A guide to Shrine Social Club

Downtown Boise's old El Korah Shrine is now a full-time, all-ages music venue with a ballroom upstairs and a basement stage below.

There aren't many places in Boise where you can watch a band in a room that was built for Shriners. At 1118 West Idaho Street, the old El Korah Shrine now goes by Shrine Social Club, and over the next four weeks it has about 25 shows on the books across its two stages. That's a lot of nights for a building that spent decades as a lodge hall.

The basics. Shrine Social Club is at 1118 W. Idaho St., Boise, ID 83702, in downtown Boise. There are two stages: the Ballroom upstairs and the Basement downstairs, which works as its own smaller room. Shows are generally all ages, with a full bar for those 21 and up. The venue describes the building as holding 600 to 800 people, so the Ballroom can handle a real touring draw. The Basement is the place for smaller bills and late-night events like its weekly karaoke. Check shrinesocialclub.com for which room a show is in before you go.

Where it came from. The building started out as a gathering place for the El Korah Shriners, and the venue's own site still tells that story. Its second life as a music room came through Treefort Music Fest, which started using the Shrine in its early years and helped make it one of downtown's go-to stages. Live shows continued there under the Duck Club name. In 2023 the building became Shrine Social Club and shifted to booking music full time. Downtown Boise's district listing now calls it a full-time live music venue.

Upstairs is for the headliner. Downstairs is for whatever the night turns into.

What it books. Shows at a two-room venue depend a lot on which floor you're on. The Ballroom gets touring acts and bigger local nights, the kind of shows that fill a historic hall. The Basement gets smaller bills, local bands and late-night programming. The venue posts separate tech specs for the Basement, so touring bands and local promoters know what they're working with.

The best way to see Shrine Social Club is on a night when both floors are running. Catch the headliner upstairs, then follow the noise downstairs and see what's going on in the Basement.

Sources: Shrine Social Club (official site) (shrinesocialclub.com); Shrine Social Club - Club & FAQ (shrinesocialclub.com); Shrine Social Club - Basement Tech Specs (shrinesocialclub.com); Shrine Social Club - Late Nite Karaoke (shrinesocialclub.com); Downtown Boise - Shrine Social Club (downtownboise.org); Wikipedia - Treefort Music Fest (en.wikipedia.org); DICE - Shrine Social Club venue profile (dice.fm)