With more live music venues per capita than any other city in the world, Melbourne is home to a vast array of live music bars for every occasion, being host to the equivalent of an AFL Grand Final’s worth of people every Saturday night. Today, we’re having a look at four of our favourites to grab a glass of wine and watch a show for once you’re free to visit.
Live music venues have been one of the hardest hit industries hit over the past year and a half. All four of these venues have been really proactive at finding ways to keep themselves going. For each of them we’ve shown how you can support them right now as well as when they reopen. These are all legendary places with rent and bills and staff to support and they provide a platform for local music talent so we really encourage you to take up some of the options to show them some love.
Whole Lotta Love
524 Lygon St, Brunswick East
Named after the classic Led Zeppelin hit, Whole Lotta Love in Brunswick East is a hub for the local rock scene. It is home to lots of up-and-coming artists who will knock your socks off. Whole Lotta Love contains a lot of rock n’ roll memorabilia on the walls, including fantastic Led Zeppelin murals and a painting of Lemmy from Mötorhead outside. Being a smaller venue, it provides a very intimate atmosphere which allows a connection with the musicians unlike anywhere else. It’s not uncommon for bands to step off stage mid set and perform amongst the crowd! On the first Thursday of each month, an open mic is hosted here, which provides a large variety of acts to discover and talk to. If you’re a musician looking to network, this is an opportunity you don’t want to miss, especially given the rather generous 15-minute set afforded to each artist. There is also a great range of drinks here, ranging from their in house “Whole Lotta Lager” to various wines, spirits, cocktails and any other drink you could possibly want (including some non-alcoholic ones). The staff are incredibly friendly and attentive, always there when you’re ready for your next drink and always up for a chat.
How to support them right now: Whole Lotta Love is offering takeaway “cocktails, taps, tinnies and stubbies” from 4pm to 8pm, Thursday to Saturday. If they’re in your 5km limit, get down and pick up your weekend drinks. If you can’t get there in person, follow them on Instagram and keep an eye out for their virtual open mic every few Saturdays.
Whole Lotta Love – Bands – Booze – Banter – Beer Garden (wholelottalovebar.com)
Ethan Benson performing at a Whole Lotta Love open mic night
The Drunken Poet
65 Peel St, West Melbourne
Another small bar, located near Queen Victoria Market, The Drunken Poet is a beautiful Irish pub, being listed among the top 10 best Irish pubs in the world outside Ireland, and the minute you step in you can tell why. There is a very homey atmosphere here and a great sense of community with the locals all very friendly and open for a chat along with the staff. One of its biggest strengths is that the Poet is not tacky in its Irish theme. It is very clearly an Irish pub, but there isn’t a bunch of clichés strung around as you find in so many Irish themed pubs. The drinks available here are rather unique as well. There is a great variety of Irish beers on tap (this naturally includes Guinness which somehow tastes that little bit better here than anywhere else in Melbourne) along with a great range of whiskeys and wine. The music here is also fantastic, with live music 5 nights a week. One of the biggest highlights is on Friday nights, with the traditional Irish music night as well as Wednesday’s Wine, Whiskey, Women night which promotes local female artists. When you’re there, make sure you get yourself a toasted sandwich and a bag of Taytos. Both are equally delicious and a great pairing with any drink.
How to support them right now: Currently, The Drunken Poet is doing online trivia nights every second week. It’s well worth checking out and an excellent way to fill in a Friday night. Show Me Melbourne staff have participated in a few and we guarantee a laugh and lots of banter.
The Drunken Poet - 65 Peel St West Melbourne
Image courtesy of The Drunken Poet
Show Me Melbourne are a leading tour company. They have a range of music, entertainment and bar tours as well as sports tours, history tours, wine and gin tours.
Cherry Bar
68 Little Collins St, Melbourne
What can be said about Cherry Bar that hasn’t been said already? It’s arguably the most famous rock n roll bar in Australia, formerly located in AC/DC lane, being a common spot for international stars such as Mick Jagger and Axl Rose to hang out whenever they’re on tour in Melbourne, with Noel Gallagher from Oasis offering to purchase it in 2002. It has since moved to Little Collins Street, while maintaining its rocking atmosphere.
One of the greatest things about Cherry Bar is that they promote musicians at all ends of the spectrum in terms of fame. We loved their 2 am sessions, which gave many new bands their first real gig, and at one of the coolest venues in Melbourne no less! It’s great to watch the passion of these often rather young rockers, having the time of their life blasting it out with a fire you can only get from a young band with something to prove to the world. Hopefully we’ll see that back again in the future! And huge respect to them when Lady Gaga wanted to book the venue for a 4th of July party in 2012 but they knocked her back and honoured their original booking for a 2 piece band from Mildura. Unfazed, Gaga returned to Cherry Bar to party the night away, dancing on the bar in fishnets and lingerie!
How to support them right now: Cherry Bar are offering an excellent range of home-delivered cocktails on Friday and Saturday nights. Most have great rock-themed names such as Acca-Daiquiri and Purple Rain as well as my personal favourite – Hells Bells. Look out for their online trivia nights hosted by Phil Cerberano every couple of weeks.
Excitingly, Cherry Bar are now offering memberships to help pay the bills There are a variety of levels including a $5 a month membership for your pet and up to a $30 a month membership which gets you 15% off at the bar, a Cherry Bar tea towel and medallion, early ticket access and members-only events at the bar. That’s awesome value!
Get your drinks at Cherry Bar (cherry-bar.myshopify.com)
Get your membership at Cherry Bar is creating good times and rock n roll | Patreon
Image courtesy of Cherry Bar
The Bendigo Hotel
125 Johnston St, Collingwood
The Bendigo Hotel in Collingwood is the premiere spot for those who like it loud. Being the home of heavy metal in Melbourne, ‘The Bend’ is an excellent spot to witness the true power of live metal. There is a great community spirit here, with a lot of the local bands hanging out and mingling at this pub. You truly haven’t lived until you’ve been caught in a mosh pit at a metal show or felt the energy of an entire room of people headbanging to a fierce guitar riff. While it may seem intimidating, the metal community is also very friendly and welcoming, with everyone looking out for each other in an environment that can admittedly seem chaotic at times. The stage is so close to the audience, there is a very intimate feeling to the gigs here. The drinks are of course great too, with all your pub standards along with great cocktails and some very tasty food! It’s a great venue worth considering if you’re looking for a high energy night.
How to support them right now: Currently, like so many pubs, The Bendigo Hotel is unfortunately struggling financially. They have set up a go-fund-me which is worth supporting to keep this legendary venue alive. They’ve also opened a fantastic new diner with gourmet hotdogs, the most amazing looking chicken wings and delicious cocktails. Make this your Friday night lockdown take-out!
HOME | My Site (bendigohotel.com.au)
Image courtesy of Bendigo Hotel