Veteran Newcastle musician Ty Penshorn has slammed moves to shut down outdoor live music at Adamstown Bowling Club, saying neighbours have too much power in the debate.
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"Eight hundred people are so happy and loving it. You only need three complaints and the place is shut down," Mr Penshorn said after the Newcastle Herald reported on Tuesday that City of Newcastle had ordered the club to stop all outdoor music.
"We've just got loaded guns to our heads. It's tough."
The Adamstown club is one of a handful in Newcastle which have helped keep local musicians in work during the pandemic by opening up surplus greens for live music.
In most cases, the venues do not have approval for outdoor entertainment.
The council said on Tuesday that it had received "numerous noise complaints ... in relation to live amplified outdoor music" at the club.
Labor councillor Carol Duncan, whose ward two includes Adamstown, said she had "not received a single complaint about the live music operations or any other activities" of the club.
"We strongly support live music and will work with the club on applying for a DA, but we also realise that neighbours have to be taken into account," she said.
Mr Penshorn, who starred on reality television series The Voice with son Eddie this year, said Newcastle was losing its crown as the best live music city in Australia.
"We're a thriving city. People don't understand. Newcastle was the live music capital of the nation," he said.
"I'm from Brisbane. People moved here from Tamworth, Taree, even from Sydney and Melbourne, because there's more venues per square metre, per capita, than anywhere else in the country.
"They're gradually knocking them on the head one by one. Every year it's like we lost six more venues."
Lake Macquarie City Council said it was "generally supportive" of outdoor music at bowling clubs if the impact on neighbours was "appropriate".
It said it had received one noise complaint about Kahibah Sports Club, which had applied to Liquor and Gaming NSW to extend its licence boundaries to cover outdoor music.
"A spokesperson said low-impact music was allowed at clubs in some cases without approval but only outside residential zones.
Mr Penshorn's band, Hornet, was the last to play outdoors at Adamstown, from 2 to 5pm on a Sunday in early June.
The club has scheduled quieter acts outdoors since receiving the council letter.
"Every age demographic has to do what that one age demographic wants to do because they have the power with our council," he said.
"Why can one nanna control our entire city?
"It makes me just want to go set up on a rooftop like The Beatles and blast everyone."
He said bowling clubs like Adamstown had been a "saviour" for musicians during COVID.
"They're doing everything they can do to please everyone.
"It's been my sole income for 36 years. I lose my job, the hospitality people lose their job, the security guys lose their job. It's ridiculous.
"It's not at a rude level. It's not like Woodstock's happening next to their house."
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Michael Parris
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
