After most of a decade spent as one of Brisbane’s most beloved venues, Fortitude Valley’s Crowbar has announces its closure amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
News of the venue’s closure was shared to social media overnight, with followers offering an outpouring of support upon the announcement.
“It is with a heavy heart that we have had to make the unfortunate decision to pull Crowbar out of Brisbane for the foreseeable future,” the social media statement read.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCab27kn7kH/
“Over 8 years poured into Brisbane’s live music scene, with 7000 plus bands on our stages. We’ve shared thousands of gigs, good times, beers, shots, singalongs, laughs, hugs, tears and triumphs with friends from all around the world.
“These are trying times for the music and entertainment industries and the future is uncertain for a lot of us, but we hope to be back in Brisbane sometime with a very loud bang. For now, we’re still here online and in Sydney.”
First opening in May of 2012 and occupying the venue previously known as Basement 243, Crowbar quickly became a go-to location for fans of heavy music, with bands such as Clowns, Frenzal Rhomb, The Smith Street Band, and Luca Brasi becoming firm fixtures of their stages. In fact, a list of bands to have played the venue numbers over 700, with repeat visits not included in the count.
In 2018, Crowbar expanded over to Sydney, with the recent announcement revealing that the Leichhardt location will remain active into the future,
“Thank you for your unending support in Brisbane, thank you to our team, the punters, bands, our regulars, the agents and promoters, our family and friends, we won’t ever forget it,” the message concludes.
Though the statement specifically mentions Crowbar’s absence from the Brisbane music scene for the “foreseeable future”, it remains to be seen when or if it may return.
