Venue Report: The Borderline

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I have a terrible sense of direction. I get lost everywhere, whether it is in a little shop or in a big city like London. In 2012 I was going to see New York punk band Polar Bear Club at somewhere called The Borderline in London. I got off of the tube at Tottenham Court Road and headed towards The Borderline. One problem, I got horrendously lost and ended up wandering around Soho for the best part of an hour before eventually finding it. I have since been back a number of times, often getting quite lost before finding it again. At one point I had a theory that it was like the island in Lost and it kept moving so people couldn’t find it. Now I can find it first time, every time and it has become one of my favourite venues. Here is why.

 The first thing that will hit you as you walk down the stairs leading into The Borderline is its size. On first impressions The Borderline looks tiny but it actually holds almost 300 people. It has a decent sized floor space with no barriers between the stage and the crowd. For those not wanting to get too involved in the dancing the area around the floor is raised so you can still get a great view of the stage. What’s more, if you do want to get close to the stage without getting sweaty there is a small seated area, where you can sit with your drink and still see the whites of a bands eyes.

When it comes to sound I don’t ever remember a gig I’ve been to at The Borderline when I thought it was poor. All of the nine gigs I’ve seen (Polar Bear Club, The Menzingers, Make Do and Mend, Random Hand, Jim Lockey & the Solemn Son, Allister, The Beards, Jesse James, The Toasters) have sounded fantastic. My one complaint is that sometimes the times between sets can be a little long and can become quite boring.

Like most of the smaller venues I’ve been to for gigs the atmosphere is always friendly. The security and bar staff are always chatty and approachable. Unlike The Underworld or Our Black Heart security does have a more of a visual presence at The Borderline but they have never stood in the way of people having fun and I’ve never seen them try and throw their weight around which is always good.

If you want to visit a small, intimate venue in the centre of London then The Borderline is the place to go. They put on some great up and coming bands as well as some more established ones. The venue is a great place to see live music and you’ll feel very welcome and at home. If you can find it I strongly advise going.

Now listening to Riverbank by Get Dead

Venue Report: The Black Heart

One of my favourite venues to go see gigs in is a little place named The Black Heart in Camden Town, London. Found just five minutes from Camden Tube Station it is one of London’s best kept secrets. It’s in a strange sort of place where you would ever find it unless you were looking for it but it’s also incredibly easy to find. Even for someone with no known sense of direction. The downstairs area is just like a normal bar, with friendly staff and a fantastic atmosphere it’s a great place to hang out before the gig begins but upstairs, if you can pardon the cliché is where the magic really happens.

If you go up the narrow staircase you will find a small room with a tiny bar at one end of the room and a small stage area at the other. I took my friend Natalie there recently and she was shocked at the size of the room. It’s funny though, when the room begins to fill up and it seems so much bigger and when it is empty.

I have only been to five gigs at The Black Heart, seeing the likes of RVIVR, The Smith Street Band, The Mahones, Elway and Bangers to name a few and they have all been fantastic nights. One of the things I enjoy about The Black Heart is the bands hang out in the crowd during the other bands sets. I always think it’s great to see members of one band enjoying another bands set and it gives a great feeling of there not being a case of them and us regarding the fans and the band. It shows a brilliant spirit of community in the punk rock world where there are no stars.

From my experiences the organisation has always been top class as well. From what I’ve seen they only have one guy running the show. I assume he’s in charge of the sound and lighting and generally making sure everything runs on time. Seems like quite a big undertaking but nevertheless the five gigs I’ve attended have always run smoothly.

I like that at The Black Heart like many other smaller venues there is no barrier between the stage and the crowd. This makes for a much more fun show. It allows the band and the crowd to get up close and personal with each other. I don’t really live when there are rails at shows; people get crushed at the front with people trying to get as close to the front of possible. Granted at small shows with no rails people still get crushed, but they don’t come away with sore ribs from being squashed against a metal rail.

The Smith Street Band playing at The Black Heart

I don’t recall ever seeing a security guard at The Black Heart. There have been some very rambunctious crowds and I’ve seen many a body go flying through the crowd, but it’s always been in good fun and the crowd has always played security guard to itself. I can’t think of many other scenes where this would happen.

Another great thing about The Black Heart is the ticket pricing. Natalie was again shocked at the price of the tickets when we went to see The Smith Street Band. I don’t think I have ever paid more than £10 at The Black Heart. When you consider seeing One Direction cost my friend £60 you’ve got to think he was majorly ripped off! He could have gone to at least six gigs at The Black Heart for that kind of money.

So if you’re ever find yourself in Camden wanting to have a drink in a place with a fantastic atmosphere and listen to some great music, The Black Heart is definitely the place for you.

Venue Report: Camden Underworld

Recently I’ve been reading a lot about various venues closing down. Recently The Peel in Kingston as closed its doors and The Boileroom in Guildford is currently under threat. One of my local venues, The Twist has opened and closed more times than I can remember. If more and more close down it’s very bad for the underground music scene whatever the genre. A venue is just as important as a band itself in keeping a scene going. Without a venue a band can’t play and without bands there is no need for the venues themselves. We have to keep as many venues open so all the bands have somewhere to play to their fans. I’m going to start writing about all the different venues I’ve been to other the years to help promote them.

The first venue I’m going to write about is the venue I have visited the most time, twenty-two times infact, it’s the Camden Underworld. Situated beneath The Worlds End pub (featured in the Simon Pegg film of the same name). The Underworld is often compared too much bigger venues such as the Brixton Academy despite only having a capacity of about 500 people. It’s situated just across the road from the Camden Town underground station. A big reason of why I like it is its ease to find. It has put on gigs for punk rock goliaths such as Bad Religion, Dropkick Murphys and The Offspring as well as acts such as Radiohead, The Foo Fighters, Fall Out Boy and The Smashing Pumpkins though it mostly puts on gigs from up and coming bands.

Whenever I’ve been to the Underworld, whether I’ve been with people or by myself I’ve always felt a sense of belonging. Where at some venues I’ve felt somewhat out of place I’ve never ever had that feeling at the Underworld. All of the staff are super friendly; the security team especially are among the nicest I’ve come across in my gig going adventures. They’re not really needed at the Underworld. In my twenty two gigs at the Underworld I’ve only seen trouble once, that was only a minor scuffle with an over enthusiastic stage diver and was dealt with so quickly and efficiently I think only a few people even noticed it.

The main room itself is a good size with the stage places in one corner which allows a more floor room. It’s a small stage and its quite amusing watching some of the bigger bands try and fit on it but it works. There is raised area around the stage where people not wanting to have a dance can stand and get a good view of the stage but to be honest you can get a good view of the stage from most points on the floor. The only drawback is a huge pillar in the middle of the floor which can block your view. That pillar is often used my bands to get the crowd to circle pit around it so it has a use other than holding the ceiling up.

One thing that has always impressed me with the Underworld is how well run the nights are. You would imagine that trying to organise sometimes upto nine bands in a day would be besieged with problems. Getting everyone on and off in their allotted time slots must be incredibly difficult. The soundmen have to make sure every member of the bands instrument is sounding exactly how they like it. Luckily most of the smaller bands would be easy to work with, if they come across as hard work venues will not want to work with them very often and word will spread of their difficultness. I can’t remember a single Underworld gig I’ve been to where the bands have been late on or the sound has been noticeably off. Kudos to the staff for that.

The Underworld is a fantastic venue and long may it continue to put on great gigs night after night.

Now Listening To: Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash