Owen Whittle: Perth’s live music scene is under attack from grumpy NIMBYS
People who move close to live music venues should not be allowed to immediately complain about the noise and have them shut down, says the man charged with revitalising Perth’s music scene.
Instead, the State Government could step in with better planning and environmental regulations to stop infill development from making Perth’s live music venues unsustainable.
That is the view of West Australian Music chief executive Owen Whittle, a former Unions WA boss who took the top job at WAM last year with a vision of better advocating for an industry that is flourishing artistically but struggling financially.
Mr Whittle said the companies building new residential or hotel developments close to existing live music venues should be forced to do more to minimise the noise inside apartments. They should also seek some kind of acknowledgement from new residents that they will be living close to regular loud music to prevent them from immediately trying to shut them down.
Mr Whittle would also like to see changes to the way noise measurements are taken so they reflect the noise from inside residential apartments rather than outside, which is often now the case.
“It (noise complaints) is probably the greatest issue that I’m facing at the moment,” he said.
“Infill in theory should be great for music venues because you’re bringing people into the vicinity, but you unfortunately have people who move close and complain about the noise. It’s ridiculous and I think they’re complaining about the very thing that makes those places where they want to live.
“It’s something that across the board is a problem. When we’ve got a planning system that allows (new builds) to be butting up adjacent to iconic live music venues — someone’s dropped the ball there somewhere along the line. It should never have happened.”
Making it easier for live venues to stay afloat could have a knock-on effect, Mr Whittle suggested, that would make them more profitable, make it easier for bands to make money and help keep a lid on ticket prices for punters already struggling with the cost of living.
The rise of music streaming services like Spotify have left musicians increasingly reliant on playing shows and selling merchandise to make money.
At the same time, some Perth music venues have been on life support since COVID, thanks to a perfect storm of rising costs, reduced revenue from alcohol as younger people drink less of it and a rising regulatory burden.
In Fremantle, several big new builds are stoking fears for some local venues.
A new hotel is being built just metres from popular live music venue Freo Social, sparking fears it may be forced to reduce its trading hours — despite being there first. And the proximity of the high-end redevelopment of the Elders Wool Stores to Clancy’s Fish Pub has fans of the venue’s live music scene similarly nervous.
Mr Whittle said he was encouraged by the State Government’s recent decision to extent the $1.2 million annual contemporary music fund, which he said would help to bring back WA Music Week in September. The event was shelved last year at a time when WAM itself was facing a shake-up.
He said he hoped to prove a solid return on that investment to justify future funding increases.
