For the past few years, I had heard about the homegrown haven and open secret that is the Ojai Underground Exchange, a unique hidden away haven. I became an instant fan when I finally made my way there in May, not as an observer but as a performer, playing guitar for my old musical comrade Julie Christensen (with sturdy bassist Steve Nelson in tow). Then again, the intimate scale of the room — about a 50-seat capacity — makes it feel that all comers, on both sides of the stages, are participants in a tiny but mighty cultural experiment.
Adding to the mystique of the space is the unexpected facelessness of its exterior, in sharp contrast to the vibe-y décor and all-in-one features of this performance space/recording studio/live streaming site/dance studio/what-you-make-of-it. An old white spinet piano hugs one wall, and another wall is graced by a large poster mural of a hotel, a replica of the iconic album cover for Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti. Since moving from its original site on the main drag of Ojai Avenue to an unassuming industrial building on Pearl Street, the “underground” factor nudged up into the stuff of humble mythos.
Opened in 2017, the space’s roots are suitably organic, built from the ground up by partners Cassidy Linder and Bernie Larsen. She is a professional dancer-teacher from Chicago and he hails from Los Angeles, as a well-connected musician and studio dog whose resume includes work with Melissa Etheridge, Jackson Browne and Rickie Lee Jones — and a stint as guitarist for the late David Lindley’s El Rayo-X. Together, they settled on a move to Ojai and the concept of a new, modestly-sized but expansive-minded venue in their adopted hometown.