New downtown music venue with Cheap Trick ties will celebrate Rockford history
A downtown Rockford storefront that most recently housed an art shop is being turned into a live music venue with ties to rock band Cheap Trick.
The Music Box, at 218 E. State St., the former home of The Midwest Rustic, will be an "upscale listening room and bar located in the heart of historic downtown Rockford," according to the venue's Facebook page.
"The Music Box is going to be focused on creating a local social establishment that honors Rockford's rich history celebrating music and desires to help inspire a return to a more vibrant atmosphere downtown," the Facebook page says, adding that the venue includes a partnership with musicians Kelly Steward and Miles Nielsen, who plan to bring in local and national artists.
The venue says the decor inside will be retro and akin to a Gatsby-era themed bar, according to its Facebook page.
There will be historical artifacts and pictures to pay tribute to the city's history.
Part of that tribute will pay homage to Ralph Neilsen's Music Box Gift Shoppe, a music store that made its home on Seventh Street for many years.
Ralph Nielsen is the grandfather of Miles Nielsen and the father of Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen.
An opening date for the new venue has not been announced yet.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: The Music Box live music venue coming to downtown Rockford, Illinois
