[3][4] Jon Shadel of The Washington Post described Holocene as a "music and art club with an avant-garde bent... inspired by the minimal techno scene in Berlin".

[5] He wrote, "the bi-level venue in the Central Eastside hosts an eclectic range of independent DJs and genre-blurring musicians, although most lineups tend to focus on up-and-coming sounds in electronic, R&B and hip-hop.

[4][8] According to Willamette Week's Sophie June, Holocene offers "boozy slushies" and "indie-rock shows that often tend toward the psychedelic or the threateningly abrasive".

[10] According to Willamette Week's Sophie June, Holocene "began as one of the only spots to bring national-caliber electronic acts to Portland following the fast demise of the B Complex".

[3][4] Musicians who have performed at Holocene include Against the Current,[11] Lauren Aquilina,[12] Au/Ra,[13] Beach Fossils,[14] Ryan Beatty,[15] Kadhja Bonet,[16] Clairo,[17] Crumb,[18] Matthew Dear,[19] Duckwrth,[20] Future Generations,[21] Tommy Genesis,[22] Chuck Inglish,[23] Japanese Breakfast,[24] The Japanese House,[25] Jonna Lee,[26] Milk & Bone,[27] Shy Girls,[28] Sasha Sloan,[12] Snail Mail,[29] Tove Styrke,[13] Avey Tare,[30] and Zaytoven.

[33] In 2019, the Portland-based literary magazine Tin House hosted an event in conjunction with the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) conference, featuring readings by Hanif Abdurraqib, Erica Dawson, Morgan Parker, and Tommy Pico.

[44] Holocene hosted the "Ping Pong Pandemonium Party" in mid-2010; participants included Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss of Sleater-Kinney.

[1] In 2018, the venue was decorated to resemble the Sunnydale nightclub from Buffy the Vampire Slayer as part of a Halloween celebration[48] and hosted Jo Ann Hardesty's election-results viewing party.

[53] David Greenwald of The Oregonian wrote in 2014, "If there's a dance party in Portland, it's probably happening at Holocene, which is routinely home to laptop experimenters, DJs spinning hip-hop classics and LGBT-friendly events such as the monthly Gaycation.

[1]In 2018, Willamette Week's Walker MacMurdo wrote: "Fifteen years in, whether Holocene is hosting a dream-pop trio, a live podcast or its birthday party for Drake, it still feels like the coolest place in Portland.