Festivals & Venues: November 23

NEWCASTLE LOCKOUT LAWS SET FOR REVIEW

The nine-year-old Newcastle lockouts, which are held up by lockout advocates in other states as a successful working model of cutting liquor-fuelled violence, are themselves set for a review.

The NSW Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (ILGA) has begun the evaluation of laws covering 15 venues in Newcastle’s CBD.

Barrister Jonathan Horton QC, who assisted with the Ian Callinan review of the Sydney Entertainment Precinct lockouts, has the quick turn-around deadline of December 22.

ILGA Chair Philip Crawford said the review was a result of a request by the Australian Hotels Association “to consider revoking or changing some of the conditions.”

They cover 1am and 1.30am lockouts and 3am and 3.30am closing times, drinks restrictions after 10pm including bans on shots and doubles and a limit of four drinks per customer.

The 15 venues are Cambridge Hotel, Civic Hotel, Clarendon Hotel, Crown & Anchor Hotel, Customs House, Ducks Nuts, Fanny’s of Newcastle, Hotel CBD, King St Hotel, Lucky Country Hotel, MJ Finnegans, Queens Wharf Brewery, Grand Hotel, Great Northern Hotel and The Dockyard.

The move was slammed by health advocates and residential groups as the state government bowing to a “powerful lobby group” like the AHA.

The review comes as University of Newcastle researcher, Prof. Kypros Kypri was honoured by the health service umbrella group Sax Institute for his study of the effectiveness of lockout policies.

He found that violence did drop because of the measures

It also coincides with one of the affected 15 venues, the Cambridge Hotel, picking up Best Live Music at the AHA NSW Awards for Excellence held in Sydney this week.

The Best Nightclub/Nightlife Venue went to Sydney’s Albion Hotel

CHICAGO PASSES CONCERT TICKET TAX

Chicago this week approved a controversial amusement ticket tax to come into effect next year.

They cover music, comedy and movies with an 80% hike. The $15.8 million raised, will go to a “public safety plan” to generate funds to hire nearly 1,000 additional police officers in a city shaken by gun violence in recent years.

TWO MORE SYDNEY VENUES CHANGE HANDS

Two more Sydney venues showcasing live music have changed hands.

The Centennial in Woollahra which has a strong jazz focus is now part of Justin Hemmes’ Merivale portfolio.

The Kospetas family’s Universal Hotels, which bought Kinselas in May for $23 million, has now acquired the Brighton Hotel (home of the Brighton Up Bar) on Oxford St in Darlinghurst.

THOUSANDS BRAVE MTV EATS AND BEATS SOGGY GROUNDS

Heavy rain turned Wollongong’s Stuart Park into soggy-ville but thousands still turned out to see Rudimental, Tkay Maidza, Yolanda Be Cool and Nicole Millar.

Attendees dressed up to fit in with the unicorns and space theme.

The night hit a bummer when four people were arrested after the show. They were part of a group of 10 who allegedly beat up two cousins who had told them not to vandalise road signs and letterboxes as they headed home.

CAPITOL THEATRE TO UNDERGO TRANSFORMATION

The Victorian Government is throwing $2.5 million towards the transformation of Melbourne’s Capitol Theatre “to return it to its former glory.”

The project will include the redevelopment of the fly tower behind the stage and expanding the use of the theatre beyond film screenings to include theatrical and musical productions.

Once completed it is expected up to 1000 RMIT students will use the theatre weekly for lectures, tutorials and creating and showing their own digital works. The RMIT will also help towards the costs.

HYPERFEST DROPS FIRST LINEUP

Perth’s under-18 HyperFest (Midland Oval, February 24) dropped an epic first artist line-up.

WA acts are Arno Faraji, Carla Geneve, Columbus, Cursed Earth, Feels, Glass Wave, POW! Negro, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Raksha, Sly Withers and Tired Lion.

From intestate are In Hearts Wake, Queensland’s Camouflage Rose, Columbus and WAAX, NSW’s Dear Seattle and Introvert, and Maddy Jane from Tasmania.

DISPUTE OVER AMBASSADOR ASSETS

A row has broken out after the Ambassadors Hotel Adelaide’s owner Ambassador KW Pty Ltd was put in liquidation due to a debt to gaming company Ainsworth Game Technology Pty Ltd.

It has filed a Supreme Court injunction to stop liquidator Richard Auricht from getting his mitts on the venue’s assets.

CABLE TIES CUT CORNERS

Melbourne’s post-punk trio Cable Ties took out the Corner Hotel’s Corner Award.

Judged by music biz reps, the outfit gets 150 copies of a limited 7″, a cash cheque of $2000, a full-page ad from Beat, rehearsal time at Bakehouse Studios, $1000 towards artwork costs from Mushroom Publishing.

Cable Ties are celebrating by throwing the Cable Ties Ball in late February at the Corner with Habits, Miss Blanks, The Dacios, Simona, Eat-Man and Miss Destiny.

WARPED TO WRAP UP IN 2018

Next year’s North American run will be Warped Tour’s national round of shows, founder and producer Kevin Lyman confirmed. It will do 28 dates from June 21 to August 5.

It’s expected Warped will continue as a series of smaller events. Lyman didn’t explain why the change, but he has complained that younger music fans don’t seem to be going out to see shows because they’re “at home watching Netflix”.

10,000 FOR HUNTER ELVIS BASH

40 years after he exploded on that final cheeseburger and Elvis Presley can still draw a crowd. Organisers of the fourth Hunter Elvis Festival in Lake Macquarie say the free four-hour event drew 10,000.

NT FESTIVALS SETS UP FUNDING PROGRAM

FestivalsNT set up a funding program to create new and develop existing events and festivals to better engage the local community, attract visitors and showcase the Northern Territory. More details at https://www.ntmajorevents.com.au/festivals-nt/festivals-nt-funding-guidelines/

GREAT NORTHERN TO REOPEN AT EASTER

The $10 million restoration of Newcastle’s The Great Northern Hotel is on schedule to re-open at Easter, Project manager Kurt Braune confirmed.

He told a local newspaper that it’s been a long and winding road. He lodged an application in 2005, got the green light three years later, and then the global financial crisis hit, and everything was put on the shelf until an investor bought the place.

TWO JAILED FOR ARSON

Father and son Jozef and Remco Jansen (65 ad 42) were handed two-year jail sentences in the County Court in Melbourne for their part in the arson of their Junction Hotel in Ravenswood.

The fire broke out on June 9, 2014, three days after a sale for the hotel fell through.

Jozef Jansen was also found guilty of obtaining property by deception after he falsely claimed more than $358,000 from the Australian Pensioners Insurance Agency afterwards.

RAFFLES REMAINS OPEN

WA mining entrepreneur Derek Noel Ammon who’s trying to close the beer garden of Perth’s Raffles Hotel because its music is apparently too loud, will have to grit his teeth and put up the racket a bit longer.

The WA Supreme Court turned down his application to shut the space during the summer until his case is heard n February.

COUNTRY MUSTER RAISES FOR CHARITY

WA’s Nambung Country Music Muster raised $16, 000 for charity, double what it made last year. Eight charities will benefit as a result.