Reader’s letter: support our independent venues

As you’ve probably taken note of, the British economy is in a bit of state and heading towards April when business rates increase alongside staff wages, independent places are more likely to shut up shop than any others.

SO we’re REALLY putting it out into the stratosphere to support your INDEPENDENT businesses more than ever, we get how easy it is to just throw money at corporations such as N*tflix, A*azon, D*liveroo etc and we understand how difficult it is to make sure your wages go to the right places when times are tough so we thank ALL of you who continue to support the venues in this city especially and help keep this music scene alive. It really is one of the only savings graces of Southampton’s otherwise stale interior.

The musos amongst you have probably noticed less international tours coming to our city than before – tours are now becoming 4/5 shows max in the UK leaving out smaller markets such as Southampton.

The music industry isn’t in a great place itself  and we urge you to support these tours where possible when they hit our city as this sends out a positive message to the managers/agents of the industry that this is the place to send their artists. The better the turnouts the more fruitful it is for EVERYONE from band to crew to venue to gig goer.

We are now entering our 58th year as a venue and will continue to try our best to bring you some of the most affordable nights out in the area around, our drinks prices will need to sneak up slightly in April when rates and wages go up but we will make sure you can still have a great night out on £20!

By coming here and places like this you are directly supporting the FUTURE of live music and no doubt any given night you could be watching the next GLASTONBURY headliner of a few years time…

That’s all for now, take a look at what we’ve got coming up and hopefully see you down here for many more epic moments ahead.