The building that houses The 8x10 first started serving locals as a country and western bar. Then, in keeping with the counter culture of the day, the late '70s saw a change to a coffee house/juice bar. Still no live music at this point. But in 1983, the fun really started with the beginning of the live music club The Eight By Ten, which centered on local acts like All Mighty Senators, Slickee Boys, Jimmies Chicken Shack, Root Boy Slim and more. The club also played host to a variety of upcoming nationals, the likes of Widespread Panic, Gov't Mule, G. Love & Special Sauce, The Dave Mathews Band, Nirvana, and many others. In 2002, after a $1.5 million renovation, the doors were reopened with a new name. State of the art sound and springboard dance floor provided patrons with an exquisitely intimate room. New ownership came aboard in 2005, that being Abigal Janssens and Brian Shupe, and it was at that time the name was changed to The 8x10.