By MICHAEL GRANBERRY / The Dallas Morning News mgranberry@dallasnews.com Where else can teens hang out or catch live music? Location info: Rock Steady music venue PLANO Back in 2006, Lindy Denham got tired of driving his aspiring-rock-star son to gigs as far away as Lewisville, Grand Prairie and Deep Ellum. So, the McKinney dad opted to open his own venue. Almost overnight, Rock Steady earned its buzz as an alcohol-free venue where teenagers could groove to their kind of rock.

For almost two years, the strip-mall club has provided a home to such amateur sensations as Gym Class Dropouts, the Cadillac Incident and those death-metal mavens I, the Emperor. But as much as kids and parents like it, Rock Steady may soon have to close. Amy Con-Gutierrez / Special to DMN Recently at Rock Steady, left to right: Ashley Levesque, 19; Lindsey Frazier, 17; Alysa Edwards, 17; and Taylor Weig, 19 Mr. Denham cites the rent ($4,000 a month) and terminal inconsistency in drawing crowds.

He drew 325 for the Scene Aesthetic (his capacity is 241), but for a recent fundraiser to benefit a Plano chess team, not one person showed. It hasn’t been enough to justify the rent, says the 48-year-old father of two who has a day job as an information technology consultant. When I told my staff that I was contemplating closing it, there were tears.

They have come to identify with Rock Steady, and if it closes, they may be reduced, once again, to the typical things kids do, such as malls and movies. That would be a shame, fans say, because Rock Steady addresses what many contend are a pair of glaring needs: safe venues for kids between 13 and 18 to hang out, and places for aspiring bands to strut their stuff. Both are rare in the Dallas area.