Artists and industry speak out to save Brixton Academy: “It’d be a tragedy to lose such an iconic venue”

nme.com:

fatal crowd crush that occurred at an Asake concert. The event — which left two dead and one in critical condition — ultimately led to the academy having its licence suspended for three months.Earlier this week, however, the Metropolitan Police claimed to have “lost confidence” in the safety of the venue and made a push for the location to close its doors for good.The attempt to shut down the venue led to backlash from music lovers almost immediately.

This morning (April 28), it was reported that an online petition had launched on Change.Org to counteract the attempt, and had already gathered nearly 10,000 signatures.Within a matter of hours, the number of signatures has accelerated to nearly 15,000.A number of musicians and industry professionals have also weighed in on the debate — taking to social media to try and save the venue.“Lost count of the amount of times we’ve played Brixton Academy – it’d would be a tragedy to lose such an iconic venue,” wrote The Charlatans’ Tim Burgess, who shared four images documenting the band’s time at the location.Primal Scream bassist Simone Marie Butler also shared her thoughts on the debate, adding: “Brixton Academy is such an important and historic venue for south London and live music.

There is a police a station literally opposite, surely with new management / infrastructure + security it can be improved ? instead of just shutting it down?”American alt-rock icons Garbage spoke out against the choice on Twitter too, simply writing “Save Brixton Academy” and attaching a link to the online petition.