The Croxton Park Hotel, after all, has enjoyed a mixed reputation in recent years. Back in its 1970s halcyon days, the Croc was a major fixture in Melbourne’s suburban beer barn circuit, hosting bands of the calibre of Cold Chisel, The Angels, Sherbert and Rose Tattoo. Even North 2 Alaskans, the psychedelic cabaret act featuring a young Spencer P Jones, trod the stage at the Croc.
By the 1990s, the Croc had become a caricature of its former glorious self, a bland collage of pokie machines, cover bands and Friday night suburban sleaze. “I grew up in Thornbury, but I was too young to see any of the bands that played the Croc back in its heyday,” says Andrew Parisi, former booker at the Hi-Fi Bar in the Melbourne CBD. “And by the time I was old enough to go and see bands, the Croc was a pretty scary place, so I certainly didn’t spend my social years there.”
But cometh a new era, and cometh the Croc again, this time as an indie rock venue. About six months ago, Parisi, tipped off by a friend about the venue’s impressive but under utilised band room, dropped into the Croxton for a visit.
“I was totally impressed with the existing structure and totally amazed that it was sitting here, actually,” he says. “I kind of figured there would be a band room here, but I didn’t think it’d be in any kind of decent state. But when I popped in to have a look, I couldn’t believe the size of the infrastructure.”
Parisi arranged a meeting with the owners of the pub, the Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group, and pitched his idea to take over the booking of the Croxton Park Hotel’s live music entertainment. Aware the hotel’s live music patronage was declining, the owners agreed to Parisi’s pitch and the seeds of the Croc’s re-birth were sown.
Parisi promptly set about making various cosmetic and acoustic engineering changes to the band room. “We’ve brought some nice wallpaper in, and new lighting, just so you feel like you’re coming to a show,” he says. “I think that’s really important – as a young person, I really remember that feeling of when you walk in the door and you know you’re at a show. So it was really important that we de-corporatised the venue as much as we could and make it seem like a real band venue.”
But the really important change was to bring in a new PA system. “It’s the same system that runs at the Enmore and the Hi-Fi – a state of the art system, and a brand new fold-back system. It’s about having an international standard room, no matter who plays there, whether they’re a local band or overseas touring act.”
With a high number of musicians and music-loving punters already residing in Thornbury, Parisi agrees that the Croxton is ideally situated as a mid-sized music venue. “The demographic in the area has changed and Thornbury is a hub of cafes and bars, and you’ve got Thornbury Records a hundred metres up the road. I’ve never seen this street as busy as it is, ever in my life. So I think it was the obvious thing to have a venue of this size here – there’s really no venue of this size and calibre over in the north. There’s some fantastic band rooms like Howler and the Northcote Social Club, but there’s nothing of this size.”
The revitalised Croxton band room will be unveiled with a show featuring You Am I, supported by Bahamas and Fraser A. Gorman, on Thursday October 1. The following night sees The Drones teaming up with Augie March, while King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Sweden’s Goat will take the stage in early December. With shows booked right up until May 2015, Parisi is more than happy with his choice of venue.
“We’re getting lots of festival splinter shows, and most promoters are on board with the room, and we’re getting busier and busier as the months progress.”
No promises, but Parisi suggests the existing over-28s Friday night event may soon be a thing of the past. “I guess for the time being it’ll stay, but if something comes in on a Friday night, that’ll take precedence,” he laughs. “I guess the overall business will have to make a decision on that. Generally, the pub is a little bit tired and this is the sort of injection it needs. One of the decisions we’ve made is to steer away from the more heritage acts, at least to begin with. We need to tell the community that we’re encouraging new music and new bands, and not going for the safe, older audiences.”
BY PATRICK EMERY
