The Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center (LNAC), also known as "The Lemp," is a non-profit performance space, art gallery, and community center located in the historic Benton Park neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri.
- Venue
- Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center
- Town
- Saint Louis, US
The Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center (LNAC), also known as "The Lemp," is a non-profit performance space, art gallery, and community center located in the historic Benton Park neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Since its founding in March 1994, the organization has been among the forefront of art spaces committed to the DIY ethic in St. Louis and the Midwest, holding the position as one of the oldest all-ages "Do-It-Yourself" music venues in the region and in the United States, alongside ABC No Rio in New York City, 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley, California, and the Ché Café in La Jolla, California. As a non-profit project, the Lemp is known for operating with a DIY ethic of show promotion and venue maintenance, relying on a team of volunteers to help with day-to-day functions. Inspired by the straight edge movement and Fugazi's business ethics, the shows at Lemp are always all-ages, drug and alcohol free, and cost five dollars for admission at the door, with the majority of the money paid to the music performers directly. The venue also strictly avoids booking bands and musicians with a commercialized sound and/or music industry standard of practice, or any performer who promotes "violent or reckless behavior" or "a discriminatory, lewd, degrading or immoral message." The Lemp has long been known for hosting experimental music acts, most notably ones classifiable as noise rock, art rock, or noise music. Other genres it has known to frequently select include but are not limited to: free improvisation, electro-acoustic, folk, hardcore, punk, post-punk, math rock, indie rock, emo revival, post-hardcore, grindcore, and no wave. Additionally, the Lemp hosts poetry and theater. In addition to its regular concerts, Lemp is also acclaimed for hosting a three-day festival called NoisefeSTL, which is known for showcasing experimental performers from the Midwest "whose work could be associated with noise." NoisefeSTL inaugurated in October 2004, and has occurred annually until