For live music venues like Camden’s Roundhouse, survival isn’t just an economic necessity – it’s cultural

Many can open but with social distancing in place this is not economically viable and the experience offered just isn’t what people want, writes James Moore

The Roundhouse has suffered a 70 per cent slump in income because of the pandemic (PA)

You’ll never experience it this quiet,” says Marcus Davey, the chief executive of Camden’s Roundhouse, in a half-whisper.

He’s taken me into the middle of the venue’s main hall, where we take in a silence that in more normal times you might have to go caving to experience. It’s not just that the venue is empty, as it has been since lockdown began in March. The air conditioning is off, so it’s uncomfortably warm. Ditto most of the lights. The stage has been taken down.

These, and other measures, are part of an emergency cost-cutting drive made necessary by a 70 per cent slump in income, caused by the pandemic.