The Wiltern

I just moved to LA and was impressed with the turnout at a recent rock concert I went to at the Wiltern. Apparently rock’s not dead out here yet-- That is until their security guards came in and annihilated everyone’s good time. I have been to countless concerts over the years, and I HAVE NEVER been babysat by security guards in the pit before. They completely ruined my first LA concert, we weren't allowed to do anything! Their “No moshing, No crowd Surfing, No fun” rules have NO PLACE AT A ROCK CONCERT!! Have they ever hosted a rock show before, or was this their first time? THIS IS THE WORST VENUE I’VE EVER BEEN TO AND I WILL NEVER BE BACK- I don’t care who is playing. NO ONE will continue to go to shows at the Wiltern if they are not having fun, which was the general consensus of everyone I talked to that night. THEY WILL BE THE DEATH OF ROCK! They need to go back to hosting bullsh!t concerts like Nsync or something. more

I saw Colbie Caillat here and I could not see her because I was standing. Buying a ticket meant simply the right to walk in and stand behind a crowd of people taller than I am (5-0""). They make a lot more money by pulling out the seats and pretending it is a party rather than a paid concert and cramming as many people as can possibly stand up next to each other. We also waited in a line that wound around the block for about half a mile just to walk in and stand. If you are going out in order to socialize with friends or even strangers, this is actually a better venue for that since you can move around rather than be constrained to talking only to the person on your right or left. But if you want to see an act, you need to go very early and stand at the front of any section you can get the front row in or else be very tall. The sound was ok, not terrible. more

favorite place to see bands. Acoustics great, employees mostly nice, always a celeb sighting, wish they had good bands more often BUT their food (pretzels and candy) is whack. Have seen Pete Yorn twice, Chris Cornell, Raconteurs, Kathy Griffin, Neil Young (acoustic, alone!), and others in the last few years. more

This was a great place to visit. more

Your info page says smoking is allowed. The Wiltern in an indoor venue. It's in California. Therefore there is NO SMOKING anywhere at the Wiltern, except out on the street. more

i like this venue for having all seats. the sound is nice and big and theatrical, and you can see anywhere you sit so thats a major plus more

Generally I enjoy my experiance at The Wiltern but last night was my worst experiance ever! The Staff was extremely rude and unpleasent. When it came time to be searched this nasty rude security guard yanked my bag out of my hand and started to toss everything around pulling everything and searching through every crevase of my bag when i asked her if she was really allowed to search my bag in such a manner ( because i really felt violated, molested, ravaged) she didn't look me in the face to tell me that it was company policy she just giggled like i had told the funniest joke... I had never been searched in such a manner and so many girls were walking past me with bigger bags and not being searched i didn't even get scanned with the metal detector.... is that company policy too? It was COMPLETELY UNPROFESSIONAL!! She ended up finding my boyfriends little bit of herb and tiny pipe that i carry around for my boyfriend because he has really bad asthma. We told her we had a valid prescription which allows us to carry it on us and she still didn't care. still took it and tossed it. I have never been treated that way ever. Not even by security in larger venues or much more bigger shows...... Pros: I've had better experiances Cons: RUDE EMPLOYEES!! more

This is easily one of the top 5 venues in LA. Really classy old-school interior makes you feel like you're in Carnegie or something, rather than a couple miles off of the 405. If you get there a little bit early you're bound to get a good spot, if you don't mind standing the pit's great, but I'd definitely recommend the first level tables over anything else. The bar offers a solid selection of pretty much everything, and all the times I've been there I've never had a problem with any of the staff. If you're looking for a good show, this is the place to see it. A must-see in LA for sure. more

As long as you arrive early (in southern california that means on time), you should get a good space. I arrived a little after 8pm and got a good space on the 2nd level, front row. I saw BRMC and black angels and the sound quality overall was pretty bad. They amp up the volume so high, and in such a small venue, the electric guitars reverberate too much. Could barely make out the vocals. Pros: small, intimate theater Cons: Not the greatest sound quality more

I remember coming here to watch Ben Folds a few years back, and it was quite the experience. The whole venue isn't too large, but large enough to hold a good amount of people. There's no assigned seating or seating at all, for that matter, so people just have to make their way and stand wherever they can. This can cause quite a problem when you're 5'3 and standing behind people that are a lot taller than you~ The ground is also pretty leveled, so it's even more impossible to see if you're standing near the back. I remember my friend got in a verbal fight with this extremely tall giant of a woman because she wouldn't let us stand in front of her. But on the bright side, Ben was awesome. more

Saw Coldplay there in 2001, that was the last time I saw seats in the venue. That was a great show. Sure, the renovations may have made the place a little more shiney, and maybe even improved the sound quality, but what good is that, if 50% of the people in the crowd can hardly see the stage. The problem is, when all the seats were taken out, all that remained were four or five tiers, that rise a foot or so with each tier, BUT they are all FLAT. This means the further back you are, the more level you are with the stage, meaning, if you aren't in the front two rows of each tier, or you're not at least 6'6"" - YOU AIN'T SEEING ANYTHING! I was just there to see Keane last Friday and someone at the venue had the brilliant idea of putting chairs back in there. They were lined up nicely and the height of the charis increased as they reached the rear of each section. Sounds good, in theory. However, what happens when the music starts? Duuuh, everyone stands up, of course. Now we're back where we started, but with chairs in the way too. As the show went on all the seats in the back rows were empty, as the people snuck up to the front of the venue. Replacing the fixed seats on an incline, like it was in the good old days, would be nice, but obviously that won't happen (too expensive). Now I'm no engineer, but to me, a simple fix would be to just get some wood and make each tier incline a bit. Obviously, nothing unsafe, just enough of an angle to make the people in the back of the section taller than the people in the front. BRILLIANT! C'mon Wiltern, you're a great venue, with so much history. You consistently get the best bands to play. Now, all your customers ask of you, is a little common sense!?!?! The people have to be able to see the stage. Pros: Consistently, some of the best acts in town Cons: ... if only you could see the stage more

This is one of those old school venues that was built for sound and has great seeting. The location isn't the best but it could be worse. Go see one of your favorite acts there. You will have a blast. Pros: Great acoustics and viewing Cons: Location more

If you like small venues like I do, the Wildern is the best place to go. Right at Wilshire and Western, at a Metro stop, The Wiltern brings a historic presence as well. I would rival it with the Fillmore in San Francisco as my favorite spot of all time to catch a concert. Pros: GA Tickets, Next to Red Line, Historic more

I have seen the Kings of Leon, Secret Machines, Tragically Hip and many other top-notch live bands in the Wiltern and the sound is extraordinarily HORRIBLE. The sound system and accoustics make these phenomenal bands sound mediocre at best. It sounded as if the bands were beating on banjos and tin cans. I was extremely disappointed. I just don't get why this venue deserves any respect. Again, in comparison to the hundreds of live venues I have been to, I would rate this one right at or near the bottom with the Austin Music Hall. Don't watch your favorite band here or there, you will leave very bitter. Pros: Historic, Theatre Cons: SOUND, Staff, Prices more

I'VE BEEN TO THE WILTERN ABOUT 10 TIMES NOW, AND I MUST SAY IT IS AWESOME PLACE TO SEE A SHOW. IF YOU WANT TO BE IN THE FRONT THOU GET THERE EARLY, A LIMTIED NUMBER OF PEOPLE ARE ALLOWED ACCESS TO THE FRONT OF THE STAGE, THE TIER SYSTEM, IN MY OPINION KINDA SUCKS, I PREFER AN OPEN FLOOR SIMILAR TO THE PALLADIUM, BUT IT'S NICE NOT TO BE SMASHED AGAINST INTO THE PERSON IN FRONT OF YOU! ALL IN ALL AN AWESOME PLACE! Pros: t.v's, small, clean Cons: tier floor, DRINK PRICES more

I'm furious and amazed about the way I was treated here. I feel like a complete sucker. The tickets were 35 bucks! I know, WAY too expensive, I'm an idiot, but I figured for that price, I'd have a trouble-free night. It was so jam-packed with people, I started thinking that there had to be a mistake and hoping a fire didn't break out. Clear Channel, the new owners, actually tore the seats out of the Wiltern in a thinly disguised attempt to cram more people in, and therefore rip off more suckers (of which I'm one). I never was able to see the band, becuse everywhere I went, some bouncer grunted ""can't go here."" Screw this. Pros: cool place Cons: OVERCROWDED, SEATS TORN OUT, WAY TOO EXPENSIVE more

i can't believe i paid over $70 for 2 tickets + $8 to park, just to be PACKED into the Wiltern like i was. I'm really insulted. They CRAMMED so many people in there, i couldn't believe it. i knew it was general admission, but i naively thought that for that price, at such a cool place, they wouldn't GREEDILY SMASH in as many people as possible. WRONG! i moved around many times, and i never was able to see anything, i couldn't find my friends, so i left after 5 songs. i don't mind smaller venues being crowded, like the Troubadour, because it's usually $10-12, and you can see the stage from anywhere, but this Wiltern fiasco was a complete outrage. BE WARNED. It's also beyond me how these money-grubbing weasels could rip the seats out of this classic Los Angeles treasure purely out of greed. Pros: great building, insulting, indecent Cons: uncomfortable, beyond packed, insulting more

Saw the Foo-Fighters here, and I thought the venue was great. They had an annoying policy of not allowing you to re-enter the lowest teir if you leave in the middle of the show, but other than that, it is a great place to see a show. Pros: Very Intimate, Good Acoustics Cons: Expensive Drinks more

DO NOT PAY TO SEE ANYONE HERE. It will ruin your experience completely. Supposedly there were seats in this venue, but when I went the seats were ripped out and I had to deal with a ridiculously stupid multi tier system while the stage was still about ground level. Absolutely NO visibility and the policy about not being allowed to enter during songs is just plain dumb. Pros: Nice looking place, Good potential Cons: Awful visibility, Awful visibility, Awful visibility more

I went to see Pink, and she rocked. We had good seats, but all the seats were great. It's big enough to hold a lot of people, but small enough so that you feel you are right there no matter if you're on top in the back or whatever. The lobby ceiling is beautiful.. I wouldn't hesitate going there for another concert. You never have to strain your eyes, or wish you were a little closer. It's recommend it to anyone. Pros: every seats the best, good clubs nearby, nice to look at Cons: not enough staff, crowded bathrooms more