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First Unitarian Church

center city

first unitarian church on chestnut st is one of the most notorious venues in philly history, and it's a functioning church, with a congregation that goes back to 1796. the basement has been the home of philly's all ages punk and hardcore scene since the mid 90s when r5 productions started renting it for shows. the basement has hosted bands like bane, ink & dagger, and pig destroyer, along with acts like title fight and alex g, and rolling stone named the church one of the top alternative rock venues in 2007. the basement can get sauna-like in the summer, so dress lightly. it's generally byob; they often have bottles of water for sale, or you can bring in whatever that isn't glass from the nearby corner store. the basement is where you'll usually find punk, hardcore, and alt rock, while the sanctuary and side chapel are seated rooms that tend to get more mellow singer songwriter, folk, and classical bills. check the ticketing site to see in which section of the church the act is performing.

upcoming shows (23)