Last week got off to a fantastic start... We had a home, league pool night on Tuesday, which was lovely, as it has been a while. The pool summer league only started back a couple of weeks ago and we had a few dates where neither of our 2 teams were playing at home, so having a bit of a crowd all drinking and playing pool on a Tuesday had been very much missed! Wednesday we had our monthly quiz and it was great fun. We were jam-packed with teams and there was a fantastic atmosphere. Thursday we had the official launch of our Jam Night and that was pure magic. We were humbled by the amount of fantastic musicians who came down to take part and the whole night was brilliant! Then Friday and Saturday we had 2 awesome rock party bands, Bottle Kids and Dynamite Chicken followed by our chilled Sunday Vibes session Sunday afternoon. Friday was Friday the 13th and whilst we aren't particularly superstitious, there was no denying that the night was definitely a bit odd!
It was a free entry gig on Friday, which was a bit of an experiment for us. Free entry Friday's have in the past been far quieter than ticketed gigs (we appreciate the irony in that). We think it's probably due to Fridays being generally a bit quieter in Leighton Buzzard, meaning there is a lack of footfall. So by targeting an audience through ticketing, we attract more custom as well as being able to host slightly bigger circuit gigs that wouldn't be affordable as a free entry event in a venue our size. On the whole, we are pretty happy with our ticketed gigs, however we fully appreciate that the post-apocalyptic world is constantly changing and we don't want to shoot ourselves in the foot by not being willing to adapt. Bottle Kids had gigged for us once before, having filled a last minute slot due to Covid and they were great, so we were keen to get them back to gig again. Friday 13th was the only available date that worked for both us and the band, so we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to host a free entry gig and see if we were missing out on local Friday night footfall.
Unfortunately, the experiment just proved that Friday footfall is still thin on the ground. Whilst we had a small crowd into enjoy the band, numbers were far lower than previous Friday events. In fact the whole town was so eerily quiet on Friday, we half suspected there had been a bomb scare! So (with a rare couple of exceptions due to scheduled festivities) we will now be continuing with ticketed Fridays for the foreseeable.
Saturday night was busier, but the good weather, FA cup final and Eurovision had taken their share of our usual trade. As the evening went on customers continued to trickle in and eventually, (to our relief) the room filled.
So all in all, the weekend felt a little odd, but in the end live music, great beer, good food and an awesome atmosphere prevailed!!! On top of a brilliant midweek quiz and Jam Night and another successful weekend of The Pie Nest, we had two great gigs from Dynamite Chicken (with their Crow debut) and Bottle Kids. And we can now confidently say to all those who think we are missing a trick by ticketing our Friday gigs, "Poo to you with nobs on".
Our Pie Nest will be landing once again this weekend with delicious Pieminister pie & mash street food, available Saturday & Sunday 12-4pm. This weeks Pie of the Week is Moo & Blue (British steak & stilton). Plus we have our Jamaican inspired patties at 2 for £5 for those of you who want to partake in a nibble.
We are open as just a bar this Wednesday and Thursday 3-11pm. Well, we say JUST a bar, what we mean is an awesome bar with great beers, Crow Cocktails, Jugs of Pimms (it's officially Summer time, so why not?!), great tunes, pool, darts, board games and a fantastic atmosphere! Free entry, over 16s only, outside food allowed and dogs welcome.
Then onto the weekend... It's gonna be a big'en!!!
Friday 20th, 8.30pm: 6 Little Fingers
We are SO excited for this gig, it has been a long time a coming!!!
We have 6 Little Fingers, an awesome tribute to punk legends Stiff Little Fingers, (NI, hard hitting, 70s punk band famed for their raw, high energy classics such as Altenative Ulter, Suspect Device, State of Emergency, Tin Soldier, Barbed Wire Love & many more)
+ support form The Atomics (new wave/post punk/power pop classic hits)
Tickets just £5!
Doors: 8.30pm
Limited tickets available on the door
*Pie Nest available Sat/Sun 12-4pm
Saturday 12-6pm: BYO Vinyl
Come and give your favourite vinyl a spin on our twin Technics 1200s + mixer and hear it through our fantastic Studiomaster PA.
All genres welcome - Friendly atmosphere - Free Entry - No pre booking needed
This is not a DJ session (no ego's, no scratching/mixing tracks, just chilled vibes & good tunes)!
Dogs welcome (but not to use the decks)!
Over 16s only
Saturday 9pm: That's What She Said
These lads played us a few times throughout the pandemic and we absolutely loved their set! We are SO excited that this time we can legally dance along and trust us, you will want to!!! They play a blend of pop-punk classics and punked-up cheesy pop (think pop-punked Britney and Backstreet Boys... it might be shameful, but it's shamefully good)!!!!
Free Entry & we recommend you arrive early to ensure entry
Sunday Vibes: 12-4pm
Great tunes,
Pie & Mash available,
Fantastic beer/cocktails/coffee,
Chilled, friendly atmosphere,
Pool, darts and board games available to play.
Free Entry.
Over 16s only. Dogs welcome.