Brooklyn Steel is a live music venue in the East Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York, occupying a converted steel manufacturing plant at 319 Frost Street. Built out between July 2016 and March 2017, the space was developed by The Bowery Presents and designed to give concertgoers an industrial-chic alternative to Manhattan’s mid-sized venues, with much of the original building’s steel repurposed into the venue’s fixtures and structure.
The venue opened on April 6, 2017, with a five-night run of sold-out shows from LCD Soundsystem, followed by a run of dozens more concerts that year featuring acts like The Decemberists and PJ Harvey. With a standing capacity of about 1,800, Brooklyn Steel quickly became one of the city’s most sought-after rooms for touring artists who had outgrown smaller clubs but weren’t yet ready for arenas, earning a spot on Rolling Stone’s list of the ten best live music venues in America.
Stats at a Glance
- Location: East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York
- Type: Live music venue
- Opened: April 6, 2017
- Capacity: About 1,800
- Former Use: Steel manufacturing plant
- Operator: The Bowery Presents
- Famous for: Opening residency by LCD Soundsystem
From Steel Plant to Concert Hall
Before it hosted concerts, the Frost Street building operated as a working steel manufacturing plant. When The Bowery Presents redeveloped the site into a music venue, the team kept much of that industrial character intact, reusing salvaged steel from the original structure throughout the finished space rather than stripping it out. The result is a room with a raw, warehouse-like feel that pairs exposed metalwork with a large open floor and balcony overlooking the stage.
The venue’s layout includes a spacious main floor, an elevated balcony for a different vantage point, three bars, and forty restrooms, a detail frequently noted by press covering the opening since long restroom lines are a common complaint at comparable-sized halls.
A Launch Built Around LCD Soundsystem
Brooklyn Steel introduced itself to the city with a five-show, sold-out residency from LCD Soundsystem in April 2017, immediately signaling the caliber of act the venue intended to attract. The band went on to become closely associated with the room, returning for further multi-night residencies through 2023 and holding the record for the most performances at the venue.
In the years since, Brooklyn Steel has hosted a steady stream of touring acts across genres, occupying a niche between Brooklyn’s smaller clubs and the borough’s larger arenas. Its acoustics and scale led Wild Nothing to record a live album there in 2019, and outlets including Rolling Stone have singled it out as one of the best live music rooms in the country.
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Brooklyn Steel FAQs
What is the capacity of Brooklyn Steel?
Brooklyn Steel holds about 1,800 people, making it a mid-sized venue between Brooklyn’s smaller clubs and its larger arenas.
When did Brooklyn Steel open?
Brooklyn Steel opened on April 6, 2017, with a sold-out five-night residency by LCD Soundsystem.
What was the Brooklyn Steel building used for before it was a venue?
The building at 319 Frost Street originally operated as a steel manufacturing plant, and much of that original steel was repurposed into the venue during its 2016-2017 renovation.
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Photo: Will Bonniker / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.