Concrete Playground

FBi Social, the Sydney radio station's first ever pop-up live music venue, has opened it's doors, and is set to shake up Sydney's music scene until mid-May. Housed on the second level of the refurbished Kings Cross Hotel, in stumbling distance of the Coca Cola sign, FBi is hoping to use the space to further their ever evolving mission of helping emerging local bands break through to larger audiences. With a 200-person capacity and a 24/7 license, and the aim of taking Kings Cross back to it's live music/dive bar roots, it's sure to be a very exciting couple of months.

Gigs lined up over the next two months include Ernest Ellis, Pikelet and Guineafowl, and will sit side by side with nights devoted to genres such as folk, hip hip and experimental music. In addition, the people at TwoThousand and Pedestrian.tv are hosting their very own nights. Plus, The Chaser boys will host a night where they aim to lower the quality of public discussion. There really is something for everyone.

The venue is small enough to be intimate, and the acoustics are good to the point that I fell into a conversation with musicians who were raving about acoustics, which is something I have never excelled at. When I went the place wasn't crowded, and most people seemed to be sitting around and chatting instead of dancing, but that can be put down to it being the opening night. The crowd was also pretty mixed - there was a middle aged man in a suit sitting alone and playing with his iphone who seemed a little out of place. And despite being in King's Cross, the perk of no longer having to catch two buses and a train to a shoddy warehouse at the back of Marrickville to see emerging live music will be sure to draw people up to the top of William Street. Just don't get distracted by the two floors below, and keep heading up the stairs. Also, make sure you find the bathrooms on the lower floors, because there aren't any at FBi Social.

All in all, FBI Social has a lot of potential, and only time will tell how well it works out.