Melbourne's premier "dirty rock and roll" venue is, hands down, The Old Bar.
"This one time at the Old Bar"...I stage dived off the 30cm high stage into a crowd of punters and someone drank a pot full of broken glass.
"This other time at The Old Bar"...it was 35 degrees and I decided to play in bare feet. I stepped on a broken pot glass and managed to fill a beer glass with blood in under 10 seconds. The band played on.
You won't find any scenesters or idiots in brand new Ramones T-Shirts at this venue. This is where bands and punters alike go to see a 'real' Melbourne rock band. With a small stage and a narrow band room, every gig is an intimate, and sometimes rowdy affair.
My band has played here countless times, and every time has resulted in blood, sweat and beers all over the place.
With a decent range of beers available by the bottle, and local-punter favourites on tap, the staff blend seamlessly into the patronage so much that you'll often find them drinking at the bar too. Out back past the pinball machines is a great little beer garden that, although quite chilly in winter, is a great pace to spend a sunny arvo.
Local laws make it one of many bars that will enforce you to "keep the noise down" once it gets late, however when done it's usually with a knowing nod from the staff who think the same thing as you..."If you're going to move to the middle of the live music capital of the world, don't complain about the noise!"
The upstairs room also hosts the odd art exhibition, and in winter, on Monday Nights you can drop in with you're knitting and join the weekly "Crotchety Knitwits" group that celebrate knitting and drinking in unison. read more