Music venues in Inverness explained

Highland News & Media

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00:00Do you think Inverness is deprived of music venues?

00:02Well, the local community certainly thinks so.

00:05Over the years, Inverness has loved and lost many music venues

00:09which locals have cherished memories of.

00:12From Mad Hatter's, which was once part of the popular music venue

00:15Hootenanny along Church Street

00:17and had closed to make way for accommodation

00:19to Nightclub Miami, where the Vega Boys played

00:22but unfortunately closed around 2014.

00:25But why did this popular music venue close?

00:27Well, Miami was thought to have closed after the Cinderella curfew was axed.

00:32This curfew once meant that you had to be in a venue by midnight

00:35otherwise you couldn't get in anywhere else.

00:37This was enforced by the Highland Licensing Board in November 2012

00:41following a campaign by local people despite strong opposition from police

00:46who feared it would threaten public safety and increase violence.

00:49But this restriction was in place for almost a decade.

00:52But more prominently was the Ironworks

00:55which shut its doors for good in February 2023

00:58after its final concert headlined by Elephant Sessions.

01:01The Ironworks was well known for hosting bands from the likes of

01:05Lewis Capaldi, Mumford & Sons, Sophie Ellis Baxter and even Calvin Harris.

01:10But if the venue was so popular, why did it close?

01:13Well, it wanted to make room for another hotel

01:16despite the city already having dozens.

01:18In 2022, Bricks Group, a UK-based company

01:22owned by Hong Kong-based Bricks Capital Limited

01:25won planning permission to demolish the Ironworks

01:28and build a £13 million hotel.

01:30The hotel is set to have 155 bedrooms, a restaurant, bar, cafe and even two gyms.

01:37Bricks Group also said that the hotel would create a further 65 jobs.

01:41However, despite its closing in 2023,

01:44the building has still not seen any developments

01:47and this closure was highlighted as a major loss for Inverness.

01:51As many musicians mourn the loss of the venue,

01:53including Michael McGilvery,

01:55who plays gigs in the city when he's not offshore working on a rig.

01:59Unfortunately, Inverness is taken away.

02:01It's one and only key music venue at the Ironworks and it's still lying empty.

02:06There could be many more good nights to be had in that building

02:09but unfortunately that's not the case.

02:11That side of things is quite frustrating

02:13but you can see they're trying their best with, you know,

02:16the venues like upstairs and they're doing showcases

02:19and like Eden Court through the summer months,

02:21you know, in the gardens of Eden Court under the canvas.

02:23You know, so it's good in that respect

02:25and it gives small-time musicians like myself that platform, you know.

02:28They could do with more venues in the city for sure.

02:31So what do you think?

02:32Should Inverness be classed as a city without a cool music venue?

02:35And should the Ironworks return?

02:37Let us know your thoughts below.

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