In early spring of 2013 I woke up in some chicks apartment in downtown Montreal and headed towards St Laurent Blvd. to a “meeting” with Fred Vitu and Joe Valina. I wasn’t really sure what the meeting was about, but when I walked into the building I instantly had an overwhelming feeling of pure comfort. The walls were all torn up, broken glass everywhere, a hole in the ground to piss in, everything was perfect. Going deeper into this cesspool of disease, the core of a bowl was revealed, and that’s when I knew this was truly the last bar I ever had to go to.
The meeting, which consisted of two bottles of Dan Akroyd’s Vodka (the bottle shaped as a human skull), lasted about 8 hours; 20 minutes of trying to be professional and formal and, the rest of the time was spent in the bowl. Finally, Joe and Fred revealed the name of the place… Trh-Bar. Since then the bar has opened to the public, and recently we celebrated its one year anniversary. The constant evolution of skateboarding is ever present within these walls, and just like skateboarding, it is growing stronger every day. From skate premieres to bowl contests, to free mohawks, Trh-Bar has got it covered.
On that note, let me take you through the average shift at the one bar in Montreal that is doing something truly unique. Joe and I started to open the upstairs bar on a Friday while the bands loaded their gear. Very quickly we realized that these guys were super sketchy. I turned to Joe and said “Man, we gotta start scanning these bands closer”. They were straight up squeegee kids, and two of them had black eyes and were already drunk as hell. The stench of chaos was in the air. So the night went on and when the band started we were in awe. They sounded like Suicidal Tendencies mixed with Minor Threat, it was fucking amazing. I instantly jumped on the ramp, fuel by the sound of true punk rock, and started skating the ramp that was built by none other than Barry Walsh and Marc Tison. The energy level was electric as usual, and not only was there an amazing show with a perfect mini session while I was getting paid to “work”, their was about fifteen 22 year old chicks screaming at the top of their lungs sitting on top of the ramp. Talk about the perfect environment. Joe hopped in and started to film the madness. It was incredible!
The next band started and they were even better than the first. I was serving drinks at the bar when I dropped everything, ripped off my shirt and dove full blast into the mosh pit that was being formed, and again, not to repeat myself, but I’m at “work”. I started throwing fists and screaming at the amp, it was completely perfect. The show went on and so did I… but the best part is yet to come. Seeing as I had been having such an incredible time, and Joe and Fred being the great people that they are, when all was said and done and we started to clean up, they told me not to worry about it and join the party downstairs. How amazing is that?!! Your boss says ‘f**k it, go party’ with no strings attached.
So I did just that… downstairs the party was full blast, chicks everywhere (who are happily giving away their bras as decoration), people shredding the bowl, terrace fully packed, and the music blaring over St Laurent Blvd. Truly wondrous. Look, this place is the genuine article, and it is run by two of the most honest people I’ve ever met. They literally walk outside to make sure no one with a board is waiting in line. We are all safe here, and that is very rare! So from the bottom of my heart and the wonderful city of Montreal….Thank you Fred and Joe for making us feel like kids every night of the week.
-Cigg