Liverpool is facing another blow to its independent music scene after the closure of yet another grassroots venue.
The Zanzibar Club, on Seel Street, has announced on social media that from 1st November the venue will close its doors for the final time after 35 years of trading.
It has since been announced that the basement of Heebie Jeebies – also on Seel Street – will be used for live performances that would previously have been staged at Zanzibar. A name for this new venue will be announced soon.
Zanzibar has long been an iconic Liverpool venue. It was opened by the late Tony Butler in 1990, has played host to some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Noel Gallagher, The Libertines, The 1975 and The Kooks.
It is also known for giving local bands and musicians the opportunity to kickstart their careers within the music industry.
Local gig-goers and musicians have shared their reactions on the closure to social media, with one user saying: “Absolutely gutted.”
Another said: “Forever grateful for the opportunities.
“Such a shame to see it close as a live music venue.”
Dr Mathew Flynn, the director of the Institute of Popular Music at the University of Liverpool and board member of the Liverpool City Region Music Board, said: “When a significant venue closes, there’s an impact.
“People are concerned because they think of it as sort of symbolic a wider decline but from the analysis we’ve been doing through the live music mapping work that we do over the last couple of years, our number of venues have stayed steady over the last three years.”
He added: “And while it’s always a little concerning, and obviously from a nostalgia point of view, sad to see an iconic venue that was certainly very much a significant part of the ‘Cosmic Scouse’ area of Liverpool but only one component part to not be there anymore.”
He added: “What history teaches is that new spaces and new venues will open up and, whilst there is a slight direction of travel over the last three years in terms of a slight decline in our live music offer, it is not really that significant percentage wise.”
@merseynewslive Liverpool’s Zanzibar Club is closing its doors after 35 years. Read more on this on merseynewslive.com #Liverpool #music #grassrootsvenue #TheZanzibar
