Aaron S.
Yelp
Saw the Features and Kimbra here. Sound outside was pretty good (+1 star!) and the bartenders were fast and friendly and drinks were reasonable (+1 star!).
We had seen the Features here before and got there early to grab our previous good spot on a little balcony off to the side of the stage. We were run out of there quickly, being told that the entire area was reserved strictly for people willing to pay a $500 bottle service fee. $500. Bottle. Service. On 6th. There were two sets of people in there, including the manager's (or owner's) way-underaged daughters. I suspect they wanted to see Kimbra and he did not want the crowd bothering them, so came up with a reason to rope off a large section of prime band-viewing real estate, but who knows. (-1 star)
So we moved up to the middle balcony, which we were explicitly told was okay as long as we stayed off the stairs. A sizable crowd was allowed to stay there until just after the show started, i.e. when every other spot was taken, and then we were all run off. The setup of the Belmont is such that the stage is only visible from a very limited area, so half the crowd was unable to see the performing acts at all. (-1 star)
Security was polite enough about running you off from anywhere you weren't allowed to stand, but when someone asked to speak to the manager, they were basically told, "Sorry, not my problem, he's wearing a white shirt, good luck". When I asked who I would speak to about leaving and getting a refund, I was told the same thing, minus the white shirt part. (-1 star)
I could probably have chalked up the experience to a lesson learned about seeing a popular artist during ACL weekend in a poorly laid-out venue, and limited my Belmont trips to lesser-known acts and/or less populated weekends, but the raging apathy of every single staff member (except the bar!) dictates otherwise. Now I just have to hope the Walk The Moon show in November sells out, so I can unload my tickets on Craigslist and not feel bad about skipping a show I already paid for.