EXCLUSIVE: Get Your Complete Look At The Resurrected Lansdowne Hotel

9 June 2017 | 3:01 pm | Uppy Chatterjee

"We hope this springs more rooms of this size in Sydney again."

Ahead of next Thursday's hotly anticipated opening of the revamped Lansdowne Hotel in Sydney, the dudes behind Mary's and The Unicorn Hotel, Jake Smyth and Kenny Graham, gave The Music a little tour of the iconic venue and what it's gonna mean to Sydneysiders and music-lovers in the age of the lockouts.

Graham says, "We always joke that our mission statement is always 'don't fuck it up', so [there's] pressure yes [to make the Lansdowne's return great], but I'm not stressing about it. We embrace honesty as much as we can so I think we've kept the integrity of what it was and what it could be."

Smyth adds, "We feel like we're giving it the facelift the fucking pub deserves … we've done a good job, we feel, and the bones are here, and the venue's about the bands that are gonna play here. The room looks good, it sounds good, it's got all the bells and whistles a band could want from a room this size and then some. From there, all we gotta do is serve some delicious food and get people pissed — and we know how to do that."

"We want to be part of fostering a community that in Sydney has been punched in the dick for too long."

Band booker Matt Rule says, "One of the great advantages the Lansdowne has is history. It’s held a place in a lot of people’s hearts for a very very long time and that’s something money can’t buy.

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"One of the refreshing things about Jake and Kenny is that they totally respect that history and everyone will see in the renovations they have done and a few old school ideas that will be refreshed from the pubs past that is the case. In saying that that whilst history is lovely, being able to renovate an iconic venue like the Lansdowne from the ground up allows you to learn and improve on the mistakes and limitation of others. The guys are creating a venue and pub that the Lansdowne dreamt of being for the last 25 years.

"Having a dedicated venue space, with its own bar, and outdoor area is unique in Sydney and creates a space that is more than just a place to see a band and leave, it will be a destination of its own. Throw in the an incredible downstairs pub with food and service only Kenny and Jake can provide and we’re talking about a fucking killer all round Sydney pub."

With the upstairs band room hosting an estimated 250-300 punters, the duo — along with Rule — want to create a live music space for everyone and anyone. Rule says they have a commitment to having an appetite for "all genres" — even "all the old bastards". 

"Because I'm one and I need a place to hang out with people who are still as sharp as fuck as I am," Rule jokes.

Smyth echoes the sentiment. "We want all different bands, we want fuckin' cowboy music, honky tonk, I want fuckin' bands whether they're electro or they're fucking DJs, or a two-piece. If they can fill the room, we want them here, if they're local or international or just from interstate.

"We want to be part of fostering a community that in Sydney has been punched in the dick for too long. We're all ready for a change and we're all lucky here in that we're outside the lockouts. Hopefully and honestly, we hope this springs more rooms of this size in Sydney again. If a young band wants to play on a Friday night for 250 or 300 people, this is one of the only fucking places they can do it right now, and that is fucking sad. They shouldn't have to fight with international touring acts to play in their own fucking city."

The band room isn't all that's on offer at the new and improved Lansdowne. The downstairs will feature some killer food — including old school American-style pizza and burgers — and a burlesque room at the back where a pokie room might have gone.

Smyth says, "No pokies, no fuckin' way. What we're trying to do is create community, not rip one apart. So there was no way."

Renovation-wise, the team have moved the kitchen, created entirely new ceilings, shifted the toilets and created a backroom where there was a car park, while decor-wise, there are many homages to the Lansdowne it used to be, along with new art from artist Jessica Cochrane featuring old Playboy magazine covers. Plenty of wheatpasted magazine clippings remain on the wall, along with coloured-in Lansdowne coasters and Sharpie etchings created by the team themselves while renovating up the place. Graham points out, "There's still a to-do list written on the wall over there, it's just a lot of stories, so we kept as much as we could." 

There's also a huge 'Welcome Home' tagged in black ink in the main room downstairs, which the duo explain was done a few weeks ago by an apprentice electrician working on the venue. "It's shit but it's fucking great, and the message is perfect because that's how we want people to feel when they come here," Smyth says.

It's exciting times for the team as they put all the finishing touches on the place ahead of their first handful of gigs from bands like Gold Class, The Hard-Ons, Saskwatch and The Delta Riggs.

"The Lansdowne is more than just me and Kenny or Matt and Dan Rule," Smyth says.