Iron Maiden‘s Bruce Dickinson has opened up about the rate at which venues in the UK are closing, sharing its “absolutely shocking”.
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In a new interview with the Daily Express, the frontman discussed the disappearance of the many small venues including the ones in which he got his start in the 1970s with his first band Samson.
“The state of small venues in Britain is absolutely shocking. Once venues go, they’re seldom replaced. When I started, shows were super-cheap. Then, bands would earn their money from their records’ royalties,” Dickinson shared.
He continued: “They don’t now and live music is the essence of everyone’s existence. We’ve got to the stage where it costs £100 to see even a low-level show.”
The singer also opened up about the closing of various pubs throughout Britain especially since the band have their own brand of beer named Trooper which features the band’s demonic mascot Eddie, as its logo. According to the Daily Express, over 35 million pints of the beer have been poured since it’s launch in 2013.
Iron Maiden performs at the Holiday Star Theater during their Beast on the Road Tour, Merrillville, Indiana, May 25, 1982. Pictured are Steve Harris and Bruce Dickinson. (Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images)
“Pubs are being closed down in a way that’s ignorant,” Dickinson said. “Pubs are either being closed altogether or are being ripped out so that they become a drinking factory, instead of anywhere with a sense of community. They become soulless, so that there’s no love or character there any more.”
Earlier this year, a report was published showing the “disaster” that struck the UK’s grassroots music venues in 2023, with calls increasing for a ticket levy on larger arenas and investment from the wider industry.
The Music Venue Trust shared their full report into the state of the sector for 2023. Among the key findings into their “most challenging year”, it was reported that last year saw 125 UK venues abandon live music and that over half of them had shut entirely – including the legendary Moles in Bath. Some of the more pressing constraints were reported as soaring energy prices, landlords increasing rate amounts, supply costs, business rates, licensing issues, noise complaints and the continuing shockwaves of COVID-19.
Overall, it was found that venues’ rent had increased by 37.5 per cent, with them operating at an average profit margin of just 0.5 per cent.
Earlier this month, artists and figures from the live music industry headed to Parliament to make the case to the UK government that there should be a mandatory £1 ticket levy on all gigs arena-sized and above, in order to secure the future of grassroots venues and artists.
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