Echo and KEPW welcome Bradley from The Space Bar

Echo (Underground Echo): My name is Echo and you’re tuned in to KEPW 97.3 FM broadcasting from Eugene, Oregon and simulcasting online at KEPW.org.

Imagine you’re walking down a street in Eugene, Oregon at night. The neon glow is humming, bicycles clatter past and the scent of miso and sesame oil sneaks through the back alley. You think you’re headed home. You think you know where you’re going, but then you see it: A door, unmarked except for a glimmer of starlight, tucked behind a ramen shop, like a secret you weren’t supposed to find. And yet, it’s calling to you.

[00:00:38] You push it open, and suddenly, bam, you’re not in Eugene anymore. You’re not in Austin. You’re not even in this decade. You’re in The Space Bar. And in that instant, you know, you stumbled into a hidden constellation, a tucked away planet orbiting just outside the usual maps, a diamond in the rough, a secret savannah of serendipity.

[00:00:59] Inside the room swells with laughter. There’s a warmth here, the kind of warmth that doesn’t just come from a heater in the corner. But from people, real people talking, singing, sipping, sharing. You look around and think, ‘Where the hell has this place been in my life?’

[00:01:19] Karaoke has already started, and here’s the kicker. There’s not a single bad singer in sight. Not one. Even when the notes go sideways, they don’t sound wrong. They sound like belonging. Because here, at The Space Bar, the magic isn’t just about perfection, it’s about participation. It’s about leaning into joy like you’re sliding into home plate on a summer night.

[00:01:41] This is the Eugene that people whisper about. The Eugene they try to explain to out-of-towners when they say it’s a college town, yeah, but it’s also weirder, softer, truer. This is the heartbeat after hours. The lounge you find when you think the night is over, but it’s actually just getting good. And steering the spaceship, guiding it, curating it, keeping the gravity just right is Bradley.

[00:02:04] Bradley came here from Austin, Texas .Now if you know Austin, you know, it’s got its own legendary music scene, its own quirky dive bars and community watering holes. But what Bradley brought with him wasn’t just geography: He brought soul. He brought that deep-down Southern hospitality and rewired it for the Pacific Northwest. He took the DIY grid of Austin and mixed it with the lush experimentalism of Eugene. And the result is what you feel the minute you walk into The Space Bar: a place that is equal parts home and horizon.

[00:02:37] Here’s the thing. This isn’t just a bar. Yes, there are drinks. Yes, there are cocktails mixed with the precision of a science experiment and the generosity of a grandma pouring sweet tea. But it’s more than that. The Space Bar is a community center disguised as nightlife. It’s a place where strangers become neighbors, where neighbors become chosen family, where every note sung into the microphone echoes something bigger than entertainment.

[00:03:03] Think about it: How often do we, as adults, get together without pretense? How often do we step into a room where we are invited not just to consume, but to contribute? Karaoke here isn’t background noise, it’s communion. I’ve seen people walk in alone, shoulders hunched, eyes down, and two hours later they’re on stage, belting their lungs out with a crowd of new friends, cheering them like they just headlined at Madison Square Garden.

[00:03:28] And the funny part? Nobody here is chasing stardom. They’re chasing connection. They’re chasing that old-school small-town back-porch feeling where music and storytelling and laughter aren’t commodities, they’re survival. And that’s the brilliance of The Space Bar. It’s not about being the coolest or the trendiest, it’s about being the truest. And that’s why it feels like home.

[00:03:53] Bradley has built something rare in Eugene, something that feels both like it’s always been here and like it’s brand new just for you. He created a bar that doesn’t close at last call, it lingers with you. You carry at home like a melody stuck in your head. When people talk about third spaces—those magical places outside of work and home where life actually happens—this is what they mean. A bar like this isn’t just about drinks, it’s about architecture of belonging, and it’s working.

[00:04:22] Because if you’ve been here, you know. You know what it feels like when the lights dim, the mic gets passed, and a group full of strangers decide to trust each other with their own voices. That’s not a transaction. That’s alchemy. So tonight we’re diving into that alchemy. We’re going behind the bar, behind the curtain, behind the songs, and we’re talking to the man who dreamed it up, risked it all, and built this spaceship of connection: Bradley, the owner of The Space Bar.

[00:04:50] Bradley Funderburk (The Space Bar): Thank you. Thank you so much, Echo, for having me. It’s been a pleasure catching up with you and learning who you are, and I appreciate your view of what we’ve created. It’s extremely beautiful.

[00:05:05] Echo: Well, it’s very touching. Folks, I actually walked into Bradley’s Space Bar to take a night off from work in karaoke and ended up working because Bradley was such a charming host that I just had to get him on the radio and tell you about this unique space. So Bradley, take us back. What made you leave Austin, Texas, and bring your energy here to Eugene?

[00:05:26] Bradley: There’s a lot of factors, mainly my family. I had two little kids. And I didn’t see future being too bright for them in Texas and wanted to find a more inclusive community, which I was hoping to find in Eugene, and I did. My kids have been extremely happy with everybody that they’ve met here and I am as well, so that was the biggest reason. Other than that, it’s really hot in Texas.

[00:06:02] Echo: I remember.

[00:06:03] Bradley: And so the weather and proximity to all this lovely nature was another huge motivating factor. But yeah, I mean I could go on and on. There’s a million reasons to leave Texas.

[00:06:17] Echo: When you first imagined The Space Bar, what did you see in your mind? Did it match the reality we walk into today?

[00:06:25] Bradley: I hope so. I really do, and it sounds like it’s, you know, it does resonate with people the way that I hoped it would. Because that is what I envisioned the space to be, was a third space for people to gather and connect with other human beings in a face-to-face environment. So much so these days we find ourselves isolated and stuck in cyberspace. It was time to peel back those black screens and hopefully get people talking again.

[00:07:04] Echo: Karaoke is a cornerstone here. What do you think makes karaoke so powerful for building community?

[00:07:11] Bradley: I feel like karaoke is such an emotional and vulnerable state to be in, like you are singing your favorite songs to a room full of mostly strangers and it’s a difficult thing to do.

But when you’re able to let go and actually enjoy yourself, it’s really a great way to connect with other people due to the fact that you’re having to be so open with who you are.

[00:07:42] Echo: I agree. I think karaoke is a fabulous way to also get some music therapy. Yes. You know for free.

[00:07:50] Bradley: Yeah, there’s nothing like belting out your favorite song to, you know, get you through whatever traumas happen through the week. –

[00:07:59] Echo: Absolutely. Many people say The Space Bar feels like family. ‘Cause I was, of course, talking to other people when I came to your bar and they were all so welcoming and wonderful. You have a wonderfully built-in community there already. What’s the secret recipe for creating that kind of intimacy?

[00:08:19] Bradley: Honestly, it’s the community itself they welcomed me with open arms and I was just here to provide the space. I do my best to protect the vibe and make sure everybody’s having a good safe time, yeah. And the people that show up and continue to show up are really the reason it feels so familial. They really are such a great group of people. We wouldn’t be here without them and I appreciate how much they enjoy each other’s company and how much they welcomed me into their own little pod of people.

[00:09:07] Echo: The people pod. Not the pod people, folks, that’s a different movie. I want to know, tell us what’s the wildest or most beautiful moment you’ve ever witnessed at karaoke here.

[00:09:24] Bradley: There’s so many because there’s so many great singers show up, it’s kind of embarrassing sometimes when I get called up to sing due to the fact that I’m usually following somebody just sang an incredible ballad or something, and I’m here singing some silly song. But the magic happens almost every night when it comes to karaoke. There really is some kind of standout performance from somebody.

[00:09:55] But my favorite magical moment was when one of my friends from Austin came down to visit and he roped me into singing a Taking Back Sunday song with him, which I was not prepared for. But it was great to see him and great to relive that song with him once again. We’ve been doing that song together for over a decade.

So, yeah, it was nice getting to have my own magic moment in my own bar. It was with my one of my best friends from high school.

[00:10:33] Echo: That does sound like a really magical moment.

[00:10:35] Bradley: I appreciate being able to have that experience.

[00:10:39] Echo: Absolutely. Home isn’t just four walls and a mortgage. Home is any place where you are seen, where you are welcomed, where you are validated, where your voice matters, even if you can’t carry a tune. And Bradley has given us that gift. He brought with him a piece of Austin, a piece of Texas, the grit, the music, the camaraderie, and planted it here in Eugene’s soil.

[00:11:00] And like all good transplants, it adapted, it grew, it thrived. It found its own rhythm, its own climate, its own quirks, and now it bears fruit for everyone willing to step inside.

[00:11:12] Think of the people who’ve walked into this place for the first time: tired, lonely, maybe a little lost. And think of the people who walked out: lighter, louder, part of something bigger. That’s transformation. That’s rare. That’s magic. And it doesn’t happen by accident.

[00:11:28] It happens because someone cared enough to create the conditions for it, to design a room where the music is currency, where vulnerability is strength, where joy is mandatory. That’s Bradley’s legacy here, that’s the pulse of The Space Bar.

[00:11:42] Presenter: Echo visits with Bradley Funderburk of The Space Bar, 150 W. Broadway in Eugene. You can learn more about upcoming events on Instagram and at their website.