Sunshine Theater

went here for a metal concert. the website and tickets said that the doors would open at 6:30, but they did not let us in until after 7. by the time we got in, the first band was already playing. there are bars in the venue but if you want to get a drink or snack you will lose your place in the pit. it is very crowded. the venue did not seem very clean and the floor was sticky.

Recomend: have dinner before. Friendly service.Positive energy, High energy, very popular show venue.

Sunshine... do you even give a shit that your sound is atrocious? I'm here now, once again giving you a chance, and damn... The Bronx, Frank Turner--they both deserve better sound than this. What a goddamn shame. Invest some of our hard earned money we're giving you and FIX IT

I love the old buildings in the downtown area. Sadly this one on the exterior is beginning to fall apart. This is a downtown spot for concerts and it is taking a beating . There needs to have some work done on the venue before it becomes to bad. Sadly this could be an amazing place if someone would put some work on the building.

The Sunshine is really hit and miss. I've seen some amazing shows there and I've seen some terrible shows there. All of this is based on the sound on any given night. The venue itself is really cool and I believe it was the first theater in Albuquerque. As other reviews have stated, the staff can be rude, and the security can be a bit aggressive, but never to me personally. Hopefully when you go you'll hit them in a good night because it can be really good.

In full disclosure, this review is strictly based on customer service experience. The theater itself may be a decent venue with a good concert calendar. I'll leave those opinions up to you based on other reviews, many of which give the venue a poor rating.My customer service experience revolved around inquiring about a potential ticker refund due to medical emergency. After exhausting all other avenues, including the platform where I bought the tickets from (including contacting its COO directly on LinkedIn), I was pointed in the direction of contacting the theater. On multiple occasions I reached out, mainly on Facebook as that seemed the best avenue and I like to have things in writing. I let them know I was having emergency ACL surgery a few days before the concert I had tickets too and that I could provide any and all documentation of the medical emergency for their consideration. Even venues with the strictest of refund policies will often allow medical emergencies as the exception. So, I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.No one ever responded, despite my repeated attempts. On each of those occasions I could see that the message was read, since Facebook timestamps things. So, I know someone received the message and simply chose not to do anything. I asked to be pointed in the right direction with appropriate contact. I asked that I get at least some response, even if it was simply an acknowledgment that the message was received/passed along/refused/whatever. You can imagine the added stress to an already stressful situation of emergency surgery. So, now I'm out of money through no fault of my own. And, while the price of two tickets might not seem like a whole heck of a lot, added to medical costs that I'm dealing with, having the refund would have meant a lot. And, I get there are sketchy people out there, but I legitimately could prove my medical emergency and was only happy to share whatever documents they needed in order to consider the refund. So, if common courtesy and acting like a human being is important to you, maybe forgo this particular venue, because they clearly don't care about their customers.

I saw Zappa Plays Zappa here this week and was not very impressed with the facility at all. Zappa was great, but this review is for the theater itself.The security was seriously something out of World War 2-era Berlin. (see photo). Seriously the longest, most inclusive list of forbidden items I have ever seen (at any venue) previously. I have seen Zappa several times previously, so I know the biblical-length list was not (all) part of some security rider. Odd. Nothing I was carrying in anyway, but it added to the feel of oppression which the hamhanded security folks gave. No need to be so stern and militant at an event intended for fun and joy. The security fiasco was enhanced by the "no in and out" restrictions. This happens at some shows, sure, but they still have a roped-off smoking area somewhere where one can go for a breath of fresh air or to talk on your phone. This venue had NO smoking area...which is a first for any show (hundreds, perhaps over a thousand) I have ever been to. I "attempted" to talk on my phone in TWO seperate areas inside the theater and was yelled at by a jackbooted thug "HEY! You can't be there!!" (corner of a stairwell and corner of the lobby). I paused my call, found a small space of blank wall in the lobby where I could not be possibly considered in the way and asked the Yellowjacketed bully "Is THIS ok??"...He looked around, paused, and grudgingly nodded that I would be 'allowed' to use my phone, finally. The sound in the venue is a bit cavernous, but passable. This is an old theater so it is not designed for maximum audio like modern facilities.They have these weird plexiglass panels in place, on the side-area of the venue and behind which you have to view the show through if you are stuck in that zone. I assume they are there to prevent passing of alcohol from the over-21 area to the under-21 area, but they are massive, distracting and ANOTHER thing I have never seen in a concert venue (which includes the uncounted venues all over the USA and Internationally where I have seen shows)...The panels also have the undesired effect of trapping crowd noise in those areas and making it hard to enjoy the band...beyond the restrictive and oppressive quality they already impart.The sad state of affairs at the Sunshine should have been obvious from arrival. The 'marquee' (which is amazingly small and unnoticable for a venue this large) had the band listed as "Dweezil Zappa". This was completely incorrect. It was 'Zappa Plays Zappa'. Dweezil tours with his own band as well, but it's a completely different band and song list. They could have used "Dweezil Zappa Plays Zappa" and been fine...they just didn't care.A venue needs to feel as welcoming and accomodating to concertgoers as possible, which one would think is simple common sense. The Sunshine Theater treats it's customers as a threat to be 'dealt with and controlled'. It is stunning that in this age of competition for events, a manager would allow their venue to become a place remembered as "a hassle to go to".Albuquerque doesn't have many large Winter venues, so this place will likely continue it's sad existence for many years. For a good show, a good time, and a good vibe overall go to the El Rey instead...it also has 'caverous' sound, but NONE of the bad qualities of the Sunshine

Went to see the Pepper concert last night. This was the worst concert venue I've ever been to. The sound system was unacceptable. Could not even understand words to songs. I think the band recognized how bad it was and were cutting their songs short. Bathrooms are unacceptable. Getting a drink almost impossible. Weird stairs either without handrails at all or if there were coming unattached from the walls. Pretty much bows down to the low expectations of Albuquerque. We left early before the band finished. High light of the evening was the vibe of downtown Albuquerque. Sketchy and dangerous as shite but I liked the vibe.

The sunshine theater, where do I begin... the staff and security seem like they dont want to be there at all. The sound quality is garbage. The place is filthy. If your venue is most widely known for having a person get murdered in the bathroom you aren't doing too great. I suggest literally any other venue in Albuquerque. Thanks for reading.

As creatures of habit and comfort, we human folk are big fans of maxims. In Albuquerque, we locals have more than a few of these. It's The Land of Entrapment. Frontier rolls are a religious experience, and get the number 9 at Golden Pride. Downtown will never be the Downtown we wish it could be. The Balloon Fiesta is for the tourists. And the sound at Sunshine sucks, too.This is what I was told before my first show, and I'd say about 80% of the concerts I've attended have sounded pretty flat. The Dandy Warhols were deplorable, but that's at least partially their fault. But like every local, I keep going back, because this is one of the only venues that books a fair smattering of solid indie rock and hip hop, so what're ya gonna do? You gotta go, and often you gotta wait in a long line to get in, and you always have to suffer the s*itty attitude of the security crew. There are occasional shows which somehow rise above the reverb, for some reason, and they're usually hip hop. You best avoid this place completely for hard core and speed metal, it's not a pretty scene.