The acute shortage of non-corporate music spaces in London is worse than ever. Just two weeks ago we lost The Hand in Hand on Brixton Hill which had hosted weekly punk gigs and was also a much used rehearsal space. However people north of the river have launched an ambitious project to either buy or rent a large space to be used for gigs and community projects. On Saturday August 31st over £800 was raised to officially launch this initiative.
The Benefit gig hosted at Grow Tottenham (which will sadly close in January) saw a range of bands and musicians play a well attended event that is hopefully a glimpse of the kind of artists and politics that will keep the new venue alive and self sufficient somewhere down the line. The live music ranged from the conscious reggae of The Dubrighters, hardcore mayhem of Jawless, the melodious acoustic tunes of Efa Supertramp, the ska punk of Bogus Gasman to the techno terrorism of Killdren. One of the stages had to be moved inside the building at short notice after an unwelcome intervention by the local council but the event ran smoothly and raised a pile of cash.
Operating under the title of: A Place Of Our Own the organisers are calling out for people with a range of skills to get involved and work towards a goal of opening a permanent, non-corporate yet legal space that is free from over priced drinks, over zealous security and threats from developers. More gigs and benefit parties are expected.
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