One of the Coast’s most popular live music venues was forced to permanently shut its doors last week. Management says it was being squeezed from all sides – by soaring insurance premiums, rising rents and wages, higher alcohol excise, shifting consumer habits and growing competition from poker machine-funded pubs offering bigger guarantees to bands.
Established in Coolum in 2001 before relocating to Ocean Street in Maroochydore, Solbar became synonymous with original live music.
Weekly gigs, open mic nights and national touring artists and bands turned the venue into a cultural anchor point, earning it Best Regional Venue in Queensland at the Queensland Music Awards three times – most recently in 2023.
But co-owner Dimitris Limnatitis says accolades do not pay the bills.
“Our insurance (premiums) have gone up 400 per cent,” he says.
“Then, you’ve got rent going up every year with the CPI at four per cent, security costs doubling, wages increasing and excise taxes through the roof.
“We can’t just double our drink prices or double the door price.
“The consumer’s wages didn’t double.”
He adds that patrons are going out less often and spending fewer dollars on alcoholic drinks when they do.
At the same time, touring has become more expensive for artists, reducing the number of shows on regional circuits.
That contraction has intensified competition, and venues such as Solbar were losing out to larger pubs backed by poker-machine revenue.
“(Pubs) can offer guaranteed money to bands that we can’t match,” Dimitris says.
“They’re not relying on the door. For us, the door goes to the band.”
He argues that the result is a creeping monopoly that sidelines culture-driven venues. Solbar held a hotel licence but chose not to install poker machines.
“That’s not our vibe. From day one, it was about culture, about live original music,” he says.
The closure follows other high-profile losses. Terella Brewing at North Arm announced it’s set to close its doors by the middle of this month after a protracted dispute with Sunshine Coast Council over planning and land-use approvals. Late last year, The Station in Birtinya shut down after alleged mounting financial losses and declining bookings.
Dimitris started Solbar while living in a caravan park, determined to create a dedicated live music space. Over the years, the venue attracted touring acts from across Australia and beyond.
Former Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett chose to perform there after leaving politics, drawn by its reputation and intimacy, and his show drew fans from interstate.
“We’re part of Australia-wide tours,” Dimitris says. “We have put the Sunshine Coast on the map. We have put Queensland on the map. We have put Australia on the map.”
Despite Solbar often appearing busy, he insists turnover no longer aligned with rising operating costs. He says patrons used to buy an average of four drinks but that dropped to one or two as they had to factor in fuel or taxi fares to their visit.
But Dimitris insists people have a choice: they can stay at home and watch Netflix or they can “come out and support us”. He argues you can’t beat the magic and electricity of live music.
“You can’t download that experience,” he says.
He believes government support has not kept pace with the tax revenue drawn from the hospitality sector.
“It’s our government. The excise tax on alcohol – it’s trillions of dollars the government (is taking). What have they done for the industry?”
Solbar’s closure leaves emerging musicians, comedians and visual artists searching for new stages. Dimitris says while the decision was ultimately a business one, it felt deeply personal.
“You cannot buy culture: you gotta create it; you gotta make it,” he says. “You can’t make a musician. You can’t make talent. They need platforms like ours.”
As the Coast farewelled the music institution, Dimitris warns that without structural change, more independent venues may follow, leaving the live music landscape increasingly dominated by corporate operators and fewer spaces dedicated purely to the art form.
“If someone said: ‘Look, I want to recreate Solbar, I’ve got $5 million. Guess what? You’re not gonna succeed. I promise you, it’s not a recipe that we created.”
