Read our submission to the NSW Government's Social Issues Committee on “The State Of Live Music” sydneymusic.net/reads/sydney...
01.03.2026 09:34
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Read our submission to the NSW Government's Social Issues Committee on “The State Of Live Music” sydneymusic.net/reads/sydney...
Love music and in Sydney? @sydneymusic.net is doing a survey to collect feedback on our gig guide, and what our city needs. We'd hugely appreciate your input.
Takes 5 minutes:
sydneymusic.net/survey
A long but hopefully interesting letter on how @sydneymusic.net is doing as we close out 2025
(Spoiler alert — we're funded until EOFY)
BUILDING A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE MUSIC CULTURE: a community discussion Understanding our creative ecosystem, and how to make it work for everyone Sunday 30th November 7pm - 9pm Offbeat Collective 12 Fitzroy Street Marrickville (entry via Faversham laneway) Free - RSVP essential Food + Snacks provided
SYDNEY. Very excited to announce our second discussion on the viability of grassroots music culture, hosted in collaboration with Offbeat Collective.
No talks, no panels: just a full room discussion with whoever shows up.
Spaces *very* limited. RSVP essential.
events.humanitix.com/building-a-v...
BUILDING A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE MUSIC CULTURE a community discussion Understanding our creative ecosystem and how to make it work for everyone Tuesday 18th November 7pm - 9pm Institute of Post Colonial Studies 78-80 Curzon St, North Melbourne Free Entry Food + Snacks provided
Melbourne! I'm in your city next Tues to co-host a community discussion with local DIY producer and organiser Kuya Neil.
We'll be exploring what makes a healthy grassroots music ecosystem, why things have gone a bit off the rails, and how to rebuild.
Presented by @sydneymusic.net + Sound School
Sydney's most comprehensive gig guide @sydneymusic.net needs your help to stay in the game!
Our popular "Music In Every Corner" t-shirts and tote bags are getting another run and will be shipping soon.
Pre-order yours today!
store.sydneymusic.net
Steal our code! Start your own guide!
Instructions here:
github.com/sydneymusic-...
Introducing a brand new national gig guide directory! From the team behind sydneymusic.net
EVERY CORNER: FIND YOUR LOCAL GIG GUIDE There are 19 community-maintained gig guides across Australia* * that we've found so far All available on: everycorner.au
EVERY CORNER: FIND YOUR LOCAL GIG GUIDE There's music in every corner of this country Why not go exploring? everycorner.au
Is there a gig guide in your part of the country?
So far we've found 19 community-run gig guides across Australia.
Explore here:
everycorner.au ✨
Do you use @bandcamp.com? Today at @sydneymusic.net we did our first experiment with their new Playlists feature.
We've published BAYANG (tha Bushranger)'s amazing selection of discoveries as a playlist, available to stream by anyone with a Bandcamp account.
Go listen! bandcamp.com/sydneymusic/...
You can also read Harry's full interview about quitting Spotify exclusively in our email newsletter.
On: how he listens to music these days, why he doesn't see value in streaming and the behaviours it encourages, and why the future looks bright.
Plus, also from @joe.hardy.id.au: who owns Bandcamp?
Buy Some Music is so back baby! And we've got BAYANG (tha Bushranger) to help us kick things back off — fresh after deleting his music catalogue from streaming services.
BAYANG (tha Bushranger) on the rooftop of Canterbury Leagues Club Photo by @joe.hardy.id.au
Many of the Reads on our website had unintentionally been hidden. Now fixed!
Take a read of our archive: interviews with BAYANG (tha Bushranger), Party Dozen, Darren "D.C." Cross, Mara Schwerdtfeger, Nick Ward, plus selections & picks from curators and organisers across Eora.
sydneymusic.net/reads
"When are you going national?" is a question we get asked all the time at @sydneymusic.net
I'm convinced that gig guides do not scale: it's better that they're managed by people within the communities they serve.
So we decided to try a different approach: an old-fashioned links directory instead.
A source that makes a city’s music scene more visible and legible is crucial infrastructure. We started @sydneymusic.net as a non-profit gig guide because every other human-made discoverability resource by for-profit businesses had collapsed when the profits did, and scraped data can’t fill the void
Important time to be making as much noise as possible about the erosion of Australian music culture.
Includes some soundbites from my partner-in-crime @caitlinwelsh.bsky.social, @benleemusic.bsky.social, Tyson Koh (fbi radio), Floodlights, Starving Kids in Brissie, and the triple j team.
Here's the latest version of this chart, which I've shared previously: # of referrals to @sydneymusic.net from chatbots like ChatGPT and Perplexity.
In our latest newsletter I cover what the underlying effects of this trend are — and what it means for us.
Read it here:
mailchi.mp/sydneymusic/...
People Still Use Email Did you know that SydneyMusic sends out a weekly email with every gig in Sydney in one list with no ads?
SydneyMusic is getting some changes in the coming weeks.
One new experiment will be a reinvigorated email newsletter with extra editions featuring writing, interviews, links and round-ups.
The first of the new emails goes out at 10am. Sign up now:
sydneymusic.net/newsletter
Just had an interview (along with @caitlinwelsh.bsky.social) published in @benmaddenwriter.bsky.social's newsletter "Spin To Win"
We discuss @sydneymusic.net's imminent shutdown, what we experienced and learned, and some thoughts on where things are at.
I'll be on FBi Radio's Backchat program at 9am this morning to discuss @sydneymusic.net's impending closure.
Tune in here:
www.fbi.radio
We love our live music community. We have learned countless amounts about the beautiful, wonderful noise that comes from our diverse and multifaceted local music ecosystem. We’re grateful for the opportunity to shine a light on as much of it as we could uncover.
Sydney music forever.
Thank you to every one of our supporters that has helped us to get as far as we did.
The limited remaining funds in the organisation will be focused on transition and ensuring the organisation winds up well.
In the last 38 months we have researched and listed over 16,000 live music events. Every day we are told by readers that they have been inspired to go and see more live music than they otherwise would have because of our resource.
We’re saddened to report that SydneyMusic.net is ceasing operations and will no longer be online from Monday, the 15th of June. We had hoped that we would make it through a difficult period, but it has become clear that we can not go any further.
Help us get more people engaged with community-level live music! Our gig guide is at risk of shutting down due to a lack of funding.
Support us today: sydneymusic.net/support
The ATO has just advised that SydneyMusic Ltd. has now received DGR (Deductible Gift Recipient) endorsement.
SydneyMusic.net mascot Can Man with a trans flag, superimposed on a 35mm photograph of some Australian trees and a blue sky with a few clouds
Transgenre, SydneyMusic.net & Sock Drawer Heroes present... GENDER REVEAL a fundraiser for transgenre festival FVNERAL performing with a brand new lineup for the very first time with special guests Huck Hastings DJ Dad Bod 27 JUNE, 2025 ~ $20 ~ Lazy Thinking
TRANSGENRE is a music festival showcasing trans artists and providing a safe space for music fans of all ages to enjoy their art.
We're helping put on a fundraiser for the festival's next iteration, ft. Fvneral, Huck Hastings + DJ Dad Bod (aka Ben Lee)
Tickets:
events.humanitix.com/gender-revea...
Why does Australian music seem more invisible than ever? A discussion with Joe and Caitlin from SydneyMusic.net Register at sydneymusic.net/discussion
We're trying an experiment with a limited series of discussions about what we've learned being immersed in Sydney's underground for the last three years.
Full of data, research, observations and conversation starters.
Register your interest here:
sydneymusic.net/discussion
Want to help get more of Sydney engaged with local, community-level live music?
We're kicking off another fundraiser to secure our not-for-profit organisation's medium-term future. Even a couple of dollars a month makes a difference.
Please consider making a donation here:
sydneymusic.net/support
Every month our guide sees over 20,000 UBs to our website alone. 76% of surveyed users said they see more live music because of the work we do. Nearly 80% of users say they discover new music through the guide.
