Someone wrote into the paper this morning with a fairly obvious question I'd never thought of until now... why doesn't Melbourne have a dedicated large capacity music venue?
Why is it when a gig gets over a certain size we need to go to sports stadiums?
Why can't we have a music venue that holds 10,000 - 12,000 or so that sometimes has sport in it, instead of the other way around.
I've missed plenty of gigs because they've been at Rod Laver Arena, a venue usually reserved for tennis but which for some reasons is also used for music concerts, despite it's terrible audio.
Large music concerts are clearly a popular money spinner in Melbourne, a dedicated venue to hold them in only makes sense. It could be designed for maximum sound quality and maximum sound proofing to save the neighbours.
Out of interest, most venues in Melbourne, even the larger ones (Palais, The Forum, Palace/Metro, HiFi Bar) hold less than 2000 people, and most less than 1000.
Hamer Hall holds 2661. Festival Hall 5700. Rod Laver 14,820. Hisense Arena 10,500.
The closest thing we have is the Myer Music Bowl which has 2150 seats and can hold 12,000 on the lawn. Rock concerts at the Bowl rarely end well.