The Crown & Sceptre Hotel has been hosting live music for a very long time, according to the staff, “before the dark times, before Bieber. Probably during the 1970s.”
A hundred years before that, it was billed as “the only iconic South CBD Hotel” (note – it is still called this!), when built in 1877 where its proximity to Victoria Square made it a popular spot for lawyers and workers. Apparently, prisoners appearing in court were sent meals from there!
The pub was well known for hosting indie bands in the 1990s and early 2000s, but closed for a brief period in 2012. It was re-opened by the Gitsham family in 2014, of whom Darren Gitsham had previously been a manager at the Alma Tavern, the Duke of York and the British.
They replaced the old stage on the northern wall of the band room with a smaller (portable) and less obtrusive modular stage at the eastern end of the room.
Local, interstate and international acts include, Luke Million, Clint Boge, Teenage Crime, Dallas Royal, Funk Latin Union, Zero Days, Squeaker, Boneseed, Orelia, Oxymoron, Dear Plastic, Jupiter, Eddie Boyd and The Phatapillars, Augie March, The Cat Empire, The Swiss, Pink Noise Generator, Prophets of Impending Doom, Phat Panda & more.
Mr Gitsham was most impressed when his musical icons You am I, Grinspoon and The Living End partied at his establishment in 2014.
Today, original bands are programmed on Friday and Saturday nights, and regular series include “Monday Night for The Lonely Soul”, a variety show that can include music, comedy, magic, storytelling and more. Thursdays feature a world music and Uni party night “Bongo” with local bands and DJs that have an “international flavour.” The space is considered ‘intimate’, and large enough to hold a reasonable crowd whilst small enough to make a smaller crowd seem decent, according to Gitsham.
Their target audience? “People who like live music and drinking (at the same time).” Indeed.
The Crown & Sceptre Hotel 2016 Fringe Program (remaining shows):
Classic Female Blues Artists of the 1920s – A Modern Interpretation
Fri 11 March @ 7:30 PM
Sat 12 March @ 7:30 PM
Tickets >
Emma Rowe & The Blue Label EP Launch
Sun 13 March @ 5:00 PM
Tickets >
Sigh-fi
Tue 8 March @ 7:00 PM
Wed 9 March @ 7:00 PM
Tickets >
App alert! All FRUSIC shows can be found on the Little Birdy app, where you can connect with friends, see who’s there and find show times. This venue is also on the FRUSIC Adelaide Music Walking Trail, with stories, history & more. For details, see How to Frusic >
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