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Whoever said rock’n’roll was back must have taken the needle off the record, because for many, it never went away. With the success of Cherry (Melbourne’s first CBD rock’n’roll bar) comes The Ding Dong Lounge – the sister bar to New York City’s very own of the same name. The Ding Dong Lounge’s grand opening at Level 1/18 Market Lane Melbourne on Saturday 14 June, is filling the void in Melbourne’s rock’n’roll scene – sure they got the venues and plenty of bands that want the limelight, but now comes a mid-sized venue that can be your after work drinking hole or a place to see some of the scene’s best local and international bands. The Ding Dong Lounge is nestled in the centre of Chinatown, but never before has a rock bar existed on this strip. The emphasis is on good music, definitely no electronica and stars a host of young DJs spinning the decks with everything from The Ramones, Television, T-Rex, The Runaways, AC/DC, Turbonegro, Iggy & The Stooges and a stack more vintage and contemporary rock to salute you. Read More for more insight into the new bar.

According to one of the bar’s owners Bill Walsh, Cherry has outgrown its capacity to cater for its rock’n’roll crowd – there’s just too many thirsty rock pigs wanting to pack the one den. But now its surrogate sister on the block, The Ding Dong Lounge, has joined the stable to lend a hand. “Instead of waiting for someone else to open up another rock bar we thought we would do it,” says Walsh. Rock’n’roll has stomped all over LA’s Sunset Strip and New York’s Bowery and East Village for decades. It’s indeed obvious that rock fans in Melbourne have craved a similar social set-up – a hangout that exists outside of pubs and extends beyond alternative radio stations. Ding Dong isn’t claiming to rewrite history and it doesn’t preach to be the new cool – it’s simply a venue that’s helping keep rock where it needs to be. “We have identified a need in Melbourne for a larger rock’n’roll bar which encompasses all things Cherry including good drinks, friendly staff and great music. All this will be prevalent at the Ding Dong Lounge,” says Walsh. The Ding Dong Lounge in New York City is a dimly lit bar, decorated in band posters, cuckoo clocks, cosy corners and a spacious dancing area. Beer is poured from taps that are made from used guitar and bass necks. Bands that have played there include the Demolition Doll Rods, Cosmic Psychos, The Real Kids and the Lyres. According to Steve Naidich, who owns Ding Dong New York with partner Bill Nolan, their bar is one of a last dying breed in the city. “It's really old school New York - people in the know, "know". There are no neon signs outside, there's no advertising, and no fanfare. But once you've found it, you're back every night, you're telling everybody you know about it…That's what keeps people coming back.” Walsh was approached by his New York friends Bill Nolan and Steve Naidich to open a sister bar in Australia – they chose Melbourne because it is driven by the same sophisticated rock appreciation that NYC is renowned for. “We liked the New York connection because of the similarities in good music, they are both stylish cities and people in both places have a similar taste in this kind of venue,” says Walsh. “The Ding Dong Lounge in the two greatest cities on the planet? What's not to like? But not sure that we like the idea of putting vegemite in the Bloody Mary’s,” says Naidich. “We're working on a Ding Dong Bagdad!!” The concept of a rock bar is just that, a concept to many fly-by-night opportunists, but the Ding Dong is something more than a concept. “There will always be a need for the counter-culture place to be subverse and get drunk,” says Naidich. “It's punk versus disco. The real trend in NYC right now is the fancy lounge. But there's something phoney, fly-by-night about these places. They're not going to be around in five years.” “There’s so many electronic lounge bars in Melbourne,” adds Walsh. “Most of them are boring as bat shit and no one gets laid there. Why not have a bar where people can get drunk and get laid.” To celebrate the opening of the bar, the two Ding Dong Lounges are giving punters a chance to win a trip and get laid in NYC and those in NYC a trip to Melbourne with accommodation and airfares included. Raffle tickets are $25 and can be purchased from the venue. Only 250 tickets will be sold, so you’re in with a good chance to bite the Big Apple. www.dingdonglounge.com


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