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Australia’s most famous live music suburb has long attracted artists, bohemians, immigrants and hedonists - as much for the sun and sand as its sensational nightlife and colourful characters. In 2023, St Kilda was designated Victoria’s first Live Music Precinct. I decide to check out the suburb’s dancefloor and see for myself if it lives up to the reputation of its storied past. Does it still cut it?

I start on the foreshore with a quick swim and ponder: How many live music hot spots are located right on the water where you can take a dip to wash off the sweat and reset between gigs? My mind races around the world, before realising that I’ve experienced the ritual at many coastal regional music festivals, but never in the inner city.

I saunter past the country’s oldest theatre, the Palais, and imagine local jazz band leader Dennis Farrington entertaining thousands of US marines who were docked at the port, literally partying like there was ‘’no tomorrow’’ before they headed back to the front.

I wander up The Esplanade past where Melbourne jazz and soul matriarchs Ruby Carter and Renee Geyer used to live and regularly play and am dwarfed by a giant mural of long time St Kilda local Paul Kelly adorning the northern wall of the famous Espy Hotel. I close my eyes and hear Paul’s nasally iconic voice saying ‘’give you all of Sydney harbour, all that land, all that water, for that one sweet promenade’’ from his song St Kilda to King’s Cross.

The walls are adorned with action shots of past gigs, and the iconic music cartoons from local illustrator and musician Fred Negro. There’s a chalk board up featuring dozens of names from a new breed of musicians frothing to play the weekly Open Mic night, which is hosted by local identity Stacey Pommer, son of legendary local drummer Billy Pommer Jr, who played with one of Neil Young’s favourite bands, the Johnnys.

I drift into the Memo Music Hall, one of St Kilda’s favourite candlelit venues where Normie Rowe recorded the city’s first hit, Ain’t Necessarily So, in 1965. Strolling along Acland Street I walk past a giant mural of UK-Born, Frankston based techno DJ Carl Cox, who has played many wild sets at nearby Riva Bar and the Catani Gardens. Then past Hot House Studios, where rock royalty including Franz Ferdinand, Airbourne and Dallas Crane were recorded by engineer Craig Harnath on his vintage 1974 Neve console which AC/DC used to record on when they lived around the corner in the mid 1970s and recorded their first two albums.

I grab some vinyl from Readings Bookstore, pick up a limited edition Arctic Monkeys tour poster at the Beyond the Pale rock poster store, and check out some buskers in Acland Plaza before tucking into a fresh seafood marinara at Claypots - which comes with a side serve of Elvis as part of Rohan Hammit’s long running tribute.

Swinging up Jackson Street, I wander past Rowland S. Howard Lane, named after the legendary guitarist and singer songwriter who provided the early menacing soundtrack to Nick Cave’s dark punk prince persona. Turn left at Grey Street and I walk past a giant mural of their early band the Birthday Party. George Lane Bar is an intimate venue now showcasing original live music four nights a week. But it was once part of the George building that housed the infamous Seaview Ballroom, where bands like the Birthday Party and a young Hunters & Collectors gave birth to Melbourne’s post punk sound in the late 1970s. It comes as no surprise to learn that in the 1830s, the area was called ‘’Punk Town’’.

Strolling down Fitzroy Street, I pass live venues Freddie Wimpoles, Fifth Province, the Victorian Pride Centre and the Prince Bandroom, which over the years has welcomed every character and subculture, from punks to ravers to drag queens.

I walk past Cleve Gardens where the late legendary First Nation artists Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter used to jam, before sidling up to the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron for a sunset beer and live jazz.

So, what’s my verdict?

St Kilda has a smorgasbord of diverse live (venue) stock. From intimate laneway bars to glamorous theatres and halls, cocktail bars, sports and yacht clubs, classic 70s pub band rooms, and the glorious seaside setting of the country’s largest free festival, St Kilda has it all for live music fans. It is deserving of its Live Music Precinct status.

And unlike any other live music precinct I’ve visited, you can throw in a refreshing dip and a sunset cocktail for good measure.

Written by Patrick Donovan, former Music Victoria CEO.

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