The Melbourne bars taking music from background noise to headline act
DJs and rare record collections are as important as cold beer at a growing cohort of bars in Melbourne. Not quite a club, but more invested in sound than a typical bar, these spots are a more social version of Japanese listening rooms, where audiophiles go for the impressive vinyl and may not even speak to one another.
"We never wanted to quell the social side of things," says David Byrne of his venue Waxflower in Brunswick East, which pours natural wine to go with small plates. "Maybe it's a listening and speaking bar!"
He and two friends opened Waxflower after seeing venues in London, Paris and Japan where niche record collections, premium sound systems and a community of fans coalesced, aided by a beer or two.
"It conjoins two experiences in your night," says Byrne about Waxflower's appeal.
Custom speakers, sound treatment and cabling added approximately 50 per cent to opening costs, according to Byrne's estimates.
One of the most eye-catching examples in Melbourne, ;Her Music Room, opened in February. Designed to look like a speaker, its acoustics are based on a recording studio's control booth while ceiling lights flash to the music's tempo.
"It's not a club. That was emphasised [to me]," says music director Janette Pitruzzello (DJ JNett), who books DJs and continues to build the 3,500-strong record collection.
"The bar meets the DJ booth and the records are behind the bar," she says, highlighting a trend common to the design of these new bars: the music is integrated with food and drink.
She says small groups might relax on the room-length leather banquette on a Tuesday night, while Friday nights are, naturally, about dancing.
Some restaurateurs are also serious about sound. Chris Lucas, owner of eight venues including Grill Americano and Chin Chin, works on his restaurants' playlists with an established Melbourne DJ who is so important to the ambience, he won't reveal her name.
"I probably spend as much time with [the DJ] as I would with an interior designer," he says, adding that a brief is given on how the restaurant should feel.
"To create the right music in the right environment is as important and complex as creating a menu or designing a restaurant."
The pinnacle of DJs plus dining might be Hope Street Radio. Today a hugely popular Collingwood wine bar, it began as a roving radio station in 2017 that played from bars, restaurants and even Melbourne Zoo.
Founder and co-director Pete Baxter says he was inspired by Lot Radio in New York City, where an attached bar-cafe allowed people to appreciate the radio's programming in a different way. Hope Street, as a fully fledged restaurant, goes further.
But the music still comes first: DJs play continuously during trade and they aren't told what to select to suit the restaurant.
"For us it's very obvious where the relationship with music sits. It's not an afterthought."
In the same precinct, Runner Up bar has invested heavily in speakers and programs DJs each week. Meanwhile, Skydiver and Old Plates, two record shops in Melbourne's north, are becoming more social, each operating as a bar (with great music) on select nights.
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