Arabic version: مجتمع الموسيقى في سيدني يتجه إلى المساحات ذاتية التنظيم
According to ABC News, Sydney’s live music community has lost at least eight venues in the past 12 months, cutting the number of small-capacity rooms where artists can develop, test new work and connect with audiences. Closures including Mary’s Underground, People’s Republic, Lazy Thinking and MoshPit have been linked to pressures such as rising insurance and rental costs, evictions and noise restrictions.
SydneyMusic co-founder Joe Hardy said its gig guide showed the shuttered venues hosted more than 690 live music events between July 2025 and June 2026. He said the causes differed across venues, including landlord issues and an aging-out demographic. Despite grants, council support and fundraising, smaller venues were barely breaking even, the report said.
Lazy Thinking, a bar, venue and record store supporting independent Australian artists, lost money every month it was open during the past three years, owner Jim Flanagan said. After receiving an eviction notice, Flanagan decided the venue would close at the end of August rather than remain open until the end of the year. He said the economics of running a small music venue in Sydney did not work.
Tom Gordon, director of music and programming for the team behind Mary’s Underground and Liberty Hall, said the loss of smaller rooms created a difficult jump for developing artists seeking to progress to larger venues. He said remaining venues could prioritise the shows selling the most tickets, leaving local communities to move toward DIY options.
DIY activity has included performances in backyards, lounge rooms, parks, skate bowls and empty warehouses. Hardy said the sector had seen a resurgence over the past 24 months and should be encouraged rather than demonised. Inner West Council’s special entertainment precincts offer extended trading hours, council-regulated sound allowances and protections from some noise complaints. Mayor Darcy Byrne also urged councils to open town halls and other public spaces for creative use.
