The end of an era - Bar Phono no more.
Pyromancer
Bar Phono, the legendary alternative nightclub in Leeds, UK, birthplace
of the entire Northern Goth Scene, former hangout of numerous bands, is
no more.
From Phono Paul's LiveJournal:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PLEASE CONSIDER THIS AN "OFFICIAL" ANNOUNCEMENT
Bar Phono will formally cease trading on the 30th December 2005, which
means that tomorrow night (Thursday 22nd December 2005) will be the last
night the club will be open.
The reason the club is closing is simple: the eight year lease on the
premises expires on the 30th and the Merrion Centre have chosen not to
renew it, as they no longer wish the unit to be used as licenced
premises (in other words, what we know as the Phono will not be
reopening as another club, bar, restaurant etc etc in the future). This
was formally communicated to the leaseholder today.
At the time of writing, "Black Sheep" and "Friday Flock" are technically
homeless and you may take it as read that all future dates are now
cancelled. Obviously this is all rather sudden and I have yet to make a
decision as to whether I'll try to continue these nights elsewhere.
Please join the mailing list on sheepish.net for any future updates.
Please disseminate this information as widely as possible, and apologies
to people who have read it here first that I should have told
personally.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
All I can say is that I'm deeply saddened by this, for the last five
years the Phono was pretty much my cultural home, I've been a resident
DJ for just over a year, and I'm incredibly proud to have been part of
the story, if only for a little while.
I have no doubt that Black Sheep and Friday Flock will rise from the
ruins in venues anew, but somehow for me, as I suspect for others,
things will never be quite the same again.
Farewell old friend, you served us well.
NP: The Sisters Of Mercy - Floorshow.
--
- DJ Pyromancer, Black Sheep, Leeds. <http://www.sheepish.net>
Jodi
When I moved to Leeds in 1989, it was already an institution. In the
early 90s it changed ownership a few times and no number of attempts to
change its name stuck.
I have fond memories of that place.
I wonder what the Merrion Centre want to do with the space. I can't see
it being much use otherwise.
Jodi
I am angry I am ill and I'm as ugly as sin
My irritability keeps me alive and kicking
- Magazine, "A Song from Under the Floorboards"
Twisted Shadows of Naughtiness
> I have no doubt that Black Sheep and Friday Flock will rise from the
> ruins in venues anew, but somehow for me, as I suspect for others,
> things will never be quite the same again.
Sorry to hear that. :-(
I hope you do find a new venue.
Eddie
Jozafeen
> Bar Phono, the legendary alternative nightclub in Leeds, UK,
> birthplace of the entire Northern Goth Scene, former hangout of
> numerous bands, is no more.
>
> From Phono Paul's LiveJournal:
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --
>
> PLEASE CONSIDER THIS AN "OFFICIAL" ANNOUNCEMENT
>
> Bar Phono will formally cease trading on the 30th December 2005, which
> means that tomorrow night (Thursday 22nd December 2005) will be the
> last night the club will be open.
>
Oh bugger, sorry to hear that.
Like a lot of northern weirdos I spent quite a bit of time in previous
decades dancing the goth two-step at the mirrored pillar. The place is, of
course, legendary and I'll be sad to see it go.
We're not having a lot of luck with venues this year are we, any of us?
Best of luck finding a new home!
Jozafeen
www.batfink.net
Jozafeen
> Bar Phono, the legendary alternative nightclub in Leeds, UK,
> birthplace of the entire Northern Goth Scene, former hangout of
> numerous bands, is no more.
>
I did warn you about the perils of a non-Cheddi using the word of Cheesus
didn't I? ;-)
Jozafeen
www.batfink.net
Auriol
Pyromancer
> Gutted. That's another home for live music in Leeds gone.
To be accurate it's a home for recorded music gone - the Phono was a
club venue and didn't have a stage, the Black Sheep Live gigs were
always held at other locations.
It is a bodyblow to the Leeds Scene though - The Phono, or La
Phonographique as it was once known (somewhat before my time in
Leeds!), was the birthplace and central point for the entire Northern
Goth Scene in the 80s. It was the venue that The Sisters wrote
"Floorshow" about.
We've lost a piece of history. Nothing will ever be quite the same
again.
Matthew North
"Pyromancer" <dj.pyr...@gmail.com> wrote
> To be accurate it's a home for recorded music gone - the Phono was a
> club venue and didn't have a stage,
Did when we played there.
the gig was so good that ALF split up the day after, 1997 not a good year!
#
Matt
http://www.alllivingfear.co.uk
Pyromancer
<fx: swirling clouds of cool-looking vapour, the kind that always
appear at just the right time in movies>
But I too, am of the Cheddi, and have partaken of the Rite of the
'Fink, once upon a time. The darkside flows within us all...
:-)
Speaking of which, m'lady and I shall be doing a completely
inappropriate "final flock" at the last night tonight, and then
drowning our sorrows (in coke) with you lot tomorrow night. Any chance
of playing "Floorshow"?
BitBat/trish
"Matthew North" <allliv...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:doek29$fqo$1...@nntp0.reith.bbc.co.uk...
can't comment on the year but the gig WAS excellent
... a bloody good birthday bash :)
might have to have you back (somewhere else) in 2007 for the next 'big one'
!
trish
oldgoth
> Like a lot of northern weirdos I spent quite a bit of time in previous
> decades dancing the goth two-step at the mirrored pillar. The place is, of
> course, legendary and I'll be sad to see it go.
And as a southern weirdo who only went there the once, sometime back in
the eighties, I'm sorry to hear the news too. A great little place
that'll no doubt be turned into some kind of poncy bar or other...
>
> We're not having a lot of luck with venues this year are we, any of us?
Is this not the place to mention that we're going twice monthly from
February? It's not all gloom although it does seem to outweigh the good
news at the moment.
martin oldgoth
www.insanitorium.co.uk
Jozafeen
>
> Speaking of which, m'lady and I shall be doing a completely
> inappropriate "final flock" at the last night tonight, and then
> drowning our sorrows (in coke) with you lot tomorrow night. Any
> chance of playing "Floorshow"?
Given the news - Floorshow is a given!
Jozafeen
Pyromancer
> Jozafeen wrote:
> > Like a lot of northern weirdos I spent quite a bit of time in previous
> > decades dancing the goth two-step at the mirrored pillar. The place is, of
> > course, legendary and I'll be sad to see it go.
> And as a southern weirdo who only went there the once, sometime back in
> the eighties, I'm sorry to hear the news too. A great little place
> that'll no doubt be turned into some kind of poncy bar or other...
Nope, the Merrion Centre Management have decided that they "don't want
the unit to continue to be a licenced premises". So it's either to be
abandoned, or turned into a storeroom or somesuch.
> > We're not having a lot of luck with venues this year are we, any of us?
Not in the North. First Black Veil got booted out of the Adelphi with
almost no warning when the new operators went back on their word, then
Batfink got terminated to make way for a comedy club (do we really need
more of those? There's a failed one for sale round the back of the
Merrion Centre), and now this.
Plus Ritual closing down in London.
> Is this not the place to mention that we're going twice monthly from
> February? It's not all gloom although it does seem to outweigh the good
> news at the moment.
Hopefully I'll make one of your nights next year - I'll have holidays
again. Glad you got to the Phono once, at least. Anyone who's never
been missed something really special.
One tiny bit of good news - we're getting a New Year's Eve Carpe Noctum
at the 1-in-12, Bradford. Just the one night, but should be a good
one.
Minor factoid: The very last track played at the last ever Black Sheep,
the Xmas special last Sunday, was "Fairytale Of New York". Paul put it
on after the lights came up with the intention of chasing the
stragglers out of the venue, instead of which we all joined hands round
the column and danced in a very silly and wobbly circle. None of us
knew it was the last and final time, but it seems strangely apt now.
Dave (Exile)
> We're not having a lot of luck with venues this year are we, any of us?
Just to clarify a small point - in case that refers to Ritual at all, the
decision to stop running was very definitely taken by us, not the venue
owners, who seem very amenable to the possibility of Ritual being revived at
some point.
Dave
Dave (Exile)
> Plus Ritual closing down in London.
That one's not the venue's doing - see my other comment.
> Minor factoid: The very last track played at the last ever Black Sheep,
> the Xmas special last Sunday, was "Fairytale Of New York". Paul put it
> on after the lights came up with the intention of chasing the
> stragglers out of the venue, instead of which we all joined hands round
> the column and danced in a very silly and wobbly circle. None of us
> knew it was the last and final time, but it seems strangely apt now.
The last track played at the last Tenebrae at Gossips turned out to be
Vagabonds, which I think was both a suitable and worthy one, though it would
perhaps have been nice to *know* it was the last Tenebrae.
I'm sorry to hear about the Phono closing - I only went there a few times,
many years ago, but I guess it could almost be thought of as "the Gossips of
the North" in terms of its significance to the goth scene.
Dave
Jozafeen
I was meaning Batfink, Everfink, Black Veil and now Sheep and Flock and a
few others having venue trouble this year rather than clubs that were just
finishing.
Jozafeen
oldgoth
> The last track played at the last Tenebrae at Gossips turned out to be
> Vagabonds, which I think was both a suitable and worthy one, though it would
> perhaps have been nice to *know* it was the last Tenebrae.
I've only known far enough in advance to plan anything once in all the
venues I've worked, it was after it had been running for about 8 years
(three under my 'management') and we planned to finish with No Time To Cry.
In the end we got shut early because the barman let his mates in, they
started a fight and the night got stopped by the police. The last track
there was King Kurt's Destination Zululand. Not sure if that means
anything but it's a damn fine track anyway!
martin oldgoth
www.insanitorium.co.uk
Pyromancer
<d...@insanitorium.co.uk> gently breathed:
>Dave (Exile) wrote:
I'm just back from the very emotional final night - quite literally "The
Final Floorshow". And yes, the last track played was indeed the one the
Sisters wrote about the place all those years ago.
The whole business is all about money of course, the management of the
Merrion Centre want to close it up at night (just now it's a right of
way, or something similar), it's thought this is so they can install
uber-lucrative open stalls in the middle of the mall between the shops,
as other, more modern shopping centres do. Obviously this means having
a nightclub in the middle of the place is a no-no, so the Phono has to
go in the name of profit, and to hell with the cultural significance.
The owning company is the same one that destroyed The Duchess and
replaced it with a Hugo Boss shop back in 2000.
Hopefully in some future, more enlightened, age, things will be
different. But in this age, the floorshow is over.
Farewell Bar Phono, you served us well. May you memory never fade.
NP: Nothing. It wouldn't be right.
Pyromancer
> Jozafeen:
Apologies - that was my fault. Feeling a bit emotional and I kind of
wandered from "clubs that have lost their venues" to "clubs that have
closed" without indicating the change in emphasis.
Sorry!
The current situation Sheep-wise is that no decision has yet been taken
as to what happens next. There might be a resurrection somewhere else,
there might not. Whatever happens, or doesn't happen, it'll be
announced in due course.
Jodi
>I'm sorry to hear about the Phono closing - I only went there a few times,
>many years ago, but I guess it could almost be thought of as "the Gossips of
>the North" in terms of its significance to the goth scene.
>
Dude. Gossips is The Phono of the South.
Jodi
(northern bisaed moi?)
Jodi
>The owning company is the same one that destroyed The Duchess and
>replaced it with a Hugo Boss shop back in 2000.
The Duchess became a what???
I knew it shut down but I hadn't heard anything further. That is truly
depressing.
Jodi
Dave (Exile)
> Dude. Gossips is The Phono of the South.
Hmm, I'd have thought someone with your Batcave-camp leanings would have
seen it the other way around! ;-)
Dave
Peter Constantine
> Dude. Gossips is The Phono of the South.
So... if 'Floorshow' (or perhaps 'Body Electric'?) was inspired by The
Phono, has Gossips been immortalised in song?
x
["Crawling to the corners where the idiot children call..."]
Dave (Exile)
> So... if 'Floorshow' (or perhaps 'Body Electric'?) was inspired by The
> Phono, has Gossips been immortalised in song?
Well, it does have an entire sub-genre named after it[1] (although I guess
not so much "named after", as "arising from").
Having said that, one could argue that the Batcave bands (Specimen etc.)
gave rise to the club, rather than vice versa.
(...at least it does if you accept that Gossips=Batcave - as I understand it
the original Batcave was actually held in a different part of the building,
that I guess would now be the Pitcher And Piano bar upstairs - any original
Batcave-goers from '82 reading, who could confirm?)
Actually, I believe Belisha's "People Of The Dark" was inspired by their
discovery of the goth scene, triggered partly by me inviting them down to
Gossips).
Dave
Twisted Shadows of Naughtiness
> Peter Constantine:
> Actually, I believe Belisha's "People Of The Dark" was inspired by their
> discovery of the goth scene, triggered partly by me inviting them down to
> Gossips).
I did wonder. Nice track too. My kind of Metal.
Eddie
Peter Constantine
> (...at least it does if you accept that Gossips=Batcave - as I understand it
> the original Batcave was actually held in a different part of the building,
> that I guess would now be the Pitcher And Piano bar upstairs - any original
> Batcave-goers from '82 reading, who could confirm?)
The Batcave has been at a number of different venues... wasn't it
somewhere in Leicester Square at some point in time? Hasn't the name
Gossips also been used for different venues over time... or at least for
different parts of the same venue?
It's funny how for some clubs it's the name of the venue that sticks in
the mind but for others it's the name of the club night itself.
> Actually, I believe Belisha's "People Of The Dark" was inspired by their
> discovery of the goth scene, triggered partly by me inviting them down to
> Gossips).
I guess that would count then! I know Killing Miranda did a song called
'Ballad Of Torrens Street' but I suspect that one is referring to some
other London club... :)
x
["See them shake to their foundation..."]
Pyromancer
<industria...@industria.plus.com> gently breathed:
>Pyromancer verily stated:
And indeed it was, thanks for that.
Though it's bloody hard to twostep on a dance floor with no column. :-)
Great night. We'll definitely be back sometimes when you start the
regular nights in the Raynor, we'll probably bring some mates too.
Cheers!
NP: (in my head) Slade - Merry Christmas (for which Jozzafiend is entirely
responsible!)
--
- DJ Pyromancer, Black Sheep, Leeds. <http://www.sheepish.net>
Broadband, Dialup, Domains = <http://www.wytches.net> = The UK's Pagan ISP!
<http://www.inkubus-sukkubus.co.uk> <http://www.revival.stormshadow.com>
oldgoth
> NP: (in my head) Slade - Merry Christmas (for which Jozzafiend is entirely
> responsible!)
The woman is pure eeevil, you should have know that... ;o)
martin oldgoth
www.insanitorium.co.uk
Dave (Exile)
> The Batcave has been at a number of different venues...
Correct. I believe that what was later called Gossips was the original
venue, and that seems to be supported by the quote below, but I wasn't there
(I'm not *that* old!) and can't be sure.
> Hasn't the name Gossips also been used for different venues over time...
> or at least for different parts of the same venue?
See my comment about the Pitcher & Piano.
According to the following media quote lifted from Pete Scathe's useful and
informative History Of Goth site
(http://www.scathe.demon.co.uk/histgoth.htm), which in turn took it from
George Gimarc's Post-Punk Diary for Wednesday July 21, 1982:
' THE BATCAVE is a new London nightspot that is opening tonight at the
Gargoyle, 69-70 Dean Street W1 in London. The club is an every Wednesday
night affair put together by the guys in Specimen who will play there
tonight, and many times in the future. The decor is leather and lace, '30s
monster movies touches and "absolutely no funk". They intend to book
activities other than live music such as mud wrestling, fire shows, drag
cabaret and old b&w horror films. '
The address of Gossips was 69 Dean Street. So, apparently the club was
originally the entire building; I'd imagine that as Soho became increasingly
trendy, the above-ground portion of the building was sold off whilst the
basement was retained as a club, and continued to host alternative nights
right up until its eventual demise in 2004.
> It's funny how for some clubs it's the name of the venue that sticks in
> the mind but for others it's the name of the club night itself.
I guess it's not that surprising when a venue has been home to a host of
different nights over many years, as Gossips had. Many people would go to
several different club nights there (M:Alice, Tenebrae, Dead & Buried,
Electric Dreams etc). Actually, although the venue has been bought out and
renamed, the old website still exists -
http://www.gossips.co.uk/history.html gives a run-down of some of the more
well-known nights held there over the decades (and yes, the Batcave does get
a mention!).
Dave
Jodi
It's a geography thing. Oh the irony - the only city in England I
completely enjoyed living in is the city that spawned the Sisters of
Mercy & thus "when goth went downhill".
Jodi
Dave (Exile)
> It's a geography thing. Oh the irony - the only city in England I
> completely enjoyed living in is the city that spawned the Sisters of
> Mercy & thus "when goth went downhill".
And conversely, despite living in London and spending several years DJing at
Gossips, I'm more aligned with the Sisters / JD / Chameleons axis of goth
(ie. non-camp / non-glam) than the Batcave stuff!
TBH, I think it's bit harsh to claim that the Sisters had caused goth to "go
downhill" at the time of Floorshow. Perhaps one could point to the Sisters
becoming massively popular around 87 as being more of a factor, although I
still think that a fair bit of good goth (or closely related) stuff was
produced after the "goth rock boom".
Having said that, most of the later stuff I like seems more influenced by
late 70s / early 80s goth and post-punk, rather than late 80's goth-rock.
Dave
Jodi
>TBH, I think it's bit harsh to claim that the Sisters had caused goth to "go
>downhill" at the time of Floorshow. Perhaps one could point to the Sisters
>becoming massively popular around 87 as being more of a factor, although I
>still think that a fair bit of good goth (or closely related) stuff was
>produced after the "goth rock boom".
If you like "goth rock". Me, not so much, as the "rock" element tends
to give me hives. I don't even dislike the actual work of the Sisters,
but I had some problems with the fanatacism of the fans Back In The Day.
Dave (Exile)
> > I still think that a fair bit of good goth (or closely related) stuff
was
> > produced after the "goth rock boom".
Jodi:
> If you like "goth rock". Me, not so much, as the "rock" element tends
> to give me hives.
I wasn't actually thinking of "goth rock", but more stuff like early Cranes,
Corpus Delicti, and some of the neoclassical/ethereal stuff such as Arcana.
Personally I do quite like some 90s-onwards goth-rock (though very little of
it comes close to the standards of the Sisters or FotN IMHO).
I think it rather depends how you define "rock" though - for example, one
could argue that bands like the Chameleons had a fairly standard "rock"
setup musically, as (I'd imagine) do some of the indie bands that I know you
like... I guess it's more the rock *presentation* you object to, which I can
can appreciate - whilst I can happily cope with the rock element of FotN, or
even the Cult up to somewhere around Love, I find, say, Dreadful Shadows too
stadiumesque for my liking.
Dave