Concrete Playground

It's difficult not to make a pun about the Standard, and one would hope that this new performance venue lives up to the name. While it may be early days, we have our fingers crossed. It's been a long time since Sydney's seen a new live venue with as much promise as this.

This is how you find it. Head to Kinselas, but bypass the downstairs bar/former funeral parlour and duck into the small door on the right. Wooden stairs, leading to the first level, gradually give way to worn metal. Reach the top then turn left into a corridor with wire fencing on one side and toilets, with doors labelled 'John' and 'Yoko', on the other. Then, you emerge: into a room of brick walls painted black, a packed bar and a stage equipped with an intimidating sound system. Welcome to the Standard.

Above you, there's a half level offering tables and talking space. You reach it via the bleachers-style seating, which promises a good view of the band over the crowd on the floor. Unlike Upstairs Beresford, which feels a little like a bar with a stage in the corner, the Standard's priority is clearly the music.

While once this building was home to chef Tony Bilson and his apprentice Tetsuya Wakuda, then cabaret performances and later live music including the Beastie Boys, for the past fifteen years this third level has sat dormant. And there couldn't be a better time to reopen. Sydney is sadly missing local pub the Hopetoun and new venue Tone has closed, while the Annandale is still up for sale. While we love our jazzy venues and small bars, it's another good band venue that this town really needs.

The Standard appears to deliver this in spades. With great sound and a grungy vibe, and Dave McCormack's Custard recently gracing the stage, this could be just what Sydney needs. Even better, it's being billed as a multi-performance venue, listing 'visual art, theatre, comedy, burlesque' alongside the 'live music' card. Lo-Fi Collective are already on board.

Let's hope it's a sign of more good things to come.