Tucked away off the Central Square T stop is an extremely small venue with a big name for hosting great bands to perform.
The first time I went to Lilypad was last week to see my friend play in the Pocket Jazz Orchestra, a Berklee formed "mini big band". Their arrangements were phenomenal and each player had a high level of musicianship. I walked for maybe 1/2 mile and "happened upon" Lilypad. I thought the directions would be clearer. The venue itself is relatively small. No bar or restaurant. You walk in and there are about 40 folding chairs facing a cramped stage. Acoustically, the room sounded great. There wasn't much background noise from outside or surrounding businesses.
I wanted to make it a point to see the venue eventually. I had heard talk of it at Berklee as being one of the few big jazz venues in Boston---Lilypad being in Cambridge. Definitely worth a trip out there one night. Be prepared for a mild walk from Central Square. There seemed to be some nice restaurants in that neighborhood, so not a bad area at all.
