Hangout with Abbey Simmons

...at the Columbia City Theater

Photograph by Andrew Waits for City Arts.

I’m at the June 25 grand reopening of the historic Columbia City Theater, a 1917 landmark with exposed-brick walls and a twenty-two-foot ceiling. The line to see the Maldives stretches down the block to Lottie’s Lounge, and Abbey Simmons can’t believe her luck. Four years ago, with no job and no connections, she cofounded the music blog Sound on the Sound. Did she ever think she’d be watching a packed house groove to a show she booked? “Not in my wildest dreams. It’s crazy.”

Simmons’ parents thought she was crazy to leave her full-time job at the fan Web site BuddyTV to focus on her passion, local music. “I left two weeks before this place opened, so I could be here every day.” And now her parents are here in the balcony to witness her triumph. “My dad looked at me and said, ‘I get it.’” Onstage, Maldives singer Jason Dodson tells the crowd, “We’ve got high hopes for this place.” So does Simmons. She and Sound on the Sound’s Josh Lovseth present a monthly showcase here, and Simmons was a guest DJ on KEXP’s Audioasis. “All this attention I never expected,” she says. “We just wanted a place to talk about the bands we like.” •

Editor's note: this story has been updated since its original publication.