The Basement: cultural icon and showcase venue for Australian artists and international stars alike, is set to close its doors.
Sydney’s oldest licenced music venue, accountable for thousands of shows spanning over four decades, is the latest victim of the live music venue epidemic spreading across Sydney. The venue’s rumoured closure has caused outcry and set alarm bells ringing over the survival of the city’s once thriving live music culture.
As the self- proclaimed; ‘beating heart of Sydney’s live music scene,’ The Basement’s demise is part of a worrying trend among indie venues; crumbling under the pressure of lock out laws, gluttonous landlords and drastic licensing restrictions.
The Monday Jam, which hosts improv sessions at The Basement, confirmed Monday the 26th was its last show at the venue, with representatives awaiting an official announcement on the closure.
A spokeswoman from AMP Capital, owner of The Basement’s current building, has denied claims by local musician Danny G Felix that The Basement is to be turned into office spaces; but has deemed it ‘too soon to say whether another music operator, bar or restaurant will move in.’ The Basement has yet to comment.
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