63-408: The Dark Passion Play World Tour was a concert tour by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish , taking place from 2007 to 2009 in support of their sixth studio album, Dark Passion Play , released by Nuclear Blast on September 26, 2007; it was the first tour with former frontwoman Anette Olzon , who joined the band in 2006, after Tarja Turunen 's dismissal on October 21, 2005. During this tour,
126-479: A progressive death metal band, had released some demos and EPs in their early years in a simple death metal style, but in 1997 went a step forward. They changed their style to a mix of classical music with real classical and medieval instruments such as violin , viola , cello , flute , oboe , clarinet , crumhorn , keyboards and death metal , releasing their first symphonic metal studio album. Many new symphonic bands appeared or came to wide attention in
189-499: A sequencer . This is particularly characteristic of bands that feature deeper and more complex arrangements which could be more difficult for one or two keyboardists to reproduce faithfully in a live performance. It is more difficult to generalize about the role of the classic metal instruments (guitars, bass and drums), as they vary depending on the metal subgenre to which the symphonic band mostly associates. With varying frequency, symphonic bands may employ these instruments (as well as
252-416: A "pseudo-orchestral" sound, where parts are played idiomatically according to keyboard technique. This is particularly characteristic of lesser-known bands on tighter budgets. Some symphonic metal bands abstain from using keyboards entirely, preferring to use orchestral backing tracks pre-recorded by a live symphony orchestra and/or choir during an album session, or recorded using virtual software instruments in
315-670: A broad range of topics. As with two of its often overlapping elements, power metal and opera (including symphonic progressive rock ), fantasy and mythological themes are common. Concept albums styled after operas or epic poems are not uncommon. Bands in this genre may often feature a female lead vocalist, usually a soprano . Male vocalists ( baritone or bass-baritone ), are also common in gothic metal. Growling, death-metal-style vocals are not unknown but tend to be used less frequently than in other metal subgenres (a notable exception being Mark Jansen in Epica ). Backing vocals, often consisting of
378-609: A capacity increase to just under 5,000. The venue is currently run by the Academy Music Group after a rebranding in August 2004 and hosts a range of live acts and club nights. With the sale, the venue's title was changed to Carling Academy Brixton. In 2008, naming rights were purchased for £25.5 million by the O2 brand, owned by the Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica . Being one of
441-443: A choral ensemble or full choir , may be employed. It is common for bands, particularly female-fronted bands, to feature operatic lead vocals. Such bands may be referred to as operatic symphonic metal and include the likes of Epica , Nightwish ( Tarja Turunen , then Floor Jansen ), Haggard , Therion , Operatika, Dremora, Dol Ammad , Visions of Atlantis , Aesma Daeva , and Almora , among countless others. The operatic style
504-523: A classically trained soprano , Simone Simons , over a lush foundation of symphonic power metal ". The music of Epica has been described as combination of "a dark, haunting gothic atmosphere with bombastic and symphonic music". Like Within Temptation and After Forever, Epica has made use of an orchestra. Their 2007 album The Divine Conspiracy was a chart success in their home country. This blend of symphonic and gothic metal has also been arrived at from
567-418: A decibel record for a live gig at 137db, and Madonna 's gig in 2000, which was watched by an online audience of 9 million. In December 2022, two people died and others were seriously injured following a crowd crush at the door. As a result the venue was closed, with reopening subject to meeting council licensing conditions. It reopened on 19 April 2024. The venue started as a cinema and theatre in 1929 on
630-419: A fully qualified opera singer". Founding member, guitarist and vocalist Mark Jansen departed After Forever a few months after the release of their second album, Decipher . Jansen would go on to form Epica , another Dutch band that performs a blend of gothic and symphonic metal. Their debut album, The Phantom Agony , emerged in 2003 with music that combines Jansen's death grunts with the "angelic tones of
693-503: A key feature of the style, distinguishing symphonic from non-symphonic bands within the same metal subgenre. Other instruments, including guitars, bass and drums, may at times play relatively simple parts in contrast to the complex and nuanced keyboard and/or orchestral parts. Bands that do not use live orchestral instrumentation on their recordings or when playing live typically utilize factory presets on workstation keyboards (i. e., strings, choirs, pianos, pipe organs, etc.) to conjure up
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#1733086108198756-695: A subgenre definition could be attributable to any bands simply defining themselves as symphonic metal. Symphonic heavy metal and symphonic gothic metal bands are the main objects of such neglect of classification, originating the misperception of "symphonic metal" as a coherent and separated metal subgenre excluding symphonic black, death, and power metal bands. Symphonic elements are often implemented in songs by bands of other subgenres. Symphonic black metal has similar components as melodic black metal , but uses keyboarding or instruments normally found in symphonic or classical music. It can also include black metal bands that make heavy usage of atmospheric keyboarding in
819-952: A three-movement epic performed by the band at the Royal Albert Hall in London with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra , the Moody Blues , with Days of Future Passed , and the Nice , with Five Bridges . Black Sabbath followed suit with "Spiral Architect" and "Supertzar". Other bands began to experiment with heavier songs with arrangements, such as " Ma Ma Ma Belle " by Electric Light Orchestra . Symphonic metal can be traced to some early death metal and gothic metal bands who made use of symphonic elements in their music, notably Swiss extreme metal pioneers Celtic Frost , using French horn on their 1985 release To Mega Therion (which inspired
882-411: Is not tied exclusively to symphonic metal, but may appear in avant-garde metal , progressive metal and gothic metal. Many bands featuring operatic female vocalists also have a male vocalist who uses harsh vocals for contrast, in a vocal style often referred to as "beauty and the beast". Among the first rock bands to use orchestral elements were Deep Purple , with Concerto for Group and Orchestra ,
945-466: Is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guitars of metal with different elements of orchestral classical music , such as symphonic instruments, choirs and sometimes a full orchestra, or just keyboard orchestration. Symphonic metal bands can feature classically trained vocalists, in which case they can be attributed nicknames such as opera metal or operatic metal . Perhaps
1008-585: The Over the Hills and Far Away EP . He was not afraid that Olzon would not be able to perform the songs that Turunen usually sang, because even on her demo she showed her ability performing for example " Ever Dream " and "Higher Than Hope", but he has confirmed that " The Phantom of the Opera ", " Passion and the Opera " and "Stargazers" would not be performed again, as those went beyond Olzon's non-operatic vocal style. Despite this,
1071-730: The O 2 brand ) is a mid-sized concert venue located in South London, in the Lambeth district of Brixton . Opening in 1929 as a cinema , the venue was converted into a discotheque in 1972, then reborn as a concert hall in 1983. It is owned by the Academy Music Group (AMG), and has become one of London's leading music venues, hosting over 50 live albums , and winning the NME Best Venue 12 times since 1994. It has been home to several notable performances, including The Smiths ' last gig (December 1986), Leftfield 's June 1996 concert which set
1134-548: The Prague Symphony Orchestra . Nightwish , Rhapsody of Fire and Within Temptation all released their first album in 1997. Within Temptation's sound was usually defined as gothic metal, being overall simpler than Nightwish's power metal, but both bands shared two frequent symphonic metal elements: powerful female lead vocals from Tarja Turunen and Sharon den Adel respectively, and the heavy use of classically influenced keyboard playing. Haggard , which started as
1197-468: The Rank Organisation . In 1981, the venue was remodelled by Sean Treacy, who later ran the entire site services, was re-opened as a rock venue called "Fair Deal" with a concert by UB40 and an interior restoration. The Clash played the venue in 1982 on their Casbah Club tour (30 July) but the venue closed later that year due to debt. In 1983, Simon Parkes bought the venue for £1, and re-opened it as
1260-532: The Brixton Academy. The academy's success steadily grew throughout the 1980s with numerous reggae productions and it was hired out to major rock and pop acts such as The Rolling Stones , Eric Clapton , Dire Straits and the Police for rehearsal. The venue was also used for video shoots for Wham! ( Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go ) and Culture Club . Parkes would go on to write a book about his experience of running
1323-552: The Centuries , has been described as death metal–styled symphonic metal. Make Them Suffer is a band that mixes deathcore with symphonic/classical elements in their earlier material. Other bands that have mixed deathcore with symphonic metal include Winds of Plague , Shadow of Intent , Lorna Shore (in their recent material, most notably Pain Remains ) and Betraying the Martyrs ,
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#17330861081981386-469: The Demonknight" and "Erian's Mystical Rhymes". Finnish band Nightwish , who debuted the same year, also performed symphonic power metal, their style being well exemplified by songs like "Wishmaster" from the album Wishmaster and the rest of their discography until the year 2000. Since the album Century Child , they gradually decreased their power metal influences, with songs like "Ghost Love Score" from
1449-587: The Dutch Within Temptation in 1996, expanded on this approach. A debut album, Enter , was unveiled in the following year, followed shortly by an EP, The Dance . Both releases made use of the beauty-and-beast approach delivered by vocalists Sharon den Adel and Robert Westerholt . Their second full-length, Mother Earth , was released in 2000 and dispensed entirely with the death metal vocals, instead "relying solely on den Adel's majestic vocal ability", apart from one B-side track that did not make
1512-630: The European leg the band started to play a version of Megadeth 's Symphony of Destruction , occasionally replaced by the original " While Your Lips Are Still Red ", both featuring Marko Hietala on led vocals. In the second North American leg in 2008 the band brought back their "Come Cover Me" song, played until the end of the Latin American tour in November. Some old songs like "Dead Boy's Poem", "Romanticide" and "Ghost Love Score" have only been performed by
1575-572: The Netherlands. A typical example of their most symphonic sound can be heard in the songs "Jillian (I'd give my Heart)" and "Our Solemn Hour". Another Dutch band in the symphonic gothic metal strain is After Forever . Their debut album, Prison of Desire in 2000, was "a courageous, albeit flawed first study into an admittedly daunting undertaking: to wed heavy metal with progressive rock arrangements and classical music orchestration - then top it all off with equal parts gruesome cookie-monster vocals and
1638-581: The Opera when they established their symphonic power metal style, mainly with the song "And Then There Was Silence". They gradually composed more and more symphonic songs such as "Sacred Worlds" and "Wheel of Time", both featured on the album At the Edge of Time , and "The Ninth Wave", "At the Edge of Time", "The Throne" and "Grand Parade" from their latest album, Beyond the Red Mirror . They also made orchestral versions of previously released songs like "The Lord of
1701-598: The Rings" and "Theatre of Pain", both included on the compilation album The Forgotten Tales . Blind Guardian went deeper into symphonic music with the album Legacy of the Dark Lands , a fully orchestral album composed by singer Hansi Kürsch and guitarist André Olbrich that kept the band's spirit but was credited to the Blind Guardian Twilight Orchestra, as Hansi was the only member of the band to perform on
1764-644: The United States, Canada, most of Europe, Asia, and Australia. In 2008, the band played over 100 shows, with concerts in Oceania, Europe and Asia. In November, the band played in South America, and later took a three-month break; Nightwish started the third leg in 2009, with dates in North America and Europe, and also attended various summer festivals, including Graspop Metal Meeting and Masters of Rock . The last show
1827-557: The World" and "The Siren" were included in the usual set list, remaining until the end of the tour. During this European leg, the Irish musician Troy Donockley joined the band on stage to play Uilleann pipes on " The Islander " and "Last of the Wilds", and the native-American singer John Two-Hawks joined the band in a few dates to sing and play flute on "Stone People" and "Creek Mary's Blood". Also during
1890-527: The album Once , "The Poet and the Pendulum" from the album Dark Passion Play and "The Greatest Show on Earth" from the album Endless Forms Most Beautiful as the best examples of their new course making a more extensive use of orchestral elements. German band Blind Guardian also introduced some symphonic elements in the album Nightfall in Middle-Earth , although it wasn't until 2002 with A Night at
1953-498: The album. Symphonic gothic metal was first pioneered by American band Saviour Machine . One of the first gothic metal bands to release a full album featuring "beauty and the beast" vocals, where death metal vocals are contrasted with clean female vocals, was the Norwegian Theatre of Tragedy in 1995. From then on after the departure of lead singer Liv Kristine in 2003, she and her future husband, Alexander Krull , formed
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2016-570: The band played for the first time in Israel, China, Hong Kong, Lithuania, Luxembourg , Republic of Ireland, Serbia and Croatia . On September 22, 2007, the band hosted a secret concert at Rock Café in Tallinn , Estonia, disguising itself as a Nightwish cover band called "Nachtwasser". Their first official concert with the new singer was in Tel Aviv , Israel on October 6, 2007. The tour thus started, visiting
2079-508: The band since in the 2009 tour dates, starting in London's Brixton Academy on March 11, and Olzon has performed " Kuolema tekee taiteilijan " without the support of the band during a festival in Sweden. Holopainen has also revealed that the band rehearsed Elvenpath with Olzon, but that the song "didn't work" well enough to be performed live. The final concert at Hartwall Areena in Helsinki featured
2142-493: The basic, non-symphonic style of their subgenre. However, it is worth noting that the term is sometimes used to describe stylistic elements increasingly present in a growing number of metal music subgenres. The term "symphonic metal" denotes any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements; "symphonic metal" then is not so much a subgenre but rather a cross-generic designation. A few bands simply refer to themselves as "symphonic metal", particularly Aesma Daeva , and
2205-524: The biggest non-arena music venues in London, the academy has been used by many very successful acts. It has also been voted venue of the year 12 times since 1994 in the annual NME Awards . In addition the venue has won the Music Week Award for Venue of the Year several times including 2009. A crowd crush outside a performance by Asake on 15 December 2022 seriously injured four people, two of whom died in
2268-459: The concert and that this was something he really wanted to do, but that the locale they needed was already booked for two years in advance. The show was never played though, but according to Holopainen it is still in the future plans for other tours. Dispelling the rumours that Anette Olzon would never be capable of performing old Nightwish hit songs, the band used a set list containing songs from all their album, except for Angels Fall First and
2331-506: The early to mid 2000s, including Rain Fell Within, After Forever , Epica , Delain , Leaves' Eyes , Xandria , and Edenbridge , all featuring female vocals and the characteristic keyboards. Power metal, with its relatively upbeat fantasy themes and stylized keyboard sounds, tended to be an important influence on these groups. The term "symphonic metal" has sometimes been applied to individual songs or albums by bands that belong primarily to
2394-609: The final album release. The album was a commercial success, with their lead single, " Ice Queen ", topping the charts in Belgium and their native Netherlands. Their third album, The Silent Force , arrived in 2004 as an "ambitious project featuring a full orchestra and 80-voice choir accompanying the band". The result was another commercial success across Europe and introduced "the world of heavy guitars and female vocals" to "a mainstream audience". Within Temptation's brand of gothic metal combines "the guitar-driven force of hard rock with
2457-459: The following days. The Guardian cast doubt on early reports that people were trying to force their way in without a ticket. The newspaper also questioned the management of the building and its entrances. As a result of the crowd crush, Lambeth councillors met in the early hours of 22 December 2022 and decided to suspend the academy's operating licence following the "severity of events" and "risks to public safety" from "a lack of crowd control at
2520-520: The former and the latter were brought back when Floor Jansen joined the band in 2012. The ballad " Eva " was performed only a few times in the tour, as well as " Sleeping Sun ", while "Cadence of Her Last Breath" and "She Is My Sin" haven't been performed since the 2008 concerts in Australia. During the 2008 European leg, "Slaying the Dreamer" and "She Is My Sin" were performed in selected dates while "Dead to
2583-494: The front doors". The licence was suspended until a full hearing on 16 January 2023, when it was suspended for a further three months. The BBC reported that security staff were said to accept bribes to allow people in without a ticket. In April 2023 the Metropolitan Police stated that they had no confidence in the holder of the venue's licence and that they were applying for the licence to be revoked. In September 2023,
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2646-461: The genre through their use of a live orchestra and classical compositional techniques; gradually these elements became a more important part of Therion's music than their death metal roots. Another key early influence was Finnish progressive metal band Waltari 's album Yeah! Yeah! Die! Die! Death Metal Symphony in Deep C . In mid-1996 Rage released Lingua Mortis , the band's first collaboration with
2709-497: The genre. Many people who participate in this genre of metal music have a degree in musical thought or have been taught how to sing in a classical style. The metal subgenres most typically featuring a subset of symphonic bands are gothic metal , power metal , black metal , death metal and classic heavy metal . As with many other metal bands, those adopting a symphonic style may feature influences from several metal subgenres. Music workstation keyboards and orchestras are often
2772-482: The latter being known to "temper the punishing brutality of deathcore with melodic flourishes pulled from symphonic and progressive metal, giving it a theatricality that feels distinctly European." Brixton Academy Brixton Academy (originally known as the Astoria Variety Cinema , previously known as Carling Academy Brixton , currently named O 2 Academy Brixton as part of a sponsorship deal with
2835-442: The lead vocals) to play more simple, catchy melodies than non-symphonic bands, which arguably make the symphonic metal style one of the most accessible in metal. Songs are often highly atmospheric, though more upbeat than those of many non-symphonic metal bands; songs with morbid themes routinely feature prominent major-key fanfares. Particularly central to creating mood and atmosphere is the choice of keyboard timbre . Lyrics cover
2898-433: The most pioneering and prominent examples of symphonic metal bands are Swedish band Therion , Finnish band Nightwish , German band Xandria , Italian band Rhapsody of Fire , American bands Lorna Shore and Trans-Siberian Orchestra , and Dutch bands Epica and Within Temptation . Those bands place a large focus on elements prevalent in film scores in addition to the more basic classical components utilized more widely in
2961-430: The music when compared to regular power metal, contributing not only an extra layer to the music, but a greater variety of sound. Bands in this genre often feature clean vocals, with some bands adding relatively small quantities of screams or growls. The first prototypical symphonic power metal song was " Art of Life ", a twenty-nine-minute song performed by Japanese heavy metal band X Japan in 1993. A defining role for
3024-548: The music, akin to symphonic metal or gothic metal . The symphonic aspects of this genre are normally integral parts of a band, and as such are commonly used throughout the whole duration of a song. The prototypical symphonic black metal bands are Dimmu Borgir , Cradle of Filth , Emperor and Carach Angren . Symphonic power metal refers to power metal bands that make extensive usage of keyboards, or instruments normally found in classical music, similar to symphonic metal. These additional elements are often used as key elements of
3087-550: The naming of symphonic metal pioneers Therion) and more prominent symphonic orchestra on their 1987 album Into the Pandemonium . NWOBHM band Golgotha's Orchestral Stab (1988) – later remixed as Unmaker of Worlds (1990) – also combined metal and heavily orchestrated sections. An early prototypical symphonic metal song was "Dies Irae" by American Christian thrash metal group Believer . Appearing on their 1990 album Sanity Obscure , it foreshadowed
3150-507: The operatic approach used by the bands Therion and Nightwish . According to Jeff Wagner in his book Mean Deviation , the song was a creative watershed in metal, and except for Mekong Delta , no other extreme metal band at the time had merged the genre with classical music so seamlessly. The gothic metal band Saviour Machine , which formed in 1989 and released its first studio album in 1993, has also been referred to as symphonic metal. The band Therion were influential in forming
3213-748: The opposite direction. The band Nightwish from Finland began as a symphonic power metal act and introduced gothic elements on their 2004 album Once , particularly on the single " Nemo ". They continued to mix their style of "bombastic, symphonic and cinematic" metal with a gothic atmosphere on their next album, Dark Passion Play , in 2007. The Swedish group Therion also introduced gothic elements to their brand of symphonic metal on their 2007 album Gothic Kabbalah . Bands described as symphonic death metal include Ex Deo , Septicflesh , Children of Bodom , MaYaN , and Fleshgod Apocalypse . Eternal Tears of Sorrow adds gothic/symphonic elements to melodic death metal . Haggard 's 2000 album, Awaking
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#17330861081983276-587: The police stated that they were not opposed to the venue reopening, but simply opposed to AMG operating it. On 15 September 2023 Lambeth Council announced that the venue was permitted to re-open after the incident, providing they meet new licensing conditions including strengthened doors, a new security contractor and additional safety procedures. A full list of the conditions is published online by Lambeth Council. The venue reopened on 19 April 2024. The Smiths played their last gig here in December 1986 which
3339-489: The previously never performed song "Meadows of Heaven", also including an acoustic version of " Walking in the Air " and the unreleased cover of "The Heart Asks Pleasure First" recorded for Dark Passion Play was also played while the band left the stage. Cancelled dates Guest musicians Symphonic metal Symphonic metal is a cross-generic style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It
3402-564: The site of a private garden in Stockwell Road. Designed by the architects Thomas Somerford and E. A. Stone, it was built at a cost of £250,000 as an "Astoria" theatre. The opening show was the Al Jolson film The Singing Fool , followed by a variety act, including Heddle Nash and Derek Oldham which was broadcast by the BBC . The theatre eventually closed its doors as a cinema on 29 July 1972. It
3465-658: The style's development was played by Italian band Rhapsody of Fire since their groundbreaking 1997 debut, Legendary Tales , first with a baroque approach influenced by Vivaldi and Paganini , and subsequently with a growing film-score-oriented turn employing full orchestras and choirs. The influence of symphonic and operatic music are equally audible in cognate bands Luca Turilli's Rhapsody and Turilli / Lione Rhapsody . Rhapsody's contributions to symphonic metal are best exemplified by short songs like "Emerald Sword", "Dawn of Victory" and "Lamento Eroico", and long suites such as "Gargoyles, Angels of Darkness", "The Mystic Prophecy of
3528-417: The sweep and grandeur of symphonic music". The critic Chad Bowar of About.com describes their style as "the optimum balance" between "the melody and hooks of mainstream rock, the depth and complexity of classical music and the dark edge of gothic metal". The commercial success of Within Temptation has since resulted in the emergence of a large number of other female-fronted gothic metal bands, particularly in
3591-424: The symphonic metal band Leaves' Eyes . The band is one of the pioneers of the "beauty and the beast" vocal style. The contrasting styles of vocals are also sometimes performed by only one vocalist, an example of this being Ambre Vourvahis of Xandria , combining and layering her clean (and occasionally operatic) vocals with her deep gutturals on the band's 2023 album The Wonders Still Awaiting . Other bands, such as
3654-408: The term is applied by some to generically ambiguous metal bands like Epica and post-2002 Nightwish . Following heavy metal's tradition of classifying its subgenres based on the differences among the musical structures in the electric, "metal" part of bands' sound, the label "symphonic" is usually prefixed to the subgenre to which a band mostly belongs. No "symphonic metal" band being simply symphonic,
3717-562: The venue, Live At The Brixton Academy: A Riotous Life in the Music Business , which was published in 2014. In 1995, Parkes sold the theatre to Break for the Border. Under its new ownership (McKenzie Group), reinvestment started immediately, with a complete £500,000 refurbishment of the Art Deco building frontage to its original grandeur, additional facilities both front of house and backstage and
3780-535: Was an Anti- Apartheid benefit scheduled for the Royal Albert Hall but rearranged to the Brixton Academy due to Johnny Marr being involved in a car accident. The Ramones played their final European show at the venue on February 3, 1996, before touring for the last time in South and North America. Madonna played a special concert at the venue in 2000, to promote the release of her album, Music . The concert
3843-715: Was broadcast live online and was watched by a record-breaking audience of 9 million. Artists such as The Clash , Deborah Harry , The Prodigy , Arcade Fire , Nine Inch Nails and Bob Dylan have all played five consecutive nights at the venue. In 2002, Iron Maiden played three consecutive nights as a part of charity event "Clive Aid 2002". The band set the record for merchandise and ticket sales. The Mighty Boosh broke this record in 2008, with their second live show Boosh Live , playing seven consecutive nights. The xx equalled their record in March 2017, playing seven consecutive nights in support of third record I See You , becoming
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#17330861081983906-409: Was played at Helsinki Hartwall Areena , with an attendance of 11,000 people. For their Once album, Nightwish had planned to give a grand concert in London with a live orchestra, as the progressive metal band Dream Theater had done on what later would be their Score album, and this project is still in the works. In an interview in December 2007, Holopainen said that they have been planning
3969-531: Was then converted into a discotheque in September 1972, known as the "Sundown Centre". The club was not a success and closed down some four months later. In May 1974 planning permission was sought to demolish the Grade II listed building and replace it with a motor showroom and petrol station. However, the redevelopment scheme was scrapped. The building was kept heated after it closed, and was used as an equipment store by
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