U.K. TO LOSE 10% OF GRASSROOTS VENUES

The number of grassroots venues in the U.K. will be reduced by 10% this year, with 67 closed already in 2023, according to figures from the Music Venue Trust.

In total, around 100 venues could be lost this year, NME reports. MVT says that 90 venues are currently working with its emergency-response fund and half of these are likely to close.

British rock band Enter Shikari are hoping to help the cause by donating £1 of every ticket sold on their upcoming tour to MVT. Bandmember Rou Reynolds says there’s a disparity in the industry between the arrival of eight new arenas in the U.K. but little support for the circuit that built the careers of the artists who’ll fill them.

“There’s a very clear link between small venues and big venues—especially in the terms of providing new artists with a space to find their way in the industry and find their audience,” he told NME.

MVT founder Mark Davyd is urging others to offer the same support. “There are more big concerts going on and people are paying more money for tickets than they ever have,” he said. “No one can tell me that it’s acceptable for the top end of the industry to be turning in these massive gross receipts from these huge tours in stadiums and arenas, while a venue 15 miles down the road is closing down because it doesn’t have the £10k it needs.”