U-Bar’s green room (where bands and their mates hang out during gigs) is no longer available for use, leaving musos and ardent Pint Night goers in despair. This comes after the bar’s recent renovations, which saw Pint Night temporarily shifted to Auahi Ora for the last handful of first semester events.
Critic Te Ārohi got the lowdown from University Hospitality Services Manager Adrian Lowrey, who said, “The Green Room has been cleared of couches [et cetera] and shelves have been added along the sides for band equipment to ensure the room is always left as a clear exit if there is an emergency.” The downfall of the sneaky band room U-bar entrance is nigh.
The band room will now only have use as a room for band equipment, not acts looking to enjoy a bit of peace from the Pint Night hordes. In addition to this change, Lowrey told Critic Te Ārohi that “Acoustic treatment has been added to improve the sound quality when bands are playing and more will be added in the future for the same reason.” Other changes at U-Bar include dimmable lights, couches replaced by bar leaners, and, crucially, ceiling material has been changed “removing the potential for condensation above the stage.”
A big change for many bands used to frequenting the space, several musicians voiced their frustration with the decision after it was brought to their attention (by Critic, whoops). Logan, the frontman of Ani Saafa and a steady on the Dunedin music scene, said, “It’s an odd choice [...] it seems a little bit counterproductive.” Connor, the bassist for IVY said, “That's rough as.”
Kaia, the lead vocalist and guitarist of the Audio Visual Drop Kicks, told Critic Te Ārohi, “I’m a bit gutted. The band room provided a wonderful space to bond with other bands, which strengthened the music scene. Some of my best memories were in that room [...] It also offered a safe space to store valuable gear and, most of all, a place to take a quiet moment away from the noise and crowds.”
Logan posited that safety may have been a contributing factor in the change, saying, “There's reason for wanting to do something about the Green Room.” He recounted a time a year ago when he had a guitar stolen from the back room due to a lack of monitoring in the area. “I think they definitely struggled with containing that space and monitoring that space […] I think they’ve had a lot of problems containing people, lots of whom were sneaking in the back.”
Logan suggested that, at its worst, there would be a different group of people sneaking in every Pint Night, with or without the assistance of bands within. Connor argued that safety was one of the key challenges U-Bar had to face in future: “The gear we all use is worth so much to us, and we need it to be kept safe as well as easy to access.”
At the end of the day, though, Kaia said she’s “stoked to have U-Bar back open – it is the heart and soul of the Dunedin music scene – but the loss of the band room is not to be underestimated.” Repeating this claim, Logan said, “I appreciated it as an artist and I know a lot of other artists appreciated it [...] I understand that U-Bar has to keep the crowds pumping, though it won’t be the same without it.”
It remains to be seen where bands will be housed in the lead up to their performances, though it’s been suggested that Auahi Ora may become a potential chill spot, already having been used as a location for bands to relax in prior to gigs during Re-O Week. Logan said, “[It’s a] good idea, a huge space but would make it exclusively for bands.”
Although bands have been critical of the removal of the Green Room’s function, changes to the venue have generally been praised. Adrian said, “The renovations were carried out in a way which we expect will not affect the U-Bar atmosphere students enjoy.”