When you see a band give a truly spectacular performance, you might say that they “brought the house down.” At Concord Music Hall on Saturday, though, headlining DJ Datsik made it something of a reality. Three people were injured when part of the ceiling collapsed onto the audience not more than 10 minutes into his set. Although none of them were seriously hurt, the incident could serve as a warning for other Chicago venues.
“Datsik’s stage setup and bass were just literally too big for the Concord,” Joey Cantacessi, a DePaul student who was at the show, said when contacted by phone.
As the bass-heavy music began to blast out of the speakers, Cantacessi and others saw dust suddenly fill the air. Then, Datsik announced to the crowd that the ceiling was going to cave in. He cued up another track, and then his announcement came true.
“People were pretty pissed about it,” Cantacessi said. “It was a hot mess getting out.”
DNAInfo reports that an engineer hired by Concord concluded it was the bass-heavy music that caused the structural failure. The venue will remain closed until further notice, and all previously scheduled shows have been cancelled.
While numerous weather-related incidents in recent years have called the safety of outdoor concerts into question, this incident could prove to be a wakeup call for other Chicago venues who may be operating under aging infrastructure. Although this time, people left with only minor injuries, perhaps next time things will turn out differently. For now, Concord Music Hall will remain closed until further notice, and shows will either be relocated or cancelled.