Published
Mon, Mar 26, 2018, 23:21
- The iconic jazz club will shut its doors after 45 years.
Sydney club The Basement is due to close after 45 years of operation.
The city's longest-running licensed music venue will be shutting down within the next week, ABC News reports, after rumours surfaced over the weekend on social media. While The Basement is yet to comment on the situation, the building's owners AMP Capital have confirmed that the lease would not be renewed, adding that they are "equally disappointed" that the working relationship is coming to an end. "We have worked with the management of The Basement for more than six months to ensure an appropriate transition could take place and have amicably agreed to end the lease," they continue, adding that "it's too soon to say whether another music operator, bar or restaurant will move in."
While The Basement has primarily been a jazz club since it opened in 1973, hosting legends like Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie and Freddie Hubbard, it's also seen its fair share of electronic acts pass through including Derrick May, Andy Stott, Theo Parrish, DVS1 and Shed. It joins an ever growing list of music venues that have closed since the introduction of Sydney's lockout laws in 2014, which have made the city a particularly hostile environment for late-night operators.