Free entry, cheap pints and Naarm's best underground DJs, here's what's happening at The Vic Bar this September.
Forget velvet ropes and inflated door prices; The Vic has quietly become one of the best places in town to catch a proper DJ set without spending a cent to get in.
Fridays at The Vic hand the decks over to Melbourne’s underground selectors, with extended sets from DJs such as DJ Swella, AKA Zeb, Jasper Miles and many more.
Depending on the night, that might mean beautiful, left-of-centre selections built for cocktails and conversation, or groovy, dancefloor-ready cuts designed to kick the weekend off properly.
Come Saturday, the reins come off entirely. The northside venue shifts into a dedicated late-night party space, handing the room over to a rotating cast of Melbourne’s DJs, collectives and party crews each week.
The Vic Bar
- JAM HOT — Saturday 12 September
- FRESHLY SQUEEZED JAZZ — Saturday 19 September
- GROOVE ALLIANCE — Saturday 26 September
- Free entry
Check out our gig guide, our festival guide, our live music venue guide and our nightclub guide. Follow us on Instagram here.
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The focus stays firmly on selectors and sounds from across the city’s underground, spanning deep house, funk, balearic, disco and everything in between; all through a sound system built to actually do the music justice.
Each week brings a different pocket of the city’s dance music community through the door.
JAM HOT, founded back in November 2019 by mates and collaborators MBq, Wahl and DJ Swella, has become one of Naarm’s most respected DJ and party crews, moving freely between boogie, soulful house, disco, Balearic sounds, acid and expansive tech; whatever fits the moment.
FRESHLY SQUEEZED JAZZ returns for its second outing on 19 September, bringing another round of rhythm-heavy, cross-genre selections.
Naarm’s NALIITA headlines with her trademark energy across boogie, soul, disco and groove, joined by a back-to-back from Julius Myles (Burnin’) and Freshly Squeezed founder Tom Eclect (area3000), blending acid jazz, disco, house and global grooves.
Closing out the month, GROOVE ALLIANCE lands on 26 September. Founded by Bby Cass and Sleepy Jay, the collective curates events celebrating femme, queer, BIPOC and gender non-conforming artists, with an emphasis on connection, representation and keeping the dancefloor genuinely open to everyone.
Better still, none of it will cost you at the door; no tickets, no locked-in formula, just $10 pints of lager, cider and pale ale all night long.
It’s a solid excuse to head north and stay out later than planned.
For more information, head here.
This article was made in partnership with The Vic Bar.
