« back...further back... | Main | northcote town hall stencil art »

June 13, 2005

death of the melbourne music scene, espisode n+1

I was in St Kilda for the first time in ages and popped into Raoul Records to pick up the new Conway Savage CD. The guy behind the counter said "we're closing at the end of the financial year."

There's certainly been a bit of attrition around St Kilda since I was last there. Beyond the Pale's location was cleared out, all empty and white, and there was no sign of the t-shirt shop just up the road from where I already knew City Cafe had closed down.

It's not death, just regrowth. What'll take Raoul's place? What's going to give me a reason to travel all the way from the North to St Kilda if there's no Raoul, no City Cafe, and Bluecorn isn't what it used to be?

Here's a couple of pics of Supersnazz playing behind Raoul a few years ago:

img_3307img_3306

More here. There's also a few pics from one of the Harvest Festivals, part of which was held behind the shop.

* 12:04 * music · comments (5)

Comments

St Kilda has been yuppified, and it seems that its new yuppie lords aren't fond of alternative culture. It sounds like a thoroughly boring, whitebread sort of place now.

> Posted by acb at June 13, 2005 6:19 PM

Well, you could be right (exhibit b: http://flickr.com/photos/lonelyradio/18825517/ ).

I remember when I was watching the Harvest Festival gig, and the last act, Grandview, were playing - two guys with acoustic guitars and harmonica. Some guy walked in from the back and accosted me ('cause I was closest, I guess) and told me that "this noise is completely unacceptable" and wandered off again. It was about 6pm. Acoustic guitars and harmonicas. Christ on a pogo stick. I should've known it was the end, then...

> Posted by cos at June 13, 2005 6:31 PM

I disagree. I think that music/alt. culture is just shifting from where it has been for the past two or three decades. I live in Northcote and the amount of musical activity around here is blossoming by the day. Little bars with solo artists (no, not Barnsey covers), Punters Club II, Bar 303, numerous galleries etc. It's an exciting time to be living in good ole' Northcote.

> Posted by tony at June 16, 2005 7:51 PM

Sure. as i said, "It's not death, just regrowth." and as they're saying, Northcote's the new Fitzroy. I'm in northcote too, but these days i've been too busy to get out enough :(

> Posted by cos at June 16, 2005 9:26 PM

is anything going on in melbourne that does not involve a watered down copy of something that happened elsewhere a long time ago?

> Posted by blackbear at October 1, 2005 11:36 PM


Comments have been closed for this post. If you've got something to say, please contact me by other means. Thanks!

>> polydistortion.net / 13 / contact / about / © ajc 2015-12-15