FIRST LOOK: WA Live Music Venue The Den Gets A Serious Overhaul

Going back a few years, WA’s Civic Hotel had a vibrant and diverse event calendar, with countless local and touring bands setting up in the venue’s main room and smaller space, The Den.

But, for one reason or another, their bustling gig guide dried up and The Den, with its DIY feel, dropped off gig posters.

That’s where local punk rocker Matt Hatton (Two For Flinching) and his business partner, Clare Martella, come into play, with the duo reviving the Inglewood space under the banner Mad Hatter Productions, installing professional sound equipment among other upgrades.

“I think it’s important to give back to the WA music scene for everything they have done for me personally and the way we are going to do it is to offer more value to musicians and gig-goers and attract bigger acts,” Hatton told The Music.

“I want to shake it up and create an innovative way to attract more touring bands.”

To do that, Hatton and Martella have given the 200-capacity room a visual makeover to match its production upgrade.

“It’s covered wall to wall in gig posters, has lights and tables created from old drums.

“It will also be completely customisable, this means we can move the stage from one side to the other, close off half of the space to create a more intimate setting and even have more than one stage for fest type gigs.”

They’re also offering some perks that a lot of other venues have done away with over the years.

“We’re offering free accommodation upstairs for bands, free airport transfer for bands touring our great state and backline so artists don’t have to lug equipment around or worry about their kit getting damaged.”

Mad Hatter Productions have already locked in 10 dates, with the grand reopening set for this Saturday night. The future will see a spread of genres taking over the venue each week.

“My vision is to create a music community focused on building amazing events attracting even more bigger and better acts to WA and stop getting overlooked by bands touring other states by cutting their costs down.”

Check out theGuide for more info.