What kind of venue is the Backstage Jazz Club–the one all the fuss is about since Friday, when attorneys for the neighboring Archstone CityPlace apartments sued to keep it from even opening its doors?

“It’s a jazz club. And, uh, the idea is just basically low-key music, that kind of thing,” says Backstage Managing Director Tylan Fields. “There is amplification but it’s not planned to be a loud thing.”

Backstage is owned by the folks at Vault 350, the rock club next door, so any chance we’ll catch members of The Angry Samoans or The Germs–both of which have played the Vault–stopping by to jam some day?

Uh, probably not.

“Small quartets at most,” says Fields. “Nothing–you know, no hip-hop, no punk.”

Backstage–capacity somewhere between 100 and 200 souls–is more Branford Marsalis, Chick Corea. There’s probably no dress code (why would they need one?) but if there were, it’d be business casual.

And it’ll be open when?

“We have those delays that are well-publicized,” Fields says–meaning the court battle with Archstone. “But I think we’re close.” How close is hard to say.

The case debuted in Los Angeles Superior Court Friday, but as the Press-Telegram told us Sunday, the judge put off ruling on a restraining order against Backstage, giving both sides two weeks to work things out.

Archstone attorneys argue that the noise and crowds at Backstage could disturb tenants in neighboring apartments.

According to the P-T, they also claim that Backstage Jazz Club itself violates conditions placed on the property by the original CityPlace developer.

(As was noted in Friday’s P-T, word around town is that Archstone plans to convert its apartment complex to condominiums and resell it. Maybe another nightclub would get in their way?)

The Backstage people argue that Archstone executives have known there would be a club opening in the building since at least 2006–and, says Backstage attorney Doug Otto, this could be a landmark club.

“This matter just cries out for settlement,” Otto says. “The Backstage is a grand project which could be transformational for downtown Long Beach. I hope we can reach a settlement, but as they say, hope springs eternal.”

And what about noise at Vault 350? If Backstage will be noisy, doesn’t that make the Vault even noisier? Maybe once, Otto says; not any more.

“I think there was one period of time when there were concerns about noise with regard to the Vault 350, but they dealt with that,” says Otto. “They close their doors.”

If a settlement isn’t reached, we’ll see both sides back in court March 5.

Tags: Archstone CityPlace, Backstage Jazz Club, Branford Marsalis, California, Chick Corea, Doug Otto, Long Beach, Pine Avenue, Southern California, The Angry Samoans, The District Weekly, The Germs, Theo Douglas, vault 350