Fuze Box

The last time I was at the Fuze Box, nearly a decade ago, I left feeling a bit dirty. At the time, the club was rather scuzzy and not in a punk sort of way. It was dirty, stinky, and felt like a powder keg ready to explode in a huge drunken mess. Despite my initial impression and realizing that ten years had gone by, I decided it was time to give the Fuze Box another try.
I am very happy to report that the Fuze Box is in much better shape that it has been in years past. My initial impression walking into the dimly lit club was that it was clean and orderly. Upon arriving at the bar, my group was greeted by the bartender and given a rundown of the beer selection. While the drink of choice seems to be tall cans of PBR, the Fuze Box is now offering a number of craft bottles and at an entirely reasonable price. I settled on a Bell’s Amber Ale. The performance space, located in the back of the club, seems to have undergone a makeover as well. The walls have been transformed into a psychedelic mural, which interacted with the house lights in an interesting way. The bill for the night was stacked with five local bands and an advertised start time of 8pm, with the first taking the stage shortly after that. I appreciated that I wasn’t made to stand around for an hour after the show was due to begin. The organization of this show signals to me that the in-​house crew has gotten a better handle on this part of their business, as my previous experiences have felt a bit lawless in this regard. The sound system at the Fuze Box, at least for this live show, came across as a little dull. A few simple upgrades to the system would go a long way in providing that kick-​you-​in-​the-​teeth crunch you long for at a rock show.
Overall, I was quite happy with my visit to the Fuze Box. The club isn’t and probably won’t ever be the ultimate destination for national touring bands passing through our city. However, the Fuze Box is a fun location to catch some local music, have a few beers, and let your freak flag fly. I look forward to my next visit.

I LOVE FUZE BOX! I have had some of the best nites of my life here. They have an 80s night one Saturday a month & it is EVERYTHING. DJ JC is the best & she plays your requests. She*s EPIC! The bartenders & staff are so nice & welcoming as well. I totally recommend the Fuze Box to anyone who wants to DANCE!

Not my favorite spot in the world. We tried this place on around 11:30 Saturday night so the $ 7 cover charge seemed reasonable enough. However, when we got into the back room and found a total of 10 people (3 of whom were actually dancing) it became clear that we just got hosed for $ 7.
Maybe it was the rain that kept people away or maybe it was because college wasn’t in session. Either way, this place was dead. Except for that interpretive dance girl that was totally killing it. She’s the only reason why I’m granting this place 2 stars instead of 1.

It was a great time, people came and went during the event so it was overly crowded. The DJ spun a variety of great tunes. I enjoyed dancing the night away.

Walked in at 1015 to a dead silent club. 3 ladies at the bar with 2 guys that were the doormen. No music no ppl. Was told we will get started soon. I don’t know, being from L.A. if you don’t have ppl waiting to get in by 1030 you are not the place to be. 3 20 somethings ladies walked in and the DJ started. I will grab a beer and see what happens by 11pm.

Fuzebox is one of those places that’s great to head out to if you want to dance with friends, but you really don’t want to put too much thought into how you look.
The typical Fuzebox crowd ranges from flannel-​clad hipster’s drinking PBRs, girls in fishnets, to cyber punks; the crowd is eclectic. It’s also pretty gay friendly (owned by the owners of Oh Bar on Lark), so it’s a safe place to go if you’ve tired of Waterworks/​ROCKS and want to try something different. You really don’t have to worry about fitting in, because no one else does either; it’s a bar full of friendly misfits from all walks of life.
I haven’t really been to any of the shows there, but I imagine that whether you have a good time during a show would be contingent on whether you like the band, and the crowd that the bands attracts. I’m usually there post-​10pm. Goth (every 1^st Friday) and 80’s (every Saturday) nights are the best nights to go and get a feel for the place. The goth night is very accessible to mainstreamers too.

I’m fairly new to the Capital Area so I’ve been actively looking for a «spot» to meet folks, so as a child of the 80s I went to the Fuze Box due to a Unilocal review. The frist few times were good and since i they carry Hendrick’s Gin it was great, BUT recently I went with a few friends only to find out that on top of the cover (which is fine) they started a mandatory coat check for the winter (which is fine) IF THEY DONT CHARGE YOU ANOTHER 2 BUCKS FOR IT. This Spring I may rate them higher.

80’s night, for the win!
I hadn’t been here in years, and I cannot figure out why. It’s a small place, but it’s never been so full that it becomes difficult to dance. There might be a little squeezing to get from the dance floor to the bar, but it’s really not that bad. The regulars are friendly and welcoming and I had absolutely no problem whatsoever finding people to dance with.
The group of friends I’m running with these days are always looking to dance and let loose, so we’ll be back over and over again. Great time, good music, what more could I ask for?

I wish they had more live shows. I am a fan of the 80’s night and the Alien Nation nights. This is where the weirdos come to dance. And I count myself among the weirdos. Once in a while I buy a drink. It’s not why I come here. And the décor is great!!!

Since I don’t live in Albany or frequent the Fuze Box all the time, I can’t really speak to the current nightly specials and whatnot.
But I can say its pretty adorable. It used to be a burger joint, maybe a white castle? It’s got a stage, red comfy booths, and a really unique bar that used to be the counter, with stools and tiled floor. Now, my thoughts on club spaces in general is that no one would really want to be in them with the lights on. But Not so with the Fuze Box, or as a friends non native english speaker boyfriend used to call it, the Fuzzy Box. Theres also a big loft with seating above the dance floor and an actual dj booth where the person can sit. its really pretty adorable.
So I can’t comment on theme nights, the recent drinks quality, the lessons or «crowd» but when I think of a small club with big heart, Fuze Box is the one.

This is one of those hole in the wall bar/​nightclubs. Thou it may be small, it does draw a good crowd during the 80’s night and a newly added Alien Nation on the First Friday.
They have reasonable drink prices and a tentative wait staff.
Smoking is provided outside in the back and side of the bar, which is locked to keep the riff raff out!

over priced drinks, crappy cover charge, so-​so 80s night. This place isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

as the other reviewers noted, this is a hit or miss thing. we usually only ever go for 80’s night as there is no way you can go wrong dancing to come on eileen and it’s ilk. we went last night for adam’s birthday and it was a Blast. there were so many types of people dancing and simply enjoying themselves. and so so entertaining. there was a guy that must have been a trained dancer and he was jolting about the place on top of the booth backs, on the stage and just everywhere. there were old folks like me that knew all of the lyrics to all of the songs and still were boogieing on down, there were the ‘club kids’ that are so much Cooler than everyone else… such an eclectic mix, and still everyone was having fun. the dance floor was more crowded than i have seen since it’s days as the Q.
sometimes i miss the old dark scary place but i like the new look too (i know, it has been this way for years, New is a Relative term ya know.)

I love the exterior of this place and love hearing the stories my parents tell about going here when it was QE2.
Why is it always so empty though? I’ve attended the Thursday night swing nights and that was packed, but it’s usually empty on Fridays. Why don’t they book bands here more often? It could be such a great venue once more!
The biggest event of the week — 80s night on Saturday — is very hit-​or-​miss. I’ve had a blast a few times, but then other times the entire scene just bugged me for some reason. Maybe I’m just getting old. However, 80s Night is always packed and is definitely a place to be seen.

I’m torn on this. Back in the days when this was the QE2, I never went. It was closed for a bit and out of the ashes rose the Fuze. It’s an old restored burger place and it looks pretty cool; checkered floor, retro fittings and even a phone booth! We all love the phone booth. No one can deny that 80’s night is an institutional must-​have and it’s a raucous place to go with friends and dance, point at Johnny Scissorhands spinning in circles. But hold your loved one tight because there have been some shenannigans here that leaves a sour patch on my heart and keeps me from that fifth star.