Montrose has a new art gallery and music venue.

Well, kind of. Healthy Rhythm is a name that likely sounds familiar to anyone who has spent time in Montrose over the past 10 years. But the venue, launched by Ken Vail in 2016, left for about a year. It is officially back, in a new, bigger space and plenty more to be excited about.

Vail said it was “kismet” that he found the new space at 33 N. Uncompahgre, which previously housed a martial arts studio.

The space at 33 N. Uncompahgre feels like a lounge or living room and fits up to about 45 people for small, intimate music shows. (Justin Tubbs | MBT)

Vail made good on a promise in the fall of 2022 and left Montrose to help a friend who wasn’t in good health in California. That, plus the landlords were looking to sell the building he was in, meant it was good time to move on.

But after eight or nine months of trying to make a similar project work in the Modesto area, he decided it was time to come back to Montrose.

Included in those plans was reopening Healthy Rhythm.

He had an eye on one space, but it wasn’t going to be ideal for the gallery. While getting a massage, his masseuse mentioned another space coming open. It was the North Uncompahgre spot.

“The more I looked at it, I just loved it,” Vail said.

He outfitted the roughly 1,800 square feet for the gallery as a living room or lounge, complete with couches, tables and some funky seating options.

The acoustics weren’t the best, however, so he invested $6,000 in some Sweetwater acoustic paneling that he says will make Healthy Rhythms one of the best indoor venues in Montrose for sound.

He’s also upgraded the mixer, subwoofer and more with the idea of making Healthy Rhythm a desirable place to see a small, intimate show.

Eventually he’d like to get his hi-fi system set up in the place, so he can play records throughout the day while people browse the art he has on hand.

The performing floor at Healthy Rhythm.

The venue had its soft opening on Jan. 18 with a performance by Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Ari Hest. The event enjoyed a small crowd, but now Vail is looking to get the word out that Healthy Rhythm is back.

On March 7, the venue will host The Cross-Eyed Possum out of Prescott, Arizona. Georgia Rae will play there later in March.

“People ask me, ‘what’s so special about Healthy Rhythm,’” Vail said. “I say it’s as simple as, I do everything I can. I tell people it’s live music and an art gallery. The only thing that we do, if we really claim to do it, is art and music.”

He has had all types of music, from folk and country to jazz and blues. The only types of shows he avoids are heavy metal and rap and hip hop, due to the space and the art he carries.

To view the art or to buy tickets to a show, people can visit healthyrhythm.net.

Tickets are now on sale for many shows through June.

Justin Tubbs is the Montrose Business Times editor. He can be reached by email at justin@montrosebusinesstimes.com or by phone at 970-765-0915 or mobile at 254-246-2260.