Photo By Sean Hughes/photopresse.com

(L-R) Amy Corbin, Huston Powell and Charles Attal of Austin concert promotion company Charles Attal Presents get acquainted with their latest investment.

It's an especially frigid morning in Greater Cincinnati, and a trio of people from the Austin, Tex.-based concert promotion company Charles Attal Presents (CAP), including Attal himself, are fluttering around the Madison Theater in Covington, flipping switches in an attempt to trigger the house lights and heat.

"It was 79 and sunny when we left Austin," Attal says with an ever-present smile.

The weather isn't the only difference between Austin and the Cincinnati area. The local club and concert venue scene is strong here, but venture to Austin -- might we suggest during the massive South By Southwest music festival? -- and you'll find an incredibly vibrant music community with the fan support to sustain it.

Whereas some suggest Cincinnati suffers from a glut of too many bands and clubs and not enough fans to support them, Austin would probably be fine with 100 more venues.

Attal and his cohorts are in town to do some initial setup work on their latest investment. In a 50/50 deal with the national House of Blues chain, CAP is buying the Madison Theater and will move an Austin employee here to take over day-to-day operations, hire and manage staff and book local and regional acts.

"We were amazed this place was available," CAP's Huston Powell says. "We've been looking for a club ownership opportunity for a year, looking all over the U.S. Charles heard about the Madison and we came to look at it. It's a very cool spot. She (previous owner Esther Johnson, who oversaw the club's reported $2.5-million rehab before opening on the last day of 2001) did a nice job renovating the Madison, and it seems to have a good reputation locally."

National touring artists will be booked by both CAP in Austin and HOB's new Cleveland office. A Cleveland House of Blues venue opened in November 2004, as the chain expands its club division while reportedly looking to sell off the "concert" side of the business, which involves larger arena and amphitheaters.

In the past few years, HOB has picked up its club-buying and partnering activity. A new HOB opens this spring in San Diego, and a partnership with Harrah's in Atlantic City will see another new HOB club in July.

"We're gearing up to do five or six of these a year," HOB CEO Greg Trojan recently told Billboard about his club-based expansion plans.

The new deal with the Madison will bring artists to Greater Cincinnati who have worked with CAP and HOB in the past.

"We'll help drive certain acts here that we have a good relationship with," Attal says.

Upcoming schedules for the Cleveland HOB and Attal's renowned Stubb's in Austin include dates from such artists as Bettie Seveert, The Starting Line, Toots and the Maytals, King Diamond, Buddy Guy, Elvis Costello and Queens of the Stone Age. Dates already booked by CAP and HOB for the Madison include concerts by Danzig and Ekoostik Hookah, artists who have previously played Bogart's, one of the city's many Clear Channel-booked venues.

Though the Madison will be in the running for shows that now go to independent venues and promoters like the Southgate House or Magus Productions, Clear Channel clearly is their main competition. But Attal says don't count on the rivalry turning ugly.

"I have a pretty good relationship with Clear Channel" he says. "In some markets I work with Clear Channel, in others I compete with them. That's the good thing about being an independent -- I can work with anybody."

Though Attal humbly calls CAP "kinda small" when describing the concert business, he also proudly announces the group recently moved into the Top 10 of U.S. concert promoters.

Attal's start in the business was almost by happenstance, as he was thrust into the booking role at Stubb's before it opened in 1995 because he was a musician. Today, Atall and CAP are involved in eight venues (including clubs in Texas, Iowa and St. Louis) and handle bookings for the massive, much buzzed-about Austin City Limits Festival. Atall is also a part of the booking team behind the Austin City Limits television show on PBS.

Both CAP and HOB have developed good reputations in the concert industry for their attention to detail. HOB venues are renowned for delivering arena-quality production on a club level, which means a new sound system is one of the foremost priorities in Covington.

"We're not going to gut the Madison, just fix it up a bit," Attal says. "We're definitely going to put in a new sound system, new PA. Do it House of Blues-style, meaning really good sound."

The group seems intent on gracefully ingratiating itself into the local scene by continuing to book local acts. During their visit, they ask questions about local bands and meet with several people "in the know" to help their new acquisition fit into the community.

The larger CAP/HOB shows will forgo Ticketmaster in favor of Front Gate Tickets (see themadison.frontgatetickets.com), and they plan on contacting local independent record retailers about selling tickets as well.

"The thing about us is we're independent and we like doing things on a grassroots level," Attal says. "We're very much an indie operation. It might be funny to hear me say that knowing that we're in a partnership with HOB, but they like grassroots efforts too. They're not very corporate."

The new Madison Theater owners might not revolutionize the local concert industry, and it certainly won't put Clear Channel out of business anytime soon. But their initial goals are modest.

"If we're doing our job, you'll feel like you're in Austin," Attal says, still smiling. "It'll be a friendly, good vibe." ©