Material Culture of the Blues

The House of Blues Dallas has a very strong material culture.  One of the most significant parts of this is the instruments used, and of that the guitar being the most significant.  While instruments are not sold at the House of Blues itself(except for the harmonica), there are many stores in the Dallas area, such as Guitar Center, that focus entirely on these kinds of instruments.  The store at the House of Blues focuses more on memorabilia.  The store offers many House of Blues shirts, as well as hats, glassware such as shot glasses, collectibles, and even art.  The artists themselves generally have a makeshift store, called a Merch Table, located just outside the room that the performance is in.  The House of Blues, as well as the artists themselves, also sell CD’s and DVD’s to the attendees.  There is a strong influence of alcohol at the House of Blues.  For example, the Main Hall has three separate bars accessible to the performance-goers.  Every event space has at least one bar, and there is no point in the performance when the bar is closed.  Art is also a very important aspect at the House of Blues.  The walls inside are covered with art, either in frames hung on the wall or painted directly onto the wall itself.  Art is also available for purchase in the store.  Some of the art is seen in the following pictures in the Music Hall.