Downtown Moline is surely not a stranger when it comes to the live music scene in the Quad Cities, and for a few blocks, they may offer the most varied live music spaces in the area. From the warbling of weekly jams spread across a series of watering holes to Bass St Landing which ignites with crowds during weeknights in summer, to The Mark, which I know is now Vibrant Arena, but I refuse to address it as anything besides The Mark, where a teenage version of myself once watched Bowie tear the place apart on a stop during his final full U.S. tour, to more recent additions like the weekly Mercado on 5th. There’s truly something for all sizes and tastes across this expanse of well-traveled concrete between the Mississippi River and a set of tracks that stretches far beyond the confines of this area while still connecting these seemingly separate cities. I contend that the music here works in much the same way.
Resting just along those tracks, nestled between the occasional passing train and 4th Ave is a century-old warehouse building that houses this month’s feature venue. Pour Bros is the combined effort of founders Rob Mathisen and Nathan Monroe. The bar shares some building space with The Element Hotel, and both are relatively new additions to the Quad Cities. A unique imbibing experience indeed, they have been welcoming locals and visitors all the same into their Moline location since the first days of 2022. Pour Brothers began its life in Peoria nearly a decade ago as the first self-serve bar in the entire state of Illinois. Making history themselves when those doors were opened, it’s only fitting that the historical background of this area is a big piece of what attracted them to open a location in Moline just steps from the original John Deere plant. There’s even a photo of this plant proudly adorned on the wall of the bar.
While the idea of a self-serve bar may be foreign to some and may seem less appealing to a generation that tends to loathe the idea of self-service and the self-checkout world that has become a blessing of sorts to anxious individuals like myself, I think this self-serve experience is beneficial to all patrons, whether they are having their first drink in a bar or have been bellied-up for years. Think of it like the tap feature you already use to pay with your credit and debit cards, except you use a Pour Bros specific card that scans and allows you to utilize a series of rotating taps to either fill your pint, get a sample taste before fully committing to a glass, or anything in between. I think this is a great approach to the normal world of public libations, as it not only alleviates the stress of approaching a bar uncertain of your choice, asking for a handful of samples, but it seems to take away much of the congestion of standing on line. This better allows people enjoying the music in the outdoor space to come in for a quick refill without missing much of the rhythm which is reverberating just a few steps from the taproom.
Pour Bros not only features beers on tap, including several local choices, but they also offer mead, and wine, along with the standard mixed drinks, though mixed drinks are not self-serve. And while they don’t offer food of their own, there’s usually a food truck awaiting your order which you can enjoy during the Railside concerts. The variety of offerings, both in relation to drinks and the rotating weekly music throughout the summer, makes this a place you’re going to want to check out. It doesn’t feel like a normal night out. They aim to create a different atmosphere than you’ll get in other spaces in our area. Utilizing an open, almost beer hall-like climate that welcomes groups, those crowds fill out the greenspace just beyond the sight of arcade games and an air hockey table that was calling my name, where each Saturday music can be heard, seen, and danced to throughout the evening.
Rob admittedly takes pride in local artisans, whether that’s in relation to the woodwork seen around the room, the imagery displayed on the walls, or the bands/musicians which grace both the interior and outdoor spaces. The Railside Concert series has done well to establish itself over the past 2 summers, bringing in local and semi-local artists alike free of charge to the public every Saturday during the summer from 7:30-10:30 pm. Of course, we are slowly treading beyond the Labor Day weekend and the completion of yet another summer that passed with a swiftness commonly reserved for the river that splits our cities, but there are still a handful of weeks featuring live music to keep those summer-time vibes rolling on a bit longer. This includes some well-known locals including Far Out 283 (09/07), Semi-Charmed (09/28), and one of my absolute favorite local groups, Subatlantic (09/21), who I am certain some of you recently danced along to during Alternating Currents. While they also feature acoustic/smaller acts inside, their outdoor concert series continues through September 28th, so come sample what this space, still new to the scene as a whole, has to offer before the season comes to a full stop and we are all pushed back indoors for the colder months.
