating our POS sales system across properties.   We want for our customers to be able to open a tab with their credit card when they come onsite and then be able to move easily from business to business spending money.  They should be able to get food and drinks, buy concert tickets for multiple locations and grab a new t shirt with maximum ease. 

Several of the leading concert ticketing companies are developing new platforms based on wireless beacon technology which will allow us to maximize connectivity, and also give us the ability to message customers onsite to offer opportunities.  For example, if a customer has purchased a ticket for an upcoming show, we can send them an offer for a discount on that band's new album  at 11th Street Records.

Finally, we can't stress enough that while the tactile, tangible experience for our customers will be true to the timeless and authentic world of live music culture, behind the scenes is the infrastructure to provide a modern expression of that experience in the digital realm.   It might look like a block full of mom and pop operations, or a playground for live music fans but it is also wired and designed with cameras at every stage, Instagram-worthy experiences behind every corner, and a team of digital media ninjas onsite to make the stories live on the internet before the last note of the show has faded.  

The Company

Ownership

Corporate structure will be an LP holding the assets of the company and employing the operations team.   Ownership will include operating partners Ronald Corso, Ryan Pardey and Mike Henry, as well as other investors who may hold equity positions in the company.  

Management

RONALD CORSO

A mainstay of our city’s Downtown music scene since its inception, veteran producer, performer and entrepreneur Ronald Corso has been a tireless cultivator of Las Vegas’ potential to be the Next Great Music Scene ever since he played his first open mic night at the venerable Cafe Roma in 1990.

A native of New York City, Ronald never really recovered from his first visit to Las Vegas in 1977 to visit his recently retired grandparents, and moved here himself at the age of 21 with a guitar, a duffle bag and fantasies of writing the great songs about the human condition that this singular city would undoubtedly inspire. 

By 1996, in addition to having a wife and three children, attending school to study Music Production and Engineering, and serving as an intern and assistant engineer at Station C Studios, Corso opened the Cafe Nero.  A coffeehouse with live music that was about 20 years ahead of its time for late 90’s Las Vegas, Nero stood perhaps presciently in the location where The Killers would build their Battle Born studio ten years later.  

In the time since, Corso’s  ongoing mission has focused on uplifting music and culture in DTLV.  His DIY-built studio --  Red Door Recording -- produced a steady string of acclaimed records by the cream of Las Vegas’ blossoming indie rock scene, many for his own National Southwestern Electronic Recordings label collective.  He  enjoyed early involvement in the Neon Reverb Festival (which he would later help revive and co-direct), and in his capacity as a technical producer for KNPR, Corso produced the first local music performance segments aired on their flagship program “State of Nevada”.

The common thread of fierce commitment to the development of the Las Vegas music scene and the quality of creative output through collective effort (on little or no resources) led to coverage on the scene's new vibrancy in the 2009 Music Issue of Las Vegas CityLife, which featured Corso on the cover. 

By 2012, these efforts attracted notice and an offer of investment from the Music Initiative of Tony Hsieh’s Downtown Project, who asked if Corso would be interested in opening a recording studio in Downtown Las Vegas -- an offer he was initially inclined to refuse, unless they’d also invest in his unshakable sense that vinyl records were making a comeback. In 2014, that prediction, and an agreement to build the now-iconic 11th Street Records/National Southwestern Recording became a reality.

In the six years since, the studio has produced a steady stream of acclaimed creative work by local recording artists, notably the first Billboard worldwide #1 album by Las Vegas natives The Killers.  In 2019, 11th Street Records was named Nevada’s best record store in the Vinyl Me, Please hardcover book “The 50 Best Record Stores in the United States.” 

Ronald Corso lives on the west side of Las Vegas with his wife of 28 years.  Apart from a weekly dinner with their grown sons Mario and Lorenzo, the work of the shop, the studio and the scene is the center of his life. 

MIKE HENRY

Talent buyer and event producer Mike Henry has spent the past two decades working in two of the greatest live entertainment marketplaces in the world – Austin, Texas and Las Vegas, Nevada.

Mike moved to Austin the day he graduated from college, and took his first steps into the entertainment industry as co-owner, talent buyer, and promoter for iconic 90’s indie rock haven, the Electric Lounge, as a three-time co-director for The National Poetry Slam, and as a touring musician with Austin’s infamous Asylum Street Spankers.  He also learned the ropes at the South by Southwest Music Conference, serving in numerous capacities over a ten-year period. 

After working to build, program, and operate another of Austin’s most progressive and adventurous performance spaces --  The North Door --  Mike moved to fabulous Las Vegas in 2013 to join Downtown Project, the urban revitalization project created by Zappos’ CEO Tony Hsieh.

Henry’s path as a curator and producer continued in his adopted hometown as talent buyer for The Bunkhouse Saloon, which he helped to guide through its rebuilding and reopening process and then spearheaded the curation and programming efforts that transformed the former local scene clubhouse into a world-class, professional, market-leading performance venue for both local and touring artists.  Henry also served on the team co-directors that revived the previously dormant Neon Reverb Music Festival.   After leaving DTP, Henry became co-founder of A Beautiful Perspective and music programmer for its flagship event, the inaugural Emerge Impact + Music festival on the Las Vegas strip.

Currently residing in Austin, Mike serves as an independent entertainment consultant for a roster of amazing clients in the creative community, including his lead client -- Mosaic Sound Collective -- which has recently pivoted into a digital media and live streaming video studio providing socially-distant production services to artists and musicians during the pandemic.   When he’s not working or going to a show, Mike enjoys nerd culture, listening to vinyl and tabletop gaming with his amazing fourteen-year-old daughter Chloe

RYAN PARDEY

Ryan Pardey is a Las Vegas-born entrepreneur, musician and live music professional.

Pardey began work in the music industry as a concert promoter in the late 1990’s, booking shows at many now-legendary Vegas venues from Café Roma to Beauty Bar. In 2004, Pardey accepted a position as tour manager for an up-and-coming local rock band called The Killers and worked in that capacity until 2009 during the band’s ascent to worldwide success. In 2010, Pardey released a full-length rock album under the moniker ‘Halloween Town’ which included contributions from The Killers. In 2016, Pardey accepted the position of Entertainment Director at The Bunkhouse Saloon where he served until the worldwide pandemic forced the venue’s closure in March of 2020.