Sunset for Dusk: An Ode to the Closing of an Iconic Local Venue

Photography courtesy of Dusk

“Nothing will ever replace or be what Dusk was … it was a special place at a special moment in time and I’m so grateful to have been such a big part of that.” —Danielle Tellier,former bartender at Dusk.

They say that all great things eventually come to an end, and that’s surely the case with Dusk, a beloved Providence music venue that closed Jan. 26 with one heck of a heavy metal rager.

Photography courtesy of Dusk

To close out more than thirteen years of being one of the best places to see live music in the capital city, Dusk hosted local thrash supergroup Wolfhex, Connecticut black metal worshippers Death Vanish, Massachusetts black metal phenoms Prayer Position, New York City shredders Stress Angel and local metal staple I, Destroyer. 

“The ending felt so special,” says owner Rick Sunderland. “The Dusk cult followers came out like an army. Makes me consider the possibility of one more magical place. For now, wait and see what’s meant to be. Gratitude, respect and love to everyone that ever appreciated Dusk.”

According to Sunderland, the Harris Avenue building in Olneyville where Dusk was located was being sold, which prompted the closure. But there’s still a chance Dusk will find another space in the city to call home.

“I’m hopeful we can find the right spot to rebuild in the future, and I hope Providence will still have Dusk in their minds if that happens,” says Danielle Tellier, who was a constant presence behind the bar serving drinks and handling most of the live music bookings. “Nothing will ever replace or be what Dusk was … it was a special place at a special moment in time and I’m so grateful to have been such a big part of that.”

Photography courtesy of Rob Duguay

Local musician Dan St. Jacques performed at Dusk with a host of bands and always considered it to be more than just a place where people gathered to hear music and have a few drinks. He eventually became a host at Dusk five years ago, working the door and collecting admission. 

“Dusk meant a lot of different things to a lot of different people, for a lot of different reasons,” St. Jacques says. “To call it just another nightclub would be a gross understatement — it was an institution. A gathering place for people of all walks of life to enjoy music and the arts like no other.”

Dusk was important not only to the local music scene, he says, but to the national underground music scene as well. 

“Countless musicians came through the door and explained to me how excited they were to play at Dusk,” St. Jacques says. “The place has a legendary status in the underground punk and metal community and it’s obvious why. Once you’ve been there on a night when the room was bulging at the seams, the energy in that room could light the world on fire or soothe the darkest soul.”